Regional cerebral blood flow changes in human brain related to ipsilateral and contralateral complex hand movements--a PET study

The purpose of this study was to investigate the cortical motor areas activated in relation to unilateral complex hand movements of either hand, and the motor area related to motor skill learning. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was measured in eight right-handed healthy male volunteers using positron emission tomography during a two-ball-rotation task using the right hand, the same task using the left hand and two control tasks. In the two-ball-rotation tasks, subjects were required to rotate the same two iron balls either with the right or left hand. In the control task, they were required to hold two balls in each hand without movement. The primary motor area, premotor area and cerebellum were activated bilaterally with each unilateral hand movement. In contrast, the supplementary motor area proper was activated only by contralateral hand movements. In addition, we found a positive correlation between the rCBF to the premotor area and the degree of improvement in skill during motor task training. The results indicate that complex hand movements are organized bilaterally in the primary motor areas, premotor areas and cerebellum, that functional asymmetry in the motor cortices is not evident during complex finger movements, and that the premotor area may play an important role in motor skill learning.     

Recanalization of iliac artery occlusion by subintimal dissection using the ipsilateral and the contralateral approach

In peripheral vascular disease, iliac occlusions are one of the most difficult lesions to treat, because of the frequency with which dissection occurs from an ipsilateral approach. We describe a technique of subintimal recanalization of iliac occlusions by a combined ipsilateral and contralateral approach.     

Effects of dexamethasone on functional and pathological changes in rat bronchi caused by high acute exposure to chlorine

OBJECTIVE: To assess month-to-month variability of total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), calculated low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), apolipoprotein A1, apolipoprotein B, and lipoprotein (a), as well as factors that could influence variability, including recent acute infection in an adolescent population. METHODS: Sixty-three high school students had fasting lipids and lipoproteins measured at 4 separate times during the school year and another venipuncture 3 to 7 days after recovery from an acute infection. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate was also measured. Coefficients of variation were calculated for each study variable. The influence of recent infection on variability was assessed. RESULTS: The 50th and 95th percentiles, respectively, for the coefficient of variation for each variable were as follows: total cholesterol, 7.3% and 13.6%; triglycerides, 22% and 47.3%; HDL-C, 7.9% and 16.8%; LDL-C, 12.1% and 25%; apolipoprotein A1, 6.3% and 15.2%; apolipoprotein B, 9.5% and 17.2%; and lipoprotein (a), 19.3% and 40%. Recent infection significantly lowered HDL-C (4 mg/dL; P < .0001) and apolipoprotein A1 (7 mg/dL; P < .005). CONCLUSIONS: Clinicians evaluating lipids and lipoproteins serially should expect significant visit-to-visit variation in triglycerides and calculated LDL-C values. Assessment of HDL-C and apolipoprotein A1 should not be done within 2 weeks of an acute infection. Apolipoproteins B and A1 have slightly less variability than their respective lipoprotein cholesterol values (LDL-C and HDL-C).     

Haemodynamic changes in heart failure induced by a new vasodilator tolmesoxide

The haemodynamic effect of Tolmesoxide, a new sulphoxide chemically dissimilar from other vasodilators, was investigated in eight patients with chronic heart failure subsequent to ischaemic heart disease and/or hypertension. Tolmesoxide significantly increased the cardiac output and reduced the indices of systemic vascular resistance, the mean pulmonary arterial pressure and left ventricular filling pressure in most patients studied. These changes were observed both as acute and chronic effects. No significant effect on the mean arterial pressure, heart rate or myocardial oxygen supply/demand was observed. Tolmesoxide appeared to be therapeutically potent by both intravenous and oral routes.     

Haemodynamic changes in acute myocardial infarction following high doses of furosemide (author's transl)

Haemodynamic measurements were carried out after administration of furosemide to 10 patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction and congestive heart failure. It was observed that a transient deterioration in cardiac function (decreased cardiac output, increased enddiastolic pulmonary arterial pressure and increased pulmonary and systemic resistance) occured in the pre-diuretic stage in these failing hearts. After the onset of diuresis the haemodynamic parameters showed a reversal of the previous trends (increased cardiac output, decreased enddiastolic pulmonary arterial pressure and pulmonary resistance). The consistently lower enddiastolic pulmonary arterial pressure in the diuretic phase as compared with the pre-diuretic value ensured an improvement in cardiac haemodynamics. An attempt was made to interpret the haemodynamic results in the light of the Frank-Starling's curve.     

Effects of ipsilateral and contralateral counterirritation on experimentally produced itch in human beings.

