Utilization of mammography--who will come and why?

Mammography has been used to detect early stages of breast cancer in women over the age of 40 years. Nationally organized mammography screening has not been initiated in Norway, but women have the possibility of undergoing mammography at many hospitals and private institutions. This article describes the use of mammography at R?ntgensenteret, a private institute, from January to July 1992. Women in the age group 40 to 50 years were the most frequent users. The most important reason for the women undergoing mammography was a recommendation from their physician. Living near to the examination unit was also an important factor.     

In situ hybridization on May-Grünwald Giemsa-stained bone marrow and blood smears of patients with hematologic disorders allows detection of cell-lineage-specific cytogenetic abnormalities

Bone marrow and blood from patients with acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome were studied by simultaneous analysis of cell morphology and karyotype. A combined technique of May-Grünwald Giemsa (MGG) for cell morphology and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with chromosome-specific DNA probes for detection of cytogenetic aberrations allowed us to investigate cell-lineage-specific chromosomal abnormalities. We introduced video recordings to examine large numbers of cells. Briefly, evaluation was first performed on MGG slides, during which cell position and morphology were recorded on an S-VHS recorder. Subsequently, the same slides were used for FISH. This resulted in the identification of MGG-stained cells on the video screen and, at the same time, the interpretation of FISH signals in the fluorescence microscope. Specimens of bone marrow or blood samples from four patients with different hematologic malignancies were studied. One of these patients was studied before and after cytotoxic treatment. The gain or loss of chromosomes could be detected easily and morphologically assigned to the blasts in all patients and to a variable proportion of the myelomonocytic lineage in two patients, but not to the lymphocytes. Thus, this method provides new possibilities for investigating the clonality of hematologic malignancies.     

Multiplane transesophageal Doppler echocardiographic measurements of the velocity profile in the human pulmonary artery

A new method to detect remote relationships between protein sequences and known three-dimensional structures based on direct energy calculations and without reliance on statistics has been developed. The likelihood of a residue to occupy a given position on the structural template was represented by an estimate of the stabilization free energy made after explicit prediction of the substituted side chain conformation. The profile matrix derived from these energy values and modified by increasing the residue self-exchange values successfully predicted compatibility of heat-shock protein and globin sequences with the three-dimensional structures of actin and phycocyanin, respectively, from a full protein sequence databank search. The high sensitivity of the method makes it a unique tool for predicting the three-dimensional fold for the rapidly growing number of protein sequences.     

The effect of isopropyl alcohol desiccation on apical sealability of two commonly used endodontic cements

The present study was undertaken to determine the ability of alcohol desiccation to improve the apical seal by removing residual moisture from the canal. From the results of this study, isopropyl alcohol did not improve the sealability of either Roth's 801 sealer or AH26 sealer. Thus, the employment of this technique should be questioned on the basis of the potential source of irritation of the alcohol and the addition of an extraneous procedural step.     

Jaw lesions resulting from renal hyperparathyroidism in a young dog--a case report

A five-month-old male Labrador retriever presented with massive bilateral jaw and facial swelling. Ulcers were found on the buccal mucosa and palate, and the jaws were flexible on firm palpation. The dog could eat only soft food and was underweight. Renal hyperparathyroidism was diagnosed based on serum chemistry screen, parathormone concentration, radiological findings and histopathology. The dog was euthanatized because of an extremely poor prognosis.     

The regional morphological characteristics of the endothelium of the human thoracic aorta in perfusion fixation

The ultramicroscopic organization and the endotheliocyte surface relief in ventral portions of the thoracic part of human aorta and in zones of division of blood flow were studied under conditions of early post mortem examinations and perfusion fixation of corpses of 14 humans dead from accidental causes. Zones of entrance into the intercostal aortas are compared with the straight portions of the aorta and are found to be characterized, as compared with the latters, by polymorphism of the endothelium, higher adhesiveness of its surface to blood elements, as well as by the presence of intravitally de-endothelialized portions localized on the ridge of the intimal valve.     

Hematomas and limb skeletal malformations in chicken embryos following exposure to 5-fluoro-2-deoxyuridine

Despite considerable attention to community integration and related topics in the past decades, a clear definition of community integration continues to elude researchers and service providers. Common to most discussions of the topic, however, are three ideas: that integration involves relationships with others, independence in one's living situation and activities to fill one's time. The present study sought to expand this conceptualization of community integration by asking people with brain injuries for their own perspectives on community integration. This qualitative study resulted in a definition of community integration consisting of nine indicators: orientation, acceptance, conformity, close and diffuse relationships, living situation, independence, productivity and leisure. These indicators were empirically derived from the text of 116 interviews with people with moderate-severe brain injuries living in the community. Eighteen adults living in supported living programmes were followed for 1 year, to track their evolving definition of integration and the factors they felt were related to integration. The study also showed a general trend toward more positive evaluation over the year, and revealed that positive evaluation was frequently related to meeting new people and freedom from staff supervision. These findings are interpreted in the light of recommendations for community programmes.     

Tidal expired airflow patterns in adults with airway obstruction

Earlier studies have shown that time and flow indices derived from tidal expiratory flow patterns can be used to distinguish the severity of airway obstruction. This study was designed to address two aspects of tidal expiratory flow patterns: 1) how do expiratory flow patterns differ between subjects with normal and obstructed airways; and 2) can a sensitive index of airway obstruction be derived from these pattern differences? Tidal expiratory flow patterns from 66 adult subjects with varying degrees of airway obstructive disease with a forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) of 20-121% predicted were examined. In each subject, the expired flow pattern from each consecutive breath was scaled and then averaged together to create a single expired pattern. A detailed examination of the scaled flow patterns in 12 subjects (six with normal airways and six with airway obstruction) showed that the shape of the post-peak expiratory flow portion was different in the subjects with airway obstruction. A slope index, S, was derived from the scaled patterns and found to be sensitive to the severity of airway obstruction, correlating with FEV1 (% pred) with r2=0.74 (p<0.05, n=57). The S index also correlated (r2=0.36, p<0.05, n=47) with the functional residual capacity (FRC) (% pred) which was >100% in subjects with severe airway obstruction and lung overinflation. In subjects with normal airways, three further airflow patterns could be distinguished, which were different from the patterns seen in subjects with the severest airway obstruction. Scaled flow patterns from tidal expiration collected from uncoached subjects, can be used to derive an index of airway obstruction.