Detection and significance of focal, interictal, slow-wave activity visualized by magnetoencephalography for localization of a primary epileptogenic region.

Object: Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is a novel noninvasive diagnostic tool used to determine preoperatively the location of the epileptogenic zone in patients with epilepsy. The presence of focal slowing of activity recorded by electroencephalography (EEG) is an additional indicator of an underlying pathological condition in cases of intractable mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE). In the present study the authors examined the significance of focal, slow-wave and interictal spike activity detected using MEG in 29 patients who suffered from MTLE that was not associated with structural brain lesions.

Aortic injury during laparoscopic fundoplication: an underreported complication.

Background: Advances in video equipment, instrumentation, and laparoscopic skills have enabled the performance of an increasing variety of procedures using minimally invasive techniques. Additionally, the public is more aware of the benefits of laparoscopic surgery, including decreased postoperative pain and shortened recovery period. Surgical treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is blossoming as a result.

The history and development of the dental surveyor: part I.

The dental surveyor is an indispensable instrument capable of performing a number of prosthodontic procedures. Surprisingly, the technique of surveying casts as part of the treatment planning procedure did not emerge until early in the twentieth century. This article reviews the origins and early use of the dental surveyor.

Evidence syntheses in child health.

Evidence syntheses, also known as systematic reviews, differ from traditional reviews in that they are scientific evaluations of existing studies. Systematic reviews have explicit and reproducible methods and, as with any other scientific endeavor, the result of an evidence synthesis or systematic review can be critically appraised. Many sources for high-quality evidence syntheses now exist, with considerable support from government agencies to develop both the methods and the products of such reviews.

Space health requirements: the challenges.

This article explores the application of theoretical knowledge to clinical situations based on general systems theory and space health requirements to familiarize health care providers with requirements for the space environment. Preparation for extended periods of humans living in the space environment requires carefully planned delivery system that will promote and maintain health. Past, present, and future efforts for the establishment of'space health delivery systems are discussed.

Control of anthrax toxin gene expression by the transition state regulator abrB.

Bacillus anthracis produces the anthrax toxin proteins protective antigen (PA), lethal factor (LF), and edema factor (EF) in a growth phase-dependent manner when cultured in liquid medium. Expression of the toxin genes pagA, lef, and cya peaks in late log phase, and steady-state levels of the toxin proteins are highest during the transition into stationary phase. Here we show that an apparent transition state regulator negatively regulates toxin gene expression.

HLA-B27 and genetic predisposing factors in spondyloarthropathies.

With the mapping of the human genome having been completed, our ability to investigate and ideally better understand the genetic basis of rheumatic diseases is advancing at a rapid pace. Substantial evidence strongly favors a direct role for HLA-B27 in genetic susceptibility to ankylosing spondylitis and related spondyloarthropathies, although the underlying molecular basis has yet to be identified. HLA-B27 contributes only 16 to 50% of the total genetic risk for the disease, clearly indicating that other genes must be involved.

Exposure to altered gravity affects all stages of endochondral cartilage differentiation.

Chondrogenesis has a number of well-defined steps: (1) condensation, which involves cell aggregation, adhesion and communication; (2) activation of cartilage genes, which is accompanied by rounding up of the cells and intracellular differentiation; and (3) production and secretion of cartilage specific matrix molecules. Our studies show that each of these steps is affected by exposure to gravitational changes. Clinorotation and centrifugation affected initial aggregation and condensation.

Familial occurrence frequencies and relative risks for systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) in three United States cohorts.

Objective: To determine the frequency with which scleroderma (systemic sclerosis; SSc) recurs in families and the familial relative risk (lambda) in the US.

Methods: Family histories of SSc were prospectively surveyed in 3 large US cohorts of SSc patients, 2 in Texas and 1 in Michigan. Diagnoses of familial SSc were verified by rheumatologist evaluation and/or review of medical records.

Adolescent cigarette smoking and health risk behavior.

During the past 30 years, tobacco use among adolescents has substantially increased, resulting in major health problems associated with tobacco consumption. The purpose of this study was to identify adolescent smoking behaviors and to determine the relationship among smoking, specific demographic variables, and health risk behaviors. The sample consisted of 93 self-selecting adolescents.

A comparative study of sialic acid-rich proteins in rat bone and dentin.

Four sialic acid-rich (SA-rich) proteins found in bone and dentin, osteopontin (OPN), bone sialoprotein (BSP), bone acidic glycoprotein-75 (BAG-75), and dentin matrix protein 1 (DMP1), share some common features. We used SDS-PAGE and Western immunoblots to analyze and compare SA-rich proteins in bone and dentin extracts from rats with a single chromatographic procedure. OPN was detected in dentin extracts, with a relative level less than one-seventieth of that in bone.

Dental hygienist and patient comparisons of fluoride varnishes to fluoride gels.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate a fluoride varnish and compare it to fluoride gels in categories including taste, comfort, efficiency, discoloration, moisture control, safety, and ease of application.

Methods: Methods. Twenty-five licensed dental hygienists and 148 patients completed questionnaires comparing fluoride varnish to fluoride gel for the following categories: taste, comfort, efficiency, discoloration, moisture control, and safety.

