Simple screening test for risk of falls in the elderly

Background:   The aim of this study is to construct a simple screening test for the risk of falls in community-dwelling elder persons.
Methods:   A total of 1378 community-dwelling people aged 65 years and older in five different communities in Japan were asked to answer a self rated questionnaire including 22 items covering physical, cognitive, emotional and social aspects of functioning and environmental factors. At a six-month follow-up, the outcome of fall occurrence and the number of falls was ascertained by social workers, health visitors or nurses.
Results:   Five out of 22 items were selected using a logistic regression model. Using this five-item version, a screening test was constructed, and at the best cut-off point, the sensitivity and specificity were 68% and 70%, respectively. The validity of this scale was tested on persons with cognitive dysfunction.
Conclusion:   The simplicity and the predictive validity of the screening test support the use of this test in health check ups or general outpatient facilities.     

高效液相色谱法测定硫酸奈替米星注射液的含量

目的采用高效液相色谱法测定硫酸奈替米星及注射液的含量。方法以μ-Diamonsil—C18为分析柱，流动相为1．5％的磷酸二氢钾-乙睛，流速为1．0ml／min，检测渡长为205nm。含量测定用峰面积外标法。结果硫酸奈替米星在0．1—1．6mg／ml浓度范围内呈现良好线性关系，r=0．9998．平均回收率为99．5％，RSD=0．4％（n=9）。结论本方法操作简便、快速，结果准确可靠，重现性好，均能很好地满足质量控制的要求，为开辟氨基糖苷类抗生素含量测定的仪器提供了一定借鉴。     

Routinely collected general practice data aids identification of people with hyperglycaemia and metabolic syndrome.

AIMS: To assess the performance of a risk score comprising data routinely available in general practice records (age, gender, body mass index, family history of diabetes, smoking habits and prescribed anti-hypertensive drugs or steroids) in detecting diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance and metabolic syndrome. METHODS: In a population-based, cross-sectional study in a semi-rural general practice in Jutland, Denmark, Cambridge Risk Scores were calculated for 1355 patients without known diabetes (69% response rate) who completed questionnaires and underwent anthropometric measurement and an oral glucose tolerance test. RESULTS: Prevalences of diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance and metabolic syndrome were 2.29% (95% CI: 1.56-3.23), 6.64% (95% CI: 5.38-8.10) and 13.4% (95% CI: 11.5-15.2), respectively. Area under the ROC curve for the risk score and diabetes was 83.8% (75.9-91.7) and for metabolic syndrome [European Group for the Study of Insulin Resistance (EGIR)] was 78.1% (74.6-81.6). Twenty per cent of the population had a risk score above 0.246; at this threshold the sensitivity to detect diabetes was 71.0% (53.4-83.9), the specificity 81.2% (79.0-83.2), positive predictive value 8.1% (6.6-10.0) and likelihood ratio 3.77 (2.94-4.85). For metabolic syndrome (EGIR) corresponding values for sensitivity were 50.3% (43.1-57.5), specificity 84.7% (82.5-85.6), positive predictive value 33.6% (28.2-39.4), and likelihood ratio 3.28 (2.69-4.00). CONCLUSIONS: Undiagnosed hyperglycaemia and metabolic syndrome are common. The Cambridge Risk Score is a practical first step in a screening procedure to identify individuals with these disorders who might benefit from diagnostic testing or to direct preventive interventions.     

高迁移率族蛋白B1对大鼠脾脏树突状细胞表面共刺激分子表达的影响

目的观察高迁移率族蛋白B1(HMGB1)对树突状细胞(dendritic cells,DC)表面共刺激分子表达的影响,并对其机制进行初步探讨。方法分离正常Wistar大鼠脾脏DC后置于96孔培养板(1×10~5/孔),采用HMGB1刺激,观察HMGB1刺激与DC表面共刺激分子CD80、CD86和主要组织相容性复合物(MHC)Ⅱ表达的时间-效应关系及剂量-效应关系。结果HMGB1刺激后,DC表面共刺激分子CD80、CD86和MHCⅡ表达分别于24～72 h明显上调(P＜0．05,0．01),其中以作用48 h后DC表面共刺激分子表达上调尤为显著(P＜0．01)；0．1μg/ml、1μg/ml、10μg/ml的HMGB1刺激均可诱导DC表面共刺激分子CD80、CD86和MHCⅡ表达增强(P＜0．05,0．01),其中HMGB1的浓度在1μg/ml时,大鼠DC表面共刺激分子CD80、CD86和MHCⅡ的表达增强最明显(P＜0．01)。结论HMGB1能诱导DC表面共刺激分子表达增强,HMGB1可能是诱导DC成熟的免疫刺激信号。     

