The need for a paradigm shift in adherence research: The case of ADHD

Nonadherence to long-term medications attenuates optimum health outcomes. There is an abundance of research on measuring and identifying factors affecting medication adherence in a range of chronic medical conditions. However, there is a lack of standardisation in adherence research, namely in the methods and measures used. In the case of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, this lack of standardisation makes it difficult to compare and combine findings and to draw meaningful conclusions. Standardisation should commence with a universally accepted categorisation or taxonomy of adherence which takes into consideration the dynamic nature of medication-taking. This should then be followed by the use of valid and reliable measures of adherence which can accurately quantify adherence at any of its phases, and provide useful information which can be utilised in planning targeted interventions to improve adherence throughout the patient medication-taking journey.     

Altered brain network integrity after childhood maltreatment: A structural connectomic DTI‐study

Childhood maltreatment is associated with alterations in neural architecture that potentially put these children at increased risk for psychopathology. Alterations in white matter (WM) tracts have been reported, however no study to date has investigated WM connectivity in brain networks in maltreated children to quantify global and local abnormalities through graph theoretical analyses of DTI data. We aimed for a multilevel investigation examining the DTI‐based structural connectome and its associations with basal cortisol levels of 25 children with documented maltreatment experiences before age 3, and 24 matched controls (age: 10.6 ± 1.75 years). On the global and lobar level, maltreated children showed significant reductions in global connectivity strength, local connectivity and increased path length, suggesting deviations from the small‐world network architecture previously associated with psychopathology. Reductions in global connectivity were associated with placement instability, attenuated cortisol secretion and higher levels of internalizing and externalizing behaviours. Regional measures revealed lower connectivity strength especially in regions within the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vMPFC) in maltreated children. These findings show that childhood maltreatment is associated with systemic global neurodevelopmental alterations in WM networks next to regional alterations in areas involved in the regulation of affect. These alterations in WM organization could underlie global functional deficits and multi‐symptom patterns frequently observed in children with maltreatment experiences. Hum Brain Mapp 38:855–868, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Antiproliferative properties of polyketides isolated from Virola sebifera leaves

An activity-guided fractionation of Virola sebifera Aubl. methylene chloride-soluble fraction provided novel 3,5-dihydro-2-(1'-oxo-3'-hexadecenyl)-2-cyclohexen-1-one (3), two known lignans (1, 2) and dehydro hexadecanoyl resorcinol (4). Isolation and purification were conducted with the application of column chromatography and structures were assigned by spetral analysis (1D and 2D NMR, HREIMS). Compounds 1-4 were evaluated for cytotoxic activities against human tumour cell lines UACC62 (melanoma), MCF-7 (breast), NCI 460 (lung, non-small cells), OVCAR03 (ovarian), PC-03 (prostate), HT-29 (colon), 786-0 (renal) and NCI-ADR (breast expressing phenotype multiple drugs resistance) in vitro. The new polyketide (3) showed selectivity against human OVCAR03 and NCI-ADR cell lines, ranging from 2 to 4 microg/mL.     

Verhandlungen Ärztlicher Gesellschaften

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Angina Pectoris und Unfall

Ohne ZusammenfassungIm Verein für Unfallheilkd. u. Versicherungsmed. zu Berlin am 11. Januar 1929 gehaltener Vortrag.     

Radiographic guided drilling of bony tibial tunnels for fixation of meniscus transplants using percentage references

The objective of our investigation was to evaluate the precision of radiographic-guided tibial tunnel drilling for anatomical anchoring of meniscus transplants at the tibial insertion areas. In 20 cadaveric proximal tibiae, the meniscal insertions were dissected and their circumferences outlined. Standardized photographs of the tibial plateau were obtained. Applying established percentage values for radiographic determination of the meniscus insertion midpoints, tibial tunnels were drilled using a standard ACL-guide. Guide positioning was performed by using the midpoints as determined on standard AP and lateral radiographs. After tibial tunnel drilling, a second set of standardized photographs of the tibial plateau was obtained. Digital imaging permitted the superposition of pre- and postoperative images. Overlapping between the anatomical insertion areas and the tibial tunnel exit was determined, as well as the distance between the borders of the insertion areas and the tunnel exit. Insertion area and tunnel exit showed a mean overlapping of 59.8 ± 34.8% (anterior horn), respectively 62.4 ± 32.0% (posterior horn) for the lateral meniscus and of 88.4 ± 15.5% (anterior horn), respectively 60.3 ± 31.6% (posterior horn) for the medial meniscus. Mean distance between the borders of insertion area and tunnel exit was 2.0 ± 1.5 mm (anterior horn), respectively 2.0 ± 1.7 mm (posterior horn) for the lateral meniscus and 0.9 ± 0.9 mm (anterior horn), respectively 2.1 ± 1.4 mm (posterior horn) for the medial meniscus. Thus, a precise drilling of tibial tunnels at the anatomical insertions of the menisci can be obtained by positioning a standard ACL-guide under radiographic control in a cadaver setting. In advanced day-by-day clinic, this knowledge could facilitate the surgical technique for anatomical fixation of lateral and medial meniscus transplants.     

A method to estimate EMG crosstalk between two muscles based on the silent period following an H-reflex

The crosstalk phenomenon consists in recording the volume-conducted electromyographic activity of muscles other than that under study. This interference may impair the correct interpretation of the results in a variety of experiments. A new protocol is presented here for crosstalk assessment between two muscles based on changes in their electrical activity following a reflex discharge in one of the muscles in response to nerve stimulation. A reflex compound muscle action potential (H-reflex) was used to induce a silent period in the muscle that causes the crosstalk, called here the remote muscle. The rationale is that if the activity recorded in the target muscle is influenced by a distant source (the remote muscle) a silent period observed in the electromyogram (EMG) of the remote muscle would coincide with a decrease in the EMG activity of the target muscle. The new crosstalk index is evaluated based on the root mean square (RMS) values of the EMGs obtained in two distinct periods (background EMG and silent period) of both the remote and the target muscles.In the present work the application focused on the estimation of the degree of crosstalk from the soleus muscle to the tibialis anterior muscle during quiet stance. However, the technique may be extended to other pairs of muscles provided a silent period may be evoked in one of them.