The etiology of pectus carinatum involves overgrowth of costal cartilage and undergrowth of ribs

Purpose

We compared the length of costal cartilage and rib between patients with symmetric pectus carinatum and controls without anterior chest wall protrusion, using a 3-dimensional (3D) computed tomography (CT) to evaluate whether the overgrowth of costal cartilage exists in patients with pectus carinatum.

Subjects and methods

Twenty-six patients with symmetric pectus carinatum and matched twenty-six controls without chest wall protrusion were enrolled. We measured the full lengths of the 4th–6th ribs and costal cartilages using 3-D volume rendering CT images and the curved multiplanar reformatted (MPR) techniques. The lengths of ribs and costal cartilages, the summation of rib and costal cartilage lengths, and the costal index [length of cartilage/length of rib * 100 (%)] were compared between the patients group and the control group at 4th–6th levels.

Results

The lengths of costal cartilage in patient group were significantly longer than those of control group at 4th, 5th and 6th rib level. The lengths of ribs in patient group were significantly shorter than those of control group at 4th, 5th and 6th rib level. The summations of rib and costal cartilage lengths were not longer in patients group than in control group. The costal indices were significantly larger in patients group than in control groups at 4th, 5th and 6th rib level.

Conclusion

In patients with symmetric pectus carinatum, the lengths of costal cartilage were longer but the lengths of rib were shorter than those of controls. These findings may supports that the overgrowth of costal cartilage was not the only factor responsible for pectus carinatum.     

The Effectiveness of Cross-Tapering Switching to Ziprasidone in Patients with Schizophrenia or Schizoaffective Disorder

Objective

Switching antipsychotics is one useful therapeutic option when the treatment of schizophrenia encounters suboptimal efficacy and intolerability issues. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of cross-tapering switching to ziprasidone from other antipsychotics.

Methods

A total of 67 patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were recruited in this 12-week, multicenter, non-comparative, open-label trial. Prior antipsychotics were allowed to be maintained for up to 4 weeks during the titration of ziprasidone. Efficacy was primarily measured using the 18-item Brief Psychotic Rating Scale (BPRS) at baseline, 4 weeks, 8 weeks, and 12 weeks. Efficacy was secondarily measured by the Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) scale and the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale at each visit. Regarding the metabolic effects of switching to ziprasidone, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and lipid profile-including triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and total cholesterol levels-were measured at each follow-up visit.

Results

The BPRS scores were significantly improved at 12 weeks after switching to ziprasidone (F=5.96, df=2.11, p=0.003), whereas the CGI-S and GAF scores were not significantly changed. BMIs, WHRs, and TG levels were significantly decreased, with no significant changes in other lipid profiles.

Conclusion

Cross-tapering switching to ziprasidone is effective for patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Beyond the efficacy of the procedure, favorable metabolic profiles show that switching to ziprasidone may be helpful for maintenance therapy over an extended period.     

Effects of fermented Sorghum bicolor L. Moench extract on inflammation and thickness in a vascular cell and atherosclerotic mice model

Journal of Natural Medicines - Atherosclerosis is a major cause of coronary heart disease. As a result of the development of atherosclerotic lesions, the walls of blood vessels become thicker and...     

Xpert Carba-R assay for detection of carbapenemase-producing organisms in patients admitted to emergency rooms

Carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPO) have been identified as an urgent healthcare threat. Various methods have been used for the detection of CPO using rectal swabs. Recently, an on-demand polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay, namely, the Xpert Carba-R assay, that requires less than an hour of turnaround time, had been developed for CPO detection in clinical samples. This study focused on the use of this assay to determine the intestinal colonization rate of CPO in patients admitted to emergency rooms (ERs).A retrospective review of medical records was conducted at a tertiary hospital between July 2017 and June 2018. CPO screening using rectal swabs was performed for patients transferred from other hospitals or for those who tested positive in CPO culture tests in the previous three months. The Xpert Carba-R assay and culture tests were used as the CPO screening methods, and the results of both tests were compared.Medical records of 705 patients admitted to our hospital during the study period were reviewed. Of these, 31 (4.4%) showed positive results for CPO using the Xpert Carba-R assay, and these patients were then transferred from the ERs to isolation rooms. Fifteen of the Xpert Carba-R assay-positive patients were also positive for the culture test; hence, early detection enabled the rapid isolation of CPO-infected patients and prevented the spread of the CPO.The Xpert Carba-R assay is a rapid test to identify and guide infection control programs to contain the spread of the rectal colonization of CPO within a hospital.     

New players in high fat diet-induced obesity: LETM1 and CTMP

Objective

Obesity contributes to insulin resistance and is a risk factor for diabetes. C-terminal modulator protein (CTMP) and leucine zipper/EF-hand-containing transmembrane protein 1 (LETM1) have been reported to influence the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (PKB) signaling pathway via the modulation of PKB activity, a key player for insulin signaling. However, it remains unclear whether CTMP and LETM1 are associated with PI3K/PKB signaling in mouse models of obesity.

Materials/Methods

To address this question, we used two different mouse models of obesity, including high-fat diet (HFD)-induced diabetic mice and genetically modified obese mice (ob/ob mice). The levels of insulin-signaling molecules in these mice were determined by immunohistochemical and Western blot analyses. The involvement of CTMP and LETM1 in PI3K/PKB signaling was investigated in HEK293 cells by transient transfection and adenovirus-mediated infection.

Results

We found that the levels of insulin receptor, phosphorylated PKB, and LETM1 were lower and the level of CTMP was higher in the adipose tissue of obese mice on an HFD compared to lean mice on a chow diet. Similar results were obtained in ob/ob mice. In HEK293 cells, the activation of PKB increased the LETM1 level, and inhibition of PKB increased the CTMP level. The overexpression of CTMP suppressed the insulin-induced increase in PKB phosphorylation, which was abrogated by co-overexpression with LETM1.

Conclusion

These results suggest that CTMP and LETM1 may participate in impaired insulin signaling in the adipose tissue of obese mice, raising the possibility that these parameters may serve as new candidate biomarkers or targets in the development of new therapeutic approaches for diabetes.     

Quantitative CT Evidence of Airway Inflammation in WTC Workers and Volunteers with Low FVC Spirometric Pattern

Background

The most common abnormal spirometric pattern reported in WTC worker and volunteer cohorts has consistently been that of a nonobstructive reduced forced vital capacity (low FVC). Low FVC is associated with obesity, which is highly prevalent in these cohorts. We used quantitative CT (QCT) to investigate proximal and distal airway inflammation and emphysema in participants with stable low FVC pattern.

Methods

We selected study participants with at least two available longitudinal surveillance spirometries, and a chest CT with QCT measurements of proximal airway inflammation (wall area percent, WAP), end-expiratory air trapping, suggestive of distal airway obstruction (expiratory to inspiratory mean lung attenuation ratio, MLA_EI), and emphysema (percentage of lung volume with attenuation below − 950 HU, LAV%). The comparison groups in multinomial logistic regression models were participants with consistently normal spirometries, and participants with stable fixed obstruction (COPD).

Results

Compared to normal spirometry participants, and after adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity, BMI, smoking, and early arrival at the WTC disaster site, low FVC participants had higher WAP (OR_adj 1.24, 95% CI 1.06, 1.45, per 5% unit), suggestive of proximal airway inflammation, but did not differ in MLA_EI, or LAV%. COPD participants did not differ in WAP with the low FVC ones and were more likely to have higher MLA_EI or LAV% than the other two subgroups.

Discussion

WTC workers with spirometric low FVC have higher QCT-measured WAP compared to those with normal spirometries, but did not differ in distal airway and emphysema measurements, independently of obesity, smoking, and other covariates.