HSV-2 ICP34.5 protein modulates herpes simplex virus glycoprotein processing

The ICP34.5 gene from HSV-2 strain 333 was cloned and, when expressed in Vero cells, enhanced the efficiency and extent of glycoprotein processing of glycoprotein C (gC1), a representative viral glycoprotein, during infection with HSV-1 SP7. The ICP34.5 from HSV-1 SP7 limits the extent and efficiency of viral glycoprotein processing. The ability of the HSV-2 ICP34.5 protein to enhance the efficiency and extent of HSV-1 SP7 glycoprotein processing indicates that modulation of viral glycoprotein processing is also a property of the HSV-2 ICP34.5 protein.     

Risk tables for parkinsonism and Parkinson's disease.

We applied the incidence rates of parkinsonism and Parkinson's disease (PD) from Olmsted County, MN (1976-1990) to a hypothetical cohort undergoing the mortality rates observed in Minnesota, and computed the lifetime risk and the remaining lifetime risk of developing parkinsonism and PD. These risks were compared to cumulative incidences that do not take competing risks of death into account. The lifetime risk of developing parkinsonism from birth was 4.4% for men and 3.7% for women (ratio = 1.2). The corresponding risk of developing PD was 2.0% for men and 1.3% for women (ratio = 1.5). Because of the opposite effect of higher incidence and higher mortality rates in men, the lifetime risks were only slightly higher in men than in women. Lifetime cumulative incidences were consistently higher than lifetime risks; this difference was more pronounced in men and in older subjects. Lifetime risk estimates are useful in clinical practice, epidemiologic research, and public health.     

Effectiveness of a computerized decision aid in primary care on decision making and quality of life in menorrhagia: results of the MENTIP randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Computerized decision aids have the potential to increase patient involvement in the decision-making process. However, most published evidence concerning the effectiveness of decision aids is from secondary care. AIM: To evaluate whether the addition of a computerized decision aid to written information improves decision making in women consulting their general practitioner with menorrhagia compared with written information alone. DESIGN: of study. Randomized controlled trial. SETTING: Nineteen general practices in the North of England. METHOD: One hundred forty-nine women presenting with menorrhagia were randomized to receive written information and access to a computerized decision aid or written information alone. Outcomes were assessed using postal questionnaires. These were scores on the Decisional Conflict Scale and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory anxiety scale at 2 weeks and the Menorrhagia Specific Utility quality-of-life scale, knowledge about menorrhagia, and anxiety and process measures at 6 months. RESULTS: Two weeks after the intervention, there was significantly less decisional conflict in the intervention group (adjusted difference = -16.6; 95% confidence interval [CI] = -21.5 to -11.7; P < 0.001). At 6 months, the intervention group showed better knowledge about menorrhagia (adjusted difference = 9.3 ; 95% CI = 1.9 to 16.6; P = 0.014) and menorrhagia quality of life (adjusted difference = 10.9; 95% CI = 0.9 to 21.0; P = 0.033). There was no difference in anxiety scores at either 2 weeks or 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: A computerized decision aid, used outside of the primary care consultation, is effective in increasing patient involvement in decision making in primary care.     

Bias in patient assessments of general practice: general practice assessment survey scores in surgery and postal responders.

Patient-based measures of the quality of primary care are increasingly important. However, their effective use requires bias to be minimised. Scores on the General Practice Assessment Survey (GPAS) differ according to whether patients are surveyed in the surgery or by post. It is not clear whether these differences relate to the mode of administration or to the types of patients who complete the scale in postal and surgery samples. Regression indicates that the bias reflects both effects and should be considered when GPAS scores are being interpreted.     

Risk of cancer after the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease: a historical cohort study.

We investigated the risk of cancer after the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (PD) through a historical cohort study. We used the medical records-linkage system of the Rochester Epidemiology Project to identify all incident cases of PD in Olmsted County, Minnesota from 1976 through 1995. Patients with PD were matched by age (+/- 1 year) and gender to referent subjects from the same population. For 196 patients and 185 referent subjects, we ascertained the incidence of cancer through medical records abstraction between the date of diagnosis (or index date) and death, loss to follow-up, or end of study. The risk of cancer was higher among patients than in referent subjects (relative risk [RR] = 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.15-2.35; P = 0.007). The RR did not change noticeably after adjustment for smoking. The increased risk was significant for nonmelanoma skin cancer (RR = 1.76; 95% CI = 1.07-2.89; P = 0.03), but not for other more severe types of cancer; therefore, we cannot exclude the occurrence of a surveillance bias. Among PD patients, there was no relation between the risk of cancer and the cumulative dose of levodopa received or the use of other PD medications.