bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
chongmaguereveals an essential role for laminin-mediated boundary formation in chordate convergence and extension movements
Authors: Veeman Michael T. , Nakatani Yuki , Hendrickson Carolyn , Ericson Vivian , Lin Clarissa , Smith William C.
Published: November 2007

Although cell intercalation driven by non-canonical Wnt/planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway-dependent mediolateral cell polarity is important for notochord morphogenesis, it is likely that multiple mechanisms shape the notochord as it converges and extends. Here we show that the recessive short-tailed Ciona savignyi mutation chongmague(chm) has a novel defect in the formation of a morphological boundary around the developing notochord. chm notochord cells initiate intercalation normally, but then fail to maintain their polarized cell morphology and migrate inappropriately to become dispersed in the larval tail. This is unlike aimless (aim), a mutation in the PCP pathway component Prickle, which has a severe defect in early mediolateral intercalation but forms a robust notochord boundary. Positional cloning identifies chm as a mutation in the C. savignyi ortholog of the vertebrate alpha 3/4/5 family of laminins. Cs-lamα3/4/5 is highly expressed in the developing notochord, and Cs-lamα3/4/5 protein is specifically localized to the outer border of the notochord. Notochord convergence and extension, reduced but not absent in both chm and aim, are essentially abolished in the aim/aim; chm/chm double mutant, indicating that laminin-mediated boundary formation and PCP-dependent mediolateral intercalation are each able to drive a remarkable degree of tail morphogenesis in the absence of the other. These mechanisms therefore initially act in parallel, but we also find that PCP signaling has an important later role in maintaining the perinotochordal/intranotochordal polarity of Cs-lamα3/4/5 localization.
Public Participation, Local Planning and Conflicts of Interest
Authors: Bruton M. J.
Published: November 2007

During the 12 years that the formal system of public participation in town and country planning has been in operation, two views of the likely outcome of its introduction have been consistently advanced. On the one hand participation has been seen as a device to achieve consensus which would in tum lead to public support for planning proposals and reduce administrative delays.

Reference to official government publications such as the Town and Country Planning (Development Plans) Direction 1965; the Report of the Planning Advisory Group 1965; the Town and Country Planning Acts of 1968 and 1971 and associated circulars, e.g. 44/71; 52/72; 55/77, and 4/79, and the Skeffington Report would seem to confirm that consensus is implicit in the planner’s perception of public participation.

The other view of the implications of introducing participation into the town and country planning process is that it inevitably leads to conflicts of interest and results in a change in the balance of power insofar as the taking of decisions on local issues is concerned.
Isomorphisms of symplectic planes
Authors: Kantor William M
Published: November 2007

Every nondesarguesian symplectic spread is also symplectic over its kernel. Any equivalence of nondesarguesian symplectic spreads preserves the resulting symplectic structures over the kernels.
Tight polyhedral models of isoparametric families, and PL-taut submanifolds
Authors: Banchoff Thomas F , Kühnel Wolfgang
Published: November 2007

We present polyhedral models for isoparametric families in the sphere with at most three principal curvatures. Each member of the family (including the analogues of the focal sets) is tight in the boundary complex of an ambient convex polytope. In particular, the tube around the real (or complex) Veronese surface is represented as a tight polyhedron in 5-space (or 8-space). The examples are based on a certain Bier sphere triangulation of S
4 or S
7, respectively. In the 4-dimensional case there are simplicial branched coverings of these triangulations in the complex projective plane and in S
2 × S
2 which are branched precisely along the polyhedral analogues of the Veronese surface. Moreover, we introduce a notion of PL-tautness and discuss its relationship with tightness of polyhedra. In particular, each member of our polyhedral isoparametric family is PL-taut. For an extended abstract see [W. Kühnel, Discrete models of isoparametric hypersurfaces in spheres. Oberwolfach Reports
12, 665–667 (2006).].
Friction and Wear Behavior of Electroplated and Thermal Sprayed Coatings Tested in an Instrumented Rubber Wheel Abrasion Test
Authors: Pintaude G. , Maranho O. , Villabón R. L. , Sinatora A.
Published: November 2007

This paper presents the results of a three-body abrasive wear and friction study of two different coatings on steel substrates. An instrumented rubber wheel abrasion test (RWAT) was used. One coating was thermally-sprayed WC-12 %Co, using the high-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) process, and the other coating was applied as electroplated hard chrome. Unlike current RWAT equipment, the apparatus described here has computer control of load and speed as well as instrumentation to measure specimen temperature and friction force. The instrument was calibrated using quenched and tempered D2 tool steel, per ASTM G 65-94. Tests of the thermally-sprayed coating were performed with loads of 65 or 130 N, and tests of the hard chrome plating used Procedure E of the standard. The wear resistance of the thermally-sprayed coating was dependent on substrate (52100 or 1020 steel) and it was in general superior to that for the hard chrome. The friction coefficients ranged between about 0.4 and 0.6 for the coatings against flowing sand. The tests performed with an applied load of 130 N did not meet the recommendation of ASTM on the coefficient of variation, and probably low loads should be considered in the standard to determine the wear resistance of coatings.
A Pure Population of Ectodermal Cells Derived from Human Embryonic Stem Cells
Authors: Aberdam Edith , Barak Efrat , Rouleau Matthieu , de LaForest Stephanie , Berrih-Aknin Sonia , Suter David M. , Krause Karl-Heinz , Amit Michal , Itskovitz-Eldor Joseph , Aberdam Daniel
Published: November 2007

