Pulmonary epithelial permeability in normal subjects and patients with idiopathic interstitial pneumonia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anazawa, Yoshiki; Isawa, Toyoharu; Teshima, Takeo; Miki, Makoto; Motomiya, Masakichi

1991-01-01

99m Tc-DTPA is a low molecular weight substance, which is believed to pass through the pulmonary epithelium when it is inhaled as an aerosol. We performed 99m Tc-DTPA inhalation studies in 10 nonsmoking normal subjects and 10 patients with biopsy proven idiopathic interstitial pneumonia prior to therapy. 99m Tc-DTPA aerosol was inhaled for 3 min with the subject in the supine position and radioactivity was measured anteriorly with a gamma camera and recorded on computer. Measurements were performed for 3 min with the subject inhaling aerosol and for the subsequent 30 min with the subject in the same position. Time activity curves from the five regions of interest (ROIs) including the entire left lung, the entire right lung, and the upper, middle and lower third of the right lung were separately fitted to a single exponential function for the initial 7 min following cessation of inhalation, and the respective clearance half life (t1/2) in min was calculated. Lung function data, arterial blood gas tensions and blood chemistry were also obtained for comparison with the t1/2 values. The t1/2 values were significantly smaller in all ROIs in patients with idiopathic interstitial pneumonia than in normal subjects, indicating an increased pulmonary epithelial permeability in these patients. There was no relationship between t1/2 and %DL co , %DL co /V A , PaO 2 , or LDH. Although the true pathophysiologic significance of t1/2 measured using 99m Tc-DTPA aerosol is still not known, we consider that this measurement may be an important indicator of nonrespiratory lung function, in particular the degree of alveolar epithelial damage. (author)

Hypermetabolism of compensatory laryngeal muscles in unilateral vocal cord palsy: comparison study between speech and silence with normal subjects by co-registered PET-CT fusion images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pai, Moon Sun; Kim, Hyon Kyong; Kim, Han Su; Chung, Sung Min

2005-01-01

There are a few case reports on asymmetric vocal cord uptake on FDG-PET in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis, which could be a potential pitfall in the interpretation of FDG-PET images. We evaluated the metabolic activity of laryngeal muscles of patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis in comparison to normal controls during both speech and silence. Eleven patients with iatrogenic unilateral vocal cord palsy(thyroidectomy 7, lung cancer = 1, others = 3) and 12 normal controls underwent FDG-PET with usual protocol. They were divided into two groups respectively; one group read books aloud for 20 minutes (phonation group) and the other kept silence (non-phonation groups) after FDG injection. Recent neck CT scan were co-registered with FDG-PET to produce PET-CT fusion images to elaborate small laryngeal muscles. In patients with unilateral vocal cord palsy, contralateral non-paralyzed vocal cord showed increased FDG uptake, more intense with phonation group (SUV =5.88, n =5) than non-phonation group (SUV =2.33, n =6) --mainly on thyroarytenoid muscle. Normal control subjects showed symmetric mildly increased FDG uptake (SUV=1.92, n=6) only in phonation group, which was significantly low against patient groups and was localized in lateral cricoarytenoid muscle. Hypermetabolism of contralateral thyroarytenoid muscle in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis could be encountered during FDG-PET imaging even with keeping silence. Phonation during FDG-PET study enhance FDG uptake on different laryngeal muscles between unilateral vocal cord paralysis and normal subjects

Aerosol lung inhalation scintigraphy in normal subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sui, Osamu; Shimazu, Hideki

1985-03-01

We previously reported basic and clinical evaluation of aerosol lung inhalation scintigraphy with /sup 99m/Tc-millimicrosphere albumin (milli MISA) and concluded aerosol inhalation scintigraphy with /sup 99m/Tc-milli MISA was useful for routine examination. But central airway deposit of aerosol particles was found in not only the patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) but also normal subjects. So we performed aerosol inhalation scintigraphy in normal subjects and evaluated their scintigrams. The subjects had normal values of FEVsub(1.0)% (more than 70%) in lung function tests, no abnormal findings in chest X-ray films and no symptoms and signs. The findings of aerosol inhalation scintigrams in them were classified into 3 patterns; type I: homogeneous distribution without central airway deposit, type II: homogeneous distribution with central airway deposit, type III: inhomogeneous distribution. These patterns were compared with lung function tests. There was no significant correlation between type I and type II in lung function tests. Type III was different from type I and type II in inhomogeneous distribution. This finding showed no correlation with %VC, FEVsub(1.0)%, MMF, V radical50 and V radical50/V radical25, but good correlation with V radical25 in a maximum forced expiratory flow-volume curve. Flow-volume curve is one of the sensitive methods in early detection of COPD, so inhomogeneous distribution of type III is considered to be due to small airway dysfunction.

Salivary glucose concentration and excretion in normal and diabetic subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Jurysta, Cedric; Bulur, Nurdan; Oguzhan, Berrin; Satman, Ilhan; Yilmaz, Temel M; Malaisse, Willy J; Sener, Abdullah

2009-01-01

The present report aims mainly at a reevaluation of salivary glucose concentration and excretion in unstimulated and mechanically stimulated saliva in both normal and diabetic subjects. In normal subjects, a decrease in saliva glucose concentration, an increase in salivary flow, but an unchanged glucose excretion rate were recorded when comparing stimulated saliva to unstimulated saliva. In diabetic patients, an increase in salivary flow with unchanged salivary glucose concentration and glucose excretion rate were observed under the same experimental conditions. Salivary glucose concentration and excretion were much higher in diabetic patients than in control subjects, whether in unstimulated or stimulated saliva. No significant correlation between glycemia and either glucose concentration or glucose excretion rate was found in the diabetic patients, whether in unstimulated or stimulated saliva. In the latter patients, as compared to control subjects, the relative magnitude of the increase in saliva glucose concentration was comparable, however, to that of blood glucose concentration. The relationship between these two variables was also documented in normal subjects and diabetic patients undergoing an oral glucose tolerance test.

Hypermetabolism of compensatory laryngeal muscles in unilateral vocal cord palsy: comparison study between speech and silence with normal subjects by co-registered PET-CT fusion images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pai, Moon Sun; Kim, Hyon Kyong; Kim, Han Su

2006-01-01

There are a few case report on asymmetric vocal cord uptake on FDG-PET in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis, which could be a potential pitfall in the interpretation of FDG-PET images. We evaluated the metabolic activity of laryngeal muscles of patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis in comparison to normal controls during both speech and silence. Eleven patients with unilateral vocal cord palsy (thyroidectomy=7, lung cancer=1, other=3) and 12 normal controls underwent FDG-PET with usual protocol. They were divided into two groups respectively; one group read books aloud for 20 minutes (phonation group) and the other kept silence (non-phonation groups) after FDG injection. Recent neck CT scan were co-registered with FDG-PET to produce PET-CT fusion images to elaborate small laryngeal muscles. In patients with unilateral vocal cord palsy, contralateral non-paralyzed vocal cord showed hypermetabolism mainly on thyroarytenoid muscle, more intensely with phonation group (SUV=5.88±2.65) than with non-phonation group (SUV=2.30±0.39). Normal control subjects showed hypermetabolism (3.68± 0.96) in interarytenoid muscle and symmetric mild hypermetabolism in both lateral cricoarytenoid muscles in only phonation group. FDG-PET with fusion images using CT scan in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis showed hypermetabolism of contralateral non-paralyzed thyroarytedoid muscle, suggesting compensatory action during phonation. Phonation during FDG-PET study enhanced FDG uptake on different laryngeal muscles between patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis and normal subjects

Working Memory Processing In Normal Subjects and Subjects with Dyslexia

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Bowyer, S. M.; Lajiness-O'Neill, R.; Weiland, B. J.; Mason, K.; Tepley, N.

2004-10-01

Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to determine the neuroanatomical location of working memory (WM) processes. Differences between subjects with dyslexia (SD; n=5) and normal readers (NR; n=5) were studied during two WM tasks. A spatial WM task (SMW) consisted of blocks visually presented in one of 12 positions for 2 s each. Subjects were to determine if the current position matched the position presented 2 slides earlier (N-Back Test). The verbal task (VMW) consisted of presentation of a single letter. The location of cortical activity during SWM in NR (determined with MR-FOCUSS analysis) was in the right superior temporal gyrus (STG) and right angular gyrus (AG). Similar activation was seen in SD with a slight delay of approximately 20 ms. During VWM activity was seen in LEFT STG and LEFT AG in NR. In contrast for SD, activation was in the RIGHT STG and RIGHT AG. This study demonstrates the possibility to differentiate WM processing in subjects with and without learning disorders.

Normal stress databases in myocardial perfusion scintigraphy – how many subjects do you need?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trägårdh, Elin; Sjöstrand, Karl; Edenbrandt, Lars

2012-01-01

) for male, NC for female, attenuation‐corrected images (AC) for male and AC for female subjects. 126 male and 205 female subjects were included. The normal database was created by alternatingly computing the mean of all normal subjects and normalizing the subjects with respect to this mean, until...... convergence. Coefficients of variation (CV) were created for increasing number of included patients in the four different normal stress databases. Normal stress databases with ...Commercial normal stress databases in myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (MPS) commonly consist of 30–40 individuals. The aim of the study was to determine how many subjects are needed. Four normal stress databases were developed using patients who underwent 99mTc MPS: non‐corrected images (NC...

Comparison of plasma endothelin levels between osteoporotic, osteopenic and normal subjects

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Biçimoğlu Ali

2005-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background It has been demonstrated that endothelins (ET have significant roles in bone remodeling, metabolism and physiopathology of several bone diseases. We aimed to investigate if there was any difference between the plasma ET levels of osteoporotic patients and normals. Methods 86 patients (70 women and 16 men with a mean age of 62.6 (ranges: 51–90 years were included in this study. Patients were divided into groups of osteoporosis, osteopenia and normal regarding reported T scores of DEXA evaluation according to the suggestions of World Health Organization. According to these criteria 19, 43 and 24 were normal, osteopenic and osteoporotic respectively. Then total plasma level of ET was measured in all patients with monoclonal antibody based sandwich immunoassay (EIA method. One-way analysis of variance test was used to compare endothelin values between normals, osteopenics and osteoporotics. Results Endothelin total plasma level in patients was a mean of 98.36 ± 63.96, 100.92 ± 47.2 and 99.56 ± 56.6 pg/ml in osteoporotic, osteopenic and normal groups respectively. The difference between groups was not significant (p > 0.05. Conclusion No significant differences in plasma ET levels among three groups of study participants could be detected in this study.

Acceptance of background noise, working memory capacity, and auditory evoked potentials in subjects with normal hearing.

Science.gov (United States)

Brännström, K Jonas; Zunic, Edita; Borovac, Aida; Ibertsson, Tina

2012-01-01

The acceptable noise level (ANL) test is a method for quantifying the amount of background noise that subjects accept when listening to speech. Large variations in ANL have been seen between normal-hearing subjects and between studies of normal-hearing subjects, but few explanatory variables have been identified. To explore a possible relationship between a Swedish version of the ANL test, working memory capacity (WMC), and auditory evoked potentials (AEPs). ANL, WMC, and AEP were tested in a counterbalanced order across subjects. Twenty-one normal-hearing subjects participated in the study (14 females and 7 males; aged 20-39 yr with an average of 25.7 yr). Reported data consists of age, pure-tone average (PTA), most comfortable level (MCL), background noise level (BNL), ANL (i.e., MCL - BNL), AEP latencies, AEP amplitudes, and WMC. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was calculated between the collected variables to investigate associations. A principal component analysis (PCA) with Varimax rotation was conducted on the collected variables to explore underlying factors and estimate interactions between the tested variables. Subjects were also pooled into two groups depending on their results on the WMC test, one group with a score lower than the average and one with a score higher than the average. Comparisons between these two groups were made using the Mann-Whitney U-test with Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. A negative association was found between ANL and WMC but not between AEP and ANL or WMC. Furthermore, ANL is derived from MCL and BNL, and a significant positive association was found between BNL and WMC. However, no significant associations were seen between AEP latencies and amplitudes and the demographic variables, MCL, and BNL. The PCA identified two underlying factors: One that contained MCL, BNL, ANL, and WMC and another that contained latency for wave Na and amplitudes for waves V and Na-Pa. Using the variables in the first factor

Blink patterns and lid-contact times in dry-eye and normal subjects

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Ousler GW 3rd

2014-05-01

Full Text Available George W Ousler 3rd,1 Mark B Abelson,1,2 Patrick R Johnston,1 John Rodriguez,1 Keith Lane,1 Lisa M Smith11Ora, Andover, MA, USA; 2Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USAPurpose: To classify blinks in dry eye and normal subjects into six subtypes, and to define the blink rate and duration within each type of blink, as well as the total lid-contact time/minute.Materials and methods: This was a single-centered, prospective, double-blind study of eleven dry-eye and ten normal subjects. Predefined subjects watched a video while blinks were recorded for 10 minutes. Partial blinks were classified by percentage closure of maximal palpebral fissure opening: 25%, 50%, 75%. Complete blinks were characterized as full (>0 seconds, extended (>0.1 seconds, or superextended (>0.5 seconds. The mean duration of each type of blink was determined and standardized per minute as total lid-contact time.Results: Total blinks observed were 4,990 (1,414 normal, 3,756 dry eye: 1,809 (50.59% partial and 1,767 (49.41% complete blinks among dry-eye subjects versus 741 (52.90% partial and 673 (47.60% complete blinks among normal subjects. Only superextended blinks of ≥0.5-second duration were significantly more frequent in dry-eye subjects than normals (2.3% versus 0.2%, respectively; P=0.023. Total contact time was seven times higher in dry-eye subjects than normals (0.565 versus 0.080 seconds, respectively; P<0.001. Isolating only extended blinks (>0.1 second, the average contact time (seconds was four times longer in dry-eye versus normal subjects (2.459 in dry eye, 0.575 in normals; P=0.003. Isolating only superextended blinks (>0.5 seconds, average contact time was also significantly different (7.134 in dry eye, 1.589 in normals; P<0.001. The contact rate for all full closures was 6.4 times longer in dry-eye (0.045 versus 0.007, P<0.001 than normal subjects.Conclusion: Dry-eye subjects spent 4.5% of a

Subjective Evaluation of Sound Quality for Normal-hearing and Hearing-i,paired Listeners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Lars Bramsløw

1992-01-01

11 hearing-impaired (HI) and 12 normal-hearing (NH) subjects have performed sound quality ratings on 6 perceptual scales (Loudness, Clarity, Sharpness, Fullness, Spaciousness and Overall judgement). The signals for the rating experiment consisted of running speech and music with or without......, but the normal-hearing group was slightly more reliable. There were significant differences between stimuli and between subjects, with stimuli affecting the ratings the most. Normal-hearing and hearing-impaired subjects showed similar trends, but normal-hearing listeners were generally more sensitive, i...

Circulating Levels of Irisin in Hypopituitary and Normal Subjects.

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Lara Pena-Bello

Full Text Available The recently identified myokine irisin conveys some of the benefits of exercise. Hypopituitarism with adult growth hormone deficiency (HP is a situation characterized by decreased GH secretion and an altered body composition.Our aim was to study the skeletal muscle hormone irisin in HP, and compare the results with a similar group of normal subjects.Seventeen HP patients and fifty-one normal subjects of similar age and sex were studied. The diagnosis of GH deficiency was confirmed by the presence of pituitary disease and a peak GH secretion below 3 μg/L after an insulin tolerance test. The patients were adequately treated for all pituitary hormone deficits, except for GH. Fasting serum irisin was measured with an enzyme immunoassay, and HOMA-IR, QUICKI and HOMA-β were calculated.Fasting irisin levels (ng/ml were similar in normal [208.42 (168.44-249.23] and HP patients [195.13 (178.44-241.44]. In the control group there were moderate significant positive correlations between irisin and BMI, waist circumference, leptin, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, HOMA-β, triglycerides, and cholesterol. In the control group there were moderate significant negative correlations between irisin and IGF-I and QUICKI. In the hypopituitary group there were moderate significant positive correlations between irisin and body fat and HOMA-β.We found similar irisin levels in GH deficiency hypopituitary patients when compared with normal subjects. The correlation between irisin and adiposity related factors suggests that that in the case of this clinical model, irisin is regulated by adiposity and not by GH.

Effect of sildenafil citrate (Viagra) on coronary flow in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Ishikura, Fuminobu; Beppu, Shintaro; Ueda, Hiroaki; Nehra, Ajay; Khandheria, Bijoy K

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of sildenafil citrate (Viagra) on coronary function in normal subjects. The study assessed mean blood pressure, left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) flow, and echocardiographic variables before and 30 and 60 minutes after taking 50 mg of sildenafil citrate. The mean velocity of LAD flow was assessed with Doppler flow imaging. The study subjects were 6 healthy male volunteers (mean age 37 years). The mean velocity of LAD flow increased 60 minutes after taking sildenafil citrate, but there were no other changes. Two volunteers felt mild flashing and one had mild headache during the study. Sildenafil citrate caused vasodilatation in a normal coronary artery without systemic pressure drops. These results suggest that the agent itself did not have negative effects on the heart in normal subjects.

Valuation of Normal Range of Ankle Systolic Blood Pressure in Subjects with Normal Arm Systolic Blood Pressure.

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Gong, Yi; Cao, Kai-wu; Xu, Jin-song; Li, Ju-xiang; Hong, Kui; Cheng, Xiao-shu; Su, Hai

2015-01-01

This study aimed to establish a normal range for ankle systolic blood pressure (SBP). A total of 948 subjects who had normal brachial SBP (90-139 mmHg) at investigation were enrolled. Supine BP of four limbs was simultaneously measured using four automatic BP measurement devices. The ankle-arm difference (An-a) on SBP of both sides was calculated. Two methods were used for establishing normal range of ankle SBP: the 99% method was decided on the 99% reference range of actual ankle BP, and the An-a method was the sum of An-a and the low or up limits of normal arm SBP (90-139 mmHg). Whether in the right or left side, the ankle SBP was significantly higher than the arm SBP (right: 137.1 ± 16.9 vs 119.7 ± 11.4 mmHg, P<0.05). Based on the 99% method, the normal range of ankle SBP was 94~181 mmHg for the total population, 84~166 mmHg for the young (18-44 y), 107~176 mmHg for the middle-aged(45-59 y) and 113~179 mmHg for the elderly (≥ 60 y) group. As the An-a on SBP was 13 mmHg in the young group and 20 mmHg in both middle-aged and elderly groups, the normal range of ankle SBP on the An-a method was 103-153 mmHg for young and 110-160 mmHg for middle-elderly subjects. A primary reference for normal ankle SBP was suggested as 100-165 mmHg in the young and 110-170 mmHg in the middle-elderly subjects.

Multivariate stochastic simulation with subjective multivariate normal distributions

Science.gov (United States)

P. J. Ince; J. Buongiorno

1991-01-01

In many applications of Monte Carlo simulation in forestry or forest products, it may be known that some variables are correlated. However, for simplicity, in most simulations it has been assumed that random variables are independently distributed. This report describes an alternative Monte Carlo simulation technique for subjectively assesed multivariate normal...

Survey of Saccadic Parameters Using Videonystagmography in Patients with Idiopathic Parkinson's Disease and Normal Subjects

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Reza Hosseinabadi

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: Patients with Parkinson’s disease manifest oculomotor abnormalities. This is the consequence of basal ganglia impairment. The most common abnormalities include increased saccade latency, hypometric saccades and decreased saccade velocity. The purpose of this study was comparison of saccadic parameters using videonystagmography in patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease and normal subjects.Materials and Methods: In this cross sectional study, saccadic movements were investigated in thirty patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease and thirty age matched subjects were 35-70 years old. Saccade latency, velocity and accuracy were quantitatively analyzed. Results: Results of this study indicated increased saccade latency, reduction of saccade velocity and accuracy in patients with Parkinson’s disease(P<0.001.Conclusion: This study showed that patients with Parkinson’s disease manifest saccadic deficits. This suggests dopaminergic control of these ocular movements.

Adipokine pattern in subjects with impaired fasting glucose and impaired glucose tolerance in comparison to normal glucose tolerance and diabetes.

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Anke Tönjes

Full Text Available AIM: Altered adipokine serum concentrations early reflect impaired adipose tissue function in obese patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D. It is not entirely clear whether these adipokine alterations are already present in prediabetic states and so far there is no comprehensive adipokine panel available. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess distinct adipokine profiles in patients with normal glucose tolerance (NGT, impaired fasting glucose (IFG, impaired glucose tolerance (IGT or T2D. METHODS: Based on 75 g oral glucose tolerance tests, 124 individuals were divided into groups of IFG (n = 35, IGT (n = 45, or NGT (n = 43. Furthermore, 56 subjects with T2D were included. Serum concentrations of adiponectin, chemerin, fetuin-A, leptin, interleukin (IL-6, retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4, monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP-1, vaspin, progranulin, and soluble leptin receptor (sOBR were measured by ELISAs. RESULTS: Chemerin, progranulin, fetuin-A, and RBP4, IL-6, adiponectin and leptin serum concentrations were differentially regulated among the four investigated groups but only circulating chemerin was significantly different in patients with IGT compared to those with IFG. Compared to T2D the IFG subjects had higher serum chemerin, progranulin, fetuin-A and RBP4 levels which was not detectable in the comparison of the T2D and IGT group. CONCLUSION: Alterations in adipokine serum concentrations are already detectable in prediabetic states, mainly for chemerin, and may reflect adipose tissue dysfunction as an early pathogenetic event in T2D development. In addition, distinct adipokine serum patterns in individuals with IFG and IGT suggest a specific role of adipose tissue in the pathogenesis of these prediabetic states.

Consumption of 125I labelled fibrinogen in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Langer, B.; Camargo, E.E.; Reis, J.M.M. dos; Carvalho, N.; Leao, L.E.P.

1978-01-01

The metabolism of iodine- 125 labeled human fibrinogen is studied by using three different sets of the radiopharmaceutical (0.9, 1.3 and 1.84 iodine atoms/fibrinogen molecule ratios) in 19 normal subjects. An aliquot of 40 μCi of fibrinogem- 125 I is injected in each subject, on normal dietary conditions and blood samples are withdrawn at 30, 60, 180, 36 and 720 minutes after the injection and, thereafter, one daily sample during 10 days. The compartmental distribution of the tracer is defined by plotting plasma and serum sample counts on a semilogarithmic graph paper. A rapid phase and 3 compartments are obtained. A 'rapid' consumption half-life and a 'real' consumption half-life are defined. The fibrinogen clottability is followed up to the last blood sample by checking the ratios of serum and plasma radioactivities [pt

[As opposed to normal subjects, eyelid position doesn't interfere with postural behavior in blind subjects].

Science.gov (United States)

Olin, C; Rougier, P

2009-12-01

A previous study has shown some behavioral differences in normal subjects depending on the position of the eyelids: the postural behavior was varying if the subject had the eyes open in darkness or the eyes closed. In this study, we explore the possible role of vision on this behavior. The postural behavior of 12 blind and nine visually impaired participants was studied during undisturbed upright stance. In this sample, no difference was found in the conditions eyes open in the dark and eyes closed: the observed behavior in blind and visually impaired subjects is different compared to normal sighted subjects who show a visual preference even in total darkness when the eyes are open. Our two groups (blind and visually impaired) actually show a difference on the median frequency of the centre of gravity displacements. Our results suggest an adaptive mechanism of the central nervous system in healthy individuals to predominantly weigh visual cues when the eyelids remain open. Good visual acuity and time seem to be necessary for this process.

