Basic computing for dental practitioners: 3. Word processors.

The three computer applications most widely used on personal computers are word processors, spreadsheets and databases. A word processor is essentially a program designed to create, print and store documents and letters. Microsoft Word and Lotus WordPro are examples.

Basic computing for dental practitioners: 1. The principles of computers and computing.

The purpose of this series of six articles is to introduce the interested general dental practitioner to computers and computing, to remove much of the mystery surrounding computers and to explain the technology in straightforward terms. The first two articles will concentrate on the basic principles; later papers will discuss the most commonly used software, practice management systems and multimedia.

New approaches to the delivery of anticoagulant services.

Anticoagulant services are changing in response to the increasing demands on the service. New approaches to the delivery of the service are evolving with more local delivery of services and a shift in the service from secondary to primary care. This change has been assisted by the development of near patient testing devices and the use of computerized anticoagulant decision support systems that are increasingly used in both secondary and primary care.

Successful treatment of rhinocerebral mucormycosis by a combination of aggressive surgical debridement and the use of systemic liposomal amphotericin B and local therapy with nebulized amphotericin--a case report.

A case of mucormycosis involving the nose and paranasal sinuses in a 55-year-old man with recently diagnosed acute promyelocytic leukaemia is reported. It was successfully treated with a combination of aggressive surgical debridement and systemic amphotericin B. In addition, local nebulized amphotericin B was used as an adjunct to therapy.

A comparison of the performance of two modern multidose dry powder asthma inhalers.

Little is known about the shot potency and dose consistency of many of the inhalers in common use, and until recently there has been little consensus over the best way to evaluate these parameters. Since marked effects can be achieved with the inhaled route, more information is needed about the dosing characteristics of all available inhalers. As there are now two multidose powder inhalers available in the U.

Percutaneous coronary angioscopic comparison of thrombus formation during percutaneous coronary angioplasty with ionic and nonionic low osmolality contrast media in unstable angina.

Patients with unstable coronary syndromes are more likely to have a lesion containing thrombus and have a higher procedural complication and restenosis rate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an ionic (ioxaglate) and a nonionic (iohexol) low osmolality contrast media on thrombus generation using percutaneous intracoronary angioscopy in patients with unstable angina undergoing percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). Thirty patients with unstable angina pectoris randomized to either ioxaglate or iohexol (15 patients in each group), underwent percutaneous intracoronary angioscopy before and after PTCA and 15 minutes after PTCA.

Acupuncture within the National Health Service: a personal perspective.

The availability of acupuncture in midwifery within the National Health Service has yet to become widespread. Warwick was one of the first hospitals in the country to offer it when its acupuncture service was set up in September 1993. The immediate and continued success of the service gives hope that pregnant and post-natal women elsewhere in the UK may one day have access to this ancient holistic treatment without having to pay for it privately.

Pain scoring as a formal pain assessment tool.

This article describes the introduction of subjective pain scoring as a pain assessment tool to the surgical unit of a district general hospital. The author highlights the advantages, and explains the actions taken to overcome the problems of changing practice through the introduction of a formal pain assessment tool.

Successful bonding in orthodontics: 1.

Since it was first described in 1955, direct bonding of orthodontic attachments to the teeth has become routine in fixed appliance therapy. The technique used is deceptively simple: meticulous attention to detail and a thorough understanding of the factors involved are needed to ensure a successful outcome.

Susceptibility of AML cells to in vitro apoptosis correlates with heat shock protein 70 (hsp 70) expression.

Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) cells from some individuals rapidly undergo apoptosis during in vitro culture. We have analysed this mode of cell death in AML cells harvested from patients at initial presentation and during subsequent treatment/relapse. Using flow cytometric analysis of propidium iodide-stained cells and quantitation of the subdiploid apoptotic peak, we observed that leukaemic cells from patients with AML displayed a heterogenous susceptibility to apoptosis in terms of the rate of accumulation of apoptotic cells.

Combined orthodontic and restorative management of a case of bilateral ectopic canines and resorbed central incisors.

A case is reported in which two ectopic maxillary permanent canine teeth bypassed the lateral incisors and caused extensive resorption to both maxillary central incisor teeth. Management involved positioning the canine teeth into the central incisor region and placing porcelain veneers on these teeth. The orthodontic and restorative implications of the treatment are discussed.

Personal health record for school children with multiple needs.

Children with severe learning difficulties in special schools often have multiple physical disabilities. Their case notes are frequently bulky. Many professionals are involved in their care and information on the child is seldom readily available or accessible.

Factor VIII von Willebrand protein in haemolytic uraemic syndrome and systemic vasculitides.

von Willebrand protein (vWF) is reduced by dithiothreitol (DTT) and, as a result, is not detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Plasma samples from normal subjects, children with haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), and adults with vasculitis and vWF prepared from endothelium were treated with DTT before vWF assay. vWF in HUS and vasculitis resembled the endothelial form in being resistant to reduction.

Effect of albumin and detergent on the reduction of NBT by 1-deoxy-1-morpholinofructose.

The effect of matrix albumin concentration on reduction of NBT by DMF has been investigated together with the effect of cationic additives. Decreased albumin concentration and increased cationic detergent concentration both increased the sensitivity of the assay due to kinetic effects, but addition of a low molecular weight cation had no effect. The reduction of NBT by glycated albumin was not increased in sensitivity by a protein matrix of low concentration.