Embryonic stem (ES) cells represent a unique cellular model to recapitulate in vitro early steps of embryonic development and an unlimited cellular source in therapy for many diseases, as well as targets for drug discovery and toxicology screens. Although previous studies have reported epidermal differentiation of mouse and human embryonic stem (huES) cells, the heterogeneity of the resulting cell culture impairs the evaluation of differentiated cells for cell therapy. We report here the reproducible isolation of a homogenous ectodermal cell population, IT1, from human ES cells. Like primary cells, IT1 cells remain homogenous over 15 passages, expand up to 60 population doublings, and then die through senescence. Accordingly, IT1 cells display a normal karyotype and a somatic cell cycle kinetics and do not produce teratoma in nude mice. The production of K14-expressing epithelial cells driven by p63 expression strengthens the ectodermal nature of IT1 cells. Since IT1 can be isolated from different huES cell lines, it may provide a ready source of ectodermal progenitors for the development of a toxicology cell model, new-drug-screening strategies, and cell therapy transplantation.

Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article.
Geochemical haloes of Gold in the Lece ore field - southern Serbia
Authors: Stajevic Bosko
Published: November 2007

In the area of the Lece base-metal ore field in the SE part of the Radana Tertiary volcanic complex, prospecting researches, lasting several years was done during the last decade of the last century. In the paper some results are presented and analyzed, especially those concerning the distribution of gold relative to trace elements in the secondary lithogeochemical dispersion haloes. In the assemblage of 8 analyzed trace elements of the Lece lithogeochemical field, Au, Pb, Zn, Ag and Sb show expressive, contrasting and mutually well correlated secondary dispersion haloes. The presented results of geochemical prospecting are considered not to be clearly indicative for epithermal gold mineralization in the polymetallic ore field Lece.
Nodalization effects on RELAP5 results related to MTR research reactor transient scenarios
Authors: Khedr Ahmed , d’Auria Francesco
Published: November 2007

The present work deals with the anal y sis of RELAP5 results obtained from the evaluation study of the total loss of flow transient with the deficiency of the heat removal system in a research reactor using two different nodalizations. It focuses on the effect of nodalization on the thermal-hydraulic evaluation of the re search reactor. The analysis of RELAP5 results has shown that nodalization has a big effect on the predicted scenario of the postulated transient. There fore, great care should be taken during the nodalization of the reactor, especially when the avail able experimental or measured data are insufficient for making a complete qualification of the nodalization. Our analysis also shows that the research reactor pool simulation has a great effect on the evaluation of natural circulation flow and on other thermal-hydraulic parameters during the loss of flow transient. For example, the on set time of core boiling changes from less than 2000 s to 15000 s, starting from the beginning of the transient. This occurs if the pool is simulated by two vertical volumes in stead of one vertical volume.
Dynastie et sainteté à l'époque de la famille des Lazarevic: Exemples anciens et nouveaux modèles
Authors: Marjanovic-Dusanic Smilja
Published: November 2007

nema
The Regimental Courts Martial in the Eighteenth Century British Army
Authors: Gilbert Arthur N.
Published: November 2007

In the eighteenth century, most military crimes were tried at the Regimental level. In theory, the military law of the day decreed that the General Courts Martial be reserved for major offenses: those that might result in capital sentences or lashings of great magnitude. Murder, rape, robbery, and other crimes deemed capital undgr eighteenth century civil law, were tried at the General Courts Martial, as were specific military crimes that seriously affected the ongoing life of the armed forces—mutiny, desertion, and the like. As one would expect, there were many more petty crimes than major offenses. Still, the General Courts Martial books show a surprisingly small number of cases, even in wartime, when the army grew precipitously to meet a military threat.

For most soldiers, crime and punishment was administered by the Regimental Courts, yet we know very little about them. There are no Regimental Courts Martial records to speak of and few surviving accounts of their procedures. What we do know suggests that they were very important to those military officers who were responsible for the order and discipline of the British army.

Until 1718, the rules and procedures governing Regimental Courts Martial were vague and uncertain. In that year, a modest attempt was made to codify RCM procedures. It was decreed that the RCM could inflict corporal punishment for such crimes as neglect of duty and disorderly conduct in quarters, among others, and that all such trials had to be conducted by five commissioned officers. Conviction was decided by a plurality of votes. Significantly, the oath, used previously when officers were called upon to serve as judge and jury, was eliminated in Regimental Courts Martial cases. As a result, the Judge Advocate noted some years later, “since that time the Prisoner has not had the benefit of that great and I may say, only security to be fairly and impartially tried.”
King Stephen: Government and Anarchy
Authors: Kealey Edward J.
Published: November 2007

The remote and rather dreary reign of King Stephen recently has had great appeal to contemporary historians and several distinguished scholars have carefully analyzed it. Indeed, who would have thought that a study of medieval government in a troubled time, always interesting on its own terms, would seem so pertinent, especially to concerned Americans? Since the Watergate revelations, nearly everyone observed a declining confidence in our national leadership. Journalists, politicians, and private citizens continually asked whether the president had lost the ability to govern. Barons, bishops, and burgers discussed similar questions in King Stephen's time—in 1135, in 1139, in 1141, and in 1153—and yet their king and country survived. Our nation also surmounted its series of crises and the consoling lesson of both trying periods may well be that the salvation of necessary administrative institutions and the preservation of relative prosperity depend far more upon the loyalty, dedication, and service of barely visible, self-effacing governmental bureaucrats than it does upon any one leader's personal skill, principal advisors, or private morals.

