bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
8‐year follow‐up in a randomized trial of one vs two transcervival insertions of quinacrine pellets for sterilization in Indonesia
Authors: Agoestina T. 
Published: December 2003

AbstractObjective: To evaluate the efficacy of one vs two insertions of quinacrine and the long‐term safety of quinacrine sterilization (QS) 8 years after the procedure in Indonesia. Methods: Between March 1993 and September 1995, a randomized trial was conducted in 6 academic centers in Indonesia. In February 2003, a follow‐up was undertaken in Bandung, one of these centers. This survey required a home visit of each woman. A questionaire was designed to elicit information regarding current general health status, method failure, pregnancy outcomes and other contraceptive methods now used by women who experienced failures. Among the 70 patients receiving a single insertion of quinacrine pellets, 14.3% had become pregnant. There were no pregnancies among the 30 who received 2 insertions. All the women were found to be in good health. No long‐term side effects or complications were identified. Conclusions: The two‐insertion protocol is unmistakably superior to the single insertion. This study provides further evidence that QS is a safe contraceptive method.
Quinacrine sterilization (QS): Informed consent
Authors:   Informed Consent Working Group
Published: December 2003

AbstractInformed consent is a basic human right for any medical procedure. It is particularly important that women know what is involved in any sterilization method, and how it will affect their health and their emotional life. Over 140,000 QS procedures have been performed in 34 countries. In no country has there been any formal effort to advance the acceptance of this method. Instead, satisfied users have been the promoters. Thoroughly informed consent is vital to patient satisfaction. A working group undertook an initiative to create an ideal consent form. The product of that initiative is presented.
Individual signatures in the frequency‐modulated sweep calls of African large‐eared, free‐tailed batsOtomops martiensseni(Chiroptera: Molossidae)
Authors: Fenton M. B. , Jacobs D. S. , Richardson E. J. , Taylor P. J. , White W. 
Published: December 2003

AbstractFrequency‐modulated sweep calls ofOtomops martiensseniwere recorded from individuals as they emerged from nine different building roosts near Durban, South Africa. Multiple analyses of call features, including duration (ms), lowest frequency (kHz), highest frequency (kHz) and frequency with most energy (kHz), indicated significant inter‐individual variation. Discriminant function analysis of call features correctly classified the calls of individuals from four roosts > 70% on 19 of 28 times. Although other species of molossids (Chaerephon pumilus,Tadarida aegyptiaca, and one unidentified species) produced social calls as well as frequency‐modulated sweep calls,O. martiensseniproduced just the latter vocalizations and they were longer and lower in frequency than those of the sympatric molossids. Other species of molossids, but notO. martiensseni, produced feeding buzzes as they attacked flying insects. The frequency‐modulated sweep calls ofO. martiensseniseem to serve a communication function, but they may not be used in echolocation unlike similar calls by other molossids. Individually distinct communication signals (frequency‐modulated sweep calls) enhance communication in a species that lives in year‐round social groups (one adult male, females and dependent young).
Mating behaviour and insemination in Diplatys flavicollis, an earwig with double‐barrelled penises and a variable number of female sperm‐storage organs
Authors: Kamimura Yoshitaka 
Published: December 2003

AbstractEarwigs (Insecta, Dermaptera) show astonishing diversity in penis morphology. In several families, males have a single penis (termed virga), whereas males of other families possess two functional virgae. Taxonomists have assumed that the two‐virgae state is ancestral; however, ecological reasons why the ancestor acquired two virgae have not been explored. This study investigated in detail male and female genital structures, mating behaviour and insemination processes in the earwig Diplatys flavicollis (Diplatyidae). Diplatyidae are considered to be the most primitive family of earwigs. SEM and light‐microscopy revealed that males of this species have two gonopores on each of two virgae, similar to those reported in other diplatyids (i.e. two double‐barrelled penises), while females have four to six independent sperm‐storage organs (spermathecae). Rapid fixation of mating pairs and insemination success of males from which one virga had been removed clearly revealed that only one virga was used for mating and was usually sufficient for inseminating multiple spermathecae. This finding rejects the one‐to‐one correspondence between male gonopores and female spermathecae. Based on allometric analysis of spermathecal variation, the possible significance of multiple spermathecae in relation to sperm‐storage strategies of females is discussed. Compared to studies of male genital morphology, few studies have described spermathecal morphology. Based on compiled data of spermathecal and virgal morphology among earwigs, a parallel evolutionary trend between spermathecae and virgae from complicated (multiple) to simple (single) ones is suggested, and further investigation of the phylogeny, female genital morphology and insemination processes among earwigs is encouraged.
Scaling of bird claws
Authors: Pike A. V. L. , Maitland D. P. 
Published: December 2003

