Comparison of alum-precipitated aqueous extracts and modified ragweed tyrosine adsorbate vaccine in the treatment of ragweed hay fever.

Thirty-five ragweed-sensitive patients received immunotherapy with either alum-precipitated aqueous extracts (AP) or modified ragweed tyrosine adsorbate vaccine (Pollinex-R). Symptoms decreased with AP therapy only. Immunologically, there was a blunted specific IgE response and little specific IgG increase associated with both groups.

Hand function in the elderly: relation to osteoarthritis.

Hand function and osteoarthritis (OA) were assessed in 32 subjects, over 60-years-old. The Smith Hand Function Test bore a relation to age, coordination and hand strength but not to the degree of OA. Hand strength also was not related to OA.