Effect of administering kefir on the changes in fecal microbiota and symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease: A randomized controlled trial.

Background/aims: Kefir is a kind of fermented probiotic dairy product. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of kefir consumption on the fecal microflora and symptoms of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Materials And Methods: Kefir was serially diluted and inoculated into de Man, Rogosa, and Sharpe agar and incubated at 37°C for 48 to 72 h under anaerobic conditions.

Effect of craniocervical decompression on peak CSF velocities in symptomatic patients with Chiari I malformation.

Background And Purpose: Peak CSF velocities detected in individual voxels in the subarachnoid space in patients with Chiari I malformations exceed those in similar locations in the subarachnoid space in healthy subjects. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the peak voxel velocities are decreased by craniocervical decompression.

Methods: A consecutive series of patients with symptomatic Chiari I malformations was studied before and after craniocervical decompression with cardiac-gated, phase contrast MR imaging.

Peak systolic and diastolic CSF velocity in the foramen magnum in adult patients with Chiari I malformations and in normal control participants.

Background And Purpose: Abnormal flow of CSF through the foramen magnum has been implicated in the pathogenesis of clinical deficits in association with Chiari I malformation. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that peak CSF velocities in the foramen magnum are increased in patients with Chiari I malformations.

Methods: Eight adult patients with symptomatic Chiari I malformations and 10 adult volunteers were studied with cardiac gated, phase-contrast MR imaging in the axial plane at the foramen magnum.

Myoglobin in pelagic small cetaceans.

Although myoglobin (Mb) is considered to contribute significantly to the oxygen and diving capacity of marine mammals, few data are available for cetaceans. Cetacean by-catch in the tuna driftnet fisheries in the Sulu Sea, Philippines, afforded the opportunity to examine Mb content and distribution, and to determine muscle mass composition, in Fraser's (Lagenodelphis hosei) and spinner (Stenella longirostris) dolphins and a pygmy killer whale (Feresa attenuata). Age was estimated by body length determination.