tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Mortality of sleep apnoea patients treated by nasal continuous positive airway pressure registered in the ANTADIR observatory
Authors: D Veale, E Chailleux, A Hoorelbeke-Ramon, O Reybet-Degas, M.P Humeau-Chapuis, F Alluin-Aigouy, B Fleury, O Jonquet, P Michard, None for the Association Nationale pour le Traitement À Domicile de l′insuffisance Respiratoire chronique (antadir) Observatory Group
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2000)

The aim of this study was to examine risk factors for and causes of mortality in patients with obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) treated by nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). Univariate and multivariate analyses of the data on patients registered in the Association Nationale pour le Traitement A Domicile de l'Insuffisance Respiratoire chronique (ANTADIR) Observatory between January 1, 1985 and December 31, 1993 and followed to January 1, 1996. Survival ratios were compared to those of the French population. A case control study compared patients who died with patients of the same age and sex, in the same Regional Association, who were equipped with CPAP at the same time. Five-thousand-six-hundred-and-sixty-nine patients had CPAP treatment. Two-hundred-and-seventy-six had died. One-hundred-and-twenty-four deaths were examined and compared to 123 control subjects. Overall mortality was the same as the general French population. Independent risk factors for death were age, oxygen tension in arterial blood (Pa,O2) and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) (per cent predicted). In the case-control study independent risk factors for death in the past history were cardiac arrhythmia with an odds ratio (OR) of 2.8 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1-7.2), respiratory disorders (OR 2.8; CI 1.6-4.9) ischaemic events (OR 2.2; CI 1.2-4.2), neurological and psychiatric disorders (OR 2.4; CI 1.1-5.4). A significant excess of cardiovascular deaths and an excess of deaths from accidents and poisonings was found. In conclusion, patients die on therapy predominantly from cardiovascular causes but many have a past history of cardiovascular conditions. Compliance with treatment may be important for survival. Continuous positive airway pressure is an effective therapy for obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome but older patients with reduced spirometry and hypoxaemia may need more attention paid to these aspects of their condition.
A proper faith operates with the acknowledgement of risk, and, hence, a true religion with that of sacrifice
Authors: Edmond Wright
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (2004)

The authors are working with a limited notion of religion. They have confined themselves to a view of it as superstition, “counterintuitive,” as they put it. What they have not seen is that faith does in a real sense involve a paradox in that it projects an impossibility as a methodological device, a fictive ploy, which in the best interpretation necessarily involves a commitment to the likelihood of self-sacrifice.
Response Assessment of Aggressive Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma by Integrated International Workshop Criteria and Fluorine-18–Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography
Authors: Malik E. Juweid, Gregory A. Wiseman, Julie M. Vose, Justine M. Ritchie, Yusuf Menda, James E. Wooldridge, Felix M. Mottaghy, Eric M. Rohren, Norbert M. Blumstein, Alan Stolpen, Brian K. Link, Sven N. Reske, Michael M. Graham, Bruce D. Cheson
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2005)

Purpose To determine whether a response classification based on integration of fluorine-18–fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) into the International Workshop Criteria (IWC) provides a more accurate response assessment than IWC alone in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Patients and Methods Fifty-four patients with aggressive NHL who underwent FDG-PET and computed tomography 1 to 16 weeks after four to eight cycles of chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone were assessed for complete response (CR), unconfirmed CR (CRu), partial response (PR), stable disease (SD), and progressive disease (PD) by the IWC and by integrated IWC and FDG-PET (IWC+PET). Progression-free survival (PFS) was also compared between IWC- and IWC+PET-assigned response designations. Results By IWC, 17 patients had a CR, seven had a CRu, 19 had a PR, nine had SD, and two had PD. In comparison, by IWC+PET, 35 patients had a CR, 12 had a PR, six had SD, one had PD, and zero had a CRu. In separate multivariate models, PFS was significantly shorter in patients with PR than in those with a CR using IWC (hazard ratio [HR], 8.9; P = .021) or IWC+PET (HR, 29.7; P = .0003). However, when the two classifications were included in the same multivariate model, only IWC+PET was a statistically significant independent predictor for PFS (P = .008 v P = .72 for IWC). In addition, when patients with a PR by IWC and a CR by IWC+PET were compared with those with a CR by IWC and a CR by IWC+PET, there was no significant difference in PFS (HR, 1.6; P = .72), indicating that IWC+PET identified a subset of IWC-PR patients with a more favorable prognosis. Conclusion Compared with IWC, the IWC+PET-based assessment provides a more accurate response classification in patients with aggressive NHL.
Vitamin K for neonates
Authors: J Slattery
Journal: BMJ (1994)