Ventilation-perfusion distribution in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Beck, Kenneth C; Johnson, Bruce D; Olson, Thomas P; Wilson, Theodore A

2012-09-01

Functional values of LogSD of the ventilation distribution (σ(V)) have been reported previously, but functional values of LogSD of the perfusion distribution (σ(q)) and the coefficient of correlation between ventilation and perfusion (ρ) have not been measured in humans. Here, we report values for σ(V), σ(q), and ρ obtained from wash-in data for three gases, helium and two soluble gases, acetylene and dimethyl ether. Normal subjects inspired gas containing the test gases, and the concentrations of the gases at end-expiration during the first 10 breaths were measured with the subjects at rest and at increasing levels of exercise. The regional distribution of ventilation and perfusion was described by a bivariate log-normal distribution with parameters σ(V), σ(q), and ρ, and these parameters were evaluated by matching the values of expired gas concentrations calculated for this distribution to the measured values. Values of cardiac output and LogSD ventilation/perfusion (Va/Q) were obtained. At rest, σ(q) is high (1.08 ± 0.12). With the onset of ventilation, σ(q) decreases to 0.85 ± 0.09 but remains higher than σ(V) (0.43 ± 0.09) at all exercise levels. Rho increases to 0.87 ± 0.07, and the value of LogSD Va/Q for light and moderate exercise is primarily the result of the difference between the magnitudes of σ(q) and σ(V). With known values for the parameters, the bivariate distribution describes the comprehensive distribution of ventilation and perfusion that underlies the distribution of the Va/Q ratio.

Responsiveness of cardiodynamics to exercise loading in normal subjects and in patients with idiopathic cardiomyopathy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukuoka, Yukie; Matsuda, Takeshi

1996-01-01

In the present study, we examined the responses of the left ventricular systolic function and diastolic function to exertion by cardiac blood pool scintigraphy using 99mTc in reference to changes with aging and changes in the cases of idiopathic cardiomyopathy. In order to study the functional response with aging to exertion, 38 normal subjects were divided by age. Subsequently, 28 hypertrophic cardiomyopathy cases (Group H), 13 dilated cardiomyopathy cases (Group D) and 14 normal cases (Group N) were studied. Ejection Fraction (EF) and Peak Ejection Rate (PER) were used as the indicators for the systolic function. Peak Filling Rate (PER), 1/3 Filling Rate (1/3FR) and Time to Peak Filling (TPF) were used as the indicators for the diastolic function. When comparison was made among the normal subjects by age, the systolic function and diastolic function at rest, varied as they were, showed no significant change with aging. The %delta EF and %delta PER tended to decrease linearly with aging (Y=-4E-X+28, p<0.0001; Y=-X+57, p<0.0001). As to the %delta PFR, %delta 1/3FR and %delta TPF, however, correlation with aging was not found. In comparing hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and dilated cardiomyopathy, Group D showed significantly lower values before exertion and after maximum exertion than the other two groups. A difference in the response of the systolic function and diastolic function to exertion was noted in both the comparative study on aging of the normal subjects and the study of cases of cardiomyopathy. The presence of the compensatory mechanism due to elevation of the left atrial pressure and an increase in the left atrial contractile power may be mentioned as a reservoir of blood and also as a booster pump. Particularly, the effect of the latter compensates for the decline in the left ventricular compliance, which may lead to the maintenance of the diastolic function. (K.H.)

Safety of the HyperSound® Audio System in subjects with normal hearing

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Ritvik P. Mehta

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The objective of the study was to assess the safety of the HyperSound® Audio System (HSS, a novel audio system using ultrasound technology, in normal hearing subjects under normal use conditions; we considered preexposure and post-exposure test design. We investigated primary and secondary outcome measures: i temporary threshold shift (TTS, defined as >10 dB shift in pure tone air conduction thresholds and/or a decrement in distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs >10 dB at two or more frequencies; ii presence of new-onset otologic symptoms after exposure. Twenty adult subjects with normal hearing underwent a pre-exposure assessment (pure tone air conduction audiometry, tympanometry, DPOAEs and otologic symptoms questionnaire followed by exposure to a 2-h movie with sound delivered through the HSS emitter followed by a post-exposure assessment. No TTS or new-onset otological symptoms were identified. HSS demonstrates excellent safety in normal hearing subjects under normal use conditions.

Safety of the HyperSound® Audio System in Subjects with Normal Hearing.

Science.gov (United States)

Mehta, Ritvik P; Mattson, Sara L; Kappus, Brian A; Seitzman, Robin L

2015-06-11

The objective of the study was to assess the safety of the HyperSound® Audio System (HSS), a novel audio system using ultrasound technology, in normal hearing subjects under normal use conditions; we considered pre-exposure and post-exposure test design. We investigated primary and secondary outcome measures: i) temporary threshold shift (TTS), defined as >10 dB shift in pure tone air conduction thresholds and/or a decrement in distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) >10 dB at two or more frequencies; ii) presence of new-onset otologic symptoms after exposure. Twenty adult subjects with normal hearing underwent a pre-exposure assessment (pure tone air conduction audiometry, tympanometry, DPOAEs and otologic symptoms questionnaire) followed by exposure to a 2-h movie with sound delivered through the HSS emitter followed by a post-exposure assessment. No TTS or new-onset otological symptoms were identified. HSS demonstrates excellent safety in normal hearing subjects under normal use conditions.

Using virtual reality to distinguish subjects with multiple- but not single-domain amnestic mild cognitive impairment from normal elderly subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohammadi, Alireza; Kargar, Mahmoud; Hesami, Ehsan

2018-03-01

Spatial disorientation is a hallmark of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and Alzheimer's disease. Our aim was to use virtual reality to determine the allocentric and egocentric memory deficits of subjects with single-domain aMCI (aMCIsd) and multiple-domain aMCI (aMCImd). For this purpose, we introduced an advanced virtual reality navigation task (VRNT) to distinguish these deficits in mild Alzheimer's disease (miAD), aMCIsd, and aMCImd. The VRNT performance of 110 subjects, including 20 with miAD, 30 with pure aMCIsd, 30 with pure aMCImd, and 30 cognitively normal controls was compared. Our newly developed VRNT consists of a virtual neighbourhood (allocentric memory) and virtual maze (egocentric memory). Verbal and visuospatial memory impairments were also examined with Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test and Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, respectively. We found that miAD and aMCImd subjects were impaired in both allocentric and egocentric memory, but aMCIsd subjects performed similarly to the normal controls on both tasks. The miAD, aMCImd, and aMCIsd subjects performed worse on finding the target or required more time in the virtual environment than the aMCImd, aMCIsd, and normal controls, respectively. Our findings indicated the aMCImd and miAD subjects, as well as the aMCIsd subjects, were more impaired in egocentric orientation than allocentric orientation. We concluded that VRNT can distinguish aMCImd subjects, but not aMCIsd subjects, from normal elderly subjects. The VRNT, along with the Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test and Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, can be used as a valid diagnostic tool for properly distinguishing different forms of aMCI. © 2018 Japanese Psychogeriatric Society.

Digital Pupillometry in Normal Subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Rickmann, Annekatrin; Waizel, Maria; Kazerounian, Sara; Szurman, Peter; Wilhelm, Helmut; Boden, Karl T.

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to evaluate the pupil size of normal subjects at different illumination levels with a novel pupillometer. The pupil size of healthy study participants was measured with an infrared-video PupilX pupillometer (MEye Tech GmbH, Alsdorf, Germany) at five different illumination levels (0, 0.5, 4, 32, and 250 lux). Measurements were performed by the same investigator. Ninety images were executed during a measurement period of 3 seconds. The absolute linear camera resolution was approximately 20 pixels per mm. This cross-sectional study analysed 490 eyes of 245 subjects (mean age: 51.9 ± 18.3 years, range: 6–87 years). On average, pupil diameter decreased with increasing light intensities for both eyes, with a mean pupil diameter of 5.39 ± 1.04 mm at 0 lux, 5.20 ± 1.00 mm at 0.5 lux, 4.70 ± 0.97 mm at 4 lux, 3.74 ± 0.78 mm at 32 lux, and 2.84 ± 0.50 mm at 250 lux illumination. Furthermore, it was found that anisocoria increased by 0.03 mm per life decade for all illumination levels (R2 = 0.43). Anisocoria was higher under scotopic and mesopic conditions. This study provides additional information to the current knowledge concerning age- and light-related pupil size and anisocoria as a baseline for future patient studies. PMID:28228832

Quantitative thallium-201 myocardial exercise scintigraphy in normal subjects and patients with normal coronary arteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Niemeyer, M.G.; St. Antonius Hospital Nieuwegein; Laarman, G.J.; Lelbach, S.; Cramer, M.J.; Ascoop, C.A.P.L.; Verzijlbergen, J.F.; Wall, E.E. van der; Zwinderman, A.H.; Pauwels, E.K.J.

1990-01-01

Quantitative thallium-201 myocardial exercise scintigraphy was tested in two patient populations representing alternative standards for cardiac normality: group I comprised 18 male uncatherized patients with a low likelihood of coronary artery disease (CAD); group II contained 41 patients with normal coronary arteriograms. Group I patients were younger, they achieved a higher rate-pressure product than group II patients; all had normal findings by phisical examination and electrocardiography at rest and exercise. Group II patients comprised 21 females, 11 patients showed abnormal electrocardiography at rest, and five patients showed ischemic ST depression during exercise. Twelve patients had sign of minimal CAD. Twelve patients revealed abnormal visual and quantitative thallium findings, three of these patients had minimal CAD. Profiles of uptake and washout of thallium-201 were derived from both patient groups, and compared with normal limits developed by Maddahi et al. Furthermore, low likelihood and angiographically normal patients may differ substantially, and both sets of normal patients should be considered when establishing criteria of abnormality in exercise thallium imaging. When commercial software containing normal limits for quantitative analysis of exercise thallium-201 imaging is used in clinical practice, it is mandatory to compare these with normal limits of uptake and washout of thallium-201, derived from the less heterogeneous group of low-likelihood subjects, which should be used in selecting a normal population to define normality. (author). 37 refs.; 3 figs; 1 tab

Neural responses to silent lipreading in normal hearing male and female subjects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ruytjens, Liesbet; Albers, Frans; van Dijk, Pim; Wit, Hero; Willemsen, Antoon

In the past, researchers investigated silent lipreading in normal hearing subjects with functional neuroimaging tools and showed how the brain processes visual stimuli that are normally accompanied by an auditory counterpart. Previously, we showed activation differences between males and females in

Clinical usefulness of normal data bases comparisons for the SPECT diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Darcourt, J.; Koulibaly, P.M.; Migneco, O.; Dygai, I.; Robert, P.H.; Nobili, F.; Ebmeir, K.

2002-01-01

Aim. The possible added value of voxel by voxel comparisons to normal data bases has not been evaluated for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We conducted a prospective comparison of the diagnostic performances of 2 software packages: Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM) (Friston et al.) and NeuroGam (NGam) (Segami Corporation). Materials and methods. A total of 152 subjects (age ≥ 50 years) were included: 93 AD, 28 depressed patients and 31 normal controls (NC). They were studied in 4 centers as part of a European project 'SPECT in dementia' BMH4-98-3130. NC were used to build the normal data bases and the total population was submitted to the readers for the diagnosis of AD. AD final diagnosis was based on NINCDS/ADRDA criteria for probable AD and DSM-IV criteria for dementia of AD type. SPECT scans were obtained in each center with dedicated cameras 30 to 90 min after i.v. injection of 250 to 925 MBq of 99mTc-HMPAO. All data were reconstructed on the same workstation by filtered backprojection with attenuation correction. The 4.7 mm thick cuts (CUTS) were displayed in the transverse, sagittal and coronal planes with the same color scale. They also were submitted to the 2 packages tested. For SPM, we used SPM'96 for Windows'95. For each individual scan we computed the corresponding z-map by comparison to the NC data base. We used p<0.01 to threshold the t-maps and a p corrected value <0.01 on intensity for cluster selection. For NGam, the same NC were used to build the normal data base. Each individual scan was then compared to this base and the results consisted in a 3D parametric image of voxel by voxel standard deviations form the normal mean value. 4 expert readers (more than 3 years experience; more than 5 SPECT per week) were asked to class the scans as AD or not with a 4 degree of confidence. They reviewed the CUTS alone, CUTS+SPM and CUTS+NGam. ROC analysis was performed and the areas under curves (AUC) statistically compared. Results. Average

Comparison of fMRI on the cortical organization using two language tasks in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Zhen; Zhang Caiyuan; Cai Wu; Shen Junkang; Gong Zhigang

2008-01-01

Objective: To comparatively study the cortical organization using two different language tasks by BOLD-fMRI in normal subjects: Methods: BOLD-fMRI scan was performed in 8 healthy volunteers with right handiness during executing the two language tasks: picture-naming and word-generation. The AFNI software was used to analyze the functional data and to generate the statistical parametric maps for comparatively studying the activation areas of each task. Results: Both activation patterns for two language tasks shared a common brain network dispersed in frontal, parietal, and occipital lobe. The activation areas of occipital lobe for picture-naming was more obvious than those for word-generation. By contraries, the areas related to language processing for word-generation was more active than picture-imaging. Compared with picture naming, the activation patterns for word-generation was mainly left-lateralized. Conclusion: Both of two tasks can activate the brain network which dedicate to language processing, but each of them has its own characteristics according to the processing patterns. (authors)

The Study and Comparison of Irrational Beliefs in Addicted and Normal People

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hasan Aminpoor

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Irrational beliefs have some destructive and serious effects on individuals’ behavior at home, work environment, and in social environment also implicate emotional deep effects (depression, grief, self teasing, self reproaching, and contrition. The main aim of present study was the comparison of irrational beliefs in addicted and normal people. Method: the research method was causal comparative research and taking into account the subject importance and its role in individuals tendency toward addiction a sample of 120 persons (60 addicted people and 60 normal ones was selected based on available samplingand similar in order of age and the Joens irrational beliefs questionnaire was administered among selected sample. In order to analyze data, independent samples t test, and ANOVA were run. Results: There was significant difference between the mean score of irrational beliefs with consideration of group (addicted and normal group, also, in addicted people there was significant difference between the mean score of irrational beliefs with consideration of education level, and economical status. Conclusion: The mean score of irrational beliefs in addicted people is more than normal ones. Taking into consideration that individuals can change their behaviors and feelings through changing their beliefs, so one must replace irrational beliefs with rational ones based on educational qualifications.

Cerebrocerebellar relationships in normal subjects and patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanyu, Haruo; Arai, Hisayuki; Abe, Shin'e; Iwamoto, Toshihiko; Takasaki, Masaru; Katsunuma, Hideyo; Suzuki, Takanari; Abe, Kimihiko; Amino, Saburo

1993-01-01

The relationships bewteen blood flow in the cerebrum and the cerebellum was investigated in 21 normal subjects and 21 patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT). In normal subjects, only asymmetry in the frontal cortical blood flow was significantly correlated with asymmetry in the contralateral cerebellar blood flow. However, a significant correlation between asymmetry in the cerebral cortical blood flow in many areas and the blood flow in the contralateral cerebellum in DAT patients was observed. These results suggest the existence of a functional relationship between the cerebrum and the cerebellum in both normal and DAT groups, mediated by neuronal mechanisms through crossed fiber pathways. However, there are regional differences in the cerebrocerebellar relationship in normal resting and pathological states. (author)

Evaluation of subject contrast and normalized average glandular dose by semi-analytical models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tomal, A.; Poletti, M.E.; Caldas, L.V.E.

2010-01-01

In this work, two semi-analytical models are described to evaluate the subject contrast of nodules and the normalized average glandular dose in mammography. Both models were used to study the influence of some parameters, such as breast characteristics (thickness and composition) and incident spectra (kVp and target-filter combination) on the subject contrast of a nodule and on the normalized average glandular dose. From the subject contrast results, detection limits of nodules were also determined. Our results are in good agreement with those reported by other authors, who had used Monte Carlo simulation, showing the robustness of our semi-analytical method.

Data-driven intensity normalization of PET group comparison studies is superior to global mean normalization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Borghammer, Per; Aanerud, Joel; Gjedde, Albert

2009-01-01

BACKGROUND: Global mean (GM) normalization is one of the most commonly used methods of normalization in PET and SPECT group comparison studies of neurodegenerative disorders. It requires that no between-group GM difference is present, which may be strongly violated in neurodegenerative disorders....... Importantly, such GM differences often elude detection due to the large intrinsic variance in absolute values of cerebral blood flow or glucose consumption. Alternative methods of normalization are needed for this type of data. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two types of simulation were performed using CBF images...

Size of corpus callosum in normal subjects and patients with Alzheimer's disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshii, Fumihito; Duara, R.

1989-01-01

The area of the corpus callosum (CC) on midsagittal spin-echo sequence magnetic resonance (MR) scans was measured in 64 normal subjects and 12 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). The normal subjects consisted of 32 males and 32 females, aged 25 to 83 years old. There was no significant age difference between males and females. Fifty-five out of the 64 subjects were right-handed (RH) and 9 were left-handed or ambidextrous (NRH). Among patients with AD, 5 were males and 7 were females, aged 53 to 79 years old. Diagnosis of AD was performed mainly based on clinical history, magnetic resonance image (MRI) and positron emission tomographic findings. The outline of the CC on midsagittal MR film was traced and the total callosal sectional area (CCT) as well as the anterior half (CCA), posterior half (CCP) and posterior 5th or splenium (CCS) area measurements were performed using a planimeter. In either normal males or females, the CCA showed a significant negative correlation with age, but the CCP and the CCS did not correlate with age. Total CC (CCT) area was 691.2±91.0 sq. mm for the whole group and no difference was found between males and females. When the CC area was normalized with respect to the midsagittal area of the supratentorial portion of the brain (MSB), females were found to have a large CC than males. No portion of the CC area was significantly different between RH and NRH subjects in absolute or normalized measures. Compared with 36 age-matched normals, patients with AD had smaller MSB and each portion of the CC, with significant reduction in the CCA and the CCT. In conclusion, relationships between age, sex and the size of the CC have been found, providing some insights into the connectivity of the human brain. Characteristics of white matter loss in AD were also clarified in this study. (author)

Functional relationship between the cerebrum and cerebellum in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanyu, Haruo; Arai, Hisayuki; Hatano, Nobuyoshi; Abe, Shinei; Katsunuma, Hideyo

1991-01-01

To determine whether a functional relationship between the cerebrum and cerebellum exists in normal subjects, the correlation between asymmetry in cerebral blood flow and asymmetry in cerebellar blood flow was investigated. Twenty-one healthy right-handed subjects were studied using SPECT with N-isopropyl-p-( 123 I)iodoamphetamine while in a resting state. The asymmetry index (AI) for both the cerebral and cerebellar hemisphere was calculated as follows. AI=right side - left side/right side + left side/200 (%). A negative correlation was found between AI in the cerebellum and AI in the cerebrum. Especially, AI in the cerebellar hemisphere was significantly correlated with AIs in the upper frontal cortex (r=-0.58, p<0.01), middle frontal cortex (r=-0.55, p<0.02), lower frontal cortex (r=-0.49, p<0.05), and mean cerebral hemisphere (r=-0.52, p<0.02). These results suggest the existence of a functional relationship between the cerebral hemisphere and the contralateral cerebellar hemisphere in the resting state of normal subjects. We strongly suspect that the frontal cortex exert an influence on the function in the contralateral cerebellum, probably due to a transneuronal mechanism, mainly through the corticopontocerebellar pathway. (author)

3D volumetry comparison using 3T magnetic resonance imaging between normal and adenoma-containing pituitary glands

OpenAIRE

Ernesto Roldan-Valadez; Ana Cristina Garcia-Ulloa; Omar Gonzalez-Gutierrez; Manuel Martinez-Lopez

2011-01-01

Background: Computed-assisted three-dimensional data (3D) allows for an accurate evaluation of volumes compared with traditional measurements. Aims: An in vitro method comparison between geometric volume and 3D volumetry to obtain reference data for pituitary volumes in normal pituitary glands (PGs) and PGs containing adenomas. Design: Prospective, transverse, analytical study. Materials and Methods: Forty-eight subjects underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with 3D sequencing for ...

A Study on Fasting Serum Gastrin level in Normal Subjects and Various Gastric Diseases by Radioimmunoassay

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Yong Duck; Lee, Heon Sil; Park, Seung Uk; Park, Sung Hwi; Lee, Chong Suk; Lee, Hak Choong [National Medical Center, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1981-09-15

The fasting serum gastrin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay in 32 normal healthy subjects without recognized gastrointestinal symptoms and 93 patients with various gastric diseases, who were visited of admitted to National Medical Center from February to June, 1981. The following results were obtained; 1) The fasting mean serum gastrin level in normal subjects was 55.9+-26.3 pg/m1, and there was no difference between male and female. 2) The gastrin levels in gastric and duodenal ulcer were 85.0+-28.4 and 76.0+-43.0 pg/ml respectively, and it's values were elevated as compared with normal subjects. In gastric ulcer, the gastrin level was elevated than that of duodenal ulcer, but no significant difference in each other. 3) The gastrin level in stomach cancer was 89.5+-42.2 pg/ml, and it's values were markedly elevated as compared with values in normal subjects. 4) The gastrin level in gastritis was 73.4+-37. 4 pg/ml, and it's values were elevated as compared with values in normal subjects. 5) The gastrin level in post-gastrectomy state was 50.3+-16.3 pg/ml, and it's values were slightly decreased as compared with values in normal subjects.

A Study on Fasting Serum Gastrin level in Normal Subjects and Various Gastric Diseases by Radioimmunoassay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Yong Duck; Lee, Heon Sil; Park, Seung Uk; Park, Sung Hwi; Lee, Chong Suk; Lee, Hak Choong

1981-01-01

The fasting serum gastrin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay in 32 normal healthy subjects without recognized gastrointestinal symptoms and 93 patients with various gastric diseases, who were visited of admitted to National Medical Center from February to June, 1981. The following results were obtained; 1) The fasting mean serum gastrin level in normal subjects was 55.9±26.3 pg/m1, and there was no difference between male and female. 2) The gastrin levels in gastric and duodenal ulcer were 85.0±28.4 and 76.0±43.0 pg/ml respectively, and it's values were elevated as compared with normal subjects. In gastric ulcer, the gastrin level was elevated than that of duodenal ulcer, but no significant difference in each other. 3) The gastrin level in stomach cancer was 89.5±42.2 pg/ml, and it's values were markedly elevated as compared with values in normal subjects. 4) The gastrin level in gastritis was 73.4±37. 4 pg/ml, and it's values were elevated as compared with values in normal subjects. 5) The gastrin level in post-gastrectomy state was 50.3±16.3 pg/ml, and it's values were slightly decreased as compared with values in normal subjects.

A Study on Fasting Serum Gastrin level in Normal Subjects and Various Gastric Diseases by Radioimmunoassay

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Yong Duck; Lee, Heon Sil; Park, Seung Uk; Park, Sung Hwi; Lee, Chong Suk; Lee, Hak Choong [National Medical Center, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1981-09-15

The fasting serum gastrin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay in 32 normal healthy subjects without recognized gastrointestinal symptoms and 93 patients with various gastric diseases, who were visited of admitted to National Medical Center from February to June, 1981. The following results were obtained; 1) The fasting mean serum gastrin level in normal subjects was 55.9+-26.3 pg/m1, and there was no difference between male and female. 2) The gastrin levels in gastric and duodenal ulcer were 85.0+-28.4 and 76.0+-43.0 pg/ml respectively, and it's values were elevated as compared with normal subjects. In gastric ulcer, the gastrin level was elevated than that of duodenal ulcer, but no significant difference in each other. 3) The gastrin level in stomach cancer was 89.5+-42.2 pg/ml, and it's values were markedly elevated as compared with values in normal subjects. 4) The gastrin level in gastritis was 73.4+-37. 4 pg/ml, and it's values were elevated as compared with values in normal subjects. 5) The gastrin level in post-gastrectomy state was 50.3+-16.3 pg/ml, and it's values were slightly decreased as compared with values in normal subjects.

