Representation of spatial frequency and orientation in the visual cortex

Knowledge of the response of the primary visual cortex to the various spatial frequencies and orientations in the visual scene should help us understand the principles by which the brain recognizes patterns. Current information about the cortical layout of spatial frequency response is still incomplete because of difficulties in recording and interpreting adequate data. Here, we report results from a study of the cat primary visual cortex in which we employed a new image-analysis method that allows improved separation of signal from noise and that we used to examine the neurooptical response of the primary visual cortex to drifting sine gratings over a range of orientations and spatial frequencies. We found that (i) the optical responses to all orientations and spatial frequencies were well approximated by weighted sums of only two pairs of basis pictures, one pair for orientation and a different pair for spatial frequency; (ii) the weightings of the two pictures in each pair were approximately in quadrature (1/4 cycle apart); and (iii) our spatial frequency data revealed a cortical map that continuously assigns different optimal spatial frequency responses to different cortical locations over the entire spatial frequency range.     

Follicular bronchiolitis in primary ciliary dyskinesia

Ciliary dysfunction in primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) may be associated with bronchiolitis. Diffuse bronchiolitis has been reported in a subset of PCD patients who have Kartagener''s syndrome in Japan. We report a case of follicular bronchiolitis (FB) in a case of PCD presenting with recurrent episodes of cough, dyspnea, and bronchiectasis. This may motivate researchers to study rarer variants and presentations in PCD.     

A critical analysis of the concept of secondary Oral Hypoglycemic Agent (OHA) failure in type 2 diabetes at a tertiary care hospital

Data from UKPDS study suggests that the onset of ß cell dysfunction in diabetes occurs well before the development of hyperglycemia. To study the concept of secondary OHA failure in type 2 diabetes patients of more than 10 years duration in a tertiary care hospital. A retrospective analysis of all the cases of type 2 diabetes mellitus of more than 10 years duration from 2002 to 2003 was done and the data was divided into three groups: oral hypoglycemic agents (OHA) only, Insulin only, OHA + insulin. ANOVA/Students t test was the primary statistical test used. Odds ratio and 95% CI were calculated to compare risks of other diseases and drug use. 62.35% were on only OHAs, 8.82% on only insulin and 28.82% on both insulin and OHAs. This confirms good efficacy of OHAs. Diabetic population in our study tends to have a preserved beta cell function and secondary OHA failure is a late feature.     

Biochemical Urine Testing of Medication Adherence and Its Association With Clinical Markers in an Outpatient Population of Type 2 Diabetes Patients: Analysis in the DIAbetes and LifEstyle Cohort Twente (DIALECT)

OBJECTIVETo assess adherence to the three main drug classes in real-world patients with type 2 diabetes using biochemical urine testing, and to determine the association of nonadherence with baseline demographics, treatment targets, and complications.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSAnalyses were performed of baseline data on 457 patients in the DIAbetes and LifEstyle Cohort Twente (DIALECT) study. Adherence to oral antidiabetics (OADs), antihypertensives, and statins was determined by analyzing baseline urine samples using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Primary outcomes were microvascular and macrovascular complications and treatment targets of LDL cholesterol, HbA_1c, and blood pressure. These were assessed cross-sectionally at baseline.RESULTSOverall, 89.3% of patients were identified as adherent. Adherence rates to OADs, antihypertensives, and statins were 95.7%, 92.0%, and 95.5%, respectively. The prevalence of microvascular (81.6% vs. 66.2%; P = 0.029) and macrovascular complications (55.1% vs. 37.0%; P = 0.014) was significantly higher in nonadherent patients. The percentage of patients who reached an LDL cholesterol target of ≤2.5 mmol/L was lower (67.4% vs. 81.1%; P = 0.029) in nonadherent patients. Binary logistic regression indicated that higher BMI, current smoking, elevated serum LDL cholesterol, high HbA_1c, presence of diabetic kidney disease, and presence of macrovascular disease were associated with nonadherence.CONCLUSIONSAlthough medication adherence of real-world type 2 diabetes patients managed in specialist care was relatively high, the prevalence of microvascular and macrovascular complications was significantly higher in nonadherent patients, and treatment targets were reached less frequently. This emphasizes the importance of objective detection and tailored interventions to improve adherence.     

Relationship between white blood cell count and in-hospital outcomes in acute coronary syndrome patients from the Middle East

We evaluated the relationship between admission white blood cell (WBC) count and in-hospital outcomes in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients from the Middle East. Data were analyzed from 7806 consecutive patients with ACS who were divided into 4 groups (G) according to their WBC count (× 10(9)/L; G1: < 6.00; G2: 6.00-9.99; G3: 10.00-11.99; G4: ≥ 12.00). After significant covariate adjustment, those in G4 were 68% more likely to have cardiogenic shock than those in G1 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-2.68; P = .030) and G2 (odds ratio [OR], 2.02; 95% CI: 1.51-2.71; P < .001). Those in G4 were 2.02 times (95% CI: 1.11-3.67; P = .021) and 65% (95% CI: 1.17-2.32; P = .004) more likely to die in hospital than those in G1 and G2, respectively. Admission WBC count is an independent risk factor for in-hospital cardiogenic shock and mortality, in Middle Eastern patients with ACS. Novel therapeutic agents targeting WBCs in patients with ACS may improve outcomes.     