Generations of young men have grown old safely categorizing King Stephen's days as “The Anarchy” and their professors still regale other eager students with the Peterborough chronicler's description of that time in England when “Christ and His angels slept” and “we suffered nineteen winters for our sins.”
Headlong into Gryll Grange or Peacock Alley Revisited
Authors: Mullett Charles F.
Published: November 2007

Despite the seductions of the Institute for the leisure of the theory classes any historian worth his grants knows literature to be an indispensable source. How much would we know about the England of Gloriana, of Anne, of Victoria, without Shakespeare, the Spectator, and “Locksley Hall?” A lot no doubt, but how much poorer we should be without them. Not to overdo chivalry the pages that follow view Jeremy Bentham's England through the spectacles of Thomas Love Peacock (1785-1866) whose place as a novelist may unsafely be left to those undertakers of reputations, the professors of literature, but whose value as a document may best be gauged by a historian. Indeed Peacock is a historian, the better for being a satirist. Whether all historians are satirists must be decided by others, but surely all satirists are historians. Compared to parliamentary papers, mercantile ledgers, the Benthamite corpus, Peacock's slim volumes may seem to afford an historian no more than a trial run. Yet such is far from the case. The problem for the initiate is not paucity but riches. The shafts of his satire leave scarcely a contemporary fad or fancy in darkness. What is more, it takes very little sensitivity to appreciate how brightly those shafts light up many posturings of our own day. The words, “for the initiate,” are deliberately chosen: to capture Peacock's flavor one must comprehend his intellectual milieu. To this area there is no better key than contemporary periodicals wherein the words, the phrases, often the very rhythms find echo in his novels. Having absorbed the first, one grasps the second, one understands what Peacock was saying when he knows what was being talked about when he said it.
The Reputation of Royal Judges Under the Angevin Kings
Authors: Turner Ralph V.
Published: November 2007

In twelfth and thirteenth-century England complaints that justice was being sold were common, culminating with King John's tacit admission in Magna Carta. Coupled with these complaints were charges of corruption against royal judges, or against royal aulici, curiales, or familiares, since until the middle of Richard I's reign no professional judiciary existed. Even in King John's time, familiares regis still served as judges. Yet a core of royal servants specializing in justice, “professionals” in a certain sense, had been created. Historians since Maitland have generally held a high opinion of these judges. According to Maitland, under Henry II and Richard I, “English law was administered by the ablest, the best educated men in the realm.…” F.M. Powicke wrote that the judiciary of Henry III was “probably the most stable and helpful, as it was the most intelligent, element in the State at this time.” How are we to reconcile historians' high opinion of the royal justices with their contemporaries' low opinion? Were the chroniclers simply drawing stock figures in their depictions of corrupt judges, or was their picture drawn from life?

Royal officials, including judges, proved popular targets for the pens of twelfth century moralists and satirists, some of whom wrote out of personal bitterness, having failed in the contest for royal patronage and high office.2 Capable of condemning curiales in classical Latin style was John of Salisbury. He knew many of Henry II's courtiers, and he came to despise them, especially those in clerical orders.
Another Side of “Thorough”: John Cosin and Administration, Discipline, and Finance in the Church of England, 1624–1644
Authors: Hoffman John G.
Published: November 2007

The policy of “Thorough,” the effort at greater efficiency in church and state during the reign of Charles I, is usually regarded as a leading cause of the dissatisfaction that led to civil war. Lawrence Stone has described its objective as “a deferential, strictly hierarchical, socially stable, paternalist absolutism based on a close union of Church and Crown.” To G. E. Aylmer, the king's principal ministers, archbishop Laud and the earl of Strafford, were trying to achieve “more efficient government, and more effective central authority.” Both scholars agree that the methods used to accomplish these goals were of questionable legality. Aylmer credits the two leading protagonists of “Thorough” with good intentions, “cleaner as well as more efficient and absolute government”; but Stone points to the exasperating effect of the policy by noting that “Every aspect of economic life suffered from the feverish interference of bureaucracy whose sole objective seemed to be the extortion of money by the imposition of petty and irritating regulations.” Though these scholars discuss “Thorough” only in terms of its secular aspect, Christopher Hill has devoted considerable space to its ecclesiastical adherents, or to the possible impact that “Thorough” might have had at particular levels of the church bureaucracy.
Britain in a Continental War: The Civil-Military Debate Over the Strategical Direction of the Great War of 1914-1918
Authors: Woodward David R.
Published: November 2007

The friction between civil and military authorities was never greater than during the Great War of 1914-1918. The unprecedented casualties suffered by the British Army and involvement of every element of British life in the conflagration gave added intensity to this conflict. The ability of British democracy to wage total war was put to a severe test. Where did the responsibility of the civilians end in formulating strategy? Where did the authority of the soldiers begin? This strategic debate largely centered on the size of Britain's commitment to the ghastly slaughter in the trenches of the Western Front.