From a postmortem study of the brains of 56 patients with schizophrenia and 56 controls, 38 cases whose clinical state had been objectively documented in life were examined to determine whether relations existed between features of the illness and postmortem findings. Decreased brain weight was significantly related (p &lt; 0.05) to poor premorbid global function and to poor academic record, and decreased brain length was related to poorer premorbid global function (p &lt; 0.05) and more severe negative symptoms. These relations are consistent with the view that morphological changes in the brain occur early in the course of the disease--that is, they are in some sense "developmental." An excess of "focal damage" in the patient group relative to controls was unrelated to the presence of morphological change or to features of illness, but was more common in female schizophrenic patients and was also correlated with evidence of cerebrovascular disease. This may possibly be due to a discrepancy between the groups in mode and cause of death.
Breast Cancer Risk Reduction and Membrane-Bound Catechol <i>O</i>-Methyltransferase Genetic Polymorphisms
Authors: Yuan Ji, Janet Olson, Jianping Zhang, Michelle Hildebrandt, Liewei Wang, James Ingle, Zachary Fredericksen, Thomas Sellers, William Miller, J. Michael Dixon, Hiltrud Brauch, Michel Eichelbaum, Christina Justenhoven, Ute Hamann, Yon Ko, Thomas Brüning, Jenny Chang-Claude, Shan Wang-Gohrke, Daniel Schaid, Richard Weinshilboum
Journal: Cancer Research (2008)

Abstract Catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT)-catalyzed methylation of catecholestrogens has been proposed to play a protective role in estrogen-induced genotoxic carcinogenesis. We have taken a comprehensive approach to test the hypothesis that genetic variation in COMT might influence breast cancer risk. Fifteen COMT single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) selected on the basis of in-depth resequencing of the COMT gene were genotyped in 1,482 DNA samples from a Mayo Clinic breast cancer case control study. Two common SNPs in the distal promoter for membrane-bound (MB) COMT, rs2020917 and rs737865, were associated with breast cancer risk reduction in premenopausal women in the Mayo Clinic study, with allele-specific odds ratios (OR) of 0.70 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.52–0.95] and 0.68 (95% CI, 0.51–0.92), respectively. These two SNPs were then subjected to functional genomic analysis and were genotyped in an additional 3,683 DNA samples from two independent case control studies (GENICA and GESBC). Functional genomic experiments showed that these SNPs could up-regulate transcription and that they altered DNA-protein binding patterns. Furthermore, substrate kinetic and exon array analyses suggested a role for MB-COMT in catecholestrogen inactivation. The GENICA results were similar to the Mayo case control observations, with ORs of 0.85 (95% CI, 0.72–1.00) and 0.85 (95% CI, 0.72–1.01) for the two SNPs. No significant effect was observed in the GESBC study. These studies showed that two SNPs in the COMT distal promoter were associated with breast cancer risk reduction in two of three case control studies, compatible with the results of functional genomic experiments, suggesting a role for MB-COMT in breast cancer risk. [Cancer Res 2008;68(14):5997–6005]
Percutaneous polymeric stents in porcine coronary arteries. Initial experience with polyethylene terephthalate stents.
Authors: J G Murphy, R S Schwartz, W D Edwards, A R Camrud, R E Vlietstra, D R Holmes
Journal: Circulation (1992)

