tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
The case for and against prescribing generic drugs.
Authors: M. Campbell, J. M. Smith
Journal: BMJ (1989)

venous treatment with these agents is a potential cause of fatal pulmonary oedema.'A more rational management plan would be to expedite delivery of the fetus if maternal heart failure occurs during labour,Neven if the fetus is immature, as with developments in neonatal medicine the outcome for infants beyond 28 weeks' gestation is relatively good and beyond 32 weeks should be little worse than that for infants delivered near term, provided that the infant is delivered in good condition and facilities for neonatal intensive care are at hand.Failure of medical treatment is an indication for surgical intervention, the operative mortality being less than 5%.2Although fetal wastage, especially with open heart surgery including cardiopulmonary bypass, may be comparatively high, a substantial proportion of pregnancies will continue and have a successful outcome.
Modern diuretic treatment.
Authors: D Maclean, G R Tudhope
Journal: BMJ (1983)

Diuretics are one of the most widely prescribed group of drugs with therapeutic indications in a diverse set of disorders. OedemaThiazide diuretics form the mainstay of treatment for numerous conditions characterised by oedema, most notably congestive heart failure when there is a reduced glomerular filtration rate, increased aldosterone production, and increased sodium reabsorption from the renal tubules.Longstanding heart failure no longer responsive to a thiazide often responds dramatically to a loop diuretic, and a loop diuretic also rapidly relieves acute pulmonary oedema secondary to left ventricular failure.Resistant oedema, on the other hand, may respond favourably when diuretics that act on different parts of the renal tubule are given together-for example, thiazide plus a loop diuretic with or without the addition of an aldosterone antagonist.A thiazide or loop diuretic is prescribed together with spironolactone in the nephrotic syndrome and in cirrhosis of the liver complicated by ascites, both conditions being almost invariably associated with secondary hyperaldosteronism.Thiazides and spironolactone are often prescribed, too, in some cases of recurrent, idiopathic cyclical oedema, particularly of the ankles, associated with water retention.In this disorder, which is most often seen in premenopausal women and especially at menstruation, diuretics may have an initial cosmetic effect, but long term benefit is hard to establish.Thiazides are also often inappropriately prescribed in managing chronic lymphoedema or chronic ankle oedema associated with varicose veins and poor venous return.Only in a few of these patients is the oedema easier to control as a result of using diuretics; adequate elastic support is more appropriate.The requirement for diuretic treatment in managing oedema needs to be regularly reassessed in order not to exceed the necessary minimum dose of the least powerful diuretic that will suffice.When clinical judgment does not suflice, a useful means of measuring the loss of sodium and water is to observe the rate and extent of weight loss.Provided that the serum sodium concentration remains normal, 1 kg of water loss corresponds to 140-150 mmol(mEq) of associated sodium loss.Another useful assessment is to measure the 24 hour urinary sodium excretion: if this is below 10-20 mmol the diuretic treatment is inadequate, but if it is quite high (above 100 mmol) and body weight is not decreasing sodium excretion is satisfactory but sodium intake needs to be reduced.On the other hand, some patients are at
Support in the early years of life is crucial to reducing obesity
Authors: D. C. Taylor-Robinson, D. Harrison, B. Barr
Journal: BMJ (2014)

Howard and Davies note that “understanding of the complex causes of obesity has improved but remains incomplete.”1 One thing that is clear, however, is the stark association between growing up in poverty and the risk of being overweight or obese (figure⇓).



Percentage of overweight or obese children aged 10-11 years by percentage of children in …
Away from ethnocentrism and anthropocentrism: Towards a scientific understanding of “what makes us human”
Authors: Christophe Boesch
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (2010)

The quest to understand "what makes us human" has been heading towards an impasse, when comparative psychology compares primarily individuals that are not representative of their species. Captives experience such divergent socioecological niches that they cannot stand for their wild counterparts. Only after removing ethnocentrism and anthropocentrism will we be able to progress in our understanding of "what makes us human."
Restricted Activity among Community-Living Older Persons: Incidence, Precipitants, and Health Care Utilization
Authors: Thomas M. Gill, Mayur M. Desai, Evelyne A. Gahbauer, Theodore R. Holford, Christianna S. Williams
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2001)

