A mathematical model for predicting the temperature rise in transurethral laser-induced thermo-therapy for benign prostatic hyperplasia was developed. In the model an optical line source emitting light from an Nd:YAG laser isotropically was placed in the urethra. Water cooling of the urethral epithelium was modelled using a two-tube system. The relationship between the difference in outlet and inl

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) technique is a dual-channel electrotherapy system designed specifically for the treatment of pharyngeal dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the outcome of NMES versus traditional swallowing therapy (TT) in stroke patients. Three European swallowing centers participated in this randomized trial. Twenty-five patients (16 men

AIMS: To study the prevalence of airway obstruction according to age, gender and smoking habits using spirometry, and to compare the results using different definitions, classifications and spirometric reference values in an elderly population. METHODS: A random sample of 2046 men and women in nine age cohorts (aged 60, 66, 72, 78, 81, 84, 87, 90 and 93 years) were drawn from the Swedish municipal

Objectives: To investigate the reliability, validity and responsiveness of a new Patient-Specific Leisure Scale (PSLS), constructed to identify goals and outcomes for individual patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).Methods: Forty-nine patients with RA were used to evaluate test-retest reliability, and 100 consecutive RA patients were used for construct validity. Twenty-five RA patients, commenc

BACKGROUND: Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) consists of recurrent major depressive episodes in the fall/winter with remissions in spring/summer. METHOD: A Medline search was conducted to identify studies relating to clinical management of SAD using the Medical Subject Heading, seasonal affective disorder, and key words, depress* and season*, focusing on studies published in the past 10 years. Th

Moraxella catarrhalis (M. catarrhalis) is a human-restricted commensal of the normal bacterial flora in the upper respiratory tract of children, and - during the previous two decades - has been recognised as a true human pathogen. M. catarrhalis is the third most common pathogen causing acute otitis media in children, which is the most common reason to visit a paediatrician during childhood. Acute

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE:: This study attempted a national inventory of all bilateral prophylactic mastectomies performed in Sweden between 1995 and 2005 in high-risk women without a previous breast malignancy. The primary aim was to investigate the breast cancer incidence after surgery. Secondary aims were to describe the preoperative risk assessment, operation techniques, complications, histopatholo

Objective. To correlate cervical and amniotic fluid cytokines and macrophage-related chemokines to the development of histological chorioamnionitis (HCA) in patients with preterm labor (PTL) and preterm prelabor rupture of the membranes (PPROM). Study design. Cervical and amniotic fluid interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, IL-18, monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP)-1, MCP-2, and MCP-3 from pregnant women (at

Disease-predisposing germline mutations in cancer susceptibility genes may consist of large genomic rearrangements that are challenging to detect and characterize using standard PCR-based mutation screening methods. Here, we describe a custom-made zoom-in microarray comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) platform of 60mer oligonucleotides. The 4 x 44 K array format provides high-resolution covera

Blue diode lasers emitting 5 mW continuous-wave power around 400 nm have recently become available. We report on the use of a blue diode laser together with a 30 mW red diode laser for sum-frequency generation around 254 nm. The ultraviolet power is estimated to be 0.9 nW, and 35 GHz mode-hop-free tuning range is achieved. This is enough to perform high-resolution ultraviolet spectroscopy of mercu

The neurobiological bases of mood disorders remain elusive but both monoamines and neuropeptides may play important roles. The neuropeptide cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript (CART) was shown to induce anxiety-like behavior in rodents, and mutations in the human CART gene are associated with depression and anxiety. We measured CART-like immunoreactivity (-LI) in genetic rat models of dep

Despite improved treatment results of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), 20% to 30% have a relapse, and then the outcome is very poor. We studied 40 children with ALL marrow relapse piloting an ALL relapse protocol with well-known drugs and drug combinations by using a concept of response-guided design. We also measured response in logarithmic fashion. Our primary end points were achiev

CD40 is a costimulatory protein expressed on the surface of many different cells. It delivers signals regulating diverse cellular responses, including proliferation, differentiation, growth suppression, and cell death. In this study, we report a novel CD40 mutant (c.234C>A or p.H78Q) that is expressed in the U266 cell line and in freshly isolated tumor cells. Three-dimensional structural model and

Complications of dopamine replacement for Parkinson's disease (PD) can limit therapeutic options, leading to interest in identifying novel pathways that can be exploited to improve treatment. p11 (S100A10) is a cellular scaffold protein that binds to and potentiates the activity of various ion channels and neurotransmitter receptors. We have previously reported that p11 can influence ventral stria

Transplants of fetal dopamine neurons can be used to restore dopamine neurotransmission in animal models of Parkinson's disease, as well as in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. In these studies the cells are placed in the striatum rather than in the substantia nigra where they normally reside, which may limit their ability to achieve full restoration of motor function. Using a microtrans

Previous studies have shown that serotonin neurons play an important role in the induction and maintenance of l-DOPA-induced dyskinesia in animals with lesion of the nigrostriatal dopamine system. Patients with Parkinson's disease that receive transplants of foetal ventral mesencephalic tissue, the graft cell preparation is likely to contain, in addition to dopamine neurons, serotonin neurons that

Review of Annette Insdorf, Indelible Shadows. Film and the Holocaust (Third Edition).