原发性高血压和血液流变学异常之间的关系的研究

目的探讨原发性高血压病和血液流变学异常改变之间的关系。方法对80例高血压病人进行血液流变学观察。结果原发性高血压病组血液流变学多项指标出现异常升高,与正常对照组比较差异有显著性,其主要表现为全血粘度增高,其增高程度和血压升高程度之间呈正相关趋势。其中红细胞压积增高可能是血液粘度增高的重要因素。结论高血压病患者的血液流变学异常和血压增高程度之间有密切相关性。     

胃癌高系家族成员胃蛋白酶原C基因多态性及其诊断意义的探讨

采用限制性酶切片段长度多态性分析法，检测在胃癌高发区庄河检出的１９例胃癌高系家族成员胃蛋白酶原Ｃ基因多态性，发现三种常见片段及一种稀有片段。对其中４例携带稀有片段的受检者进行了胃镜追踪观察，２．５年后发现１例早期胃癌。本文对此作了初步探讨。     

Levels of cardiovascular risk factors in type 2 diabetes mellitus are dependent on the stage of proteinuria.

Levels of cardiovascular risk factors were determined in 75 patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The patients were divided into three groups according to their urinary protein excretion (UPE): (a) normal proteinuria (less than or equal to 70 mg d-1); (b) microproteinuria (70-500 mg d-1); and (c) macroproteinuria (greater than 500 mg d-1). A significant stepwise increase in mean systolic blood pressure, LDL-cholesterol and fibrinogen levels was observed from the first to the third investigated group of patients. Mean apoprotein B levels were significantly increased in the group with macroproteinuria compared to the other two groups. Significant linear correlations were found between UPE and LDL-cholesterol, total cholesterol, apoprotein B, creatinine, systolic blood pressure and diabetes duration. In summary, it is concluded that the levels of some cardiovascular risk factors increase with the stage of proteinuria in Type 2 diabetes mellitus.     

神经网络分析方法用于心脏病诊断的研究

神经网络可以很好的拟合任意的非线性函数。我们从 QRS波群的高频三维频谱中提取出一些定量的特征参数 ,用神经网络的方法对这些参数进行有监督的学习训练 ,最终能在由这些特征参数张成的 m维空间中构建出一个 m维的曲面来区分病人和健康人的 QRS波群高频三维频谱 ,从而使得训练后的网络能基于 QRS波群的高频三维频谱自行诊断出病人和健康人     

Sustained low-grade pro-inflammatory state in unmedicated, remitted women with major depressive disorder as evidenced by elevated serum levels of the acute phase proteins C-reactive protein and serum amyloid A.

BACKGROUND: Major depressive disorder (MDD) shows increased coronary artery disease (CAD) risk of unknown mechanism(s). MDD is more common in women than men; CAD diagnosis can be difficult in women. Elevations of the inflammatory markers C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid A (SAA) predict increased CAD risk in populations; few data on these markers exist in MDD, particularly in remitted patients. METHODS: We measured fasting am serum CRP (high sensitivity, CRP(hs)) and SAA in 18 unmedicated, remitted women with MDD (mean age 41 +/- (SD)12, body mass index (BMI) 25.2 +/- 4.1 kg/m(2)) and 18 BMI-matched healthy control subjects (age 36 +/- 10, BMI 25.3 +/- 3.8 kg/m(2)) on 2 separate occasions, > or = 6 days apart. RESULTS: Repeat SAA and CRP(hs) measurements strongly correlated across study days (SAA: r = .83, p < .001; CRP(hs): r = .94, p < .001). Both SAA (5.30 +/- 3.39 vs. 2.84 +/- 1.87 mg/L, p < .005) and CRP(hs) (3.23 +/- 3.17 vs. 1.12 +/- 1.45 mg/L; p < .01) were significantly elevated in MDD women versus controls. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated SAA and CRP(hs) in remitted, unmedicated women with MDD indicate a pro-inflammatory state unrelated to current depressive symptoms or pharmacotherapy. These findings suggest that inflammatory mechanisms may in part underlie findings of increased CAD risk in MDD.