Comparative phase imaging of live cells by digital holographic microscopy and transport of intensity equation methods.

We describe a microscopic setup implementing phase imaging by digital holographic microscopy (DHM) and transport of intensity equation (TIE) methods, which allows the results of both measurements to be quantitatively compared for either live cell or static samples. Digital holographic microscopy is a well-established method that provides robust phase reconstructions, but requires a sophisticated interferometric imaging system. TIE, on the other hand, is directly compatible with bright-field microscopy, but is more susceptible to noise artifacts.

Hemodynamic Response to Exercise for Prediction of Development of Kidney Failure: Revealing a Cardiorenal Secret Cross Talk.

Introduction: Kidney disease increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. The corollary of that observation should be that cardiovascular disease would not only increase the risk of kidney dysfunction, but also cause kidney damage, a concept not previously proposed.

Materials And Methods: Hemodynamic response to a graded exercise stress test was measured in 70 candidates to evaluate the association of heart rate and blood pressure change, heart rate reserve, chronotropic incompetence (percentage of achievement of maximal predicted heart rate), and circulatory power with development of kidney failure (glomerular filtration rate < 30 mL/min/1.

The Effect of Body Mass on the 30-15 Intermittent Fitness Test in Rugby Union Players.

Purpose: To evaluate the difference in performance of the 30-15 Intermittent Fitness Test (30-15IFT) across 4 squads in a professional rugby union club in the UK and consider body mass in the interpretation of the end velocity of the 30-15IFT (VIFT).

Methods: One hundred fourteen rugby union players completed the 30-15IFT midseason.

Results: VIFT demonstrated small and possibly lower (ES = -0.

Circulatory syndrome: an evolution of the metabolic syndrome concept!

The metabolic syndrome has been a useful, though controversial construct in clinical practice as well as a valuable model in order to understand the interactions of diverse cardiovascular risk factors. However the increasing importance of the circulatory system in particular the endothelium, in both connecting and controlling organ function has underlined the limitations of the metabolic syndrome definition. The proposed "Circulatory Syndrome" is an attempt to refine the metabolic syndrome concept by the addition of recently documented markers of cardiovascular disease including renal impairment, microalbuminuria, arterial stiffness, ventricular dysfunction and anaemia to more classic factors including hypertension, dyslipidemia and abnormal glucose metabolism; all of which easily measured in clinical practice.

What's in a name? Brand name confusion and generic medicines.

We need an urgent review of medicines labelling in Australia and New Zealand.

Evaluation of arterial stiffness and pulse wave reflection for cardiovascular risk assessment in diabetic and nondiabetic kidney transplant recipients.

Introduction: Evidence demonstrates that cardiovascular risk reduces after kidney transplantation, but is still a major cause of death. With increasing inclusion of diabetic patients for kidney transplantation, the evaluation of cardiovascular disease in this population becomes more important. We compared arterial stiffness and pulse wave reflection as well as other cardiovascular risk factors in kidney transplant patients with and without diabetes mellitus.

The impact of arm position and pulse pressure on the validation of a wrist-cuff blood pressure measurement device in a high risk population.

Despite the increasing popularity of blood pressure (BP) wrist monitors for self-BP measurement at home, device validation and the effect of arm position remains an issue. This study focused on the validation of the Omron HEM-609 wrist BP device, including an evaluation of the impact of arm position and pulse pressure on BP measurement validation. Fifty patients at high risk for cardiovascular disease were selected (age 65 +/- 10 years).

Arterial stiffness in kidney transplant recipients: an overview of methodology and applications.

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease is still a major cause of mortality in kidney transplant patients. This is partially attributed to the nonclassic cardiovascular risk factors including arterial stiffness, an established independent predictor of mortality in several patient populations.

Materials And Methods: An extensive search was performed to review the evolution process of the method for arterial stiffness assessment and sphygmology and their applications in chronic kidney disease before and after kidney transplantation.

Potential roles of erythropoietin in the management of anaemia and other complications diabetes.

