Growth disturbance after distal femoral growth plate fractures in children: a meta-analysis.

Purpose: Growth disturbance of the distal femur is the most common complication after distal femoral growth plate fracture. The purpose of our study was to pool data from the literature to determine the incidence of growth disturbance in relation to the Salter-Harris (SH) classification. Additionally, we evaluated the potential influence of fracture displacement and treatment method.

Risk factors for postpartum depression: a retrospective investigation at 4-weeks postnatal and a review of the literature.

Objective: To describe possible correlations between incidence of postpartum depression and the following patient characteristics: age, breastfeeding status, tobacco use, marital status, history of depression, and method of delivery.

Study Design: Data gathered at routine 4-week postnatal visits were obtained from the patient records of 209 women who gave birth between June 1, 2001, and June 1, 2003, at three university medical clinics in Tulsa, Okla. Inclusion criteria required that the records of potential study subjects contain data on the characteristics noted as well as patient-completed Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale forms.

Survey of osteopathic and allopathic residents' attitudes toward osteopathic manipulative treatment.

More than 50% of new osteopathic physicians receive their residency training in programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) rather than in programs approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA). To examine the implications of this training pattern for trends in the practice of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT), the authors surveyed attitudes toward OMT with questionnaires targeted to osteopathic and allopathic residents in family medicine residency programs. Osteopathic residents in specialties other than family medicine were also surveyed.

Relations between academic performance by medical students and COMLEX-USA Level 2: a multisite analysis.

The Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA (COMLEX-USA) is a national medical licensing examination for physicians earning the doctor of osteopathic medicine (DO) degree. Little has been published regarding the validity of this relatively new, high-stakes examination. The purpose of this study was to examine the validity of COMLEX-USA Level 2, which is given to fourth-year osteopathic medical students and focuses on clinically relevant content.

Enhancing femoral cement fixation in total knee arthroplasty.

Several factors have been shown to be associated with early development of radiolucent lines at the bone-cement interface in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). The posterior condylar surfaces, in particular, seem subject to poor cement technique, which could lead to early loosening. This study compares two cementation techniques in TKA, with respect to depth of cement penetration and radiolucency in the posterior condyles.

Relationship between academic achievement and student performance on the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA level 2.

The Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination-USA (COMLEX-USA) is a three-part examination used for licensing osteopathic physicians. The relationship between performance on this examination and prior student academic performance has been unclear. This study explores the relationship between COMLEX-USA level 2 scores and student academic performance at Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (OSU-COM).

Prescreen evaluation of situs inversus patients.

Situs inversus is a congenital visceral malrotation anomaly that occurs in approximately 2 per 10,000 live births, but it may go unrecognized until discovered during emergency surgery. The differential diagnosis in situs inversus patients may not be readily seen in the emergency setting. Historical symptoms include reversed locations for common physical complaints, whereas physical signs can be used to diagnose and treat these patients.

Impact of a tornado on a community hospital.

A significant tornado passed through the Oklahoma City metropolitan area on May 3,1999. This study was undertaken at St Michael Hospital (Oklahoma City, Okla) to describe the impact on a community hospital's emergency department close to the tornado strike zone. Cases were defined as patients receiving diagnostic procedures, care, and interventions at the study hospital's emergency department for injuries related to the tornado.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder: identification, neurobiology, and treatment.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common psychiatric disorder. It may go unrecognized, however, as many patients are embarrassed by their symptoms and are thus reluctant to report them. Recent research findings on OCD point to neurologic dysfunction in the circuitry of the orbitofrontal cortex and basal ganglia.

Assessment of cardiac stress from massive pulmonary embolism with 12-lead ECG.

Background: Massive pulmonary embolism (PE) that causes severe pulmonary hypertension can produce specific ECG abnormalities. We hypothesized that an ECG scoring system would vary in proportion to the severity of pulmonary hypertension and would help to distinguish patients with massive PE from patients with smaller PE and those without PE.

Methods: A 21-point ECG scoring system was derived (relative weights in parentheses): sinus tachycardia (2), incomplete right bundle branch block (2), complete right bundle branch block (3), T-wave inversion in leads V(1) through V(4) (0 to 12), S wave in lead I (0), Q wave in lead III (1), inverted T in lead III (1), and entire S(1)Q(3)T(3) complex (2).

Analysis of antibody-antigen interactions in mixtures containing reactive and nonreactive components using size-exclusion high-performance (pressure) liquid chromatography.

Analysis of antibody-antigen interactions using size-exclusion high-performance (pressure) liquid chromatography was applied to a polyvalent system composed of both reactive and nonreactive components. Mixtures containing varying concentrations of antivenin (Crotalidae) polyvalent (equine origin) and either Crotalus atrox (Western diamondback rattlesnake) venom (CV) or isolated C. atrox phospholipase A2 (PLA2) were separated using a Bio-Sil SEC 250-5 size-exclusion column (300 x 7.

