Relationship between oral sensory thresholds and depressive moods

AIMS: The aims were to compare the sensory thresholds on the tip of the tongue with on the dorsum of the hand, and to investigate the relationship between the sensory threshold and depressive mood with volunteers whose psychological conditions were normal. METHODS: Fifty-five subjects (28 women, 27 men) took psychiatric structured diagnostic interview and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS). In the next step, the quantitative sensory tests (light touch sensation and thermal sensory test) were carried out on the tongue and the hand. Then we investigated the relationship between depressive moods and sensory thresholds on the tongue and the hand using logistic regression model. RESULT: The sensory thresholds on the tip of the tongues were significantly different from those on the dorsum of the hands. Only on tongue tip, increment of SDS had relation to the thresholds of innoxious thermal stimulation (OR=0.152, 95% CI. 0.049-0.478) and noxious heat stimulation (OR=0.352, 95% CI. 0.169-0.734). CONCLUSION: This finding might support for the idea that depressive mood had closer association with the tongue of the orofacial areas than the dorsum of the hand.     

Studies on non-surgical therapy of tubal pregnancy

8 cases of tubal pregnancy in the pre-abortional stage were detected by B-scope examination. The administration of MTX (total doses: 60-300mg) resulted in complete remission in 7 cases; the other received tubectomy because of the progression of abortion. The dose of MTX used to obtain remission is responsible for the HCG titer of urine before the treatment; 60-150mg of MTX was sufficient in cases which showed a titer below 1,000iu/l, although 75-300mg was necessary in cases over 4,000iu/l. The patency of tubes after the regimen was confirmed in 4 out of 5 cases with hystero-salpingography. Serious side effects were not observed in the present study in spite of the great efficacy; transient suppression of liver has been observed in 2 cases. Two patients had normal intra-uterine pregnancy subsequent to the treatment; one had a matured full-term female neonate and the other received D & C in 9 gestational weeks. These results suggest that the MTX regimen is practical for the treatment of patients with tubal pregnancy. This is characterized by unimpaired fertility following the treatment, although the detection of patients in the pre-abortional stage is absolutely necessary.     

Hearing impairment: a population study of age at diagnosis, severity, and language outcomes at 7-8 years

Background: Better language outcomes are reported for preschool children with hearing impairment (HI) diagnosed very early, irrespective of severity. However, population studies of older children are required to substantiate longer term benefits of early detection. Aims: To study impact of age of diagnosis and severity of HI in a population cohort of 7–8 year old children. Methods: Eighty eight 7–8 year old children born in Victoria, who were (a) fitted with hearing aids for congenital HI by 4.5 years and (b) did not have intellectual or major physical disability were studied. Main outcome measures were Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF) and Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT). Predictors were pure tone average (0.5, 1, 2 kHz) in better ear at diagnosis and age at diagnosis. Marginal (adjusted) means were estimated with general linear models. Results: Response rate was 67% (n = 89; 53 boys). Mean age at diagnosis was 21.6 months (SD 14.4); 21% had mild, 34% moderate, 21% severe, and 24% profound HI; mean non-verbal IQ was 104.6 (SD 16.7). Mean total CELF score was 76.7 (SD 21.4) and mean PPVT score 78.1 (SD 18.1). Age of diagnosis, adjusted for severity and IQ, did not contribute to language scores. In contrast, adjusted mean CELF and PPVT language scores fell sequentially with increasing severity of HI. Conclusions: More severe HI, but not later diagnosis, was strongly related to poorer language outcomes at 7–8 years. Further systematic study is needed to understand why children with hearing impairment have good or poor outcomes.     

The C3435T polymorphism of MDR1 and susceptibility to adult glioma

INTRODUCTION: The multidrug resistance-1 (MDR1) gene encodes a pump that prevents potentially carcinogenic substances from crossing the blood-brain barrier. We compare adult glioma cases and controls for the C3435T polymorphism that has been associated with reduced MDR1 expression. METHODS: Adult glioma in the San Francisco Bay area and population-based controls were identified between 1991-1994 and 1997-1999. Genotyped cases (n = 458) and controls (n = 528) were compared using logistic regression controlling for age, gender and ethnicity, with later stratification by ethnicity, gender and histology. RESULTS: With CC as the referent, the TT genotype was nonsignificantly less frequent among cases compared to controls (OR, 0.87; 95% CI: 0.6, 1.2). After stratification, only male glioblastoma was associated with TT genotype (OR, 0.51; 95% CI: 0.3, 1.0). CONCLUSIONS: Although the C3435T polymorphism does not appear to be associated with other types of glioma, we cannot rule out that this MDR1 polymorphism may be associated with glioblastoma among men.     

