Sequential Therapy With Recombinant Human IGF-1 Followed by Risedronate Increases Spine Bone Mineral Density in Women With Anorexia Nervosa: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial.

Anorexia nervosa is complicated by low bone mineral density (BMD) and increased fracture risk associated with low bone formation and high bone resorption. The lumbar spine is most severely affected. Low bone formation is associated with relative insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) deficiency.

Report of a Quality Improvement Program for Reducing Postoperative Complications by Using a Surgical Risk Calculator in a Cohort of General Surgery Patients.

Purpose: The study investigates whether postoperative complications in elective surgery can be reduced by using a risk calculator via raising the awareness of the surgeon in a preoperative briefing. Postoperative complications like wound infections or pneumonia result in a high burden for healthcare systems. Multiple quality improvement programs address this problem like the ACS NSQIP Surgical Risk Calculator (SRC).

The Women's Recovery Group for Individuals with Co-occurring Substance Use and Eating Disorders: Feasibility and Satisfaction in a Residential Eating Disorders Program.

Despite the high rate of co-occurring eating disorders (EDs) and substance use disorders (SUDs) in women, there is a lack of integrated treatment. This study implemented the Women's Recovery Group (WRG), a gender-specific group therapy for women with SUDs, in an ED residential treatment program to assess the feasibility and satisfaction of the WRG for women with co-occurring SUDs and EDs. Women (N = 24) were enrolled in the study if they were aged 18 years or older and engaged in the WRG as part of their treatment.

Hydrophobic-interaction chromatography for purification of influenza A and B virus.

Options for hydrophobic-interaction chromatography (HIC) for purification of cell culture-derived influenza A and B virus have been assessed using a 96-well plate format using a semi-high-throughput approach. Follow-up experiments at preparative scale were used to characterize dynamic binding capacity, viral hemagglutinin protein (HA protein) recovery, and the influence of influenza virus (IV) strains on yield and contamination levels. Virus recoveries of up to 96% with a residual DNA level of about 1.

Residential eating disorder outcomes associated with screening positive for substance use disorder and borderline personality disorder.

Objective: We examined whether eating disorder (ED) outcome trajectories during residential treatment differed for patients screening positive for comorbid borderline personality disorder (BPD) and/or substance use disorders (SUDs) than those who do not.

Method: We examined data from patients in a residential ED treatment program. Patients completed validated self-report surveys to screen for SUDs and BPD on admission, and the ED Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) on admission and every 2 weeks until discharge (N = 479 females).

Mild, moderate, meaningful? Examining the psychological and functioning correlates of DSM-5 eating disorder severity specifiers.

Objective: This study evaluated the DSM-5 severity specifiers for treatment-seeking groups of participants with anorexia nervosa (AN), the purging form of bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge-eating disorder (BED).

Method: Hundred and sixty-two participants with AN, 93 participants with BN, and 343 participants with BED were diagnosed using semi-structured interviews, sub-categorized using DSM-5 severity specifiers and compared on demographic and cross-sectional clinical measures.

Results: In AN, the number of previous hospitalizations and the duration of illness increased with severity, but there was no difference across severity groups on measures of eating pathology, depression, or measures of self-reported physical or emotional functioning.

Water-Blown Polyurethane Foams Showing a Reversible Shape-Memory Effect.

Water-blown polyurethane (PU) foams are of enormous technological interest as they are widely applied in various fields, i.e., consumer goods, medicine, automotive or aerospace industries.

Vertebral Volumetric Bone Density and Strength Are Impaired in Women With Low-Weight and Atypical Anorexia Nervosa.

Context: Areal bone mineral density (BMD) is lower, particularly at the spine, in low-weight women with anorexia nervosa (AN). However, little is known about vertebral integral volumetric BMD (Int.vBMD) or vertebral strength across the AN weight spectrum, including "atypical" AN [body mass index (BMI) ≥18.

A membrane-based purification process for cell culture-derived influenza A virus.

A simple membrane-based purification process for cell culture-derived influenza virus was established that relies on only two chromatographic unit operations to achieve the contamination limits required according to regulatory authorities. After clarification and concentration, a pseudo-affinity membrane adsorber (sulfated cellulose, SCMA) was applied for virus capture. The subsequent polishing step consisted of a salt-tolerant anion exchange membrane adsorber (STMA) to bind residual DNA.

Vertebral Strength and Estimated Fracture Risk Across the BMI Spectrum in Women.

Somewhat paradoxically, fracture risk, which depends on applied loads and bone strength, is elevated in both anorexia nervosa and obesity at certain skeletal sites. Factor-of-risk (Φ), the ratio of applied load to bone strength, is a biomechanically based method to estimate fracture risk; theoretically, higher Φ reflects increased fracture risk. We estimated vertebral strength (linear combination of integral volumetric bone mineral density [Int.

Comparison of hip geometry, strength, and estimated fracture risk in women with anorexia nervosa and overweight/obese women.

Context: Data suggest that anorexia nervosa (AN) and obesity are complicated by elevated fracture risk, but skeletal site-specific data are lacking. Traditional bone mineral density (BMD) measurements are unsatisfactory at both weight extremes. Hip structural analysis (HSA) uses dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry data to estimate hip geometry and femoral strength.

