Five-Year Follow-Up of Patients With Radio-Contrast-Induced Acute Renal Injury: Can Intravenous Sodium Bicarbonate Improve Long-Term Outcomes?

Background/purpose: Radiocontrast-induced acute kidney injury (RAKI) is a frequent complication during angiography and is associated with adverse prognosis. Most of the studies evaluating the long-term outcome of patients with RAKI are based on institutional registries. This is the first prospective study to evaluate the 5-year outcomes of patients with RAKI, and assess the effect of sodium bicarbonate (SB) in the long-term outcomes of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) undergoing non-emergent coronary angiography.

A Comparison of Blood Viscosity and Hematocrit Levels between Yoga Practitioners and Sedentary Adults.

Elevations in whole blood viscosity (WBV) and hematocrit (Hct), have been linked with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Endurance training has been demonstrated to lower WBV and Hct; however, evidence supporting the efficacy of yoga on these measures is sparse. A cross-sectional study was conducted examining WBV and Hct levels between yoga practitioners with a minimum of 3 years of consistent practice and sedentary, healthy adults.

Feasibility of coronary fractional flow reserve with dual anti-platelet therapy in low risk coronary lesions without systemic anticoagulation-results of the SMART-FFR study.

Background: Fractional flow reserve (FFR) is used to assess the functional significance of coronary artery stenoses. The optimal anti-thrombotic regimen for FFR has not been studied.

Purpose: The goal of this study was to determine whether FFR could be safely performed in Type A coronary lesions, using only upstream dual anti-platelet therapy (DAT) with aspirin and clopidogrel, compared with DAT plus anticoagulation in low risk coronary lesions.

The effect of Bikram yoga on endothelial function in young and middle-aged and older adults.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if Bikram yoga, a style of heated hatha yoga, would improve endothelial function in young and middle-aged and older, healthy adults. This trial was performed in 36 young (n = 17) and middle-aged and older adults (n = 19) who completed 3 weekly Bikram yoga classes for 8 weeks. Height, body weight and body composition were determined and endothelial function was measured noninvasively using brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) before and after the intervention.

Impact of Hot Yoga on Arterial Stiffness and Quality of Life in Normal and Overweight/Obese Adults.

Background: Obesity is associated with arterial stiffening and diminished quality of life. Bikram yoga may be a feasible alternative to traditional exercise among obese individuals. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of Bikram yoga, a heated style of hatha yoga, on arterial stiffness in normal and overweight/obese adults.

Domain identification moderates the effect of positive stereotypes on Chinese American women's math performance.

We examined whether an individual difference factor, math domain identification, moderated performance following positive stereotype activation. We hypothesized that positive stereotype activation would improve performance for those more math identified (compared to a control condition), but would hinder performance for those less math identified. We examined 116 Chinese American women (mean age = 19 years).

Macro- and microvascular function in habitually exercising systemic lupus erythematosus patients.

Objectives: Vascular dysfunction is commonly observed in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients and may explain the accelerated cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. It is unknown whether physical activity influences vascular function in SLE patients. We aimed to determine whether habitually exercising SLE patients also demonstrate a reduction in vascular function.

Improvements in glucose tolerance with Bikram Yoga in older obese adults: a pilot study.

Bikram yoga is an exotic form of physical activity combining hatha yoga and thermal therapy that could positively impact metabolic health. Although this increasingly popular alternative exercise may be ideal for obese adults due to its low impact nature, few studies have elucidated the health benefits associated with it. As an initial step, we determined the effect of Bikram yoga on glucose tolerance.

Hatha yoga and vascular function: results from cross-sectional and interventional studies.

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of hatha yoga on arterial elasticity and endothelial function. First, a cross-sectional study was performed to determine whether yoga practitioners would demonstrate greater arterial compliance and endothelium-dependent vasodilation than their sedentary peers. Second, an intervention study involving 13 sedentary middle-aged and older adults (51 ± 7 years) was performed to determine whether 12 weeks of hatha yoga would elicit increases in arterial compliance and endothelial function.

The effect of Bikram yoga on arterial stiffness in young and older adults.

Background And Objective: Bikram yoga is the most popular form of hot yoga, despite the limited information available on its cardiovascular benefits. This study sought to determine the effect of Bikram yoga on arterial stiffness and insulin resistance in young and older adults.

Methods: Twenty-four young (mean age±standard deviation, 30±1 years) and 18 middle-aged and older (mean age, 53±2 years) adults completed an 8-week Bikram yoga intervention.

Arterial blood pressure and cardiovascular responses to yoga practice.

Context: Yoga is qualitatively different from any other mode of physical activity in that it consists of a unique combination of isometric muscular contractions, stretching exercises, relaxation techniques, and breathing exercises. In particular, yoga postures consist of systemic isometric contractions that are known to elicit marked increases in mean blood pressure that are not observed during dynamic exercise. Stretching can also induce increases in blood pressure and sympathetic nerve activity in the muscles.

Muscle spasticity associated with reduced whole-leg perfusion in persons with spinal cord injury.

Objective: To determine the association between peripheral blood flow and spasticity in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).

Design: A cross-sectional study with measurements of muscle spasticity and whole-limb blood flow in individuals with SCI.

Setting: University of Texas at Austin and Brain & Spine Recovery Center, Austin, TX, USA.

Effects of swimming training on blood pressure and vascular function in adults >50 years of age.

