tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Focus on High-Risk DTC Patients
Authors: Arnoldo Piccardo, Federico Arecco, Matteo Puntoni, Luca Foppiani, Manlio Cabria, Stefania Corvisieri, Anselmo Arlandini, Vania Altrinetti, Roberto Bandelloni, Fabio Orlandi
Journal: Clinical Nuclear Medicine (2012)

No parameters predicting recurrence are available for high-risk differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients, and 2-year-follow-up is required to modify the initial prognostic classification. High thyroglobulin (Tg) levels before ¹³¹I-remnant-ablation, during L-thyroxine-withdrawal (ablation-Tg) have undetermined predictive/prognostic significance in low-risk DTC patients. Our study aimed to assess the positive predictive value (PPV) of ablation-Tg in high-risk DTC patients and to evaluate whether high ablation-Tg levels were associated with progression-free-survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).We selected 243 high-risk DTC patients. All patients underwent total thyroidectomy and ¹³¹I-remnant-ablation (initial therapy). Clinical data obtained during a median 5-year follow-up were used to assess the response and outcome. The association between disease persistence/recurrence after initial therapy, ablation-Tg, and other risk-factors (T, N, G, histology, and MACIS score) was evaluated through univariate and multivariate analyses, as was the association between PFS, OS ablation-Tg, and other risk factors.Ablation-Tg of 50 μg/L or greater displayed the highest PPV(97%) for disease persistence. In the univariate analysis, high levels of ablation-Tg were confirmed in patients with persistent disease after initial therapy: the higher the odds ratios, the higher the ablation-Tg levels. On multivariate analysis, ablation-Tg was the best predictive factor, especially on comparing patients with ablation-Tg levels of 50 μg/L or greater and those with ablation-Tg less than 2 μg/L (adjusted OR, 818). In a multivariate Cox model, ablation-Tg was the factor most closely associated with PFS (HR, 65.9). The prognostic value of ablation-Tg was confirmed by the overall-survival curves and adjusted risk estimates (adjusted HR=26.7).Ablation-Tg levels of 50 μg/L or greater are a valuable initial predictor of disease persistence/recurrence in high-risk DTC patients. A significant association emerged between high ablation-Tg levels of 50 μg/L or greater and both progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).
Mycophenolate mofetil may serve as a steroid-sparing agent for sarcoidosis
Authors: D.J. Kouba, D. Mimouni, A. Rencic, H.C. Nousari
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2003)

Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease with potentially severe mucocutaneous manifestations. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is an immunosuppressive drug extensively used in organ transplantation. Its use has been rapidly expanded into autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. We report the first successful and safe use of MMF in five patients with sarcoidosis.
Paediatric neurologist's suspension may affect 50 birth damage cases in which he was an expert witness
Authors: C. Dyer
Journal: BMJ (2015)

Dozens of High Court cases involving birth damage have been thrown into disarray by the suspension of a leading consultant paediatric neurologist who was exposed by a Sunday newspaper as apparently taking cocaine and the “clubbers’ drug” gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB).

Colin Ferrie, 51, was one of the most sought after expert witnesses in such cases, having acted for claimants and for the NHS Litigation Authority, which represents NHS trusts. “He was very much liked and everybody wanted him on their side,” said one lawyer, who estimated that “at least 50” cases would be affected.

In early January the Mail on Sunday ran video footage allegedly showing Ferrie taking the drugs. The newspaper quoted a switchboard operator at Leeds General Infirmary, where he worked, as confirming just over an hour later that …
Effectiveness of Drug Therapy in Hypertension: Present Status
Authors: E. D. FREIS
Journal: Circulation Research (1971)

Progress in the development of effective antihypertensive agents is briefly reviewed. Evidence that drug treatment reduces the incidence of major complications is presented. The recently completed controlled trial carried out in Veterans Administration hospitals indicates that in men with diastolic blood pressure levels of 90 through 114 mm Hg the risk of developing a morbid event over a five-year period was reduced from 55% to 18% by treatment. The degree of benefit was proportional to the risk, which in turn was related directly to the level of blood pressure.
Limited maximal vasodilator capacity of forearm resistance vessels in normotensive young men with a familial predisposition to hypertension.
Authors: A Takeshita, T Imaizumi, T Ashihara, K Yamamoto, S Hoka, M Nakamura
Journal: Circulation Research (1982)

