tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Messengers of Paradise: Opiates and the Brain: The Struggle Over Pain, Rage, Uncertainty, and Addiction
Authors: Rick J. Strassman
Journal: JAMA (1988)

This short and concise book is a result of a New York Academy of Sciences project charged with disseminating recent advances in science to the public. It is about endorphins, the endogenous opioid peptides whose discovery followed close on the heels of the demonstration of mammalian opiate receptors in the early to middle 1970s. The author's premise is that endorphins provide man with the specifically human qualities of creativity, love, and other behaviors "that have gradually freed the human species from the constraints of its biological evolution" (p ix). Part I, "The Endorphin Story," includes informative chapters on the ancient history of opium use by the Greeks, Egyptians, Romans, and Arabs. The more recent history of opium and semisynthetic and synthetic opiate use in England, China, and America is also detailed. The evolution of the mammalian brain is then described, with particular reference to MacLean's theory of the "triune brain,"
Necessity to Measure PCBs and Organochlorine Pesticide Concentrations in Human Umbilical Cords for Fetal Exposure Assessment
Authors: Hideki Fukata, Mariko Omori, Hisao Osada, Emiko Todaka, Chisato Mori
Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives (2004)

Three types of tissue samples—umbilical cord (UC), umbilical cord serum (CS), and maternal serum (MS)—have often been used to assess fetal exposure to chemicals. In order to know the relationship of contamination between mothers and fetuses, we measured persistent chemicals in comparable sets of the three tissue samples. Also, we analyzed the association between the chemicals in maternal and fetal tissues to know which tissue is the best sample for fetal exposure assessment. On a wet basis, the chemical concentrations were of the order MS > CS > UC, except for some chemicals such as cis-chlordane and endosulfan. On a lipid basis, the concentrations in UC were nearly equal or often higher than in MS, but the concentrations in CS were usually lower than in others. Hexachlorocyclohexanes and penta-, hexa-, and heptachlorinated biphenyls showed an association between the concentrations in UC versus MS, and UC versus CS. These chemicals also showed high correlation coefficients between the chemical concentrations in UC of first babies and maternal age. These chemicals were closely related to each other when grouped on the basis of their concentrations using cluster analysis. In conclusion, we insist that UC is the best sample to assess fetal contamination status of persistent chemicals. There is a possibility that the assessment based on the contamination levels in CS result in an underestimation.
Fibroblast growth factor 23 accelerates phosphate-induced vascular calcification in the absence of Klotho deficiency
Authors: Rika Jimbo, Fumiko Kawakami-Mori, Shengyu Mu, Daigoro Hirohama, Bohumil Majtan, Yuichiro Shimizu, Yutaka Yatomi, Seiji Fukumoto, Toshiro Fujita, Tatsuo Shimosawa
Journal: Kidney International (2013)
Bariatric Surgery in Patients With Morbid Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Guntram Schernthaner, John M. Morton
Journal: Diabetes Care (2008)

There is an epidemic of obesity throughout the developed and much of the developing world (1–3). Obesity, typically measured as BMI ≥30 kg/m2, has three subclasses: obesity 1 (30–34.9 kg/m2); obesity 2 (35–39.9 kg/m2); and extreme obesity (>40 kg/m2). Extreme or morbid obesity is rapidly increasing in the U.S. and may have the potential of decreasing life expectancy. From 1986 to 2000, the prevalence of BMI >30 kg/m2 doubled, whereas that of BMI ≥40 kg/m2 quadrupled, and even extreme obesity of BMI ≥50 kg/m2 increased fivefold (2). Of particular concern is the alarming increasing prevalence of obesity among children (1), suggesting that the epidemic will worsen before it improves. Epidemiologic studies have demonstrated that increasing BMI is a causative factor in many life-threatening comorbidities, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. BMI has been established as an independent risk factor for premature mortality (4). Obesity is a major independent risk factor for the development of type 2 diabetes and is associated with the rapid increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes (3). In the U.S., the majority diagnosed with type 2 diabetes are overweight, with 50% obese (i.e., BMI >30 kg/m2) and 9% morbidly obese (BMI >40 kg/m2) (5). This twin epidemic of obesity and diabetes carries severe consequence for premature mortality (6).

