A case-control study assessing bone mineral density in severe haemophilia A in the UK.

It has been shown that bone mineral density (BMD) may be lower in patients with haemophilia (PWH). A comparison to control subjects is required to thoroughly assess current BMD in PWH in the UK. The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that BMD is lower in PWH than in controls, and in patients with more severely affected joints or lower activity levels.

Patient perspectives on buprenorphine/naloxone: a qualitative study of retention during the starting treatment with agonist replacement therapies (START) study.

This study examines the barriers and facilitators of retention among patients receiving buprenorphine/naloxone at eight community-based opioid treatment programs across the United States. Participants (n = 105) were recruited up to three and a half years after having participated in a randomized clinical trial comparing the effect of buprenorphine/naloxone and methadone on liver function. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 67 patients provided with buprenorphine/naloxone who had terminated early and 38 patients who had completed at least 24 weeks of the trial.

Changes in gait performance over several years are associated with recurrent falls status in community-dwelling older women at high risk of fracture.

Background: Gait analysis is a recommended geriatric assessment for falls risk and sarcopenia; however, previous research utilises measurements at a single time point only. It is presently unclear how changes in gait over several years influence risk of recurrent falls in older adults.

Methods: We investigated 135 female volunteers (mean age±SD: 76.

Half-dose non-contrast CT in the investigation of urolithiasis: image quality improvement with third-generation integrated circuit CT detectors.

Purpose: The objective of this study is to establish the effect of third-generation integrated circuit (IC) CT detector on objective image quality in full- and half-dose non-contrast CT of the urinary tract.

Methods: 51 consecutive patients with acute renal colic underwent non-contrast CT of the urinary tract using a 128-slice dual-source CT before (n = 24) and after (n = 27) the installation of third-generation IC detectors. Half-dose images were generated using projections from detector A using the dual-source RAW data.

Dual-energy CT increases reader confidence in the detection and diagnosis of hypoattenuating pancreatic lesions.

Purpose: To prospectively compare detection and reader confidence of pancreatic lesions using a standard multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) imaging protocol to a dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) imaging protocol with additional virtual non-contrast series.

Methods: 60 subjects imaged for suspected or known pancreatic lesions were included. Subjects underwent pancreatic MDCT including non-contrast, pancreatic phase, and portal venous phase (PVP).

ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Definitive External-Beam Irradiation in stage T1 and T2 prostate cancer.

Purpose: To present the most updated American College of Radiology consensus guidelines formed from an expert panel on the appropriate use of external-beam radiation to manage stage T1 and T2 prostate cancer.

Methods: The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed every 2 years by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and review include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer-reviewed journals and the application of a well-established consensus methodology (modified Delphi) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures by the panel.

The role of pure iterative reconstruction in conventional dose CT enterography.

Purpose: Pure iterative reconstruction (Pure IR) has been proposed as a solution to improve diagnostic quality of low dose CT images. We assess the performance of model based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) in improving conventional dose CT enterography (CTE) images.

Methods: 43 Crohn's patients (27 female) (38.

Conflict RNA modification, host-parasite co-evolution, and the origins of DNA and DNA-binding proteins1.

Nearly 150 different enzymatically modified forms of the four canonical residues in RNA have been identified. For instance, enzymes of the ADAR (adenosine deaminase acting on RNA) family convert adenosine residues into inosine in cellular dsRNAs. Recent findings show that DNA endonuclease V enzymes have undergone an evolutionary transition from cleaving 3' to deoxyinosine in DNA and ssDNA to cleaving 3' to inosine in dsRNA and ssRNA in humans.

90Y-ibritumomab tiuxetan radiotherapy as first-line therapy for early stage low-grade B-cell lymphomas, including bulky disease.

(90) Y-ibritumomab-tiuxetan ((90) YIT) was used as a first-line therapy for patients with early-stage follicular lymphoma (FL) or marginal zone B-cell lymphoma (MZL). Thirty-one patients were treated, with an overall 3-month response rate of 100% (68% complete response, 29% unconfirmed complete response and 3% partial response). At a median follow-up of 56 months, ten patients (32%) had disease relapse or progression.

Paclitaxel, topotecan and rituximab: long term outcomes of an effective salvage programme for relapsed or refractory aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Relapsed aggressive lymphomas are often treated with platinum-based chemotherapy (PBC) followed by an autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). Response rates to PBC in patients with relapsed aggressive lymphomas are c. 60%, and non-responders have a dismal prognosis.

Selective blockade of the OGF-OGFr pathway by naltrexone accelerates fibroblast proliferation and wound healing.

Naltrexone (NTX) is an opioid receptor antagonist that acts at classical and non-classical opioid receptors including the opioid growth factor receptor (OGFr). Animal models of type 1 and type 2 diabetes, as well as normal rodents, have shown that topical NTX enhances the healing rates of corneal epithelium and full-thickness cutaneous wounds. The mechanism of this general opioid antagonist on growth, and in particular the specific receptor pathway involved, is not understood.

High pitch, low voltage dual source CT pulmonary angiography: assessment of image quality and diagnostic acceptability with hybrid iterative reconstruction.

Increased use of CT Pulmonary angiography in suspected pulmonary embolism (PE) has driven research to minimize radiation dose while maintaining image quality and diagnostic accuracy. Following institutional review board approval, we performed a retrospective comparison study in patients with suspected PE. Patients were scanned using an ultra high pitch dual source technique (pitch = 2.

