“A Rose by Any Other Name”

Blood ³⁵S levels in anesthetized dogs rose progressively when the isolated upper airways were exposed to ³⁵SO₂ for 30 to 60 minutes, and decreased slightly in the hours following exposure. The plasma contained more ³⁵S than the red blood cells (RBC); more than half of the plasma-³⁵S was dialyzable, the greatest radioactivity among the nondialyzable fraction of the plasma being associated with α-globulin proteins. Two thirds of the RBC-³⁵S appeared to be intracellular. RBC-³⁵S/Plasma-³⁵S was higher following in vivo exposure of animals than when plasma- ³⁵S was mixed with nonradioactive RBC. Most of the urinary ³⁵S was in the form of inorganic sulfate.     

Life Stress and Illness Patterns in the US Navy

Approximately one third of the enlisted crew of an attack carrier (N = 738) was studied during a six-month deployment to Vietnam. Cruise activities, work conditions, and the illnesses developed by these men during the cruise were tabulated. This paper discusses the relationship of the environmental variables of ship’s activity and work (division) assignment to illness onset.

The majority of illnesses occurred in a relatively small portion of the population; 29% of the men developed 75% of the illnesses. This distribution was similar to those found in other studies of military and working populations. The high incidences of dermatologicai, respiratory, and gastrointestinal illnesses were similar to those reported for other military enlisted populations. The rates for both overall illness and for most individual illness categories showed a consistent elevation during combat periods compared to in-port periods; an exception was the period of Sea of Japan operations surrounding the Pueblo crisis. Occupation appeared to be an important factor influencing illness incidence; illness rates were higher in those groups of men who performed physically demanding or hazardous tasks and who worked in hostile environments.     

Variant of Subclavian Steal in the Setting of Ipsilateral Common Carotid Artery Occlusion: Case Report

Subclavian steal is a well-described angiographic finding and clinical syndrome that rarely results in vertebrobasilar ischemic symptoms. In classic subclavian steal, left subclavian artery (SA) stenosis occurs proximal to the left vertebral artery (VA) origin. We report a symptomatic variant of this syndrome that occurred in the setting of left common carotid artery occlusion and anomalous origin of the left VA directly from the aortic arch. The steal and symptoms resolved after stenting of the left SA stenosis.     

Stromal Progenitor Cells Present Within Liposuction and Reduction Abdominoplasty Fat for Autologous Transfer to Aged Skin

BACKGROUND: Autologous fat is used for direct transfer to locally replace fat, as well as for use intradermally in the treatment of rhytids in aged skin. OBJECTIVE: To determine if the components of the autologous fat could be separated to produce a better agent for the treatment of rhytids. METHODS: Liposuction material from four patients and fat from abdominoplasty from five patients was processed by homogenization and centrifugation to separate mature lipocytes from other stromal cell populations in its associated extracellular matrix, and then to separate this from the blood and cellular debris. The cellular layer was evaluated histologically and with the immunohistochemical antibodies for CD34, SM-actin, S-100 protein, MIB-1, Bcl-2, and factor XIIIa. RESULTS: The cellular layer showed spindle cells, some small vascular structures, a small amount of mature fat, and extracellular matrix. CD34 showed diffuse staining of most spindle and endothelial cells in all sections, factor XIIIa showed only focal staining of spindle and dendritic cells, and Bcl-2 showed light to moderate staining in scattered cells within the cellular component. S-100 protein, SM-actin, and MIB-1 were negative. CONCLUSION: Processed liposuction and abdominoplasty processed fat may be ideal for the treatment of wrinkles in aged skin because it contains progenitor stromal cells that are known to be present within the fat and which may be concentrated by processing methods.     

Complications experienced in the rehabilitation of zone I flexor tendon injuries with dynamic traction splinting

A retrospective review of all flexor tendon repairs done between January 1985 to June 1987 determined the complication rate with our method of rehabilitation. One hundred sixty-three flexor tendon lacerations in 83 patients were reviewed. Follow-up ranged from 6 to 42 months. All patients participated in the same 12-week rehabilitation protocol. All patients had passive motion exercises of the interphalangeal joints in the first 2 weeks. We believe that passive stretching of zone I injuries during the first 2 weeks contributed to the zone I complication rate. Of the 20 patients with zone I tendon-to-tendon repairs, 7 patients had significant complications. The 35% complication rate found with zone I injuries has prompted us to modify our postoperative rehabilitation protocol in zone I injuries.     

Trichostasis Spinulosa: A Clinical Simulant of Acne Open Comedones

Abstract: Trichostasis spinulosa is a disorder of the pilosebaceous follicles that may simulate acne open comedones. It is a commonly reported cosmetic annoyance in adults but not children. A review of the literature and a case of trichostasis spinulosa in a 13-year-old black girl with a history of onset at 18 months of age are presented.