Anthroposophic perspectives in primary care

Anthroposophically Extended Medicine (AEM) is a truly integrative healing system. AEM represents an expansion, not an alternative to conventional medicine. Its unique understanding of the interplay among physiological, soul and spiritual processes in healing and illness serves to bridge allopathy with naturopathy, homeopathy, functional/nutritional medicine and other healing systems.     

Precise measurements of intrauterine vascular structures at hysteroscopy in menorrhagia and during Norplant use

Using currently available equipment for panoramic hysteroscopy, the size of images viewed cannot be accurately judged because of the magnifying and distorting effects of the objective lens. This study has demonstrated that magnification by the hysteroscope lens can alter the apparent size of images by up to 27%. An additional effect of lens distortion can alter the apparent size of images viewed by up to 28%, depending on the position of the image in the field of view. These effects are independent and may be additive. Thus, the apparent size of intrauterine structures at hysteroscopy may bear little resemblance to their actual size. Image-correction methods are described which reduce the effects of image magnification on the apparent size of an object viewed through the hysteroscope to 7%, and the effect of distortion to 3 %. This technique can greatly improve the accuracy of measurement at hysteroscopy, and has been utilized in this study for the precise measurement of superficial endometrial vascular diameter (mean+/-SEM) in 34 Norplant users (120+/-11.6 microm) and 20 women with spontaneous menorrhagia (74+/-7.2 microm). It has also confirmed the presence of scattered dilated vessels (up to 777 microm in diameter) on the endometrial surface in some Norplant users.     

Hormone changes in relation to the time of fetal death after prostaglandin-induced abortion

The changes in unconjugated estradiol-17beta and estriol, progesterone and chorionic somatomammotropin (HCS) in peripheral plasma have been studied in 18 women at 30-minute intervals following intra-uterine prostaglandin E2 administration for therapeutic termination of second trimester pregnancy. The hormonal changes were related to the time of fetal death detected by the disappearance of fetal heart pulsations. Prostaglandin E2 was given by the intra-amniotic route with urea (5 patients) or with intravenous oxytocin (5 patients), or by the extra-amniotic route with intravenous oxytocin (8 patients). Fetal death occurred rapidly with intra-amniotic PGE2, but usually at a late stage with extra-amniotic PGE2. Three fetuses in the extra-amniotic group died at or just before abortion. A variety of fetal heart changes were noted and the time of fetal death did not appear to influence the time of abortion within each treatment subgroup. Estradiol and estriol showed a sligh but persistent fall over 24 hours prior to induction of abortion. A more rapid fall usually occurred after induction, with a consistent fall around the time of fetal death. Progesterone and HCS usually fell much less before and immediately after fetal death. A marked rise in estradiol sometimes occurred before fetal death, particularly in the intraamniotic PGE2 and urea subgroup. Estriol levels declined more rapidly before than after fetal death, whereas fetal death had less consistent effects on the other hormones. All hormones had usually fallen considerably at the time of abortion, and in some individuals marked fluctuations in hormone levels were seen.     

Polymorphism of bacteriophage T7

For viruses made of nucleic acid and protein, the structure of the protein outer shell has, in the past, been found to be uniquely determined by the viral genome. However, here, non-denaturing agarose gel electrophoresis of bacteriophage T7 reveals two states of the mature T7 capsid; the conditions of growth are found to alter the population by T7 of these two electrophoretically defined states. Both states have been previously observed for a genetically altered T7 and they are observed here for wild-type T7. The average electrical surface charge density of a bacteriophage particle (delta) determines its state; the delta of particles in both states is negative. For a given condition of growth, the population of these two states is influenced by the extent to which the major T7 outer shell protein, p10A, is accompanied by its minor readthrough variant, p10B. Comparison of the two electrophoretic states reveals the following. (1) No difference in radius is present in the outer shell (+/-2%). (2) As the pH of electrophoresis is either increased or decreased from neutrality, the state becomes more highly populated for which delta is greater in magnitude (state 1). By changing the pH, some T7 particles are made to change state. (3) Particles in state 1 adsorb less quickly to host cells than do the particles in the alternative state (state 2). This latter observation suggests the hypothesis that state 1 evolved to reduce the probability of re-initiating an infection when conditions are not favorable for growth. This hypothesis is supported by the observation that, as conditions of growth become apparently more unfavorable, progeny increasingly populate state 1.