Before 1914 British war planners had thought of a short war with at most only limited involvement in Europe. After Britain's plunge into war, the civil and military authorities decided to employ the small professional British Army on the continent to save France from being overrun, a decision made easier by the widespread belief that the war would be over within a few months. By this continental commitment Britain became involved in a long and bloody war of attrition in France and Flanders.

As 1914 ended in stalemate in the West with few of the original members of the British Expeditionary Force still on their feet the debate over the employment of future British armies began in earnest. The government's chief military adviser was Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War. Although the public viewed Kitchener as Britain's greatest soldier, his appointment was almost certainly a mistake.
Friend to the Worker: Social Policy at the Ministry of Agriculture Between the Wars
Authors: Savage Gail L.
Published: November 2007

The interwar period posed unprecedented challenges to the English government. Unemployment, poverty, and fiscal crisis dogged policy-makers throughout the 1920s and 1930s. Governmental efforts to deal with the social and economic dislocation caused by the world-wide, post-war depression did not meet with much success. Opinion, both popular and scholarly, has tended to judge the government's domestic record rather harshly. The growing range of government activity overseen by an increasingly homogeneous civil service centralized under the direction of the Treasury has engendered some suspicion about the role of official advice in formulating policies widely regarded as, at best, ineffective and, at worst, wrong-headed and even oppressive. The Ministry of Health seemed more concerned to stem the demands on the Exchequer than to ameliorate living conditions among the poor. The Ministry of Labour, engulfed by the administrative nightmare of unemployment insurance, could not also devise programs to reduce the rate of unemployment. The Treasury not only failed to produce any innovative strategy for the country's fiscal problems, their insistence on reducing government expenditure and maintaining a balanced budget—the so-called “Treasury view”—hung like a millstone around the necks of the spending departments. Even if officials had pressed aggressive and creative programs of social welfare upon political leaders, the Treasury obsession with what we now call the “bottom line” would have effectively denied them the resources necessary to implement any new program.
The Anglo-Norman Card of Adela of Blois
Authors: LoPrete Kimberly A.
Published: November 2007

Down through the twelfth century, politics were as much, if not more, the affairs of personalities and families as the affairs of state. One corollary of this premise is that certain women, as creators of family ties and managers of households, can be shown to have exercised more effective real power than traditional legal and institutional approaches to the medieval period have brought to light. As an instrument of long-term policy, marriage politics were fraught with uncertainties, but when dominant and powerful personages were able to capitalize on opportunities, the resultant alliances could prove effective in the realization of precise political aims. A re-examination of the available evidence for the career of Adela, daughter of William the Conqueror and countess of Blois, Chartres, and Meaux, from the perspective of family politics reveals that the Anglo-Norman – Thibaudian alliance, confirmed in her marriage to the eldest son of count Thibaud of Blois-Chartres, was actualized by Adela as an effective determinant of political action in the nearly twenty years she acted as the acknowledged head of the Thibaudian family.
Antitumor Activities of Human Recombinant Interferon‐γ Against Cervical Tumor Transplanted Into Nude Mice
Authors: Iwasaka T. , Tsugitomi H. , Ohkuma Y. , Yoshimura T. , Sugimori H.
Published: November 2007

This study examines the antitumor effects of recombinant interferon‐γ (ReIFN‐γ), by comparing various routes for its administration in nude mice transplanted with human cervical tumor cells. Daily intratumoral injection of ReIFN‐γ showed the best inhibitory effect, although intramuscular daily administration of this IFN also showed a significant antitumor effect. Furthermore, the earlier treatment was initiated after tumor inoculation, the better was the antitumor effect of the IFN. Histologic examination of the transplanted tumors after treatment with ReIFN‐γ showed a sparse or reticular arrangement of the tumor cells, and very large multinucleated giant cells. Unlike the original tumor, ‘pearl’ formation and isolated cell keratinization were frequently observed in the transplanted tumors obtained from IFN‐treat‐ed groups.
Second Trimester Abortion by Rivanol with or Without Cervical Dilatators: A randomized comparison
Authors: Schubert Werner , Cullberg Goran
Published: November 2007

Fifty women undergoing second trimester legal abortion were randomly assigned to one of three groups: 1. given Rivanol and left with ballon catheter in the cervical canal with addition of oxytocin infusion. 2. same treatment as above but catheter removed and replaced by a Lamicel cervical dilatator, 5 mm in diameter; 3. as group 2, but with a 6 mm Laminaria tent inserted. Induction‐abortion interval and need for analgesics were recorded, as well as possible side effects and complications.

No statistical differences were found between the three groups for any of the parameters.

