Skin regeneration,repair, and reconstruction: present and future

European Surgery - Large skin defects caused by trauma (e.g., burns) or due to other reasons (e.g., tumor-related skin resections) require sufficient skin replacement. The constant improvement of...     

Case of a palatal tic resembling palatal tremor in a patient with Tourette syndrome.

We describe a case of a palatal tic resembling palatal tremor (PT) in a young female patient with a previously unrecognized mild Tourette syndrome. At the time of her visit, the patient complained about ear clicks that were audible to others. We discuss the differential diagnoses of hyperkinetic palatal movements emphasizing the ongoing discussion about essential PT representing a more heterogeneous disorder than previously thought.     

Expression of rabbit Ig allotypes in litters of mothers immunized against a paternal allotype.

Sera of successive littermates of mothers producing anti-allotype antibodies (Ab) were analysed for altered a locus or b locus allotype expression. We measured the allotype concentration in sera of 66 individuals (17 litters) of seven mothers producing anti-a1 Ab, and 63 individuals (15 litters) of seven mothers producing anti-b4 Ab, in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We confirmed that the ability to induce allotype suppression in utero increases with the number of antigen boosts applied to the mother, even though the Ab titre in the maternal serum may be decreased. All individuals of a litter expressed the allotype in about equal concentration. This contrasts the results we obtained when newborn rabbits were injected with anti-allotype antiserum. Injection of the same amount of anti-allotype antiserum into nine offspring of two mothers caused allotype suppression in only five individuals, showing no effect in the others. No suppression was observed when IgG-depleted antiserum was injected into newborn rabbits. As expected, maternal antibodies to a paternal allotype do not affect the Mendelian distribution of the progeny phenotypes.     

Inverse Planning – a Comparative Intersystem and Interpatient Constraint Study

PURPOSE: To compare commercial treatment-planning systems (TPS) for inverse planning (IP) and to assess constraint variations for specific IMRT indications. MATERIAL AND METHODS: For IP, OTP, XiO and BrainSCAN were used and step-and-shoot intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) delivery was assumed. Based on identical constraints, IP was performed for a prostate, head and neck, brain, and gynecologic case. IMRT plans were compared in terms of conformity/homogeneity, dose-volume histograms (DVHs), and delivery efficiency. For ten patients each of a class of indications, constraint variations were evaluated. RESULTS: IMRT plans were comparable concerning minimum target dose, homogeneity, conformity, and maximum doses to organs at risk. Larger differences were seen in dose gradients outside the target, monitor units, and segment number. Using help structures proved efficient to shape isodoses and to reduce segmentation workload. For IMRT class solutions, IP constraint variations depended on anatomic site. CONCLUSION: IP systems requiring doses as input and having objective functions based on physical parameters had a very similar performance. Constraint templates can be established for a class of IMRT indications.