Thromboembolism complicating surgery for cervical and uterine malignancy: incidence, risk factors, and prophylaxis

Venous thromboembolism is a leading cause of death and morbidity after extended surgery for early malignancies of the cervix and uterus. Two hundred eighty-one patients who underwent such surgery were retrospectively evaluated for associated risk factors, the incidence of clinically significant thromboembolic complications, and prophylactic value of low-dose heparin and antiembolism stockings. Significant thromboemboli were encountered in 7.8% of patients postoperatively and accounted for the only 4 postoperative deaths. Forty-five percent of patients who developed thromboemboli did so after discharge from the hospital. The preoperative risk factors found to be associated with thromboembolism, in order of statistical significance, were weight in excess of 85.5 kg, advanced clinical stage of malignancy, and radiation therapy within 6 weeks of the operative procedure. Low-dose heparin therapy and the use of antiembolism stockings as preventative measures did not appear to reduce the incidence of thromboembolic complications. A prospective study will be necessary to evaluate definitely the effectiveness of various therapeutic modalities on thromboembolism in gynecologic oncology patients.     

A generalized autocovariance least-squares method for Kalman filter tuning

This paper discusses a method for estimating noise covariances from process data. In linear stochastic state-space representations the true noise covariances are generally unknown in practical applications. Using estimated covariances a Kalman filter can be tuned in order to increase the accuracy of the state estimates. There is a linear relationship between covariances and autocovariance. Therefore, the covariance estimation problem can be stated as a least-squares problem, which can be solved as a symmetric semidefinite least-squares problem. This problem is convex and can be solved efficiently by interior-point methods. A numerical algorithm for solving the symmetric is able to handle systems with mutually correlated process noise and measurement noise.     

Environmental upregulation of the atrial natriuretic peptide gene in the living fossil, Limulus polyphemus

Northern blot analysis revealed that atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) gene expression occurs in heart, hematocytes and gills of the invertebrate Limulus polyphemus, the horseshoe crab. In low salinity and on land ANP prohormone messenger RNA in Limulus' heart was 32-fold less compared to that in a vertebrate heart (i.e., rat, Rattus norvegicus). ANP gene expression doubled (P < 0.05) in Limulus' heart and gills with change from land and low salinity to medium salinity and osmolality. ANP gene expression was 10-fold higher in Limulus' gills in seawater (i.e., high salinity). The products of this ANP gene expression (i.e., ANP, long acting natriuretic peptide, vessel dilator and kaliuretic peptide) were released and increased in the circulation, i.e., hemolymph, of Limulus proportional to the increase in salinity and osmolality (P = <0.01). These results suggest that modification of ANP gene expression enables animals to adapt to freshwater, seawater, and land.     

TCR-independent pathways mediate the effects of antigen dose and altered peptide ligands on Th cell polarization

We examined the role of the peptide/MHC ligand in CD4+ T cell differentiation into Th1 or Th2 cells using a TCR alphabeta transgenic mouse specific for hemoglobin (Hb)(64-76)/I-Ek. We identified two altered peptide ligands of Hb(64-76) that retain strong agonist activity but, at a given dose, induce cytokine patterns distinct from the Hb(64-76) peptide. The ability of these peptides to produce distinct cytokine patterns at identical doses is not due to an intrinsic qualitative property. Each peptide can induce Th2 cytokines at low concentrations and Th1 cytokines at high concentrations and has a unique range of concentrations at which these distinct effects occur. The pattern of cytokines produced from limiting dilution of naive T cells demonstrated that the potential to develop an individual Th1 or Th2 cell is stochastic, independent of Ag dose. We propose that the basis for the observed effects on the Th1/Th2 balance shown by the altered peptide ligands and the amount of Ag dose involves the modification of soluble factors in bulk cultures that are the driving force that polarize the population to either a Th1 or Th2 phenotype.     

Results from the monitoring of pesticide residues in fruit and vegetables on the Danish market, 1998?99

The objective of the Danish pesticide monitoring programme for fruit and vegetables was to check for compliance with the maximum residue levels in foods and to monitor the residue levels to assess the pesticide exposure of the Danish population. Sampling plans were designed based on previous findings and on food consumption data. Approximately 60% of the samples were selected on the basis of positive findings in samples from the previous 5 years. The remaining samples reflected the pattern of food consumption in Denmark. In addition, a rolling programme is maintained for commodities with a low consumption and no detected residues. Within each commodity, the sampling was random. Samples (n = 4150) of mainly fresh, conventionally grown fruit and vegetables were taken throughout the chain of suppliers including foodprocessing companies. Of the samples, 3% were frozen products and 2% were organically grown. Of the samples, 35% were of Danish origin, with 65% originating from other countries. Three accredited laboratories performed analyses of the samples using capillary gas chromatography, liquid chromatography and spectrophotometric methods. Results were registered online into a central database. Residues were found in 54% of the samples of fruit but only in 13% of the vegetables. Residues above the MRL were found in 4% of all samples of fruit and in 1% of vegetables.