Background: Restricted activity is a potentially important indicator of health and functional status. Yet, relatively little is known about the incidence, precipitants, or health care utilization associated with restricted activity among older persons. Objective: To more accurately estimate the rate of restricted activity among community-living older persons, to identify the health-related and non-health-related problems that lead to restricted activity, and to determine whether restricted activity is associated with increased health care utilization. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: New Haven, Connecticut. Participants: 754 nondisabled members of a large health plan, 70 years of age or older, who were categorized according to their risk for disability (low, intermediate, or high). Measurements: Occurrence of restricted activity (defined as having stayed in bed for at least half a day or having cut down on one's usual activities because of an illness, injury, or another problem), problems leading to restricted activity, and health care utilization were ascertained during monthly telephone interviews for up to 2 years. Results: In median follow-up of 15 months, 76.6% of participants reported restricted activity during at least 1 month and 39.3% reported restricted activity during 2 consecutive months. The rates of restricted activity per 100 person-months were 19.0 episodes for all participants and 16.9, 27.3, and 22.7 episodes for participants at low, intermediate, and high risk for disability, respectively. Of the 24 prespecified health-related and non–health-related problems, the rates per 100 person-months of restricted activity ranged from 0.1 episode for "problem with alcohol" to 65.5 episodes for "been fatigued." On average, participants identified 4.5 different problems as a cause for their restricted activity. Health care utilization was substantially greater during months with restricted activity than months without restricted activity. The corresponding rates per 100 person-months were 63.8 and 45.1 for physician office visits, 12.5 and 1.0 for emergency department visits, 14.1 and 0.3 for hospital admissions, and 67.6 and 45.1 for any health care utilization (P < 0.001 for each pairwise comparison). Conclusions: Restricted activity is common among community-living older persons, regardless of risk for disability, and it is usually attributable to several concurrent health-related problems. Although restricted activity is associated with a substantial increase in health care utilization, older persons with restricted activity often do not seek medical attention.
AIDS and the Donation of Blood in Saudi Arabia
Authors: Armand P. Gelpi
Journal: JAMA (1986)

To the Editor.—  The article by Drs Harfi and Fakhry 1 is of great interest, not only because it identifies the problem of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in a completely new geographical and cultural setting, but also because the authors chose not to elaborate on the transfusion situation in Saudi Arabia. Saudis do not donate blood; therefore, all blood must either be obtained from expatriates residing in the kingdom or from commercial sources outside Saudi Arabia. There are probably a few cultural and religious traditions behind this. The one that has received the most credence is that blood loss of the magnitude of 400 to 500 mL is associated with a loss or diminution in sexual prowess.  The authors have suggested that one solution to the problem of imported AIDS would be to screen blood for HTLV-III antibodies. They might also have added that the Saudis need a program of
Platelets and Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: J.F. Mustard, M.A. Packham
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (1977)

Platelets change shape, aggregate and release their granule contents in response to collagen, thrombin, ADP, short-lived compounds formed from arachidonic acid, epinephrine and other stimuli. Platelet aggregation and release play a part in the development of atherosclerosis and its thromboembolic complications.The susceptibility of patients with diabetes mellitus to clinical complications of atherosclerosis has led to a number of studies of platelet adhesiveness and aggregation in diabetic subjects.1 2 3 These studies demonstrate that platelets from diabetic subjects show increased sensitivity to platelet aggregation induced by ADP, epinephrine or collagen. There is some evidence that the sensitivity of platelets to aggregation induced . . .
Abstract 4720: Genome-wide copy number variation and breast cancer risk: Preliminary report
Authors: Kyoung-Mu Lee, Miey Park, Sang-Hoon Moon, Hyung-Chol Kim, Ji-Young Lee, Lian Li, Sue K. Park, Wonshik Han, Dong-Young Noh, Keun-Young Yoo, Sei-Hyun Ahn, Bokki Han, Daehee Kang
Journal: Cancer Research (2010)

