Metabolic and vascular determinants of impaired cognitive performance and abnormalities on brain magnetic resonance imaging in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Aims/hypothesis: The determinants of cerebral complications of type 2 diabetes are unclear. The present study aimed to identify metabolic and vascular factors that are associated with impaired cognitive performance and abnormalities on brain MRI in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Methods: The study included 122 patients and 56 controls.

An incident case-control study of modes of hepatitis C virus transmission in France.

Purpose: Risk factors for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have rarely been estimated using incident case-control studies in the "general" population. We undertook a case-control study of incident HCV infection to identify persistent modes of transmission in France.

Methods: Two types of case-patients were included: (1) repeat blood donors who seroconverted between 1998 and 2001 (with a last negative third-generation test reported from 1995 or after) and (2) seroconverters referred to hepatology departments in 2000 through 2001.

Comparison of accuracy measures of two screening tests for gestational diabetes mellitus.

Objective: To compare the accuracy measures of the random glucose test and the 50-g glucose challenge test as screening tests for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).

Research Design And Methods: In this prospective cohort study, pregnant women without preexisting diabetes in two perinatal centers in the Netherlands underwent a random glucose test and a 50-g glucose challenge test between 24 and 28 weeks of gestation. If one of the screening tests exceeded predefined threshold values, the 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed within 1 week.

Retrotransposon insertion-site context (RISC) typing: a novel typing method for Aspergillus fumigatus and a convenient PCR alternative to restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.

Retrotransposon(-like) sequences in Aspergillus fumigatus have been used as typing targets through restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP)/Southern blotting approaches. Differences in fingerprints between unrelated isolates are the result of variations in copy-number and differences in the regions flanking the retrotransposon elements. Here, we present retrotransposon insertion-site context (RISC) typing as a novel and convenient PCR-based typing alternative to the RFLP approach.

Baseline human papillomavirus status of women with abnormal smears in cervical screening: a 5-year follow-up study in The Netherlands.

Objective: To determine in a screening population the human papillomavirus (HPV) status in those with cytological abnormalities and to evaluate the presence of high-risk (HR) HPV with a minimum of 5-year follow up.

Design: Retrospective examination of HPV status on prospectively collected and cytologically screened cervical smears.

Setting: Canisius-Wilhelmina Hospital in Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

Cystic fibrosis-related diabetes in adults: where can we go from here?

Cystic fibrosis (CF), a dysfunction of the exocrine glands, is one of the most frequently diagnosed genetic diseases. It is characterized by chronic pulmonary disease and pancreatic deficiency. Cystic fibrosis-related diabetes (CFRD) is a complication of CF and develops from impaired glucose tolerance via postprandial hyperglycemia with fasting normoglycemia to full-blown diabetes with fasting and postprandial hyperglycemia.

Living arrangements of migrant and Dutch young adults: the family influence disentangled.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the family of origin on whether migrant and Dutch young adults live in the parental home. Using a sample of 1,678 young adults aged between 15 and 30 years from 847 families with five different ethnic backgrounds, we identified patterns of co-residence and investigated how and to what extent the likelihood of co-residence was influenced by migrant background, family ties, and the socio-economic characteristics of the family. The results show that of the four migrant groups, only Moroccan young adults are more likely than those of Dutch origin to live with their parents.

Pregnancy outcome in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a retrospective analysis from the Netherlands.

Main Objectives: The objective was to describe pre-gestational history and the maternal, fetal and neonatal outcome in pregnancies in women with pre-gestational type 2 diabetes during the period between 1992 and 2006 from one center in the Netherlands.

Methods: Patients attending the obstetric-diabetology outpatient clinic of a tertiary referral center were studied. This center also has a regular diabetes clinic and a community midwifery service.

Campylobacter antimicrobial drug resistance among humans, broiler chickens, and pigs, France.

We describe isolates from human Campylobacter infection in the French population and the isolates' antimicrobial drug resistance patterns since 1986 and compare the trends with those of isolates from broiler chickens and pigs from 1999 through 2004. Among 5,685 human Campylobacter isolates, 76.2% were C.

Increased second trimester maternal glucose levels are related to extremely large-for-gestational-age infants in women with type 1 diabetes.

Objective: Large-for-gestational-age (LGA) infants (birth weight > or = 90th centile) are a continuing problem in pregnancies of women with type 1 diabetes. We used the continuous glucose monitoring system (CGMS) to assess the relationship between 24-h diurnal glucose profiles in all three trimesters of pregnancy and infant birth weight.

Research Design And Methods: Twenty-nine pregnant women with type 1 diabetes used the CGMS during each trimester of pregnancy.

Comparison of two highly discriminatory molecular fingerprinting assays for analysis of multiple Aspergillus fumigatus isolates from patients with invasive aspergillosis.

Two highly discriminatory fingerprinting assays, short tandem repeat typing and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), were compared to determine the genetic relatedness between 55 isolates of Aspergillus fumigatus obtained from 15 different patients suffering from proven invasive aspergillosis. Both techniques showed that interpatient isolates belonged to different genotypes and that intrapatient isolates from deep sites were all of the same genotype. By contrast, multiple genotypes were found among isolates originating from respiratory samples.