Patterns of brain structural connectivity differentiate normal weight from overweight subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Arpana; Mayer, Emeran A; Sanmiguel, Claudia P; Van Horn, John D; Woodworth, Davis; Ellingson, Benjamin M; Fling, Connor; Love, Aubrey; Tillisch, Kirsten; Labus, Jennifer S

2015-01-01

Alterations in the hedonic component of ingestive behaviors have been implicated as a possible risk factor in the pathophysiology of overweight and obese individuals. Neuroimaging evidence from individuals with increasing body mass index suggests structural, functional, and neurochemical alterations in the extended reward network and associated networks. To apply a multivariate pattern analysis to distinguish normal weight and overweight subjects based on gray and white-matter measurements. Structural images (N = 120, overweight N = 63) and diffusion tensor images (DTI) (N = 60, overweight N = 30) were obtained from healthy control subjects. For the total sample the mean age for the overweight group (females = 32, males = 31) was 28.77 years (SD = 9.76) and for the normal weight group (females = 32, males = 25) was 27.13 years (SD = 9.62). Regional segmentation and parcellation of the brain images was performed using Freesurfer. Deterministic tractography was performed to measure the normalized fiber density between regions. A multivariate pattern analysis approach was used to examine whether brain measures can distinguish overweight from normal weight individuals. 1. White-matter classification: The classification algorithm, based on 2 signatures with 17 regional connections, achieved 97% accuracy in discriminating overweight individuals from normal weight individuals. For both brain signatures, greater connectivity as indexed by increased fiber density was observed in overweight compared to normal weight between the reward network regions and regions of the executive control, emotional arousal, and somatosensory networks. In contrast, the opposite pattern (decreased fiber density) was found between ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the anterior insula, and between thalamus and executive control network regions. 2. Gray-matter classification: The classification algorithm, based on 2 signatures with 42 morphological features, achieved 69

Patterns of brain structural connectivity differentiate normal weight from overweight subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Arpana; Mayer, Emeran A.; Sanmiguel, Claudia P.; Van Horn, John D.; Woodworth, Davis; Ellingson, Benjamin M.; Fling, Connor; Love, Aubrey; Tillisch, Kirsten; Labus, Jennifer S.

2015-01-01

Background Alterations in the hedonic component of ingestive behaviors have been implicated as a possible risk factor in the pathophysiology of overweight and obese individuals. Neuroimaging evidence from individuals with increasing body mass index suggests structural, functional, and neurochemical alterations in the extended reward network and associated networks. Aim To apply a multivariate pattern analysis to distinguish normal weight and overweight subjects based on gray and white-matter measurements. Methods Structural images (N = 120, overweight N = 63) and diffusion tensor images (DTI) (N = 60, overweight N = 30) were obtained from healthy control subjects. For the total sample the mean age for the overweight group (females = 32, males = 31) was 28.77 years (SD = 9.76) and for the normal weight group (females = 32, males = 25) was 27.13 years (SD = 9.62). Regional segmentation and parcellation of the brain images was performed using Freesurfer. Deterministic tractography was performed to measure the normalized fiber density between regions. A multivariate pattern analysis approach was used to examine whether brain measures can distinguish overweight from normal weight individuals. Results 1. White-matter classification: The classification algorithm, based on 2 signatures with 17 regional connections, achieved 97% accuracy in discriminating overweight individuals from normal weight individuals. For both brain signatures, greater connectivity as indexed by increased fiber density was observed in overweight compared to normal weight between the reward network regions and regions of the executive control, emotional arousal, and somatosensory networks. In contrast, the opposite pattern (decreased fiber density) was found between ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the anterior insula, and between thalamus and executive control network regions. 2. Gray-matter classification: The classification algorithm, based on 2 signatures with 42

Comparison between β-thalassemia minor and normal individuals using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Zangiabadi, Nasser; Yarahmadi, Fahimeh; Darekordi, Ali; Shabani, Mohammad; Dadgar, Mehrak Memaran

2013-01-01

The present study aimed at investigating and comparing patients suffering from β-thalassemia (β-thal) minor with normal individuals in regard to their performances in the short version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) test. Patients with β-thal minor are carriers of β-thal genes. They have mild microcytic and hypochromic anemia and are usually asymptomatic. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 60 individuals were divided into two equal groups of β-thal minor and normal subjects; they were then studied by the WAIS subscales. The mean performance scores of the normal group in the subtests of arithmetic and vocabulary (p <0.01) and picture completion (p <0.05) were higher than those of the thalassemia group. The mean performance score and ability of the normal group on the verbal scale was higher in comparison to the thalassemia group (p <0.05), while on the non verbal scale, there was no significant difference between the two groups. It can be concluded that β-thal minor negatively influences verbal fluency, reasoning and conceptualization, and sequencing tasks, perceptual skill, prediction of social situations and abstract thinking.

Estimation of serum ferritin for normal subject living in Khartoum area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eltayeb, E.A; Khangi, F.A.; Satti, G.M.; Abu Salab, A.

2003-01-01

This study was conducted with a main objective; the estimation of serum ferritin level in normal subjects in Khartoum area.To fulfil this objective, two hundred and sixty symptoms-free subjects were included in the study, 103 males with 15 to 45 years. serum ferritin was determined by radioimmunoassay (RIA). It was found that the mean concentration of males' serum ferritin was much higher than that of the females' (p<0.001). (Author)

Regulation mechanisms of pituitary-thyroid axis in normal subjects and patients with Graves' disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takagi, Shinko; Yamauchi, Kazuyuki; Mori, Yuichi

1986-01-01

The regulatory mechanism of the pituitary-thyroid axis in normal subjects and patients with Graves' disease was investigated using a highly sensitive TSH assay based on the immunoradiometric assay. All of the normal subjects had detectable TSH values within the range 0.35 to 6.0 μU/ml. No negative correlations between TSH and free thyroid hormones existed in normal subjects. Patients with thyroid carcinoma who seemed to have normal pituitary-thyroid function showed a rapid increase of TSH after total thyroidectomy. On the other hand, while untreated patients with Graves' disease all had undetectable TSH values, these patients took 1 to 3.5 months longer to normalize their TSH values than to normalize free thyroid hormones on antithyroid drug therapy. During the recovery phase by the treatment with decrease of antithyroid drug or supplement of T 4 from iatrogenic hypothyroid state after treatment for Graves' disease and thyroid carcinoma, normalization of TSH levels was delayed than that of free thyroid hormones. Patients with Graves' disease in remission showed an extremely positive correlation between basal and peak TSH levels in TRH test, and a negative correlation between basal TSH and FT 4 . In conclusion, an individual patient may have a different set point concerning the regulatory mechanism of the pituitary-thyroid axis, and the persistence of the hyperthyroid state would seem to have caused some reversible dysfunction of the pituitary gland. (author)

Frequency of EEG arousals from nocturnal sleep in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Mathur, R; Douglas, N J

1995-06-01

Brief arousals are clinically important and increasingly scored during polysomnography. However, the frequency of arousals during routine polysomnography in the normal population is unknown. We performed overnight polysomnography in the 55 of 59 control subjects from a family practice list who were approached and agreed to undergo polysomnography. Awakenings were scored according to the criteria of Rechtschaffen and Kales and briefer arousals according to three different criteria, including the American Sleep Disorders Association (ASDA) definition. There was a mean of 4 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1-15) Rechtschaffen and Kales awakenings per hour, whereas the ASDA definition gave 21 (95% CI, 7-56) per hour slept. Arousal frequencies increased significantly (p < 0.001) with age in our subjects, who ranged from the late teens to early 70s. The high upper limit of the frequency of brief arousals was not altered by exclusion of patients who snored or had witnessed apneas or daytime sleepiness. It is important that those scoring arousals on routine polysomnography recognize that high arousal frequencies occur in the normal population on 1-night polysomnography.

A f-MRI study on memory function in normal subjects and patients with partial epilepsies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamoda, Sachiko

2004-01-01

To investigate cerebral regions concerning a memory function and presence of memory lateralization, activated areas and the difference between the right and left hemisphere in functional magnetic resonance imaging (f-MRI) during verbal and visual memory tasks were examined in normal subjects and, as its clinical application, in patients with partial epilepsies. Subjects were 39 normal adult subjects and 10 adult patients. Of the 39 normal subjects, 30 were right-handed and 9 were left-handed. Further, of the 10 patients, 9 were right-handed and one was left-handed, and 7, 2 and 1 had temporal lobe, frontal lobe and undetermined partial epilepsies, respectively. Following the three type of memory task were designed; verbal memory tasks consisting of covert and overt recall tests of 10 words given auditory and visual memory task of covert recall tasks of 6 figures given visually. Activated cerebral areas were imaged with f-MRI using 1.5 tesla Magnetom Vision taken repeatedly during these tasks and neutral condition. Most of the 30 right-handed normal subjects showed activated areas over the left hemisphere specifically on the anterior cingulate, superior, middle and inferior frontal gyri during the verbal memory tasks of covert recall tests. Left hemisphere dominant activated areas in the precentral gyri were added during the verbal memory tasks of overt recall tests. On the other hand, 4 of the 9 left-handed normal subjects showed the left side-dominantly activated areas in the above-mentioned regions during the verbal memory tasks of covert and overt tests, in common with the right-handed subjects. However, 3 of the 9 left-handed normal subjects had right hemisphere dominant activation during the verbal memory tasks, while none of the 30 right-handed normal subjects showed such right side-dominancy. Further, the bilateral occipital lobes were activated during visual memory tasks. The reproducibility in this activation during these verbal and visual memory tasks

Three-dimensional assessment of the normal Japanese glenoid and comparison with the normal French glenoid.

Science.gov (United States)

Mizuno, N; Nonaka, S; Ozaki, R; Yoshida, M; Yoneda, M; Walch, G

2017-12-01

In 2014, reverse total shoulder arthroplasty was approved in Japan. We were concerned that the base plate might be incompatible with Japanese who were generally smaller than Westerners. Therefore, we investigated the dimensions and morphology of the normal Japanese glenoid and compared with the normal French glenoid. One hundred Japanese shoulders without glenoid lesions (50 men and 50 women) were investigated and compared with 100 French shoulders (50 men and 50 women). Computed tomography was performed with 3-dimensional image reconstruction and images were analyzed using Glenosys software. Glenoid parameters (width, height, retroversion and inclination) were compared between Japanese and French subjects. In Japanese subjects, the mean glenoid width was 25.5mm, height was 33.3mm, retroversion was 2.3° and inclination was 11.6° superiorly. In French subjects, the mean glenoid width was 26.7mm, height was 35.4mm, retroversion was 6.0° and inclination was 10.4° superiorly. Glenoid width and height were significantly smaller in Japanese subjects than French subjects (P=0.001 and PFrench subjects (P<0.001). There was no significant difference of inclination. These findings will help surgeons to identify suitable patients for RSA and perform the procedure with appropriate preoperative planning. IV: retrospective or historical series. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Organ distribution of 111In-oxine labeled lymphocytes in normal subjects and in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and malignant lymphoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsuda, Shin; Uchida, Tatsumi; Yui, Tokuo; Kariyone, Shigeo

1982-01-01

T and B lymphocyte survival and organ distribution were studied by using 111 In-oxine labeled autologous lymphocytes in 3 normal subjects, 3 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and 9 with malignant lymphoma (ML).FDisappearance curves of the labeled lymphocytes showed two exponential components in all cases. The half time of the first component was within 1 hour in all cases. That of the second one was 50.7 +- 6.4 hours for all lymphocytes, 52.0 +- 5.5 hours for T lymphocytes and 31.6 +- 4.9 hours for B lymphocytes in normal subjects, 192.6 hours for T-CLL and 57.7 +- 46.9 hours for B-CLL, and 60.2 +- 30.7 hours for T cell type of malignant lymphoma (T-ML) and 63.7 +- 24.5 hours for B cell type of malignant lymphoma (B-ML). These data might suggest that all lymphocyte disappearance curve reflected T lymphocyte disappearance curve chiefly, and the half time of B lymphocytes was shorter than that of T lymphocytes. In the T-CLL, the half time of the second component prolonged extremely in comparison with that of normal T lymphocytes. The labeled cells were accumulated in the lungs, spleen and liver immediately after the infusion, then in the spleen most remarkably 1 hour after the infusion in all cases. The radioactivity over the bone marrow was observed from 1 hour in all cases and that of lymph nodes were first noticed 18 hours after the infusion in T-CLL and T-ML, 68 hours in B-CLL but were not noticed in normal subjects and B-ML. The recovery of labeled cells in the blood was 28.5 +- 7.9% for all lymphocytes, 19.7 +- 1.9% for T lymphocytes and 11.0 +- 5.1% for B lymphocytes in normal subjects, 25.8 +- 1.6% for CLL, and 17.6 +- 11.0% for T-ML, 7.7 +- 5.2% for B-ML, respectively. (J.P.N.)

Image quality and radiation dose of single heartbeat 640-slice coronary CT angiography: A comparison between patients with chronic Atrial Fibrillation and subjects in normal sinus rhythm by propensity analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Di Cesare, Ernesto, E-mail: ernesto.dicesare@cc.univaq.it [Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Division of Radiotherapy, Laboratory of Radiobiology, University of L’Aquila (Italy); Gennarelli, Antonio; Di Sibio, Alessandra; Felli, Valentina; Splendiani, Alessandra [Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Division of Radiology, Laboratory of Radiobiology, University of L’Aquila (Italy); Gravina, Giovanni Luca [Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Division of Radiotherapy, Laboratory of Radiobiology, University of L’Aquila (Italy); Masciocchi, Carlo [Department of Biotechnological and Applied Clinical Sciences, Division of Radiology, Laboratory of Radiobiology, University of L’Aquila (Italy)

2015-04-15

Highlights: •Atrial Fibrillation (AF) may affect CCTA image quality. •We compare the results of single heartbeat CCTA in subjects with chronic AF and in sinus rhythm. •Single heartbeat CCTA may be feasible also in subjects with cAF and HR <72 bpm. •In cAF patients with heart rate higher than 72 bpm, CCTA has more movement-associated artefacts. •Mean effective dose of single heartbeat CCTA in cAF group was higher than in sinus rhythm one. -- Abstract: Objectives: To evaluate image quality and radiation dose of single heartbeat 640-slice coronary CT angiography (CCTA) in patients with chronic Atrial Fibrillation (cAF) in comparison with subjects in normal sinus rhythm. Methods: A cohort of 71 patients with cAF was matched with 71 subjects in normal sinus rhythm (NSR) and HR ≤ 65 bpm using a matched by propensity analysis. All subjects underwent a single heartbeat CCTA with prospective gating. In subjects with cAF, we manually established the acquisition of data only from a single heartbeat. Mean effective dose and image quality, with both objective and subjective measures, were assessed. Results: 96.4% of all segments in the cAF group had diagnostic image quality. The rate of subjects with at least one non-diagnostic segment was 14% and 2.8% (p = 0.031) in the cAF and NRS groups, respectively. In the cAF group, the percentage of patients with at least one non-diagnostic segment for acquisition HR ≤ 72 was 1.8% (1/55), and it did not significantly differ from the NSR group (2.8%; 2/71) (p = 1.0). Objective quality parameters did not show a statistically significant difference between the two groups. The mean effective dose was 4.24 ± 1.24 mSv in the cAF group and 2.67 ± 0.5 mSv in the sinus rhythm group (p < 0.0001) with an increase by 59% in the cAF group with respect to the SNR group. Conclusions: A single heartbeat acquisition protocol with a 640-slice prospectively ECG-triggered CT angiography may be feasible in patients with cAF and HR below 72

Image quality and radiation dose of single heartbeat 640-slice coronary CT angiography: A comparison between patients with chronic Atrial Fibrillation and subjects in normal sinus rhythm by propensity analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Di Cesare, Ernesto; Gennarelli, Antonio; Di Sibio, Alessandra; Felli, Valentina; Splendiani, Alessandra; Gravina, Giovanni Luca; Masciocchi, Carlo

2015-01-01

Highlights: •Atrial Fibrillation (AF) may affect CCTA image quality. •We compare the results of single heartbeat CCTA in subjects with chronic AF and in sinus rhythm. •Single heartbeat CCTA may be feasible also in subjects with cAF and HR <72 bpm. •In cAF patients with heart rate higher than 72 bpm, CCTA has more movement-associated artefacts. •Mean effective dose of single heartbeat CCTA in cAF group was higher than in sinus rhythm one. -- Abstract: Objectives: To evaluate image quality and radiation dose of single heartbeat 640-slice coronary CT angiography (CCTA) in patients with chronic Atrial Fibrillation (cAF) in comparison with subjects in normal sinus rhythm. Methods: A cohort of 71 patients with cAF was matched with 71 subjects in normal sinus rhythm (NSR) and HR ≤ 65 bpm using a matched by propensity analysis. All subjects underwent a single heartbeat CCTA with prospective gating. In subjects with cAF, we manually established the acquisition of data only from a single heartbeat. Mean effective dose and image quality, with both objective and subjective measures, were assessed. Results: 96.4% of all segments in the cAF group had diagnostic image quality. The rate of subjects with at least one non-diagnostic segment was 14% and 2.8% (p = 0.031) in the cAF and NRS groups, respectively. In the cAF group, the percentage of patients with at least one non-diagnostic segment for acquisition HR ≤ 72 was 1.8% (1/55), and it did not significantly differ from the NSR group (2.8%; 2/71) (p = 1.0). Objective quality parameters did not show a statistically significant difference between the two groups. The mean effective dose was 4.24 ± 1.24 mSv in the cAF group and 2.67 ± 0.5 mSv in the sinus rhythm group (p < 0.0001) with an increase by 59% in the cAF group with respect to the SNR group. Conclusions: A single heartbeat acquisition protocol with a 640-slice prospectively ECG-triggered CT angiography may be feasible in patients with cAF and HR below 72

Inter-subject FDG PET Brain Networks Exhibit Multi-scale Community Structure with Different Normalization Techniques.

Science.gov (United States)

Sperry, Megan M; Kartha, Sonia; Granquist, Eric J; Winkelstein, Beth A

2018-07-01

Inter-subject networks are used to model correlations between brain regions and are particularly useful for metabolic imaging techniques, like 18F-2-deoxy-2-(18F)fluoro-D-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET). Since FDG PET typically produces a single image, correlations cannot be calculated over time. Little focus has been placed on the basic properties of inter-subject networks and if they are affected by group size and image normalization. FDG PET images were acquired from rats (n = 18), normalized by whole brain, visual cortex, or cerebellar FDG uptake, and used to construct correlation matrices. Group size effects on network stability were investigated by systematically adding rats and evaluating local network connectivity (node strength and clustering coefficient). Modularity and community structure were also evaluated in the differently normalized networks to assess meso-scale network relationships. Local network properties are stable regardless of normalization region for groups of at least 10. Whole brain-normalized networks are more modular than visual cortex- or cerebellum-normalized network (p network resolutions where modularity differs most between brain and randomized networks. Hierarchical analysis reveals consistent modules at different scales and clustering of spatially-proximate brain regions. Findings suggest inter-subject FDG PET networks are stable for reasonable group sizes and exhibit multi-scale modularity.

CT measurments of cranial growth: normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hahn, F.J.; Chu, W.K.; Cheung, J.Y.

1984-01-01

Growth patterns of the cranium measured directly as head circumference have been well documented. With the availability of computed tomography (CT) , cranial dimensions can be obtained easily. The objective of this project was to establish the mean values and their normal variance of CT cranial area of subjects at different ages. Cranial area and its long and short axes were measured on CT scans for 215 neurologic patients of a wide age range who presented no evidence of abnormal growth of head size. Growth patterns of the cranial area as well as the numeric product of it linear dimensions were determined via a curve fitting process. The patterns resemble that of the head circumference growth chart, with the most rapid growth observed in the first 12 months of age and reaching full size during adolescence

Comparison of the nerve fiber layer of type 2 diabetic patients without glaucoma with normal subjects of the same age and sex

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Takis A

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Alexandros Takis,1 Dimitrios Alonistiotis,1 Dimitrios Panagiotidis,1 Nikolaos Ioannou,1 Dimitris Papaconstantinou,2 Panagiotis Theodossiadis1 1Ophthalmological University Clinic of Athens, Attikon Hospital, Athens, Greece; 2Ophthalmological University Clinic of Athens, Geniko Kratiko Hospital, Athens, Greece Background: The retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL thickness in patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 was compared to normal subjects of similar age and sex, having first excluded any risk factors for glaucoma. The correlation between the RNFL thickness and the severity of diabetic retinopathy was investigated at its primary stages and with other ocular and diabetic parameters. Methods: A prospective, case series study was carried out. Twenty-seven diabetic patients without diabetic retinopathy, 24 diabetic patients with mild retinopathy, and 25 normal, age-matched subjects underwent a complete ophthalmological examination and imaging with scanning laser polarimetry for the evaluation of the RNFL. Multivariate analysis was applied in order to investigate the correlation between RNFL and diabetic parameters, such as age, duration of diabetes, insulin therapy, levels of glycosylated hemoglobin; and ocular parameters, such as cup to disc ratio, levels of normal intraocular pressure, and central corneal thickness. Results: The mean inferior average of RNFL and the temporal-superior-nasal-inferior-temporal standard deviation were statistically significantly lower in both diabetic groups, and the nerve fiber index was higher (P=0.04 compared to the normal group. There was no statistically significant difference between the diabetic groups. The factor analysis showed no significant correlation between the RNFL and the previously mentioned diabetic and ocular parameters. Conclusion: The existence of diabetes should be seriously considered in evaluating the results of scanning laser polarimetry. Multivariate analysis for RNFL was used for the first

Cerebral blood flow and red cell delivery in normal subjects and in multiple sclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swank, R.L.; Roth, J.G.; Woody, D.C. Jr.

1983-01-01

Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was determined in 77 normal females and 53 normal males of different ages and in 26 men and 45 women with multiple sclerosis by the inhalation of radioactive Xe133 method. In the normal subjects the CBF was relatively high in the teens and fell, at first rapidly and then slowly in both sexes with age. During adult life the flow in females was significantly higher than in males. The delivery of packed red cells (RCD) was determined by multiplying the CBF by the percentage concentration of red cells (HCT). The RCD for both sexes was nearly the same. In the patients with multiple sclerosis there occurred a progressive generalized decrease in CBF and in RCD with age which was significantly greater than observed in normal subjects. The rate of decrease in CBF and RCD correlated directly with the rate of progress of the disease

Potential Benefits and Harms of Intermittent Energy Restriction and Intermittent Fasting Amongst Obese, Overweight and Normal Weight Subjects-A Narrative Review of Human and Animal Evidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Harvie, Michelle; Howell, Anthony

2017-01-19

Intermittent energy restriction (IER) has become popular as a means of weight control amongst people who are overweight and obese, and is also undertaken by normal weight people hoping spells of marked energy restriction will optimise their health. This review summarises randomised comparisons of intermittent and isoenergetic continuous energy restriction for weight loss to manage overweight and obesity. It also summarises the potential beneficial or adverse effects of IER on body composition, adipose stores and metabolic effects from human studies, including studies amongst normal weight subjects and relevant animal experimentation. Six small short term (<6 month) studies amongst overweight or obese individuals indicate that intermittent energy restriction is equal to continuous restriction for weight loss, with one study reporting greater reductions in body fat, and two studies reporting greater reductions in HOMA insulin resistance in response to IER, with no obvious evidence of harm. Studies amongst normal weight subjects and different animal models highlight the potential beneficial and adverse effects of intermittent compared to continuous energy restriction on ectopic and visceral fat stores, adipocyte size, insulin resistance, and metabolic flexibility. The longer term benefits or harms of IER amongst people who are overweight or obese, and particularly amongst normal weight subjects, is not known and is a priority for further investigation.

