Transient aphasia with lithium toxicity

A case of transient aphasia in a 48-year-old woman is described. The aphasia occurred when progressive renal insufficiency led to accumulation of lithium to toxic levels, and was associated with well-known clinical findings of lithium toxicity.     

The cholinergic nervous system and immediate hypersensitivity: I. Eccrine sweat responses in allergic patients

The cholinergically innervated human eccrine sweat gland is a readily available organ permitting the assessment in allergic patients of cholinergic reactivity with few or no adrenergic influences. The sweat responses of four matched groups (male allergic, female allergic, male control, and female control) to intradermal Mecholyl from 0.1 μg to 100 μg was compared; the 45 male and 45 female allergic patients demonstrated statistically significant increases in sweat responses to essentially all concentrations of Mecholyl examined. No difference in the sweat responses of patients with allergic rhinitis alone as compared with patients with both allergic rhinitis and allergic asthma was noted. Five patients with intrinsic asthma most closely resembled the allergic groups in their responses and 8 patients with vasomotor rhinitis sweated at or below the control groups. The increased sensitivity of allergic patients to cholinergic stimulation as measured by eccrine sweat responses suggests that this hyperresponsiveness may be one of the underlying defects in allergic disease.     

Skin tests and blood leukocyte histamine release of patients with allergies to laboratory animals

Skin tests and in vitro histamine-release reactions were used to evaluate 130 patients observed in an employee allergy clinic at a biomedical research facility. The allergens used included extracts from pollens (ragweed, grasses, trees, weeds), molds, mixed feathers, house dust, cat, dog, mouse, rat, rabbit, guinea pig, and hamster. Of all patients, 66% complained of allergic symptoms on laboratory animal exposure, although only 52% worked directly with animals. Among patients with symptoms, 91% were positive by skin test to at least one laboratory animal, and 46% had asthma. The median length of exposure to laboratory animals before onset of symptoms was 2.8 yr with 60% of the patients developing their symptoms within 3 yr. Among patients who had allergic symptoms before exposure to laboratory animals, 79% were skin test positive to laboratory animals when they were evaluated in this study. There was a close association found between the skin test and histamine-release results with the laboratory animal allergens: 91% of the 4+ skin reactors had leukocytes positive for histamine release versus 5% of the leukocyte donors with less than 1+ skin reactions. A close relationship in positive reactions to different laboratory animal allergens was also found. For example, individuals positive to mouse were positive also to rat (95%), rabbit (79%), guinea pig (83%), and hamster (88%). Patients who reacted to laboratory animals also reacted to some extent to house dust and cat and dog allergens, and about one half of the animal-allergic individuals reacted to pollens. Although nonpollen-allergic individuals can develop sensitivity to laboratory animals, the group at higher risk are allergic individuals, especially those sensitive to house dust, cats, or dogs.     

进一步规范国际中医药考试,提高从业人员业务水平

世界中医药学会联合会（简称:世界中联）是少数几个总部设在中国并由中国政府支持建立的国际学术组织。世界中联通过组织中医药国际考试,将我国成熟的标准,通过一定的程序转化为国际标准,并以标准规范国际中医药从业人员和从业机构是其重要任务之一。本文回顾了中医药国际考试历程,详细阐述了考试的定位与目标,考试标准体系的设计原则与框架,考试的管理体制, 以及相关考试资格审查与认定等。     

Real-world cost-effectiveness of drug-eluting stents vs. bare-metal stents for coronary heart disease—A five-year follow-up study

Objective

To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of using drugeluting stents (DES) compared to bare-metal stents (BMS) for coronary heart disease (CHD).

116例急性卒中患者院前流行病学特征

目的探讨镇江市急救中心救治的116例急性卒中患者的临床特征。 方法回顾性分析2019年1月1日至3月31日镇江市急救中心收治的116例脑卒中患者的病历资料，其中男性73例，女性43例；年龄23～96岁，平均(55.1±14.0)岁。分析内容包括患者基本特征、格拉斯哥昏迷量表(GCS)评分、美国国立卫生研究院卒中量表(NIHSS)评分、送达医院时的生命体征等。 结果青年脑卒中(年龄<45岁)占全部患者的22.4%，65岁以下患者占78.4%。卒中患者以男性居多(62.9%)，城市居多(72.4%)。从卒中症状开始到到达医院的时间平均为27 h(范围为0.5～72 h)。40例患者(34.5%)在症状出现后4.5 h内(窗口期)到达有溶栓能力的医院。患者总体NIHSS为(15.71±7.52)分，出血性卒中患者[(17.54±7.54)分]高于缺血性卒中患者[(14±7.15)分](P<0.05)。所有脑卒中患者入院平均GCS评分为(12.12±3.35)分，缺血性卒中为(13.07±2.56)分，出血性卒中为[(11.11±3.80)分](P<0.05)。 结论镇江市急救中心院前救治的卒中患者以65岁以下患者为主，男性居多，尽管患者意识水平尚可，但普遍病情较重，而且仅约1/3患者能短时间到达医院。因此，社会、媒体和医疗机构应积极的宣传，使人们提高对危险因素和卒中的认识。急救中心也应进一步提升相应的救治能力。     

