The effect of immediate postpartum levonorgestrel contraceptive implant use on breastfeeding and infant growth: a randomized controlled trial

Objective

This study assessed whether immediate postpartum insertion of levonorgestrel contraceptive implants is associated with a difference in infant growth from birth to 6 months, onset of lactogenesis, or breastfeeding continuation at 3 and 6 months postpartum compared to delayed insertion at 6 to 8 weeks postpartum.

The health-related quality of life of male and female heavy smokers

Objectives: Heavy smokers are a segment of the smoking population who are at increased risk of smoking-related morbidity and least likely to achieve cessation. This study identifies the impact of heavy smoking on quality of life by gender and describes the subpopulation for improved targeting.Methods: South Australian representative population data (n = 3010) was used to compare the health-related quality of life status of male and female heavy smokers as assessed by the SF-36.     

Temporal lobe dual pathology in malignant migrating partial seizures in infancy.

A child had the characteristic clinical and EEG pattern of migrating partial seizures in infancy with left temporal lobe atrophy, hippocampal sclerosis and cortical-subcortical blurring.Seizures were drug-resistant, with recurring episodes of status epilepticus. The child developed microcephaly with arrest of psychomotor development. Focal brain lesions, in the context of migrating partial seizures, have not been previously reported.[Published with video sequences].     

Psychiatric morbidity in patients with life-threatening asthma: initial report of a controlled study

Thirteen patients who have suffered a "near-miss" death of asthma have been compared to 36 patients with asthma who had not experienced such an episode. Contrary to expectations, there were no differences between the groups in their levels of psychiatric morbidity, their degree of life-style and social restrictions or in their levels of compliance with prescribed medication. However, both groups did show higher than expected levels of psychiatric morbidity, severe life-style and social restrictions and an unexpectedly-high compliance with prescribed medication. The main psychiatric diagnoses that were noted were anxiety disorders. It is concluded that more comprehensive asthma education and close medical follow-up are likely to improve the physical and psychological health of asthmatic patients. The high-risk patients in this study who received such follow-up have shown hospital-admission rates that have been reduced by a half while maintaining good asthma control. This South Australian longitudinal study is continuing.     

CD1a and antitumour immune response

Primary immune response is based on the capacity of local professional antigen-presenting cells (whose prototype is represented by dendritic cells, DCs) to take up and present antigens to selected clones of T cells, but also to non-specific effector cells such as macrophages or natural killer cells. The four CD1 proteins, all of which share a limited homology to class I MHC proteins, are differently expressed in various cell types, of both mesenchymal and, as recently described, epithelial lineage. Regarding the role of CD1 molecules in the anti-tumour response, it has been reported that CD1+ dendritic cells are involved in the first steps of the primary immune response in a number of malignancies. Moreover, the presence of a high number of DCs in the tumoral or peritumoral area, as well as in the draining lymph nodes, has been shown to correlate with a better prognosis. A recent report on the presence of CD1a in metaplastic epithelial cells of Barrett esophagus introduced new questions about CD1a expression patterns. Moreover, the strong correlation between the lack of CD1a+ cells and the malignant evolution of the lesion may indicate a possible role of non-professional APCs in mediating and/or potentiating immune responses to tumours.     

Mortality from asthma in children and young adults in Louisiana.

BACKGROUND: Asthma mortality rates have been increasing despite our improved understanding of the pathophysiology of asthma and advanced methods of treatment. Although there are many national studies of asthma mortality rates, few studies have concentrated on subnational regions such as individual states. OBJECTIVES: We sought to determine the trends in asthma mortality in children and young adults during the last 15 years in Louisiana. METHODS: Asthma mortality data were acquired from the Louisiana State Center for Health Statistics for the years 1983 through 1997. All asthma deaths coded International Classification of Disease, Ninth Revision 493 were included in the data set along with year, sex, and rate characteristics. State population estimates obtained from the United States Bureau of Census for three 5-year periods (1983 to 1987, 1988 to 1992, and 1993 to 1997) were used to calculate crude and adjusted mortality rates. These time periods were compared with one another and with the period 1983 to 1987, which was used as a baseline. RESULTS: For all residents, the mortality rate increased from 0.41 deaths per 100,000 persons during the 1983 to 1987 time period to 0.49 and 0.63 deaths per 100,000 persons during 1988 to 1992 and 1993 to 1997 time periods, respectively. Mortality rates have increased in both the white and non-white populations over the 15-year study period, with the most pronounced increases among the non-white population. CONCLUSION: Asthma mortality rates in Louisiana have increased, particularly among the non-white population, over the last 15 years, although the results are not statistically significant. When compared with other states, asthma mortality in Louisiana is lower than in the northeast and central north states.     

A comparison of the bronchodilator activity of Sch 1000 and salbutamol.

The effects of the beta 2-adrenergic agonist, salbutamol, 200 mug, and the cholinergic antagonist, Sch 1000, 40 mug, have been compared in 25 asthmatic patients using a single dose, double-blind, crossover trial design. Salbutamol aerosol produces a greater degree of bronchodilatation than Sch 1000 aerosol during the initial three hours following drug administration. There is no significant difference in the bronchodilator effects of the two drugs in the interval four to eight hours after drug administration. Nonatopic patients showed less difference in bronchodilator response to each of the two drugs than atopic patients. Neither drug showed any significant adverse effect on blood pressure, pulse rate, or electrocardiogram. In six asthmatic patients the effect of the combination of salbutamol, 200 mug, and Sch 1000, 40 mug, was evaluated. The combination produced a longer duration of bronchodilatation than either drug alone when compared to placebo.     

Postmortem Stability of SARS-CoV-2 in Nasopharyngeal Mucosa

Analyses of infection chains have demonstrated that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 is highly transmissive. However, data on postmortem stability and infectivity are lacking. Our finding of nasopharyngeal viral RNA stability in 79 corpses showed no time-dependent decrease. Maintained infectivity is supported by virus isolation up to 35 hours postmortem.     

Transfection of the mullerian inhibiting substance gene inhibits local and metastatic tumor-growth

Mullerian Inhibiting Substance (MIS), a gonadal growth factor important in sexual differentiation, has antiproliferative activity against several human carcinoma cell lines. In this study, we examine the effect of MIS-transfection on the growth characteristics of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) and human ocular melanoma (OM431) cells, compared to wild-type lines and a CHO line transfected with a noncleavable, inactive MIS mutant. MIS-transfection inhibited proliferation of CHO cells in double-layer agarose, tumor spheroid, and murine subrenal capsule assays, as well as growth of CHO and OM431 cells in pulmonary metastasis studies. These results anticipate further study of targeted gene therapy of certain human tumors with MIS gene constructs.