AbstractThe claw geometry of birds can be used to predict their mode of life. Previous studies, however, have not considered how bird size might affect these predictions. Thus, in the present study, the geometric scaling relationships of bird claws are examined for a variety of extant birds with different modes of life: predatory, climbing, perching or ground‐dwelling. Measurements of hind‐limb claw radius (i.e. claw size) and claw angle (i.e. claw ‘hookedness’) of the third digit claw were made on 120 species of bird ranging from 0.0057 kg to 44 kg in body mass. Claw radius was found to be proportional to (body mass)0.34 across all species. Claw angle was found to increase with body mass for predatory and climbing birds (i.e. bigger birds have relatively more hooked claws), and decrease with body mass for ground‐dwelling birds (i.e. bigger birds have relatively less hooked or flatter claws). No significant relationship was found between claw angle and body mass for perching birds. Mode of life could not be predicted with any certainty using measurements of either claw radius or claw angle, suggesting difficulty in assigning fossil species such as Archaeopteryx to a specific locomotor category. As claw design should enable the claw to withstand the forces placed upon it, further work is needed to establish the stresses experienced by the claws of different types of bird.
Development of the beetle parasitoids,Brachinus explodensandB. crepitans(Coleoptera: Carabidae)
Authors: Saska Pavel , Honek Alois 
Published: December 2003

AbstractEarlier authors demonstrated that wetland species of the genusBrachinus(Coleoptera: Carabidae) are pupal ectoparasitoids of water beetles of the families Dytiscidae, Gyrinidae and Hydrophilidae. Here we demonstrate that the dryland species,Brachinus explodensandB. crepitans, develop on pupae of ground beetles of the genusAmara(Carabidae). AsBrachinusandAmaraspecies often occur together at high densities in crops, the rearing of bothBrachinusspecies was followed in the laboratory. Females laid eggs in the soil and the first instar larva searched for a host. After finding anAmarapupa, aBrachinuslarva bit it and then fed on haemolymph exuding from the wound. The second instar larva continued feeding in this way. The third instar larva attached theAmarapupa to its dorsum and ate it completely withinc. 2 days. Feeding was followed by a resting phase and moulting to pupa and adult. The total post‐embryonic development was completed within 20 days inB. explodensand 24 days inB. crepitansat 24.7 °C.
A DNA‐sequence based phylogeny for triculine snails (Gastropoda: Pomatiopsidae: Triculinae), intermediate hosts for Schistosoma (Trematoda: Digenea): phylogeography and the origin of Neotricula
Authors: Attwood S. W. , Upatham E. S. , Zhang Y.‐P. , Yang Z.‐Q. , Southgate V. R. 
Published: December 2003

AbstractPartial (DNA) sequences were examined for one nuclear (28S rRNA gene) and one mitochondrial (16S rRNA) locus for nine species of pomatiopsid snail (Gastropoda: Rissooidea: Pomatiopsidae) from south‐east Asia and south‐west China. Fresh field samples were collected for the following taxa: Delavaya dianchiensis (Triculinae: Triculini) from Dianchi lake, Yunnan Province, China; Neotricula aperta (Triculinae: Pachydrobiini) from north‐east Thailand; Neotricula burchi from northern Thailand; Oncomelania hupensis robertsoni (Pomatiopsinae: Pomatiopsini) from south‐west China; Tricula bambooensis (Triculinae: Triculini) from Dianchi lake; Tricula bollingi from northern Thailand; Tricula hortensis from Sichuan Province, China; Tricula ludongbini from Dianchi lake; and Tricula xiaolongmenensis from Dianchi lake. This work represents the first published DNA‐sequence data for the Dianchi lake taxa and the first 28S sequence data for all nine taxa. All of these taxa with the exception of N. burchi and the Dianchi taxa transmit Schistosoma in nature; N. aperta and O. h. robertsoni transmit Schistosoma to humans. The data were used to estimate phylogenies using the maximum likelihood method, a Bayesian method, and the maximum parsimony method. The paper aims to examine the relationships between N.aperta, N. burchi and T. bollingi and the relationship between the Chinese taxa and the south‐east Asian taxa; these relationships being important in evaluating certain historical biogeographical hypotheses. Good congruence was found between the phylogenies estimated by the three methods for both the 16S and 28S loci. However, poor congruence was found between the phylogenies based on the 16S and 28S data when the maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods were used. The lack of congruence is explained as a consequence of a rapid, recent, endemic radiation of the Yunnanese Tricula spp.; this hypothesis is consistent with current historical biogeographical models for the Triculinae. The paper puts forward dispersal hypotheses, based on palaeogeographical changes, as possible explanations for the phylogenetic relationships estimated here and for the current biogeography of these taxa.
Phenotypic and environmental correlates of tooth eruption in red deer (Cervus elaphus)
Authors: Loe Leif Egil , Meisingset Erling L. , Mysterud Atle , Langvatn Rolf , Stenseth Nils C. 
Published: December 2003