We have thus not been able to show any advantages of using Laminaria or Lamicel osmotic cervix dilatators in second trimester abortions.
Vaginal Tumors in Pregnancy: Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Sadan O. , Kruger S. , Van Iddekinge B.
Published: November 2007

A young patient with a vaginal tumor in early pregnancy is presented. The difficulty in diagnosis and subsequent management is discussed. Vaginal tumors with special reference to vaginal leiomyoma are reviewed and a differential diagnosis is presented.
Labor Complicated by Spontaneous Emphysema
Authors: Jensen Helle , Asmussen Inger , Eliasen Birte
Published: November 2007

Spontaneous subcutaneous and mediastinal emphysema is a rare but potentially dangerous complication of delivery. The condition was observed in a 24‐year‐old, small and slightly‐built primipara after vaginal delivery of a large infant.
Effects of Intrapartum Intravenous Infusion of 5% Dextrose or Hartmann's Solution on Maternal and Cord Blood Glucose
Authors: Loong E. P. L. , Lao T. T. H. , Chin R. K. H.
Published: November 2007

The effects of intrapartum infusion of dextrose or Hartmann's solution on maternal and cord blood glucose were studied. Patients with and without infusion of intravenous fluids during labor were randomly selected and allocated to one of three groups. Group I received 5% dextrose solution as a vehicle for oxytocin (dextrose group), group II received Hartmann's solution (Hartmann group) and group III did not receive any intravenous infusion (control group). Each group consisted of 16 patients. Routine labor ward procedures were followed. Maternal and cord blood samples were taken at delivery. Maternal blood glucose concentrations were significantly lower in the Hartmann group than in the dextrose and control groups, showing a dilution effect of Hartmann's solution. Cord blood glucose concentrations did not differ significantly between the three groups, indicating that maternal infusion of dextrose or Hartmann's solution in routine intrapartum management would have no adverse effects on fetal blood glucose.
High Maternal Levels of Hemoglobin A1c Associated with Delayed Fetal Lung Maturation in Insulin‐Dependent Diabetic Pregnancies
Authors: Ylinen Kari
Published: November 2007

Phosphatidylglycerol (PG) in 227 amniotic fluid specimens obtained by amniocentesis during the third trimester and hemoglobin A1C (Hb A1C) in 889 maternal blood specimens obtained between 6 and 39 gestational weeks were measured for 115 singleton insulin‐dependent diabetic pregnancies without major fetal malformations or stillbirths. The fetuses of diabetics whose mean Hb A1C during pregnancy was 8.5% or more remained PG‐negative more often than those in the pregnancies with the mean Hb A1C below 8.5% at 37 (4/7 vs. 8/68, x2 = 10.2, p<0.01) and 38 (2/7 vs. 2/84, x2 = 5.2, p <0.05) completed weeks of gestation. The fetuses of the patients with a mean Hb A1C 8.0% or more were more often PG‐negative at 37 gestational weeks (7/15) than those in the pregnancies with a mean Hb A1Cbelow 8.0% (5/60, x2 = 10.4, p <0.005). Because Hb A1C reflects long‐term blood glucose levels, the results suggest that maternal hyperglycemia, or other metabolic disturbances associated with hyperglycemia, is the cause of delayed fetal lung maturation among insulin‐dependent diabetics.
Intra‐Uterine Contraceptive Devices (IUDS) in Relation to Uterine Histology and Microbiology
Authors: Kajanoja Pauli , Lang Birgitta , Wahlström Torsten
Published: November 2007

Histological and microbiological examinations were made of 90 uteri taken in association with abdominal hysterectomy. Thirty‐one women had an intra‐uterine contraceptive device (IUD) in utero at the time of operation, 16 women had previously used an IUD, while 43 had never used one. A chronic inflammatory reaction was seen significantly more often in the fallopian tubes of women with an IUD in situ (21β1, 68%) than in those who had never used an IUD (7/43,16%). Incontrast, non‐activepost‐inflammatorytubal changes were found less frequently in women with an IUD in situ (6%) than in women who had never used an IUD (16%). All tubes were sterile, expect for two with apathogenic microbes. An endometrial inflammatory reaction was found in 4 women with an IUD in situ and in one woman who had never used an IUD. The possibility of tubal infertility must be borne in mind when planning IUD contraception.
Different biochemical composition of connective tissue in continent and stress incontinent women
Authors: Ulmsten Ulf , Ekman Gunvor , Giertz Gustaf , Malmstrom Anders
Published: November 2007

The collagen content in biopsies from skin and ligamentum rotundum of 7 women with a long history of stress incontinence was compared with that of continent controls. The collagen was extracted with 0.5 M acetic acid, followed by digestion with pepsin and quantitated as hydroxyproline. The skin of stress incontinent women contained 40% less collagen than that of continent women. The findings for ligamentum rotundum were similar. These results suggest a deteriorated connective tissue in stress‐incontinent women and cast new light on the etiology of the disease
On the evaluation of routine ultrasound screening in the third trimester for detection of light for gestational age (LGA) infants
Authors: Secher N. J. , Hansen P. Kern , Lenstrup C. , Eriksen P. Sindberg , Thomsen Birthe Lykke , Keiding N.
Published: November 2007

Based upon 2 194 consecutive pregnancies with known gestational age, formulas for weight deviation predicted in the 32nd and 37th gestational week were estimated by multiple linear regression on the measurements of the abdominal d iameter (AD) and the biparietal diameter (BPD) of the first 64% of the pregnancies. The usefulness of the screening was evaluated on the remaining 36%. An attempt to diagnose light for gestational age (LGA) infants resulted in either a low sensitivity or a low predictive value of a positive test.

