The diagnosis, treatment and prevention of early stages of cerebral blood flow insufficiency

1. Although decreasing the use of seclusion and restraints in the management of aggressive children is a critical issue facing pediatric psychiatric inpatient programs, finding effective alternatives has been a difficult challenge. 2. Therapeutic holding appears to be as effective as seclusion and restraint with respect to managing aggressive behaviors in the psychiatrically disordered child. 3. Therapeutic holding has the potential to reduce the episodes of mechanical restraints and to be perceived by children as less punitive.     

Cytogenetic patterns in synapsis of meiotic chromosomes in animals and plants

Chromosome synapsis in meiosis is performed through the formation of a synaptonemal complex (SC). The SC aggregates homologues until the diplotene stage, when the function of physical binding is carried out by a chiasmata. SC formation is controlled by specific genes. Regularities of SC formation in animals and plants are being studied at the Laboratory of Cytogenetics, Vavilov Institute of General Genetics, the Russian Academy of Sciences. It was shown that, in Drosophila melanogaster, the presence or absence of SC in meiosis is determined by balance between autosomes and sex chromosomes. i.e., SC is formed according to regularities in sex determination. The dose of the 8C-11A segment of X chromosome plays a key role in this process. Eight mutations in synaptic genes that affect SC formation were studied in rye Secale cereale. SC variants occurring in heteromorphic sex chromosomes were analyzed in the Ellobius genera and in B-chromosomes of Apodemus peninsulae. It was shown that, in addition to homologous synapsis, non-homologous synapsis of aberrant chromosomes occurs in rye and mouse heterozygotes at chromosome rearrangements. Twice as many heterozygous chromosome rearrangements were revealed, when the SC was studied at pachytene instead of diakinesis and metaphase I. Simple methods of SC investigations extended the capabilities of cytogenetic analysis of meiosis and provided new perspectives for studying the action of meiotic gen.     

The effect of the liposomal form of hydrocortisone on the status of cellular and humoral immunity in patients with steroid-dependent bronchial asthma

Skin injury alive produces quick and distinct increase of free histamine and serotonin. A fluorimetric method for detection of these compounds in tissues has been the only one described in the literature up to now but it needed a time consuming extraction and big amount of primary material (about 3 g of skin devoid of subcutaneous fat tissue) as well. The authors succeeded in substituting the method and developed a voltametric detection of histamine and serotonin using the computerized ECO-TRIBO-Polarograph. It enabled to omit the extraction of skin compounds and to decreased the amount of primary tissue to a quarter. The detection of free histamine and serotonin levels is presumed to enable a more accurate determination of the time of injury, particulary in short interval before death; it presents, with a simultaneous of glycophorin, a convenient complementation of immunohistochemical investigation of fibronectin.     

Prospects of the use of caudal epidural anesthesia

Caudal epidural anesthesia for interventions on the lower limbs and pelvic organs was used in 525 patients. A specific feature of the method is use of hypoosmolic local anesthetic solution (osmolality 260 mosmol/kg) containing lidocaine, 0.9% sodium chloride, and distilled water. Pathologic studies showed that in adult patients, at least 40 ml anesthetic should be injected into the caudal canal for adequate blocking. During surgery, caudal epidural anesthesia reliably protected from surgical trauma without side effects for respiration and circulation. The duration of analgesic effect was 3 +/- 0.5 h and even longer, if local anesthesia was potentiated with sedative drugs. No complications were observed, failures occurred in 5.2% cases. The method is simple and reliable and is recommended for practice.     

Issues in mental health services for children and adolescents

Existing system of psychiatric care for children and adolescents is in need of basic reorganization. The authors propose: 1) reestablishment of the speciality of children's and adolescent psychiatrist, a specialist in children's and adolescent narcology, a psychiatrist of early child's age and a pediatric medical psychologist; 2) carrying out the reform of child mental care equal in rights with general psychiatry; 3) preservation and widening of both specialized inpatient and outpatient clinics in general system of child's mental care; 4) legislative and public rehabilitation of children's psychiatry, which suffered considerably from antipsychiatric campaign; 5) professionally organized systematic elevation of psychohygienic, psychiatric and psychotherapeutic knowledges of allied medical and other specialists as well as of parents and of all population too; 6) integration and interaction of govermental services concerning mental health of children and adolescent; 7) organization of regional psychoprophylaxic interdisciplinary centers for children and adolescent.