Gender differences in early accommodation and vergence development.

A remote haploscopic photorefractor was used to assess objective binocular vergence and accommodation responses in 157 full-term healthy infants aged 1-6 months while fixating a brightly coloured target moving between fixation distances at 2, 1, 0.5 and 0.33 m. Vergence and accommodation response gain matured rapidly from 'flat' neonatal responses at an intercept of approximately 2 dioptres (D) for accommodation and 2.5 metre angles(MA) for vergence, reaching adult-like values at 4 months. Vergence gain was marginally higher in females (p = 0.064), but accommodation gain (p = 0.034) was higher and accommodative intercept closer to zero (p = 0.004) in males in the first 3 months as they relaxed accommodation more appropriately for distant targets. More females showed flat accommodation responses (p = 0.029). More males behaved hypermetropically in the first two months of life, but when these hypermetropic infants were excluded from the analysis, the gender difference remained. Gender differences disappeared after three months. Data showed variable responses and infants could behave appropriately and simultaneously on both, neither or only one measure at all ages. If accommodation was appropriate (gain between 0.7 and 1.3; r(2) > 0.7) but vergence was not, males over- and under-converged equally, while the females who accommodated appropriately were more likely to overconverge (p = 0.008). The apparent earlier maturity of the male accommodative responses may be due to refractive error differences but could also reflect gender-specific male preference for blur cues while females show earlier preference for disparity, which may underpin the earlier emerging, disparity dependent, stereopsis and full vergence found in females in other studies.     

经颅多谱勒超声在位置性缺血性眩晕中的应用

目的:探讨经颅多谱勒超声(TCD)在颈椎病(椎动脉型)所致位置性缺血性眩晕中的诊断价值.方法:利用TCD对颈椎病所致位置性缺血性眩晕76例患者进行双侧大脑后动脉(PCA)的平均血流速度分析,并结合转颈试验,探测双侧PCA平均血流速的动态变化情况.结果:颈椎病所致位置性缺血性眩晕患者当头侧向转动时,双侧PCA的平均血流速度暂时性降低,当头转回中立位时,平均血流速度逐渐回升.结论:TCD有助于识别位置性眩晕中的真性位置性缺血患者,是一种无创、简便、价廉、可靠,并可床旁操作和提供实时动态血流动力学资料的重要检查方法.     

Residual susceptibility to measles among young adults in Victoria,Australia following a national targeted measles-mumps-rubella vaccination campaign

Background  

Past measles immunisation policies in Australia have resulted in a cohort of young adults who have been inadequately vaccinated, but who also have low levels of naturally acquired immunity because immunisation programs have decreased the circulation of wild virus. A measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) immunisation campaign aimed at addressing this susceptibility to measles among young adults was conducted in Australia in 2001–2. By estimating age-specific immunity, we aimed to evaluate the success of this campaign in the state of Victoria.     

内蒙古自治区智力残疾现患率调查及病因分析

目的:了解内蒙古自治区智力残疾(mental retardation.MR)的现患率及其分布特点,分析其主要致残原因构成特点,探讨预防治疗措施。方法:采用概率比例、多阶段分层整群抽样方法进行现况调查及病例对照研究,根据年龄分别使用丹佛发育筛查测验及《7岁以上人群残疾筛查问卷》筛查,分别使用Gesell发育诊断量表及韦氏儿童智力量表简式(WISC-CR),韦氏成人智力量表简式(WAIS-RC)进行智力诊断,采用SPSS11.0软件对数据进行统计分析。结果:①内蒙古自治区智力残疾患者的现患率为4.95‰,男性MR现患率高于女性(χ2=6.28,df=1,P<0.05),农村MR的现患率明显高于城市(χ2=60.035,df=1,P<0.01)。②内蒙古自治区智力残疾致残原因以疾病(29.26%)和遗传因素(23.79%)为主。③在18岁之前(智力发育期)发现智力残疾的占74.53%,且以0~3岁发现智力残疾的人数比例最高(48.84%)。结论:智力残疾的防治重点应在农村,预防应以疾病(主要包括脑疾病、内分泌障碍、惊厥性疾病)及遗传因素为主。强调早期发现、早期干预。     