The late third trimester screening was more sensitive than the early, indicating LGA as a late phenomenon in pregnancy. Knowing the result from the late scanning, the result from the early scanning contributed almost no further information about whether the infant would be LGA at birth. Basic epidemiological characteristics of other comparable investigations on high‐risk pregnancies and non selected pregnancies are presented.
Primary Squamous‐Cell Carcinoma of the Endometrium
Authors: Lauritzen Anne Falensteen , Rye Bjarne , Vest Susanne
Published: November 2007

Primary squamous cell carcinoma of the endo‐metrium is an extremely rare condition. The 23rd case of this lesion is presented and a short review of the patho‐genesis is given.
Fetal Heart Rate Changes During Diabetic Ketosis
Authors: Hughes A. B.
Published: November 2007

A case of diabetic ketosis during pregnancy is presented in which the fetal heart rate tracing demonstrated tachycardia complicated by late and severe variable decelerations. Intravenous administration of insulin resulted in prompt abolition of the deceleration patterns. The implications of these findings are discussed.
DNA ploidy and steroid receptors as predictors of disease course in patients with endometrial carcinoma
Authors: Iversen Ole E. , Utaaker Edle , Skaarland Elsa
Published: November 2007

Prognostic factors for outcome of malignant disease should be based on objective assessments whenever possible, so that the results may be reproduced. In a prospective study, tumor samples from 75 patients were subjected to flow cytometric DNA analysis. Samples were also taken from 61 patients for estradiol and progesterone receptor measurements. The course of the disease was analysed with regard to ploidy and receptor status. Receptor status was significantly correlated with ploidy, as diploid tumors were more often receptor‐positive or receptor‐rich (≥30 fmo/mg protein). Mortality and recurrence rates were highest among patients with aneuploid or receptor‐poor tumors. Ploidy, receptor status, histological grade, surgical stage, and myometrial invasion were found to be of significant prognostic value. By multivariate analysis, ploidy was indicated to be the best predictor, followed by surgical stage. DNA and receptor measurements are recommended in research on endometrial carcinoma, and may become useful in routine clinical work.
Continuous 24‐hour secretion of growth hormone during late pregnancy
Authors: Eriksson Leif , Edén Staffan , Fröhlander Nils , Bengtsson Bengt‐ÅKe , von Schoultz Bo
Published: November 2007

A dramatic change in growth hormone secretion was demonstrated during the 3rd trimester of human pregnancy, when compared with the non‐pregnant state. The pulsatile pattern, with intermittent high peaks, and low or undetectable levels between peaks, characteristic of normal men and non‐pregnant women, was completely abolished. All the 10 pregnant women investigated had the same stable basal circulating growth hormone concentration. Values were in the range 6–10 mu/l and there was no evidence of pulsatile activity. Previously, in animal experiments, a continuous secretion of growth hormone has been shown to ‘feminize’ hepatic steroid metabolism, hepatic prolactin receptors, hepatic sulphatase activity and to stimulate pregnancy protein synthesis. The same biological principle could be valid also during human pregnancy and be related to maternal metabolic adjustment.
24‐Hour Home Par Weighing Test Versus 1‐Hour Ward Test In The Assessment Of Mild Stress Incontinence
Authors: Lose Gunnar , Jørgensen Lisbeth , Thunedborg Per
Published: November 2007

Twenty‐three normal volunteers and 31 women admitted for stress or mixed incontinence underwent two 24‐hour home pad weighing tests. In the patients the test result was compared with the result obtained with the 1‐hour ward pad weighing test. Median pad weight gain was 4 g/24‐h, with an upper 99% limit of 8 9/24 h in normal women. The median urine loss was 17 g/24‐h in the patients. Eighteen (58%) patients were classified as incontinent according to the result of the 1‐h ward test, versus 28 (90%) according to the result of the 24‐h home test. There was no significant correlation between the result of the 1‐h test and the 24‐h test. In the patients, test‐retest analysis showed a significant variation in the result of the 24‐h test.

It is concluded that the better of two 24‐h home tests is more sensitive for confirmation incontinence than is one 1‐h ward test. Consequently, the 24‐h home test is of practical use as a screening test for incontinence. The reproducibility of the test, however, seems insufficiently satisfactory to allow of its use in comparative scientific studies.
Non‐Radical Hysterectomy And The Function Of The Lower Urinary Tract: II: Urodynamic Quantification Of Changes In Evacuation Function
Authors: Vervest Harry A.M. , van Venrooij Ger E.P.M. , Barents Joop W. , Haspels Ary A. , Debruyne Frans M.J.
Published: November 2007

The intermediate sequelae of non‐radical abdominal and vaginal hysterectomies on the evacuation function of the lower urinary tract were studied by comparison of pre‐ and postoperative urodynamic parameters. No significant changes were observed in detrusor contractility or the contribution of abdominal straining after hysterectomy. Pressure‐flow studies revealed no development towards obstructive patterns. Uroflowmetry did not demonstrate any changes in flow rates or in flow patterns. Except in one woman, no major variations were seen in residual urine volumes. There were no differences between abdominal and vaginal hysterectomies. It is concluded that lower urinary tract evacuation function remains unaltered by total hysterectomy.
Termination Of Early Pregnancy With Ru 486 (Mifepristone) In Combination With A Prostaglandin Analogue (Sulprostone)
Authors: Swahn Marja‐Liisa , Bygdeman Marc
Published: November 2007

