Low-grade dysplasia in Barrett's esophagus: overdiagnosed and underestimated.

Objectives: Published data on the natural history of low-grade dysplasia (LGD) in Barrett's esophagus (BE) are inconsistent and difficult to interpret. We investigated the natural history of LGD in a large community-based cohort of BE patients after reviewing the original histological diagnosis by an expert panel of pathologists.

Methods: Histopathology reports of all patients diagnosed with LGD between 2000 and 2006 in six non-university hospitals were reviewed by two expert pathologists.

High-volume versus low-volume for esophageal resections for cancer: the essential role of case-mix adjustments based on clinical data.

Background: Most studies addressing the volume-outcome relationship in complex surgical procedures use hospital mortality as the sole outcome measure and are rarely based on detailed clinical data. The lack of reliable information about comorbidities and tumor stages makes the conclusions of these studies debatable. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes for esophageal resections for cancer in low- versus high-volume hospitals, using an extensive set of variables concerning case-mix and outcome measures, including long-term survival.

Basic fibroblast growth factor, glutamine synthetase, and interleukin-6 in vitreous fluid from eyes with retinal detachment complicated by proliferative vitreoretinopathy.

Purpose: To investigate the presence of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), glutamine synthetase (GS), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in vitreous fluid from eyes with retinal detachment complicated by proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR).

Design: Comparative case series; experimental study.

Methods: In a prospective study, we measured bFGF, GS, IL-6, and total protein in vitreous fluid samples from 53 eyes from 53 consecutive patients with PVR operated on in our hospital.

Altered expression patterns of VEGF receptors in human diabetic retina and in experimental VEGF-induced retinopathy in monkey.

Purpose: The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family is involved in vascular leakage and angiogenesis in diabetic retinopathy (DR) in the eye, but may also have physiological functions. Based on the hypothesis that differential VEGF receptor (VEGFR) expression in the retina is an important determinant of effects of VEGF, this study was conducted to investigate VEGFR expression in the diabetic retina and in an experimental monkey model of VEGF-A-induced retinopathy.

Methods: In retinas of 27 eyes of diabetic donors, 18 eyes of nondiabetic control donors, and 4 monkey eyes injected with PBS or VEGF-A, expression patterns of VEGFR-1, -2, and -3 in relation to leaky microvessels, as identified by the marker pathologische anatomie Leiden-endothelium (PAL-E) were studied by immunohistochemistry.