AUTOIMMUNE RETINOPATHY MIMICKING HERITABLE RETINAL DEGENERATION IN A PATIENT WITH COMMON VARIABLE IMMUNE DEFICIENCY.

Purpose: 1) To describe a case of autoimmune retinopathy mimicking heritable photoreceptor degeneration in a patient with common variable immune deficiency and 2) to investigate the humoral and cell-mediated branches of the immune system in this patient to better understand the mechanism of immune-mediated photoreceptor damage in this disease.

Methods: Retrospective chart review with evaluation of multimodal imaging, genotype analysis, and investigation of circulating autoantibodies and T-cell response to retinal antigens.

Results: A 40-year-old woman with bilateral, progressive vision loss was referred for evaluation of a possible inherited retinal degeneration.

The ARMS2 A69S Polymorphism Is Associated with Delayed Rod-Mediated Dark Adaptation in Eyes at Risk for Incident Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Purpose: To examine the association between sequence variants in genetic risk factors for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and delayed rod-mediated dark adaptation (RMDA), the first functional biomarker for incident AMD, in older adults with normal macular health and early AMD.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Participants: Adults 60 years of age or older showing normal macular health (defined as both eyes at step 1 on the Age-Related Eye Disease Study 9-step AMD classification system) and those with AMD in one or both eyes (defined as steps 2-9).

Expanded Retinal Disease Spectrum Associated With Autosomal Recessive Mutations in GUCY2D.

Purpose: GUCY2D has been associated with autosomal recessive Leber congenital amaurosis and autosomal dominant cone-rod dystrophy. This report expands the phenotype of autosomal recessive mutations to congenital night blindness, which may slowly progress to mild retinitis pigmentosa.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Treatment of cervical dysplasia with the Fischer cone biopsy excisor in a family medicine office: a case series.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of the Fischer cone biopsy excisor (FCBE) as the primary electrode for treatment of cervical dysplasia in a family medicine office.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of cervical electrosurgical excision procedures in patients with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) performed in our Family Medicine Center between 2002 and 2005.

Results: We reviewed 91 cases.

Nerve repair: a conducting-polymer platform with biodegradable fibers for stimulation and guidance of axonal growth (adv. Mater. 43/2009).

Effective functional innervation of medical bionic devices, as well as re-innervation of target tissue in nerve and spinal cord injuries, requires a platform that can stimulate and orientate neural growth. Gordon Wallace and co-workers report on p. 4393 that conducting and nonconducting biodegradable polymers show excellent potential as suitable hybrid substrata for neural regeneration and may form the basis of electrically active conduits designed to accelerate nerve repair.

A conducting-polymer platform with biodegradable fibers for stimulation and guidance of axonal growth.

A biosynthetic platform composed of a conducting polypyrrole sheet embedded with unidirectional biodegradable polymer fibers is described (see image; scale bar = 50 µm). Such hybrid systems can promote rapid directional nerve growth for neuro-regenerative scaffolds and act as interfaces between the electronic circuitry of medical bionic devices and the nervous system.

Anaplasma phagocytophilum AnkA is tyrosine-phosphorylated at EPIYA motifs and recruits SHP-1 during early infection.

Anaplasma phagocytophilum is an intracellular pathogen that infects and survives in neutrophilic granulocytes. The A. phagocytophilum genome encodes a type four secretion system (T4SS) that may facilitate intracellular survival by translocation of virulence factors, but to date, no such factors have been identified.

Health status among emergency department patients approximately one year after consecutive disasters in New York City.

Objectives: Emergency department (ED) patients with disaster-related experiences may present with vague symptoms not clearly linked to the event. In 2001, two disasters in New York City, the World Trade Center disaster (WTCD) and the subsequent American Airlines Flight 587 crash, presented an opportunity to study long-term consequences of cumulative disaster exposure (CDE) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among ED patients.

Methods: From July 15 to October 30, 2002, a systematic sample of stable, adult patients from two EDs in New York City were enrolled.