To test the feasibility of percutaneous deployment of intracoronary polymeric stents, a prototype polyethylene terephthalate (PET) stent and a catheter-based delivery system were developed.Polymeric stents were deployed in the coronary arteries of 11 Yucatan swine: six stents were placed in the left anterior descending coronary artery, four stents were placed in the circumflex artery, and one stent was placed in the right coronary artery. Stent deployment was achieved by withdrawal of an outer delivery sheath, thus allowing the PET stent to self-expand to a preformed configuration. Two animals died during surgery, one during stent placement and the other several hours after implantation due to intracoronary thrombus formation. Two animals were electively sacrificed within 24 hours of stent implant to examine the adequacy of stent deployment within the coronary vessel. The remaining seven animals survived until the termination of the study 4-6 weeks later. Light microscopic examination of the stented vessels showed an extensive neointimal proliferative response with vessel occlusion in all animals who survived initial stent placement. There were two distinct types of histological responses to the PET stent--a chronic foreign body inflammatory response around the stent tines and a neointimal proliferative response in the center of the occluded vessel lumen. The histological response seen in the central area of the vessel was morphologically similar to that seen in patients with restenosis after successful percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, whereas the morphological response seen at the periphery of the stent tine was similar to that exhibited by a chronic foreign body reaction and was not typical of that seen in a restenosis lesion. A ventricular aneurysm also developed in the area of myocardium that was previously supplied by the occluded vessel.This study demonstrates that percutaneous deployment of polymeric stents in the coronary arteries is technically feasible. The use of PET polymer was associated with an intense proliferative neointimal response that resulted in complete vessel occlusion. Histological examination of the stented segments of the vessel revealed no evidence that dissection of the vessel wall had occurred at the time of initial stent deployment. Although the PET polymer was of similar quality to that used in the manufacture of balloon angioplasty catheters, a toxic chemical or contaminant effect cannot be completely excluded as the stimulus to intimal proliferation. This finding may have relevance to the selection of materials for use as intravascular devices.
Prognostic implications of restrictive left ventricular filling in reperfused anterior acute myocardial infarction
Authors: Giampaolo Cerisano, Leonardo Bolognese, Piergiovanni Buonamici, Renato Valenti, Nazario Carrabba, Emilio Vincenzo Dovellini, Paolo Domenico Pucci, Giovanni Maria Santoro, David Antoniucci
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2001)
Relation between heel position and the distribution of forefoot plantar pressures and skin callosities in rheumatoid arthritis.
Authors: J Woodburn, P.S Helliwell
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (1996)

To investigate the relation between the position of the rearfoot and the distribution of forefoot plantar pressures and skin callosities in rheumatoid arthritis.Plantar pressures and callosity patterns were measured in 102 rheumatoid arthritis patients (120 feet with normal heel alignment and 84 feet with valgus heel alignment measured by goniometry) and in 42 (84 feet) age matched healthy adults. Peak pressures (kPa) were measured across the metatarsal heads in-shoe using an FScan system and the distribution of plantar callosities was visually mapped for each foot.Peak pressures were significantly greater at all but the first metatarsal head in the rheumatoid normal heel alignment and healthy adult groups than in the rheumatoid valgus heel group. The feet of both the rheumatoid normal heel group and the healthy adult group behaved the same, the highest peak pressures registering on the central metatarsal heads. However, only in the rheumatoid group were plantar callosities found at these sites. In the rheumatoid valgus heel group, lateral metatarsal heads were frequently non-weightbearing, producing gross loading patterns with a dominant medial distribution. Peak pressures were shifted to the medial fore-foot accompanied by a higher prevalence of callosities. The results, however, failed to establish clearly an association between peak pressures and callus formation.In rheumatoid arthritis there is an important interrelation between the rearfoot position and forefoot pressure sites.
Tetracyclines That Promote <i>SMN2</i> Exon 7 Splicing as Therapeutics for Spinal Muscular Atrophy
Authors: Michelle L. Hastings, Joel Berniac, Ying Hsiu Liu, Paul Abato, Francine M. Jodelka, Lea Barthel, Sujatha Kumar, Caroline Dudley, Mark Nelson, Kelley Larson, Jason Edmonds, Todd Bowser, Michael Draper, Paul Higgins, Adrian R. Krainer
Journal: Science Translational Medicine (2009)

