Laser Speckle Contrast Imaging-based diagnosis of severe mesenteric traction syndrome: Hemodynamics and prostacyclin - A prospective cohort study.

Brief Abstract: Today, the diagnosis and grading of mesenteric traction syndrome relies on a subjective assessment of facial flushing. However, this method has several limitations. In this study, Laser Speckle Contrast Imaging and a predefined cut-off value are assessed and validated for the objective identification of severe mesenteric traction syndrome.

Prevalence of STIs and people's satisfaction in a general population STI testing site in Bern, Switzerland.

Objectives: Access to affordable STI testing for asymptomatic persons is important to reduce STI transmission. Our testing site offers easily accessible and affordable STI testing for the general population irrespective of symptoms. Here we report STI prevalence and motivational factors of attendance.

White-Eyed Orbital Blowout Fracture With Oculocardiac Reflex Secondary to Extraocular Entrapment in a Pediatric Patient.

White-eyed orbital blowout fractures in the pediatric population can present with acute onset diplopia, ophthalmalgia, and abnormal duction. These findings are attributed to the tendency of younger bone to break and reapproximate owing to greater elasticity. This phenomenon, commonly referred to as the greenstick fracture, increases the risk of entrapment of surrounding soft tissue structures in orbital floor fractures.

Remote monitoring of head and neck free flaps using near infrared spectroscopic tissue oximetry.

Purpose: Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) measures tissue oximetry and perfusion of free tissue transfer with the advantage of remote wireless monitoring for free tissue transfer. It has been widely used in breast and extremity reconstruction but has had limited adoption in the head and neck.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective review of head and neck microvascular reconstruction by three different surgical services over 15 months at one tertiary care hospital was performed.

Evaluation of time to intubation and rate of success for different healthcare professionals using a double-lumen left-sided endotracheal video tube: A prospective observational study.

Intubation with a double-lumen left-sided endotracheal video tube has been the standard procedure for nearly five years in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Copenhagen University Hospital, but no systematic evaluations have been done. For a 12-month period ending November 2017, data were collected from 579 consecutive patients, scheduled for thoracic surgery with a requirement for one-lung ventilation; 35 anaesthetist trainees (nurses or doctors) (287 cases), 27 nurse anaesthetists (239 cases) and 8 anaesthesiologists (53 cases) managed intubation with a double-lumen tube. Time to intubation was relatively equal across healthcare professionals with a mean time of 53 (anaesthetist trainees), 40 (nurse anaesthetists) and 63 (anaesthesiologists) seconds.

Assessment and Treatment of Behavioral Disorders in Children with Hearing Loss: A Systematic Review.

Objective: There is evidence that children who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) have a higher incidence of behavioral disorders. Assessment of behavioral health in this population is often complicated by language developmental delays, which may result in unrecognized and untreated behavioral problems. The purpose of this study is to assess the association of behavioral disorders among children who are DHH and to explore behavioral interventions for children in this population.

High-dose methylprednisolone in video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery lobectomy: a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: The optimal postoperative analgesic strategy after video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery lobectomy remains undetermined. We hypothesized that high-dose preoperative methylprednisolone (MP) would improve analgesia compared to placebo.

Methods: A total of 120 adult patients were randomized equally to 125 mg MP or placebo before the start of their elective video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery lobectomy.

Histological-MRI correlation in the primary motor cortex of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Purpose: To establish the relationship between ALS histopathology and quantitative MRI metrics.

Materials And Methods: ALS patients (N = 8) in advanced stages of the disease were enrolled and, immediately after death, the brain of each patient was removed. Freshly excised ALS tissue was imaged at 3.

Comparison of remifentanil and low-dose fentanyl for fast-track cardiac anesthesia: a prospective randomized study.

Background: Different anesthetic techniques have been used for fast tracking in cardiac anesthesia. Remifentanil, with its unique pharmacokinetic profile, could be an ideal drug for fast tracking. Possible limitations of remifentanil are rapid onset of postoperative pain after discontinuation of the drug infusion, which may increase the risk of an ischemic event.

Biochemical correlates of neuropsychiatric illness in maple syrup urine disease.

Maple syrup urine disease (MSUD) is an inherited disorder of branched chain amino acid metabolism presenting with neonatal encephalopathy, episodic metabolic decompensation, and chronic amino acid imbalances. Dietary management enables survival and reduces risk of acute crises. Liver transplantation has emerged as an effective way to eliminate acute decompensation risk.

An MRI-derived definition of MCI-to-AD conversion for long-term, automatic prognosis of MCI patients.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) are of great current research interest. While there is no consensus on whether MCIs actually "convert" to AD, this concept is widely applied. Thus, the more important question is not whether MCIs convert, but what is the best such definition.

Faraday shields within a solenoidal coil to reduce sample heating: numerical comparison of designs and experimental verification.

A comparison of methods to decrease RF power dissipation and related heating in conductive samples using passive conductors surrounding a sample in a solenoid coil is presented. Full-Maxwell finite difference time domain numerical calculations were performed to evaluate the effect of the passive conductors by calculating conservative and magnetically-induced electric field and magnetic field distributions. To validate the simulation method, experimental measurements of temperature increase were conducted using a solenoidal coil (diameter 3 mm), a saline sample (10 mM NaCl) and passive copper shielding wires (50 microm diameter).

STAMPS: Software Tool for Automated MRI Post-processing on a supercomputer.

This paper describes a Software Tool for Automated MRI Post-processing (STAMP) of multiple types of brain MRIs on a workstation and for parallel processing on a supercomputer (STAMPS). This software tool enables the automation of nonlinear registration for a large image set and for multiple MR image types. The tool uses standard brain MRI post-processing tools (such as SPM, FSL, and HAMMER) for multiple MR image types in a pipeline fashion.