A flow-through chromatography process for influenza A and B virus purification.

Vaccination is still the most efficient measure to protect against influenza virus infections. Besides the seasonal wave of influenza, pandemic outbreaks of bird or swine flu represent a high threat to human population. With the establishment of cell culture-based processes, there is a growing demand for robust, economic and efficient downstream processes for influenza virus purification.

Impact of physiologic estrogen replacement on anxiety symptoms, body shape perception, and eating attitudes in adolescent girls with anorexia nervosa: data from a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: Anorexia nervosa is characterized by low weight, aberrant eating attitudes, body image distortion, and hypogonadism. Anxiety is a common comorbid condition. Estrogen replacement reduces anxiety in animal models, and reported variations in food intake across the menstrual cycle may be related to gonadal steroid levels.

Physiologic estrogen replacement increases bone density in adolescent girls with anorexia nervosa.

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is prevalent in adolescents and is associated with decreased bone mineral accrual at a time critical for optimizing bone mass. Low BMD in AN is a consequence of nutritional and hormonal alterations, including hypogonadism and low estradiol levels. Effective therapeutic strategies to improve BMD in adolescents with AN have not been identified.

Motivation to change among residential treatment patients with an eating disorder: assessment of the multidimensionality of motivation and its relation to treatment outcome.

Objective: To examine the multidimensional nature of motivation to change in an adolescent sample in residential eating disorder (ED) treatment and relate it to outcome.

Method: To determine whether different dimensions of motivation (benefits, burdens, and functional avoidance) are differentially associated with symptom severity and outcome, we assessed eating pathology and motivation to change in consecutively admitted female patients (n = 67) with AN, BN, and EDNOS in a residential ED program with the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and the Decisional Balance Scale (DB).

Results: Pretreatment DB benefits and functional avoidance subscales were correlated with ED and comorbid psychopathology.

Use of SSRIs may Impact Bone Density in Adolescent and Young Women with Anorexia Nervosa.

Objectives: Alterations in serotonin impact bone metabolism in animal models, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) have been associated with increased fracture risk in older adults. SSRIs are commonly used in anorexia nervosa (AN), a condition that predisposes to low bone mineral density (BMD). Our objective was to determine whether SSRI use is associated with low BMD in AN.

How do eating disorder specialist clinicians apply DSM-IV diagnostic criteria in routine clinical practice? Implications for enhancing clinical utility in DSM-5.

The clinical utility of the DSM-IV eating disorder (ED) diagnostic criteria among practicing clinicians has not been formally evaluated, despite the considerable diagnostic challenges these disorders present. This study evaluated inter-rater reliability between research and clinical diagnoses, identified discrepantly rated diagnostic criteria, and evaluated ED subtype use in a naturalistic treatment setting. Seventy-six adolescent and young adult female patients consecutively admitted to a residential ED program were evaluated independently by clinicians (unstructured clinical interview) and research assessors (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV).

Generation of hollow beams by spiral rays in multimode light guides.

The generation of hollow beams by a multimode light guiding device is analyzed. The light propagation through the light guide is simulated by ray tracing. It is shown that hollow beams are generated by light rays that propagate along a spiral path through the light guide.

Cytocompatibility testing of cell culture modules fabricated from specific candidate biomaterials using injection molding.

Most polymers used in clinical applications today are materials that have been developed originally for application areas other than biomedicine. Testing the cell- and tissue-compatibility of novel materials in vitro and in vivo is of key importance for the approval of medical devices and is regulated according to the Council Directive 93/42/EEC of the European communities concerning medical devices. In the standardized testing methods the testing sample is placed in commercially available cell culture plates, which are often made from polystyrene.

Coarctation of the aorta: midterm outcomes of resection with extended end-to-end anastomosis.

Background: We began using the technique of resection with extended end-to-end anastomosis for infants and children with coarctation of the aorta in 1991. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the midterm outcomes of this technique, specifically determining the incidence of and risk factors for transcatheter or surgical reintervention.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of the cardiac surgery database was performed to identify all patients who had a diagnosis of coarctation of the aorta with or without ventricular septal defect and had resection with extended end-to-end anastomosis from 1991 to 2007.

Effects of rhIGF-1 administration on surrogate markers of bone turnover in adolescents with anorexia nervosa.

Background: Adolescents with anorexia nervosa (AN) have low bone density and low levels of surrogate markers of bone formation. Low bone density is a consequence of hormonal alterations that include hypogonadism and decreases in IGF-1, a bone trophic factor. Although IGF-1 is key to pubertal bone accretion, and effects have been demonstrated in adults, there are no data regarding the effect of recombinant human (rh) IGF-1 administration in adolescents with AN.

Microresonator array for high-resolution spectroscopy.

We investigated the properties of an array of spherical microresonators used as a miniaturized high-resolution spectroscopic device. Sixteen spherical microspheres made from polymethyl methacrylate were placed on a microscope slide serving as an optical wave guide. Light of a tunable narrowband laser source was coupled into this slide so that an evanescent wave was excited on the topside of the slide, where the resonators were placed.