Localization of C-reactive protein in synovium of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Synovial biopsies from 8 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, 2 patients with degenerative osteoarthritis, and 4 patients with nonarthritic disease were studied for localization of C-reactive protein (CRP) using immuno-fluorescence microscopy. The nuclei of many synoviocytes and histiocytes in rheumatoid synovial membrane were found to bind CRP. Cultures of rheumatoid synovium in ¹⁴C-labeled amino acids produced radioactive IgG, IgM, IgA, and C3, but not CRP, indicating the synovial-bound CRP was not of local origin. A few CRP-binding nuclei were present in one osteoarthritic synovium, but none was found in the other and none in synovium from the 4 non-arthritic patients. The nature of the nuclear CRP ligand in rheumatoid synovium was not determined.     

Local Tobacco Control: Application of the Essential Public Health Services Model in a County Health Department’s Efforts to Put It Out Rockland

In 2000, Rockland County, a small suburban county north of New York City, dedicated $1 million of its Master Settlement Agreement funds to a comprehensive tobacco control program, Put It Out Rockland. Developed and implemented by the county health department, this program used an essential public health services model and an ongoing financial investment, within the context of strong statewide tobacco control efforts, to lower adult smoking rates to 9.7% and to reduce both smoking among youths and exposure to secondhand smoke over the ensuing decade. By combining state funds and local dollars for a total of $6.75 cost per capita, this comprehensive effort yielded 11 000 fewer smokers and translated to a potential savings of more than $24 million for the county.     

Midlife baby boom women compared with their older counterparts in midlife

A stratified random sample of midlife Baby Boom women, ages 35–42, was compared with a group of older midlife women, ages 43‐. 55. The sample consisted of 992 women who had graduated between the years of 1955 and 1975 from a large university in southern California. Measures of anxiety and life satisfaction were administered to each year group. This served to control for the effect of age and was helpful in explaining whether the differences between the groups were age related or the result of socialization. The Baby Boom cohort of women, born after January 1, 1946, have only recently entered the ranks of midlife. They have been recognized as unique and less traditional than their older counterparts with regard to sexual freedom, career choices, and educational opportunities. Similarities and differences were found between the two groups of women. However, the results clearly revealed that the effects of socialization, rather than age, yielded the major significant variables influencing a feeling of well‐being in both cohorts of midlife women.     

Smoking Cessation Programs for Seniors:A Group Model That Works

We describe an intensive group program for older adults, facilitated by a tobacco cessation specialist and a geriatric social worker, designed to focus on factors that maintain smoking behavior. Integral components dealt with issues specific to the older adult such as social isolation or economic need. Pharmacological therapy was provided. Participants with a mean age of 67 years who smoked an average of 19 cigarettes per day completed the program. Sixty-six percent of participants had been treated or were in treatment for depression and/or anxiety. Follow-up was completed at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. The cessation rate across follow-up points was 68%. This program shows that older adults can maintain smoking cessation when provided with programs designed to address their issues.     

Lack of Alterations in Thyroid Hormones Following Exposure to Polybrominated Diphenyl Ether 47 during a Period of Rapid Brain Development in Mice

Thyroid alterations have been shown to occur following exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) mixtures, possibly indicating that disruptions in thyroid hormone levels may underlie behavior deficits observed in animals following postnatal PBDE exposure. This study determined whether acute postnatal exposure to PBDE-47 would alter thyroid hormones. Mice were dosed with PBDE-47 on postnatal day 10, and serum collected either 1, 5, or 10 days after the dose. No effect was observed on thyroxine and triiodothyronine levels at any age examined. This suggests that the neurological abnormalities reported in mice exposed to PBDE-47 are not due to acute changes in circulating thyroid hormones at these observed periods.