Increased intensity discrimination thresholds in tinnitus subjects with a normal audiogram

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Epp, Bastian; Hots, J.; Verhey, J. L.

2012-01-01

Recent auditory brain stem response measurements in tinnitus subjects with normal audiograms indicate the presence of hidden hearing loss that manifests as reduced neural output from the cochlea at high sound intensities, and results from mice suggest a link to deafferentation of auditory nerve...... fibers. As deafferentation would lead to deficits in hearing performance, the present study investigates whether tinnitus patients with normal hearing thresholds show impairment in intensity discrimination compared to an audiometrically matched control group. Intensity discrimination thresholds were...... significantly increased in the tinnitus frequency range, consistent with the hypothesis that auditory nerve fiber deafferentation is associated with tinnitus....

3D volumetry comparison using 3T magnetic resonance imaging between normal and adenoma-containing pituitary glands.

Science.gov (United States)

Roldan-Valadez, Ernesto; Garcia-Ulloa, Ana Cristina; Gonzalez-Gutierrez, Omar; Martinez-Lopez, Manuel

2011-01-01

Computed-assisted three-dimensional data (3D) allows for an accurate evaluation of volumes compared with traditional measurements. An in vitro method comparison between geometric volume and 3D volumetry to obtain reference data for pituitary volumes in normal pituitary glands (PGs) and PGs containing adenomas. Prospective, transverse, analytical study. Forty-eight subjects underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with 3D sequencing for computer-aided volumetry. PG phantom volumes by both methods were compared. Using the best volumetric method, volumes of normal PGs and PGs with adenoma were compared. Statistical analysis used the Bland-Altman method, t-statistics, effect size and linear regression analysis. Method comparison between 3D volumetry and geometric volume revealed a lower bias and precision for 3D volumetry. A total of 27 patients exhibited normal PGs (mean age, 42.07 ± 16.17 years), although length, height, width, geometric volume and 3D volumetry were greater in women than in men. A total of 21 patients exhibited adenomas (mean age 39.62 ± 10.79 years), and length, height, width, geometric volume and 3D volumetry were greater in men than in women, with significant volumetric differences. Age did not influence pituitary volumes on linear regression analysis. Results from the present study showed that 3D volumetry was more accurate than the geometric method. In addition, the upper normal limits of PGs overlapped with lower volume limits during early stage microadenomas.

an extended pancreatic normal subjects and ~in pancreatItIs In ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

function . . patIents. N. H. GILlNSKY, A. S. MEE, I. N. MARKS. Summary. Exocrine pancreatic response was evaluated in patients with varying degrees of pancreatic damage and in control subjects by ... hormones, the Lundh meal and an oral pancreatic function test .... is any different from that of the cells in me normal gland.

Positioning effects on lung ventilation in older normal subjects: a technegas study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krieg, S.; McCarren, B.; Alison, J.; Cowell, S.F.; Leiper, C.; Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital, Sydney, NSW; El Zein, H.

2002-01-01

Full text: While the effects of positioning on the distribution of ventilation in the lungs of younger subjects has been relatively well investigated, this is not so in the older age group. Known age-associated changes in the respiratory system are proposed to alter the distribution of ventilation in the lungs of older people. The aim of the present study was therefore to determine the effects of positioning on the distribution of ventilation in the lungs of older normal subjects. The distribution of ventilation in upright sitting and right side lying was measured in ten subjects using Technegas lung ventilation during tidal breathing. In the upright sitting position ventilation was preferentially distributed to the middle and basal regions (dependent regions). Right side lying ventilation was preferentially distributed to the right lung (dependent region). These results suggest that preferential distribution of ventilation to the dependent lung regions in older subjects is mainly due to the gravity-dependent gradient in pleural pressure. It is proposed that this distribution may partly result from loss of elasticity in the lungs with ageing. Predominantly, the distribution of ventilation in the lungs of older normal subjects in our study is similar to that previously described in younger subjects (Amis et al., 1984, Kaneko et al, 1966, Milic-Emili et al, 1966. This suggests that a similar pleural pressure gradient may exist in the lungs of older and younger subjects. This is an important implication as the majority of patients that physiotherapists treat with cardiopulmonary dysfunction are in the older age group. Further research is required to determine the effects of positioning on the distribution of ventilation in older patients with cardiopulmonary dysfunction to enable direct clinical implications to be made. Copyright (2002) The Australian and New Zealand Society of Nuclear Medicine Inc

Normal Strength Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete Subjected to Explosive Loading

OpenAIRE

Mohammed Alias Yusof; Norazman Norazman; Ariffin Ariffin; Fauzi Mohd Zain; Risby Risby; CP Ng

2011-01-01

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation on the behavior of plain reinforced concrete and Normal strength steel fiber reinforced concrete panels (SFRC) subjected to explosive loading. The experiment were performed by the Blast Research Unit Faculty of Engineering, University Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia A total of 8 reinforced concrete panels of 600mm x 600mm x 100mm were tested. The steel fiber reinforced concrete panels incorporated three different volume fraction, 0...

Cerebrocerebellar relationships in normal subjects and patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type; A SPECT study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hanyu, Haruo; Arai, Hisayuki; Abe, Shin' e; Iwamoto, Toshihiko; Takasaki, Masaru; Katsunuma, Hideyo; Suzuki, Takanari; Abe, Kimihiko; Amino, Saburo [Tokyo Medical Coll. (Japan)

1993-02-01

The relationships bewteen blood flow in the cerebrum and the cerebellum was investigated in 21 normal subjects and 21 patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT). In normal subjects, only asymmetry in the frontal cortical blood flow was significantly correlated with asymmetry in the contralateral cerebellar blood flow. However, a significant correlation between asymmetry in the cerebral cortical blood flow in many areas and the blood flow in the contralateral cerebellum in DAT patients was observed. These results suggest the existence of a functional relationship between the cerebrum and the cerebellum in both normal and DAT groups, mediated by neuronal mechanisms through crossed fiber pathways. However, there are regional differences in the cerebrocerebellar relationship in normal resting and pathological states. (author).

The factorial reliability of the Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Bagley, C

1980-03-01

The internal reliability of the Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire and its component subscales has been checked by means of principal components analyses of data on 256 normal subjects. The subscales (with the possible exception of Hysteria) were found to contribute to the general underlying factor of psychoneurosis. In general, the principal components analysis points to the reliability of the subscales, despite some item overlap.

'Normal' and 'failing' mothers: Women's constructions of maternal subjectivity while living with multiple sclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Parton, Chloe; Katz, Terri; Ussher, Jane M

2017-10-01

Multiple sclerosis causes physical and cognitive impairment that can impact women's experiences of motherhood. This study examined how women construct their maternal subjectivities, or sense of self as a mother, drawing on a framework of biographical disruption. A total of 20 mothers with a multiple sclerosis diagnosis took part in semi-structured interviews. Transcripts were analysed using thematic decomposition to identify subject positions that women adopted in relation to cultural discourses of gender, motherhood and illness. Three main subject positions were identified: 'The Failing Mother', 'Fear of Judgement and Burdening Others' and 'The Normal Mother'. Women's sense of self as the 'Failing Mother' was attributed to the impact of multiple sclerosis, contributing to biographical disruption and reinforced through 'Fear of Judgement and Burdening Others' within social interactions. In accounts of the 'Normal Mother', maternal subjectivity was renegotiated by adopting strategies to manage the limitations of multiple sclerosis on mothering practice. This allowed women to self-position as 'good' mothers. Health professionals can assist women by acknowledging the embodied impact of multiple sclerosis on maternal subjectivities, coping strategies that women employ to address potential biographical disruption, and the cultural context of mothering, which contributes to women's experience of subjectivity and well-being when living with multiple sclerosis.

Technetium 99m SESTAMIBI myocardial perfusion imaging: Comparison between treadmill, dipyridamole and trans-oesophageal atrial pacing 'stress' tests in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Primeau, M.; Taillefer, R.; Lambert, R.; Essiambre, R.; Honos, G.

1991-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the blood clearance, myocardial uptake and heart/lung and heart/liver ratios of technetium 99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile ( 99m Tc-SESTAMIBI) following 3 different types of cardiac stimulation in normal subjects: Treadmill stress (STRESS), intravenous administration of dipyridamole (DIP) and trans-oesophageal atrial pacing (TAP). Ten normal volunteers were submitted to 3 injections of 99m Tc-SESTAMIBI (10 mCi/70 kg, separated by an interval of 7 days) following STRESS (standard Bruce protocol), DIP (0.142 mg/kg.min during 4 min) and TAP procedures. Blood samples were collected from 1 to 60 min after each 99m Tc-SESTAMIBI injection. Planar imaging was performed at 5, 30 and 60 min. Blood retention (percentage of injected dose at 1 min) was 56%±4%, 24%±4% and 38%±6% for STRESS, DIP and TAP, respectively (P 99m Tc-SESTAMIBI. (orig.)

Subtle imitation behaviour in convenience samples of normal, demented, and currently depressed elderly subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

von Gunten, Armin; Duc, René

2007-06-01

The clinical significance of imitation behaviour (IB) is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of subtle naïve and obstinate IB in convenience samples of normal elderly, demented, and depressed subjects. Subtle IB was assessed using a protocol constructed ad hoc in 146 patients, consecutively referred to a memory clinic having received an ICD-10 diagnosis of either dementia or depression, and in 241 healthy subjects. The prevalence of IB in the three groups was determined and the association with possible demographic, cognitive, and non-cognitive variables analysed. Subtle naïve IB was frequent in the elderly with dementia, intermediate in the depressed, and rare in the normal elderly except that the latter frequently stretched out their arms. Obstinate IB never occurred in the normal elderly. IB was predicted by none of the variables used. The groups included were convenience samples with the depressed being a small group precluding further distinction of depressive subtypes. Although naïve IB is a frequent clinical feature in the demented, it also accompanies depressive disorders in the elderly. It can be observed as context-specific IB in the normal elderly. Obstinate IB does not occur in the normal elderly. Copyright 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Serum ferritin in normal subjects and assessment of iron status during pregnancy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eltayeb, Ahmed Eltayeb

1997-12-01

This study was conducted with two main objectives;the estimation of serum ferritin level in normal subjects in khartoum area and the assessment of iron status during pregnancy at second and third trimesters. To fulfill the first objective,two hundred and sixty symptoms-free subjects were included in the study,103 males with ages ranging from 15 to 36 years and 157 females with ages ranging from 15 to 45 years.Serum ferritin was determined by radioimmunoassay (RIA). It was found that the mean concentration of male serum ferritin was much higher than that of the females. For the assessment of iron status during pregnancy,eighty five normal pregnant women were included in the study at the start of the second trimester.Two blood samples were taken during the second trimester and two blood samples during the third trimester. The height of all subjects was measured.The weights of the subjects were measured with each sample. All subjects were under iron-supplementations throughout the gestation period.Sixty four normal non pregnant women were included in the study to serve as controls. No significant difference was observed in the mean haemoglobin concentrations but the PCV of the non-pregnant women was higher than that of the pregnant women at different stages of gestation. MCV, MCH and MCHC values of the non-pregnant women were lower than those of the pregnant women at different stages of gestation. Serum iron and transferrin saturation of the non-pregnant women were higher than those of the pregnant women,this difference was statistically significant at weeks (16 -18) and weeks (22-24). Serum ferritin of the non-pregnant women was higher than that of the pregnant women and decreased continously during the prgnancy, but this decrease was not statistically significant. Iron deficiency anaemia was observed in both pregnant and non-pregnant women. The best parameter which could be used as a marker for iron deficiency is serum ferritin. Iron supplementations corrected for

Serum ferritin in normal subjects and assessment of iron status during pregnancy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eltayeb, Ahmed Eltayeb [Sudan Atomic Energy Commission, Khartoum (Sudan)

1997-12-01

This study was conducted with two main objectives;the estimation of serum ferritin level in normal subjects in khartoum area and the assessment of iron status during pregnancy at second and third trimesters. To fulfill the first objective,two hundred and sixty symptoms-free subjects were included in the study,103 males with ages ranging from 15 to 36 years and 157 females with ages ranging from 15 to 45 years.Serum ferritin was determined by radioimmunoassay (RIA). It was found that the mean concentration of male serum ferritin was much higher than that of the females. For the assessment of iron status during pregnancy,eighty five normal pregnant women were included in the study at the start of the second trimester.Two blood samples were taken during the second trimester and two blood samples during the third trimester. The height of all subjects was measured.The weights of the subjects were measured with each sample. All subjects were under iron-supplementations throughout the gestation period.Sixty four normal non pregnant women were included in the study to serve as controls. No significant difference was observed in the mean haemoglobin concentrations but the PCV of the non-pregnant women was higher than that of the pregnant women at different stages of gestation. MCV, MCH and MCHC values of the non-pregnant women were lower than those of the pregnant women at different stages of gestation. Serum iron and transferrin saturation of the non-pregnant women were higher than those of the pregnant women,this difference was statistically significant at weeks (16 -18) and weeks (22-24). Serum ferritin of the non-pregnant women was higher than that of the pregnant women and decreased continously during the prgnancy, but this decrease was not statistically significant. Iron deficiency anaemia was observed in both pregnant and non-pregnant women. The best parameter which could be used as a marker for iron deficiency is serum ferritin. Iron supplementations corrected for

Age-related changes of diffusional anisotropy in the cerebral white matter in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanyu, Haruo; Asano, Tetsuichi; Ogawa, Kimikazu; Takasaki, Masaru; Shindo, Hiroaki; Kakizaki, Dai; Abe, Kimihiko

1997-01-01

To investigate age-related changes of diffusional anisotropy in the cerebral white matter, we performed diffusion-weighted MRI studies in 21 normal subjects aged 25 to 96 years. The anisotropic rations (ARs), defined as the apparent diffusion coefficients perpendicular to the nerve fibers to those parallel to the nerve fibers, were significantly higher in elderly than in young subjects in the anterior and posterior white matter surrounding the lateral ventricle. Moreover, significant correlation between age and AR was found in the anterior white matter. The ventricular index (VI) measured on MRI, as a quantitative indicator of brain atrophy, was significantly higher in elderly than younger subjects, and significantly correlated with AR in the anterior white matter. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that the VI showed the highest correlation for AR. On the other hand, there was no significant correlations between ARs in the corpus callosum and age. These results suggest that morphological changes in the myelin and axon in the white matter occur in elderly normal subjects, probably due to neuronal loss with aging. (author)

Effect of short-term fasting on lipolytic responsiveness in normal and obese human subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wolfe, R.R.; Peters, E.J.; Klein, S.; Holland, O.B.; Rosenblatt, J.; Gary, H. Jr.

1987-01-01

In this study the rate of lipolysis (fatty acid and glycerol release into blood) has been quantified in both normal weight and obese volunteers after both 15 and 87 h of fasting. In each study, the basal rate and subsequent response to epinephrine infusion were determined. The rate of appearance (R/sub a/) of free fatty acids (FFA) and glycerol were quantified by infusion of [1- 13 C]palmitate and D-5-glycerol, respectively. Substrate flux rates per unit of body fat mass and lean body mass were calculated from total body water measurements using H 2 18 O dilution. In normal volunteers, the basal R/sub a/ FFA and R/sub a/ glycerol rose markedly with 87 h of fasting, whereas the increases were more modest in the obese subjects. However, the rate of mobilization of fat, in relation to the lean body mass, was higher in the obese subjects than in the normal subjects after 15 h of fasting, and the values were similar in both groups after 87 h of fasting. There was an increased lipolytic response to epinephrine after fasting in both groups. This increased sensitivity may have resulted from the enhancement of fatty acid-triglyceride substrate cycling that occurred after fasting

ASSESSMENT AND COMPARISION OF CERVICAL JOINT POSITION SENSE IN SUBJECTS WITH CHRONIC NECK PAIN vs NORMALS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oberoi Mugdha

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Background: The abundance of mechanoreceptors in the cervical spine and their central and reflex afferent connections to the vestibular, visual and postural control system suggests that the cervical proprioceptive information provides important somatosensory information influencing postural stability, head orientation and eye movement control. Disturbances to the afferent input from the cervical region is thought to underlie symptoms of dizziness, unsteadiness, visual disturbances and signs of altered postural stability, cervical proprioception and head and eye movement control in people with chronic neck pain. This study aimed to assess and compare cervical joint position sense in subjects with chronic neck pain vs normals. Methods: Total 60 subjects, divided into two groups chronic neck pain group (n=30 (12 males and 18 females with mean age of 40.7 years and control group (n=30 with age and gender matched normal individuals were assessed for baseline data and demographic variables. Head repositioning accuracy test was used to assess cervical joint position sense in degrees. Results: The difference in the head repositioning error values were found to be extremely significant (p<0.0001 for all the neck movements for subjects with chronic neck pain as compared to normals. Conclusion: Cervical joint position sense in subjects with chronic neck pain is found to be altered as compared to age and gender matched normals.

Gut microbiota, microinflammation, metabolic profile, and zonulin concentration in obese and normal weight subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Zak-Gołąb, Agnieszka; Kocełak, Piotr; Aptekorz, Małgorzata; Zientara, Maria; Juszczyk, Lukasz; Martirosian, Gayane; Chudek, Jerzy; Olszanecka-Glinianowicz, Magdalena

2013-01-01

The association between gut microbiota and circulating zonulin level, a marker of intestinal permeability, has not been studied yet. The aim of the study is the assessment of plasma zonulin, haptoglobin and proinflammatory cytokines (TNF- α and IL-6) levels in relation to composition of gut microbiota in obese and normal weight subjects. Circulating inflammation markers, such as TNF- α , sTNFR1, sTNFR2, IL-6, zonulin, and haptoglobin levels were measured and semiquantitative analysis of gut microbiota composition was carried out in 50 obese and 30 normal weight subjects without concomitant diseases. Higher circulating zonulin, TNF- α , sTNFR1, sTNFR2, and IL-6 levels were found in the obese subjects. Plasma zonulin level correlated positively with age (r = 0.43, P zonulin (r = 0.26, P zonulin level was proportional to daily energy intake (r = 0.27, P zonulin level, a potential marker of interstitial permeability.

Response of right ventricular size, function, and pressure to supine exercise: a comparison of patients with chronic obstructive lung disease and normal subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Slutsky, R; Hooper, W; Ackerman, W; Moser, K

1982-12-01

The response of right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) and right ventricular end-diastolic volume (RVEDV) to exercise was studied in 11 patients with severe (FEV/sub 25/sub(%)sub(-)/sub 75/sub(%)=0.32+-0.13, mean+-SD) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Using gated radionuclide cardiac blood pool imaging techniques, the response of the patients with COPD was compared with that of 15 control subjects. Arterial blood gases, pulmonary arterial pressures, wedge pressure, and right ventricular pressures also were monitored in patients with COPD. The resting RVEF was lower and the resting RVEDV was higher in patients with COPD than in normals (both, P<0.01). Two of the 11 COPD patients had a RVEF during rest that was below lower limits, while 10 of 11 patients had RV dilation. Right ventricular end-diastolic pressure, measured during rest in patients with COPD, was normal (6.1+-2.1 mm Hg) and cardiac index was within normal limits (3.55+-0.82 l/min/m/sup 2/). With exercise this cardiac index rose to 5.52+-1.7/min/m/sup 2/(P<0.01) due to the increase in heart rate (83+-18 to 125+-25 beats/min; P<0.01) while stroke volume did not significantly change. During exercise, normal subjects showed an increase in RVEF while RVEDV did not change; in patients with COPD, the RVEF fell and the RVEDV increased. In the patients with COPD, mild resting arterial hypoxemia and hypercapnia were both exaggerated during exercise; and mild resting pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAm=24.3+-7.65 mm Hg) also worsened with exercise (PAm=41+-19 mm Hg, P<0.01). Correlation between change in RVEF and PAm was -0.58, and between change in RVEDV and PAm was 0.63. We conclude that patients with severe COPD often have right ventricular dilation at rest and commonly respond to supine exercise with a fall in FV ejection fraction and further dilation of the right ventricle.

Expression of Peroxisomes-Proliferate Activated Receptors-γ in Diabetics, Obese and Normal Subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Afzal, N.

2016-01-01

Background: Current research in type 2 diabetes mellitus focuses on the role of Peroxisome-Proliferator Activated Receptors (PPARs) in the pathogenesis of the Insulin Resistance Syndrome (IRS), which are pre-diabetic lesion and the hallmark of fully developed type 2 diabetes mellitus. This study aims at identifying the abnormal status of the PPAR-g in adipose tissues of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients, when compared with matched normal controls. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Ayub Medical College, Abbottabad, from 2012 to 2014. Sample included three equal groups of patients. Group-1 with diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus, aged 40-65 years, acting as the test group, Group-2 included non-diabetic obese, and Group-3 with normal subjects. Transcription Factor Assay for Peroxisome Proliferator Activated Receptor Gamma (gamma PPAR) was done on ELISA Technique from Nuclear Extract procured from Adipose Tissue of the subjects. Results: Mean age of enrolled participants was 48.93 SD±6.52.years. Patients ranged between ages of 40 years to 67 years. The mean values of PPAR in normal, obese and diabetic group were 1.72 SD±0.28, 1.282 SE±0.18 and 1.283 SE±0.18 respectively. The difference in mean values of PPAR was significant ρ<0.05. Conclusion: The levels of PPAR-g in patients with type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Obese cases are significantly lower than normal controls. (author)

Comparison of qualitative and quantitative imaging characteristics of [11C]PiB and [18F]flutemetamol in normal control and Alzheimer's subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Mountz, James M; Laymon, Charles M; Cohen, Ann D; Zhang, Zheng; Price, Julie C; Boudhar, Sanaa; McDade, Eric; Aizenstein, Howard J; Klunk, William E; Mathis, Chester A

2015-01-01

Neuritic amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, the hallmark pathologic lesions of Alzheimer's disease, are thought to develop before the symptoms of brain failure are clinically detectable. Imaging methods capable of detecting the presence of neuritic amyloid plaques should improve a clinician's ability to identify Alzheimer's disease during the earliest symptomatic phase and to identify at-risk individuals presymptomatically. Currently the best studied amyloid imaging ligand is [(11)C]Pittsburgh Compound B ([(11)C]PiB). However, the 20-minute half-life of this radiotracer limits its use. This study is designed to evaluate the performance characteristics of [(18)F]flutemetamol and to independently compare results to [(11)C]PiB in the same subjects. Twenty-three subjects, 15 cognitively normal (NL) and 8 with a clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's Dementia (AD), underwent [(11)C]PiB and [(18)F]flutemetamol PET scans within 28 days of study enrollment. We studied both normal and AD subjects to assess the uptake characteristics across a range of amyloid positivity. Blinded visual reads were conducted by five raters. Correlation analyses were performed between cortical SUVR for the two tracers and also between rater scores and SUVR for each tracer. Overall reader accuracy for classifying scans as amyloid positive or negative was determined for each tracer using SUVR classification as the standard. The linear correlation coefficient between global cortical SUVR for the two tracers was R(2) = 0.85, indicating that both tracers have similar retention characteristics. The two tracers were well correlated for rater-determined AD-like positivity (Cohen κ = 0.82). Averaged visual ratings and global cortical SUVR disagreed on their classification in 2/23 [(11)C]PiB scans and 4/23 [(18)F]flutemetamol scans. [(11)C]PiB and [(18)F]flutemetamol have similar retention characteristics across a range of amyloid negative to positive subjects. Both tracers performed similarly when

Kidney function and size in normal subjects before and during growth hormone administration for one week

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gammelgaard, Jens; Orskov, H; Andersen, A R

1981-01-01

Kidney function and size were studied in seven normal male subjects before and after administration of highly purified human growth hormone for 1 week. Glomerular filtration rate, renal plasma flow (steady-state infusion technique with urinary collections using 125I-iothalamate and 131I-hippuran)......Kidney function and size were studied in seven normal male subjects before and after administration of highly purified human growth hormone for 1 week. Glomerular filtration rate, renal plasma flow (steady-state infusion technique with urinary collections using 125I-iothalamate and 131I...

