Plasma GABA in children and adolescents with mood, behavior, and comorbid mood and behavior disorders: a preliminary study

Plasma GABA concentrations (pGABA) were measured in 115 inpatients (aged 7-17) with child psychiatric disorders. Group mean pGABAs were compared for 38 patients with mood disorders only (MOOD), 29 with behavior disorders only (BEH), 48 with comorbid mood and behavior disorders (MOOD + BEH), and 14 normal controls (CON, aged 14-17). The BEH group was characterized by (a) high mean pGABAs (157 vs. 133 pmol/ml), (b) lower mean pGABAs in BEH subjects who had been receiving pharmacotherapy with SSRIs or other medications (p < 0.026), and (c) decreased pGABA with increasing age (p = 0.019). These features were not found in controls or in groups of patients with mood disorders (MOOD or MOOD + BEH). Elevated mean pGABA in the BEH group appeared specifically in patients with comorbid CD and ADHD, not in patients with ADHD or CD alone (p = 0.004). No patient in BEH (or CON) had pGABA below 100 pmol/ml, but low pGABAs were found in 15% of MOOD patients (who had no behavior disorder) and in 16% of MOOD + BEH patients. Pharmacotherapy did not change pGABAs in the MOOD or the MOOD + BEH groups. No pGABA differences were found among the anxiety disorders, either alone or with mood or behavior comorbidity. The finding that plasma GABA levels are elevated in nonmedicated behavior disorders that present in the absence of mood disorders, and appear to lower following medication treatments, merits increased attention to the pharmacological study of nonaffective behavior disorders.     

Prevalence of Helicobacter pylori(Hp) infection in the department of gastroenterology staff members in Nanjing

The intraneural ganglion of the peroneal nerve is a rare lesion. The differential diagnosis includes lesions of the knee especially the tendinopathia of the knee flexors. Clinical examination, electrophysiological investigations, ultrasound imaging and magnetic resonance tomography will establish the diagnosis. We report a case in which an artificial puncture of the ganglion caused a temporary peroneal palsy. Surgical procedure led to complete restoration of the nerve function.     

A neural network that predicts psychiatric length of stay

One hundred and twelve bilateral thyroidectomies for solitary thyroid nodules with suspected malignancy were performed. The incidence of malignancy in the 112 primary nodules was 42%. Twenty-nine of the 112 contralateral lobes (26%) contained malignancy, which was unsuspected in 80%. Of these 29, 20 were foci of papillary cancer < or = 5 mm and 9 were larger papillary tumors or follicular carcinoma. We analyzed these 112 patients to determine whether there was a simple method to identify those patients at risk for contralateral, unsuspected malignancy. With use of the AMES clinical staging retrospectively, 70 of the 112 patients were classified as having low-stage disease. Fifty percent (35) had cancers on the primary side and 27% (19) on the contralateral side. Of these 19 contralateral cancers, 14 were papillary cancers < or = 5 mm, 4 were papillary cancer > 5 mm and one was a 1.5 cm follicular carcinoma, a similar distribution as in the whole group of 112. When the AMES analysis then excluded those thought to be at risk for multicentricity or papillary carcinoma and examined female patients only with nonpapillary frozen sections, nonpapillary aspiration cytological results, and no history of radiation exposure, no further reduction in the proportion of contralateral cancers (7 of 26, 27%) was found. Fifty-five of the 112 patients underwent preoperative ultrasound scans. In those cases in whom the contralateral lobe had no intraoperative palpable or preoperative sonographic mass, 5 of 20 still had contralateral cancers, but all were papillary < or = 5 mm.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Primary sternal osteomyelitis presenting as a pleural-based mass

Osteomyelitis in uncommon locations can present unusual diagnostic difficulties. A patient with primary sternal osteomyelitis who presented with pain over the right supraclavicular area and a radiologic picture of a pleural-based right upper lung mass is discussed. A triple-phase bone scan was consistent with the diagnosis, and a needle aspiration of the mass revealed a staphylococcal abscess. Percutaneous drainage of the contiguous abscess and a prolonged course of antibiotic therapy cured the infection.     

Transmission Fiber Chromatic Dispersion Dependence on Temperature: Implications on 40 Gb/s Performance

In this letter, we will evaluate the performance degradation of a 40 km high‐speed (40 Gb/s) optical system, induced by optical fiber variations of the chromatic dispersion induced by temperature changes. The chromatic dispersion temperature sensitivity will be estimated based on the signal quality parameters.     

Interaction of a free-living soil nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans, with surrogates of foodborne pathogenic bacteria

Free-living nematodes may harbor, protect, and disperse bacteria, including those ingested and passed in viable form in feces. These nematodes are potential vectors for human pathogens and may play a role in foodborne diseases associated with fruits and vegetables eaten raw. In this study, we evaluated the associations between a free-living soil nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Escherichia coli, an avirulent strain of Salmonella Typhimurium, Listeria welshimeri, and Bacillus cereus. On an agar medium, young adult worms quickly moved toward colonies of all four bacteria; over 90% of 3-day-old adult worms entered colonies within 16 min after inoculation. After 48 h, worms moved in and out of colonies of L. welshimeri and B. cereus but remained associated with E. coli and Salmonella Typhimurium colonies for at least 96 h. Young adult worms fed on cells of the four bacteria suspended in K medium. Worms survived and reproduced with the use of nutrients derived from all test bacteria, as determined for eggs laid by second-generation worms after culturing for 96 h. Development was slightly slower for worms fed gram-positive bacteria than for worms fed gram-negative bacteria. Worms that fed for 24 h on bacterial lawns formed on tryptic soy agar dispersed bacteria over a 3-h period when they were transferred to a bacteria-free agar surface. The results of this study suggest that C. elegans and perhaps other free-living nematodes are potential vectors for both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, including foodborne pathogens in soil.