Virtual real-time digital processing of hemodynamic data

At present, the majority of cardiac catheterization laboratories acquire and store hemo-dynamic data in analog form. To examine the possibility of performing complex analysis of digital data during the catheterization procedure, we examined whether virtual realtime digital (fast Fourier) analysis improves the accuracy of clinical data. We compared digital filtering of fluid manometry during right heart catheterization with 10-Hz and 250-Hz analog filters. Using the simultaneously acquired micromanometry as the “gold standard,” we found that analog filtering is associated with a greater error and time delay than digital filtering. This study demonstrates that digital hemodynamic data analysis performed during cardiac catheterization can improve the quality of data obtained during right heart catheterization, with the results available within seconds. More extensive use of computers in the cardiac catheterization laboratory may be useful for both clinical and research purposes. © 1992 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Assigning the source of human campylobacteriosis in New Zealand: A comparative genetic and epidemiological approach

Integrated surveillance of infectious multi-source diseases using a combination of epidemiology, ecology, genetics and evolution can provide a valuable risk-based approach for the control of important human pathogens. This includes a better understanding of transmission routes and the impact of human activities on the emergence of zoonoses. Until recently New Zealand had extraordinarily high and increasing rates of notified human campylobacteriosis, and our limited understanding of the source of these infections was hindering efforts to control this disease. Genetic and epidemiological modeling of a 3-year dataset comprising multilocus sequence typed isolates from human clinical cases, coupled with concurrent data on food and environmental sources, enabled us to estimate the relative importance of different sources of human disease. Our studies provided evidence that poultry was the leading cause of human campylobacteriosis in New Zealand, causing an estimated 58–76% of cases with widely varying contributions by individual poultry suppliers. These findings influenced national policy and, after the implementation of poultry industry-specific interventions, a dramatic decline in human notified cases was observed in 2008. The comparative-modeling and molecular sentinel surveillance approach proposed in this study provides new opportunities for the management of zoonotic diseases.     

The different effects of Helicobacter pylori strains on basal and histamine-stimulated acid and pepsin production: An in vitro study

Inflammation Research -     

Familial Parkinson's disease: possible role of environmental factors

We report here six families with Parkinson's disease in whom the onset of symptoms tended to occur at approximately the same time irrespective of the age of the patient. The mean difference in the time of onset in different generations was 4.6 years while the mean difference in age of onset in children and parents was 25.2 years. We construe this pattern of age separation within families as suggestive of an environmental rather than genetic cause. Support for this view derives from the lack of correlation between occurrence of the disease and the degree of consanguinity. We conclude that our findings are in accord with the hypothesis which attributes the cause of some cases of Parkinson's disease to early, subclinical environmental damage followed by age-related attrition of neurons within the central nervous system.     

Value of scintigraphic localization of obscure gastrointestinal bleeding.

A total of 51 technetium-99m (99mTc)-labelled autologous red cell (LRC) scans performed on 49 patients for the localization of obscure gastrointestinal bleeding over a 5-year period was reviewed. The sensitivity for LRC scanning was 72.7% with a positive predictive value of 84.2%. Forty patients underwent both LRC scanning and visceral angiography during the same admission; angiography had a sensitivity of 38.9% compared with 66.7% for LRC scanning and the positive predictive values were 77.8% and 85.7%, respectively. Overall, the site of bleeding was located in 22 (45%) of 49 patients, but LRC scanning alone was successful in identifying the lesion in 16 (33%) cases. In patients who continue to bleed to the point of requiring operation, a combination of scintigraphy and angiography will localize a source in 70% of patients.     

Biological divergence and equality during the first millennium BC in human populations of central Italy.

The frequencies of nine discrete cranial traits are contrasted among 10 skeletal series of central Italy to assess the patterning of biological affinity or divergence. In this study various statistical applications were used: Mean Measure of Divergence (MMD), which was elaborated using the WPGMA cluster analysis, neighbor-joining method and principal coordinate analysis. The results show two main groups divided by the Apennines, which probably were a geographic barrier to biological exchange during the Italian Iron Age. This fact induced endogamous phenomena in the populations on the two sides of Italy (Adriatic and Tyrrenian) and probably increased the familial segregation of traits. The group on the western side has a further division between samples of the central coast and those of the southern coast. The latter samples seem to be more closely connected to Sardinian peoples, and this indicates gene flow and cultural contacts, which were not hindered by the sea. This segregation appears to have receded by Roman times.     

Partial callosal resection for pericallosal aneurysms.

The surgical treatment of aneurysms that arise at the origin of the pericallosal artery is technically difficult. This report describes a technique that improves the exposure of the proximal vasculature during a craniotomy for pericallosal aneurysms. A portion of the corpus callosum was resected in two patients before the manipulation of their aneurysms. The resection provided excellent exposure of the A2 segment of the anterior cerebral artery, and both aneurysms were clipped safely. Neither patient exhibited signs of hemispheric disconnection. The authors conclude that partial callosal resection improves access to the proximal vessels during procedures for pericallosal aneurysms.