tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
99mTc-DISIDA vs. Endoscopic biliary manometry in assessing sphincter of oddi function
Authors: Simon Bar-Meir, David Chamovitz
Journal: Hepatology (1989)

Sphincter of Oddi (SO) dysfunction is a recognised cause of postcholecystectomy pain, but a difficult condition to diagnose, requiring endoscopic biliary manometry (EBM) to confirm sphincter motor abnormalities. We have assessed quantitative cholescintigraphy in 19 postcholecystectomy (PC) patients with clinical and manometric evidence of SO dysfunction, 10 PC patients with non–biliary type abdominal pain and 10 asymptomatic PC volunteers acting as controls to determine its value as a non–invasive screening test. Quantitative 99m Tc–DISIDA scans lasted 60 minutes, activity/time curves being created by computer analysis using the entire hepatobiliary system as region–of–interest (ROI). Scintigraphic analysis demonstrated that the time in minutes to maximum counts (T max ) was significantly increased in the SO dysfunction group compared with the non–biliary pain group and the asymptomatic volunteers (p &lt; 0.001). The per cent of biliary tracer emptied was also significantly less in the SO dysfunction group than either of the other groups at both 45 minutes (p &lt; 0.01) and 60 minutes (p &lt; 0.02). We conclude that quantitative cholescintigraphy may be a valuable non–invasive screening test in clinically suspected SO dysfunction.
Making sense of rising caesarean section rates: Editorial made no sense of rising rates
Authors: Christoph C Lees
Journal: BMJ (2004)

Promoting walking and cycling as an alternative to using cars Vested interests doom puny healthcare interventionsEditor-Ogilvy et al's systematic review on promoting walking and cycling as an alternative to using cars treats motoring as if it were a disease that can be cured, without examining the social forces that lead to car use. 1 The effects they find in their review are hardly surprising, given the social currents opposing them: car advertising, predict and provide road planning, the giant car "park," and other horrors of surburbia.Big business and big government alike have a vested interest in its continued growth.Those who have bought into this motor dependent lifestyle can be trusted to extend the infliction of motor tyranny on everyone else: motorists object to being taxed, although they are major polluters, or confined by speed limits, although they killed 3508 people in Britain last year.I try to undermine this metal carapaced horde.Any driver suffering from a condition in which lack of exercise is a factor: hypertension, obesity, stress, depression-much of the general practice caseload in fact-is told to sell their car and get a bike instead.I do have my successesfor example, a man in his 50s who came back to his follow up appointment, saying he wished he lived further from work so he had more time on his bike every day.But when I look at the vested interests lined up against me-not least George W Bush's latest oil grab-I wonder why I bother.Urban doctors who continue to drive are particularly depressing.Since when do you need a car to carry a briefcase?
902. Modulation of Voltage-Gated Potassium Channels in Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons by an Inducible Adenoviral Vector In Vivo
Authors: Chao Ma, Robert H. LaMotte, Jason M. Rosenzweig, Peter L. Gehlbach, David C. Johns
Journal: Molecular Therapy (2006)

