Uremia accelerates both atherosclerosis and arterial calcification in apolipoprotein E knockout mice

Chronic renal failure (CRF) favors the development of atherosclerosis and excessive calcification of atheromatous lesions. CRF was induced in apolipoprotein E knockout (apoE(-/-)) mice to study (1) a possible acceleration of aortic atherosclerosis, (2) the degree and type of vascular calcification, and (3) factors involved in the calcification process. For creating CRF, 8-wk-old apolipoprotein E gene knockout (apoE(-/-)) mice underwent partial kidney ablation. Control animals underwent sham operation. Aortic atherosclerotic plaques and calcification were evaluated using quantitative morphologic image processing. At 6 wk after nephrectomy, CRF mice had significantly higher serum urea, cholesterol, and triglyceride concentrations than non-CRF controls. The serum levels of advanced oxidation protein products were elevated in the uremic group and were correlated with serum urea levels. Atherosclerotic lesions in thoracic aorta were significantly larger in uremic apoE(-/-) mice than in nonuremic controls. The relative proportion of calcified area to total surface area of both atherosclerotic lesions and lesion-free vascular tissue was increased in aortic root of uremic apoE(-/-) mice when compared with controls. The calcium deposits were made of hydroxyapatite and calcite crystals. In addition, plaques from uremic animals showed a significant increase in collagen content, whereas the degree of macrophage infiltration was comparable in both groups. There was no difference in mean arterial BP. These findings demonstrate that CRF aggravates atherosclerosis in apoE(-/-) mice. Moreover, CRF enhances arterial calcification at both atheromatous intimal sites and atheroma-free medial sites. We anticipate that this experimental model will be useful to test treatment strategies aimed at decreasing the accelerated atherosclerosis and arterial calcification in uremia.     

Cognitive generation of affect in hypomania: an fMRI study

OBJECTIVE: To identify the brain regions associated with the cognitive generation of affect in hypomanic bipolar patients. METHODS: The study examined 10 hypomanic female subjects with bipolar affective disorder, and 10 age- and sex-matched comparison subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while viewing alternating blocks of captioned-pictures designed to evoke negative, positive or no affective change. The activation paradigm involved the presentation of the same visual materials over three experiments alternating (a) negative and reference, (b) positive and reference and (c) positive and negative captioned-pictures. RESULTS: The stimuli produced activation in both patients and comparison subjects in brain regions previously implicated in the generation and modulation of affect, in particular the prefrontal cortex. Activation in patients involved additional subcortical regions namely the caudate and thalamus. CONCLUSIONS: This preliminary study suggests that hypomanic patients recruit additional subcortical limbic systems for emotional evaluation when advanced prefrontal cortical processing is no longer sufficient. The differential patterns of activation inform us about bipolar disorder and may have potential diagnostic and therapeutic significance.     

Causes of negative x-ray changes in the lungs of patients with tuberculosis

The study examines various manifestations and causes of negative X-ray changes (NXC) in the lung of patients with tuberculosis, which were observed by the authors in 7% of cases. Among the causes of NXC, there was a predominance (64.7%) of progressive tuberculosis caused 7 leading predisposing factors, whereas in other cases (35.3%). NXC were due to the addition (exacerbation) of concomitant abnormalities, to the occurrence of adverse reactions to antituberculous drugs, etc. The establishment of these causes facilitates the verification of a diagnosis and promotes the rational use of the bed fund of specialized hospitals.     

Dentinal hypersensitivity following scaling and root planing: comparison of low-level laser and topical fluoride treatment

The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of low-level laser irradiation to traditional topical fluoride treatment for treatment choices of dentinal hypersensitivity following scaling and root planing. The experimental group (15 patients) was treated with low-energy-level diode laser at each site of dentinal hypersensitivity following scaling and root planning. The control group (15 patients) received topical fluoride treatment (protective varnish for desensitization). All the patients were treated at baseline visit, and then at day 2 and 4 after the initial treatment; the pain was subjectively assessed by the patients as strong, medium, medium low, low, or no pain. Total absence of the dental hypersensitivity was reported in 26.66% of the examined group even after the second visit, compared to the control group where complete resolution of the hypersensitivity was not present after the second visit in any of the treated cases. Complete absence of pain was achieved in 86.6% of patients treated with laser and only in 26.6% in the fluoride treated group, after the third visit. Based on our findings, we conclude that low-energy biostimulative laser treatment can be successfully used for treatment of dental hypersensitivity following scaling and root planing.