A benchmark dose study of prenatal exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and behavioral problems in children

IntroductionPrenatal exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) has been reported to be associated with adverse effects on neurodevelopment that yield behavior syndromes in young children with an estimated median exposure lower than the currently recommended tolerable daily intake (TDI) and reference dose (RfD).ObjectivesOur aim was to derive the benchmark dose for prenatal exposure to DEHP for the neurodevelopmental health in children.MethodsA total of 122 mother-child pairs from the Taiwan Maternal and Infant Cohort Study were analyzed for the dose-response relationship between maternal exposure to DEHP and children's behavioral syndromes evaluated at 8 years (n = 122, 2009), 11 years (n = 96, 2012), and 14 years (n = 78, 2015) of age. We employed a multivariate regression model to assess the statistical associations between the estimated maternal average daily intake of DEHP and child's individual CBCL scores for boys and girls at each separate age, followed by a mixed model for all the children across three ages accounting for individual variations. We then employed structural equation models by combining the children's specific behavioral problem scores at different ages and obtained a simulated overall latent score in relation to maternal exposure. Based on the established dose-response relationship, we derived the benchmark dose (BMD) and the lower limit (BMDL).ResultsAssociations of maternal DEHP exposure (median 4.54$\mu g/kg\_bw/day$) with the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) scores were all significant, except for somatic complaints, adjusting for child's age, gender, IQ, and family income. The BMDL, given a benchmark response of 0.10 (0.05) and a background response of 0.05, was 6.01 (2.16) $\mu g/kg\_bw/day$for an integrated CBCL score.ConclusionsThe current TDI (RfD) of 50 (20) $\mu g/kg\_bw/day$ for DEHP might not protect pregnant women for their children from behavioral problems. There remains the lack of comparable toxicological data. Further investigations are needed.     

Hyperacute Management of Ischemic Strokes: JACC Focus Seminar

Acute ischemic stroke is the leading cause of disability and among the leading causes of mortality worldwide. Intravenous tissue plasminogen activator has been a cornerstone for treatment of acute ischemic stroke for more than 20 years; however, its use is limited due to a narrow therapeutic window, several contraindications, and low efficacy to recanalize the artery in large vessel occlusion. Recently, the addition of endovascular mechanical thrombectomy of large artery occlusion has revolutionized the stroke treatment for most disabling strokes. The paper reviews updates to the thrombolytic treatment as well as catheter-based treatment, and results from recent trials in the selection of patients in an extended time window using perfusion imaging.     

Acute coronary occlusion: prolonged increase in collateral flow following brief administration of nitroglycerin and methoxamine.

Regional coronary blood flow was determined with the radioactive microsphere technique 10 an 70 minutes and 2 1/2 and 5 hours after abrupt occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery in 12 closed chest sedated dogs. In six dogs, nitroglycerin, 200 to 400 microng/min, was infused intravenously 10 to 70 minutes after occlusion. Methoxamine was administered to return blood pressure and heart rate to prenitroglycerin levels. Ten minutes after occlusion (before treatment) collateral flow values and ischemic zone endocardial/epicardial flow ratios were equivalent in untreated (0.11+/-0.03 ml/min per g; 0.31+/-0.05) and treated dogs (0.14+/-0.02 ml/min per g; 0.29+/-0.03). In untreated dogs, collateral flow did not change over 5 hours; the endocardial/epicardial flow ratio was decreased at 5 hours (0.21+/-0.05, P less than 0.05). In contrast, in treated dogs, collateral flow and the endocardial/epicardial flow ratio were increased at 70 minutes (0.27+/-0.04 ml/min per g, P less than 0.05; 0.53+/-0.10, P less than 0.05). Most importantly, collateral flow remained elevated 5 hours after occlusion (0.26+/-0.03 ml/min per g, P less than 0.05) although treatment was discontinued 70 minutes after occlusion. Hence, collateral flow was unchanged over 5 hours of occlusion in untreated dogs, but short-term treatment with nitroglycerin and methoxamine resulted in a sustained increase in collateral flow. These findings may be a result of stimulation by nitroglycerin and methoxamine of the spontaneous rate at which intrinsic collateral function increases after ischemia. Alternatively, nitroglycerin and methoxamine may maintain cell viability until collateral vessels develop spontaneously.