Injury to the nerve or dorsal root ganglion (DRG) reduces voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channel expression and increases neuronal excitability in DRG neurons. Kv channels are therefore potential targets of gene therapy for chronic pain. An adenoviral vector, containing a reporter gene encoding the enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) and a Kv gene, was delivered to the fourth lumbar (L4) DRG of adult rat by microinjection via a small catheter inserted under the epineurium of the spinal nerve 3 to 5 mm from the DRG. The in vivo expression of the transferred gene was controlled by an ecdysone analog via an ecdysone-inducible promoter in the viral vector. Three types of vectors were used. A control vector (AdEGI) contained only the GFP gene. A vector intended to reduce votage gated potassium channels (AdKv1.xDN) had a dominant-negative Kv1.3 gene that disrupted Kv1 channels. A vector to increase inwardly rectifying K current (AdKir2.1) had the human Kir2.1 gene. Sharp-electrode intracellular recordings were obtained in vivo from the ipsilateral L4 DRG neurons. As early as one day, and lasting longer than 2 weeks, injection of the control vector AdEGI produced a slight but significant decrease in force of a Von-Frey filament required to elicit withdrawal of the ipsilateral hindpaw. There was no decrease in withdrawal latency to heating the same paw. Compared with the effects of AdEGI, induction of the AdKv1.xDN produced (1) a further decrease of mechanical withdrawal threshold, and (2) increased neuronal excitability as indicated by a decreased rheobase, higher input resistance, and a wider action potential with a smaller afterhyperpolarization in GFP-labeled medium and large cell bodies of DRG neurons. Whereas induction of the AdKir2.1 produced no significant change in paw withdrawal, it did decrease neuronal excitability in GFP-labeled DRG neurons as indicated by a hyperpolarized resting potential, a higher rheobase and a lower input resistance. By applying adenoviral vectors carrying different types of potassium channel genes, we could either increase or decrease the excitability of DRG neurons, and modulate the pain-related behaviors of the animal. In order for gene therapy to treat neuropathic pain we will need to develop viral vectors that reach a greater number of hyperexcitable neurons.
Noggin attenuates the osteogenic activation of human valve interstitial cells in aortic valve sclerosis
Authors: Paolo Poggio, Rachana Sainger, Emanuela Branchetti, Juan B. Grau, Eric K. Lai, Robert C. Gorman, Michael S. Sacks, Alessandro Parolari, Joseph E. Bavaria, Giovanni Ferrari
Journal: Cardiovascular Research (2013)

Aortic valve sclerosis (AVSc) is a hallmark of several cardiovascular conditions ranging from chronic heart failure and myocardial infarction to calcific aortic valve stenosis (AVS). AVSc, present in 25-30% of patients over 65 years of age, is characterized by thickening of the leaflets with marginal effects on the mechanical proprieties of the valve making its presentation asymptomatic. Despite its clinical prevalence, few studies have investigated the pathogenesis of this disease using human AVSc specimens. Here, we investigate in vitro and ex vivo BMP4-mediated transdifferentiation of human valve interstitial cells (VICs) towards an osteogenic-like phenotype in AVSc.Human specimens from 60 patients were collected at the time of aortic valve replacement (AVS) or through the heart transplant programme (Controls and AVSc). We show that non-calcified leaflets from AVSc patients can be induced to express markers of osteogenic transdifferentiation and biomineralization through the combinatory effect of BMP4 and mechanical stimulation. We show that BMP4 antagonist Noggin attenuates VIC activation and biomineralization. Additionally, patient-derived VICs were induced to transdifferentiate using either cell culture or a Tissue Engineering (TE) Aortic Valve model. We determine that while BMP4 alone is not sufficient to induce osteogenic transdifferentiation of AVSc-derived cells, the combinatory effect of BMP4 and mechanical stretch induces VIC activation towards a phenotype typical of late calcified stage of the disease.This work demonstrates, for the first time using AVSc specimens, that human sclerotic aortic valves can be induced to express marker of osteogenic-like phenotype typical of advanced severe aortic stenosis.
GW25-e0547 Down-regulation of the Small-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels in Diabetic Mouse Atria
Authors: Yi Fu, Ling Tian-You, Lu Tong, Wang Xiao-Li, William C. Claycomb, Shen Wen-Kuang, Lee Hon-Chi
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2014)
Prestin-Based Outer Hair Cell Motility Is Necessary for Mammalian Cochlear Amplification
Authors: Peter Dallos, Xudong Wu, Mary Ann Cheatham, Jiangang Gao, Jing Zheng, Charles T. Anderson, Shuping Jia, Xiang Wang, Wendy H.Y. Cheng, Soma Sengupta, David Z.Z. He, Jian Zuo
Journal: Neuron (2008)
Case of a Large Calculus, Voided from the Femaleurethra, Encrusted upon a Hair-Pin, Which Had Been Swallowed Twenty-Seven Months Ago
Authors: Thos. F. Brownbill
Journal: BMJ (1845)

Mary Swinestead was admitted into the Union Workhiouse at Newport Pagriell, eight years ago, as a barmless lutnatic, whose case did not require tihe miore stringent management of an asyltitn.She labours under a singular hallucination; she ispale and tlhin, remarkably good natured, having an agreeable smile perpetually on her countenance.The immediate cause of her insanity is said to be the death of her mother.Soon after this event she gave tokens of a disturbed imind, which was still increasedl by an idea which had taken full possession of her, that her mother's body had been reinoved for dissection.Wlhether such was the case or not I cannot tell, but the certainty of it was so fixed in her inind, that it was impossible to remove the impression.She dwelt so long upon this idea, that what at first perhaps was a mere supposition,
Psychiatry, Education, and the Young Adult
Authors: Marjorie C. Meehan
Journal: JAMA (1966)