Assessment of dental anxiety and its correlation with denture satisfaction in edentulous patients

Objective: The objectives of this study were to measure the level of dental anxiety and its correlation with dental history, denture satisfaction and other variables. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 150 completely edentulous patients reporting to the Department of Prosthodontics, KLES's Institute of Dental Sciences, Belgaum, over a period of 17 months (August 2005 to March 2007). The anxiety level of the patients was assessed with the help of a questionnaire, after obtaining an informed consent. Reliability of the dental anxiety scale was assessed by means of coefficient alpha. Results: The results of this study concluded that dental anxiety scale for edentulous patients was a reliable scale for measuring dental anxiety. The anxiety score was higher for female than male patients. A significant correlation was found between denture satisfaction score and anxiety. Discussion: Anxiety plays a major role in denture satisfaction. The variables included: Previous denture experience, occupation, medical history, age, gender, dental anxiety scale, period of edentulousness, age of previous dentures, number of complete dentures, denture satisfaction score, and the score on the Hamilton anxiety scale Conclusion: The study indicated that gender correlates significantly with dental anxiety. Patients with medical history were found to be more anxious than normal patients. Patients with higher anxiety values were less satisfied with the treatment. Lastly, subjects with higher general anxiety showed greater values on the dental anxiety scale. Clinical significance: The assessment of dental anxiety will help the prosthodontist in the management of anxious patients and secondly to provide evidence-based research into this psychological construct which has been shown to predict dental avoidance. Keywords: Dental anxiety, Denture satisfaction, Completely edentulous patients. How to cite this article: Shrivastava R, Srivastava R, Shigli K, Prashanth MB, Kumaraswamy BN, Nethravathi TD. Assessment of Dental Anxiety and its Correlation with Denture Satisfaction in Edentulous Patients. J Contemp Dent Pract 2012;13(3):257-260. Source of support: Nil Conflict of interest: None declared.     

A Comparative Evaluation of the Vertical Root Fracture Resistance of Endodontically Treated Teeth using Different Root Canal Sealers: An in vitro Study

Objective: The objective of this study is to evaluate the vertical root fracture resistance of endodontically treated teeth obturated with - Tubli-Seal EWT/Gutta-percha, AH Plus/Gutta-percha, Epiphany SE sealer/Epiphany point. Study design: Sixty-five single rooted premolars were decoronated and root length was 14 mm for each specimen. Fifty five teeth were enlarged up to ISO size 40 master apical file with stainless steel K-files using standardized preparation and remaining ten teeth were served as negative control. Then teeth were randomly assigned into different groups depending on sealer used for obturation as follows: Group 1: Negative control-no instrumentation was performed. Group 2: Positive control-gutta-percha with out the use of any sealer. Group 3: Experimental group-gutta-percha and Tubli-Seal EWT root canal sealer. Group 4: Experimental group-gutta-percha and AH Plus. Group 5: Experimental group-epiphany SE sealer and epiphany points. After 72 hours, the specimens were embedded in autopolymerizing resin leaving 7 mm of each root exposed and were subjected to fracture testing under universal testing machine at a crosshead speed of 1.0 mm per minute until the root fractured. Results were statistically analyzed using one-way ANOVA and independent t-test. Results: Showed that Epiphany SE sealer/Epiphany points showed highest mean fracture resistance and Tubli-Seal EWT group showed the least fracture resistance of all the materials tested. There was no statistically significant difference among experimental groups. Conclusion: Epiphany SE sealer/Epiphany points demonstrated highest fracture resistance values than the other materials tested and intact tooth had highest resistance against vertical root fracture. Clinical significance: Epiphany SE sealer/Epiphany points may be one of the materials of choice in the endodontic treatment of teeth. Keywords: Epiphany sealer/Epiphany points, AH Plus/Guttapercha, Tubli-Seal EWT, Vertical root fracture. How to cite this article: Nagpal A, Annapoorna BM, Prashanth MB, Prashanth NT, Singla M, Deepak BS, Singh A, Tavane PN. A Comparative Evaluation of the Vertical Root Fracture Resistance of Endodontically Treated Teeth using Different Root Canal Sealers: An in vitro Study. J Contemp Dent Pract 2012;13(3):351-355. Source of support: Nil Conflict of interest: None declared.