Lifestyle intervention programs with diet therapy, behavior modification, exercise programs, and pharmacotherapy are widely used in various combinations. Unfortunately, with extremely rare exceptions (7), clinically significant weight loss is generally very modest and transient, particularly in patients with severe obesity. In a recently published study (8), 80 adults with mild to moderate obesity (BMI 30–35 kg/m2) were randomized to nonsurgical intervention (very-low-calorie diet, orlistat, and lifestyle change) or to surgical intervention …
Hepatitis B surface antigen: Relation to hepatitis B replication parameters in HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B
Authors: Emanuel K. Manesis, George V. Papatheodoridis, Dina G. Tiniakos, Emilia S. Hadziyannis, Olga P. Agelopoulou, Thalia Syminelaki, Christos Papaioannou, Theodoros Nastos, Peter Karayiannis
Journal: Journal of Hepatology (2010)
Generalized pustular psoriasis (von Zumbusch) responding to cyclosporin A
Authors: M.M.H.M. MEINARDI, W. WESTERHOF, J.D. BOS
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (1987)

A 49-year-old patient developed generalized pustular psoriasis after tapering off the methotrexate therapy he had been receiving for severe psoriasis and arthralgia. Treatment with cyclosporin A produced a dramatic reduction of the cutaneous lesions and the joint symptoms.
Genetic inactivation of the polycomb repressive complex 2 in T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Authors: Panagiotis Ntziachristos, Aristotelis Tsirigos, Pieter Van Vlierberghe, Jelena Nedjic, Thomas Trimarchi, Maria Sol Flaherty, Dolors Ferres-Marco, Vanina da Ros, Zuojian Tang, Jasmin Siegle, Patrik Asp, Michael Hadler, Isaura Rigo, Kim De Keersmaecker, Jay Patel, Tien Huynh, Filippo Utro, Sandrine Poglio, Jeremy B Samon, Elisabeth Paietta, Janis Racevskis, Jacob M Rowe, Raul Rabadan, Ross L Levine, Stuart Brown, Francoise Pflumio, Maria Dominguez, Adolfo Ferrando, Iannis Aifantis
Journal: Nature Medicine (2012)
Treating Histologically Mild Chronic Hepatitis C: Monotherapy, Combination Therapy, or Tincture of Time?
Authors: Robert A. Levine
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1998)

The recent National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference on hepatitis C solidified the justification for a selective approach to treatment.Nevertheless, the high profile of chronic hepatitis C has led to a sense of urgency about treating "all-comers" and thus has caused the variable natural history of this disease to be overlooked. The debate about whom to treat has failed to focus attention on the alternative approach of waiting for better emerging therapies for the subset of patients with histologically mild chronic hepatitis C. Practitioners should be more confident about postponing treatment in less symptomatic patients if liver biopsy specimens show no more than grade 1 necroinflammatory activity or stage 1 fibrosis. Patients with these lesions, in the absence of clinical signs of advancing disease, are much less likely than patients with higher grades or stages to progress to cirrhosis. A "cure" for chronic hepatitis C remains elusive.End points of treatment depend on the achievement of sustained clearance of serum hepatitis C virus RNA, which is influenced, in turn, by the patient's viral replication and immune balance. Treatment of histologically mild chronic hepatitis C may ultimately mimic that of HIV infection.
Sexual problems in disorders of the nervous system. I. Anatomical and physiological aspects.
Authors: J R Silver
Journal: BMJ (1975)

One of the most distressing aspects of chronic diseases of the nervous system is the loss or impairment of bladder, bowel, and sexual function. Patients are often willing to accept that they have lost the use of their legs, but it is the loss of social accep tability caused by the dysfunction of bladder and bowel, resulting in incontinence of urine and faeces, that causes them the most unhappiness. There are many published works on how the bowels and bladder may be managed, but there is a dearth of information on the sexual aspects. To deal adequately with the subject it is best to discuss, firstly, those patients who are likely. to be affected, secondly, the anatomy and physiology of the sexual act and its impairment in men and women with chronic diseases of the nervous system, and, thirdly, the practical aspects of intercourse, marriage, and pregnancy and labour.
Normal Production of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin in Menopause
Authors: Laurence A. Cole, Yasushi Sasaki, Carolyn Y. Muller
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (2007)

To the Editor: A positive test for the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) before menopause is an indication of pregnancy.1 A positive hCG test in menopausal women poses a diagnostic cha...
Left ventricular passive diastolic properties in chronic mitral regurgitation.
Authors: W J Corin, T Murakami, E S Monrad, O M Hess, H P Krayenbuehl
Journal: Circulation (1991)