Energy Cost and Gait Efficiency of Below-Knee Amputee and Normal Subject with Similar Physical Parameters & Quality of Life: A Comparative Case Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Durbadal Biswas

2010-10-01

Full Text Available The study focused on the comparative analysis of energy cost and gait efficiency between a below knee (BK amputee and a reference subject (without amputation. It also attempted to indicate the specific feature responsible for a controlled gait with optimum energy cost for BK amputees. Selection criteria of the subjects were similar physical parameters and quality of life studied with WHOQOL-100 quality of life assessment. A Cosmed® k4 b2 Respiratory Analyzer system was used for the measurement of Oxygen Uptake (VO2, Energy Expenditure per minute (EE and Heart Rate (HR. Gait efficiency (p < 0.0002 was found higher for BK amputee than normal subject. The therapeutic activities and mainly walking rhythm contributed to improve the mobility & balance. This ensures the optimum time & co-ordination of movements and hence improves the gait efficiency for the BK amputee. Comparison with control group was performed to validate the data.

Effect of laryngeal anesthesia on pulmonary function testing in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuna, S T; Woodson, G E; Sant'Ambrogio, G

1988-03-01

Pulmonary function tests (PFT) were performed on 11 normal subjects before and after topical anesthesia of the larynx. The PFT consisted of flow volume loops and body box determinations of functional residual capacity and airway resistance, each performed in triplicate. After the first set of tests, cotton pledgets soaked in 4% lidocaine were held in the pyriform sinuses for 2 min to block the superior laryngeal nerves. In addition, 1.5 ml of 10% cocaine was dropped on the vocal cords via indirect laryngoscopy. PFT were repeated 5 min after anesthesia. Besides routine analysis of the flow volume loops, areas under the inspiratory (Area I) and expiratory (Area E) portions of the loops were calculated by planimetry. Area I, peak inspiratory flow (PIF), as well as forced inspiratory flow at 25, 50, and 75% forced vital capacity (FVC), decreased after anesthesia. Peak expiratory flow decreased after anesthesia, but Area E and forced expiratory flow at 25, 50, and 75% FVC were unchanged. This protocol also was performed in 12 normal subjects with isotonic saline being substituted for the lidocaine and cocaine. In this group, no significant differences were observed when flow volume loop parameters were compared before and after topical application of saline. In 5 spontaneously breathing anesthetized dogs, posterior cricoarytenoid muscle and afferent superior laryngeal nerve activity were recorded before and after laryngeal anesthesia performed with the same procedure used in the human subjects. Laryngeal anesthesia resulted in a substantial decrease or a complete disappearance of afferent SLN activity recorded during unobstructed and obstructed respiration. The data suggest that laryngeal receptors help modulate upper airway patency in man.

Amniotic Fluid Cells Proliferation in Normal and Down Syndrome Subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Honcea Adina

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Down Syndrome/Trisomy 21 is the most common chromosomal anomaly, and it represents the most common congenital cause of infants’ intellectual disability. Subjects with this syndrome are affected by degenerative processes caused by accelerated aging or unknown ethyologies. In recent years, accumulating evidence revealed increased potential of amniotic fluid-derived stem cells to be used in regenerative therapy. Our aim was to assess differences in immunophenotype, cell morphology and proliferation of amniotic fluid cells from normal and Down Syndrome pregnancies using a quantitative cytometry approach. Results revealed the emergence of a population of small sized cells in Down Syndrome derived amniotic fluid cells that are readily visible upon microscopic inspection. Hence, the fluorescence–based quantitative image cytometry determinations showed a tendency of decrease in both cell and nuclei size in trisomy, with no significant modification in nuclei circularity, as measured following actin cytoskeleton and nuclei labeling. The propensity of Ki67 positive cells was found to be increased in Down Syndrome derived cells (48.92% as compared to normal specimens (28.68%. However, cells in S and G2/M cell cycle phases decreased from 32.91% to 4.49% in diseased cells. Further studies are devoted to understanding the molecular basis of the observed differences in the proliferation ability of Down Syndrome amniotic cells, in order to evaluate the potential therapeutic effect of amniotic fluid stem cells for tissue regeneration in subjects with trisomy and to find correlations between amniotic cells phenotype and patient prognosis.

[Comparisons of manual and automatic refractometry with subjective results].

Science.gov (United States)

Wübbolt, I S; von Alven, S; Hülssner, O; Erb, C

2006-11-01

Refractometry is very important in everyday clinical practice. The aim of this study is to compare the precision of three objective methods of refractometry with subjective dioptometry (Phoropter). The objective methods with the smallest deviation to subjective refractometry results are evaluated. The objective methods/instruments used were retinoscopy, Prism Refractometer PR 60 (Rodenstock) and Auto Refractometer RM-A 7000 (Topcon). The results of monocular dioptometry (sphere, cylinder and axis) of each objective method were compared to the results of the subjective method. The examination was carried out on 178 eyes, which were divided into 3 age-related groups: 6 - 12 years (103 eyes), 13 - 18 years (38 eyes) and older than 18 years (37 eyes). All measurements were made in cycloplegia. The smallest standard deviation of the measurement error was found for the Auto Refractometer RM-A 7000. Both the PR 60 and retinoscopy had a clearly higher standard deviation. Furthermore, the RM-A 7000 showed in three and retinoscopy in four of the nine comparisons a significant bias in the measurement error. The Auto Refractometer provides measurements with the smallest deviation compared to the subjective method. Here it has to be taken into account that the measurements for the sphere have an average deviation of + 0.2 dpt. In comparison to retinoscopy the examination of children with the RM-A 7000 is difficult. An advantage of the Auto Refractometer is the fast and easy handling, so that measurements can be performed by medical staff.

Social comparison as a mediator between health problems and subjective health evaluations.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van der Zee, K.I.; Buunk, Abraham (Bram); Sanderman, R.

The role of social comparison in mediating the relation between 'objective' health status and subjective health evaluations was examined. In a random population sample (N = 361) it was shown that health problems were related to psychological distress, which in turn induced a downward comparison

Twenty-four-hour plasma tryptophan concentrations and ratios are below normal in obese subjects and are not normalized by substantial weight reduction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Breum, Leif; Rasmussen, Michael H; Hilsted, Jannik

2003-01-01

BACKGROUND: Plasma tryptophan concentrations and the ratio of tryptophan to other large neutral amino acids (plasma tryptophan ratio) are reportedly low in obese subjects. The plasma tryptophan ratio predicts brain tryptophan uptake and serotonin production. If this ratio is low in obese subjects......, serotonin function may also be low. Plasma tryptophan concentrations and ratios have been measured only at single time points in obese subjects; it is not known whether low values for these 2 variables persist throughout a 24-h period. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to determine whether plasma tryptophan...... concentrations and ratios in obese subjects are lower than those in normal-weight subjects throughout a 24-h period and whether they increase when body weight is reduced. DESIGN: Plasma tryptophan concentrations and ratios were examined in obese subjects before and after weight loss and in nonobese control...

Comparison for aphasic and control subjects of eye movements hypothesized in neurolinguistic programming.

Science.gov (United States)

Dooley, K O; Farmer, A

1988-08-01

Neurolinguistic programming's hypothesized eye movements were measured independently using videotapes of 10 nonfluent aphasic and 10 control subjects matched for age and sex. Chi-squared analysis indicated that eye-position responses were significantly different for the groups. Although earlier research has not supported the hypothesized eye positions for normal subjects, the present findings support the contention that eye-position responses may differ between neurologically normal and aphasic individuals.

Comparison of plantar pressure distribution in subjects with normal and flat feet during gait

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aluisio Otavio Vargas Avila

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to determine the possible relationship between loss of thenormal medial longitudinal arch measured by the height of the navicular bone in a static situationand variables related to plantar pressure distribution measured in a dynamic situation. Elevenmen (21 ± 3 years, 74 ± 10 kg and 175 ± 4 cm participated in the study. The Novel Emed-ATSystem was used for the acquisition of plantar pressure distribution data (peak pressure, meanpressure, contact area, and relative load at a sampling rate of 50 Hz. The navicular drop testproposed by Brody (1982 was used to assess the height of the navicular bone for classificationof the subjects. The results were compared by the Mann-Whitney U test, with the level of significanceset at p ≤ 0.05. Differences were observed between the two groups in the mid-foot regionfor all variables studied, with the observation of higher mean values in subjects with flat feet.There were also significant differences in contact area, relative load, peak pressure, and meanpressure between groups. The present study demonstrates the importance of paying attentionto subjects with flat feet because changes in plantar pressure distribution are associated withdiscomfort and injuries.

Distortion-Product Otoacoustic Emission Measured Below 300 Hz in Normal-Hearing Human Subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Anders Tornvig; Ordoñez Pizarro, Rodrigo Eduardo; Hammershøi, Dorte

2017-01-01

, a custom-built low-frequency acoustic probe was put to use in 21 normal-hearing human subjects (of 34 recruited). Distortion-product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) was measured in the enclosed ear canal volume as the response to two simultaneously presented tones with frequencies f1 and f2. The stimulus...

Relationship between eye dominance and pattern electroretinograms in normal human subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamis, Umit; Gunduz, Kemal; Okudan, Nilsel; Gokbel, Hakki; Bodur, Sait; Tan, Uner

2005-02-01

The authors conducted a study in 100 non-smoker healthy normal human subjects to find a relationship between eye dominance and macular function as tested by using transient stimulus and electroretinography. Eye preference procedure was carried out using two reference points and pattern electroretinograms (PERGs) were recorded using black and white checks, each check subtending 23'. Trace averager was retriggered every 300 milliseconds (ms) with data collection time of 150 ms. The difference in PERG P50 amplitudes between right and left eyes was analyzed using Student's t test. There was no significant difference in PERG P50 amplitudes between the right and left eye dominant subjects as well as no significant differences between the right and left eyes in right eye dominants and left eye dominants, but in the left-eye dominant group the left eye PERG P50 amplitudes were significantly higher in females than males. Although pattern-reversal visual evoked potentials of healthy subjects provide electrophysiological evidence of lateralization in the nervous system, sensory eye dominance seems to have no correlation with macular function.

Lung sound intensity in patients with emphysema and in normal subjects at standardised airflows.

Science.gov (United States)

Schreur, H J; Sterk, P J; Vanderschoot, J; van Klink, H C; van Vollenhoven, E; Dijkman, J H

1992-01-01

BACKGROUND: A common auscultatory finding in pulmonary emphysema is a reduction of lung sounds. This might be due to a reduction in the generation of sounds due to the accompanying airflow limitation or to poor transmission of sounds due to destruction of parenchyma. Lung sound intensity was investigated in normal and emphysematous subjects in relation to airflow. METHODS: Eight normal men (45-63 years, FEV1 79-126% predicted) and nine men with severe emphysema (50-70 years, FEV1 14-63% predicted) participated in the study. Emphysema was diagnosed according to pulmonary history, results of lung function tests, and radiographic criteria. All subjects underwent phonopneumography during standardised breathing manoeuvres between 0.5 and 2 1 below total lung capacity with inspiratory and expiratory target airflows of 2 and 1 l/s respectively during 50 seconds. The synchronous measurements included airflow at the mouth and lung volume changes, and lung sounds at four locations on the right chest wall. For each microphone airflow dependent power spectra were computed by using fast Fourier transformation. Lung sound intensity was expressed as log power (in dB) at 200 Hz at inspiratory flow rates of 1 and 2 l/s and at an expiratory flow rate of 1 l/s. RESULTS: Lung sound intensity was well repeatable on two separate days, the intraclass correlation coefficient ranging from 0.77 to 0.94 between the four microphones. The intensity was strongly influenced by microphone location and airflow. There was, however, no significant difference in lung sound intensity at any flow rate between the normal and the emphysema group. CONCLUSION: Airflow standardised lung sound intensity does not differ between normal and emphysematous subjects. This suggests that the auscultatory finding of diminished breath sounds during the regular physical examination in patients with emphysema is due predominantly to airflow limitation. Images PMID:1440459

Evaluation of the effects of supplementation with Pycnogenol® on fitness in normal subjects with the Army Physical Fitness Test and in performances of athletes in the 100-minute triathlon.

Science.gov (United States)

Vinciguerra, G; Belcaro, G; Bonanni, E; Cesarone, M R; Rotondi, V; Ledda, A; Hosoi, M; Dugall, M; Cacchio, M; Cornelli, U

2013-12-01

The aim of this registry study was to evaluate the effects of Pycnogenol® (French pine bark extract) on improving physical fitness (PF) in normal individuals using the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT). The study evaluated the efficacy of Pycnogenol, used as a supplement, in improving training, exercise, recovery and oxidative stress. The study was divided into 2 parts. In PART 1 (Pycnogenol 100 mg/day), the APFT was used to assess an improvement in PF during an 8-week preparation and training program. In PART 2 (Pycnogenol 150 mg/day), the study evaluated the effects of Pycnogenol supplementation in athletes in training for a triathlon. PART 1. There was a significant improvement in both males and females in the 2-mile running time within both groups, but the group using Pycnogenol (74 subjects) performed statistically better than controls (73 subjects). The number of push-ups was improved, with Pycnogenol subjects performing better. Sit-ups also improved in the Pycnogenol group. Oxidative stress decreased with exercise in all subjects; in Pycnogenol subjects the results were significantly better. PART 2. In the Pycnogenol group 32 males (37.9; SD 4.4 years) were compliant with the training plan at 4 weeks. In controls there were 22 subjects (37.2;3.5) completing the training plans. The swimming, biking and running scores in both groups improved with training. The Pycnogenol group had more benefits in comparison with controls. The total triathlon time was 89 min 44 s in Pycnogenol subjects versus 96 min 5 s in controls. Controls improved their performing time on average 4.6 minutes in comparison with an improvement of 10.8 minutes in Pycnogenol subjects. A significant decrease in cramps and running and post-running pain was seen in the Pycnogenol group; there were no significant differences in controls. There was an important, significant post-triathlon decrease of PFR one hour after the end of the triathlon with an average of -26.7, whereas PFR in controls

Angiotensin infusion effects on left ventricular function. Assessment in normal subjects and in patients with coronary disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Bianco, J A; Laskey, W K; Makey, D G; Shafer, R B

1980-02-01

Radionuclide multigating of the cardiac cycle was employed to assess effects of angiotensin infusion on left ventricular function. In six normal subjects, angiotensin infusion decreased heart rate (HR) from 72 +/- SEM 2 to 57 +/- 2 beats/min (P less than 0.001); while systolic blood pressure (BP) increased from 119 +/- 2 to 178 +/- 1 mm Hg (P less than 0.001), and ejection fraction (EF) declined from 58 +/- 1 to 47 +/- 2 percent (P less than 0.05). In contrast, in 11 normal subjects, supine exercise increased HR and systolic BP by 55 and 49 percent, whereas EF increased from 64 +/- 1 to 71 +/- 1 (P less than 0.001). In ten patients with CAD, angiotensin infusion produced no change in HR, increased systolic BP by 34 percent, and decreased EF by 11 percent. Angiotensin infusion induced left ventricular depression in normal subjects and in patients with CAD. It cannot substitute for exercise in intervention radionuclide ventriculography.

Recombinant DNA derived monomeric insulin analogue: comparison with soluble human insulin in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Vora, J P; Owens, D R; Dolben, J; Atiea, J A; Dean, J D; Kang, S; Burch, A; Brange, J

1988-11-12

To compare the rate of absorption from subcutaneous tissue and the resulting hypoglycaemic effect of iodine-125 labelled soluble human insulin and a monomeric insulin analogue derived by recombinant DNA technology. Single blind randomised comparison of equimolar doses of 125I labelled soluble human insulin and insulin analogue. Study in normal people at a diabetes research unit and a university department of medical physics. Seven healthy male volunteers aged 20-39 not receiving any other drugs. After an overnight fast and a basal period of one hour two doses (0.05 and 0.1 U/kg) of 125I labelled soluble human insulin and insulin analogue were injected subcutaneously into the anterior abdominal wall on four separate days. To find a fast acting insulin for meal related requirements in insulin dependent diabetics. MEASUREMENTS and main results--Residual radioactivity at the injection site was measured continuously for the first two hours after injection of the 125I labelled preparations and thereafter for five minutes simultaneously with blood sampling. Frequent venous blood samples were obtained over six hours for determination of plasma immunoreactive insulin, insulin analogue, glucose, and glucagon values. Time to 50% of initial radioactivity at the injection site for the insulin analogue compared with soluble insulin was 61 v 135 minutes (p less than 0.05) with 0.05 U/kg and 67 v 145 minutes (p less than 0.001) with 0.1 U/kg. Concentrations in plasma increased faster after the insulin analogue compared with soluble insulin, resulting in higher plasma concentrations between 10 and 150 minutes (0.001 less than p less than 0.05) after 0.05 U/kg and between 40 and 360 minutes (0.001 less than p less than 0.05) after 0.1 U/kg. The hypoglycaemic response to insulin analogue was a plasma glucose nadir at 60 minutes with both doses compared with 90 and 120 minutes with soluble insulin at 0.5 and 0.1 U/kg respectively. The response of glucagon substantiated the earlier and

Anteroposterior condylar position: a comparative study between subjects with normal occlusion and patients with Class I, Class II Division 1, and Class III malocclusions.

Science.gov (United States)

Fraga, Marcelo Reis; Rodrigues, Andréia Fialho; Ribeiro, Luiz Claudio; Campos, Marcio José da Silva; Vitral, Robert Willer Farinazzo

2013-10-29

The present study aimed to determine and compare the anteroposterior position of the condyle in the mandibular fossa between groups of asymptomatic subjects with normal occlusion and asymptomatic subjects with Class I, Class II Division 1, and Class III malocclusions. Thirty persons with normal occlusion, 30 with Class I malocclusion, 30 with Class II Division 1, and 30 with Class III had computed tomography scans of their temporomandibular joints. The anterior joint space/posterior joint space (AJS/PJS) ratio was determined for the right and left joints. The paired t test was used to analyze the AJS/PJS ratio between both sides for each group. The ANOVA test was applied to verify the differences between the groups for the measurements of the right and left sides. In case the ANOVA test confirmed significance, the Dunnett's t test was performed to compare the groups of malocclusion with that of normal occlusion. The paired t test between the AJS/PJS relationships in the right and left sides showed the following p values: Class I (0.168), Class II Division 1 (0.662), Class III (0.991), and normal occlusion (0.390). The ANOVA test showed a p value of 0.445 for the comparisons of the right side and 0.040 for the left side. The Dunnett's t test demonstrated a statistically significant difference between the Class II group and the normal occlusion group (p value of 0.026) in the joints of the left side. Bilateral symmetry and lack of condyle centralization were common characteristics among all groups. The greatest condylar decentralization was observed in the Class II group, whereas the least condylar decentralization was found in the normal occlusion group.

Effect of Low-Level Laser Stimulation on EEG Power in Normal Subjects with Closed Eyes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jih-Huah Wu

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In a previous study, we found that the low-level laser (LLL stimulation at the palm with a frequency of 10 Hz was able to induce significant brain activation in normal subjects with opened eyes. However, the electroencephalography (EEG changes to LLL stimulation in subjects with closed eyes have not been studied. In the present study, the laser array stimulator was applied to deliver insensible laser stimulations to the palm of the tested subjects with closed eyes (the laser group. The EEG activities before, during, and after the laser stimulation were collected. The EEG amplitude powers of each EEG frequency band at 19 locations were calculated. These power data were then analyzed by SPSS software using repeated-measure ANOVAs and appropriate posthoc tests. We found a pronounced decrease in the EEG power in alpha-bandwidth during laser simulation and then less decrease in the EEG power in delta-bandwidth in normal subjects with laser stimulation. The EEG power in beta-bandwidth in the right occipital area also decreased significantly in the laser group. We suggest that LLL stimulation might be conducive to falling into sleep in patients with sleep problems.

Morphometric connectivity analysis to distinguish normal, mild cognitive impaired, and Alzheimer subjects based on brain MRI

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Erleben, Lene Lillemark; Sørensen, Lauge; Mysling, Peter

2013-01-01

This work investigates a novel way of looking at the regions in the brain and their relationship as possible markers to classify normal control (NC), mild cognitive impaired (MCI), and Alzheimer Disease (AD) subjects. MRI scans from a subset of 101 subjects from the ADNI study at baseline was used...

Gastric emptying time in normal subjects using /sup 51/Cr and a gamma camera

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Claure, H [Hospital del Salvador, Santiago de Chile; Calderon, C; Braunschweig, T; Diaz, G

1974-12-01

Gastric emptying time of a meal consisting of 2 eggs, 50 g of white bread, and 300 ml of milk, was measured in 10 normal subjects, 5 males and 5 females, with an average age of 34.7 years. 200 uCi of Cr-51 were added to the meal and external counting was performed using a ..gamma.. camera. The rate of gastric emptying was estimated by the decrease in radiation counts over the gastric area. In 68.6 percent of the subjects the mean gastric emptying time was 60 min. The average curve showed a complex exponential slope with 2 distinct phases: a fast one between 0 and 35 min and a slow one between 40 and 60 min. These results suggest that a normal gastric emptying time consists of 2 different rate phases when a meal of mixed consistency (liquid and solid) is ingested.

Anatomy of Atrioventricular Node Artery and Pattern of Dominancy in Normal Coronary Subject: A Comparison between Individuals with and without Isolated Right Bundle Branch Block.

Science.gov (United States)

Kazemisaeid, Ali; Pakbaz, Marziyeh; Yaminisharif, Ahmad; Davoodi, Gholamreza; Lotfi Tokaldany, Masoumeh; Hakki Kazazi, Elham

2012-11-01

Isolated right bundle branch block (RBBB) is a common finding in the general population. The atrioventricular node (AVN) artery contributes to the blood supply of the right bundle branch. Our hypothesis was that the anatomy of the AVN artery and the pattern of dominancy differ between subjects with and without RBBB. We retrospectively studied the coronary angiography of 92 patients with RBBB and 184 age- and gender-matched controls without RBBB. All the subjects had angiographically proven normal coronary arteries. The dominant circulation and precise origin of the AVN artery were determined in each subject. Obtained data were compared between the two study groups. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of dominancy (p value = 0.200). Origination of the AVN artery from the right circulatory system was more common in both groups, but this pattern was more prevalent in the cases than in the controls (p value = 0.021). There was a great variation of the AVN artery origin. In the total study population, the AVN artery was more commonly separated from a non crux origin than from the crux area. The prevalence of the non-crux origination of the AVN artery was significantly higher in the cases than in the controls (p value AVN artery from the right circulatory system was more common in both groups, the prevalence of the right origin of the AVN artery was significantly higher in the cases than in the controls. We observed that the AVN artery most commonly originated from the dominant artery but not necessarily from the crux. The anatomy of the AVN artery but not the pattern of dominancy is somewhat different in subjects with RBBB compared with normal individuals.