Ten-year survival in 290 patients with endometrial cancer: prognostic factors and therapeutic approach

Summary. Between 1970 and 1976, 290 patients with endometrial cancer were treated at the 1st Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic of the University of Milan. The median age was 62 years. Surgery was completed in 262 (90.3%) patients. Abdominal hysterectomy was used in 158 (70.9%) stage I and 40 (71.4%) stage II/III patients; vaginal hysterectomy in 55 (24.7%) stage I and nine (16.1%) stage II/III patients. Resection of the upper vagina was performed in 168 patients. Postoperative external beam radiotherapy was used in stage II/III patients and in 44 (19.7%) stage I high-risk patients. Ten-year survival, determined by the life-table method, was 84.8% in stage I (223 patients), 53.4% in stage II (37 patients), 64.4% in stage III (19 patients), and 9.1% in stage IV (11 patients). Factors associated with poorer prognosis were: late age at diagnosis (P<0.001); deep myometrial invasion (P<0.001); poorly differentiated histological grade ( P =0.11); lack of resection of the upper vagina ( P = 0.13). The role and importance of surgery is discussed, with special emphasis on the selective use of the vaginal route in aged, obese and medically high-risk patients.     

Novel measles virus genotype,East Timor and Australia

Measles outbreaks in 1999 in Queensland and Victoria, Australia, were caused by a novel strain of clade G virus (proposed name g3). Epidemiologic and molecular evidence supports independent circulation of this virus in Queensland, northern Australia, in addition to importation of the virus by East Timor refugees seeking safe haven in Australia.     

Disparity for a newly identified minor histocompatibility antigen, HA-8, correlates with acute graft-versus-host disease after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation from an HLA-identical sibling

We recently identified a new minor histocompatibility antigen, termed HA-8, which is presented by human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-A*0201 or HLA-A*0202 and expressed ubiquitously among tissues. A retrospective analysis of 577 Caucasian patients with HLA-A*0201 or A*0202 who had received a haematopoietic stem cell transplant from a human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-identical sibling was conducted to determine whether HA-8 disparity correlated with clinical outcome. HA-8 disparity was detected in 72 recipients, and grades II-IV graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) occurred in 46 (64%), compared with 251 (50%) of the 503 patients without HA-8 disparity. After adjusting for known risk factors for acute GVHD, this difference was statistically significant (odds ratio, 1.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.0-3.1; P = 0.04). However, the hazards of clinical extensive chronic GVHD, overall mortality and recurrent malignancy were not statistically significantly different between the two groups. These data suggest that the increased risk of acute GVHD associated with recipient HA-8 disparity was not sufficient to change other clinical outcomes.     

Inhibitory amino acid transmitters associated with axons in presynaptic apposition to cutaneous primary afferent axons in the cat spinal cord

The purpose of the present study was to characterize the transmitter content of structures in presynaptic apposition to the central terminals of cutaneous afferent fibers in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. Axons in the Aalphabeta conduction velocity range were identified in adult cats, stained intra-axonally with horseradish peroxidase, and prepared for combined light and electron microscopy. In total, we labeled two slowly adapting (Type 1) axons, two hair-follicle afferents, and one rapidly adapting (Krause) afferent. Ninety-nine labeled boutons were examined through complete series of serial sections. Approximately 80% of boutons originating from rapidly adapting and hair-follicle afferents were postsynaptic to other axons, but only 50% of boutons from slowly adapting axons were associated with this type of arrangement. Postembedding immunogold reactions revealed that between 80% (for slowly adapting axons) and 100% (for rapidly adapting axons) of boutons presynaptic to primary afferents were immunoreactive for gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The vast majority of these terminals (in excess of 80%) were also enriched with glycine. Therefore, presynaptic inhibition of these three functional classes of Aalphabeta cutaneous primary afferents is mediated principally by the subgroup of GABAergic interneuron that also contains glycine.