The antiprogestin RU 486 (mifepristone) has been shown to induce abortion when administered in early pregnancy, but the rate of incomplete abortion is high, around 40%. As blockage of the progesterone receptor increases the myometrial sensitivity to prostaglandins, a combination of RU 486 and a prostaglandin E2‐analogue was tested for termination of pregnancy. One hundred and sixteen women, with a gestational length of less than 49 days from the first day of the last menstrual period, were treated with a daily dose of 50 or 100 mg RU 486 for 3 to 6 days, complemented with an intramuscular dose of 0.25 mg sulprostone (16‐phenoxy‐PGE2‐sulfonylamide) on the last day of RU 486 treatment. The results confirmed that a reduction of treatment duration to 3 days is just as effective for inducing abortion (91% complete abortion) as a 4–6‐day treatment regimen (95% complete abortion). Six patients had an incomplete abortion and in one the pregnancy continued unaffected. Side effects included intense uterine pain after the prostaglandin administration (16%), vomiting associated with the antiprogestin intake (9%) and after the prostaglandin administration (9%). One woman needed emergency curettage due to heavy bleeding. Six percent of the treated patients had a decrease in hemoglobin exceeding 20 g/l during the first week but no patient needed blood transfusion. No serious side effects were recorded.
Prospective Counselling After Prenatal Diagnosis Of Fetal Malformations: Interventions And Parental Reactlons
Authors: Langer Martin , Ringler Marianne
Published: November 2007

A model of prospective counselling and intervention after prenatal diagnosis of fetal malformation is presented. 13 patients/couples with severe malformations were fully counselled, 3 patients/couples interviewed post‐termination. Objectives of the counselling strategy were to support patient autonomy, facilitate mourning and reduce narcissistic damage.

Counselled patients showed certain benefits concerning the acceptance of the malformation and feelings of autonomy. Integration of psychodynamic knowledge into routine care and obligatory psychotherapeutic counselling are proposed.
Ovarian Cystostomy
Authors: De Wilde Rudy , Bordt Joachirn , Hesseling Mathias , Vancaillie Thierry
Published: November 2007

Surgical treatment of follicle and luteal cysts by laparoscopic fenestration is an accepted procedure. After cyst aspiration, a “window” is cut in its wall. Thus, a tissue sample can be obtained for cytological and histopathological examination. Laparoscopic fenestration was performed in 104 patients. During a mean follow‐up period of 20 months (N = 91)a recurrence rate of 8% was observed by vaginal examination and abdominal sonography. In the presence of pelvic adhesions, functional cysts tend to recur. Luteal cysts have a higher recurrence rate than follicle cysts.
Successful Treatment of Long‐Term Unexplained Infertility with Gonadotropin‐Releasing Hormone Agonist Analogue and Human Menopausal Gonadotropin
Authors: Aboulghar M. A. , Mansour R. T. , Serour G. I.
Published: November 2007

Thirty‐five couples with long‐term unexplained infertility were treated in 98 cycles by giving gonadotropin‐releasing hormone analogue, human minopausal gonadotropin and human chorionic gonadotropin for induction of superovulation. Pregnancy occurred in 24 cycles (24.5% per cycle and 68.6% per patient). All patients had been treated previously with clomiphene citrate and human menopausal gonadotropin in 110 cycles in conjunction with artificial insemination, but failed to achieve pregnancy. Pituitary suppression with gonadotropin‐releasing hormone analogue followed by ovarian stimulation with human menopausal gonadotropin may correct the subtle abnormalities at the hypothalamic hypophyseal level that could be present in cases of unexplained infertility and it should be tried first for these patients before resorting to in vitro fertilization or gamete intrafallopian transfer.
A birthweight‐for‐gestation standard based on 4737 twins born in Sweden between 1983 and 1985
Authors: Rydhström Håkan
Published: November 2007

Objective: To construct a birthweight‐for‐gestation chart based on a population‐based material of twins born during a restricted period of time.

Material and methods: Nearly all live‐born twins born in Sweden between 1983 and 1985, 4737 all told, were included. Excluded from the analysis were 4.7% of the twins that were not on record at the Medical Birth Registry, 1.8% that died before or during birth, and 8.8% that were without a recorded date of birth or only had information on gestational duration estimated from the first day of the last menstrual period.

Results: The standard deviation in birthweight was considerable in most gestational weeks; the range (±2 SD) was 1000–3400 g even if exclusively twins (pregnancies) with estimated date of birth from ultrasound examination early in the second trimester were included. Intra‐pair discordance increased with gestational duration, especially for un‐like‐sexed twins, to reach over 400 g at term. On average, boys weighed 92 g more than girls and twins to multiparae weighed 250 g more than twins to primiparae. Maternal age affected birthweight for twins to primiparae, but not to multiparae.