As the number of college students increases, so too does community concern about them. Their apathy, their protests, their health, their morals, their intellectual calibre— all are observed, criticized, occasionally praised. While most of the commentators have done little careful observation and made few efforts to help the students, a few physicians in university health services have worked directly with disturbed students, learning to understand their problems and to help find a solution. One of the most distinguished physicians in this field is Dana Farnsworth, of Harvard. It is not surprising that he was invited to give the 1964 Salmon lectures, of which this book is an expanded version.  Dr. Farnsworth addresses himself not to psychiatrists alone, but to educators, counselors, and all interested in the welfare of students. He stresses the importance, not only to the student or the college, but to the whole community, of helping disturbed students
Tumbling down a different pathway to genetic instability
Authors: Haiwei H. Guo, Lawrence A. Loeb
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (2003)

Ulcerative colitis (UC), a chronic inflammatory condition associated with a predisposition to colon cancer, is frequently characterized by DNA damage in the form of microsatellite instability (MSI). A new report links inflammation in UC with increases in the DNA repair enzymes 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylase and apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease, and, paradoxically, with increased MSI. These findings may represent a novel mechanism contributing to MSI in chronic inflammation.
Danish men consult GPs less than women but attend hospital more and have greater mortality
Authors: Roger Dobson
Journal: BMJ (2007)

the consultant pathologist whose failure to disclose the results of micro biological tests on one of Sally Clark's two baby sons led to the quashing of her murder convictions, lost his High Court appeal last week against a finding of serious professional misconduct.Mrs Clark was convicted in 1999 of kill ing babies Christopher and Harry but was cleared on appeal in 2003 after spending three and a half years in prison.She died earlier this year at the age of 42.A coroner ruled this week that the cause of her death was acute alcohol intoxication.A General Medical Council fitness to practise panel found Dr Williams, aged 58, guilty of serious professional misconduct in 2005 for not disclosing the results of tests on her second son, Harry, at or before her trial.Dr Williams was banned from doing Home Office forensic pathology or coro ners' work for three years, although he was allowed to continue working as a consult ant histopathologist at Macclesfield General Hospital, in Cheshire.His lawyers appealed on a range of issues, including delays in bringing his case before the GMC.But Mr Justice Davis ruled last week, "In my judg ment this appeal fails on essentially every ground advanced.There was no procedural unfairness giving rise to injustice; nor were the findings and conclusions of the panel wrong."Mrs Clark was cleared after a second appeal, when previously unreported micro biological results came to light.They showed the presence of Staphylococcus aureus at eight sites of the baby's body, including cerebro spinal fluid, raising the possibility that Harry died from natural causes.Dr Williams told the GMC panel that he had not considered the tests to be relevant and that if the defence had wished to see them, they should have asked for them. Court upholds GMC decision over Sally Clark case pathologistUK NEWS Charity warns of proposed restrictions to asylum seekers' access to care, p 1012 World NEWS �erck to pay ���n in rofeco�i� claims, p 1011 �erck to pay ���n in rofeco�i� claims, p 1011 , p 1011 �mj.com �o�ernment may lea�e some patients out of 1�� week tar�et �o�ernment may lea�e some patients out of 1�� week tar�et
The politics of addiction: status of the tobacco settlement
Authors: J. R. Seffrin
Journal: CA A Cancer Journal for Clinicians (1998)

The enactment of an effective national tobacco control policy is a needed first step toward reducing smoking, controlling the tobacco industry, and significantly reducing tobacco-related disease and death. Dr. Seffrin, Chief Executive Officer of the American Cancer Society, outlines the critical public health measures that the ACS is working to see included in comprehensive federal tobacco control legislation.
Efficacy and Safety of Retreatment with Ipilimumab in Patients with Pretreated Advanced Melanoma Who Progressed after Initially Achieving Disease Control
Authors: Caroline Robert, Dirk Schadendorf, Marianne Messina, F. Stephen Hodi, Steven O'Day
Journal: Clinical Cancer Research (2013)

