Effect of a Condom Cover on Vaginal Photoplethysmographic Responses

IntroductionThe vaginal photoplethysmograph (VPP) is a reusable intravaginal device often employed in sexual psychophysiology studies to assess changes in vaginal blood flow, an indicator of sexual arousal.AimTo test whether placing a disposable cover on the VPP probe impacts the acquired data. A condom cover would reduce risk of disease transmission and likely increase participant comfort but may negatively impact the VPP signal.MethodThe genital responses of 25 cisgender women (mean age = 21.3 years, standard deviation = 2.6) were assessed with VPP in a within-subjects design with 2 conditions—with and without a polyisoprene condom cover. Sexual responses were elicited by audiovisual film clips that varied in erotic intensity: nonsexual (nonsexual male-female interaction), low-intensity sexual (nude exercise), and high-intensity sexual (male-female intercourse). Women continuously rated their sexual arousal during stimulus presentations.Main Outcome MeasureChange in vaginal pulse amplitude and also self-reported sexual arousal.ResultsThe magnitude of sexual response to each stimulus category and the overall pattern of results were found to be highly similar in the cover-off and cover-on conditions. The high-intensity sexual stimulus category elicited a greater sexual response than all other categories. The low-intensity sexual category elicited a (small) genital response in only the cover-on condition, although we suspect this is a spurious finding. There was no difference in the average number of edited movement artifacts across conditions.Clinical ImplicationsPotential benefits of encasing the VPP probe with a protective cover include enhanced participant safety and comfort, especially if assessing genital responses of high-risk or immunocompromised samples. The use of a cover complies with current guidelines for reprocessing semi-critical medical devices (eg, vaginal ultrasound probes) in many regions.Strengths & LimitationsAlthough the idea of a VPP probe cover had been discussed among sexual psychophysiology researchers, this is the first study to empirically test whether a cover could jeopardize VPP data. Potential limitations include the use of a 10-Hz VPP sampling rate and a cover that was not tailored to the size of the VPP probe.ConclusionPlacing a protective cover on the VPP probe did not appear to meaningfully impact sexual arousal or the VPP data. Based on these results and the potential advantages of a protective cover, researchers may wish to integrate the use a condom cover in their experiment protocols and clinical applications.Sawatsky ML, Lalumière ML. Effect of a Condom Cover on Vaginal Photoplethysmographic Responses. J Sex Med 2020; 17:702–715.     

Evaluation of mutagenic,recombinogenic and carcinogenic potential of (+)-usnic acid in somatic cells of Drosophila melanogaster

The main of this study was to evaluate the mutagenic and carcinogenic potential of (+) – usnic acid (UA), using Somatic Mutation and Recombination Test (SMART) and the test for detecting epithelial tumor clones (wts) in Drosophila melanogaster. Larvae from 72 ± 4 h from Drosophila were fed with UA (5.0, 10.0 or 20.0 mM); urethane (10.0 mM) (positive control); and solvent (Milli-Q water, 1% Tween-80 and 3% ethanol) (negative control). ST cross produced increase in total mutant spots in the individuals treated with 5.0, 10.0 or 20.0 mM of UA. HB cross produced spot frequencies in the concentration of 5.0 mM that were higher than the frequency for the same concentration in the ST cross. In the highest concentrations the result was negative, which means that the difference observed can be attributed, in part, to the high levels of P450, suggesting that increasing the metabolic capacity maximized the toxic effect of these doses. In the evaluation of carcinogenesis using the wts test, the results obtained for the same concentrations of UA show a positive result for the presence of tumors when compared to the negative control. We conclude that UA has recombinogenic, mutagenic and carcinogenic effects on somatic cells in D. melanogaster.     

Preoperative scoring system for predicting early adjacent vertebral fractures after Balloon Kyphoplasty