Abstract Background: DNA copy number variation (CNV) is a common phenomenon in human genome and some CNVs have been associated with susceptibility or resistance to disease. It has been suggested that gene copy number can be elevated in cancer cells. To evaluate potential role of CNV in breast cancer development, we conducted genome-wide association study of CNV in Seoul Breast Cancer Study. Methods: Cases were diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent curative surgery at two teaching hospitals located in Seoul, Korea, between 2001 and 2007 (n=2,386). Control subjects were selected from multi-center based cohort study in 2007 (n=2,386). The Affymetrix SNP assay 6.0 array, which includes 946,000 probes for the detection of copy number variation, was used. Nexus Copy Number version 4.1 was used for detecting CNVs (significance threshold=10−6; minimum number of probes per segment=4), and statistical analysis. After quality control step (i.e., robust variance sample QC), total 2,315 cases and 2,039 controls were compared for the difference of each CNV. In this study, we selected the CNVs that were different between cases and controls by at least 5% (P adjusted for multiple comparison &amp;lt;0.01). Adjacent CNVs were grouped into CNV regions ranging 10 kb to 300 kb. Results: Between case and controls, thirteen CNV regions including chr115q11.2, chr3q26.1, chr6q16.3, chr17q31.1 were significantly different for copy number. We note that those regions include genes such as UGT2B17 (UDP glucuronosyltransferase 2 family, polypeptide B18), OR4C11 (olfactory receptor, family 4, subfamily C, member 11), LRRC37A2 (leucine rich repeat containing 37, member A2), ARL17P1 (ADP-ribosylation factor-like 17 pseudogene 1), LOC644974, and the others. We are planning validation study for the regions by quantitative PCR to verify the association with breast cancer risk found in this study. Conclusion: Our results suggest that common CNVs may be associated with breast cancer in Korean women. However, further variation study is essential to support our observation and underlying biological mechanisms for the associations needs to be elucidated. Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010 because the presenter was unable to attend. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4720.
VEGF-C is a trophic factor for neural progenitors in the vertebrate embryonic brain
Authors: Barbara Le Bras, Maria-José Barallobre, Jihane Homman-Ludiye, Annelii Ny, Sabine Wyns, Tuomas Tammela, Paula Haiko, Marika J Karkkainen, Li Yuan, Marie-Paule Muriel, Elli Chatzopoulou, Christiane Bréant, Bernard Zalc, Peter Carmeliet, Kari Alitalo, Anne Eichmann, Jean-Léon Thomas
Journal: Nature Neuroscience (2006)
Reply to Maximilian Burger, Wolfgang Otto, and Arndt Hartmann's Letter to the Editor re: Bas W.G. van Rhijn, Theo H. van der Kwast, Sultan S. Alkhateeb, et al. A New and Highly Prognostic System to Discern T1 Bladder Cancer Substage. Eur Urol 2012;61:378–84
Authors: Bas W.G. van Rhijn, Theo H. van der Kwast, Michael A.S. Jewett, Alexandre R. Zlotta
Journal: European Urology (2012)
New remission criteria for RA: ‘modern times’ in rheumatology—not a silent film, rather a 3D movie
Authors: Lennart T H Jacobsson, Merete Lund Hetland
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2011)

Response levels in clinical trials of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), such as ACR20, may be useful for evaluating the efficacy of new treatments but are inappropriate in clinical practice where the goals should be set higher. Much higher. We ‘operate in the window of opportunity’1 with early aggressive intervention, ‘aim at remission’ for our patients2 and apply ‘tight control’ and ‘treat to target’ strategies3 4 backed by research data that support these concepts of early therapeutic interventions.2 3 5

With modern treatment ambitions it has become increasingly clear that ‘old time’ definitions do not fit modern treatment opportunities and goals. New ACR-EULAR classification criteria for RA have therefore been developed which were published earlier this year,6 7 with the new criteria focusing on patients with short disease duration with unspecified inflammatory arthritis. The goal is to prevent chronic and erosive disease by identifying patients who are at high risk and should receive disease-modifying treatment.

With the new classification criteria and ambitious treatment strategies leading to improved clinical and radiographic outcomes, long-term and drug-free remission has become a realistic goal in many patients and a great need has emerged for consensus on how to (re)define remission.

In this issue of Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases , preliminary new criteria for remission in patients with RA—another merit of the new times—are published by Felson et al . 8 This paper is also the result of an ACR-EULAR collaboration, underlining globalisation of the world of rheumatology.

The old remission criteria were like silent films—with disease potentially progressing silently under a cover of remission that allowed substantial disease activity to be present. The new criteria are more like a 3D movie—requiring no or minimal activity based on three dimensions: clinician's (swollen and tender joint counts) and patient's (global health score) …
Myocyte Enhancer Factor 2 Mediates Vascular Inflammation via the p38-Dependent Pathway
Authors: Etsu Suzuki, Hiroshi Satonaka, Hiroaki Nishimatsu, Shigeyoshi Oba, Ryo Takeda, Masao Omata, Toshiro Fujita, Ryozo Nagai, Yasunobu Hirata
Journal: Circulation Research (2004)

Although it has been established that myocyte enhancer factor 2 (MEF2) plays pivotal roles in the development of the cardiovascular system as well as skeletal muscle cells, little is known of its role in vascular inflammatory diseases such as atherosclerosis and restenosis after angioplasty. To investigate the role of MEF2 in vascular inflammation and that of p38 in the activation of MEF2, we infected cultured rat vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) with an adenovirus construct expressing a dominant-negative mutant of MEF2A (MEF2ASA) or mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 6 (MEK6AA), and examined their effects on the expression of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), which is known to play important roles in vascular inflammation. We also examined the role of MEF2 in vivo using a rat model of transluminal wire-induced injury of the femoral artery. Angiotensin II (Ang II)–induced expression of MCP-1 mRNA was significantly inhibited by infection with adenoviruses encoding MEF2ASA (AdMEF2ASA) or MEK6AA. Ang II–induced increase of MCP-1 promoter activity was also significantly suppressed by overexpression of MEF2ASA or MEK6AA. Ang II stimulated the transactivating function of MEF2A and this activation was inhibited by overexpression of MEK6AA. Infection with AdMEF2ASA suppressed MCP-1 expression in the femoral artery after the transluminal mechanical injury. AdMEF2ASA infection also inhibited macrophages infiltration and neointimal formation in the wire-injured femoral arteries. These results suggested that MEF2 activation via the p38-dependent pathway mediates vascular inflammation via stimulation of MCP-1 expression in VSMCs and macrophages infiltration.
The Demise of John Hageman
Authors: Oscar D. Ratnoff, Robert J. Busse, Robert P. Sheon
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (1968)

