Recovery of neurologic function following nontraumatic spinal cord lesions in Israel.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To assess neurologic recovery and the manner in which it is affected by various factors following nontraumatic spinal cord lesions (NTSCLs).

Summary Of Background Data: NTSCLs comprise a considerable portion of spinal cord lesions.

Survival after nontraumatic spinal cord lesions in Israel.

Objective: To assess survival in patients with nontraumatic spinal cord lesions (SCL).

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Spinal department at a rehabilitation hospital in Israel.

Fibromyalgia in diabetes mellitus.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of fibromyalgia (FM) in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM).

Subjects: The study included 100 consecutive unselected patients with DM attending our diabetes clinic. Patients were divided into two groups: 45 patients with type 1 diabetes and 55 patients with type 2 diabetes.

Survival following spinal cord injury in Israel.

Background: Survival following spinal cord injury (SCI) has greatly improved since the unsuccessful attempts to repair the damaged spinal cord were replaced by systematic prevention and treatment of complications caused by the neural damage.

Objective: To evaluate the main outcome measures in patients with spinal cord injury.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Recovery of neurologic function after spinal cord injury in Israel.

Study Design: A retrospective cohort study was conducted.

Objective: To assess neurologic recovery and the manner in which it is affected by the severity of the neurologic damage after spinal cord injury.

Summary Of Background Data: Studies from various countries, but not from Israel, have shown considerable potential for recovery of the damaged human spinal cord.

Pudendal nerve conduction to evaluate organic erectile dysfunction.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the value of testing pudendal nerve conduction in men with erectile dysfunction.

Design: This open prospective study was conducted on 150 men with documented erectile dysfunction of at least 6 mo of duration, all of whom underwent pudendal nerve conduction by the same investigator.

Results: Only patients with erectile dysfunction and low back pain (n = 9) showed statistically significant prolonged pathologic pudendal nerve conduction latency of 43.

The value of testing pudendal nerve conduction in evaluating erectile dysfunction in diabetics.

We conducted an open prospective study on the value of testing pudendal nerve conduction (PNC) in 45 diabetic and 32 nondiabetic men with documented erectile dysfunction (ED) of at least six months duration. All subjects underwent PNC by the same investigator using the Medcelec/TECA Sapphire device with calibration parameters of sweep 10 ms/div an amplitude of 200 microV/div. No statistically significant differences was found in the mean bulbocavernosus reflex (BCR) latencies between the nondiabetics (33.

Peripheral neuropathy associated with temporal arteritis.

Peripheral neuropathy is described in a patient with biopsy proven giant cell arteritis. Sural nerve biopsy showed myelin and axonal degeneration. Such an uncommon manifestation was resolved with corticosteroid therapy.

Transient regional osteoporosis with antiphospholipid antibodies: a report of two cases.

We describe two patients with clinical, radiological and laboratory findings consistent with transient regional osteoporosis. In both cases antinuclear and antiphospholipid antibodies were found with no evidence of any other autoimmune disease. Both patients were smokers.

Yeast calmodulin and a conserved nuclear protein participate in the in vivo binding of a matrix association region.

Chromatin becomes reorganized during mitosis each cell cycle. To identify genes potentially involved in these supramolecular events, we have used a colony-color assay to screen temperature-sensitive mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. When a sequence that mediates attachment to the nuclear matrix in vitro was inserted into the GAL1 promoter of a lacZ fusion gene, beta-galactosidase synthesis was inhibited.

Effect of spa therapy in Tiberias on patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.

Forty-one patients with rheumatoid arthritis were treated for 2 weeks at a Tiberias spa hotel. Randomized into 2 groups, Group 1 received a combination of mineral baths and mud packs, and Group 2 had tap water baths only. Both groups had a significant but temporary improvement in Ritchie index.

Cutaneous manifestations and impaired chemotaxis of polymorphonuclear leukocytes associated with Kartagener's syndrome.

Persistent deep-seated folliculitis and impaired chemotaxis are described in a 24-year-old woman with situs inversus, bronchitis and sinusitis, i.e. the three characteristics of Kartagener's syndrome.

Postoperative injuries of upper limb nerves.

Three cases of different types of nerve injuries following orthopedic and chest surgery are described. Recovery from these nerve injuries was prolonged and incomplete. By constant awareness of potential nerve damage during operation, it is possible to prevent such injuries.

Basal-level expression of the yeast HSP82 gene requires a heat shock regulatory element.

Previous studies have shown that heat shock factor is constitutively bound to heat shock elements in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We demonstrate that mutation of the heat shock element closest to the TATA box of the yeast HSP82 promoter abolishes basal-level transcription without markedly affecting inducibility. The mutated heat shock element no longer bound putative heat shock factor, either in vitro or in vivo, but still resided within a nuclease-hypersensitive site in the chromatin.

Fatal aplastic anaemia and liver toxicity caused by D-penicillamine treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

A 65 year old woman with rheumatoid arthritis developed marrow aplasia and jaundice owing to D-penicillamine treatment. Recovery of bone marrow was ineffective, and the patient finally died despite intensive therapeutic measures. The rare coexistence of myelotoxicity and hepatotoxicity is presented and discussed.

POEMS syndrome associated with cryoglobulinemia, lymphoma, multiple seborrheic keratosis, and ichthyosis.

The case of a patient with POEMS syndrome is presented. The characteristic features of the disorder were associated with the apparently unique and undescribed findings of multiple seborrheic keratosis, ichthyosis, livedo reticularis, and vasculitis, combined with IgM/IgG cryoglobulinemia. Analysis of the cryoprecipitate revealed monoclonal IgM, with kappa light chains.

Accelerated nodulosis and vasculitis during methotrexate therapy for rheumatoid arthritis.

Three women with classic rheumatoid arthritis, who were receiving weekly doses of methotrexate (MTX), developed accelerated subcutaneous nodulosis, despite good response to the drug. In 2 of the patients, the onset of nodulosis occurred within 3 months and 5 months, respectively, after starting MTX; in the third patient, it was observed only after 4 years of MTX therapy. In all 3 patients, the onset was unusually abrupt, with extensive distribution and remarkable nodule size.

Bilateral suprascapular nerve entrapment syndrome due to an anomalous transverse scapular ligament.

A rare case is reported of a young woman who suffered from suprascapular nerve entrapment syndrome (SNES) of the right side and two years later developed the same syndrome on the left. At the first operation an anomalous bifid transverse ligament was found and cut. The combination of pressure effect from the congenital defect together with frequent protraction of the shoulder due to her work as a physical education teacher caused triggering of the SNES.

Methotrexate in rheumatoid arthritis: a prospective study in Israeli patients with immunogenetic correlations.

In a prospective open study 44 Israeli patients with rheumatoid arthritis were treated with weekly low dose methotrexate (MTX) for up to 36 months. Nine patients withdrew from the study: six because of side effects and three due to inefficacy. One patient died of septicaemia following septic arthritis.

The effects of leucovorin (folinic acid) on methotrexate therapy in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

High-dose leucovorin (folinic acid) supplementation was tested in a prospective, unblinded manner for 4 weeks in 7 rheumatoid arthritis patients who were being treated successfully with low-dose methotrexate (MTX). Nausea caused by MTX disappeared; however, the underlying rheumatic disease worsened in all patients. Subjective clinical assessment, Ritchie articular index, grip strength, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and levels of C-reactive protein showed statistically significant deterioration.