Extensions to the distributed approximating functional: The harmonic propagator.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to M Arnold.
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Pediatrician advocacy concerning the impact of television violence on children should be clearly grounded in the holistic concern of pediatricians with children's health and well-being. Pediatricians should not promote legislative or regulatory efforts to reduce children's exposure to television violence by proscribing certain kinds of program content. Instead, priority should be given to strategies that improve the content and quality of television programming viewed by children and that enhance the viewing choices made by children and their families. Such strategies include providing parent education and pressing for strong implementation of the Children's Television Act. Pediatricians should dedicate their efforts to increasing the awareness of broadcasters and the general public, acting as educators and persuaders. In order to advocate and educate effectively, pediatricians need to amplify their own knowledge and understanding of television-related issues and their significance. Finally, because children's exposure to television violence is but one part of a larger social context, pediatricians concerned with this issue should devote significant attention to related problems that diminish the health and well-being of children.
After the Swiss Alpine Marathon in Davos (67 km, altitude difference of 2300 m) the majority of the athletes are suffering from muscle soreness. The goal of the study was therefore to investigate muscle damage, inflammatory reactions and soreness perception during and after this ultramarathon. 27 athletes took part in the study. Creatine-kinase (CK) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured 24 hours before the race, immediately before and after the race as well as 2 hours, 24 hours and 48 hours, after the race respectively. Muscle soreness of the lower extremities before and during stretching were assessed at the same time points using a visual analog scale from 1 to 10 (VAS). Significant CK elevations were found in all runners ranging from 600 to 28,000 U/l. Compared to the values before and 48 hours after the start all athletes showed 24 hours after the start significantly elevated CRP values, indicating a pronounced systemic inflammatory reaction. Immediately after the race all runners reported a significantly elevated muscle soreness with maximal pain in the posterior muscles of the lower leg. In order to assess the influence of a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory agent on muscle damage, muscle soreness and inflammatory reactions 16 of the 27 runners received *Diclofenac SR. We were unable to find a difference in the mean plasma CK and CRP activity after the race between both groups, but there was a highly significant, till now to our knowledge never described correlation between the degree of muscle damage and systemic inflammatory reaction (r = 0.75, p < 0.02) in the control group.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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One hundred and fifty-one consecutive new patients with suspected hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were investigated from 1989 to 1990. Ultrasound showed the tumours to be inoperable in 111 patients. Selective hepatic angiography revealed 17 more patients with inoperable HCC. Hepatic intra-arterial lipiodol (HIAL) was injected in the remaining 23 patients. In 16 of them, a clinical decision could be reached basing on the radiological findings. Hepatic intra-arterial lipiodol ultrasound (HIAL/USG) guided biopsy was done in seven patients with suspicious lesions. Histology obtained with this method revealed hyperplastic cirrhotic nodules in four patients (two with suspected HCC and two with suspected secondaries). In another two patients, the suspected lesions were confirmed to be malignant. In the last patient who had received chemotherapy for extensive HCC, HIAL/USG guided biopsy revealed necrotic tissue only. At laparotomy, diffuse infiltrative abnormality was found and repeated biopsy confirmed residual malignancy in the necrotic tumour. We conclude that when there is radiological uncertainty as to the nature and extent of the HCC, HIAL/USG guided biopsy can help the clinician to make important decisions.
SETTING: A regional hospital in Hong Kong. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate adrenocortical function in older patients admitted to hospital with active pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) and to determine whether adrenal insufficiency contributes to mortality in this high risk group. DESIGN: Adrenocortical function was assessed in 39 consecutive patients aged over 50 admitted to hospital with active pulmonary TB. Short Synacthen stimulation tests were performed before treatment and repeated at 2 months. In patients who died during treatment, a post-mortem examination was performed. Particular attention was paid to TB involvement of the adrenal glands. RESULTS: None of the patients had a subnormal basal cortisol concentration before treatment. 7 (18%) had raised basal cortisol concentrations and 16 (41%) had suboptimal cortisol responses to Synacthen stimulation. 14 patients (36%) died during treatment. The basal cortisol concentrations were significantly higher in the non-survivors compared to the survivors (743.7 +/- 288.5 vs 460.5 +/- 123.2 nmol/L, P < 0.0001). Autopsies were performed in 9 patients who died during treatment. Tuberculous involvement of the adrenal glands was found in only 1 patient who had a high basal cortisol concentration. After 2 months of treatment, all patients had normal cortisol concentrations and only 4 had borderline suboptimal Synacthen responses. The basal cortisol concentrations were significantly higher at presentation compared to those at 2 months after treatment (570.4 +/- 243.8 vs 386.3 +/- 108.3 nmol/L, P = 0.0014). CONCLUSION: Adrenal insufficiency is uncommon in patients with pulmonary TB. Suboptimal cortisol responses to Synacthen usually reflect a hyperstimulated basal state secondary to stress. Treatment with anti-TB drugs causes reduction in basal cortisol with associated improvement in the Synacthen response.