Reviewed the experimental study of itch and conducted an experiment to test the effects of ipsilateral and contralateral counterirritation distal to the itching wrist. Each of 18 female undergraduates served in all experimental conditions, receiving cowage as the itch stimulus and a placebo. Counterirritation consisted of a 10-sec immersion of the fingers into a 2.C water bath. Lateral differences both in response to cowage and to counterirritation were obtained. In general, counterirritation reduced itch significantly more than the control procedure during the treatment period and the 1st 3 intervals following treatment. Results suggest a central mechanism attenuating the sensation of itch. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

振动诱发煤与瓦斯突出的机理

振动是诱发煤与瓦斯突出的重要因素,为此实验研究了振动对瓦斯吸附的作用并从理论上分析了振动对煤体结构的影响,探讨了振动诱发煤与瓦斯突出的机理.结果表明:在振动作用下,煤对瓦斯的吸附量有一定程度的减少,吸附能力降低;振动延长了煤样达到吸附平衡的时间,使吸附平衡压力与未加振动时有所升高,煤样中游离瓦斯增多;振动使煤体内的裂隙增加并扩展,当振动强度达到一定值时煤体内形成较大范围的连通裂隙网;在振动对煤体和瓦斯产生的综合作用下,煤与瓦斯突出的危险性大大增加.     

Reaching to ipsilateral or contralateral targets: within-hemisphere visuomotor processing cannot explain hemispatial differences in motor control

Aiming movements made to visual targets on the same side of the body as the reaching hand typically show advantages as compared to aiming movements made to targets on the opposite side of the body midline in the contralateral visual field. These advantages for ipsilateral reaches include shorter reaction time, higher peak velocity, shorter duration and greater endpoint accuracy. It is commonly hypothesized that such advantages are related to the efficiency of intrahemispheric processing, since, for example, a left-sided target would be initially processed in the visual cortex of the right hemisphere and that same hemisphere controls the motor output to the left hand. We tested this hypothesis by examining the kinematics of aiming movements made by 26 right-handed subjects to visual targets briefly presented in either the left or the right visual field. In one block of trials, the subjects aimed their finger directly towards the target; in the other block, subjects were required to aim their movement to the mirror symmetrical position on the opposite side of the fixation light from the target. For the three kinematic measures in which hemispatial differences were obtained (peak velocity, duration and percentage of movement time spent in deceleration), the advantages were related to the side to which the motor response was directed and not to the side where the target was presented. In addition, these effects tended to be larger in the right hand than in the left, particularly for the percentage of the movement time spent in deceleration. The results are interpreted in terms of models of biomechanical constraints on contralateral movements, which are independent of the hemispace of target presentation.     

Neonatal hand abscess, osteomyelitis and meningitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae

Pathologic splenic rupture is a rare and life-threatening complication of acute leukemia. It is even more uncommon as the initial manifestation, and only a few cases has been reported in the literature. Early recognition of this complication is vital because the prognosis is fatal without immediate treatment by splenectomy. We report the case of a spontaneous spleen rupture irreversibly complicating the onset of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in a 19-year-old man, in spite of splenectomy. In our case abdominal ultrasound was a good, non-invasive diagnostic test. Therefore, we believe that the course of the underlying disease and the physical condition of the patient dramatically influenced the disease evolution.     

NGF depletion reduces ipsilateral and contralateral trigeminal satellite cell reactions after inferior alveolar nerve injury in adult rats

The degradation of poly(propylene fumarate-co-ethylene glycol) hydrogels was examined in vitro in phosphate-buffered saline at pH 7.4 and in vivo in a subcutaneous rat model. These hydrogels have potential application as biodegradable, injectable cardiovascular stents, and, as such, their mass loss, dimensional changes, mechanical properties, morphology, and biocompatibility over a 12-week time course were evaluated. Three formulations were fabricated: one base formulation consisting of 25% (w/w) PEG, molecular weight 4,600; one high weight percent PEG formulation with 50% (w/w) PEG; and one high molecular weight PEG formulation, molecular weight 10,500. All three formulations showed significant weight loss (between 40 and 60%) on the first day due to leaching of the uncrosslinked fraction. Further weight loss was observed only for the low weight percent PEG copolymers in the in vivo case, and a slight increase in volume was observed due to degradative swelling. The mechanical properties of the P(PF-co-EG) hydrogels decreased significantly in the first 3 weeks, showing the biphasic pattern typical of bulk degradation. In vitro, the hydrogels showed at least a 20% retention of their initial ultimate tensile stress after 3 weeks. The dynamic mechanical properties showed similar retention, with the in vivo mechanical properties differing from the in vitro properties only after 6 weeks of degradation. Differences in PEG molecular weight appeared to have little effect, but increasing the weight percent PEG decreased the rate of degradation both in vitro and in vivo. The morphology of the copolymer films, based on scanning electron microscopy observation, was not significantly different either among the three formulations or over the time course of the study, suggesting there were no macroscopic structural changes during this time period. The P(PF-co-EG) hydrogels demonstrated good initial biocompatibility, showing responses characteristic of biomaterial implants.     

