Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin in blood in children with inflammatory bowel disease.

Background: Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is a 25 kDa glycoprotein present in the bodily fluids and tissues. It is secreted by neutrophils, epithelial cells, hepatocytes and adipocytes, and its expression is highly increased in response to cellular stress. The role of NGAL in the pathophysiology of inflammatory bowel disease including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis in children has thus far not been studied.

Medical students' concerns about communicating with patients.

Background: Only limited information is available on students' concerns regarding communication with patients. SAMPLE AND DESIGN: A total of 16 concerns regarding communicating with patients were rated by 179 third-year medical students, before the students had any contact with patients and before communication skills teaching had begun. At the end of the term, the ratings were collected again from 139 of the students.

Calibrating the physician. Personal awareness and effective patient care. Working Group on Promoting Physician Personal Awareness, American Academy on Physician and Patient.

Physicians' personal characteristics, their past experiences, values, attitudes, and biases can have important effects on communication with patients; being aware of these characteristics can enhance communication. Because medical training and continuing education programs rarely undertake an organized approach to promoting personal awareness, we propose a "curriculum" of 4 core topics for reflection and discussion. The topics are physicians' beliefs and attitudes, physicians' feelings and emotional responses in patient care, challenging clinical situations, and physician self-care.

[Subglottic hemangioma as a rare cause of dyspnea in infants].

A case of congenital subglottic hemangioma of the larynx in a 7-month-old infant is presented. The dominant clinical symptoms were: laryngeal stidor, dyspnoea and recurrent obstructive bronchitis and pneumonia with unsatisfactory response to treatment. Early diagnosis and proper surgical therapy were life-saving in this child.

[A vascular ring as a rare cause of recurrent obstructive bronchitis in children].

The authors have described two cases of vascular ring in small children. Recurrent obstructive bronchitis and pneumonitis with severe dyspnoea, stridor and wheezing predominated in clinical manifestation. Early diagnosis and proper surgical treatment were the most important for the prognosis of the children.