Meta-Analysis of Positive Blood Cultures During Transesophageal Echocardiography

We have reviewed ten prospective studies of bacteremia with transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) in 720 patients. The incidence of TEE related positive culture is low, and general recommendation for antibiotic prophylaxis during TEE is not warranted.     

Ψ[CH2O] pseudodipeptide synthesis An improved approach which allows absolute configuration determination

An improved way to obtain Ψ[CH₂O] pseudodipeptide units is proposed, involving an intramolecular Williamson's reaction, with displacement of bromine by an alkoxide, instead of the classical intermolecular one. Until now, Ψ[CH₂O] pseudodipeptide synthesis done by this new method, has used a protected form of the amino alcohol hydroxyl group to prepare the acyclic precursor. In the present paper, the use of an active ester of the brominated carboxylic acid avoids this protection step. The pseudodipeptides Ac-GlyΨ[CH₂O]-d,l -Ala-OH and Ac-Ser(Bzl)Ψ[CH₂O]-d,l -Ala-OH were obtained in high yields, through a delta-lactam intermediate, which furthermore allows the determination of the absolute configuration of compounds using HPLC and appropriate nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques.     

Un cas de pyohémie,de concert avec une méningite aiguë et des arthrites,provoquée par le bacille de Pfeiffer.

La moitié de tous les cas de pleurésie se rencontrent de 16 à 25 ans. Dans notre statistique la morbidité et la mortalité par tuberculose après la pleurésie sont plus faibles que dans celle de Köster, mais plus élevées que dans celle des sociétés d'assurances. La morbidité par tuberculose est surtout élevée dans les trois premières années qui suivent la pleurésie (10.2 %, 4.4 % et 4.2 %); la mortalité l'est surtout pendant les quatre premières années (de 2.8 à 1.7 %). La mortalité de la tuberculose consécutive à la pleurésie est plus faible chez les enfants que chez les adultes. Les grands épanchements s'accompagnent d'une fièvre plus prolongée et sont suivis de tuberculose plus souvent que les exsudats moins abondants et les pleurésies sèches. L'infection d'origine familiale ou domiciliaire est d'une fréquence égale aussi bien chez les individus demeurés ultérieurement bien portants que chez ceux devenus tuberculeux; il en est de měme pour les différentes formes de pleurésie. La pleurésie débute plus souvent en mars—mai que dans les autres mois (carence de vitamines?).     

Estimating alcohol‐attributable mortality among Indigenous Australians: Towards Indigenous‐specific alcohol aetiologic fractions

Introduction and Aims. Past estimates of Indigenous alcohol‐attributable health in Australia have been based on drinking prevalence estimates from the general population, rather than prevalence figures from the Indigenous population. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the efficacy of using Indigenous‐specific drinking prevalence to estimate alcohol‐attributable deaths among Indigenous Australians. Design and Methods. Estimates of Indigenous alcohol‐attributable deaths between 2000 and 2004 were obtained using both (i) national general‐population drinking prevalence estimates and (ii) national Indigenous‐specific drinking prevalence. Estimates were calculated using the ‘aetiologic fraction’ method. Results. By using national general‐population drinking prevalence figures, past reports on Indigenous health have underestimated alcohol‐attributable deaths for the national Indigenous population. Female deaths due to alcohol‐attributable haemorrhagic stroke were estimated to be approximately four times higher and alcohol‐attributable suicides among men were estimated to be 30% higher than was previously held, when Indigenous‐specific drinking prevalence figures were used. Discussion and Conclusions. By substituting Indigenous‐specific alcohol consumption prevalence estimates for general‐population drinking prevalence, the accuracy of estimates of alcohol‐related harm among Indigenous Australians can be significantly improved.[Pascal R, Chikritzhs T, Gray D. Estimating alcohol‐attributable mortality among Indigenous Australians: Towards Indigenous‐specific alcohol aetiologic fractions. Drug Alcohol Rev 2009;28:196–200]     

Rationalization of Esthetic Restorative Dentistry Based on Biomimetics

Abstract: The exponential progressivism that characterizes the current decade often comes with substantial financial implications. Dental care is not spared by this phenomenon. However, new generations of concepts emerging from biomimetics provide the operator with the ability to restore the biomechanical, structural, and esthetic integrity of teeth. The development of adhesion and the evolution of porcelain veneers constitute striking examples of this nascent process. Indications for bonding porcelain are extending to more perilous situations (crown-fractured incisors, nonvital teeth), resulting in considerable improvements, comprising both the medical-biologic aspect (economy of sound tissues and maintenance of tooth vitality) and the socioeconomical context (decrease of costs compared to traditional and more invasive prosthetic treatments).
CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: In the bonded porcelain veneer and its extensions, restorative dentistry has found new solutions for the anterior segment that balance the need for functional and esthetic reconstruction. The optimal stiffness of porcelain in thin section, the ideal surface characteristics, and the biomechanical continuum achieved through high performance bonding mean the crown of the tooth as a whole can support incisal or masticatory function. By the same token, the conduction of optical effects from within the tooth combined with the ideal surface features of the porcelain veneer make this restorative approach the ultimate in esthetic satisfaction, for both the practitioner and the patient.     

In-vitro exoerythrocytic development of Plasmodium cynomolgi bastianellii inhibitory activity of monoclonal antibodies against sporozoites of different P. cynomolgi strains and of P. knowlesi

The inhibitory effect of anti-sporozoite monoclonal antibodies (MoAb) on the in-vitro development of liver stages of Plasmodium cynomolgi bastianellii (NIH strain) was evaluated using primary cultures of rhesus monkey hepatocytes. MoAbs against the circumsporozoite proteins of five strains of P. cynomolgi (NIH, London, Gombak, Ceylon, Berok), and of P. knowlesi (H strain) were used. Incubation of sporozoites of P. cynomolgi bastianellii with the anti-NIH strain MoAbs entirely prevented liver-stage development; MoAbs produced against the other four strains had no apparent activity. The anti-P. knowlesi MoAbs had a partially inhibitory effect on parasite development. These functional studies complement previous immunological studies on P. cynomolgi strain specificity, and confirm the cross-reactivity observed previously between sporozoites of P. cynomolgi bastianellii and P. knowlesi (H strain).