CT quantification of lung and airways in normal Korean subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Song Soo; Lee, Jeong Eun; Shin, Hye Soo [Dept. of Radiology, Chungnam National University Hospital, Chungnam National University School of Medicine, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Jin, Gong Yong; Li, Yuan Zhe [Dept. of Radiology, Research Institute of Clinical Medicine of Chonbuk National University-Biomedical Research Institute of Chonbuk National University Hospital, Jeonju (Korea, Republic of)

2017-08-01

To measure and compare the quantitative parameters of the lungs and airways in Korean never-smokers and current or former smokers (“ever-smokers”). Never-smokers (n = 119) and ever-smokers (n = 45) who had normal spirometry and visually normal chest computed tomography (CT) results were retrospectively enrolled in this study. For quantitative CT analyses, the low attenuation area (LAA) of LAA{sub I-950}, LAA{sub E-856}, CT attenuation value at the 15th percentile, mean lung attenuation (MLA), bronchial wall thickness of inner perimeter of a 10 mm diameter airway (Pi10), total lung capacity (TLC{sub CT}), and functional residual capacity (FRC{sub CT}) were calculated based on inspiratory and expiratory CT images. To compare the results between groups according to age, sex, and smoking history, independent t test, one way ANOVA, correlation test, and simple and multiple regression analyses were performed. The values of attenuation parameters and volume on inspiratory and expiratory quantitative computed tomography (QCT) were significantly different between males and females (p < 0.001). The MLA and the 15th percentile value on inspiratory QCT were significantly lower in the ever-smoker group than in the never-smoker group (p < 0.05). On expiratory QCT, all lung attenuation parameters were significantly different according to the age range (p < 0.05). Pi10 in ever-smokers was significantly correlated with forced expiratory volume in 1 second/forced vital capacity (r = −0.455, p = 0.003). In simple and multivariate regression analyses, TLC{sub CT}, FRC{sub CT}, and age showed significant associations with lung attenuation (p < 0.05), and only TLC{sub CT} was significantly associated with inspiratory Pi10. In Korean subjects with normal spirometry and visually normal chest CT, there may be significant differences in QCT parameters according to sex, age, and smoking history.

CT quantification of lung and airways in normal Korean subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Song Soo; Lee, Jeong Eun; Shin, Hye Soo; Jin, Gong Yong; Li, Yuan Zhe

2017-01-01

To measure and compare the quantitative parameters of the lungs and airways in Korean never-smokers and current or former smokers (“ever-smokers”). Never-smokers (n = 119) and ever-smokers (n = 45) who had normal spirometry and visually normal chest computed tomography (CT) results were retrospectively enrolled in this study. For quantitative CT analyses, the low attenuation area (LAA) of LAA_I_-_9_5_0, LAA_E_-_8_5_6, CT attenuation value at the 15th percentile, mean lung attenuation (MLA), bronchial wall thickness of inner perimeter of a 10 mm diameter airway (Pi10), total lung capacity (TLC_C_T), and functional residual capacity (FRC_C_T) were calculated based on inspiratory and expiratory CT images. To compare the results between groups according to age, sex, and smoking history, independent t test, one way ANOVA, correlation test, and simple and multiple regression analyses were performed. The values of attenuation parameters and volume on inspiratory and expiratory quantitative computed tomography (QCT) were significantly different between males and females (p < 0.001). The MLA and the 15th percentile value on inspiratory QCT were significantly lower in the ever-smoker group than in the never-smoker group (p < 0.05). On expiratory QCT, all lung attenuation parameters were significantly different according to the age range (p < 0.05). Pi10 in ever-smokers was significantly correlated with forced expiratory volume in 1 second/forced vital capacity (r = −0.455, p = 0.003). In simple and multivariate regression analyses, TLC_C_T, FRC_C_T, and age showed significant associations with lung attenuation (p < 0.05), and only TLC_C_T was significantly associated with inspiratory Pi10. In Korean subjects with normal spirometry and visually normal chest CT, there may be significant differences in QCT parameters according to sex, age, and smoking history

Comparison of SUVs normalized by lean body mass determined by CT with those normalized by lean body mass estimated by predictive equations in normal tissues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Woo Hyoung; Kim, Chang Guhn; Kim, Dae Weung [Wonkwang Univ. School of Medicine, Iksan (Korea, Republic of)

2012-09-15

Standardized uptake values (SUVs)normalized by lean body mass (LBM)determined by CT were compared with those normalized by LBM estimated using predictive equations (PEs)in normal liver, spleen, and aorta using {sup 18}F FDG PET/CT. Fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose (F FDG)positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT)was conducted on 453 patients. LBM determined by CT was defined in 3 ways (LBM{sup CT1}-3). Five PEs were used for comparison (LBM{sup PE1}-5). Tissue SUV normalized by LBM (SUL) was calculated using LBM from each method (SUL{sup CT1}-3, SUL{sup PE1}-5). Agreement between methods was assessed by Bland Altman analysis. Percentage difference and percentage error were also calculated. For all liver SUL{sup CTS} vs. liver SUL{sup PES} except liver SUL{sup PE3}, the range of biases, SDs of percentage difference and percentage errors were -0.17-0.24 SUL, 6.15-10.17%, and 25.07-38.91%, respectively. For liver SUL{sup CTs} vs. liver SUL{sup PE3}, the corresponding figures were 0.47-0.69 SUL, 10.90-11.25%, and 50.85-51.55%, respectively, showing the largest percentage errors and positive biases. Irrespective of magnitudes of the biases, large percentage errors of 25.07-51.55% were observed between liver SUL{sup CT1}-3 and liver SUL{sup PE1}-5. The results of spleen and aorta SUL{sup CTs} and SUL{sup PEs} comparison were almost identical to those for liver. The present study demonstrated substantial errors in individual SUL{sup PEs} compared with SUL{sup CTs} as a reference value. Normalization of SUV by LBM determined by CT rather than PEs may be a useful approach to reduce errors in individual SUL{sup PEs}.

Comparison of SUVs normalized by lean body mass determined by CT with those normalized by lean body mass estimated by predictive equations in normal tissues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Woo Hyoung; Kim, Chang Guhn; Kim, Dae Weung

2012-01-01

Standardized uptake values (SUVs)normalized by lean body mass (LBM)determined by CT were compared with those normalized by LBM estimated using predictive equations (PEs)in normal liver, spleen, and aorta using 18 F FDG PET/CT. Fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose (F FDG)positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT)was conducted on 453 patients. LBM determined by CT was defined in 3 ways (LBM CT1 -3). Five PEs were used for comparison (LBM PE1 -5). Tissue SUV normalized by LBM (SUL) was calculated using LBM from each method (SUL CT1 -3, SUL PE1 -5). Agreement between methods was assessed by Bland Altman analysis. Percentage difference and percentage error were also calculated. For all liver SUL CTS vs. liver SUL PES except liver SUL PE3 , the range of biases, SDs of percentage difference and percentage errors were -0.17-0.24 SUL, 6.15-10.17%, and 25.07-38.91%, respectively. For liver SUL CTs vs. liver SUL PE3 , the corresponding figures were 0.47-0.69 SUL, 10.90-11.25%, and 50.85-51.55%, respectively, showing the largest percentage errors and positive biases. Irrespective of magnitudes of the biases, large percentage errors of 25.07-51.55% were observed between liver SUL CT1 -3 and liver SUL PE1 -5. The results of spleen and aorta SUL CTs and SUL PEs comparison were almost identical to those for liver. The present study demonstrated substantial errors in individual SUL PEs compared with SUL CTs as a reference value. Normalization of SUV by LBM determined by CT rather than PEs may be a useful approach to reduce errors in individual SUL PEs

Evaluation of myocardial distribution of iodine-123 labeled metaiodobenzylguanidine (123I-MIBG) in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsuchimochi, Shinsaku; Tamaki, Nagara; Shirakawa, Seishi; Fujita, Toru; Yonekura, Yoshiharu; Konishi, Junji; Nohara, Ryuji; Sasayama, Shigetake; Nishioka, Kenya

1994-01-01

The normal pattern of the myocardial sympathetic innervation was studied in 15 subjects using gamma camera scintigraphy with iodine-123 labeled metaiodobenzylguanidine ( 123 I-MIBG). Seven younger subjects (mean age 24.6±3.6) and eight older patients (mean age 60.9±8.4) with normal cardiac function were studied. Planar imaging was obtained at 15 minutes and 3 hours, and SPECT was also performed 3 hours after injection of 111 MBq (3 mCi) of MIBG. The younger subjects showed higher the heart to mediastinum count ratio (2.91±0.25 vs. 2.67±0.34; p<0.05) and higher inferior to anterior count ratio (1.19±0.15 vs. 0.97±0.13; p<0.05) on the late scan. The bull's-eye polar map also differences in counts in the mid-inferior (p<0.005), basal-inferior (p<0.005) and mid-lateral sectors (p<0.01). But there was no significant difference in MIBG washout rate from myocardium between two groups. These data suggest that there is a difference of the cardiac sympathetic innervation, with older subjects having fewer sympathetic nerve terminals, especially in inferior than younger subjects. We conclude that the age difference in sympathetic nerve function should be considered in the interpretation of MIBG scan. (author)

SSRI treatment suppresses dream recall frequency but increases subjective dream intensity in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Pace-Schott, E F; Gersh, T; Silvestri, R; Stickgold, R; Salzman, C; Hobson, J A

2001-06-01

Clinical lore and a small number of published studies report that the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) intensify dreaming. This study examines the dream effects of paroxetine and fluvoxamine in order to both increase clinical knowledge of these agents and to test an important potential method for probing the relationship between REM sleep neurobiology and dreaming in humans. Fourteen normal, paid volunteers (4 males, 10 females; mean age 27.4 year, range 22--39) free of medical or neuropsychiatric symptoms as well as of psychotropic or sleep affecting drugs completed a 31-day home-based study consisting of: 7 days drug-free baseline; 19 days on either 100 mg fluvoxamine (7 Ss) or 20 mg paroxetine (7 Ss) in divided morning and evening doses; and 5 days acute discontinuation. Upon awakening, subjects wrote dream reports, self-scored specific emotions in their reports and rated seven general dream characteristics using 5-point Likert scales. Dream reports were independently scored for bizarreness, movement and number of visual nouns by three judges. REM sleep-related measures were obtained using the Nightcap ambulatory sleep monitor. Mean dream recall frequency decreased during treatment compared with baseline. Dream report length and judge-rated bizarreness were greater during acute discontinuation compared with both baseline and treatment and this effect was a result of the fluvoxamine-treated subjects. The subjective intensity of dreaming increased during both treatment and acute discontinuation compared with baseline. Propensity to enter REM sleep was decreased during treatment compared with baseline and acute discontinuation and the intensity of REM sleep increased during acute discontinuation compared with baseline and treatment. The decrease in dream frequency during SSRI treatment may reflect serotonergic REM suppression while the augmented report length and bizarreness during acute SSRI discontinuation may reflect cholinergic rebound from

A radioimmunoassay for erythropoietin: serum levels in normal human subjects and patients with hemopoietic disorders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rege, A.B.; Brookins, J.; Fisher, J.W.

1982-01-01

An RIA for Ep has been developed that is highly sensitive and specific. A homogeneous Ep preparation was labeled with 125 I by the chloramine-T method to a specific activity of 90 to 136 micro Ci/microgram and immunoreactivity of 80%. Ep antiserum, which was produced to a human urinary Ep preparation (80 U/mg of protein), was adsorbed with normal human urinary and serum proteins without any loss in sensitivity of the RIA to increase the specificity of the assay. A good correlation was seen between the RIA and the exhypoxic polycythemic mouse assay (corr. coef. 0.967; slope 1.05 and y intercept 0.75). Ep titers in sera from 175 hematologically normal human subjects exhibited a normal frequency distribution and ranged between 5.8 and 36.6 mU/ml with a mean of 14.9 +/- 4.7 (S.D.) and median of 14.3 Serum Ep titers were markedly elevated in seven patients with aplastic anemia and one patient with pure red cell aplasia (1350 to 20,640 mU/ml) and were lower than normal in two patients with polycythemia vera (8.1 and 9.4 mU/ml). The serum Ep titers in a prenephrectomy patient with chronic glomerulonephritis (32.1 mU/ml) decreased to below normal levels (9.04 mU/ml) after nephrectomy. The cord serum erythropoietin titers in 10 IDM [90.82 +/- 134.1 (S.D.) mu/ml] returned to values within the normal range (13.86 +/- 5.55) on day 3 after birth, suggesting the utility of the RIA in elucidating the role of hypoxia and/or insulin in increased erythropoiesis in IDM. The serum Ep titers in patients with anemias and polycythemias were compared to those of normal human subjects and agreed well with pathophysiologic mechanisms of these hemopoietic disorders, confirming the validity of the RIA

A radioimmunoassay for erythropoietin: serum levels in normal human subjects and patients with hemopoietic disorders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rege, A.B.; Brookins, J.; Fisher, J.W.

1982-01-01

An RIA for Ep has been developed that is highly sensitive and specific. A homogeneous Ep preparation was labeled with 125 I by the chloramine-T method to a specific activity of 90 to 136 μCi/μg and immunoreactivity of 80%. Ep antiserum, which was produced to a human urinary Ep preparation (80 U/mg of protein), was adsorbed with normal human urinary and serum proteins without any loss in sensitivity of the RIA to increase the specificity of the assay. A good correlation was seen between the RIA and the exhypoxic polycythemic mouse assay (corr. coef. 0.967; slope 1.05 and ''y'' intercept 0.75). Ep titers in sera from 175 hematologically normal human subjects exhibited a normal frequency distribution and ranged between 5.8 and 36.6 mU/ml with a mean of 14.9 +/- 4.7 (S.D.) and median of 14.3. Serum Ep titers were markedly elevated in seven patients with aplastic anemia and one patient with pure red cell aplasia (1350 to 20,640 mU/ml) and were lower than normal in two patients with polycythemia vera (8.1 and 9.4 mU/ml). The serum Ep titers in a prenephrectomy patient with chronic glomerulonephritis (31.1 mU/ml) decreased to below normal levels (9.04 mU/ml) after nephrectomy. The cord serum erythropoietin titers in 10 IDM [90.82 +/- 134.1 (S.D.) mu/ml] returned to values within the normal range (13.86 +/- 5.55) on day 3 after birth, suggesting the utility of the RIA in elucidating the role of hypoxia and/or insulin in increased erythropoiesis in IDM. The serum Ep titers in patients with anemias and polycythemias were compared to those of normal human subjects and agreed well with pathophysiologic mechanisms of these hemopoietic disorders, confirming the validity of the RIA

Metabolic profile of normal glucose-tolerant subjects with elevated 1-h plasma glucose values

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Thyparambil Aravindakshan Pramodkumar

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the metabolic profiles of subjects with normal glucose tolerance (NGT with and without elevated 1-h postglucose (1HrPG values during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT. Methodology: The study group comprised 996 subjects without known diabetes seen at tertiary diabetes center between 2010 and 2014. NGT was defined as fasting plasma glucose <100 mg/dl (5.5 mmol/L and 2-h plasma glucose <140 mg/dl (7.8 mmol/L after an 82.5 g oral glucose (equivalent to 75 g of anhydrous glucose OGTT. Anthropometric measurements and biochemical investigations were done using standardized methods. The prevalence rate of generalized and central obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and metabolic syndrome (MS was determined among the NGT subjects stratified based on their 1HrPG values as <143 mg/dl, ≥143-<155 mg/dl, and ≥155 mg/dl, after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index (BMI, waist circumference, alcohol consumption, smoking, and family history of diabetes. Results: The mean age of the 996 NGT subjects was 48 ± 12 years and 53.5% were male. The mean glycated hemoglobin for subjects with 1HrPG <143 mg/dl was 5.5%, for those with 1HrPG ≥143-<155 mg/dl, 5.6% and for those with 1HrPG ≥155 mg/dl, 5.7%. NGT subjects with 1HrPG ≥143-<155 mg/dl and ≥155 mg/dl had significantly higher BMI, waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, triglyceride, total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein (HDL ratio, triglyceride/HDL ratio, leukocyte count, and gamma glutamyl aminotransferase (P < 0.05 compared to subjects with 1HrPG <143 mg/dl. The odds ratio for MS for subjects with 1HrPG ≥143 mg/dl was 1.84 times higher compared to subjects with 1HrPG <143 mg/dl taken as the reference. Conclusion: NGT subjects with elevated 1HrPG values have a worse metabolic profile than those with normal 1HrPG during an OGTT.

Normality in Analytical Psychology

Science.gov (United States)

Myers, Steve

2013-01-01

Although C.G. Jung’s interest in normality wavered throughout his career, it was one of the areas he identified in later life as worthy of further research. He began his career using a definition of normality which would have been the target of Foucault’s criticism, had Foucault chosen to review Jung’s work. However, Jung then evolved his thinking to a standpoint that was more aligned to Foucault’s own. Thereafter, the post Jungian concept of normality has remained relatively undeveloped by comparison with psychoanalysis and mainstream psychology. Jung’s disjecta membra on the subject suggest that, in contemporary analytical psychology, too much focus is placed on the process of individuation to the neglect of applications that consider collective processes. Also, there is potential for useful research and development into the nature of conflict between individuals and societies, and how normal people typically develop in relation to the spectrum between individuation and collectivity. PMID:25379262

Normality in Analytical Psychology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Steve Myers

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Although C.G. Jung’s interest in normality wavered throughout his career, it was one of the areas he identified in later life as worthy of further research. He began his career using a definition of normality which would have been the target of Foucault’s criticism, had Foucault chosen to review Jung’s work. However, Jung then evolved his thinking to a standpoint that was more aligned to Foucault’s own. Thereafter, the post Jungian concept of normality has remained relatively undeveloped by comparison with psychoanalysis and mainstream psychology. Jung’s disjecta membra on the subject suggest that, in contemporary analytical psychology, too much focus is placed on the process of individuation to the neglect of applications that consider collective processes. Also, there is potential for useful research and development into the nature of conflict between individuals and societies, and how normal people typically develop in relation to the spectrum between individuation and collectivity.

Hypercapnic normalization of BOLD fMRI: comparison across field strengths and pulse sequences

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cohen, Eric R.; Rostrup, Egill; Sidaros, Karam

2004-01-01

to be more accurately localized and quantified based on changes in venous blood oxygenation alone. The normalized BOLD signal induced by the motor task was consistent across different magnetic fields and pulse sequences, and corresponded well with cerebral blood flow measurements. Our data suggest...... size, as well as experimental, such as pulse sequence and static magnetic field strength (B(0)). Thus, it is difficult to compare task-induced fMRI signals across subjects, field strengths, and pulse sequences. This problem can be overcome by normalizing the neural activity-induced BOLD fMRI response...... for global stimulation, subjects breathed a 5% CO(2) gas mixture. Under all conditions, voxels containing primarily large veins and those containing primarily active tissue (i.e., capillaries and small veins) showed distinguishable behavior after hypercapnic normalization. This allowed functional activity...

Preliminary study of diffusion tensor MR on the cervical spinal cord in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng Kuihong; Ma Lin; Guo Xinggao; Liang Li

2006-01-01

Objective: To investigate a simplified and practical strategy for MR diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) of the cervical spinal cord and acquire the normal values of DTI parameters in normal subjects, and to offer the basis for the research of the cervical spinal cord disorders. Methods: DTI examinations were performed in 36 consecutive healthy subjects by using SE-EPI sequence on the cervical spinal cord. The values of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), fractional anisotropy (FA), λ 1 , λ 2 , and λ 3 were measured in regions of interest positioned in the normal cervical cords. Results: All 36 subjects completed the examinations. The cervical spinal cords were clearly demonstrated on the postprocessing images, and there were no obvious artifacts on the diffusion tensor images. The average value of ADC was (914.44±82.61) x 10 -6 mm 2 /s and FA was (593.84±52.22) x 10 -3 . The diffusivity components parallel (λ 1 ) and orthogonal (λ 2 and λ 3 ) to the longitudinal axes of the spinal cord were (1585.10±130.07) x 10 -6 mm 2 /s, (559.84±66.49) x 10 -6 mm 2 /s, and (613.28±128.71) x 10 -6 mm 2 /s, respectively. The value of λ 1 was significantly higher than that of λ 2 and λ 3 (P 2 and λ 3 (P>0.05). The value of 2λ 1 /(λ 2 +λ 3 ) was 2.74± 0.32. Conclusion: The normal cervical spinal cord can be well demonstrated in vivo by using DTI with SE-EPI sequence, and various parameters acquired on DTI are stable. The water diffusivity in the direction parallel to the longitudinal axes of the spinal cord is found to be higher than that in directions perpendicular to the longitudinal axes of the spinal cord, thus suggesting the cylindrical anisotropic characteristics in the cervical spinal cord. (authors)

Downward social comparison and subjective well-being in late life: the moderating role of perceived control.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Tara L; Chipperfield, Judith G; Ruthig, Joelle C; Heckhausen, Jutta

2013-01-01

Drawing from Heckhausen and Schulz's Motivational Theory of Life-span Development, this study examined perceived control as a moderator of the protective relationship between downward social comparison and subjective well-being among older adults. Community-dwelling older adults (N = 97, 63% female, ages 79-97) were interviewed in their own homes at three time-points over a nine-year period. Interviews assessed older adults' perceived control over daily tasks, their use of downward social comparison in response to task restriction, and their subjective well-being. Regression analyses yielded a significant interaction between downward social comparison and perceived control for three subjective well-being outcomes: life satisfaction, perceived stress, and depressive symptoms. Follow-up analyses revealed that downward social comparison was associated with greater subjective well-being at low levels of perceived control; but was unrelated to subjective well-being at high levels of perceived control. These findings corroborate Heckhausen and Schulz's theorized goal-opportunity congruence premise and have implications for quality-of-life interventions to assist community-dwelling older adults.

Kinetics of the human thyroid trap: experience in normal subjects and in thyroid disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hays, M.T.

1979-03-01

Kinetics of the thyroid pertechnetate trap were assessed in 39 normal subjects, five untreated patients with Graves' disease (two before and after treatment), two hypothyroid patients, and in one patient each with Hashimoto's thyroiditis of recent onset, subacute thyroiditis, and massive anaplastic carcinoma. In normal subjects, the effects of sex, time of day, and order of experimental sessions were studied. A three-compartment model was assumed for all studies. Data on thyroidal and neck-background pertechnetate were collected with a multicrystal camera during 40 min after iv injection. The two thyroidal compartments in the model - the follicular cell, v/sub 2/, and the colloidal plasma-equivalent space, V/sub 3/ - is a multi-exponential function of plasma radioactivity, V/sub 1/. None of the model parameters was systematically affected by sex and order of session did not consistently alter any parameter, except for V/sub 3/, which was greater in session 2 than in session 1. That increase was not consistent and is believed to be spurious. Time of day affected only the exit rate constant from the colloid ..lambda../sub 23/, which was increased later in the day (P < 0.02). Distribution of the normal parameters was more log-normal than normal. After 5% were excluded at the high end and at the low end, the range for a parameter, p, was found empirically to be: antiln (mean ln p - 1.7 s.d. ln p), and antiln (mean ln p + 1.5 s.d. ln p). In Graves' disease, V/sub 2/ is increased (P < 0.02), but the increases in V/sub 3/ and in ..lambda../sub 21/ (the clearance into the thyroid from serum) are more dramatic (P < 10/sup -8/). After treatment, V/sub 3/ and ..lambda../sub 21/ fell toward normal. The hypothyroid patients showed no trap activity, and the trap was normal in the patient with early Hashimoto's thyroiditis. The patients with subacute thyroiditis and anaplastic carcinoma had increases in V/sub 2/, V/sub 3/, and ..lambda../sub 21/, but the

Comparing of Normal Stress Distribution in Static and Dynamic Soil-Structure Interaction Analyses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kholdebarin, Alireza; Massumi, Ali; Davoodi, Mohammad; Tabatabaiefar, Hamid Reza

2008-01-01

It is important to consider the vertical component of earthquake loading and inertia force in soil-structure interaction analyses. In most circumstances, design engineers are primarily concerned about the analysis of behavior of foundations subjected to earthquake-induced forces transmitted from the bedrock. In this research, a single rigid foundation with designated geometrical parameters located on sandy-clay soil has been modeled in FLAC software with Finite Different Method and subjected to three different vertical components of earthquake records. In these cases, it is important to evaluate effect of footing on underlying soil and to consider normal stress in soil with and without footing. The distribution of normal stress under the footing in static and dynamic states has been studied and compared. This Comparison indicated that, increasing in normal stress under the footing caused by vertical component of ground excitations, has decreased dynamic vertical settlement in comparison with static state

Age-related changes in brain perfusion of normal subjects detected by 99mTc-HMPAO SPECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krausz, Y.; Karger, H.; Chisin, R.; Bonne, O.; Gorfine, M.; Lerer, B.