BACKGROUND In chronic mitral regurgitation, the myocardium responds to the increased filling volume by geometric alteration and eccentric hypertrophy. This study was designed to evaluate the effects of a pure volume overload on left ventricular diastolic chamber and myocardial properties and to assess the relation of passive diastolic function to systolic ejection performance. METHODS AND RESULTS By use of simultaneous cineangiography and left ventricular micromanometry, left ventricular passive diastolic stiffness was evaluated in nine normal controls (group 1), 14 patients with chronic mitral regurgitation and a normal ejection fraction (greater than or equal to 57%, group 2), and 13 patients with mitral regurgitation and a reduced ejection fraction (less than 57%, group 3). Passive diastolic function was evaluated by using a three-constant elastic model. Left ventricular chamber properties were represented by the relation of pressure to volume; myocardial properties were evaluated by relating myocardial midwall stress to midwall strain. The constant of left ventricular chamber stiffness was decreased in group 2 compared with controls (p less than 0.05) but it was normal in group 3. The constant of myocardial stiffness was increased in group 3 compared with groups 1 and 2 (p less than 0.01). Among patients with mitral regurgitation, there was a significant inverse relation between ejection fraction and the constant of myocardial stiffness (r = -0.83). CONCLUSIONS The chronic adaptation to volume overload in chronic mitral regurgitation tends to decrease left ventricular chamber stiffness. Patients with mitral regurgitation and a depressed ejection fraction demonstrated diastolic myocardial dysfunction. Compromised diastolic function in patients with chronic mitral regurgitation and reduced systolic performance may contribute to the clinical manifestations of congestive heart failure.
Social Change and Patient Ethology
Authors: Emil P. Taxay
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (1977)

The public debate devoted to the medical malpractice situation and NHI has left little media time or space for discussion of another issue that will ultimately have a greater effect on the type of medical care available in this country.I suggest that the former two issues derive from the problem cited below and that all three have their origin in the same social, economic and cultural changes. I predict that future social historians will arrive at this conclusion because these seemingly unrelated events have communal origins.A society that emphasizes universal suffrage, a fixed minimal level of education, a . . .
Intracoronary endothelin-1 increases coronary retrograde pressure by constricting arterioles
Authors: K. Fukuda, S. Hori, M. Kusuhara, T. Satoh, S. Kyotani, S. Inoue, H. Ohno, K. Yamaguchi, S. Handa, Y. Nakamura
Journal: Cardiovascular Research (1990)

Study objective – The aim was to determine the site of coronary vasoconstriction induced by endothelin, by investigating the response in terms of retrograde pressure and reactive hyperaemia.
Prognostic nomogram and index for overall survival in previously untreated patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia
Authors: William G. Wierda, Susan O'Brien, Xuemei Wang, Stefan Faderl, Alessandra Ferrajoli, Kim-Anh Do, Jorge Cortes, Deborah Thomas, Guillermo Garcia-Manero, Charles Koller, Miloslav Beran, Francis Giles, Farhad Ravandi, Susan Lerner, Hagop Kantarjian, Michael Keating
Journal: Blood (2007)
A Woman's Guide to the Prevention, Detection, and Treatment of Cancer
Authors: Yeu-Tsu Margaret Lee
Journal: JAMA (1986)

The goal of this book is to inform women about the symptoms, risk factors, detection, diagnosis, and treatment of the most common cancers. The author, a cancer specialist and surgeon at a renowned cancer hospital, speaks as one woman to another. She wrote this book with three groups in mind: those who have cancer, those who undergo evaluation, and the relatives and friends of cancer patients. The title specifies a "woman's guide," but, since almost all types of cancers except those that develop only in men (such as cancers of the prostate, testis, etc) are presented, the book should be of interest to men as well. The strength of this book lies not only in its comprehensive coverage of cancers of the breast and gynecologic organs, but also in its explanations of all types of cancers with situations familiar to women and descriptions of diagnostic and therapeutic effects of particular
Topics in Gastroenterology
Authors: M. Langman
Journal: Gut (1979)

