Assessing the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the health of residents and the healthcare system in Alberta, Canada: an observational study-The Alberta POST-COVID Follow-up Study.

Introduction: Very little is known about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the health of residents and the healthcare system in Alberta, Canada. The purpose of this study is to establish an observational study to characterise the health of residents in Alberta, Canada, over time, covering a population that tested negative or positive for COVID-19 during the pandemic. The primary outcome is to characterise 'long COVID-19' and the health status of residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Improving opioid guideline adherence: evaluation of a multifaceted, theory-informed pilot intervention for family physicians.

Objectives: Opioid-related deaths continue to increase in North America, an epidemic that was initiated by high rates of opioid prescribing. We designed a multifaceted, theory-informed Opioid Self-Assessment (OSA) package, to increase adherence to the Canadian Opioid Guideline among family physicians. This study aimed to assess changes in Canadian family physicians' knowledge and practices after completing the OSA package.

EHRA Expert Consensus Statement on the management of cardiovascular implantable electronic devices in patients nearing end of life or requesting withdrawal of therapy.

The purpose of this Consensus Statement is to focus on implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) deactivation in patients with irreversible or terminal illness. This statement summarizes the opinions of the Task Force members, convened by the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) and the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), based on ethical and legal principles, as well as their own clinical, scientific, and technical experience. It is directed to all healthcare professionals who treat patients with implanted ICDs, nearing end of life, in order to improve the patient dying process.

Anterior urethral valve--an [corrected] uncommon cause of urethral obstruction.

An anterior urethral valve causing bladder outlet obstruction in children is rare. The early identification and management of this condition is crucial as delay may lead to chronic renal damage. We present a case of a 10-month old male child diagnosed with an anterior urethral valve by micturating cystourethrogram.

Human eukaryotic initiation factor EIF2C1 gene: cDNA sequence, genomic organization, localization to chromosomal bands 1p34-p35, and expression.

We report the cloning and characterization of the human eukaryotic protein translation initiation factor EIF2C1 gene. The human EIF2C1 gene consists of 19 exons and 18 introns that span a region of almost 50 kb. It is located on the short arm of chromosome 1 in the region 1p34-p35.

A realistic approach to the sensitivity of PCR-DGGE and its application as a sensitive tool for the detection of clonality in cutaneous T-cell proliferations.

The practical value of the detection of clonality within the T-cell receptor gamma locus by polymerase chain reaction for the diagnosis of cutaneous T-cell lymphomas is well known. However, studies dealing with this subject so far, with special emphasis on the sensitivity of the technique in comparison to, for example, Southern blotting have used mixtures of DNA in various concentrations instead of using mixtures of the cells involved, which would reflect the in vivo situation in a more realistic scope. The purpose of this study was therefore to determine the sensitivity and the limitations of the PCR assay by dilution experiments, using mixtures of cells.

Detection of t(11;22)(q24;q12) translocation breakpoint in paraffin-embedded tissue of the Ewing's sarcoma family by nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction.

Tumors of the Ewing's sarcoma family often present a major diagnostic challenge for the pathologist. In recent years, significant progress has been made in identifying characteristic chromosomal rearrangements associated with certain solid tumors. More than 85% of Ewing's sarcoma and related tumors present a specific t(11;22) (q24;q12) balanced translocation, which generates a fusion transcript of the EWS gene and the FLI-1 gene.

HPV-11- and HPV-16-associated oral verrucous carcinoma.

Background: Verrucous carcinoma is a slowly growing, well-differentiated neoplasm with a predilection for the oral cavity.

Objective: Data on the association of human papillomavirus (HPV) with oral verrucous carcinoma are very scarce. We searched for the presence of HPV in different stages of the tumour in a patient repeatedly treated by means of surgery, cryotherapy, radiotherapy and chemotherapy over a decade.

Primary cutaneous T-cell-rich B-cell lymphoma. A case report with a 13-year follow-up.

Cutaneous B-cell lymphomas constitute approximately 20% of primary cutaneous lymphomas. Most histologic subtypes of nodal B-cell lymphomas also occur primarily in the skin. The recently described T-cell-rich B-cell lymphomas (TCRBCLs) manifest mainly in the lymph nodes.

Mutational analysis of the tumor-suppressor gene wt1 - detection of a novel homozygous point mutation in sporadic unilateral wilms-tumor.

The WT1 gene located on chromosome 11p13, has been identified as the first Wilms' tumor suppressor gene and has been implicated in the development of Wilms' tumor. About 10% of Wilms' tumors analyzed to date carry a mutation and only 6 different point mutations affecting the zinc finger region have been reported. We analyzed the zinc finger coding exons of 38 sporadic Wilms' tumor by SSCP and detected 2 point mutations.

Human herpesvirus type 6 and cytomegalovirus in AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma: no evidence for an etiological association.