1998-01-01

Previous functional imaging data generally show impairment in global cerebral blood flow (CBF) with age. Conflicting data, however, concerning age-related changes in regional CBF (rCBF) have been reported. We examined the relative rCBF in a sample of healthy subjects of various ages, to define and localize any age-related CBF reduction. Twenty-seven healthy subjects (17 male, 10 female; mean age 49 ± 15, range 26-71, median 47 years) were studied by 99m Tc-HMPAO brain SPECT. The younger age group consisted of subjects below, the older group above 47 years of age, respectively. Analysis was performed by applying three preformed templates, each containing delineated regions of interest (ROIs), to three transaxial brain slices at approximately 4, 6, and 7 cm above the orbitomeatal line (OML). The average number of counts for each ROI was normalized to mean uptake of the cerebellum and of the whole brain slice. Globally, 99m Tc-HMPAO uptake ratio normalized to cerebellum was significantly decreased in older subjects, affecting both hemispheres. A slight left-to-right asymmetry was observed in HMPAO uptake of the whole study group. It did not, however, change with age. Regionally, both cortical and subcortical structures of older subjects were involved: uptake ratio to cerebellum was significantly lower (after correction for multiple testing) in the left basal ganglia and in the left superior temporal, right frontal and bilateral occipital cortices at 4 cm above the OML. At 6 cm above the OML, reduced uptake ratios were identified in the left frontal and bilateral parietal areas. At 7 cm, reduced uptake was detected in the right frontal and left occipital cortices. Most of these differences were reduced when uptake was normalized to whole slice, whereas an increase in uptake ratios was observed in the cingulate cortex of the elderly. An inverse correlation between age and HMPAO uptake ratios normalized to cerebellum was observed in a number of brain regions. These

Comparison of Normal Resident Flora on the Face of Medical Students who use and who do not use Cosmetics

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Udayalaxmi Jeppu

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Normal flora of the skin plays a beneficial role in preventing the pathogenic organisms from colonizing the skin and causing infection. It is possible that the facial cosmetics may cause a change in the normal flora disrupting its protective function. Aim: To find out the effect of cosmetics, those that are applied on to the face on resident normal flora of the face. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving medical students aged 19 to 25 years, of whom 42 were regular cosmetic users and another 42 were non cosmetic users. Swabs were taken from the face of the subjects after a face wash with soap and water and eluted in 1 ml sterile peptone water. Tenfold dilutions of the sample were made and 100 ìl of the diluted sample was spread over the surface of Trypticase soy agar, Mac Conkey’s agar and blood agar. The colonies were counted and also identified. Statistical evaluation was done by Chi-square test using SPSS version 16. Results: We isolated Coagulase Negative Staphylococci (CoNS, Micrococcus spp. and methicillin sensitive S.aureus, non-fermenting oxidase negative gram negative bacilli and diphtheroids from both the groups. We found that most of the students who were regular cosmetic users 22 (52.38% yielded negligent growth in comparison with non-cosmetic users (16, 38%. CoNS was less frequently isolated from regular cosmetic users 10 (23.8% in comparison with those who do not use cosmetics 17 (40.47%. Conclusion: It is possible that regular use of cosmetics does reduce the normal flora but further studies with larger sample size are required to prove and confirm this finding.

Effect of Artocarpus heterophyllus and Asteracanthus longifolia on glucose tolerance in normal human subjects and in maturity-onset diabetic patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernando, M R; Wickramasinghe, N; Thabrew, M I; Ariyananda, P L; Karunanayake, E H

1991-03-01

Investigations were carried out to evaluate the effects of hot-water extracts of Artocarpus heterophyllus leaves and Asteracanthus longifolia whole plant material on the glucose tolerance of normal human subjects and maturity-onset diabetic patients. The extracts of both Artocarpus heterophyllus and Asteracanthus longifolia significantly improved glucose tolerance in the normal subjects and the diabetic patients when investigated at oral doses equivalent to 20 g/kg of starting material.

Brain parenchymal density measurements by CT in demented subjects and normal controls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gado, M.; Danziger, W.L.; Chi, D.; Hughes, C.P.; Coben, L.A.

1983-01-01

Parachymal density measurements of 14 regions of gray and white matter from each cerebral hemisphere were made from CT scans of 25 subjects who had varying degrees of dementia as measured by a global Clinical Dementia Rating, and also from CT scans of 33 normal control subjects. There were few significant differences between the two groups in the mean density value for each of the regions examined, although several individual psychometric tests did correlate with density changes. Moreover, for six regions in the cerebral cortex, and for one region in the thalamus of each hemisphere, we found no significant correlation between the gray-white matter density difference and dementia. There was, however, a loss of the discriminability between the gray and white matter with an increase in the size of the ventricles. These findings may be attributed to the loss of white matter volume

Mandibular dimensions of subjects with asymmetric skeletal class III malocclusion and normal occlusion compared with cone-beam computed tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, HyoYeon; Bayome, Mohamed; Kim, Seong-Hun; Kim, Ki Beom; Behrents, Rolf G; Kook, Yoon-Ah

2012-08-01

The purpose of this study was to use cone-beam computed tomography to compare mandibular dimensions in subjects with asymmetric skeletal Class III malocclusion and those with normal occlusion. Cone-beam computed tomography scans of 38 subjects with normal occlusion and 28 patients with facial asymmetry were evaluated and digitized with Invivo software (Anatomage, San Jose, Calif). Three midsagittal and 13 right and left measurements were taken. The paired t test was used to compare the right and left sides in each group. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the midsagittal variables and the differences between the 2 sides of the group with normal occlusion with those of asymmetry patients. The posterior part of the mandibular body showed significant differences between the deviated and nondeviated sides in asymmetric Class III patients. The difference of the asymmetry group was significantly greater than that of the normal occlusion group for the mediolateral ramal and the anteroposterior condylar inclinations (P = 0.007 and P = 0.019, respectively). The asymmetric skeletal Class III group showed significant differences in condylar height, ramus height, and posterior part of the mandibular body compared with the subjects with normal occlusion. These results might be useful for diagnosis and treatment planning of asymmetric Class III patients. Copyright © 2012 American Association of Orthodontists. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Digital music exposure reliably induces temporary threshold shift in normal-hearing human subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Le Prell, Colleen G; Dell, Shawna; Hensley, Brittany; Hall, James W; Campbell, Kathleen C M; Antonelli, Patrick J; Green, Glenn E; Miller, James M; Guire, Kenneth

2012-01-01

One of the challenges for evaluating new otoprotective agents for potential benefit in human populations is the availability of an established clinical paradigm with real-world relevance. These studies were explicitly designed to develop a real-world digital music exposure that reliably induces temporary threshold shift (TTS) in normal-hearing human subjects. Thirty-three subjects participated in studies that measured effects of digital music player use on hearing. Subjects selected either rock or pop music, which was then presented at 93 to 95 (n = 10), 98 to 100 (n = 11), or 100 to 102 (n = 12) dBA in-ear exposure level for a period of 4 hr. Audiograms and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) were measured before and after music exposure. Postmusic tests were initiated 15 min, 1 hr 15 min, 2 hr 15 min, and 3 hr 15 min after the exposure ended. Additional tests were conducted the following day and 1 week later. Changes in thresholds after the lowest-level exposure were difficult to distinguish from test-retest variability; however, TTS was reliably detected after higher levels of sound exposure. Changes in audiometric thresholds had a "notch" configuration, with the largest changes observed at 4 kHz (mean = 6.3 ± 3.9 dB; range = 0-14 dB). Recovery was largely complete within the first 4 hr postexposure, and all subjects showed complete recovery of both thresholds and DPOAE measures when tested 1 week postexposure. These data provide insight into the variability of TTS induced by music-player use in a healthy, normal-hearing, young adult population, with music playlist, level, and duration carefully controlled. These data confirm the likelihood of temporary changes in auditory function after digital music-player use. Such data are essential for the development of a human clinical trial protocol that provides a highly powered design for evaluating novel therapeutics in human clinical trials. Care must be taken to fully inform potential subjects in

Comparison of radioisotope methods for the measurement of phosphate absorption in normal subjects and in patients with chronic renal failure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farrington, K.; Mohammed, M.N.; Newman, S.P.; Varghese, Z.; Moorhead, J.F.

1981-01-01

Intestinal phosphate absorption was measured in normal subjects, in patients with chronic renal failure, and in post-transplant patients, by a double isotope technique involving oral administration of 32 P and simultaneous intravenous injection of 33 P with subsequent deconvolution analysis. By this technique intestinal phosphate absorption has been shown to have two components: an initial rapid phase, which is completed by 3 h, and a slower more prolonged phase, which continues beyond 71/2 h. Phosphate malabsorption has been demonstrated in chronic renal failure and transplant patients, which is accounted for by impairment of the initial phase of absorption. Results obtained by deconvolution analysis have been compared with other estimates of phosphate absorption obtained from analysis of 32 P radioactivity curves alone. The fractional hourly rate of absorption and the plasma 32 P radioactivity at 60 min corrected for extracellular fluid volume provided the best approximations to the result obtained by deconvolution analysis, with respect to both the maximal rate of phosphate absorption and cumulative percentage phosphate absorption. (author)

15N nitrogen-balance studies in patients with testicular feminization, their relatives, and in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zachman, M.; Zagalak, M.; Voellmin, J.A.; Prader, A.

1975-01-01

Fourteen subjects (4 with testicular feminization, 2 mothers, 1 aunt and 1 father of these patients, 2 normal women, 2 normal men and 2 normal prepubertal boys) were given 0.1 to 0.2 g/kg of 50 percent 15 N-labeled NH 4 Cl before and after 6 daily injections of testosterone (T) 15 mg/m 2 ). In 24-hour urine specimens collected on the test days, 15 N was calculated from total N (Kjeldahl) and the percentage of 15 N (mass spectrometry or 15 N-analyzer Isocommerz). In all normal subjects, urinary 15 N-balance was influenced positively by T (+31.3 +- 8.4 percent), in prepubertal boys more (+43 to +66 percent) than in women (+20 to +30 percent) and men (+6 to +23). In testicular feminization, 15 N-balance not only failed to become more positive, but was even reduced (-24.7 +- 17.6 percent). The father of a patient had only a slight response (+7 percent) as one of the normal males, probably because of higher endogenous T-levels in adult males. One mother and the aunt had no response (-7.4 to + 1.5 percent). In the mother, the balance became slightly positive (+10 percent) on oral contraceptives. The other mother, who was on estrogen treatment prior to and during the test, had a positive but insufficient change of balance (+17 percent). It is concluded that this test allows detection of patients with testicular feminization and possibly also healthy female carriers. In these cases, estrogen treatment appears to positively influence the response to T

Alzheimer’s disease cerebrospinal fluid biomarker in cognitively normal subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Toledo, Jon B.; Zetterberg, Henrik; van Harten, Argonde C.; Glodzik, Lidia; Martinez-Lage, Pablo; Bocchio-Chiavetto, Luisella; Rami, Lorena; Hansson, Oskar; Sperling, Reisa; Engelborghs, Sebastiaan; Osorio, Ricardo S.; Vanderstichele, Hugo; Vandijck, Manu; Hampel, Harald; Teipl, Stefan; Moghekar, Abhay; Albert, Marilyn; Hu, William T.; Monge Argilés, Jose A.; Gorostidi, Ana; Teunissen, Charlotte E.; De Deyn, Peter P.; Hyman, Bradley T.; Molinuevo, Jose L.; Frisoni, Giovanni B.; Linazasoro, Gurutz; de Leon, Mony J.; van der Flier, Wiesje M.; Scheltens, Philip; Blennow, Kaj; Shaw, Leslie M.

2015-01-01

In a large multicentre sample of cognitively normal subjects, as a function of age, gender and APOE genotype, we studied the frequency of abnormal cerebrospinal fluid levels of Alzheimer’s disease biomarkers including: total tau, phosphorylated tau and amyloid-β1-42. Fifteen cohorts from 12 different centres with either enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays or Luminex® measurements were selected for this study. Each centre sent nine new cerebrospinal fluid aliquots that were used to measure total tau, phosphorylated tau and amyloid-β1-42 in the Gothenburg laboratory. Seven centres showed a high correlation with the new Gothenburg measurements; therefore, 10 cohorts from these centres are included in the analyses here (1233 healthy control subjects, 40–84 years old). Amyloid-β amyloid status (negative or positive) and neurodegeneration status (negative or positive) was established based on the pathological cerebrospinal fluid Alzheimer’s disease cut-off values for cerebrospinal fluid amyloid-β1-42 and total tau, respectively. While gender did not affect these biomarker values, APOE genotype modified the age-associated changes in cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers such that APOE ε4 carriers showed stronger age-related changes in cerebrospinal fluid phosphorylated tau, total tau and amyloid-β1-42 values and APOE ε2 carriers showed the opposite effect. At 40 years of age, 76% of the subjects were classified as amyloid negative, neurodegeneration negative and their frequency decreased to 32% at 85 years. The amyloid-positive neurodegeneration-negative group remained stable. The amyloid-negative neurodegeneration-positive group frequency increased slowly from 1% at 44 years to 16% at 85 years, but its frequency was not affected by APOE genotype. The amyloid-positive neurodegeneration-positive frequency increased from 1% at 53 years to 28% at 85 years. Abnormally low cerebrospinal fluid amyloid-β1-42 levels were already frequent in midlife and APOE genotype

In-vivo tissue uptake and retention of Sn-117m(4+)DTPA in a human subject with metastatic bone pain and in normal mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swailem, Fayez M.; Krishnamurthy, Gerbail T.; Srivastava, Suresh C.; Aguirre, Maria L.; Ellerson, Dawn L.; Walsh, T. Kent; Simpson, Laura

1998-01-01

Organ and tissue uptake and retention of Sn-117m(4+)DTPA were studied in a human subject treated for metastatic bone pain, and the results were compared with the biodistribution studies in five normal mice. The explanted organs from a patient who received a therapy dose of 18.6 mCi (688.2 MBq) Sn-117m(4+)DTPA and who died 47 days later were imaged with a γ-camera, and tissue samples were counted and also autoradiographed. Bone, muscle, liver, fat, lungs, kidneys, spleen, heart and pancreas tissue samples were assayed in a well counter for radioactivity. Regions of interest were drawn over bone and major organs to calculate and quantify clearance times using three in vivo Sn-117m(4+)DTPA whole-body scintigrams acquired at 1, 24 and 168 h after injection. Five normal mice injected with the same batch of Sn-117m(4+)DTPA as used for the human subject were sacrificed at 24 h, and tissue samples were collected and assayed for radioactivity for comparison with the human data. For the human subject, whole-body retention at 47 days postinjection was 81% of the injected dose, and the rest (19%) was excreted in urine. Of the whole-body retained activity at 47 days, 82.4% was in bone, 7.8% in the muscle and 1.5% in the liver, and the rest was distributed among other tissues. γ-Ray scintigrams and electron autoradiographs of coronal slices of the thoracolumbar vertebral body showed heterogenous metastatic involvement with normal bone between metastatic lesions. There was nonuniform distribution of radioactivity even within a single vertebral body, indicating normal bone between metastatic lesions. Lesion-to-nonlesion ratios ranged from 3 to 5. However, the osteoid-to-marrow cavity deposition ratio, from the microautoradiographs, was 11:1. The peak uptake in the human bone was seen at 137 h with no biological clearance. Soft tissues showed peak uptake at 1 h and exhibited three compartmental clearance components. Whole-body retention in normal mice was 38.7% of the injected

Application of cine cardiac MR imaging in normal subjects and patients with valvular, coronary artery, and aortic disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maddahi, J.; Ostrzega, E.; Crues, J.; Honma, H.; Siegel, R.; Charuzi, Y.; Berman, D.

1987-01-01

Cine MR imaging was performed on 15 normal subjects and 27 patients with cardiac disease. In normal subjects, high signal intensity of flowing blood contrasted with that of the myocardium. In 16 patients with valvular regurgitation, signal void jet due to turbulence was visualized across the diseased valves. In three IHSS patients, thickened LV myocardium, mitral regurgitant jets, and systolic LV outflow jets were noted. Five patients with myocardial infarction (MI) showed thinning and/or hypokinesis of MI regions. In three patients with Marfan syndrome, aortic dilatation, insufficiency, and flap (one pt) were identified. Cine MR imaging is potentially useful for evaluation of a variety of cardiac diseases

Effects of synthetic TRH on plasma human prolactin levels in normal subjects and in patients with various endocrine disorders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogawa, Norio; Miyoshi, Masanori; Suzuki, Shinya; Ofuji, Tadashi; Furuno, Katsushi

1974-01-01

HPRL was iodinated a modification of the enzymatic method using lactoperoxidase. By solid-phase RIA using antibody-coated disposable plastic microtiter trays, it was confirmed that the second peak consisted of the immunoreactive material that was used for RIA. For the measurement of plasma hPRL levels, the double antibody technique was used to separate bound from free labeled hormones. Basal plasma hPRL levels in normal subjects were less than 20 ng/ml. The mean basal hPRL levels were 10.2 +- 4.9 (Mean+-SD) ng/ml in 13 normal men and 9.6+-5.4 ng/ml in 8 normal women; no statistically significant sex difference was observed. When synthetic TRH was administered intravenously to a normal male subject, the maximum increase in plasma hPRL above the baseline level increased linearly as a function of the log of the TRH dose between 25 and 100 μg of TRH. Intravenous administration of 500 μg of TRH caused a significant increase in plasma hPRL in all of the 10 normal subjects tested. Plasma hPRL levels in 2 patients with Sheehan's syndrome and in a patient with operated-irradiated chromophobe adenoma tended to be low, and they showed no significant increase in plasma hPRL after TRH injection. Basal plasma hPRL levels in most of the patients with hypothalamopituitary tumor tended to be high. Plasma hPRL levels were normal in most patients with pituitary dwarfism. Plasma hPRL levels in 2 patients with hyperthyroidism tended to be low, and they showed no significant hPRL response to TRH, while patients with hypothyroidism showed normal or rather exaggerated hPRL response to TRH. Plasma hPRL levels were normal in most of the patients with Cushing's syndrome and plasma hPRL responses to TRH in these patients were normal. TRH-induced hPRL secretion tended to be impaired in patients receiving long-term and high doses of glucocorticoid. (auth.)

Normalization in PET group comparison studies - The importance of a valid reference region

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Borghammer, Per; Jonsdottir, Kristjana Yr; Cumming, Paul

2008-01-01

: In healthy aging, CBF was shown to be unchanged in WM and central regions. In contrast, with normalization to the GM mean, CBF displayed positive correlation with age in the central regions. Very similar artifactual increases were seen in the HE comparison and also in the simulation experiment. CONCLUSION...

Monte Carlo comparison of four normality tests using different entropy estimates

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Esteban, M. D.; Castellanos, M. E.; Morales, D.; Vajda, Igor

2001-01-01

Roč. 30, č. 4 (2001), s. 761-785 ISSN 0361-0918 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA102/99/1137 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1075907 Keywords : test of normality * entropy test and entropy estimator * table of critical values Subject RIV: BD - Theory of Information Impact factor: 0.153, year: 2001

13C-octanoic acid breath test for measurement of solid gastric emptying: reproducibility in normal subjects and patients with diabetes mellitus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feng Bo; Dan, Z.

2001-01-01

Objective: To examine the intra-individual reproducibility of the octanoic acid breath test in normal subjects and diabetics and to investigate whether cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy and delayed gastric emptying influence the intra-individual reproducibility. Methods: Nine normal subjects (six men, three women,mean age 38 years) and 15 diabetics with insulin treatment [nine men, six women; mean age 47 years; six had cardiovascular autonomic diabetic neuropathy (CADN) and/or delayed gastric emptying time] were, after a nocturnal fasting period, given a standard test meal (labelled with 13 C-octanoic acid, 1 046 kJ). Breath samples were taken at ten minute intervals over first one hour and at fifteen minute intervals over the following three hours and examined for 13 CO 2 by isotope ratio infrared spectrometry. Using a regression method gastric emptying half times (t 1/2 ) and lag phase (t lag ) were determined. Results: There was not a significant difference of t 1/2 and t lag between two measurements in normal subjects and diabetics. The coefficients of variation of day-to-day reproducibility were 11.7% for t 1/2 , 19.4% for t lag in normal subjects and 17.8% for t 1/2 , 28.2% for t lag in diabetics, but there was not significant difference between normal subjects and diabetics. There was not significant difference of intra-individual coefficient of variation of t 1/2 and t lag between diabetics with/without CADN and between diabetics with normal gastric emptying time and diabetics with delayed gastric emptying time. Conclusions: The 13 C-octanoic acid breath test has a high intra-individual reproducibility which is not affected by the cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy and delayed gastric emptying. It can be recommended as a non-invasive test for assessing gastric emptying time after a solid test meal in diabetics

The Mediating Roles of Upward Social Comparison and Self-esteem and the Moderating Role of Social Comparison Orientation in the Association between Social Networking Site Usage and Subjective Well-Being.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jin-Liang; Wang, Hai-Zhen; Gaskin, James; Hawk, Skyler

2017-01-01

The increased pervasiveness of social media use has raised questions about potential effects on users' subjective well-being, with studies reaching contrasting conclusions. To reconcile these discrepancies and shed new light on this phenomenon, the current study examined: (1) whether upward social comparison and self-esteem mediate the association between social networking site (SNS) usage and users' subjective well-being, and (2) whether the association between SNS usage and upward social comparison is moderated by users' social comparison orientation. Data from 696 participants were collected. Structural equation modeling revealed that upward social comparison and self-esteem mediated the relationship between SNS usage and users' subjective well-being. We found that social comparison orientation moderated the association between passive SNS usage and users' upward social comparison. Specifically, social comparison orientation strengthened the association between passive SNS usage and upward social comparison. The results might suggest a process through which passive SNS usage is related to subjective well-being, and identify a context under which these associations may differ.

The effect of font size and type on reading performance with Arabic words in normally sighted and simulated cataract subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Alotaibi, Abdullah Z

2007-05-01

Previous investigations have shown that reading is the most common functional problem reported by patients at a low vision practice. While there have been studies investigating effect of fonts in normal and low vision patients in English, no study has been carried out in Arabic. Additionally, there has been no investigation into the use of optimum print sizes or fonts that should be used in Arabic books and leaflets for low vision patients. Arabic sentences were read by 100 normally sighted volunteers with and without simulated cataract. Subjects read two font types (Times New Roman and Courier) in three different sizes (N8, N10 and N12). The subjects were asked to read the sentences aloud. The reading speed was calculated as number of words read divided by the time taken, while reading rate was calculated as the number of words read correctly divided by the time taken. There was an improvement in reading performance of normally sighted and simulated visually impaired subjects when the print size increased. There was no significant difference in reading performance between the two types of font used at small print size, however the reading rate improved as print size increased with Times New Roman. The results suggest that the use of N12 print in Times New Roman enhanced reading performance in normally sighted and simulated cataract subjects.

Development of Normalization Factors for Canada and the United States and Comparison with European Factors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lautier, Anne; Rosenbaum, Ralph K.; Margni, Manuele

2010-01-01

In Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), normalization calculates the magnitude of an impact (midpoint or endpoint) relative to the total effect of a given reference. The goal of this work is to calculate normalization factors for Canada and the US and to compare them with existing European normalization...... factors. The differences between geographical areas were highlighted by identifying and comparing the main contributors to a given impact category in Canada, the US and Europe. This comparison verified that the main contributors in Europe and in the US are also present in the Canadian inventory. It also...