AbstractIn ungulates, a set of deciduous teeth is replaced by a set of permanent teeth during their first 2 years of life. Little is known about factors causing variation in timing of tooth eruption, but overall size, condition or mineral deficiencies may play a role. The pattern of incisor (I) and canine (C) eruption was investigated in 2241 yearlings from five populations of red deer Cervus elaphus in Norway during 1964–2001. Before the sampling period (10 September–15 November), I1 had erupted in most yearlings (97%), while eruption of I3 and C had barely started (erupted in 7% and 5% of individuals, respectively). Exactly 50% of the yearlings had erupted I2. Jawbone length was shown to be a main determining factor for eruption of I2. However, for a given jawbone length, there was large variation among populations in the proportion of yearlings with erupted I2 (from <20% to >75%). Females got their permanent I2 earlier than males. Tooth eruption was found to be later with increasing local deer density, even after correcting for body weight. There was a residual effect of body weight (a measure of condition) after body size (measured as jawbone length) was controlled for in one of five populations, indicating that overall condition may influence timing of tooth eruption in this area. There was no evidence that calcium was limiting for eruption, as no correlation was found between timing of eruption and limestone in bedrock. Since there is large variation in timing of tooth eruption among red deer populations even after controlling for differences in phenotype and environmental factors, genotypic variation may also play an important role for tooth eruption patterns.
Parathyroid surgery is associated with a decreased risk of hip and upper arm fractures in primary hyperparathyroidism: a controlled cohort study
Authors: Vestergaard P. , Mosekilde L. 
Published: December 2003

Abstract.Objectives.  To study if parathyroid surgery reduced fracture risk in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism.Design.  Controlled cohort study.Setting.  All subjects diagnosed with primary hyperparathyroidism (ICD8 codes: 252.00, 252.01, 252.03, 252.04, 252.05, 252.08, 252.09, and ICD10 codes: E21.0, E21.2, E21.3) between 1980 and 1999 in Denmark were retrieved from the National Hospital Discharge System.Subjects.  A total of 3213 subjects (mean age at diagnosis 60.9 ± 16.3 years) were identified of whom 1934 (60%) had parathyroid surgery whilst 1279 (40%) did not. Total follow‐up time after diagnosis was 19.565 (median 6.1) years.Main outcome measure.  Fracture occurrence after diagnosis was identified from the National Hospital Discharge System.Results.  Conservatively treated patients were older than surgically treated at diagnosis (64.2 ± 17.4 years vs. 58.3 ± 15.2 years, P < 0.01). The mean serum calcium was 2.95 mmol L−1 in surgically treated and 2.74 in conservatively treated in a subgroup from one centre, n = 687). At the time of diagnosis, 172 (9%) of the subsequently surgically treated had had any fracture whilst the same was the case for 176 (14%) of the conservatively treated (P < 0.05). Parathyroid surgery reduced the risk of hip (HR = 0.44, 95% CI: 0.32–0.62) and upper arm (HR = 0.44, 95% CI: 0.27–0.72) fractures after diagnosis whilst the occurrence of other fracture types remained unchanged.Conclusions.  Parathyroid surgery reduces the occurrence of hip and upper arm fractures with approximately 50% in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism. This may advocate surgery in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism with serum calcium levels in the range presented here. Further studies in patients with mild disease are warranted.
Beta‐lactamase inhibitor enhances Helicobacter pylori eradication rate
Authors: Ojetti V. , Migneco A. , Zocco M. A. , Nista E. C. , Gasbarrini G. , Gasbarrini A. 
Published: December 2003