held on the campus of the University of Surrey on 18-21 September, with Dr C. C. Booth as President.This was the first meeting to start on Tuesday and end on Friday, and probably the last at which BSG and BSDE functioned as independent Socie- ties.Dr Klaus Schiller and his band of helpers are to be congratulated on the efficiency, friendliness, and imperturbability of their organisation and also on an entertaining and varied social pro- gramme.The banquet was outstanding.The scientific sessions, preceded by a teaching half-day, were supported by meetings of specialised groups representing hepatology, histopathology, and radiology.Altogether 178 papers were presented to the BSG and BSDE and additional work was discussed with the aid of posters.The Nobel Prize winner, Professor B. S. Blumberg, traced the history of the discovery of the Australia antigen before a capacity audience.
The effects of exercise training on abdominal visceral fat, body composition, and indicators of the metabolic syndrome in postmenopausal women with and without estrogen replacement therapy: The HERITAGE family study
Authors: John S. Green, Philip R. Stanforth, Tuomo Rankinen, Arthur S. Leon, D.C. Rao, James S. Skinner, Claude Bouchard, Jack H. Wilmore
Journal: Metabolism (2004)
Bad medicine: chlamydia
Authors: Des Spence
Journal: BMJ (2010)

Health promotion messages often stitch together mismatching research. Then, given two million volts of advertising, the facts take on artificial life. This is the story of chlamydia, facts marauding through the columns of magazines, using fear to sell print copy. The horror story is that chlamydia inevitably causes infertility—a terrible monster. So my time is spent reassuring young women that it doesn’t. But there is always dissonance: they are never reassured, and their eyes smoulder with recrimination.

Here is the case for chlamydia screening. Infection rates are exploding, more than doubling in a decade. …
Concepts in the Prevention of Adenocarcinoma of the Distal Esophagus and Proximal Stomach
Authors: R. F. Souza, S. J. Spechler
Journal: CA A Cancer Journal for Clinicians (2005)

For decades, the incidence rates for squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus and adenocarcinoma of the distal stomach have been declining while the rates for adenocarcinomas of the esophagus and gastric cardia have increased profoundly. Recent studies have shown that the gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) is regularly exposed to concentrated gastric acid and to a variety of nitrosating species, noxious agents that may contribute to carcinogenesis in this region. For adenocarcinomas that straddle the GEJ, it can be difficult to determine whether the tumor originated in the esophagus or in the gastric cardia. This classification problem hampers studies on the epidemiology and pathogenesis of GEJ tumors. Current concepts in the prevention of cancers of the distal esophagus and proximal stomach have emerged from advances in our understanding of the specific molecular events that occur during the evolution of these tumors. This report reviews those events and focuses on current concepts in the prevention of adenocarcinomas at the GEJ. The similarities and differences in risk factors, molecular pathogenesis, and in preventive strategies for adenocarcinomas of the esophagus and gastric cardia are highlighted.
The Thyroid Nodule
Authors: Laszlo Hegedüs
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (2004)

A 42-year-old woman presents with a palpable mass on the left side of her neck. She has no neck pain and no symptoms of thyroid dysfunction. Physical examination reveals a solitary, mobile thyroid nodule, 2 cm by 3 cm, without lymphadenopathy. The patient has no family history of thyroid disease and no history of external irradiation. Which investigations should be performed? Assuming that the nodule is benign, which, if any, treatment should be recommended?
Patients who use acute mental health services in England feel let down, survey shows
Authors: Z. Kmietowicz
Journal: BMJ (2009)

A large proportion of patients who accessed acute mental health services in England say they felt let down in some important aspect of the care they received, a survey from the health services watchdog has found.

More than half of the 7500 people who responded to the survey from the Care Quality Commission said they at times felt unsafe while in hospital, two thirds said they were not as involved as they wanted to be in their care and treatment, and more than a third complained there were too few activities during their stay. The patients were asked to give their views of the care they received in 64 NHS trusts across England in 2008 soon after they were discharged.

The survey also found that most patients (86%) reported having physical …
Inhibition of thrombus formation by activated recombinant protein C in a primate model of arterial thrombosis.
Authors: A Gruber, S R Hanson, A B Kelly, B S Yan, N Bang, J H Griffin, L A Harker
Journal: Circulation (1990)

