The proteome microenvironment determines the protective effect of preconditioning in cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury

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The cost-of-illness for invasive meningococcal disease caused by serogroup B Neisseria meningitidis (MenB) in Germany

Introduction

Invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) is a severe disease mainly affecting infants and young children. The most common serogroup causing IMD in Germany is the serogroup type B Neisseria meningitidis (MenB). The aim of the present study is to estimate the economic burden of MenB-related IMD in Germany.

Reoperation rates and risk factors for revision 4 years after dynamic stabilization of the lumbar spine

Background Context

The concept of dynamic stabilization (DS) of the lumbar spine for treatment of degenerative instability has been introduced almost two decades ago. Dynamic stabilization follows the principle of controlling movement in the coronal plane by providing load transfer of the spinal segment without fusion and, at the same time, reducing side effects such as adjacent segment disease (ASD). So far, only little is known about revision rates after DS due to ASD and screw loosening (SL).

Probleme mit dem γ-Nagel - Optimierungsmöglichkeiten

Intramedullary nailing implants have now assumed the first place in the treatment of pertrochanteric fractures.The reasons for their popularity are their high fatigue strength and the minimally invasive surgical technique required for their use.These advantages are of great benefit to the mainly geriatric and frequently multitraumatized patients concerned.The main device in this implant group is the gamma nail, which was originally developed by Grosse and Kempf. The gamma nail yielded results superior to those obtained with the dynamic hip screw, which had been the standard so far, especially when it was used in the treatment of unstable fractures.Although there was some vigorous debate over the original principles of the gamma nail, the current system is widely accepted and is available in different variants.However,owing to the high complication rate when the system was first introduced, the original gamma nail acquired the reputation of being an implant whose use made high demands.The critical analysis of implant-specific problems associated with the original gamma nail resulted in improvements to the implant and the instruments, with a noticeably reduced complication rate and better surgical technique.This article describes its current state of development.The various components are discussed individually. The results of our own investigation appear at the end of the report, reflecting this development process.     

Erythroleukemia with high fetal hemoglobin after therapy for ovarian carcinoma

The authors report the association of erythroleukemia (FAB M6) and fetal hemoglobin (HbF) level of at least 65% after therapy for ovarian carcinoma. The patient's erythrocytes had many signs of reversion to fetal-like erythropoiesis including: elevated HbF with a fetal G gamma/A gamma (gly/ala) of 3/1, low hemoglobin A2 (HbA2), macrocytosis, and increased i antigen. These data and data from other case reports suggest that elevation of HbF to greater than 25% with reversion to fetal-like erythropoiesis is useful in differentiating erythroleukemia from other preleukemic disorders.     

Dimensional measurement of seasonal variation in mood and behavior.

Recent epidemiologic studies have found that the behaviors that characterize seasonal affective disorder (SAD) show seasonal variation in 92%-95% of the general population, suggesting that seasonal variation in behavior and mood is a continuous, dimensional variable extending throughout the general population, defined at the upper extreme by SAD. Research into population seasonality will require a dimensional measure of seasonal variation in mood and behavior that produces a broad, finely graded distribution of seasonality scores sensitive to individual differences throughout the entire range of scores. Accordingly, the Inventory of Seasonal Variation (ISV) was developed as such a measure. This study demonstrated that the ISV has high internal structural validity and is highly sensitive to individual differences in seasonality across its entire range of scores in the normal population. This latter characteristic is not shared by other existing measures of seasonality. Initial external validity of the ISV was supported in that the mean of ISV scores of a SAD sample was found to lie at the 97th percentile of the normal population of scores. Analysis of ISV scores revealed that a winter pattern of seasonality was reported by over 95% of subjects, a pattern that was more pronounced in women than men, while a summer type of seasonality was reported by only 0.6% of the general population.     

Pedophilia is linked to reduced activation in hypothalamus and lateral prefrontal cortex during visual erotic stimulation.

BACKGROUND: Although pedophilia is of high public concern, little is known about underlying neural mechanisms. Although pedophilic patients are sexually attracted to prepubescent children, they show no sexual interest toward adults. This study aimed to investigate the neural correlates of deficits of sexual and emotional arousal in pedophiles. METHODS: Thirteen pedophilic patients and 14 healthy control subjects were tested for differential neural activity during visual stimulation with emotional and erotic pictures with functional magnetic resonance imaging. RESULTS: Regions showing differential activations during the erotic condition comprised the hypothalamus, the periaqueductal gray, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, the latter correlating with a clinical measure. Alterations of emotional processing concerned the amygdala-hippocampus and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex. CONCLUSIONS: Hypothesized regions relevant for processing of erotic stimuli in healthy individuals showed reduced activations during visual erotic stimulation in pedophilic patients. This suggests an impaired recruitment of key structures that might contribute to an altered sexual interest of these patients toward adults.