bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Age‐Related Changes on the Morphology of the Otoconia
Authors: Jang Yoon Seok , Hwang Chan Ho , Shin Ji Young , Bae Woo Yang , Kim Lee Suk 
Published: June 2006

AbstractObjectives/Hypothesis: Although there are numerous reports on otoconial morphology using field‐emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), there are few reports regarding the changes of otoconial morphology with aging. The aim of the current study was to investigate changes in otoconial morphology in rats according to age, using FESEM.Study Design: Laboratory study using experimental animals.Methods: We investigated age‐related changes in otoconial morphology using FESEM in three groups of rats: young (1 wk old), middle‐aged (6 mo old), and aged (23 mo old).Results: There was great size variation in utricular otoconia in the young and aged rats, but we found no clear regional separation of saccular otoconia in all groups based on size. In the oldest rats, the bodies of many otoconia in both maculae were pitted, fissured, penetrated, and eventually broken into several fragments. However, the terminal facets were smooth and the lines of intersection of facets were sharp, despite the degenerated bodies of the otoconia in this group. Giant otoconia were discovered frequently on the outer margin of the utricular maculae in aged rats. We directly observed weakened or broken linking filaments and otoconial fragments in the aged group.Conclusion: The oldest rats showed the most degeneration of otoconia and linking filaments with otoconial fragments. This study of age‐related morphologic changes in otoconia might help us understand the origin of idiopathic benign paroxysmal positional vertigo.
A Comparison of the Long‐Term Outcome and Effects of Surgery or Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome
Authors: Lin Shih‐Wei , Chen Ning‐Hung , Li Hsueh‐Yu , Fang Tuan‐Jen , Huang Chong‐Chi , Tsai Yiang‐Huang , Lee Cheng‐Huei 
Published: June 2006

AbstractObjectives: To compare the long‐term (3‐year) outcome and effects of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and extended uvulopalatoplasty (EUPF) treatment on patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.Methods: Eighty‐four patients who received CPAP titration and bought a CPAP machine to use from March 2000 to October 2001 were included as the CPAP group. Another 55 patients who underwent EUPF surgery were included as the EUPF group. Overnight polysomnography was performed 6 months and 3 years after CPAP titration or EUPF. The disease‐specific questionnaire‐Snore Outcome Survey (SOS), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and the generic health questionnaire‐MOSF‐36 were administered at the 6‐month and 3‐year follow‐up examinations.Results: The age, body mass index, respiratory disturbance index, and ESS before treatment were higher in the CPAP group. The snore index was higher in the surgery group. Fifty‐four patients (64.3%) in CPAP group continued treatment for 6 months; the success rate for EUPF at 6 months was 82%. The polysomnographic variables improved significantly in both groups. Improvements in the SOS and ESS scores were better in surgery group than the CPAP group. The subscales of SF‐36 in surgery group were more than those in CPAP group.Conclusions: EUPF had a better effect on snoring than CPAP 6 months after treatment in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). This effect had gradually declined at the 3‐year follow‐up examination. Improvement in the quality of life of OSAS patients receiving EUPF is equal to those receiving CPAP treatment.
Salivary Gland Choristoma of the Middle Ear
Authors: Enoz Murat , Suoglu Yusufhan 
Published: June 2006

AbstractChoristoma is a mass of tissue histologically normal for an organ or part of the body other than the site at which it is located. A rare case of ectopic salivary gland choristoma in the middle ear is described in a 14‐year‐old girl whose only symptom was a 55 dB conductive hearing loss. The left middle ear mass appeared whitish and was located behind the intact tympanic membrane. We first suspected it to be congenital middle ear cholesteatoma. Exploratory tympanotomy, however, revealed a salivary gland choristoma that adhered tightly to the facial nerve. Differential diagnosis and treatment of this rare condition are discussed.
Demographics of Pediatric Head and Neck Infections in a Tertiary Care Hospital
Authors: Schweinfurth John M. 
Published: June 2006

