Saliva analysis in the clinical setting: revisiting an underused diagnostic tool.

Background: One purpose of this study was to compare various biochemical and immunological parameters in blood and saliva that are routinely evaluated only in the blood for general medical requirements. Another purpose was to concomitantly compare these and other oral/salivary parameters differentially in whole, parotid, and submandibular and sublingual saliva to examine the source of those parameters and their specific concentrations.

Methods: Twelve healthy individuals (6 women, 6 men) were examined in the blood-saliva comparison study, and 30 healthy individuals (15 women, 15 men) were studied in the intersalivary comparison study.

Acquired activated protein C resistance is common in cancer patients and is associated with venous thromboembolism.

Purpose: Cancer patients have an increased risk for venous thromboembolism. Because activated protein C resistance is a common risk factor for venous thromboembolism, we prospectively evaluated the activated protein C sensitivity ratio and factor V Leiden mutation in cancer patients with and without venous thromboembolism.

Subjects And Methods: We studied 55 consecutive cancer patients with deep vein thrombosis, 58 cancer patients with no history of venous thromboembolism, 54 patients with venous thromboembolism without malignancy, and 56 healthy controls.

Cardiovascular adverse drug reaction associated with combined beta-adrenergic and calcium entry-blocking agents.

Numerous studies have shown a beneficial effect of combination therapy with beta-blockers and calcium antagonists in patients with anginal syndrome and/or hypertension. However, because both agents exert a negative chronotropic effect, their combined use may cause bradyarrhythmias with resultant symptoms of cerebral, coronary, and systemic hypoperfusion. We describe our clinical experience with patients who had cardiovascular adverse drug reactions (CVADRs) with combination therapy.

Treatment of acute myelogenous leukemia in older adults.

The overall strategy for the treatment of older adults is summarized in Table 8. Soon after the birth of effective chemotherapy for acute leukemia, the perspective for all patients was summarized as follows: 'With all humility it may be claimed that there are, at least, grounds for hope and encouragement in this recently acquired ability occasionally to halt for a while the formerly unrelenting malignant process known as acute leukemia'. In reviewing the overall survival data for older adults one may feel that we are at a similar juncture in assessing the outcome for this particular population.

Logistic regression and survival analysis of 450 impotent patients treated with injection therapy: long-term dropout parameters.

Purpose: We report the dropout rate associated with intracavernosal self-injection for erectile dysfunction at long-term followup, and determine parameters related to dropout.

Materials And Methods: Of 2,252 impotent patients evaluated during 9 years 450 (20%) enrolled in our self-injection program. Papaverine and phentolamine were given in 53% (initial treatment), prostaglandin E1 in 21%, and papaverine, phentolamine and prostaglandin E1 (triple mixture) in 26% of cases.

Celiac disease-associated alopecia in childhood.

We report the association of celiac disease and alopecia in 3 children. In one, the alopecia developed after 4 years' nonadherence to a gluten-free diet; the other 2 patients presented with alopecia. Administration of a gluten-free diet resulted in partial regrowth of hair in the first child and complete hair growth in the others.

Predictive value of an adherence test for acute otitis media.

The predictive value of an in vitro adherence test of the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae for the development of recurrent otitis media was calculated 5 years after the initial test. Nasopharyngeal cells from 56 children suffering from acute otitis media (AOM) and from healthy children were tested for adherence of a standard pneumococcal type (capsular serotype 6). The average adherence of the bacteria to epithelial cells from the group suffering from AOM was greater than the average adherence in the control group (p < 0.

Intratracheal pulmonary ventilation in premature infants and children with intractable hypercapnia.

The feasibility of intratracheal pulmonary ventilation (ITPV) was tested in five ventilated moribund neonatal and pediatric patients with uncontrollable hypercapnia: a 2-year-old child, a 52-day-old infant, and three premature infants (29, 29, and 26 weeks gestation; 1300 g, 1100 g and 890 g birth weight, respectively). ITPV was applied for 9.5, 8, 25, 58.

An abnormal platelet membrane lipid composition in patients with low and high blood cholesterol.

Platelet lipid composition was determined in subjects with hypercholesterolemia (HC) (9.17 ± 2.15 mmol/L), hypocholesterolemia (HYPOC) (3.