BackgroundAdjacent vertebral fracture (AVF) is a major complication following Balloon Kyphoplasty (BKP). There is no scoring system for predicting AVF using only preoperative elements. The purposes of this study were to develop a scoring system for predicting early AVF after BKP based on preoperative factors and to investigate the appropriate surgical indication for BKP.MethodsOf 220 patients who underwent BKP at a single institution since 2011, 65 patients over the age of 60 who had undergone a standing whole spine X-ray preoperatively were enrolled. Factors affecting the occurrence of early AVF were examined. A scoring system was created consisting of the factors exhibiting significant differences, and the correlation between the total score and the incidence of early AVF was investigated.ResultsTwenty of the 65 patients (30.8%) had early AVF. In a univariate analysis, age, previous vertebral fracture, pelvic tilt, and Local kyphosis significantly influenced early AVF. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, age had an odds ratio of 1.136 (95% CI 1.001–1.289), previous vertebral fractures 4.181 (1.01–17.309), and Local kyphosis 1.103 (1.021–1.191). The scoring system was set as follows: ①Age (<75 years: 0 points(P), 75years≦: 1P), ②The number of previous vertebral fractures (0: 0 P, 1: 1P, 2: 2P, 3 or more: 3P), and ③Local kyphosis (<10°: 0P, 10°≦: 1P). There was a correlation between the total score and the incidence of early AVF (r = 0.812, 1P = 0.05). The incidence of early AVF was 6.4% (2 cases/31 cases) for a score of ≦1P and 54.5% (18 cases/33 cases) for a score of ≧2P.ConclusionsThere was a correlation between the total score and the incidence of early AVF. A score of 1 point or less may represent the appropriate surgical indication for BKP.     

生长抑素及其类似物联合质子泵抑制剂应用于急性非静脉曲张性上消化道出血的循证分析

目的 系统评价生长抑素及其类似物联合质子泵抑制剂（proton pump inhibitor，PPI）治疗急性非静脉曲张性上消化道出血（acute non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding，ANVUGIB）的有效性和安全性，并分析其用药经济性。方法 采用循证医学方法搜集生长抑素及其类似物联合PPI治疗ANVUGIB的RCT、队列研究进行meta分析，得到相应的有效性及安全性分析结果，并进行成本-效果分析。结果 最终纳入6个RCT均未接受内镜治疗，共610例受试者。Meta分析结果显示，生长抑素及其类似物联合高、中、低剂量PPI治疗在以下方面均优于单用高、中、低剂量PPI治疗，差异有统计学意义，总有效率[OR=3.34，95%CI（2.03，5.47），P<0.000 01]、止血时间[MD=-9.04，95%CI（-11.69，-6.38），P<0.000 01]、输血量[MD=-1.10，95%CI（-1.46，-0.74），P<0.000 01]；在不良反应发生率方面，2组差异无统计学意义[OR=0.49，95%CI（0.11，2.12），P=0.34]。ANVUGIB患者予生长抑素联合高、中、低剂量奥美拉唑与单用高、中、低剂量奥美拉唑进行成本-效果分析，增量成本效果比分别为172.28，217.26，330.37，敏感性分析后显示结果稳定。而接受内镜治疗后应用生长抑素及其类似物联合PPI治疗仅1个队列研究，研究结果显示内镜治疗成功后联合治疗并不优于PPI单药治疗。结论 现有证据表明，生长抑素及其类似物联合PPI治疗未经内镜治疗的ANVUGIB患者为较有效的方案，两者安全性相当、耐受性较好，从药品直接成本考虑，高剂量PPI组联合治疗较中、低剂量PPI组联合治疗更具有成本效果性。而对于经内镜下止血治疗的患者两者疗效相当，可考虑单用PPI。     

硫酸镁、硝苯地平和酚妥拉明治疗妊高症

目的探讨对妊娠高血压综合征患者给予硫酸镁联合硝苯地平以及酚妥拉明治疗的临床效果。方法抽取医院在2018年2月-2019年2月所接收的156例妊娠高血压综合征患者,将其按照数字随机表的方法分为单纯组和联合组,每组分别为78例。单纯组给予单纯的硫酸镁进行治疗,联合组在单纯组给予硝苯地平以及酚妥拉明进行联合治疗,比较患者的治疗效果。结果联合组的治疗有效率显著高于单纯组,治疗前血压水平差异无统计学意义(P>0.05),治疗后联合组的收缩压和舒张压水平均低于单纯组,P<0.05,两组差异有统计学意义。结论对妊娠高血压综合征患者给予硫酸镁联合硝苯地平和酚妥拉明进行联合治疗,有效改善患者的血压水平。     

Cellular targets of regulatory B cell-mediated suppression

Regulatory B cells (Bregs) are defined by their ability to restrain inflammatory responses both in vivo and in vitro. Interleukin 10 (IL-10) production by Bregs is thought to be central to their ability to regulate inflammation, largely due to IL-10s’ ability to suppress pro-inflammatory cytokine production by effector lymphocytes and to maintain the differentiation of regulatory T cells (Tregs). However, with an increase in available published data, it has become evident that Bregs utilize a number of suppressive mechanisms in order to alter the activation of a variety of different lymphocytes. Here, we summarize the multiplicity of cellular targets of Breg-mediated suppression and describe the mechanisms employed by Bregs to suppress chronic inflammatory responses.