Conclusion: Although the problems with secular trends in birthweight were avoided by using a population‐based material during a restricted time period, and only twin pregnancies dated with ultrasound were included, the standard deviation in most gestational weeks was still considerable, reflecting the multiplicity of factors involved in determining the birthweight of twins.
Prevalence of post partum depression: or is it post‐puerperium depression?
Authors: Pop Victor J. M. , Essed Gerard G. M. , de Geus Cees A. , van Son Maarten M. , Komproe Ivan H.
Published: November 2007

In a longitudinal study, the prevalence of post partum depression was investigated in 293 women. They were assessed during gestation at 32 weeks, and consecutively after parturition with an interval of six weeks from four weeks until 34 weeks' post partum. The prevalence of post partum depression (RDC) varied between seven and 14%, with a peak at ten weeks' post partum. It was found that women were depressed significantly more often at ten weeks' post partum compared with pregnancy, the first post partum weeks and the later post partum period. This finding suggests that it is not directly after parturition that women are more prone to depression. The relationship between variables such as blues, parity, PMS and depression showed that at different assessments in the post partum period different women are depressed, women who do not necessarily share the same characteristics. This finding may explain why in some studies a relationship was found between certain kinds of variables and post partum depression while in others not. PMS was found to be significantly related to post partum depression only at the time of the women resumed menstruation. It is suggested that screening on post partum depression partly involves screening on depressive symptoms related to PMS.
Risk factors for respiratory distress syndrome in the newborn
Authors: Luerti M. , Parazzini F. , Agarossi A. , Bianchi C. , Rocchetti M. , Bevilacqua G.
Published: November 2007

Risk factors for respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in the newborn have been evaluated using data from a large survey conducted between 1980 and 1989 in selected periods in eleven perinatal units placed in five Italianregions A total of 1624 liveborn infants consecutively delivered at the collaborating centers, at delivery 26–37 weeks gestational age and without clinically evident congenital anomalies were included in the survey. All the newborns were followed up to the 28th day of life. A total of 131 newborns (7.8%) developed RDS. Overall 1 st‐7th and 1 st‐28th day of life infant mortality rates were 54.8 and 61.6/1,000 livebirths; the corresponding rates in babies who developed RDS were 419.8 and 465.6/1,000 livebirths. The frequency of RDS was higher in males than in females and the corresponding relative risk, RR, was 0.7, with 95% confidence interval, CI, ranging from 0.5 to 0.9. The risk of RDS markedly increased with decreasing birth weight: compared to babies weighing more than 2500 g at birth the RR estimates were respectively 1.4, 4.5, 8.8 and 39.3 in those weighing <2000‐2500 g, × 1500–2000 g, × 1000–1500 g and 1000 g or less. Likewise, compared to babies born between the 35th and the 37th week of gestation, the RR of RDS was 3.3 and 21.5 in those born between the 31st‐34th or before the 31st week of gestation. Multiple pregnancy, gestational or chronic diabetes, pregnancy‐induced or chronic hypertension and premature rupture of the membranes were not related to the risk of RDS. Smoking in pregnancy was reported by five mothers among cases with RDS (3.8%) and 83 among those who did not develop the disease (9.3%): the corresponding RR was 0.4 with 95% CI ranging from 0.2 to 0.9. Compared to vaginal births, babies delivered by intrapartum cesarean section had an increased risk of RDS (RR 1.8, 95% CI from 1.2 to 2.7), but babies delivered by elective cesarean section were at not significantly decreased risk (RR 0.5, 95% CI 0.3 to 1.1). Low Apgar score at 1st and 5th minute (less than 7) was associated with an increased risk of RDS, the RR estimates being, compared to babies with Apgar score equal to 7 or more, 7.9 at 1 minute of age and 8.4 for 5 minutes of age.
Intraperitoneal absorption of irrigating fluid during endometrial resection
Authors: Hahn R. G. , Olsson J.
Published: November 2007

We report a situation where uterine perforation was followed by uptake of 4,540 ml of irrigating fluid into the peritoneal cavity during transcervical resection of the endometrium. The irrigating fluid contained 1.5% glycine and 1% ethanol. There was a seven‐fold increase in serum glycine level during the resection, which was stopped after 40 min because ethanol had repeatedly been detected in the patient's expired breath. Diagnosis of the intraperitoneal absorption was made from the pattern of ethanol changes and confirmed by surgical drainage of the absorbed fluid, which was performed before serious symptoms developed.
The trend of erythrocyte sodium parallels the pattern of diastolic blood pressure in preeclampsia
Authors: Tranquilli Andrea L. , Garzetti G. Gioele , Romanini Carlo
Published: November 2007

Objective: To describe the trend of intracellular sodium in patients who develop preeclampsia.

Study design: In this longitudinal study, we determined intraerythrocyte sodium (Nai) in 303 primigravid pregnancies every fourth week from gestational week 10 through week 38. The study group included 274 normotensive and 29 chronic hypertensive gravidae. During the study, 26 normotensive and six chronic hypertensive pregnant women developed preeclampsia.

Results: Chronic hypertensives showed higher baseline intraerythrocyte sodium, compared to the normotensives. The women who developed preeclampsia demonstrated a significant increase in Nai concentration from 26–30 weeks onward. Data from blood pressure recordings paralleled data from Nai.

Conclusion: Due to the possible role of Nai on intracellular free calcium mobilization, our findings support a possible involvement of defective cell membrane function in the development of preeclampsia.