Slight and mild hearing loss in primary school children

Although slight/mild sensorineural hearing loss affects about 3% of the school-aged population, with many more children having such impairments at single frequencies or in only one ear, little is known about its impacts on language, learning, and quality of life. This annotation explores what is known about prevalence and impact of this condition and argues for large-scale research to better address these issues.     

Expression of DCC and netrin-1 in normal human endometrium and its implication in endometrial carcinogenesis

OBJECTIVE: Although DCC has been considered as a candidate tumor suppressor, the roles it plays in the uterine endometrium and in the carcinogenic process remains unclear. To define these roles more clearly, we examined the expression of DCC and its ligand, netrin-1, in the normal endometrium and in endometrial cancer. METHODS: The expression of DCC and netrin-1 in normal endometrial glands and in cancer cell lines was examined by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry. The effects of exogenous DCC and netrin-1 expression were observed together with the respective expression vector transfection. RESULTS: Endometrial glands in the proliferative and early secretory phase expressed both DCC and netrin-1, but glands in the late-secretory phase tended to silence DCC expression. In addition, all of the endometrial cancer cell lines lost normal DCC expression. Restored DCC expression in the cancer cell lines in the absence of netrin-1 induced apoptosis. However, no changes were observed in the presence of netrin-1. CONCLUSION: Our observations suggest that DCC/netrin-1 signaling may commit cells to the transition of endometrial gland architecture or function from a proliferating to a secretory phase. In addition, the silencing of DCC expression may contribute to the escape of endometrial cancer cells from a DCC-regulated apoptotic program, thereby promoting malignant phenotypes.     

Cervical varix accompanied by placenta previa in twin pregnancy

BACKGROUND: Uterine cervical varix is a rare complication in pregnant women and can be the cause of obstetric hemorrhage in the vagina resulting in adverse events for both the mother and fetus. CASE: A 34-year-old Japanese woman was hospitalized at 18 weeks gestation because of cervical varix and placenta previa. Prophylactic tocolysis successfully controlled the obstetric hemorrhage. At 27 weeks gestation, emergent cesarean section was performed because of intractable hemorrhage from the marginal placenta previa. Intraabdominal findings revealed no vascular malformation of the uterus, and the operation was performed uneventfully. A speculum examination of the vagina and cervix at 1 month postpartum were unremarkable. CONCLUSION: It is important to recognize the clinical features and available treatments for cervical varix.     

Implementierung einer internen Leistungsverrechnung über Anästhesieminuten

Internal transfer pricing system (ITPS) of anaesthesia services is established to guarantee a close connection of delivered service and the budget of the department of anaesthesia. In most cases a time-based system is used with the pricing unit being calculated as the quotient from the enumerator "costs" divided by the denominator "anaesthesia time in minutes". The implementation of a transfer pricing system requires the identification of all relevant costs caused by the department of anaesthesia and a cost centre structure is needed which allocates all costs correctly according to their cause. The regulations regarding cost calculations as defined by the German DRG System should be considered. To generate valid data not only the necessary technical infrastructure is needed, but also detailed training of the staff and plausibility checks are needed to ensure correct and complete data. Subsequent agreements with the hospital administration are necessary in order to adjust the system if extrinsic cost increases occur. This paper gives a step-by-step guidance for the successful implementation of an internal transfer pricing system based on anaesthesia time.     

New CR system with pixel size of 50 microm for digital mammography: physical imaging properties and detection of subtle microcalcifications

PURPOSE: To investigate the physical imaging properties and detection of simulated microcalcifications of a new computed radiography (CR) system with a pixel size of 50 microm for digital mammography. MATERIALS AND METHODS: New and conventional CR were employed in this study. The new CR system included a high-resolution imaging plate coupled with the FCR5000MA (50 microm pixel pitch) including transparent support and a dual-sided reader. The conventional CR system was coupled with the FCR9000 (100 microm pixel pitch). Modulation transfer functions (MTFs) and Wiener spectra (WS) of the new and conventional CR systems were measured. Observer performance tests were conducted to compare the effects of pixel size (50 microm vs. 100 microm) on the diagnostic accuracy of CR systems in the detection of simulated microcalcifications. RESULTS: The presampling MTF of the new CR system was higher at high frequencies than the conventional CR system. The WS of the new CR system was comparable to that of the conventional CR system at all frequencies. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (Az) obtained with the new CR and the conventional CR systems were 0.84 and 0.79, respectively. Results showed that the detection of simulated clustered microcalcifications was significantly improved by use of the new CR system compared with the conventional CR system (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The new CR mammography system improved physical imaging properties and detection of simulated microcalcifications over conventional CR mammography.