Successful management of female office workers with "repetitive stress injury" or "carpal tunnel syndrome" by a new treatment modality--application of low level laser.

Female office workers with desk jobs who are incapacitated by pain and tingling in the hands and fingers are often diagnosed by physicians as "repetitive stress injury" (RSI) or "carpal tunnel syndrome" (CTS). These patients usually have poor posture with their head and neck stooped forward and shoulders rounded; upon palpation, they have pain and tenderness at the spinous processes C5-T1 and the medial angle of the scapula. In 35 such patients we focused the treatment primarily at the posterior neck area and not the wrists and hands.

Differential photoabsorption using argon laser radiation on atherosclerotic plaque in non-hemolyzed and hemolyzed blood.

Since argon laser radiation (488 to 514 nm) can vaporize human atherosclerotic plaque, we determined whether different blood media--hemolyzed versus non-hemolyzed blood--can alter photoabsorption of atherosclerotic plaque. Forty cadaveric aortic fibrous plaque samples were fitted onto small vials containing 0.02 ml of either non-hemolyzed blood or hemolyzed blood over the surface of the plaque.

Antihypertensive therapy and the concept of total cardiovascular protection.

Drug-induced reduction of elevated blood pressure decreases cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in patients with moderate and severe hypertension. Furthermore, antihypertensive drug studies in mild hypertensive subjects (diastolic blood pressure 90 to 104 mm Hg) have shown protection against stroke, left ventricular hypertrophy, congestive heart failure and progression of renal damage, as well as improved patient longevity. The Hypertension Detection and Follow-up Program trial, recently carried out in the U.

Risk of combined coronary artery bypass and mitral valve replacement.

During a period of 6 years and 5 months, a group of 26 men and 16 women between 53 and 80 years of age underwent combined coronary artery bypass and mitral valve replacement. All patients were catheterized preoperatively, and hemodynamic and surgical variables were noted. In accordance with the variables, operative mortality was evaluated and compared among subgroups.

Surgical experience following percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty.

Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) was attempted in 600 patients, 97 of which were considered unsuccessful. Review of our surgical experience in a large series of these procedures helps to confirm some facts regarding the unique interaction between these two modalities of myocardial revascularization. Serious complications are still relatively common, even when PTCA is performed in centers with broad experience.

Internal mammary coronary artery bypass surgery: experience with 1000 cases.

A study of 813 men and 187 women who underwent internal mammary artery (IMA) bypass from 1976 to the present time is presented. In approximately 10% of patients, only the IMA was used for coronary artery bypass, and in approximately 90%, one to four saphenous vein grafts were used additionally. Hospital mortality in the series was 1.

Coronary artery revascularization: reoperations performed on 124 consecutive patients.

The results of 124 coronary reoperations performed during a 9-year period are reviewed, with the causes of failure of the initial operations and technical considerations in the reoperation procedures. The reoperative experience provided considerable insight as to why an initial revascularization might be unsuccessful. The three basic mechanisms which appeared to lead to recurrence of symptoms or late infarction following coronary bypass were (1) inadequate initial revascularization, (2) graft failure (occlusion or stenosis), and (3) progression of disease in the native circulation.