Use of 3D foot and ankle puzzle enhances student understanding of the skeletal anatomy in the early years of medical school.

Purpose: 3D visualization is an important part of learning anatomy with cadavers generally used to effectuate this. However, high cost, ethical considerations, and limited accessibility can often limit the suitability of cadavers as teaching tools. Anatomical 3D printed models offer an alternative tool for teaching gross anatomy due to their low cost and accessibility.

Ossicles of lumbar articular facets: normal variant or spondylolytic variant?

Purpose: The objective of this study was to establish the prevalence and significance of ossicles of lumbar articular facets (OLAF) in young athletes with backache diagnosed by multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT).

Materials And Methods: The MDCT examinations of the lumbar spine carried out for suspected spondylolysis on 46 consecutive symptomatic young athletes presenting to a sports injury clinic over a 1-year period were retrospectively reviewed. OLAF study included detailed correlation with the structural and morphological stress features of the posterior neural arches.

Antipsychotic medication and oxidative cell stress: a systematic review.

Objective: To look at (1) the association between antipsychotics and cell stress, (2) whether first-generation antipsychotics may show different effects than second-generation antipsychotics, and (3) whether recommendations can be made regarding medication.

Data Sources: We conducted a systematic review of 5 databases for all articles published until December 31, 2007: PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and EBM Reviews. Under specific headings (eg, "heat shock proteins" and "oxidative stress"), a systematic search of these databases included such terms as HSP70 and homocysteine, and specific search strings were constructed.

Augmented reality for anatomical education.

The use of Virtual Environments has been widely reported as a method of teaching anatomy. Generally such environments only convey the shape of the anatomy to the student. We present the Bangor Augmented Reality Education Tool for Anatomy (BARETA), a system that combines Augmented Reality (AR) technology with models produced using Rapid Prototyping (RP) technology, to provide the student with stimulation for touch as well as sight.

Exploring the relationship of drug-induced neutrophil immaturity & haematological toxicity to drug chemistry using quantitative structure-activity models.

An investigation of the relationships between physicochemical features of ten antipsychotic drugs and previously reported influence of these drugs on neutrophil maturity was made. A quantitative structure-activity relations (QSAR) approach was adopted, in which several numerical parameters describing physicochemical characteristics of the antipsychotics were estimated. Possible connections between these parameters and neutrophil maturity were explored.

Planning for pandemic influenza.

This article summarises current knowledge about avian (H5N1) and pandemic influenza and highlights recommendations for healthcare workers caring for infected patients.

Formation of immature neutrophil leucocytes in schizophrenic patients treated with various antipsychotic drugs: comparisons and predictions.

The neutrophils of schizophrenic patients taking antipsychotic drugs were evaluated. Neutrophil immaturity was assessed by determining mean nuclear lobe number in peripheral blood smears of patients and controls. Subjects were patients medicated with typical (upenthixol (n 6), uphenazine (n 7), haloperidol (n 23), thioridazine (n 15), and triuoperazine (n 6)) or atypical (olanzapine (n 15), risperidone (n 10), and sulpiride (n 7)) antipsychotic drugs.

Antipsychotic drugs result in the formation of immature neutrophil leucocytes in schizophrenic patients.

Subclinical abnormality of neutrophil populations of patients suffering from schizophrenia and medicated with antipsychotic drugs was evaluated using cellular immaturity as a criterion. Neutrophil maturity of patients and controls was compared by determining mean nuclear lobularity in peripheral blood smears. White blood cell and neutrophil counts were made.

The biology of dementia due to Parkinson's disease.

This article is one of a series focusing on dementias due to an underlying biological factor. The reader should refer to the previous articles in the series (Delieu and Keady, 1996a,b). This article focuses on the normal structures within the brain which are involved in motor control and describes what occurs when this system is disrupted by an inappropriate reduction in the neurotransmitter dopamine.

The biology of Alzheimer's disease: 2.

In this article, the second of two parts, the authors continue their review of the biological processes of Alzheimer's disease and the implications for nursing practice. A glossary of terms can be found in the first article (Vol 5(3): 162-7). This article considers the function of the subcortical area of the brain and explores its effects on the world of the person with Alzheimer's disease.

The biology of Alzheimer's disease: 1.

This article, the first of two parts, attempts to take dementia care back to its foundations by informing nursing practice of the biology and degenerative effects on the brain of Alzheimer's disease, the most prevalent form of dementia. This biological understanding will then be used to illustrate the effect on the emotional, perceptual, behavioural and social world of the individual sufferer and will be selectively applied to inform nursing practice. Studying the biological process of AD is not easy, but an understanding is essential if a comprehensive and holistic stance is to be adopted by clinical nurse practitioners.