Health-related quality of life under six months' treatment of migraine—an open clinic-based longitudinal study

Health-related quality of life (HQL) assessment in the clinical setting have distinguished subjective perceptions (e.g. well-being), signssymptoms of the disease, and functional capacity as three major components. The impact of short-term treatment for migraine attacks on these variables was evaluated in an open prospective 6-month study at the Gothenburg Migraine Clinic. Socio-economic factors, subjective symptoms, and general well-beingquality of life were evaluated by self-administered questionnaires in 99 patients with migraine with or without aura in accordance with the classification of the International Headache Society. Short-term treatment comprising conventional therapy or subcutaneous sumatriptan reduced number of days per month with migraine and absenteeism from work, migraine-associated symptoms, but did not significantly improve general well-being between attacks. Future assessment of the patients' HQL in accordance with this approach would enable us to consider all the advantages and disadvantages of current therapies of particular interest in the field of migraine.     

寒冷干燥地区平时火器伤的早期处理

目的　探讨寒冷干燥地区平时火器伤伤情特点与早期救治方法。方法　对 1991年 1月— 2 0 0 2年 12月间 40例火器伤病人的临床救治进行回顾分析。结果　 2 4例枪伤中 ,2 0例一期缝合伤口 ,均一期愈合 ,另外 4例只清创未一期缝合的伤口 ,3例愈合 ,1例感染 ;4例骨折内固定均愈合良好 ,无骨髓炎发生。 16例炸伤病人局部软组织损伤及污染比枪弹伤重 ,14例一期缝合伤口中 ,10例一期愈合 ,4例感染 ,骨折内固定 2例 ,均愈合良好 ,无骨髓炎发生。结论　寒冷干燥地区火器伤早期伤道清创时限可适当延长 ,在平时火器伤的救治中 ,对软组织条件较好的创面 ,早期清创后可一期闭合伤口和骨折内固定 ,这样可减少感染和伤残 ,促进康复     

Retrograde endoscopic laser therapy for transitional cell carcinoma of the upper urinary tract

AIM: The aim of the present study was to investigate the safety and efficacy of endoscopic laser therapy for transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the upper urinary tract. METHODS: Tumors of the renal pelvis and ureteropelvic junction were detected by ureteroscopy. The tumors were subjected to biopsy, and after TCC was diagnosed, endoscopic laser therapy (Neodymium-YAG and Holmium-YAG) was conducted using a 6.9 Fr. flexible ureterorenoscope. RESULTS: From January 1997 to April 2002, six patients underwent ureteroscopic treatment. Tumor grade was 1 in four patients and 2 in two patients. Average tumor size was 1.45 cm. Endoscopic treatment was chosen for two patients because of the high medical risk associated with open surgery. Another patient underwent diagnostic ureteroscopy, followed immediately by endoscopic treatment. A further three patients elected to undergo ureteroscopic treatment. One patient with large (3 cm), multifocal and incompletely treated tumors died of metastatic disease 22 months after the initial operation. One patient requested nephroureterectomy one month after endoscopic treatment, and pathological examination of the resected specimen revealed no tumor. The other four patients have been followed up for a mean period of 14 months after initial treatment. Recurrence occurred in one patient, and was successfully treated by repeat endoscopic resection. None of the patients required blood transfusion or emergency open surgery. CONCLUSION: Ureteroscopic treatment of small, localized, low-grade TCC of the upper urinary tract is now a safe and feasible alternative to nephroureterectomy in selected patients.     

Association Between Various Drugs Used for Hypertension and Risk of Acute Myocardial Infarction

We examined the relation between various drugs used for treating high blood pressure and the incidence of acute myocardial infarction with a case-control design. Four hospitals taking care of all patients in Oslo with acute myocardial infarction participated with a total of 95 hypertensive men and women under 75 years of age who had had an acute myocardial infarction. A total of 329 age and sex matched controls were hypertensive citizens in Oslo without myocardial infarction. Frequency of treatment with drugs and odds ratio of risks with these drugs were calculated. The risk (odds ratio) of myocardial infarction for drug treatment during the last five years versus non drug treatment was 0.70 (95% confidence interval 0.42-1.18). The risk for diuretics and bT-blockers tested against no treatment was 0.91 (0.52-1.61). The corresponding risk for vasodilating drugs was 0.43 (0.20-0.91). Four weeks of exposure to aL-blockers, on the other hand, tested against other drug treatments, indicated an odds ratio of 4.62 (1.01-24.0) for individuals with a history of angina. These data confirm that treatment with diuretics and bT-blockers has only little effect on the incidence of myocardial infarction. As a whole, vasodilators are associated with a significant reduction in this incidence, but aL-blockers enhance the risk in patients with angina.     

Successful surgical treatment of secondary kwashiorkor after total gastrectomy: Report of a case

We report herein the case of a 56-year-old woman who developed secondary Kwashiorkor 9 years after undergoing a total gastrectomy for early gastric cancer. Until she began developing the symptoms of Kwashiorkor, including general fatigue, edema of the face and extremities, anemia, alopecia, and weight loss, she had been leading a normal life post-gastrectomy. Her symptoms were alleviated by total parenteral nutrition (TPN) therapy, but reappeared soon after TPN therapy was discontinued. Therefore, she required several subsequent courses of TPN. In an attempt to permanently resolve the ongoing Kwashiorkor symptoms, reconstructive surgery involving transposition of the jejunum from the previous Graham method to the interposition method was performed 10 years after the initial gastrectomy. After the second operation, her malnutrition was completely alleviated, and she has been in good health for the 8 years since. To our knowledge, there has been no other report of the symptoms of secondary Kwashiorkor after total gastrectomy being alleviated by altering the procedure of reconstruction of the intestinal tract. Thus, we recommend surgical treatment to alter the digestive continuity to a more physiological pathway for selected patients with secondary Kwashiorkor syndrome.     

Primary adenocarcinoma of the fallopian tube. Review of the literature

An extensive review of the currently available literature on primary fallopian tube carcinoma is presented. The role of vaginal ultrasonography and the importance of an aggressive evaluation of every tubal deformity is stressed. A staging system which takes into account recent data on the biology of this malignancy is proposed. We emphasize the largely underestimated importance of early lymphatic spread of this disease, necessitating a thorough staging laparotomy with pelvic and para-aortic lymph node sampling in the apparent early stages. The need for adjuvant treatment is obvious, but until now no firm data exist as to what the optimal strategy should be. We recommend that until more representative studies are available, ovarian carcinoma protocols should be used in clinical practice.     

Changing helplessness to coping: an exploratory study of social skills training with individuals with long-term mental illness

The primary purpose of this study was to apply an occupational therapy programme for social skills training based on a cognitive-behavioural frame of reference to individuals with long-term mental illness. The goal of the social skills training group was to enable patients to develop verbal and non-verbal communication skills that could be generalised to everyday interpersonal encounters. A case example of the application of social skills training with a 38-year-old single male with a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia is described. The Group-Interaction Skills Survey developed by the author served as an outcome measure. Qualitative data confirmed the researcher's hypothesis that individuals with long-term mental illness can benefit from social skills training using a combination of role-playing, sociodrama, videotape recordings and creative media. Copyright © 1996 Whurr Publishers Ltd.