Abstract.Objectives.  One‐week triple therapy, a combination of acid suppression with two antibiotics, is the gold standard for anti‐Helicobacter pylori treatment. There is increasing evidence of H. pylori resistance to classical triple therapy. Recently, it was reported that the amoxicillin–clavulanate combination had a slightly higher activity than amoxicillin alone against H. pylori, and that β‐lactamase inhibitors had ‘in‐vitro’ antibacterial activity against H. pylori.Setting.  To evaluate the efficacy of 1 week triple therapy omeprazole, clarithromycin and amoxicillin plus clavulanate compared with omeprazole, clarithromycin and amoxicillin for H. pylori eradication. The study was open randomized.Subjects.  Sixty dyspeptic patients (36 male, 24 female; mean age 53 ± 9 years) with Helicobacter pylori infection never treated before, were enrolled and randomly assigned to two different 7‐day triple therapies: (i) (n = 30) amoxicillin 875 mg plus clavulanic acid 125 mg b.i.d., clarithromycin 500 mg b.i.d., omeprazole 20 mg b.i.d. (ACCO); (ii) (n = 30) amoxicillin 1 g b.i.d., clarithromycin 500 mg b.i.d., omeprazole 20 mg b.i.d. (ACO). Bacterial eradication was assessed by 13C‐urea breath test 4–6 weeks after therapy. Information on gastrointestinal symptoms and antibiotic‐related side‐effects were recorded using a questionnaire.Results.  All patients completed the study. A significantly higher H. pylori eradication rate with ACCO compared with ACO: (26/30) 86.6 vs. (20/30) 66.6%, respectively (P < 0.05) were observed. No major side‐effects were reported, whilst 8% patients complained of mild side‐effects; no significant differences were noted between the two groups.Conclusions.  Our results suggest that amoxicillin and clavulanate in combination achieve a higher H. pylori eradication rate than amoxicillin alone, without any increase in side‐effects. The combination of amoxicillin and clavulanate may represent an alternative therapeutic scheme for the treatment of H. pylori infection.
Severe hypoplasia of the abdominal aorta and its branches in a patient and his daughter
Authors: Dejardin A. , Goffette P. , Moulin P. , Verhelst R. , Cornu G. , De Plaen J. F. , Persu A. 
Published: December 2003

Abstract.We report the history of a patient and his daughter, both affected with hypoplasia of the abdominal aorta and its branches, leading to early and dramatic complications. In the index patient, renal ischaemia as a result of severe hypoplasia of the abdominal aorta and the origin of renal arteries led to progressive renal failure and end‐stage renal disease at the age of 32 years. Other vascular abnormalities included hypoplasia of the celiac trunk (CT) and superior mesenteric artery (SMA). After a successful kidney transplantation at the age of 40 years, he eventually deceased following an episode of possibly ischaemic acute pancreatitis at 47 years. The patient's daughter suffered from an haemorrhagic stroke at the age of 7 years, which led to the discovery of severe hypertension caused by bilateral narrowing of renal arteries, as well as hypoplasia of CT, SMA, subclavian and pulmonary arteries. Biopsy of the narrowed renal artery of the daughter showed a particular form of fibrodysplasia characterized by an unusual fibrosis of the inner part of the media, just beneath the internal elastic lamina. To our knowledge, this is the first report of familial hypoplasia of the abdominal aorta. It might be the cardinal manifestation of a familial form of fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD). Interestingly, the histological lesions described in the daughter's renal artery differ from the classical form of medial FMD.
The influence of smoking and smokeless tobacco use on weight amongst men
Authors: Rodu B. , Stegmayr B. , Nasic S. , Cole P. , Asplund K. 
Published: December 2003