AbstractEducational Objective: Discuss potential patterns in the epidemiology of infectious disease of the head and neck.Study Objectives: To investigate patterns in the epidemiology of severe head and neck infections that may reflect the impact of host factors.Study Design: Population‐based, historic cohort study.Methods: Information on 1,010, incident head and neck infections occurring over a 5‐year period was reviewed for demographics, location, and time of year. A nonparametric Kruskal‐Wallis test was used to identify significant differences in the age distributions among the diagnosis groups. A Bonferroni, pair‐wise comparison procedure was used for comparison of the average age of first onset of severe head and neck infections. Chi‐square test was used to identify any significant association between season of the year and disease.Results: Significant differences were identified in the age distributions among the diagnosis groups (P < .001). The average age of first onset of cellulitis of the neck and retropharyngeal abscess is earlier than peritonsillar abscess, at 2 to 3 years and 13 years, respectively. Parapharyngeal and periapical abscesses and cellulitis of the face occur at approximately age 6. The incidence of parapharyngeal abscess and diseases of the pharynx is decreased during Spring, whereas peritonsillar abscesses and acute periodontitis occurs more often in Spring and Summer. Age does not appear to be related to season of first occurrence.Conclusions: Head and neck infections are not random occurrences based on exposure alone; host factors are clearly important. Given the lack of correlation with school age, the results cannot be explained on the basis of exposure alone. Developmental patterns of the host immune response may be related to the age differential identified in the current study and are cause for further investigation.
Carcinoma Arising in a Pharyngeal Pouch Previously Treated by Endoscopic Stapling
Authors: Acharya Aanand , Jennings Stephen , Douglas Susan , Mirza Showkat , Beasley Nigel 
Published: June 2006

AbstractObjectives: A case is described in which squamous cell carcinoma was found during surgery for a recurrent pharyngeal pouch previously treated by endoscopic stapling. A search of the English language literature suggests this is the first reported case of a carcinoma developing in a pharyngeal pouch previously treated by endoscopic stapling.Study Design: Case report and literature review.Materials and Methods: The records of a patient who presented with a recurrent pharyngeal pouch after a previous endoscopic stapling procedure were reviewed. The presentation, imaging, and histopathologic findings are presented and the implications of these discussed.Results: Imaging confirmed a recurrent pharyngeal diverticulum. An endoscopic assessment revealed the presence of tumor in the recurrent pouch that histopathologic evaluation confirmed to be squamous cell carcinoma. The patient underwent an external excision of this diverticulum followed by a course of external beam radiotherapy.Conclusions: This is the first reported case of a carcinoma developing in a recurrent pharyngeal diverticulum previously treated by endoscopic stapling and brings to light a rare risk of endoscopic stapling procedures for the treatment of pharyngeal diverticula.
Novel elicitin‐like proteins isolated from the cell wall of the biocontrol agent Pythium oligandrum induce defence‐related genes in sugar beet
Authors: TAKENAKA SHIGEHITO , NAKAMURA YUMI , KONO TAMAKI , SEKIGUCHI HIROYUKI , MASUNAKA AKIRA , TAKAHASHI HIDEKI 
Published: June 2006

SUMMARYWe previously reported that cell wall protein fractions (CWPs) of the biocontrol agent Pythium oligandrum have elicitor properties in sugar beet and wheat. Here we have examined the effect of treatment with the D‐type of CWP, a fraction that contains two major forms (POD‐1 and POD‐2), on the induction of defence‐related genes in sugar beet. Using PCR‐based cDNA library subtraction, we identified five genes that were highly expressed in response to CWP treatment. The five genes are probably of oxalate oxidase‐like germin (OxOLG), glutathione S‐transferase (GST), 5‐enol‐pyruvylshikimate‐phosphate synthase (EPSPS), phenylalanine ammonia‐lyase (PAL) and aspartate aminotransferase (AAT). In addition, we purified and characterized POD‐1 and POD‐2 and found that POD‐1 induced all five genes, whereas POD‐2 induced three of the genes, but not OxOLG or GST. A sugar beet bioassay indicated that CWP, POD‐1 and POD‐2 are each sufficient to induce resistance to sugar beet seedling disease caused by Aphanomyces cochlioides. Although carbohydrate analyses indicated that POD proteins were glycoproteins with similar carbohydrate compositions, containing approximately 15.0% carbohydrate by weight, their peptide portions have elicitor activity. Furthermore, cDNAs of POD‐1 and POD‐2 proteins were cloned, and the deduced amino acid sequences were found to be 82.9% identical. Characterization of their molecular structures indicated that they have an elicitin domain followed by a C‐terminal domain with a high frequency of Ser, Thr, Ala and Pro, which is structurally similar to class III elicitins. However, phylogenetic analysis with 22 representative elicitin and elicitin‐like proteins showed that POD‐1 and POD‐2 are distinct from previously defined elicitin and elicitin‐like proteins. Therefore, POD‐1 and POD‐2 are novel oomycete cell wall elicitin‐like glycoproteins.
Genetic polymorphisms of interleukin‐1‐beta in association with sustained response to anti‐viral treatment in chronic hepatitis B in Chinese
Authors: CHAN H. L.‐Y. , TSE A. M.‐L. , ZHANG M.‐D. , WONG V. W.‐S. , CHIM A. M.‐L. , HUI A. Y. , SUNG J. J.‐Y. 
Published: June 2006

