Child and adolescent psychiatry training and services in the Middle East region: a current status assessment

European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry - Mental health is a key component of health, yet appropriate care is limited. Evidence concerning child and adolescent mental health has predominantly...     

Netzwerkpartner Arbeitstherapeut im Rehabilitationsmanagement

Due to the functional importance of the patella, accurate reduction and rigid fixation of patellar fractures are required. Tension band wiring has long been the standard treatment of these fractures, but there are several problems associated with this technique, e.g. loosening of the wires, fracture dislocation and poor outcome. Another possibility in the treatment of transverse patellar fractures is screw fixation. Although this technique ensures stable osteosynthesis, anatomical reduction is often problematic, especially in comminuted fractures. A good option in the treatment of (comminuted) patellar fractures is the newly designed locking patella plate, which combines anatomical reduction and stable osteosynthesis. In biomechanical tests the plate provided a more stable fixation of the patellar fracture and showed higher mechanical strength compared to classic tension band wiring. The first clinical applications achieved optimal fracture reduction. No complications have occurred to date following the use of the plate. Thus the patella plate represents a good option in the treatment of patellar fractures.     

Association of matrix metalloproteinase-2 gene polymorphisms with susceptibility to type 2 diabetes: A case control study

AimsGenetic variations mediating MMP-2 expression may result in individual differences in susceptibility to particular diseases. Our aim was to investigate the possible association of certain MMP-2 gene variants with the susceptibility of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in a Tunisian population.Subjects and methodsA retrospective case-control study involving 310 normoglycemic control subjects and 791 T2D patients was conducted. Genotyping of MMP-2 variants was performed by real time PCR.ResultsMinor allele frequencies (MAF) of the rs243865 and the rs243866 MMP-2, were significantly different between T2D cases and controls. Setting homozygous wild-type genotype carrier as reference, a reduced risk of T2D was seen with the rs243865 and the rs243866 genotypes. Haploview analysis revealed limited linkage disequilibrium between the tested MMP-2 and variants, with most haplotypes (99.5%) captured by 7 MMP-2 haplotypes. Taking the GCCC haplotype as reference for MMP-2 (OR = 1.00), a reduced frequency of TTCC haplotypes (P = 0.04) and the GTCC haplotype (P = 3.5 · 10^?5) was noted in T2D which indicates a protective nature of these two haplotypes for T2D development.ConclusionTo the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first to demonstrate a consistent association of the rs243865 and rs243866 genotype with a protection for T2D.