Ipilimumab is a fully human monoclonal antibody against cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4) that has been shown to improve survival in patients with pretreated, advanced melanoma in a phase III trial. Some patients in this study who initially responded to ipilimumab treatment but later progressed were eligible for retreatment with their original randomized regimen. Here, outcomes for these patients concerning baseline characteristics, best overall response, and disease control rate are assessed and considered with respect to the overall study population.In the phase III study, 676 pretreated patients were randomly allocated to treatment with ipilimumab 3 mg/kg plus gp100 vaccine, ipilimumab 3 mg/kg plus placebo, or gp100 vaccine alone. Of these patients, 32 had a partial or complete objective response or stable disease after treatment and met the eligibility criteria for retreatment, although a total of 40 patients were retreated.Best overall response rates (complete responses plus partial responses) for 31 retreatment-eligible patients in the ipilimumab plus gp100 and ipilimumab plus placebo groups were 3 of 23 (13.0%) and 3 of 8 (37.5%), respectively, and disease control rates were 65.2% and 75.0%. No new types of toxicities occurred during retreatment and most events were mild-to-moderate.Ipilimumab provided durable objective responses and/or stable disease in qualifying patients who received retreatment upon disease progression with a similar toxicity profile to that seen during their original treatment regimen.
P2-16-10: Practice Variations in Post-Mastectomy Breast Reconstruction: What Are the Roles of Clinical Factors, Access Barriers, and Delayed Reconstruction?
Authors: D Cox, J Milucky, R Dominik, C Lee
Journal: Cancer Research (2011)

Abstract Background: Breast reconstruction rates vary widely by race, income, and location. Proposed explanations have included clinical contraindications to reconstruction, access barriers, and patient or surgeon preference for delayed reconstruction. We sought to determine whether clinical contraindications (planned radiation, comorbidities) or access barriers (distance to care, surgeon) were associated with reconstruction and to estimate the frequency of delayed reconstruction over time. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted among women treated with mastectomy for Stage 0-IIIa breast cancer between 2002 and 2007 at one institution. Demographics, stage, comorbidities, adjuvant therapy plans, and treatments were obtained from the medical record. Multivariable modified Poisson regression analyses were performed, with immediate and any reconstruction (immediate or delayed) as outcomes. Interaction terms were added to examine surgeon effects. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was performed. Results: Among 539 women, 18.9% had a plan for chemotherapy; 13.7% had a plan for radiation. Comorbidities were: obesity 17.1%, diabetes 11.9%, smoking 16.3%, heart disease 5.6%, immunodeficiency 2.2%. Most patients (59.8%) lived within 50 miles of the hospital. 33.8% had immediate reconstruction; 5.6% had delayed. Patients who had a plan for adjuvant therapy or comorbidity were less likely to have reconstruction. Patients who lived farther from the hospital were slightly more likely to have reconstruction, but this was not statistically significant (p&amp;lt;0.08). None of the associations varied significantly by surgeon. Few patients had reconstruction more than 2 years after mastectomy. Conclusion: Clinical contraindications may explain some breast reconstruction practice variations. Few patients who defer immediate reconstruction, however, ever have delayed reconstruction. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2011;71(24 Suppl):Abstract nr P2-16-10.
Yellow fever vaccine
Authors: P. P Mortimer
Journal: BMJ (2002)

Conflicting results have been reported for the relationship between traffic exposure and inception of atopy. The effect of traffic on the prevalence of asthma and atopy at school age was investigated in a representative population. Random samples of schoolchildren (n=7,509, response rate 83.7%) were studied using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood phase­II protocol with skin­prick tests, measurements of specific immunoglobulin E and lung function. Traffic exposure was assessed <i>via</i> traffic counts and by an emission model which predicted soot, benzene and nitrogen dioxide (NO<sub>2</sub>). Traffic counts were associated with current asthma, wheeze and cough. In children with tobacco­smoke exposure, traffic volume was additionally associated with a positive skin­prick test. Cough was associated with soot, benzene and NO<sub>2</sub>, current asthma with soot and benzene, and current wheeze with benzene and NO<sub>2</sub>. No pollutant was associated with allergic sensitisation. High vehicle traffic was associated with asthma, cough and wheeze, and in children additionally exposed to environmental tobacco smoke, with allergic sensitisation. However, effects of socioeconomic factors associated with living close to busy roads cannot be ruled out.
Toxicity of culture material of Fusarium verticillioides strain MRC 826 to nonhuman primates.
Authors: W C Gelderblom, J V Seier, P W Snijman, D J Van Schalkwyk, G S Shephard, W F Marasas
Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives (2001)

