Severe end of Opitz trigonocephaly (C) syndrome or new syndrome?

We report on four unrelated cases of an Opitz trigonocephaly (C)-like syndrome with a highly characteristic combination of facial anomalies including prominent metopic suture, exophthalmos, hypertelorism, cleft lip and palate, flexion deformities of the upper limbs and multiple other anomalies. We also review two very similar published cases formerly considered to have the C syndrome. Although there is overlap, a clinical distinction from the Opitz trigonocephaly and other syndromes seems possible, and thus a specific causal entity may be postulated. Am. J. Med. Genet. 85:438–446, 1999. © 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Children of alcoholics: Attention, information processing and event-related brain potentials

Recent studies on biological markers and risk factors for alcoholism have distinguished between nonalcoholic individuals with a family history of alcoholism and those without such a family history on measures of event-related brain potentials. The main finding of these "high-risk" studies is a smaller amplitude of the P300 component in males with a history of paternal alcoholism. This relationship between P300 amplitude and a family history of paternal alcoholism has been observed in adults and children. Consequently, several authors have suggested that a reduced P300 amplitude could serve as a vulnerability marker for alcoholism. We address several conceptual and methodological issues involved in the study of event-related potentials in children at high risk for alcoholism. Subsequently, the ongoing high-risk study of the Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research is described briefly.     

Psychological mechanisms of enhanced risk of addiction in children of alcoholics: a dual pathway?

The background and rationale of a recently started project of the Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research are outlined. This project is aimed at the psychological mechanisms underlying an enhanced risk of (later) addiction in children of alcoholics and the relationship with childhood psychopathology. A dual pathway mechanism is proposed, in which the type of alcoholism of the parent plays a major role. The child of a multigenerational primary alcoholic parent may suffer from an inherited mild dysfunction of the prefrontal cortex, expressed in neuropsychological and personality characteristics similar to those of the alcoholic parent. These are impulsive, aggressive and reward-seeking behaviour, response perseveration and, in some children, related psychopathology such as conduct disorders. For a child of a secondary alcoholic parent, another mechanism is proposed. In these children, stress and social learning may lead to negative affectivity and repressive coping style, with emotional problems at a later age, and the risk of falling into the "circle of secondary alcoholism". In both pathways, alcohol-related expectancies are suggested to constitute a "final common pathway" between different risk factors and later alcohol abuse. Specific expectancies might be related to different pathways and to gender differences in later drinking patterns.     

小檗碱电化学检测器在中(成)药流动注射分析中的应用

中药材及其制剂,因成分复杂,对其有效成分的测定,目前大多尚未建立适宜的方法。文献报道的测定方法有薄层—分光光度法、薄层扫描法、萃取—分光光度法、柱色谱—分光光度法及高效液相色谱法等,这些方法大多操作繁琐、分析周期较长、且分析的精密度和准确度亦不够理想。近年来,随着流动注射分析(FIA)及化学传感器的发展,中成药中有效成分的分析有了新的发展。本文报道了基于小檗碱流通型传感器的电化学检测器用于含小檗碱中(成)药样品的流动注射分析,方法简便快速,结果准确可靠,样品分析速度可达120次/h。     

Protocol for hepatitis screening and follow-up of Southeast Asian refugees

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is prevalent among Southeast Asian refugees. HBV infection causes acute and chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis, and is associated with primary hepatocellular carcinoma. Health care providers must be able to make an accurate diagnosis of acute or chronic HBV infection when performing medical evaluations of Southeast Asian refugees. It is essential that appropriate follow-up care and teaching regarding infection control be provided. In this article, a protocol is presented that aids interpretation of hepatitis B screening tests. The protocol uses testing for the immunoglobulin M antibody against hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc/IgM) to aid differentiation between acute and chronic HBV infection. If testing is interpreted to show the presence of the hepatitis B chronic carrier state, a second protocol is used to guide follow-up testing, treatment and referral of patients.     

全麻体外循环术后患者的保温治疗

临床资料 我院2002—10／2004—10对587(男373．女214)例全麻体外循环术后患实施了保温治疗，年龄17天．75岁，其中婴幼儿64例，儿童209例，成人314例．体外循环术中采用血流降温至24—28℃，术毕复温至35℃．返回ICU病房30min后常规测量中心体温(肛温)和体表温度，如体温低于35℃、并有四肢末梢冰凉、躯体部花斑，或中心体温与体表温度差值超过3℃时，     

Testicular tumors: prospective analysis of real-time US patterns and abdominal staging

Echomorphologic features of 57 testicular lesions (48 neoplasms, nine benign lesions) were analyzed prospectively by means of high-resolution real-time ultrasonography (US). There was a broad spectrum of texture patterns for testicular malignancies, 92% of which exhibited a predominantly decreased echogenicity compared with that of normal tissue. US findings alone could not be used to make a specific prediction of malignant disease or to classify a neoplasm histologically. However, different kinds of tumors exhibited characteristic echomorphologic features that corresponded to their gross morphologic appearance; a knowledge of these echomorphologic features is extremely useful for the US differentiation of tumors from nonneoplastic scrotal pathologic conditions. All neoplasms in this series displayed distinct abnormalities in parenchymal texture, and all were detected with US. The sensitivity and predictive value of a normal sonogram were as high as 100%. With regard to the detection of retroperitoneal lymph node metastases from testicular tumors, abdominal US had an overall accuracy rate of 96% and was of superior diagnostic value compared with bipedal lymphangiography.