There is at present no cure or effective therapy for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a neurodegenerative disease that is the leading genetic cause of infant mortality. SMA usually results from loss of the SMN1 (survival of motor neuron 1) gene, which leads to selective motor neuron degeneration. SMN2 is nearly identical to SMN1 but has a nucleotide replacement that causes exon 7 skipping, resulting in a truncated, unstable version of the SMA protein. SMN2 is present in all SMA patients, and correcting SMN2 splicing is a promising approach for SMA therapy. We identified a tetracycline-like compound, PTK-SMA1, which stimulates exon 7 splicing and increases SMN protein levels in vitro and in vivo in mice. Unlike previously identified molecules that stimulate SMN production via SMN2 promoter activation or undefined mechanisms, PTK-SMA1 is a unique therapeutic candidate in that it acts by directly stimulating splicing of exon 7. Synthetic small-molecule compounds such as PTK-SMA1 offer an alternative to antisense oligonucleotide therapies that are being developed as therapeutics for a number of disease-associated splicing defects.
Effect of inhaled morphine on the development of breathlessness during exercise in patients with chronic lung disease.
Authors: R Leung, P Hill, J Burdon
Journal: Thorax (1996)

BACKGROUND: Inhaled morphine has previously been shown to increase exercise endurance in patients with chronic lung disease. A similar study was performed to determine whether inhaled morphine reduces the sensation of breathlessness in this group of patients. METHODS: A randomised double blind study on the effect of nebulised morphine on both exercise induced breathlessness and maximum achievable power output using isotonic saline as a control was performed in 10 patients with stable chronic lung disease. Each subject performed a progressive exercise test (Jones9 stage I) on an electrically braked cycle ergometer. The work load was increased by 10 watts per minute and subjects exercised to exhaustion. At the end of each minute of exercise patients were asked to rate their degree of breathlessness according to a modified Borg scale. All subjects were randomised to receive either inhaled morphine sulphate 1 mg/ml (5 ml) or isotonic saline (5 ml) by wet nebulisation. The effect of morphine and saline on the achieved exercise capacity and the development of breathlessness during exercise was tested on separate days. RESULTS: The mean dose of morphine inhaled was 1.24 mg. There was no difference in maximum power output achieved, minute ventilation at maximum power output, nor the degree of breathlessness at maximum power output between the groups treated with morphine and placebo. The degree of breathlessness was related to the power output achieved during exercise by a power function relationship (mean r: morphine = 0.86, saline = 0.87). However, there was a wide variation in the sensation for any given power output in both groups. There was no difference in the group mean slopes (morphine = 1.15, saline = 1.00) or intercepts (morphine = 0.07, saline = 0.15) in this relationship between the morphine and saline treatment groups. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with severe chronic lung disease inhaled morphine in the doses used in this study does not relieve exercise induced breathlessness nor does it increase maximum power output achieved during progressive exercise.
Evaluation of an individualised asthma programme directed at behavioural change
Authors: C. Put, O. van den Bergh, V. Lemaigre, M. Demedts, G. Verleden
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2003)