We conducted a chronic feeding study in vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops) over 13.5 years. The experimental design consisted of two dietary treatment groups, each including males and females, fed varying levels of culture material of Fusarium verticillioides (Sacc.) Nirenberg (= F. moniliforme Sheldon) strain MRC 826 mixed into their daily food ration. Two females were included as treatment controls. We conducted blood chemical analyses bimonthly and recorded all clinical signs during the course of the experiment. We took liver biopsies at various stages during the initial phase of the experiment. Several monkeys were terminated in extremis during the experiment. Detailed feed intake profiles were determined 5 years after the experiment began, and the fumonisin B (FB) mycotoxin content of the feed was determined during the final stages of the experiment. The apparent FB consumption patterns were related to changes observed in the biochemical parameters in the blood and urine, including the liver function enzymes and creatinine clearance as well as differential blood counts and sphingolipid levels in the serum and urine. An apparent no-effect threshold for kidney and liver damage is estimated to be between 0.11 and 0.18 mg FB/kg body weight (bw)/day, which corresponds to a feed contamination level of between 8.21 and 13.25 mg FB/kg bw diet. Apart from the effects on the liver and kidney, a wide variety of parameters, including cholesterol and creatine kinase, were also adversely affected. Several blood parameters, including white and red blood cells, also significantly decreased in the treated animals. The serum sphinganine level and the sphingosine/sphinganine ratio, monitored toward the end of the experiment, significantly increased in both the low-dose and high-dose animals. The present study provides important information about the diversity of lesions induced by culture material of F. verticillioides in vervet monkeys and the dosage levels of fumonisins to be used in long-term studies in nonhuman primates.
GW25-e3225 Role of Cathepsin B in the regulation of cardiac remodeling
Authors: Wu Qingqing, Man Xu, Yuan Yuan, Fang-Fang Li, Jia Dai, Zheng Yang, Zhou-Yan Bian, Wei Deng, Lu Gao, Hongliang Li, Qizhu Tang
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2014)
What can England's NHS learn from Canterbury New Zealand?
Authors: N. Mays, J. Smith
Journal: BMJ (2013)

A recent King's Fund report describes impressive progress made by Canterbury New Zealand 1 in moving from a situation in the mid-2000s when the main acute hospital was regularly 'gridlocked' with no possibility of affording additional capacity, to one where there is an extensive system of care coordination across hospital, community, social and primary care.As a result, emergency medical admissions, lengths of stay and readmissions have fallen appreciably.This raises two important questions: how was this achieved; and what can the English NHS learn from Canterbury, given the strong similarities between the two countries' systems? What did Canterbury do?From the mid-2000s, Canterbury District Health Board (which is the statutory local funder of health and social care, and also the manager of hospital and some community health services) began a process to persuade local health professionals and public that provision in the district was financially and clinically unsustainable.The DHB argued that it needed to plan for the coming 20 years on the basis of 'one system and one budget', transcending the usual organisational and financial divisions.New strategic goals and principles were agreed locally, in particular, to deliver 'the right care, in the right place, at the right time by the right person'.
18F-FLT PET Imaging in a Patient With Sarcoidosis With Cardiac Involvement
Authors: Takashi Norikane, Yuka Yamamoto, Yukito Maeda, Takahisa Noma, Yoshihiro Nishiyama
Journal: Clinical Nuclear Medicine (2014)

FDG PET has been proposed to play a role in the diagnosis and therapy monitoring of sarcoidosis including cardiac involvement. However, assessing inflammatory lesions in cardiac sarcoidosis using FDG can be challenging because the FDG accumulates in normal myocardium. We report a case of sarcoidosis with cardiac involvement that underwent 3'-deoxy-3'-F-fluorothymidine (FLT) PET. FLT PET images demonstrated increased uptake in the lymph nodes and left ventricle. After immunosuppressive therapy, a follow-up PET scan showed disappearance of FLT uptake in the lymph nodes and left ventricle.