Abstract.Objective.  To explore the effect of tobacco use (smoking and smokeless tobacco) and cessation on body weight.Design.  Cross‐sectional and prospective follow‐up study.Setting.  Northern Sweden.Subjects.  A total of 2993 men aged 25–64 years who participated in the northern Sweden MONICA study in 1986, 1990 or 1994, 1650 of whom were followed up in 1999.Main outcome measures.  The prevalence of overweight [body mass index (BMI) ≥ 27] amongst tobacco users was compared with nonusers at entry into the study. The average annual percentage weight gain amongst men was also determined according to tobacco use both at entry and at follow‐up, and the development of overweight amongst tobacco‐use groups was reported using standardized incidence ratios.Results.  Smokers who quit tobacco during the follow‐up period gained significantly more weight than smokers who switched to snus (annual gain 0.96% vs. 0.51%, P < 0.05). At entry, ex‐smokers had higher prevalence of overweight than nonusers of tobacco [prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.24, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.10–1.40]. Snus users had slightly higher prevalence of overweight at entry (PR = 1.20, CI = 1.01–1.42). Snus users who quit gained more weight than nonusers (0.70% vs. 0.44%, P < 0.05) or those who continued to use snus (0.42%).Conclusions.  Cessation of tobacco, either cigarettes or snus, leads to significantly increased weight gain. However, snus use may play a role in lowering the weight gain following smoking cessation.
Platelet and haemorheological markers in ‘high risk’ hypertensives are improved by tighter blood pressure control and cardiovascular risk management: a substudy of the Anglo‐Scandinavian Cardiac Outcomes Trial (ASCOT)
Authors: Spencer C. G. C. , Gurney D. , Felmeden D. C. , Blann A. D. , Beevers D.G. , Lip G. Y. H. 
Published: December 2003

Abstract.Objective.  To investigate the impact of intensified cardiovascular risk management on soluble markers of platelet, endothelial and rheological function in a population of middle‐aged hypertensive patients at high risk of cardiovascular complications.Design.  Prospective follow‐up study.Subjects and methods. A total of 159 hypertensive patients [138 male, mean age 64 (±8) years] and 80 healthy controls were studied. Plasma levels of soluble P‐selectin (sP‐sel, a marker of platelet function), von Willebrand factor (vWF, an index of endothelial damage/dysfunction) and rheological indices [fibrinogen (Fib), plasma viscosity (PV), haematocrit (HCT), white blood count (WBC) and platelet count] were measured at baseline and again (in the patients) after 6 months’ treatment.Results.  As expected, 6 months of intensified cardiovascular risk management resulted in a significant fall in mean blood pressure (BP) and total cholesterol. It also resulted in reduced haematocrit, vWF, sP‐sel, WBC and PV levels (all P < 0.001), but not plasma fibrinogen. There were no correlations between the fall in BP and the improvement in any of the research indices.Conclusions.  Intensified cardiovascular risk management results in significant improvements in indices of endothelial, platelet and rheological function in a population of hypertensives at high risk of cardiovascular events. These improvements appear to be independent of the degree of change in BP. Given the fundamental role of interactions between the endothelium and circulating blood components in the pathogenesis of hypertensive complications this may be of importance in preventing adverse cardiovascular outcomes.
A cardiac sodium channel mutation identified in Brugada syndrome associated with atrial standstill
Authors: Takehara N. , Makita N. , Kawabe J. , Sato N. , Kawamura Y. , Kitabatake A. , Kikuchi K. 
Published: December 2003

Abstract.  Takehara N, Makita N, Kawabe J, Sato N, Kawamura Y, Kitabatake A, Kikuchi K (Asahikawa Medical College, Asahikawa; Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan; and Cardiovascular Research Institute, Newark, NY, USA). A cardiac sodium channel mutation identified in Brugada syndrome associated with atrial standstill (Case Report). J Intern Med 2004; 255: 137–142.Mutations in the cardiac Na+ channel gene SCN5A are responsible for multiple lethal ventricular arrhythmias including Brugada syndrome and congenital long QT syndrome. Here we report a case of Brugada syndrome with ST elevation in the right precordial and inferior leads accompanied by atrial standstill and spontaneous ventricular fibrillation. Atrial standstill and J wave elevation were provoked by procainamide. Genetic analysis revealed a missense mutation (R367H) in SCN5A. The resultant mutant Na+ channel was nonfunctional when expressed heterologously in Xenopus oocytes. Our study suggests that genetic defects in SCN5A may be associated with atrial standstill in combination with ventricular arrhythmias.