Cognitive functioning and brain MRI in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus: a comparative study.

Background/aims: Diabetes mellitus (DM) may affect the central nervous system, resulting in cognitive impairments. It has been suggested that cognitive impairments are more pronounced in DM2 than in DM1, but studies that directly compare the effects of these 2 types of DM on cognition are lacking.

Methods: Forty patients with DM1 (mean duration: 34 years) were compared with 40 age- and education-matched patients who were known to have DM2 (mean duration: 7 years).

Microsatellite based typing of Aspergillus fumigatus: strengths, pitfalls and solutions.

Microsatellites, or short tandem repeats (STR's), are popular tools to discriminate between microbial isolates. Here, we report on the robustness of a microsatellite panel for discrimination of Aspergillus fumigatus isolates. Two major PCR artefacts (stutter peaks and minus-A peaks) can complicate correct interpretation of STR data.

Two consecutive large outbreaks of Salmonella enterica serotype Agona infections in infants linked to the consumption of powdered infant formula.

Background: An increase of isolation of Salmonella Agona was observed in January through February 2005 among infants in France.

Methods: Case-control study, food trace-back and microbiologic investigations were promptly carried out.

Results: A total of 141 confirmed cases <12 months of age were identified.

Isolation and characterization of a tomato non-specific lipid transfer protein involved in polygalacturonase-mediated pectin degradation.

An important aspect of the ripening process of tomato fruit is softening. Softening is accompanied by hydrolysis of the pectin in the cell wall by pectinases, causing loss of cell adhesion in the middle lamella. One of the most significant pectin-degrading enzymes is polygalacturonase (PG).

[Principles of an outbreak investigation in public health practice].

An outbreak (or epidemic) is a higher number of cases of a given disease in a given population and time interval. A timely investigation has for aim to identify the source and vehicle of the outbreak and provides unique opportunities to better understand its occurrence and the role of contributing risk factors to implement the most appropriate measures to control it and prevent further recurrences. The investigation of an outbreak is based on a multidisciplinary approach (clinical, epidemiological, environmental, and microbiological) with a descriptive and analytical (hypothesis testing) phase.

The course of life and quality of life of early and continuously treated Dutch patients with phenylketonuria.

Phenylketonuria (PKU; OMIM 261600) is an autosomal recessive disorder of phenylalanine metabolism caused by a deficiency of the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH; EC 1.14.16.

[Modes of hepatitis C virus transmission: methodological approaches].

Since the mid-1990s, hepatitis C virus (HCV) transmission through blood transfusion has become very rare in western countries. Better understanding of the current modes of transmission is needed. However, risk factors have been mainly estimated on prevalent HCV infections.

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of Listeria monocytogenes strains: the PulseNet Europe Feasibility Study.

A feasibility study on standardized subtyping of Listeria monocytogenes by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed in 2003 in Europe. The aim of the project was to identify veterinary, food, and public health reference laboratories that were willing to participate in the molecular surveillance of Listeria infections in Europe, as is done with PulseNet USA, and to test if the participants could generate results that were comparable with each other. A panel of strains and the methodology were sent to European laboratories, and images of PFGE gels were transferred electronically, then analyzed visually and with image analysis software.

O148 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli outbreak: microbiological investigation as a useful complement to epidemiological investigation.

An outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O148 infection occurred among wedding attendees in France in June 2002. A retrospective cohort study was performed and ten cases were identified, including two adults with haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS). The analytical study revealed that > 80% of affected individuals had eaten lightly roasted mutton and poultry pâté, but only the consumption of pâté tended to be associated with illness (relative risk 3.

Surveillance of human listeriosis in France, 2001-2003.

Mandatory notification of listeriosis began in France in 1999. Enhanced public health surveillance, including routine molecular characterisation of Listeria monocytogenes strains, epidemiologic follow up of cases, and collection of food samples, has improved the sensitivity of outbreak detection and response. The incidence of listeriosis declined from 4.

A large multi-pathogen waterborne community outbreak linked to faecal contamination of a groundwater system, France, 2000.

A large waterborne outbreak of infection that occurred during August 2000 in a local community in France was investigated initially via a rapid survey of visits to local physicians. A retrospective cohort study was then conducted on a random cluster sample of residents. Of 709 residents interviewed, 202 (28.

Forty-eight-hour first-trimester glucose profiles in women with type 1 diabetes mellitus: a report of three cases of congenital malformation.

Objective: Despite modern methods of treatment and near-normal HbA(1c) levels, women with type 1 diabetes mellitus are still at risk of having an infant with a congenital malformation (CM). We hypothesised that HbA(1c) levels are too gross a measure of glycaemic control and used a continuous glucose monitoring system (CGMS) to determine the diurnal glucose profiles during the first trimester of pregnancy. We present three cases of infants with a CM.

Rapid progression of diabetic retinopathy in eyes with posterior uveitis.

Purpose: To report on two patients who developed rapid progression of asymmetric diabetic retinopathy (DRP) in eyes affected by posterior uveitis in contrast to their fellow eyes not affected by uveitis.

Design: Observational case report.

Methods: Two patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and unilateral uveitis underwent repeated ophthalmologic examinations and fluorescein angiography.