ON March 24, 1968, Mr. John Hageman, the index patient with Hageman trait, died unexpectedly 12 days after sustaining fractures of the left ischium and ilium. The cause of death was pulmonary embol...
Ionizing Radiation Induces Frequent Translocations with Delayed Replication and Condensation
Authors: Kevin S. Breger, Leslie Smith, Mitchell S. Turker, Mathew J. Thayer
Journal: Cancer Research (2004)

Abstract Certain chromosome rearrangements display a significant delay in replication timing that is associated with a delay in mitotic chromosome condensation. Chromosomes with delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation participate in frequent secondary rearrangements, indicating that cells with delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation display chromosomal instability. In this report, we show that exposing cell lines or primary blood lymphocytes to ionizing radiation results in chromosomes with the delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation phenotype, and that the delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation phenotype occurs predominantly on chromosome translocations. In addition, exposing mice to ionizing radiation also induces cells with delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation chromosomes that persist for as long as 2 years. Cells containing delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation chromosomes frequently display hyperdiploid karyotypes, indicating that delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation is associated with aneuploidy. Finally, using a chromosome engineering strategy, we show that only a subset of chromosome translocations displays delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation. Our results indicate that specific chromosome rearrangements result in the generation of the delay in replication timing/delay in mitotic chromosome condensation phenotype and that this phenotype occurs frequently in cells exposed to ionizing radiation both in vitro and in vivo.
Hepatitis C Virus Genotype, Hepatitis C Virus RNA Titers, and Response to Interferon
Authors: Gloria Taliani, Maria Concetta Badolato, Caterina Pasquazzi
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1997)

Letters1 July 1997Hepatitis C Virus Genotype, Hepatitis C Virus RNA Titers, and Response to InterferonGloria Taliani, MD, PhD, Maria Concetta Badolato, BD, and Caterina Pasquazzi, MDGloria Taliani, MD, PhDLa Sapienza University; Rome, ItalySearch for more papers by this author, Maria Concetta Badolato, BDLa Sapienza University; Rome, ItalySearch for more papers by this author, and Caterina Pasquazzi, MDLa Sapienza University; Rome, ItalySearch for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-127-1-199707010-00021 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:In their interesting report on the clinic characteristics of and the response to interferon treatment in patients with different hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes, Zein and colleagues [1] suggest that circulating HCV RNA levels could modulate the sensitivity of HCV genotypes to interferon treatment.We recently enrolled 61 patients with HCV infection and chronic liver disease without cirrhosis (40 men; mean age ±SD, 48.7 ± 11.4 years). Patients were randomly assigned to receive 9 million U of interferon-α 2b per week (28 patients) or 15 million U per week for 6 months. The HCV genotype was assessed ...References1. Zein NN, Rakela J, Krawitt EL, Reddy KR, Tominaga T, Persing DH. Hepatitis C virus genotypes in the United States: epidemiology, pathogenicity, and response to interferon therapy. The Collaborative Study Group. Ann Intern Med. 1996; 125:634-9. Google Scholar2. Martinot-Peignoux M, Marcellin P, Pouteau M, Castelnau C, Boyer N, Poliquin M, et al. Pretreatment serum hepatitis C virus RNA levels and hepatitis C virus genotype are the main and independent prognostic factors of sustained response to interferon alfa therapy in chronic hepatitis. Hepatology. 1995; 22:1050-6. Google Scholar3. Halfon P, Khiri H, Gerolami V, Bourliere M, Ferym JM, Reynier P, et al. Impact of various handling and storage conditions on quantitative detection of hepatitis C virus RNA. J Hepatol. 1996; 25:307-11. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: La Sapienza University; Rome, Italy PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics 1 July 1997Volume 127, Issue 1Page: 89KeywordsChronic liver diseaseCirrhosisHepatitis C virusInfectious diseasesInterferonsPatientsRNAViremia ePublished: 15 August 2000 Issue Published: 1 July 1997 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 1997 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...