Division of the genitofemoral nerve and late orchiectomy: effects on the contralateral testis in ipsilateral testicular torsion

Unilateral torsion of the spermatic cord has been demonstrated to damage the contralateral testis; however, the pathogenesis has not yet been examined in detail. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of unilateral torsion on the contralateral testis in rats by performing ipsilateral division of the genitofemoral nerve (GFN) and/or late orchiectomy. Male 25-day-old, prepubertal Wistar albino rats were divided into five groups: (1) sham operation; (2) unilateral testicular torsion; (3) simultaneous unilateral testicular torsion and ipsilateral GFN division; (4) unilateral testicular torsion and orchiectomy on the 4th day after torsion; and (5) simultaneous unilateral testicular torsion and GFN ipsilateral division, and orchiectomy on the 4th day after torsion. Torsions performed were 720 degrees, all on the right testes. On day 55 after torsion, which represents the early postpubertal period of the rat, the contralateral testes were removed. Tubular biopsy score (TBS) was calculated, and seminiferous tubular diameters (STD) were measured. Student's t-test was used for statistical analysis. There was no contralateral testicular damage in the control group, but in all of the study groups destructive changes were found in the left gonad after torsion of the right testicle. The mean TBS of the study groups was higher than that of the control group. STD values were lower in the study groups, but the differences were not statistically significant between groups. In prepubertal rats, unilateral torsion causes histologically measurable changes in the contralateral testis. Ipsilateral division of the GFN and late orchiectomy did not cause any significant alterations in terms of contralateral damage. Further investigations are needed to determine the role of the GFN in testicular torsion.     

The ipsilateral and contralateral connections of the fifth somatosensory area (SV) in the cat cerebral cortex

THE ipsilateral and contralateral corticocortical connections to the fifth somatosensory area (SV) in the feline cortex were determined from the location of retrogradely labelled cells following a single injection of HRP into SV. The injection was made into physiologically defined components of the body representation in SV. After injection of HRP into the face regions of SV, HRP-labelled cells were located ipsilaterally in areas 6 beta, 3b and 1-2 of the primary somatosensory (SI), in the second somatosensory (SII), third somatosensory (SIII), and fourth somatosensory (SIV) areas, along the ansate sulcus, and in areas 5a and 6a beta of the ipsilateral cortex, as well as in area 1-2 of SI and in SV of the contralateral cortex. On the other hand, after HRP had been injected into the trunk/hindlimb area, HRP-labelled cells were located in areas 3a, 1-2 of SI, in area 5, in SII, in SIII and in SIV of the ipsilateral cortex, as well as in area 1-2 of SI, and in SV of the contralateral cortex. The extent of these interconnections suggests that SV receives multiple sensory inputs and may function to integrate this information.     

Haemodynamic changes in portal hypertension: new insights in the pathogenesis and clinical implications

In man and experimental animals, portal hypertension with portal-venous collaterals, is associated with a hyperdynamic circulation, caused by peripheral vasodilatation, mainly in the splanchnic bed. This peripheral vasodilatation is clinically important, since it is thought to be responsible for the pathogenesis of complications of portal hypertension such as ascites, the hepatorenal syndrome and portal hypertensive gastropathy and colopathy. Many cirrhotic patients may not die primarily because of their hepatic dysfunction, but rather because of the consequences of the circulatory abnormalities which are secondary to the liver disease. Circulating hormonal vasodilators from intestinal origin such as glucagon, insufficiently cleared by the liver, are only partly responsible for these changes. Recent experimental data point to a role for an increased production of the locally acting potent vasodilator nitric oxide in the vascular wall, in the pathogenesis of the hyperdynamic circulation. Furthermore, nitric oxide seems to play an important role in the development of portal-venous collaterals. Modulation of the nitric oxide production might offer therapeutic options for the treatment of portal hypertension and its complications.     