A review of the ultrasound (US) findings with clinical and pathological correlation in 18 Chinese patients with gall-bladder carcinoma (GBCa) showed that the most frequent appearance was that of diffuse infiltration and thickening of the GB wall (8/18 patients, 44%). Polypoid protrusion into the GB lumen (5/18 patients, 28%) and massive replacement of the entire GB (5/18 patients, 28%) accounted for the remainder. The infiltrating type of tumour was poorly-detected by US (1/8) and was more frequently seen than has been reported in the Western population. Frequent associations with GB calculi (13/18) and synchronous presentation of biliary sepsis (6/18) also contributed to a modest overall US detection rate of 50% (9/18) in this series. Most tumours detected by US were hyperechoic in appearance (6/9). Biliary obstruction was detected by US in 5/6 patients, but only thought to be malignant in 3/6. It most often occurred due to spread of tumour to peripancreatic lymph nodes. Hepatic metastases were seen by US in 4/5 patients. Discontinuous GB wall calcification and non-dependent stones due to elevation by tumour (the 'elevated stone' sign) were infrequent but reliable signs of GBCa, seen in 5/18 and 3/18 respectively. This study suggests that GBCa is as difficult to detect sonographically in Chinese patients as in the Western population. GBCa must be included in the differential diagnosis of causes of both the acutely-presenting 'hot' gall-bladder and lymph node masses in the peripancreatic region if the US detection rate of this important biliary malignancy is to be improved.
Using qualitative and microquantitative histo-chemical techniques, alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase activity was studied in the gastric mucosa of male and female rats. Alcohol dehydrogenase was demonstrated by staining reactions with maximum activity in surface and neck cells and with clearly weaker activity also in parietal cells. Aldehyde dehydrogenase could be detected in surface and neck cells, and also to a comparable degree in the parietal cells. Quantitative analyses of microdissected samples yielded high values for alcohol dehydrogenase activity exclusively in the superficial part of the gastric mucosa, whereas low-Km aldehyde dehydrogenase activity showed a decreasing gradient from the surface to the deeper parts of the mucosa. Sex differences could not be confirmed.
The clinicopathological features of 10 adult patients with nasopharyngeal tuberculosis (TB) are presented. 9 patients had no evidence of chest or systemic disease. 7 patients presented with cervical lymphadenopathy, and only 4 had nasal symptoms. Examination of the nasopharynx showed no abnormality in 2 patients, lymphoid hyperplasia in 4 patients, and a tumour-like mass in 4 patients. These findings suggest that nasopharyngeal TB may occur more frequently as part of an isolated upper respiratory tract infection than as secondary to pulmonary infection. The nasopharynx may be a portal of entry for tubercle bacilli in patients who develop cervical lymphadenitis. Involvement of the nasopharynx by TB may be underdiagnosed because it does not produce obvious symptoms or physical signs in all cases.
The use of the microwave tissue coagulator was studied on 20 consecutive elective hepatic resections carried out for symptomatic hepatocellular carcinoma with liver cirrhosis. The mean operative blood loss (excluding one patient with hepatic vein injury) was 1132 mL. Five patients required no blood transfusion. The average time taken to coagulate the anticipated liver transection plane was less than 15 min. Apart from the complications similar to those occurring in hepatic resections for cirrhotic patients, higher incidences of intra-abdominal sepsis (20%), sympathetic pleural effusion in the absence of chest or intra-abdominal sepsis (20%), and persistent fever lasting more than 1 week (40%) were encountered. It was considered that these complications were related to the coagulated tissue present in the liver remnants (mean depth of tissue coagulation = 3.8 mm) and concluded that although the hospital mortality rate of 10% and the mean operative blood loss of 1132 mL were acceptably low, microwave liver surgery carried a high morbidity rate which is a drawback in major hepatic resectional surgery.
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A prospective study of the efficacy of bronchoscopy and tuberculostearic acid assay in the diagnosis of sputum smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) was carried out in 39 patients with symptoms and radiographic changes suggestive of active pulmonary TB. The diagnosis of TB was confirmed in 15 patients, probable TB was diagnosed in eight and 16 patients did not have TB. An early diagnosis of TB was made by bronchoscopy in six patients (40 per cent). Culture of sputum obtained before bronchoscopy was positive in nine patients (60 per cent) while combined with bronchoscopy specimens, a positive mycobacterial culture was obtained in 12 patients (80 per cent). Mycobacteria were cultured from transbronchial biopsy specimens from five patients (33 per cent) but none of these was exclusively positive. Histological examination of transbronchial biopsy tissue was diagnostic of TB in four patients and it was the exclusive means of early diagnosis in two. Transbronchial biopsy also provided an alternative diagnosis in four other patients. Tuberculostearic acid assay had a sensitivity of 0.40 in bronchial aspirate, 0.80 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and 0.27 in transbronchial biopsy specimens: the combined result was 0.87. In nine patients with pulmonary TB in whom an early diagnosis could not be made, the tuberculostearic acid assay was positive in seven (78 per cent). We conclude that bronchoscopy with bronchoalveolar lavage and transbronchial biopsy is helpful in providing early diagnosis and positive culture results. Assay of tuberculostearic acid in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid is a useful adjunct to early diagnosis. However, mycobacterial culture and assay of tuberculostearic acid in transbronchial biopsy specimens have little diagnostic value.
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Chromosomal in situ suppression (CISS) hybridization was used to investigate the distribution of material of chromosomes 1 and 5 present in marker chromosomes of Namalva cells. The Namalva cell line, established from a Burkitt's lymphoma, exhibits a highly variable female karyotype with a large number of marker chromosomes. Libraries from sorted human chromosomes 1 and 5 were used to delineate material of these chromosomes present in the Namalva karyotype. We used the DAB/peroxidase reaction and reflection contrast microscopy for detection of biotinylated hybrid molecules. Identification of chromosomes was achieved by fluorescent R-banding after CISS hybridization, which allowed the assignment of hybridized regions to the particular marker chromosomes. After CISS hybridization with a chromosome I library, the normal chromosome I was labelled as well as a large marker MI and the long arm of marker M3. Using a chromosome 5 library it could be shown that the distal part of the long arm of one chromosome 5 was translocated to marker M2. The normal chromosome 5 was completely labelled. The present investigation demonstrates the advantage of combining CISS hybridization and banding for the identification of complex, rearranged tumor karyotypes.