The study was performed to determine whether there is a structural vascular abnormality in normotensive subjects with hypertensive relatives. We examined maximal vasodilator capacity of forearm resistance vessels in 23 normotensive young men (mean blood pressure 94 +/- 0.4 mm Hg, mean +/- SE) with hypertensive relatives (age 24 +/- 0.1 years) and in 17 normotensive subjects (mean blood pressure 85 +/- 0.4 mm Hg) with no family history of hypertension (age 24 +/- 0.1 years). Maximal vasodilator capacity was examined by measuring minimal vascular resistance during peak reactive hyperemia after release from 10 minutes of arterial occlusion. Minimal forearm vascular resistance after release from 10 minutes of arterial occlusion was 25% higher (P less than 0.02) in subjects with hypertensive relatives (2.0 +/- 0.02 units) than that in subjects with no family history (1.5 +/- 0.01) units. We confirmed the previous findings that increasing metabolic vasodilator stimulus by performing intermittent handgrip exercise during 10 minutes of arterial occlusion did not augment peak dilation. This suggests that 10 minutes of arterial occlusion produced maximal vasodilation. Forearm vascular responses to ice on the forehead was greater in subjects with hypertensive relatives than those in subjects with no family history. These results suggest that there may be a structural abnormality in the forearm resistance vessels in normotensive subjects with family history of hypertension.
Cross-sectional echocardiography in assessing the severity of valvular aortic stenosis.
Authors: A E Weyman, H Feigebaum, J C Dillon, S Chang
Journal: Circulation (1975)

Real-time, cross-sectional echocardiograms were recorded in 28 consecutive adult patients with valvular aortic stenosis using a high resolution, mechanical sector scanner. Using the cross-sectional technique, the aortic valve orifice diameter was recorded in each of the 28 patients. With M-mode echocardiographic examination of these same patients, this value could be estimated in only 21 of these 28 patients (75%). The maximum aortic valve diameter recorded during the cross-sectional study averaged 7.9 +/- 1.8 mm (range 4-11 mm) in 15 patients with severe aortic stenosis; 11.6 +/- 2.3 mm (range 9-15 mm) in five patients with moderate aortic stenosis; 16.9 +/- 2.0 mm (range 14-20 mm) in eight patients with mild aortic stenosis; and 20.5 +/- 2.8 mm (range 15-26 mm) in 25 patients with no evidence of aortic valve disease. Comparing the means of these groups yielded the following: severe vs moderate P less than 0.005; moderate vs mild P less than 0.001; and mild vs normal P less than 0.001. Although there was some overlap between the individual groups, a clear separation existed between patients with severe and mild aortic stenosis. In addition, the group of patients in whom surgical intervention was recommended was also separated from the other subjects. When the aortic valve orifice was recorded using the M-mode technique, there was also a good correlation with the severity of the stenosis; however, the tendency of the M-mode study to overestimate severity in individual patients with calcific aortic stenosis and to underestimate severity in congenital aortic stenosis was again demonstrated. This study suggests that real-time, high resolution, cross-sectional echocardiography should be valuable in the noninvasive assessment of patients with aortic stenosis.
Severe hypodysfibrinogenemia in compound heterozygotes of the fibrinogen AαIVS4 + 1G&amp;gt;T mutation and an AαGln328 truncation (fibrinogen Keokuk)
Authors: Phil Lefebvre, Pauline T. Velasco, Amy Dear, Karim C. Lounes, Susan T. Lord, Stephen O. Brennan, David Green, Laszlo Lorand
Journal: Blood (2003)
STUDIES ON TYPHUS FEVER
Authors: Hans Zinsser, M. Ruiz Castaneda
Journal: The Journal of Experimental Medicine (1934)

Under uniform diet conditions the normal bile fistula dog will eliminate pretty constant amounts of cholesterol-about 0.5 to 1.0 mg. cholesterol per kilo per 24 hours. Diets rich in cholesterol (egg yolk) will raise the cholesterol output in the bile but compared to the diet intake (1.5 gm. cholesterol) the output increase in the bile is trivial (5-15 mg.). Calves' brains in the diet are inert. Bile salt alone will raise the cholesterol output in the bile as much and often more than a cholesterol rich diet. Bile salt plus egg yolk plus whole bile give maximal output figures for bile cholesterol-60 mg. per 24 hours. Liver injury (chloroform) decreases both bile salt and cholesterol elimination in the bile. Blood destruction (hydrazine) fails to increase the bile cholesterol output and this eliminates the red cell stroma as an important contributing factor. Certain cholagogues (isatin and decholin) will increase the bile flow but cause no change in cholesterol elimination. The ratio of cholesterol to bile salt in the bile normally is about 1 to 100 but the bile salts are more labile in their fluctuations. The ratio is about reversed in the circulating blood plasma where the cholesterol is high (150-300 mg. per cent) and the bile salt concentration very low. Cholesterol runs so closely parallel to bile salt in the bile that one may feel confident of a physical relationship. In addition there is a suspicion that the bile cholesterol is in some obscure fashion linked with the physiological activity of hepatic epithelium.
Identification of two mutations in human xanthine dehydrogenase gene responsible for classical type I xanthinuria.
Authors: K Ichida, Y Amaya, N Kamatani, T Nishino, T Hosoya, O Sakai
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (1997)