A quantitative autoradiographic and electrophysiological study of the reinnervation of the dentate gyrus by the contralateral entorhinal cortex following ipsilateral entorhinal lesions

The post-lesion proliferation of contralateral enthorhinal afferents which occurs in response to ipsilateral entorhinal lesions was quantitatively analyzed with autoradiographic and electrophysiological techniques. In both cases, the extent of the crossed projection to the dentate granule cells was quantified on the basis of a contralateral/ipsilateral (C/I) ratio. Autoradiographic measures of grain density in the entorhinal terminal field indicates that the very sparse crossed entorhinal projection in intact animals proliferates approximately 6-fold following unilateral entorhinal lesions (on the basis of an increased C/I ratio of grain density in animals with long standing unilater entorhinal lesions). Furthermore, the total number of grains in the entorhinal terminal zone (obtained by subtracting background from non-terminal regions) also increases approximately 6-fold, indicating that compression of the neuropil cannot be the factor responsible for the increased grain density. These increases in the anatomical extent of the crossed projection as a consequence of unilateral entorhinal lesions are also reflected electrophysiologically. In operated animals, the C/I ratio of the extracellular population EPSP (a measure of the synaptic current generated by the crossed projections) also increase 5-8 fold. In addition, while in normal animals, no population spikes are observed following stimulation of the contralateral entorhinal area (indicating an absence of synchronous grnaule cell discharge in response to contralateral entorhinal input), such population spikes are quite prominent in the reinnervated dentate gyrus, indicating a large increase in the effective synaptic drive of the proliferated crossed projections.     

Scar changes in the bronchus caused by a foreign body

Long lasting recurrent pneumonia in 13-year-old girl was been described. The main cause was the foreign body (pawn of plastic) covered in intermediate bronchus. Bronchoscopy revealed scars in type of "bridges" narrowing intermediate bronchus. The foreign body and the scar changes were removed.     

Management of acute otitis media caused by resistant pneumococci in infants

OBJECTIVES: To assess the clinical outcome and risk of failure after oral vs. intravenous treatment in otitis media caused by penicillin-resistant pneumococci. To determine the possible correlations between pneumococcal minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) to penicillin and clinical outcome. DESIGN: Retrospective study of 156 cases collected between 1993 and 1995. Mean follow-up: 5 months. Setting. Two tertiary academic medical centers in Paris, France. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Pneumococcus was isolated from 191 of 570 ear samples obtained from children with otitis media and shown to be penicillin-resistant in 156. Medical history, antibiotic therapy during the previous 3 months and day-care center attendance were reviewed. For the current episode microbiologic characteristics of the isolated strains, type of treatment, therapy efficacy and clinical outcome were analyzed. Patients were predominantly young (76.3% were <1 year old) and bacteriologic samples were taken mainly because of previous treatment failure. RESULTS: Among 156 children with pneumococcal penicillin-resistant otitis media, 72.2% attended day-care centers, 71.8% had been previously treated with aminopenicillin and 52.5% with cephalosporins. Failure of previous empirical oral therapy was noted in 84% (one-third of these had been receiving amoxicillin-clavulanate). Patients treated intravenously had had a more protracted otitis but no greater number of previous episodes of acute otitis media than those receiving oral therapy. Acute mastoiditis occurred in 4 infants resulting in mastoidectomy. Oral treatment (mainly with high dose amoxicillin,120 to 150 mg/kg/day) and intravenous therapy (cephalosporin or glycopeptide) had been used in 59 and 41%, respectively. Mean duration of therapy was 10.7 days. Three failures (1.9%) and 10 recurrences (6.4%, average 28 days) occurred. No statistical difference was found between intravenous and oral therapy with respect to risk of recurrence. A high penicillin MIC value was correlated with previous antibiotic treatment but not with clinical outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Oral therapy appears to be as effective as intravenous therapy for the treatment of penicillin-resistant pneumococcal otitis media. Intravenous treatment should not necessarily be dictated by the penicillin susceptibility value but should be considered in cases of failure to thrive, persistent otitis or other complications.     

Clinical course and treatment of acute poisoning caused by some mushrooms

In a longitudinal study, we studied the variability in bronchial responsiveness (BR) to methacholine in aluminum potroom workers suffering from work-related asthma-like symptoms (WASTH) and in symptom-free workers. In the index group, 26 men suffering from WASTH were selected from a cross-sectional survey. The reference group comprised 45 symptom-free men recruited from the enrollment of new employees. Bronchial responsiveness was expressed as the dose-response slope (DRS) of the line through origin and the last data point. The standard deviation of the log-transformed DRS was positively associated with symptom score (P = .012) and the mean BR (P < .001). Our results indicate that the severity of respiratory symptoms in aluminum potroom workers with WASTH reflects the variability in BR.