Detection of occult, undisplaced hip fractures with a dual-energy CT algorithm targeted to detection of bone marrow edema.

The purpose of this study is to describe our initial clinical experience with dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) virtual non-calcium (VNC) images for the detection of bone marrow (BM) edema in patients with suspected hip fracture following trauma. Twenty-five patients presented to the emergency department at a level 1 trauma center between January 1, 2011 and January 1, 2013 with clinical suspicion of hip fracture and normal radiographs were included. All CT scans were performed on a dual-source, dual-energy CT system.

Optimal needle design for minimal insertion force and bevel length.

This research presents a methodology for optimal design of the needle geometry to minimize the insertion force and bevel length based on mathematical models of cutting edge inclination and rake angles and the insertion force. In brachytherapy, the needle with lower insertion force typically is easier for guidance and has less deflection. In this study, the needle with lancet point (denoted as lancet needle) is applied to demonstrate the model-based optimization for needle design.

Topical Naltrexone as Treatment for Type 2 Diabetic Cutaneous Wounds.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is associated with impaired cutaneous wound healing and can result in ulceration, infection, and/or amputation. More than 25 million people in the United States have T2D and are vulnerable to epithelial-related complications. Current therapies are limited in their efficacy.

The Victorian Lung Cancer Registry pilot: improving the quality of lung cancer care through the use of a disease quality registry.

Background: Lung cancer remains a major disease burden in Victoria (Australia) and requires a complex and multidisciplinary approach to ensure optimal care and outcomes. To date, no uniform mechanism is available to capture standardized population-based outcomes and thereby provide benchmarking. The establishment of such a data platform is, therefore, a primary requisite to enable description of process and outcome in lung cancer care and to drive improvement in the quality of care provided to individuals with lung cancer.

The DREEM, part 2: psychometric properties in an osteopathic student population.

Background: The Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM) is widely used to assess the educational environment in health professional education programs. A number of authors have identified issues with the psychometric properties of the DREEM. Part 1 of this series of papers presented the quantitative data obtained from the DREEM in the context of an Australian osteopathy program.

Dual-energy computed tomographic virtual noncalcium algorithm for detection of bone marrow edema in acute fractures: early experiences.

Computed tomography (CT) is often used to assess the presence of occult fractures when plain radiographs are equivocal in the acute traumatic setting. While providing increased spatial resolution, conventional computed tomography is limited in the assessment of bone marrow edema, a finding that is readily detectable on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).Dual-energy CT has recently been shown to demonstrate patterns of bone marrow edema similar to corresponding MRI studies.

Communication of unexpected and significant findings on chest radiographs with an automated PACS alert system.

Purpose: An integral part of realizing the enormous potential of imaging in patient care is close communication between radiologists and referring physicians. One key element of this process is the communication of unexpected significant findings. The authors examined the performance of a PACS-based alert system in the appropriate communication of reports containing unexpected significant findings to referring physicians.

A randomized controlled trial of the embrace advanced scar therapy device to reduce incisional scar formation.

Background: Scarring represents a significant biomedical burden in clinical medicine. Mechanomodulation has been linked to scarring through inflammation, but until now a systematic approach to attenuate mechanical force and reduce scarring has not been possible.

Methods: The authors conducted a 12-month, prospective, open-label, randomized, multicenter clinical trial to evaluate abdominoplasty scar appearance following postoperative treatment with the embrace Advanced Scar Therapy device to reduce mechanical forces on healing surgical incisions.

Optical performance test and validation of microcameras in multiscale, gigapixel imagers.

Wide field-of-view gigapixel imaging systems capable of diffraction-limited resolution and video-rate acquisition have a broad range of applications, including sports event broadcasting, security surveillance, astronomical observation, and bioimaging. The complexity of the system integration of such devices demands precision optical components that are fully characterized and qualified before being integrated into the final system. In this work, we present component and assembly level characterizations of microcameras in our first gigapixel camera, the AWARE-2.

Dual-energy computed tomographic tendon algorithm in acute trauma: initial experiences.

Computed tomography has become increasingly popular in the assessment of limbs in the acute trauma setting. Bony anatomic detail is excellent; however, soft tissue detail is typically limited, especially when compared with ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging. The advent of dual-energy computed tomography has allowed additional information to be gathered regarding the morphology of collagen-based soft tissue structures.

Opioid growth factor and the treatment of human pancreatic cancer: a review.

Opioid growth factor (OGF), chemically termed [Met⁵]-enkephalin, and its receptor, OGF receptor (OGFr), form a biological axis that tonically regulates cell proliferation by delaying the G₁/S interface of the cell cycle under homeostatic conditions or in neoplasia. Modulation of the OGF-OGFr pathway mediates the course of pancreatic cancer, with exogenous OGF or upregulation of OGFr repressing growth of human pancreatic cancer cells in culture and in nude mice. OGF therapy alone or in combination with standard chemotherapies such as gemcitabine and 5-fluorouracil results in enhanced inhibition of DNA synthesis and tumor growth.

The "Alzheimer's type" profile of semantic clustering in amnestic mild cognitive impairment.

Impairments in learning and recall have been well established in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). However, a relative dearth of studies has examined the profiles of memory strategy use in persons with aMCI relative to those with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Participants with aMCI, nonamnestic MCI, AD, and healthy older adults were administered the California Verbal Learning Test-II (CVLT-II).