SummaryBackgroundInterleukin‐1β is a pro‐inflammatory cytokine that may influence host defence against viral infection.AimTo investigate the impact of interleukin‐1β gene polymorphism on the response to anti‐viral treatment.MethodHepatitis B e antigen‐positive chronic hepatitis B patients who have completed a randomized study of peginterferon alpha‐2b and lamivudine combination vs. lamivudine monotherapy were included. Sustained responders were patients who had persistent hepatitis B e antigen loss and less than two occasions with hepatitis B virus DNA >100 000 copies/mL at any time up to week 76 post‐treatment. Polymorphisms at interleukin‐1β‐511, ‐31 and ‐3954 and interleukin‐1 receptor antagonist (RN) were studied.ResultsEighty‐eight patients were studied and 18 (20%) patients developed sustained response. Near complete linkage disequilibrium was observed between interleukin‐1β‐511 and ‐31 loci. After adjustment for the potential confounding effects of treatment allocation, hepatitis B virus genotype, pre‐treatment alanine aminotransferase and hepatitis B virus DNA levels, genotype C/T at interleukin‐1β‐511 was found to be associated with higher sustained response than genotype C/C (adjusted odds ratio 10.4, 95% CI 1.1, 96.9, P = 0.040). The proportion of sustained responders tend to be higher among patients with allele T at interleukin‐1β‐511 (83%) than those without (70%) (P = 0.058).ConclusionHigh interleukin‐1β production genotype at position ‐511 has a favourable response to anti‐viral treatments.
Prescribing of acid suppressive therapy: interactions between hospital and primary care
Authors: KRAG A. , TEGLBJERG L. S. , MALCHOW‐MØLLER A. , HALLAS J. , BYTZER P. 
Published: June 2006

SummaryBackgroundOveruse of acid suppressive therapy in the hospital setting and in primary care is well documented.AimTo describe interactions between prescriptions of acid suppressive therapy in hospital and in primary care.MethodsAll patients admitted to hospital over a 24‐month period were identified. Details about prescription of acid suppressive therapy were retrieved. All prescriptions of acid suppressive therapy redeemed by these patients 12 months before and after discharge were retrieved from a prescription database.ResultsA total of 549 of 4477 patients (12.3%) were treated with acid suppressive therapy while in hospital, but acid suppressive therapy was prescribed de novo in only 192 (35%) of these cases. Information about indication for acid suppressive therapy and planned duration of therapy were given in the discharge letter in only 25% and 17% of the cases, respectively. Among patients treated with acid suppressive therapy during admission, prescriptions on acid suppressive therapy were redeemed by 67% in the year before admission and by 74% in the year after discharge. Among patients who had the acid suppressive therapy discontinued during admission (n = 67), 48% resumed acid suppressive therapy within the following 12 months. Of all subjects treated with acid suppressive therapy in the hospital catchment area, 7.8% were seen in our department.ConclusionsDecisions about acid suppressive therapy prescribing in hospital has little influence on prescribing in primary care.
Gastro‐oesophageal reflux symptoms and health‐related quality of life in the adult general population – the Kalixanda study
Authors: RONKAINEN J. , ARO P. , STORSKRUBB T. , LIND T. , BOLLING‐STERNEVALD E. , JUNGHARD O. , TALLEY N. J. , AGREUS L. 
Published: June 2006