An individualised asthma programme directed at behavioural change was evaluated in asthmatic subjects who reported complaints and impairment, despite adequate medical treatment. Mild-to-moderate asthma patients (n=23) were randomly assigned to a programme or waiting list condition. Outcome measures were: McMaster Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire, Asthma Symptom Checklist, Negative Emotionality Scale, Knowledge, Attitude and Self-Efficacy Asthma Questionnaire, Adherence Scale, and peak flow measurements. Both groups were evaluated at three consecutive moments, each separated by 3 months; the programme was delivered between the first two evaluations. At onset the patient received a workbook containing information, exercises and homework assignments. Psycho-education, behavioural and cognitive techniques were introduced during six 1‐h individual sessions. Compared with controls the programme group reported less symptoms (obstruction, fatigue), better quality of life (activity, symptoms, emotions), decreased negative affectivity, and increased adherence, immediately after finishing the programme and at 3 months follow-up. All three cognitive variables (knowledge, attitude towards asthma, self-efficacy) and day and night peak flow ratings improved in the programme group but not in the waiting list group. Participation in an individualised programme resulted in improvement of asthma morbidity, and asthma-related behaviour and cognitions, in subjects reporting symptoms and impairment despite adequate medical therapy.
A Prospective Study of Permanent Hair Dye Use and Hematopoietic Cancer
Authors: F. Grodstein, C. H. Hennekens, G. A. Colditz, D. J. Hunter, M. J. Stampfer
Journal: JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute (1994)

Use of permanent hair dye has been suggested as a risk factor for several types of cancer, although epidemiologic data have not generally supported this hypothesis. Retrospective studies have reported a possible association between hair dyes and hematopoietic cancers. Purpose : Our purpose was to investigate if permanent hair dye was associated with risks of incident lymphoma, leukemia, and multiple myeloma in the Nurses' Health Study, a prospective cohort study of 99 067 women aged 30–55 years in 1976. Methods : Questionnaires regarding medical history and other health-related variables were sent to Nurses' Health Study participants every 2 years from 1976 to 1990. The follow-up for mortality in this cohort exceeds 98%. We identified 244 newly diagnosed cases of hematopoietic cancers, confirmed by pathology reports. Permanent hair dye use was ascertained over four cycles of questionnaires from 1976–1982; status of hair dye use established in 1982 was then used for the remainder of the follow-up time (through 1990). Age-specific incidence rates were calculated and used to compute relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results : We found no evidence of a positive association between ever use of permanent hair dye and all hematopoietic cancers (age-adjusted RR = 0.9; 95% CI = 0.7–1.2) or specific types (Hodgkin's lymphoma [RR = 0.9; 95% CI = 0.4–2.1], non-Hodgkin's lymphoma [RR – 1.1; 95% CI = 0.8–1.6], multiple myeloma [RR = 0.4; 95% CI = 0.2–0.9], chronic lymphocytic leukemia [RR = 0.6; 95% CI = 0.3–1.5], and other leukemias [RR = 0.8; 95% CI = 0.3–1.9). Further examination of age at first use, duration, frequency, and time since first use and risk of all hematopoietic cancers or non-Hodgkins; lymphoma (the largest diagnostic group), indicated no material associations. Conclusion : In this prospective cohort study, permanent hair dye use is not adversely related to risks of hematopoietic cancers. (J. Natl Cancer Inst 86: 1466–1470, 1994)
US government to open national bank of “approved” embryonic stem cells
Authors: Janice Hopkins Tanne
Journal: BMJ (2004)

The US Department of Health and Human Services has announced that it will accelerate stem cell research by establishing centres of excellence in translational stem cell research and a national embryonic stem cell bank using stem cells lines derived before 9 August 2001.

Scientists said the announcement was window dressing to appease political conservatives.

Stem cell research hit the front pages in May when Nancy Reagan, wife of former president Ronald Reagan, said she believed such research could lead to a cure for Alzheimer's disease, which killed her husband.

A child with type 1 diabetes, who was put forward as an example of someone whom stem cell research might help, appeared at a Senate hearing recently and testified that stem cell research might cure her condition.

Since 2001, …