Systemic sclerosis in 3 US ethnic groups: a comparison of clinical, sociodemographic, serologic, and immunogenetic determinants.

Objective: To determine whether ethnic factors influence the presentation, serologic expression and immunogenetics of systemic sclerosis (SSc), patients from 3 ethnic groups were compared for clinical features, SSc-associated autoantibodies, and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II alleles.

Methods: Fifty-four Hispanics, 28 African Americans, and 79 whites from Texas with recent-onset (less than 5 years) SSc enrolled in a prospective longitudinal study were assessed for sociodemographic, clinical, immunologic, immunogenetic, behavioral, and psychologic parameters using validated instruments and standard laboratory techniques. Serologic and immunogenetic characteristics from these patients and larger retrospective SSc cohorts of the same ethnic groups also were examined.

Comparison of cardiac and regional hemodynamic responses to N-methyl-L-arginine and aminoguanidine infusions in conscious pigs.

The aim of this study was to elucidate cardiac and regional hemodynamics using a nonspecific inhibitor of the constitutive and inducible nitric oxide synthase (NOS), N-methyl-L-arginine (L-NMA), and a specific inhibitor of the inducible NOS, aminoguanidine, in conscious pigs. Animals were divided into two groups. After hemodynamics were stabilized, animals in group 1 (n = 5) received an infusion of L-NMA at 300 microg/kg per min, i.

Assessment of outcomes at alternative medicine cancer clinics: a feasibility study.

Objective: This pilot study tested the feasibility of performing outcomes and more advanced research regarding cancer patients at two complementary and alternative (CAM) clinics. The primary objectives were to determine the feasibility of (1) obtaining and collecting data from medical records, (2) determining 5-year survival, and (3) comparing 5-year survival to that of conventional treatment. In addition, in this paper we present the barriers and recommend strategies to facilitate high-quality research.

Thrombomodulin Ala455Val polymorphism and risk of coronary heart disease.

Background: Thrombomodulin (TM) is expressed on the endothelial surface and plays an important role in vasoprotection. A common polymorphism of TM at amino acid position 455 with an alanine (A) to valine (V) transition was previously reported to be associated cross-sectionally with acute myocardial infarction. Whether this single nucleotide polymorphism predicts risk of developing coronary heart disease (CHD) is unclear.

Qualitative assessment of hospitalized patients' satisfaction with pain management.

Patient evaluations of effectiveness of care and satisfaction with care are useful outcome indicators of pain management. The subiective, multidimensional nature of pain is best evaluated when outcome measures include the richness of qualitative data to more fully capture the range of patient experiences. A descriptive qualitative component was added to the American Pain Society Patient Outcome Questionnaire--Modified (1995) to determine critical indicators in the pain experience affecting patient satisfaction.

The changing spectrum of rheumatic disease in human immunodeficiency virus infection.

Context: Although it has been known for over 15 years that a number of rheumatic diseases occur in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, increasing knowledge about these disorders and advances in HIV treatment need to be considered in approaching patients with HIV-associated rheumatic disease.

Objective: To examine the clinical, pathologic, and therapeutic features of HIV-associated rheumatic diseases in the context of what is known about the immunology of HIV infection.

Data Sources: The author's own extensive collection of references, supplemented by PubMed Medline searches for articles in English-language journals published between 1985 and 2000.

Inflammatory pseudotumor presenting as a cystic tumor of the pancreas.

Inflammatory pseudotumor (IPT) of the pancreas occurs rarely. Eighteen cases have been described in the English literature. In all previous patients IPT of the pancreas presented as solid pancreatic mass.

GNB1L, a gene deleted in the critical region for DiGeorge syndrome on 22q11, encodes a G-protein beta-subunit-like polypeptide.

CATCH 22 syndromes, which include DiGeorge syndrome and Velocardiofacial syndrome, are the most common cause of congenital heart disease which involve microdeletion of 22q11. Using a strategy including EST searching, PCR amplification and 5'-RACE, we have cloned a 1487 bp cDNA fragment from human heart cDNA library. The cloned GNB1L cDNA encodes a G-protein beta-subunit-like polypeptide, and the GNB1L gene is located in the critical region for DiGeorge syndrome.

Identification and characterization of the carboxyl-terminal region of rat dentin sialoprotein.

Two acidic proteins, dentin sialoprotein (DSP) and dentin phosphoprotein (DPP), are present in the extracellular matrix of dentin but not in bone. These two proteins are expressed in odontoblasts and preameloblasts as a single cDNA transcript coding a large precursor protein termed dentin sialophosphoprotein (DSPP). DSPP is specifically cleaved into two unique proteins, DSP and DPP.

Estrogen mitogenic action. III. is phenol red a "red herring"?

The reported estrogenic action of phenol red and/or its lipophilic contaminants has led to the widespread use of indicator-free culture medium to conduct endocrine studies in vitro. Because we have recently developed methods to measure large-magnitude estrogen effects in the tissue culture medium containing phenol red, we concluded that the indicator issue required further evaluation. To do this, we selected nine estrogen receptor positive (ER+) cell lines representing four target tissues and three species.