Epidemiological studies indicate that acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)-associated Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) may be caused by an infectious, preferentially sexually transmitted agent. Herpesviruses infections are common sexually transmitted diseases in homosexual men, who are also the main risk group for developing Kaposi's sarcoma. To evaluate a possible role of human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) in the development of AIDS-associated KS, we investigated cutaneous AIDS-associated KS in 26 AIDS patients using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) to detect the presence of HHV-6 and CMV.

Detection of several types of human papilloma viruses in AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma.

Epidemiological studies indicate that acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-associated Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) may be caused by an infectious, preferentially sexually transmitted agent. Infections with human papilloma viruses are common, sexually transmitted diseases occurring frequently in homosexual men, who are also the main risk group for developing KS. In order to evaluate the possible role of HPV in the development of KS, 24 cutaneous AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcomas were investigated by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and by in situ hybridization for the presence of human papilloma viruses (HPV).

Determination of hexokinase isoenzyme I and II composition by RT-PCR: increased hexokinase isoenzyme II in human renal cell carcinoma.

Hexokinase isoenzyme composition has been noted to vary in different tissues and with the developmental and metabolic status of the cell. Until now these investigations were performed either by isoenzyme electrophoresis or by column chromatography. In this report we described an RNA-PCR method to evaluate the percentage of HK-1 and HK-2 in different rat tissues.

[Detection of the intermediate trophoblast as evidence of intrauterine pregnancy].

With spontaneous abortion the conceptus is often expelled and lost right at the beginning, and uterine curettings then contain only endometrial fragments and clotted blood. Even complete embedding of all available material for histologic examination will not reveal any chorionic villi, and ectopic pregnancy can thus not be excluded. In such cases, the intermediate trophoblast can sometimes still be demonstrated within the endometrial tissue.

Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in four children infected with the human immunodeficiency virus. Association with Epstein-Barr Virus and treatment.

Background: Reports on lymphoid malignancy and its treatment in children infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are limited.

Methods: Antibodies to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) were detected by indirect immunofluorescence. DNA was extracted from peripheral blood lymphocytes or biopsy specimens.

[Detection of human herpesvirus type 6, human herpesvirus type 7, cytomegalovirus and human papillomavirus in cutaneous AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma].

In order to evaluate a possible role of viral infections in the pathogenesis of AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), we investigated 26 cutaneous AIDS-associated KS by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), in situ hybridization, and immunohistochemistry. By PCR we detected human papilloma viruses (HPV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), and for the first time human herpesvirus 7 (HHV-7) in the KS. The prevalence of HPV, HHV-6, and HHV-7 was similar to or lower in KS than in normal skin tissues of AIDS patients without KS, but higher than in normal skin of HIV-seronegative patients.

Systemic effects of insulin-like growth factor-II produced and released from Wilms tumour tissue.

The concentration of mRNA of insulin-like growth factor-II is (IGF-II) much elevated in some embryonic tumours such as Wilms tumour (nephroblastoma). In order to prove whether or not IGF-II is produced by the tumour tissue, IGF-II was extracted from freshly frozen tissue of Wilms tumour and hepatoblastoma. Normal adjacent tissue of kidney and liver was used as a control.

Specific diagnosis of parvovirus enteritis in dogs and cats by in situ hybridization.

In a retrospective study, the fixed intestines of 10 dogs and 10 cats with intestinal lesions characteristic of parvovirus infection were assayed for the presence of parvovirus by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry. Parvoviral nucleic acid was localized by in situ hybridization in intestinal tissue in all 10 dogs and in nine of the 10 cats, whereas antigen was detected only in seven of 10 canine and eight of 10 feline intestines by immunohistochemistry. We conclude that an aetiological diagnosis can be established with a high degree of certainty by routine histology.

[T-cell rich B-cell lymphoma associated with hemophagocytic syndrome].

Report of a T-cell rich B-cell lymphoma (TCRBCL) in a 43 years old man with an associated haemophagocytic syndrome (HS). At presentation the haemophagocytic cells involved the same organs as the lymphoma, i.e.

Retrospective study of myocardial canine parvovirus infection by in situ hybridization.

The diagnosis of myocardial canine parvovirus (CPV) infection used to depend on the presence of pathognomonic intranuclear inclusion bodies. The in situ hybridization technique, however, allowed to detect CPV specific nucleic acid in myocardial tissue where no inclusion bodies were found. Hence, we applied this technique to check formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded myocardial tissue from puppies with heart lesions for the presence of CPV.

The elimination of mouse hepatitis virus by temporary transplantation of human tumors from infected athymic nude mice into athymic nude rats (rnuN/rnuN).

A nude mouse colony held in an isolation unit was found to harbor MHV despite the fact that all hygienic precautions were taken. The virus spread rapidly causing a high mortality rate predominantly in experimental animals. Moreover, we observed a high percentage of tumor regression in our tumor transplanted mice.