Hereditary xanthinuria is classified into three categories. Classical xanthinuria type I lacks only xanthine dehydrogenase activity, while type II and molybdenum cofactor deficiency also lack one or two additional enzyme activities. In the present study, we examined four individuals with classical xanthinuria to discover the cause of the enzyme deficiency at the molecular level. One subject had a C to T base substitution at nucleotide 682 that should cause a CGA (Arg) to TGA (Ter) nonsense substitution at codon 228. The duodenal mucosa from the subject had no xanthine dehydrogenase protein while the mRNA level was not reduced. The two subjects who were siblings with type I xanthinuria were homozygous concerning this mutation, while another subject was found to contain the same mutation in a heterozygous state. The last subject who was also with type I xanthinuria had a deletion of C at nucleotide 2567 in cDNA that should generate a termination codon from nucleotide 2783. This subject was homozygous for the mutation and the level of mRNA in the duodenal mucosa from the subject was not reduced. Thus, in three subjects with type I xanthinuria, the primary genetic defects were confirmed to be in the xanthine dehydrogenase gene.
A Case of Klippel-Feil Syndrome
Authors: D. Latto
Journal: BMJ (1942)

Full-term Abdominal Pregnancy with Survival of Mother and ChildThe following is the history of this unusual case.M. M., aged 31, para 1 in 1931, which was a normal delivery of a stillborn child of 82 lb., came to the ante-natal clinic on June 30.1941.She was in good health and her pregnancy apparently normal.Her last period was early in November, 1940, and the approximate date for delivery was the middle of August, 1941.Her external pelvic measurements were normal, the urine contained nothing abnormal, and her blood pressure was 135/165.The presentation was 'a transverse with the head in the right iliac fossa.She had no past history of any disease, pelvic pain, or menstrual disorder.She was seen thrice at weekly intervals after her first visit, and each time the lie of the foetus was transverse with the head in the' right iliac fossa.She was otherwise normal on these occasions.She was admitted to hospital on July 26, at 10.45 a.m., complaining of pain in the right iliac fossa.There was no history of a "show."On examining her I made the following observations:Transverse lie, head to the right.Foetal heart sounds were heard and were normal.Vaginal examination revealed: (I) Cervix-external os patulous, internal os closed tightly.The
Predictors of Successful Prompted Voiding Among Incontinent Nursing Home Residents
Authors: Joseph G. Ouslander
Journal: JAMA (1995)

