Blood culture bottles meet the operating room: enhancing the diagnostic accuracy of infectious spondylitis through open microsurgical biopsy and intraoperative inoculation.

Purpose: Infectious spondylitis is caused by hematogenous seeding or adjacent soft tissue infection. No study has provided evidence that incubating biopsy specimens in blood culture bottles could enhance detection rates, nor has any study compared this method with conventional culture techniques. We aimed to assess the diagnostic yield of open microsurgical biopsies for infectious spondylitis and the efficacy of various culture media in the presence and absence of pre-biopsy antibiotic therapy.

Hounsfield Units on Lumbar Computed Tomography for Predicting Regional Bone Mineral Density.

Objective: Bone mineral density (BMD) is a very important factor in spinal fusion surgery using instrumentation. Our aim was to investigate the utility of Hounsfield units (HU) obtained from preoperative lumbar computed tomography (CT) to predict osteoporosis coupling with data of quantitative computed tomography (QCT) and dual X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA).

Methods: We reviewed 180 patients that underwent both QCT and lumbar CT for spine surgery.

DA-9701 on gastric motility in patients with Parkinson's disease: A randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: To evaluate the effect of DA-9701, a novel prokinetic drug, on gastric motility evaluated by magnetic resonance imaging in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: Forty PD patients were randomly allocated to receive either domperidone or DA-9701. Their gastric functions were evaluated using magnetic resonance imaging before and after 4-week treatment period.

Intra-abdominal low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma of the transverse mesocolon mimicking lymphoma.

Low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma (LGFMS), first described by Evans in 1987, is a rare soft tissue tumor. LGFMS commonly involves the deep soft tissues of the lower extremities, inguinal area, shoulder, axilla, neck and buttock. Intra-abdominal LGFMS has been reported in ten cases in six English studies (small bowel, four cases; mesentery, two; falciform ligament, one; omentum, one; colon, one; diffuse, one), and radiologic imaging studies were done in four of the ten cases.

Fenofibrate reduces C-reactive protein levels in hypertriglyceridemic patients with high risks for cardiovascular diseases.

Background And Objectives: The effects of fenofibrate on C-reactive protein (CRP) are under debate. We investigated the effect of fenofibrate on CRP levels and the variables determining changes.

Subjects And Methods: This case-control study enrolled 280 hypertriglyceridemic patients who were managed either with 200 mg of fenofibrate (Fenofibrate group, n=140) or with standard treatment (comparison group, n=140).

Relation Between RR Intervals and Early Diastolic Mitral Annular Velocities in Atrial Fibrillation.

Background And Objectives: Irregular RR intervals in atrial fibrillation (AF) make beat-to-beat changes in left ventricular (LV) systolic performance. Early diastolic mitral annular velocity (E') is one of the well-established parameters for evaluating LV diastolic function. The relation between RR intervals and E's is unknown.