Swimming is ideal for older adults because it includes minimum weight-bearing stress and decreased heat load. However, there is very little information available concerning the effects of regular swimming exercise on vascular risks. We determined if regular swimming exercise would decrease arterial blood pressure (BP) and improve vascular function.

Habitual resistance exercise and endothelial ischemia-reperfusion injury in young adults.

Resistance exercise involves muscular contractions that can render downstream tissues ischemic and may precondition the vasculature against ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury, but it is unknown if habitual resistance exercise protects against IR injury in humans. We determined the magnitude and recovery from endothelial IR injury induced by forearm occlusion in 22 healthy young sedentary and resistance-trained adults. After IR injury, brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) significantly decreased by 36% in sedentary, but not resistance-trained subjects and fully recovered within 45 min.

Electrowetting without electrolysis on self-healing dielectrics.

An electrowetting system with protection against dielectric breakdown is presented. It comprises an electrolyte and a Parylene-C film deposited on an aluminum electrode. The system demonstrates virtually instantaneous self-healing (within 100 ms) after dielectric breakdown under both DC and certain AC electrowetting conditions.

Impact of blood pressure cuff inflation rates on flow-mediated dilatation and contralateral arm response.

Flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) is widely used as an index of nitric oxide-mediated vasodilator function, yet its methodology has not been well established. Previous research indicates that a rapid inflation of a blood pressure cuff evokes systemic vasoconstriction, as it was observed even on non-occluded contralateral arm. This would potentially contribute to the variability of FMD readings and complicate the emerging evidence that non-occluded contralateral arm fingertip temperature responses during the FMD procedure may be an indicator of the presence of coronary artery disease.

Endothelial ischemia-reperfusion injury in humans: association with age and habitual exercise.

Advancing age is a major risk factor for coronary artery disease. Endothelial dysfunction accompanied by increased oxidative stress and inflammation with aging may predispose older arteries to greater ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Because coronary artery ischemia cannot be induced safely, the effects of age and habitual endurance exercise on endothelial I/R injury have not been determined in humans.

Laplace barriers for electrowetting thresholding and virtual fluid confinement.

Reported are Laplace barriers consisting of arrayed posts or ridges that impart ∼100 to 1000 s of N/m(2) Laplace pressure for fluid confinement, but the Laplace pressure is also small enough such that the barriers are porous to electrowetting control. As a result, the barriers are able to provide electrowetting flow thresholding and virtual fluid confinement in noncircular fluid geometries. A simple theoretical model for the barriers and experimental demonstrations validate functionality that may be useful for lab-on-chip, display devices, and passive matrix control, to name a few applications.

Use of temperature alterations to characterize vascular reactivity.

Monitoring alterations in fingertip temperature during ischaemia and the subsequent hyperaemia provides a novel way of studying microvascular reactivity. The relations between parameters characterizing blood perfusion and the thermal response of fingertips were studied using experimental and theoretical approaches. During the experimental protocol, two brachial artery occlusion tests were conducted in 12 healthy volunteers, and fingertip temperature, heat flux and skin perfusion using laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) were measured.

Arterial stiffening following eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage.

Acute inflammatory responses are linked to a transient increase in risk of a cardiovascular event, and this risk may be mediated by a concomitant reduction in vascular function. Humans experience an acute inflammatory response as a consequence of infection, injury, or muscle damage. We measured macrovascular function before and after eccentric exercise to determine whether muscle damage from unaccustomed exercise has an unfavorable effect on the large elastic arteries.

Virtual electrowetting channels: electronic liquid transport with continuous channel functionality.

Reported is a new mechanism for electronic transport of liquid in virtual channels. These virtual channels are formed by application of voltage to an array of polymer posts. The posts are coated with a conducting electrode and hydrophobic dielectric, and thereby capable of electrowetting.

Ion and liquid dependent dielectric failure in electrowetting systems.

Electrowetting devices often utilize aqueous solutions with ionic surfactants and inorganic salts to modify the electrowetting response. It has been observed in low-voltage electrowetting devices (thin dielectric, <12 V) that a frequent onset of dielectric failure (electrolysis) occurs with use of ionic solutes such as potassium chloride (KCl) or sodium dodecyl sulfate. More detailed current-voltage investigations reveal less dielectric failure for the larger size ions.

Tissue engineering and its implications in dentistry.

Tissue engineering is a novel and highly exciting field of research. With tissue engineering techniques it may be possible to repair damaged tissues or even create replacement organs. This article reviews the principles underlying key tissue engineering strategies and the typical components used.

Interrelationships among noninvasive measures of postischemic macro- and microvascular reactivity.

The clinical importance of vascular reactivity as an early marker of atherosclerosis has been well established, and a number of established and emerging techniques have been employed to provide measurements of peripheral vascular reactivity. However, relations between these methodologies are unclear as each technique evaluates different physiological aspects related to micro- and macrovascular reactive hyperemia. To address this question, a total of 40 apparently healthy normotensive adults, 19-68 yr old, underwent 5 min of forearm suprasystolic cuff-induced ischemia followed by postischemic measurements.

Reversible electrowetting of vertically aligned superhydrophobic carbon nanofibers.

Reversible electrostatically induced wetting (electrowetting) of vertically aligned superhydrophobic carbon nanofibers has been investigated. Carbon nanofibers on a 5 x 5 microm pitch were grown on Si substrates, electrically insulated with a conformal dielectric, and hydrophobized with fluoropolymer. This nanostructured scaffold exhibited superhydrophobic behavior for saline (theta approximately 160 degrees).