To develop a simple, noninvasive assessment strategy that will enable nursing home staff to identify incontinent residents who respond well to prompted voiding.Incontinent nursing home residents underwent an extensive clinical and functional assessment and then 7 days of prompted voiding. Data from the assessment and the first 3 days of prompted voiding were used to predict responsiveness to the intervention.Seven nursing homes.A cohort of 191 incontinent, long-stay nursing home residents who passed a simple behavioral screen (able to state their name or reliably point to one of two named objects).Prompted voiding was carried out by trained research nurse's aides from 7 AM to 7 PM for 7 days. The intervention was maintained in responsive residents 5 days per week for an additional 9 weeks.Physical checks for wetness were done by research staff hourly from 7 AM to 7 PM for 3 days in a baseline condition, during days 5 through 7 of the 7-day prompted voiding intervention, and for 3 days at the end of 9 weeks of prompted voiding in the responsive group. Outcome measures were percentage of checks wet and response to prompted voiding, with "responders" defined as residents with an average of one or fewer wet episode per day on days 5 through 7 of prompted voiding.Seventy-eight (41%) of the residents were responders. Their wet percentage went from 26.7% to 6.4% at the end of 1 week and was maintained at 9.6% after 9 weeks of prompted voiding. The best predictors of responsiveness were the wet percentage and the appropriate toileting percentage during the first 3 days of prompted voiding, the self-care subscale score of the Multidimensional Observational Scale for the Elderly, and the ability to ambulate without human assistance. The best sensitivity and specificity in identifying responders was achieved when either the wet percentage was lower than 20% or the appropriate toileting percentage was higher than 66% during the first 3 days of prompted voiding (sensitivity, 87%; specificity, 69%). Those residents falsely identified as responders by these criteria still had a 46% relative reduction in wetness.A substantial proportion of nursing home residents respond well to prompted voiding. The most responsive residents can be easily identified using data collected during a 3-day trial of the intervention. The assessment strategy is consistent with federal guidelines and could be used to facilitate quality control by assessing changes in percentage of wetness from the expected norm.
Hybrid Transvaginal Nephrectomy
Authors: Anibal W. Branco, Alcides J. Branco Filho, William Kondo, Rafael W. Noda, Nilton Kawahara, Affonso A.H. Camargo, Luciano C. Stunitz, Jarbas Valente, Marlon Rangel
Journal: European Urology (2007)
The effect of beta2-adrenoceptor haplotypes on bronchial hyper-responsiveness in patients with asthma
Authors: A. M. Wilson, R. D. Gray, I. P. Hall, B. J. Lipworth
Journal: Allergy (2006)

The beta2-adrenoceptor exhibits genetic polymorphism which may be clinically relevant in terms of treatment response or bronchial hyper-responsiveness (BHR). The combined effect of these genotypes, or the haplotype, has not been fully characterized in terms of BHR.We performed a retrospective analysis of the effects of haplotypes of amino acid substitution at position 16 (Gly/Arg) and position 27 (Gln/Glu) on spirometry and BHR to methacholine and adenosine monophosphate (AMP) in 594 asthmatic patients.There was a significant (P < 0.05) overall effect for forced expiratory volume (FEV(1)) but not after correction for steroid dose and atopic status. There were no significant differences for BHR to methacholine or AMP between the different haplotypes and no difference between the numbers of patients with or without clinically relevant BHR. Methacholine PD20 geometric mean-fold difference was 1.63 (95% CI: 0.95-2.80) between Arg-Arg/Gln-Gln and Gly-Gly/Gln-Gln and 1.26 (95% CI: 0.75-2.11) between Gly-Gly/Gln-Gln and Gly-Gly/Glu-Glu.The degree of BHR to indirect and direct stimuli does not differ between beta2-adrenoceptor haplotypes, and haplotypes cannot be used to predict BHR in patients presenting with asthma. Although beta2-adrenoceptor haplotypes do not predict BHR they may be important in predicting response to bronchodilator therapy.
Is ECT Imaging with Tc(V)-99m Dimercaptosuccinic Acid Useful to Detect Lung Metastases of Osteosarcoma?
Authors: HITOYA OHTA, MASAO ISHII, MASAYUKI YOSHIZUMI, KEIGO ENDO, TORU FUJITA, TETSUO NAKAJIMA, HARUMI SAKAHARA, KANJI TORIZUKA, YOSHIHIKO KOTOURA, AKIRA YOKOYAMA, KAYOKO HIGUCHI
Journal: Clinical Nuclear Medicine (1985)

ECT imaging, using Tc(V)-99m dimercaptosuccinic acid [Tc(V)-DMS] was performed in two patients with lung metastasis of osteosarcoma, and the results were compared with those of CT scan. Clear accumulation of Tc(V)-DMS was recognized in all cases in the same area that CT scans demonstrated. Tc(V)-DMS was labeled under optimal pH 8, had very low SnCl2 concentrations, an equilibrium between a stable form and a dissociated form of anion TcO43− structurally similar to PO43−, and was postulated for tumor uptake. Considering this proposed mechanism for Tc(V)-DMS uptake by tumor cells, ECT imaging using this tracer could be of use in the early detection of lung metastasis of osteosarcoma.
Use of sodium cephalothin in the management of lung gangrene
Authors: B. T. Le Roux
Journal: Thorax (1971)

Thirty-one of 256 cases of chronic destructive pneumonia who were judged, by the severity of illness and haemoptysis, to have lung gangrene, were managed with intravenous sodium cephalothin. Five patients died, two in relation to emergency pneumonectomy. In comparison with results of management of this disease in previous, similar patients, the results are encouraging.
Response to Yang and Chan. Metformin and the Risk of Cancer: Time-Related Biases in Observational Studies. Diabetes Care 2012;35:2665–2673
Authors: Samy Suissa, Laurent Azoulay
Journal: Diabetes Care (2013)

In the comment by Bodmer et al. (1), the authors question our assertion that several of their studies suffered from time-window bias (2). Perhaps there are subtleties about this bias that need to be further clarified.