Testing and comparison of non-opioid analgesics in amphibians.

Because of the lack of information about effective analgesics in non-mammalian vertebrates, the potency of various non-opioid agents were tested in a model of analgesia by using Northern grass frogs (Rana pipiens). This alternative model has been used widely for investigating opioid analgesic action. Potential non-opioid analgesics tested included antipsychotic, benzodiazepine, barbiturate, antihistamine, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID), and partial opioid agents.

Partial spectrum of microorganisms found in dentures and possible disease implications.

While it would appear that denture surfaces alone become colonized by microorganisms, this study showed that the porosity of denture material allows for contamination throughout the entire denture. Further, the numerous opportunistic and pathogenic microorganisms found in this study were unexpected and are known to produce not only substantial oral infections, but also systemic diseases.

Psychosis and nonadherence in an HIV-seropositive patient.

While adherence to antiretroviral therapy is of paramount importance in the treatment of HIV-infected patients, optimal adherence can be challenging to achieve. Furthermore, the presence of comorbid psychiatric illness can potentially compromise treatment adherence. This Case Report highlights the difficulties encountered in the care and treatment adherence of an HIV-seropositive patient who presented with psychotic symptoms.

Reduced NO production improves early canine islet xenograft function: a role for nitric oxide in islet xenograft primary nonfunction.

Isolated canine islets transplanted to hyperglycemic rats fail to restore euglycemia in almost all cases, although the grafted islet tissue appears to be morphologically intact for up to 48 h following transplantation. Cytokines typically produced in the xenograft environment (e.g.

Irritable bowel syndrome.

Within the literature, it appears evident that neither a univariate etiologic model nor a single-agent treatment approach is sufficient to address the many diagnostic, assessment, and therapeutic challenges posed by irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Various scientific advances have been made over the past 5 years, particularly in the areas of nonpharmacologic management of IBS. However, further collaboration between scientists and clinicians from multiple disciplines is strongly encouraged.

Role of PGE(2) in alpha(2)-induced inhibition of AVP- and cAMP-stimulated H(2)O, Na(+), and urea transport in rat IMCD.

PGE(2) inhibits osmotic water permeability (P(f)) in the rat inner medullary collecting duct (IMCD) via cellular events occurring after the stimulation of cAMP, i.e., post-cAMP-dependent events.

Unique cellular features in a testicular plasmacytoma.

A case of testicular plasmacytoma is described at the light and fine structure level. The patient was a 54-year-old male with a history of multiple myeloma. The testicular tumor was restricted to an interstitial space growth.

Utility of lower extremity venous ultrasound scanning in the diagnosis and exclusion of pulmonary embolism in outpatients.

Study Objective: Emergency physicians frequently rely on normal findings from a lower extremity venous ultrasound examination as a method to decrease the probability of pulmonary embolism (PE) in outpatients with a nondiagnostic ventilation-perfusion lung scan (V/Q scan). The objective of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic utility of bilateral lower extremity venous ultrasound scanning in the diagnosis of PE in emergency department patients with a low-, moderate-, or indeterminate-probability (nondiagnostic) V/Q scan.

Methods: This prospective, 2-center, descriptive study was conducted at the EDs of 2 large teaching hospitals.

A method of computationally enhanced detection of chromatogram regions with apparent high relative agonist activity.

An occasional but difficult problem arises in drug discovery during a chromatographic analysis in which high background activity is associated with the presence of most eluting molecular species. This makes the isolation of material of high relative activity difficult. A computational method is shown that clarifies the identification of regions of the chromatogram of interest.

Analysis of nonlinear quenching of terbium(III):dipicolinic acid complex fluorescence by chelators and chelate-conjugated macromolecules.

The terbium-dipicolinic acid complex (Tb(III):DPA) fluorescence quenching method of Ma, Hwang, and Lee [Pharm. Res. (1993) 10, 204-207] was used at a lower initial concentration of Tb(III):DPA (0.

[3H](+)-7-OH-DPAT and [3H]pramipexole binding in the striatum and nucleus accumbens of Sprague-Dawley and Fischer-344 rats.

The binding of the D2-like agonists, (+)-7-hydroxy-N,N-di-n-[3H]propyl-2-aminotetralin (7-OH-DPAT) and [3H]pramipexole (2-amino-4,5,6-tetrahydro-6-propylaminobenzthiazole; MIRAPEX) were determined in membranes from adult male Sprague-Dawley and Fischer-344 rats. Saturation analysis, which optimized binding to D3 receptors, revealed 3-6 fold differences in Bmax values between the two radioligands with no change in affinity. [3H](+)7-OH-DPAT labeled 41.