Prevalence and pathophysiology of early dumping in patients after primary Roux-en-Y gastric bypass during a mixed-meal tolerance test

Background

Early dumping is a poorly defined and incompletely understood complication after Roux-en-Y gastric (RYGB).

Microbiological aspects of heat sterilization of drugs

International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy - In order to calculate the minimum sterilization process conditions to obtain the generally accepted sterility level (less than 1·10?6...     

The reliability of the 3-phase bone scan in suspected scaphoid fracture: an inter- and intraobserver variability analysis.

In the diagnosis of scaphoid fracture, the dynamic phase of the radionuclide bone scan alone has been recommended as an early test. To evaluate the independent reliability of the dynamic and static phases of the 3-phase bone scan in this diagnosis, 3 examiners reviewed the 3-phase bone scans of a series of 60 patients with clinical signs of fracture of the carpal scaphoid and with negative or non-diagnostic initial radiographs. The interpretation was performed independently and without the benefit of additional data. The bone scans were reviewed after 1 year by the same observers. The results were analyzed using kappa statistics. The bone scan was suspicious of fracture of the scaphoid in 15 patients. Irrespective of training and experience, the kappa values of the dynamic bone scan between any 2 observers did not exceed 0.57. The kappa values increased significantly when the static phase of the bone scan was examined (> 0.81). The intraobserver variability showed a similar pattern. We conclude that in suspected scaphoid fracture, the dynamic phase of the radionuclide bone scan alone cannot be used as a reliable diagnostic approach because of the low inter- and intraobserver agreement in the interpretation, irrespective of the experience and training of the observer.     

Increased incidence of breast cancer in southeast Netherlands between 1960 and 1989]

Trends in incidence, stage distribution and mortality of breast cancer were determined in the Southeastern Netherlands in 1960-1989. First and second primary breast cancers were analyzed separately. The incidence and mortality rates were age-standardised according to the European Standard Population. The incidence rate of first primary invasive breast cancer increased from 50 per 100,000 women per year in 1960-61 to 96 in 1988-89, and of second primary invasive breast cancer from 3.2 in 1965-66 to 7.8 in 1988-89. The incidence rate of first primary ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) increased from 0.3 per 100,000 women per year in 1975-76 to 2.8 in 1988-89 and of second primary DCIS from 0.06 in 1975-79 to 0.4 per 100,000 in 1985-89. The increase in first invasive primaries was observed in all age groups, but mostly at age 75 and over. The percentage with stage I tumours of the patients with a first primary invasive breast cancer increased from 7% in the sixties to 27% in the eighties, whereas the percentage of stage III and IV tumours combined, decreased from 39% in the sixties to 26% in the eighties. While age-adjusted incidence of first primaries almost doubled in the past thirty years, breast cancer mortality rose only slightly. However, breast cancer mortality showed a proportionate increase of total mortality from 4.5% in 1970-71 to 6.3% in 1988-89.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

A method for sonographic counting of the lower vertebral bodies in newborns and infants.

PURPOSETo determine whether the lumbosacral junction of the vertebral column can be identified with sonography in newborns and infants and thus serve as a method for counting the lumbar and sacral vertebral bodies.METHODSIn 32 newborns and infants, the number of ossified vertebral bodies distal to the lumbosacral junction was counted with sonography and radiography.RESULTSSonographic and radiographic findings agreed in 29 of 32 examinations (91%).CONCLUSIONSThe lordotic transition at the lumbosacral junction can be identified with sonography in the majority of newborns and infants, allowing intraspinal structures to be related to a specific vertebral level.     

High intensity focused ultrasound: physical principles and devices.

High intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is gaining rapid clinical acceptance as a treatment modality enabling non-invasive tissue heating and ablation for numerous applications. HIFU treatments are usually carried out in a single session, often as a day case procedure, with the patient either fully conscious, lightly sedated or under light general anaesthesia. A major advantage of HIFU over other thermal ablation techniques is that there is no necessity for the transcutaneous insertion of probes into the target tissue. The high powered focused beams employed are generated from sources placed either outside the body (for treatment of tumours of the liver, kidney, breast, uterus, pancreas and bone) or in the rectum (for treatment of the prostate), and are designed to enable rapid heating of a target tissue volume, while leaving tissue in the ultrasound propagation path relatively unaffected. Given the wide-ranging applicability of HIFU, numerous extra-corporeal, transrectal and interstitial devices have been designed to optimise application-specific treatment delivery. Their principle of operation is described here, alongside an overview of the physical mechanisms governing HIFU propagation and HIFU-induced heating. Present methods of characterising HIFU fields and of quantifying HIFU exposure and its associated effects are also addressed.     

Autonomy in the Rehabilitation of Stroke Patients in Nursing Homes. A Concept Analysis

This article presents a concept analysis of autonomy in relation to the rehabilitation of stroke patients. Analysis of the results of a literature survey provided three important concepts of autonomy in the field of biomedical ethics: self-governance, self-realization and actual autonomy. These concepts are compared with concepts from caring sciences and summarized in a table. The results indicate the importance of the social environment (formal and informal caregivers) for the restoration of autonomy. Because of the patient's condition and context, a social concept of autonomy makes more sense in the rehabilitation of stroke patients in nursing homes than does an individual concept. The concept analysis sheds light on the fact that the majority of studies regarding patient autonomy are primarily based on theoretical reflections, not on empirical studies. More research is warranted to gather information on how patients themselves consider and appreciate autonomy during rehabilitation, to explore the views of stroke patients' formal and informal caregivers and to investigate whether a social concept of autonomy is suitable for all phases of rehabilitation. Concerning the practice of rehabilitation, no definite conclusion can be given as yet.