In the authors’ breast cancer study (3), cases and controls were matched on age, sex (although all females), general practice, and index date (i.e., the calendar date of the breast cancer diagnosis). However, there was no matching on time since diabetes diagnosis or since the first prescription for an oral hypoglycemic agent. Not matching on this entry point can result in artificially different exposure patterns between cases and controls (a patient with 5 years’ diabetes …
The Process of Peer Review of Scientific Manuscripts
Authors: Elaine Williams
Journal: JAMA (1988)

Much has been said and written about the peer review process for scientific journals. A simple search of the MEDIS database reveals 435 articles that contain the term "peer review." The first International Congress on Peer Review in Biomedical Publication, sponsored by the American Medical Association and to be held in 1989 in Chicago,<sup>1</sup>will delve into the effectiveness of this process extensively. But there is another side to the peer review process. The administration of a peer review file and its daily use for reviewing manuscripts is complicated.<sup>2</sup>Management of such a large body of data has been made somewhat easier through computerization. Our peer reviewer file and manuscript processing procedures were converted from paper to electronics in 1988 through a difficult and tedious process. The file of nearly 6000 reviewer names, addresses, and relevant information is now available on a computer database. When a manuscript arrives
Enhanced anti-fibrotic activity of plasmid DNA expressing small interference RNA for TGF-β type II receptor for a mouse model of obstructive nephropathy by cationized gelatin prepared from different amine compounds
Authors: Toshihiro Kushibiki, Natsuki Nagata-Nakajima, Manabu Sugai, Akira Shimizu, Yasuhiko Tabata
Journal: Journal of Controlled Release (2005)
Motility study in right sided diverticular disease of the colon.
Authors: K Sugihara, T Muto, Y Morioka
Journal: Gut (1983)

Intraluminal pressure in the ascending colon of 13 patients with right sided diverticular disease and 10 of normal subjects was studied with catheter-tip transducer inserted through colonoscopes. In the resting state the colonic motility index of patients with diverticular disease was greater than that of the controls. After intravenous injection of neostigmine methylsulphate higher pressure waves were more frequently observed in patients with diverticular disease than the controls, and the colonic motility index of patients was much greater than that of the controls with statistical significance. From these observations it is suggested that high intraluminal pressure and the abnormal motility in the ascending colon plays an important role in the pathogenesis of right sided diverticular disease.
Induction of monocyte expression of tumor necrosis factor alpha by the 30-kD alpha antigen of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and synergism with fibronectin.
Authors: H Aung, Z Toossi, J J Wisnieski, R S Wallis, L A Culp, N B Phillips, M Phillips, L E Averill, T M Daniel, J J Ellner
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (1996)

Native 30-kD antigen, also known as alpha antigen, is a fibronectin-binding protein that is secreted by live Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This antigen may play an important biological role in the host-parasite interaction since it elicits delayed type hypersensitivity response and protective immunity in vivo and T lymphocyte blastogenesis and IFN-gamma production in vitro. In the present study, we show that, TNF-alpha protein is produced in monocyte culture supernatants in response to 30-kD antigen and the level is as high as that to purified protein derivative of M. tuberculosis. This stimulatory effect was not due to contamination with either bacterial lipopolysaccharide or mycobacterial lipoarabinomannan. The preincubation of monocytes with plasma fibronectin significantly enhanced the release of TNF-alpha into the culture supernatants in response to 30-kD antigen. This effect was blocked by polygonal antibody to plasma fibronectin. In contrast, the monocytic cell line U937 failed to release TNF-alpha protein in the culture supernatants in response to 30-kD antigen with or without preincubation with plasma fibronectin. To determine whether this observation was due to differential binding of the 30-kD to fibronectin on these cells, a cell based ELISA was used. Pretreatment of monocytes with fibronectin enhanced their binding of the 30-kD antigen. U937 cells bound the 30-kD antigen weakly with or without fibronectin pretreatment. These results indicate that 30-kD antigen which is a known secretary antigen of M. tuberculosis is a stimulus for human monocytes to express TNF-alpha and that stimulatory effect may be mediated through plasma fibronectin.