Rap2 regulates androgen sensitivity in human prostate cancer cells.

Background: Progression of prostate cancer to a fatal androgen-independent disease is associated with activation of MAP kinase, consistent with chronic stimulation of the Ras-signaling pathway. We have previously shown that Ras activation is sufficient to induce androgen-independent growth of prostate cancer cells. One mechanism of MAP kinase regulation is modulation of Ras signaling by other Ras family members, the Rap gene paralogs Rap1a/b and Rap2a/b.

Gene profiling and promoter reporter assays: novel tools for comparing the biological effects of botanical extracts on human prostate cancer cells and understanding their mechanisms of action.

The use of botanical mixtures is commonplace in patients with prostate cancer, yet the majority of these products have not been rigorously tested in clinical trials. Here we use PC-SPES, a combination of eight herbs that has been shown to be effective in clinical trials in patients with prostate cancer, as a model system to demonstrate 'proof of principle' as to how gene expression profiling coupled with promoter assays can evaluate the effect of herbal cocktails on human prostate cancer. In addition, we demonstrate how such approaches may be used for standardization of herbal extract activity by comparing the gene profile of PC-SPES with that of PC-CARE, a product with a similar herbal composition.

[Lung function changes during anesthesia and thoracic surgery].

After anaesthesia and thorax surgery, a significant reduction in pulmonary function with up to a 50% decrease in FEV1, FVC, and FRC is seen, leading to a high risk of atelectasis and hypoxia, and therefore making respiratory complications the major course of perioperative morbidity and mortality in this group of patients. This severe reduction in lung function gradually diminishes within three weeks, but postoperative pain and sedation increase the deterioration in lung function, and treatment is therefore based on anaesthetic drugs with a short elimination time and effective postoperative pain treatment with epidural analgesia or other regional blockade, and minimal use of opioids. Together with more sparing surgical methods, it is possible to operate on patients with severely reduced preoperative lung function (FEV1 = 0.

Impact of off-pump coronary artery surgery on myocardial performance and beta-adrenoceptor function.

Objective: To determine the hemodynamic changes during beating heart revascularization of the left anterior descending artery, the circumflex artery, and the right coronary artery as well as cardiovascular beta-adrenoceptor function before and after off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery.

Design: Prospective study.

Setting: University department of cardiothoracic anesthesia.

Sequence-specific interaction between the disintegrin domain of mouse ADAM 3 and murine eggs: role of beta1 integrin-associated proteins CD9, CD81, and CD98.

ADAM 3 is a sperm surface glycoprotein that has been implicated in sperm-egg adhesion. Because little is known about the adhesive activity of ADAMs, we investigated the interaction of ADAM 3 disintegrin domains, made in bacteria and in insect cells, with murine eggs. Both recombinant proteins inhibited sperm-egg binding and fusion with potencies similar to that which we recently reported for the ADAM 2 disintegrin domain.

Sequence-specific interaction between the disintegrin domain of mouse ADAM 2 (fertilin beta) and murine eggs. Role of the alpha(6) integrin subunit.

Little is yet known about the biological and biochemical properties of the disintegrin-like domains of ADAM (a disintegrin and metalloprotease) proteins. Mouse ADAM 2 (mADAM 2; fertilin beta) is a sperm surface protein involved in murine fertilization. We produced recombinant proteins containing the disintegrin-like domain of mADAM 2 in both insect cells and in bacteria.

Role of the integrin-associated protein CD9 in binding between sperm ADAM 2 and the egg integrin alpha6beta1: implications for murine fertilization.

CD9 is a tetraspan protein that associates with several beta1 integrins, including alpha6beta1. Because alpha6beta1 is present on murine eggs and interacts with the sperm-surface glycoprotein ADAM 2 (fertilin beta), we first asked whether CD9 is present on murine eggs and whether it functions in sperm-egg binding and fusion. CD9 is present on the plasma membrane of oocytes in the ovary as well as on eggs isolated from the oviduct.

Monitoring of beta-receptor sensitivity in cardiac surgery.

Objective: To determine the repeatability of the hemodynamic response to repeated isoproterenol challenge doses to validate the standardized isoproterenol sensitivity test as an index of cardiovascular beta-receptor function.

Design: Prospective, single-blind, nonrandomized clinical trial.

Setting: University department of cardiothoracic anesthesia.

A model for sperm-egg binding and fusion based on ADAMs and integrins.

Once a sperm meets an egg, several events must occur in order for fertilization to proceed. Sperm must bind to the zona pellucida, undergo the acrosome reaction, penetrate the zona pellucida and then bind to and fuse with the egg plasma membrane. Shortly thereafter, the egg must be activated for zygotic development.

The effect of preoperative methylprednisolone on pulmonary function and pain after lung operations.

Thirty-six patients undergoing elective thoracotomy with pulmonary resection with the use of combined epidural and general anesthesia were randomized into a double-blind study to receive a single intravenous preoperative dose of methylprednisolone 25 mg/kg body weight or a placebo (saline solution). Postoperative pain relief consisted of epidural morphine 4 mg and paracetamol 1 gm three times a day for 4 days. Postoperative pulmonary function (peak expiratory flow rate, forced expiratory volume in first second, forced vital capacity) was evaluated on days 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7 and after 1 month.

Effect of piroxicam in addition to continuous thoracic epidural bupivacaine and morphine on postoperative pain and lung function after thoracotomy.

Twenty-eight patients scheduled for lung resection with lateral thoracotomy and postoperative chest drains during combined thoracic epidural bupivacaine plus morphine and general anaesthesia were studied. Postoperative pain treatment was continuous epidural infusion of bupivacaine 0.25% 5 ml h-1 plus morphine 0.