Erythropoietin (EPO) is a haematopoietic cytokine, mainly generated in the renal cortex, and its secretion and action is impaired in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Early renal damage in diabetes mellitus (DM) is usually not detected because diabetes-induced nephron hypertrophy maintains glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and an elevated plasma creatinine concentration is a relatively late manifestation of diabetic nephropathy. However, anaemia occurs more frequently in subjects with DM when compared with those with non-DM renal disease.

Better management of cardiovascular diseases by pulse wave velocity: combining clinical practice with clinical research using evidence-based medicine.

Arterial stiffness measured by pulse wave velocity (PWV) is an accepted strong, independent predictor of cardiovascular events and mortality. However, lack of a reliable reference range has limited its use in clinical practice. In this evidence-based review, we applied published data to develop a PWV risk stratification model and demonstrated its impact on the management of common clinical scenarios.

Disturbed hemodynamic cardiac exercise stress test response in non-smoking, normolipidemic, normotensive, diabetic subjects.

Objective: The hemodynamic response to exercise is affected by diverse factors such as age, gender and exercise load as well as concomitant pathogenic conditions including smoking, hyperlipidemia, hypertension and possibly diabetes. In this study the hemodynamic response to a graded exercise has been evaluated in diabetic and non-diabetic individuals.

Design And Method: In 3170 consecutive non-smoker normolipidemic normotensive patients, referred for the treadmill exercise test (age 25-70 years), the exercise-induced change in heart rate (DeltaHR) and blood pressure (DeltaSBP and DeltaDBP) was evaluated in 176 diabetics (DM) compared to non-diabetics (NDM).

Estimation of an age-specific reference interval for pulse wave velocity: a meta-analysis.

Objective: To estimate an age-specific reference interval for carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV), an index of aortic stiffness, and to determine the predictive values of the reference range for detecting those at moderate and high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Design And Methods: We searched MEDLINE using PubMed from 1995 to 2005 for all studies in which Carotid-Femoral PWV was measured using a Complior (Colson, Paris, France) apparatus in Caucasian non-pregnant adults. Twenty-five studies were included, covering 30 groups of subjects; these groups were classified a priori into low (normal), moderate, and high CVD risk categories, with 2008, 5979, and 180 (total 8167) subjects, respectively.

Chronic kidney disease and automatic reporting of estimated glomerular filtration rate: a position statement.

The systematic staging of chronic kidney disease (CKD) by glomerular filtration measurement and proteinuria has allowed the development of rational and appropriate management plans. One of the barriers to early detection of CKD is the lack of a precise, reliable and consistent measure of kidney function. The most common measure of kidney function is currently serum creatinine concentration.

Haemodialysis-unresponsive blood pressure: cardiovascular mortality predictor?

Aim: The importance of 'conventional' cardiovascular risk factors in haemodialysis (HD) patients has been questioned following evidence that pre-HD blood pressure (BP) might be inversely related to mortality in contrast to post-HD BP. To evaluate this reverse BP epidemiology in HD patients, HD-induced BP changes were compared with aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV), an independent predictor of cardiovascular mortality.

Method: Aortic PWV was evaluated in a limited care HD cohort, all of whom were asymptomatic of cardiovascular disease.

Direct comparison of repeated same-day self and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.

Background And Aim: The relative roles of self and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (self BPM, ABPM, respectively) have yet to be clearly defined despite accumulating evidence of self BPM benefits, particularly in hypertension management. In particular, measurements comparable to ABPM have been documented with self-measurement, usually twice daily over one or more days. Nevertheless, ABPM offers a series of recordings performed throughout the day that can be invaluable during drug treatment.

Inaccuracy of wrist-cuff oscillometric blood pressure devices: an arm position artefact?

Background: Despite the increasing popularity of wrist-cuff blood pressure (BP) devices, their accuracy has not been established and international guidelines do not support their use. Because arm position influences BP measurement, it is possible that conflicting reports on wrist-cuff device accuracy reflects diverse arm positions.

Method: This study compared BP measured by two oscillometric devices, the upper arm-cuff OMRON HEM 705 CP and the OMRON R6 oscillometric wrist-cuff device.