Activated protein C (APC) is an antithrombotic enzyme. The therapeutic potential of infused human recombinant APC (rAPC) was studied in a primate model of platelet-dependent thrombosis. Eight baboons with chronic femoral arteriovenous shunts received rAPC infusions for 1 hour. The shunts were extended with 5-cm long, 4-mm-i.d. thrombogenic Dacron graft segments for the time of infusion. The plasma level of the enzyme, the blood flow in the shunt, and the deposition of indium-111-labeled platelets and iodine-125 fibrinogen on the graft were measured. The influence of rAPC infused at doses of 0.25 and 1.0 mg/kg-hr was compared with the effects of control infusions of saline. Five of eight control grafts occluded within 60 minutes, whereas there was no change in the blood flow during rAPC infusion. Deposition of platelets was inhibited by 13 +/- 10% and by 42 +/- 13% (mean +/- SEM) after 30 minutes of infusion at the two doses, which gave rise to circulating rAPC plasma concentrations of 0.4 and 1.9 mg/l, respectively. Both doses significantly inhibited fibrin deposition in the graft. Circulating plasma markers of thrombus formation and of fibrinolysis did not increase significantly during rAPC infusion; measurements of bleeding time were also within normal limits. Thus, rAPC, like human plasma-derived APC, inhibited thrombus formation without impairing primary hemostasis.
Free fatty acids repress small heterodimer partner (SHP) activation and adiponectin counteracts bile acid-induced liver injury in superobese patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis
Authors: Lars P. Bechmann, Peri Kocabayoglu, Jan-Peter Sowa, Svenja Sydor, Jan Best, Martin Schlattjan, Anja Beilfuss, Johannes Schmitt, Rebekka A. Hannivoort, Alpaslan Kilicarslan, Christian Rust, Frieder Berr, Oliver Tschopp, Guido Gerken, Scott L. Friedman, Andreas Geier, Ali Canbay
Journal: Hepatology (2013)

Abstract Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disease in industrialized countries and may proceed to steatohepatitis (NASH). Apoptosis and free fatty acid (FFA)-induced lipotoxicity are important features of NASH pathogenesis. We have shown a hepatoprotective effect of adiponectin in steatotic livers of hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients and recent data links bile acid (BA) metabolism to the pathogenesis of NAFLD. The aim of this study was to identify potential interactions between BA and FFA metabolism in NAFLD. Liver biopsies and serum samples from 113 morbidly obese patients receiving bariatric surgery, healthy individuals, and moderately obese NAFLD patients were studied. Serum FFA, BA, and M30 were increased in NASH versus simple steatosis, while adiponectin was significantly decreased. The NAFLD activity score (NAS) score correlated with BA levels and reversely with adiponectin. Adiponectin reversely correlated with CD95/Fas messenger RNA (mRNA) and hepatocellular apoptosis. The BA transporter high-affinity Na+/taurocholate cotransporter (NTCP) and the BA synthesizing enzyme cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase (CYP7A1) were significantly up-regulated in obese patients and hepatoma cells exposed to FFA. Up-regulation of NTCP and CYP7A1 indicate failure to activate small heterodimer partner (SHP) upon farnesoid X receptor (FXR) stimulation by increasing BA concentrations. In line with the NAS score, adiponectin levels were reversely correlated with BA levels. Adiponectin correlated with NTCP and affects Cyp7A1 expression both in vivo and in vitro . Conclusion: BA synthesis and serum BA levels correlated with disease severity in NAFLD, while adiponectin is reversely correlated. FFA exposure prevented SHP-mediated repression of NTCP and Cyp7A1 expression, which lead to increased BA synthesis and uptake. In NASH, BA accumulation induced hepatocyte cell death and late FXR activation failed to prevent hepatocyte injury due to decreased adiponectin levels. Early treatment with FXR ligands and/or adiponectin-receptor agonists might prevent NASH.
Complementary Nature of Radiotracer Parathyroid Imaging and Intraoperative Parathyroid Hormone Assays in the Surgical Management of Primary Hyperparathyroid Disease
Authors: ROBERT H. WILKINSON, GEORGE S. LEIGHT, SANFORD C. GARNER, SALVADOR BORGES-NETO
Journal: Clinical Nuclear Medicine (2000)

Purpose: This article illustrates the complementary nature of preoperative radionuclide parathyroid imaging and intraoperative rapid parathyroid hormone (PTH) assays in primary hyperparathyroid disease. The authors review the literature on these procedures and compare this protocol and its cost-effectiveness with those of the classic four-gland exploration. Materials and Methods: Preoperative parathyroid imaging with Tc-99m MIBI and intraoperative rapid PTH assays were performed at the time of neck exploration. Results: One of two parathyroid adenomas seen on radionuclide images would have been missed if the authors had relied solely on the initial decrease in PTH assay value to a normal level. Conclusions: Tc-99m MIBI imaging and intraoperative rapid PTH assays are complementary; when used together, they lessen the likelihood that abnormal parathyroid glands will be overlooked. This experience and that of others suggest these combined procedures are cost-effective.