SummaryBackgroundThe impact of gastro‐oesophageal reflux symptoms on health‐related quality of life in the general population is poorly characterized.AimTo identify the frequency of troublesome reflux symptoms associated with impaired health‐related quality of life in the general population.MethodsA representative random sample of 3000 adult inhabitants of northern Sweden was surveyed using the validated Abdominal Symptom Questionnaire (response rate 74%). In total, 1001 random responders were endoscoped and assessed using the Short Form‐36 Health Survey.ResultsComplete data were obtained for 999 subjects: 6% reported reflux symptoms (heartburn and/or regurgitation) daily, 14% weekly and 20% less than weekly during the previous 3 months. Compared with no reflux symptoms, a clinically relevant impairment of health‐related quality of life (≥5 points and P < 0.05) was seen in all eight Short Form‐36 dimensions for daily symptoms, in five dimensions for weekly symptoms and in one dimension for less than weekly symptoms. There were no meaningful differences in Short Form‐36 scores between subjects with and without oesophagitis.ConclusionsMost aspects of health‐related quality of life were impaired in individuals with daily or weekly reflux symptoms. Troublesome reflux symptoms at least weekly may identify gastro‐oesophageal reflux disease.
Alternating bowel pattern: what do people mean?
Authors: CHOUNG R. S. , LOCKE G. R. , ZINSMEISTER A. R. , MELTON L. J. , TALLEY N. J. 
Published: June 2006

SummaryBackgroundWith the introduction of new therapies, the subgrouping of patients based on bowel pattern has become important. However, the appropriate definition of an alternating bowel pattern remains unclear.AimTo determine if specific symptoms are reported by people with an alternating bowel pattern.MethodsUsing the Rochester Epidemiology Project, a series of population‐based surveys were undertaken in which valid self‐report gastrointestinal symptom questionnaires were mailed to 4029 randomly selected members of the community. One question asked was ‘How would you describe your usual bowel pattern in the last year'?Results3022 subjects (74%) provided questionnaire data and 2718 were eligible for this analysis, the mean age was 57 years, with a range of 20–98 years (median = 61). Of these, 9.2%, 2.5% and 7.6% reported their usual bowel pattern as being constipated, diarrhoea, or alternating respectively. At least 50% of those reporting alternating bowel pattern reported incomplete evacuation (63%), urgency (57%), straining (55%) and loose stool (50%). The proportion of alternators reporting each individual symptom was between that of diarrhoea and constipation except for mucus and incomplete evacuation; however, no symptom was unique to alternators.ConclusionPeople who self‐report an alternating bowel pattern appear to represent a blend of constipation and diarrhoea symptoms, rather than a distinct subgroup.
Polymorphisms in innate immunity genes and risk of non‐Hodgkin lymphoma
Authors: Forrest Matthew S. , Skibola Christine F. , Lightfoot Tracy J. , Bracci Paige M. , Willett Eleanor V. , Smith Martyn T. , Holly Elizabeth A. , Roman Eve 
Published: June 2006

SummaryGenetic variation in innate immunity may alter host‐pathogen defence mechanisms and promote aberrant immune responses and non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). To test this hypothesis, we investigated polymorphisms in innate immune genes in a pooled analysis of two population‐based case‐control studies of NHL from the San Francisco Bay Area (308 cases, 684 controls) and UK (596 cases, 758 controls). The caspase recruitment domain‐containing protein 1007fs homozygote variant was positively associated with NHL risk (odds ratios (OR) = 3·1, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1·1–8·8), whereas the toll‐like receptor 4 1063A>G variant allele was inversely associated with diffuse large cell lymphoma (OR = 0·67, 95% CI 0·45–0·99). These results suggest that variation in innate immune genes may alter NHL susceptibility.
The identification of a recurrent phosphoglycerate kinase mutation associated with chronic haemolytic anaemia and neurological dysfunction in a family from USA
Authors: Flanagan Jonathan M. , Rhodes Melissa , Wilson Meredith , Beutler Ernest 
Published: June 2006

SummaryPhosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) deficiency is a rare X‐linked disease that is characterised by mild to severe haemolytic anaemia, rhabdomyolysis, and variable defects in the central nervous system. In a white American family, two sons presented with haemolytic anaemia, seizures, and developmental delay. The diagnosis of PGK deficiency was made based on the remarkably low (<5% of normal) erythrocyte PGK enzyme activity level and the identification of a missense (c. 491A → T) PGK1 gene mutation. This mutation results in an Asp164Val amino acid substitution, which has previously been designated PGK‐Amiens and PGK‐New York. The two new patients have the full clinical syndrome of PGK deficiency including haemolytic anaemia, developmental delay and seizures, and in the proband, hemiplegic migraines, retinal dystrophy and muscle fatigue. The PGK‐Amiens/New York mutation had previously been found in a French patient and also in a large Chinese‐Australian kindred, indicating that either the c. 91A → T mutation is a recurrent mutation or that there is shared ancestry between the patients that have been identified so far with the mutation. Haplotype analysis of the c. 91A → T mutation indicated that this was a recurrent mutation.
Ultra‐rush venom immunotherapy induces differential T cell activation and regulatory patterns according to the severity of allergy
Authors: Mamessier E. , Birnbaum J. , Dupuy P. , Vervloet D. , Magnan A. 
Published: June 2006

SummaryBackground
Venom immunotherapy (VIT) induces immune tolerance to hymenoptera venom antigens in allergic patients and is therefore a helpful model for studying modulation of allergic immune response. The objectives were to assess the early effects of ultra‐rush VIT on T lymphocyte activation and regulatory profile induction, in all subjects combined and according to the four severity grades of the Mueller classification.Materials and Methods
Blood samples from 30 vespid‐allergic patients were taken before and after the first day of treatment, and before day 15 and day 45 booster injections. IFN‐γ and IL‐4 levels were assayed by ELISA, in whole‐blood supernatants. IFN‐γ and IL‐13‐producing T cells, but also natural CD4+CD25+high regulatory T cells and acquired regulatory T cell proportions were assessed by flow cytometry. Results were analysed in the whole population and compared between patients with I–II or III–IV allergic reactions.Results
During VIT, IFN‐γ increased in whole blood when IL‐4 decreased. Among T cells, the percentage of CD3+IFN‐γ+ cells increased while IL‐13‐producing T cells decreased. Proportions of CD4+CD25+high cells and IL‐10‐producing T cells increased with VIT. In I–II subjects, IFN‐γ increased gradually, whereas it remained at low levels in III–IV patients. By contrast, IL‐4 decrease was more pronounced in III–IV patients. Increase in CD4+CD25+high T cells occurred early in I–II patients but was delayed in III–IV patients. IL‐10‐producing T cells increased gradually in both groups but were in a lower proportion in III–IV patients.Conclusion
A T helper type 2 (Th2)‐to‐Th1 switch occurs during ultra‐rush VIT, in parallel with natural and acquired regulatory T cell increase. These events occur earlier and at a higher level in less severe subjects, suggesting that VIT tolerance induction is easier to achieve in these patients.
Quantification of Ara h 1 in peanuts: why roasting makes a difference
Authors: Pomés A. , Butts C. L. , Chapman M. D. 
Published: June 2006

SummaryBackground
Increased allergenicity of roasted vs. raw peanut has been reported by showing higher IgE binding to roasted peanut extracts.Objective
To study the effect of roasting on Ara h 1 quantification in peanut using a specific monoclonal antibody‐based ELISA, and to compare the Ara h 1 content from different kernel size peanuts from four runner cultivars.Methods
Raw or oven‐roasted (177°C for 5–30 min) runner peanuts were crushed and extracted at 60°C. Inhibition ELISA was used to study binding of Ara h 1 purified from raw or roasted peanut. Runner peanuts of four different cultivars were collected, shelled, sized and roasted for 15 min at 177°C. Ara h 1 in the extracts was compared by ELISA.Results
Ara h 1 levels were up to 22‐fold higher in roasted than in raw peanuts (820 vs. 37 μg/mL, in a representative experiment) with an Ara h 1 peak at 10–15 min of roasting. Inhibition ELISA indicated that this increase was not due to conformational changes in the Ara h 1 monoclonal antibody epitopes. Ara h 1 was found at lower levels in number 1 than in jumbo‐ and medium‐sized peanuts, and no differences were found among cultivars.Conclusion
These results suggest that roasting increases the efficiency of Ara h 1 extraction, and/or that the monoclonal antibody binding epitopes were more accessible in roasted peanut. Expression of Ara h 1 is associated with peanut maturity.