Reproducibility of corticospinal diffusion tensor tractography in normal subjects and hemiparetic stroke patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Chao-Chun; Tsai, Miao-Yu; Lo, Yu-Chien; Liu, Yi-Jui; Tsai, Po-Pang; Wu, Chiao-Ying; Lin, Chia-Wei; Shen, Wu-Chung; Chung, Hsiao-Wen

2013-01-01

Purpose: The reproducibility of corticospinal diffusion tensor tractography (DTT) for a guideline is important before longitudinal monitoring of the therapy effects in stroke patients. This study aimed to establish the reproducibility of corticospinal DTT indices in healthy subjects and chronic hemiparetic stroke patients. Materials and methods: Written informed consents were obtained from 10 healthy subjects (mean age 25.8 ± 6.8 years), who underwent two scans in one session plus the third scan one week later, and from 15 patients (mean age 47.5 ± 9.1 years, 6–60 months after the onset of stroke, NIHSS scores between 9 and 20) who were scanned thrice on separate days within one month. Diffusion-tensor imaging was performed at 3 T with 25 diffusion directions. Corticospinal tracts were reconstructed using fiber assignment by continuous tracking without and with motion/eddy-current corrections. Intra- and inter-rater as well as intra- and inter-session variations of the DTT derived indices (fiber number, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), and fractional anisotropy (FA)) were assessed. Results: Intra-session and inter-session coefficients of variations (CVs) are small for FA (1.13–2.09%) and ADC (0.45–1.64%), but much larger for fiber number (8.05–22.4%). Inter-session CVs in the stroke side of patients (22.4%) are higher than those in the normal sides (18.0%) and in the normal subjects (14.7%). Motion/eddy-current correction improved inter-session reproducibility only for the fiber number of the infarcted corticospinal tract (CV reduced from 22.4% to 14.1%). Conclusion: The fiber number derived from corticospinal DTT shows substantially lower precision than ADC and FA, with infarcted tracts showing lower reproducibility than the healthy tissues

Influence of age on left ventricular performance during exercise in normal Japanese subject

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Konishi, Tokuji; Koyama, Takao; Aoki, Toshikazu; Makino, Katsutoshi; Yamamuro, Masashi; Nakai, Kyudayu; Nakamura, Masayuki; Nakano, Takeshi.

1990-01-01

To assess the effects of age on left ventricular performance, multistage supine ergometer exercise radionuclide ventriculography (RNV) was performed in 92 normal subjects. The subjects ranged in age from 24 to 86 years and were free of cardiopulmonary disease and diabetes. Age-related changes in exercise duration, left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV), cardiac output (CO) left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular dv/dt, systolic and diastolic time indexes of dv/dt, and peak systolic pressure/left ventricular end-systolic volume (PSP/LVESV) were analyzed at rest and during the peak exercise stage. Age-related decrease in LVEDV and peak diastolic dv/dt were significant at rest. The time indexes of ECG R to peak systolic dv/dt and time of end-systole to peak diastolic dv/dt also were prolonged with age. Both maximum heart rate and exercise duration were shown to decline with age. No age-related difference was observed in LVESV, LVEF or PSP/LVESV either at rest or during exercise. However, the change of LVEF and LVESV during exercise was less in subjects aged 60 or more. These results indicate decreased left ventricular function during exercise in elderly subjects. (author)

Investigation of cytokines, oxidative stress, metabolic, and inflammatory biomarkers after orange juice consumption by normal and overweight subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Grace K. Z. S. Dourado

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Background: Abdominal adiposity has been linked to metabolic abnormalities, including dyslipidemia, oxidative stress, and low-grade inflammation. Objective: To test the hypothesis that consumption of 100% orange juice (OJ would improve metabolic, oxidative, and inflammatory biomarkers and cytokine levels in normal and overweight subjects with increased waist circumference. Design: Subjects were divided into two groups in accordance with their body mass index: normal and overweight. Both groups of individuals consumed 750 mL of OJ daily for 8 weeks. Body composition (weight, height, percentage of fat mass, and waist circumference; metabolic biomarkers (total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol [LDL-C], high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol [HDL-C], triglycerides, glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, and glycated hemoglobin; oxidative biomarkers (malondialdehyde and DPPH•; inflammatory biomarkers (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hsCRP]; cytokines (IL-4, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-α, and IFN-γ; and diet were evaluated before and after consumption of OJ for 8 weeks. Results: The major findings of this study were: 1 no alteration in body composition in either group; 2 improvement of the lipid profile, evidenced by a reduction in total cholesterol and LDL-C; 3 a potential stimulation of the immune response due to increase in IL-12; 4 anti-inflammatory effect as a result of a marked reduction in hsCRP; and 5 antioxidant action by the enhancement of total antioxidant capacity and the reduction of lipid peroxidation, in both normal and overweight subjects. Conclusions: OJ consumption has a positive effect on important biomarkers of health status in normal and overweight subjects, thereby supporting evidence that OJ acts as functional food and could be consumed as part of a healthy diet to prevent metabolic and chronic diseases.

Measurement of urinary albumin excretion rate (AER) in normal and diabetic subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Giampetro, O.; Clerico, A.; Cruschelli, L.; Miccoli, R.; Dipalma, L.; Navalesi, R.

1987-01-01

The chemico-clinical characteristics of two commercial RIA kits for the measurement of urinary albumin excretion in normal and diabetic subjects were compared. The chief difference between the two methods concerns the bound/free separation of the antigen, since one employs the second antybody plus PEG (Sclavo Kit), while the other uses the solid phase [antiserum bound to sepharose (Pharmacia kit)]. The two RIA methods have demonstrated a similar degree of sensitivity, feasibility and cost. The precision of the two RIAs was also similar, although the Sclavo kit has shown a better precision for lower albumin concentrations and the Pharmacia kit for higher values. In diabetic patients, elevated urinary albumin concentrations (>60 mg/L) have been found more frequently than low values (<5 mg/L); hence the Pharmacia kit seems to be preferable, because it less frequently needs dilution of urinary sample for measuring with a better precision supranormal urinary albumin values. A significant bias (about 15%) was found between the two RIAs. Bias between different albumin RIA methods could partially explain the differences of normal values previously reported in the literature

The odontoid process invagination in normal subjects, Chiari malformation and Basilar invagination patients: Pathophysiologic correlations with angular craniometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferreira, Jânio A; Botelho, Ricardo V

2015-01-01

Craniometric studies have shown that both Chiari malformation (CM) and basilar invagination (BI) belong to a spectrum of malformations. A more precise method to differentiate between these types of CVJM is desirable. The Chamberlain's line violation (CLV) is the most common method to identify BI. The authors sought to clarify the real importance of CLV in the spectrum of craniovertebral junction malformations (CVJM) and to identify possible pathophysiological relationships. We evaluated the CLV in a sample of CVJM, BI, CM patients and a control group of normal subjects and correlated their data with craniocervical angular craniometry. A total of 97 subjects were studied: 32 normal subjects, 41 CM patients, 9 basilar invagination type 1 (BI1) patients, and 15 basilar invagination type 2 (BI2) patients. The mean CLV violation in the groups were: The control group, 0.16 ± 0.45 cm; the CM group, 0.32 ± 0.48 cm; the BI1 group, 1.35 ± 0.5 cm; and the BI2 group, 1.98 ± 0.18 cm. There was strong correlation between CLV and Boogard's angle (R = 0.82, P = 0.000) and the clivus canal angle (R = 0.7, P = 0.000). CM's CLV is discrete and similar to the normal subjects. BI1 and BI2 presented with at least of 0.95 cm CLV and these violations were strongly correlated with a primary cranial angulation (clivus horizontalization) and an acute clivus canal angle (a secondary craniocervical angle).

Gut Microbiota, Microinflammation, Metabolic Profile, and Zonulin Concentration in Obese and Normal Weight Subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agnieszka Żak-Gołąb

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The association between gut microbiota and circulating zonulin level, a marker of intestinal permeability, has not been studied yet. The aim of the study is the assessment of plasma zonulin, haptoglobin and proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-6 levels in relation to composition of gut microbiota in obese and normal weight subjects. Circulating inflammation markers, such as TNF-α, sTNFR1, sTNFR2, IL-6, zonulin, and haptoglobin levels were measured and semiquantitative analysis of gut microbiota composition was carried out in 50 obese and 30 normal weight subjects without concomitant diseases. Higher circulating zonulin, TNF-α, sTNFR1, sTNFR2, and IL-6 levels were found in the obese subjects. Plasma zonulin level correlated positively with age (r=0.43, P<0.001, body mass (r=0.30, P<0.01, BMI (r=0.33, P<0.01, fat mass and fat percentage (r=0.31, P<0.01 and r=0.23, P<0.05, resp.. Positive correlations between bacterial colony count and sTNFR1 (r=0.33, P<0.01 and plasma zonulin (r=0.26, P<0.05 but not haptoglobin levels were found. Additionally, plasma zonulin level was proportional to daily energy intake (r=0.27, P<0.05 and serum glucose concentration (r=0.18, P<0.05 and inversely proportional to diet protein percentage (r=-0.23, P<0.05. Gut microbiota-related systemic microinflammation in the obese is reflected by circulating zonulin level, a potential marker of interstitial permeability.

Tensor-based morphometry as a neuroimaging biomarker for Alzheimer's disease: an MRI study of 676 AD, MCI, and normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Hua, Xue; Leow, Alex D; Parikshak, Neelroop; Lee, Suh; Chiang, Ming-Chang; Toga, Arthur W; Jack, Clifford R; Weiner, Michael W; Thompson, Paul M

2008-11-15

In one of the largest brain MRI studies to date, we used tensor-based morphometry (TBM) to create 3D maps of structural atrophy in 676 subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and healthy elderly controls, scanned as part of the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). Using inverse-consistent 3D non-linear elastic image registration, we warped 676 individual brain MRI volumes to a population mean geometric template. Jacobian determinant maps were created, revealing the 3D profile of local volumetric expansion and compression. We compared the anatomical distribution of atrophy in 165 AD patients (age: 75.6+/-7.6 years), 330 MCI subjects (74.8+/-7.5), and 181 controls (75.9+/-5.1). Brain atrophy in selected regions-of-interest was correlated with clinical measurements--the sum-of-boxes clinical dementia rating (CDR-SB), mini-mental state examination (MMSE), and the logical memory test scores - at voxel level followed by correction for multiple comparisons. Baseline temporal lobe atrophy correlated with current cognitive performance, future cognitive decline, and conversion from MCI to AD over the following year; it predicted future decline even in healthy subjects. Over half of the AD and MCI subjects carried the ApoE4 (apolipoprotein E4) gene, which increases risk for AD; they showed greater hippocampal and temporal lobe deficits than non-carriers. ApoE2 gene carriers--1/6 of the normal group--showed reduced ventricular expansion, suggesting a protective effect. As an automated image analysis technique, TBM reveals 3D correlations between neuroimaging markers, genes, and future clinical changes, and is highly efficient for large-scale MRI studies.

Enterogastric reflux and gastric clearance of refluxate in normal subjects and in patients with and without bile vomiting following peptic ulcer surgery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mackie, C.; Hulks, G.; Cuschieri, A.

1986-01-01

A noninvasive scintigraphic technique was used to estimate enterogastric reflux and subsequent gastric evacuation of refluxate in 35 normal, healthy subjects and 55 patients previously treated by vagotomy or partial gastrectomy. Reflux was provoked by a milk drink and quantitated by counting 99Tcm-EHIDA activity within the gastric area during gamma camera imaging. Seven normal subjects (20%) showed reflux of 5-18% of initial activity (mean: 10%), with peak values occurring at 5-30 minutes (mean: 14 minutes) following the milk. Gastric evacuation of activity in these subjects was monoexponential (r = 0.993, T1/2 = 24.1 minutes). Reflux occurred more frequently than normal in patients with truncal vagotomy and drainage (22/28 patients) and partial gastrectomy (20/21 patients). All of 16 patients with Billroth II anastomoses exhibited reflux, which was excessive compared with refluxing normal subjects (mean: 25%; p less than 0.01) and occurred later into the study (mean: 34 minutes; p less than 0.01). Ten of 11 asymptomatic patients showed reflux of similar amounts of activity (mean: 21%) compared with 16 patients who complained of bile vomiting (mean: 22%). However, asymptomatic patients exhibited gastric evacuation of refluxate at a rate similar to that of refluxing normal subjects, while bile vomiters showed significant gastric retention of refluxate at 25-30 minutes following peak gastric activity (p less than 0.05). This result confirms that post-operative bile vomiting is essentially a problem of gastric emptying

Comparison of stroke work between repaired tetralogy of Fallot and normal right ventricular physiologies.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Namheon; Das, Ashish; Banerjee, Rupak K; Gottliebson, William M

2013-01-01

Adult patients who underwent tetralogy of Fallot repair surgery (rTOF) confront life-threatening ailments due to right ventricular (RV) myocardial dysfunction. Pulmonary valve replacement (PVR) needs to be performed to restore the deteriorating RV function. Determination of correct timing to perform PVR in an rTOF patient remains subjective, due to the unavailability of quantifiable clinical diagnostic parameters. The objective of this study is to evaluate the possibility of using RV body surface area (BSA)-indexed stroke work (SW(I)) to quantify RV inefficiency in TOF patients. We hypothesized that RV SW(I) required to push blood to the lungs in rTOF patients is significantly higher than that of normal subjects. Seven patients with rTOF pathophysiology and eight controls with normal RV physiology were registered for this study. Right ventricular volume and pressure were measured using cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and catheterization, respectively. Statistical analysis was performed to quantify the difference in SW(I) between the RV of the rTOF and control groups. Right ventricular SW(I) in rTOF patients (0.176 ± 0.055 J/m(2)) was significantly higher by 93.4% (P = 0.0026) than that of controls (0.091 ± 0.030 J/m(2)). Further, rTOF patients were found to have significantly higher (P < 0.05) BSA normalized RV end-systolic volume, end-systolic pressure, and regurgitation fraction than control subjects. Ejection fraction and peak ejection rate of rTOF patients were significantly lower (P < 0.05) than those of controls. Patients with rTOF pathophysiology had significantly higher RV SW(I) compared with subjects with normal RV physiology. Therefore, RV SW(I) may be useful to quantify RV inefficiency in rTOF patients along with currently used clinical end points such as RV volume, pressure, regurgitation fraction, and ejection fraction.

Motivation and perceived competence for healthy eating and exercise among overweight/obese adolescents in comparison to normal weight adolescents.

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Mokhtari, Suzanne; Grace, Benjamin; Pak, Youngju; Reina, Astrid; Durand, Quinn; Yee, Jennifer K

2017-01-01

The current literature on determinants of behavior change in weight management lacks sufficient studies on type of motivation among children/adolescents, on perceived competence, and in relation to healthy eating. This study aimed to investigate type of motivation and levels of perceived competence for healthy diet and exercise, as well as general self efficacy among adolescents. We hypothesized that overweight/obese adolescents would demonstrate lower autonomous motivation and perceived competence regarding diet and exercise, and lower self-efficacy in general, and that the scores would be influenced by socioeconomic factors. Normal weight ( n  = 40, body mass index Competence Scale (PCS) for healthy eating and exercise, and the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES). Composite scores for the three scales were compared between the two groups using the using the two-sample t-test (for normal data) or the Mann-Whitney U test (for non-parametric data). Relationships between the composite scores and patient characteristics were determined using Pearson or Spearman's correlations. The average age of the total cohort was 15.9 ± 1.9 years. 54% were female, and 82% identified as Latino/Hispanic. In comparison to normal weight subjects, overweight/obese adolescents exhibited higher scores for controlled motivation (mean ± standard deviation 28.3 ± 9.3 vs 18.1 ± 8.1) and higher perceived competence [median and 25-75% interquartile range 22.5 (19.0-26.0) vs 20.0 (15.5-25.0)] in relation to eating a healthy diet. These differences persisted after adjustment for age, sex, paternal education, and family income. Overweight/obese adolescents did not lack autonomous motivation but demonstrated higher controlled motivation and perceived competence for healthy eating in comparison to normal weight adolescents, independent of socioeconomic factors. In the clinical practice of weight management, providers should carefully assess adolescents for type of

A Comparison of Adaptive Behaviors among Mentally Retarded and Normal Individuals: A guide to Prevention and Treatment

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Leyla Sadros

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Because of the importance of adaptive behaviors in socialand domestic lives, this study aimed at a comparison of various domainsof adaptive behaviors, between mentally retarded and normalindividuals.Methods: A number of 246 normal and 74 mentally retarded individuals(7-18 years of age, mean: 12±3.5 years, participated this study inTehran, Iran. Their adaptive behaviors scores, were obtained using"Adaptive Behavioral Scale, Residential & Community" (ABS-RC: 2,consisting of 18 domains of behavior. The scale was first translatedinto Persian by the professionals and then retranslated into English byanother translator, to ensure content non-distortion.Results: The following domains were significantly lower in mentallyretarded than in normal individuals: independent functioning, economicactivity, language development, number & time, prevocational/vocational activity, self direction, responsibility, socialization,disturbing interpersonal behavior, domestic activity, social engagement,conformity and trustworthiness. No significant difference was documentedin the physical development, stereotype & hyperactive behaviors,sexual behavior as well as self abuse behavior domains, betweenthe two groups.Conclusions: As mentally deficient subjects did worse than normalones in terms of many adaptive behavioral domains, it implies that theadaptive behavioral issues in such people might need a great deal ofattention and intervention. For these retarded people to function betterin their social and residential environment, it would be necessary todevelop their adaptive behaviors. This study may shed light on theimportance of attention to the adaptive behavioral domains of mentallyretarded people and also indicates the necessity of preventive measures,even for normal individuals.

Pathways of sphingomyelin metabolism in cultured fibroblasts from normal and sphingomyelin lipidosis subjects.

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Spence, M W; Clarke, J T; Cook, H W

1983-07-25

The metabolism of endogenous sphingomyelin labeled with 32P or [methyl-3H]choline and of exogenous [choline-methyl-3H], [32P]-, or [N-acyl-1-14C]sphingomyelin was studied in normal and Niemann-Pick Type A (NP-A) cultured fibroblasts. Despite a greater than 96% decrease in lysosomal sphingomyelinase activity in the NP-A cells, they were able to degrade endogenously produced [32P]- or [methyl-3H]sphingomyelin at normal or near normal rates. Exogenous [methyl-3H]-, [methyl-3H, 32P]-, and [methyl-3H, N-acyl-1-14C] sphingomyelin was taken up intact by normal and NP-A cells, with NP-A cells accumulating 4-8 times more lipid. By 20 h, 50% of the control cell-associated 3H and 32P was recovered in lecithin, and the ratio of activities (3H/32P) indicated most of the phosphorylcholine derived from sphingomyelin had been transferred intact. By comparison in NP-A cells, after a 40-h incubation only 20% of the labeled phosphorylcholine derived from sphingomyelin was recovered in lecithin. With both cell lines, 20 to 50 times more sphingomyelin was hydrolyzed than was taken up by the cells; the reaction products in the medium were ceramide and a mixture of water-soluble compounds such as phosphorylcholine and choline. These results indicate that there are at least two metabolic pathways for sphingomyelin modification in cultured fibroblasts in addition to degradation by the lysosomal acid sphingomyelinase. One route is hydrolysis by a cellular sphingomyelinase. The second is the hydrolysis and/or transfer of phosphorylcholine from sphingomyelin and results in the synthesis of lecithin.

The Mediating Roles of Upward Social Comparison and Self-esteem and the Moderating Role of Social Comparison Orientation in the Association between Social Networking Site Usage and Subjective Well-Being

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Jin-Liang Wang

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The increased pervasiveness of social media use has raised questions about potential effects on users’ subjective well-being, with studies reaching contrasting conclusions. To reconcile these discrepancies and shed new light on this phenomenon, the current study examined: (1 whether upward social comparison and self-esteem mediate the association between social networking site (SNS usage and users’ subjective well-being, and (2 whether the association between SNS usage and upward social comparison is moderated by users’ social comparison orientation. Data from 696 participants were collected. Structural equation modeling revealed that upward social comparison and self-esteem mediated the relationship between SNS usage and users’ subjective well-being. We found that social comparison orientation moderated the association between passive SNS usage and users’ upward social comparison. Specifically, social comparison orientation strengthened the association between passive SNS usage and upward social comparison. The results might suggest a process through which passive SNS usage is related to subjective well-being, and identify a context under which these associations may differ.

The Mediating Roles of Upward Social Comparison and Self-esteem and the Moderating Role of Social Comparison Orientation in the Association between Social Networking Site Usage and Subjective Well-Being

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jin-Liang; Wang, Hai-Zhen; Gaskin, James; Hawk, Skyler

2017-01-01

The increased pervasiveness of social media use has raised questions about potential effects on users’ subjective well-being, with studies reaching contrasting conclusions. To reconcile these discrepancies and shed new light on this phenomenon, the current study examined: (1) whether upward social comparison and self-esteem mediate the association between social networking site (SNS) usage and users’ subjective well-being, and (2) whether the association between SNS usage and upward social comparison is moderated by users’ social comparison orientation. Data from 696 participants were collected. Structural equation modeling revealed that upward social comparison and self-esteem mediated the relationship between SNS usage and users’ subjective well-being. We found that social comparison orientation moderated the association between passive SNS usage and users’ upward social comparison. Specifically, social comparison orientation strengthened the association between passive SNS usage and upward social comparison. The results might suggest a process through which passive SNS usage is related to subjective well-being, and identify a context under which these associations may differ. PMID:28553256

Temporal and spectral properties of esophageal mucosal blood perfusion: a comparison between normal subjects and nutcracker esophagus patients.

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Zifan, A; Jiang, Y; Mittal, R K

2017-02-01

The mechanism of esophageal pain in patients with nutcracker esophagus (NE) and other esophageal motor disorders is not known. Our recent study shows that baseline esophageal mucosal perfusion, measured by laser Doppler perfusion monitoring, is lower in NE patients compared to controls. The goal of our current study was to perform a more detailed analysis of esophageal mucosal blood perfusion (EMBP) waveform of NE patients and controls to determine the optimal EMBP biomarkers that combined with suitable statistical learning models produce robust discrimination between the two groups. Laser Doppler recordings of 10 normal subjects (mean age 43 ± 15 years, 8 males) and 10 patients (mean age 47 ± 5.5 years., 8 males) with NE were analyzed. Time and frequency domain features were extracted from the first twenty-minute recordings of the EMBP waveforms, statistically ranked according to four independent evaluation criterions, and analyzed using two statistical learning models, namely, logistic regression (LR) and support vector machines (SVM). The top three ranked predictors between the two groups were the 0.5 and 0.75 perfusion quantile values followed by the surface of the EMBP power spectrum in the frequency domain. ROC curve ranking produced a cross-validated AUC (area under the curve) of 0.93 for SVM and 0.90 for LR. We show that as a group NE patients have lower perfusion values compared to controls, however, there is an overlap between the two groups, suggesting that not all NE patients suffer from low mucosal perfusion levels. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Regional deposition of saline aerosols of different tonicities in normal and asthmatic subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Phipps, P.R.; Gonda, I.; Anderson, S.D.; Bailey, D.; Bautovich, G.

1994-01-01

Nonisotonic aerosols are frequently used in the diagnosis and therapy of lung disease. The purpose of this work was to study the difference in the pattern of deposition of aerosols containing aqueous solutions of different tonicities. 99m Technetium-diethyltriaminepentaacetic acid ( 99m Tc-DTPA)-labelled saline aerosols, with mass median aerodynamic diameter 3.7-3.8 μm and geometric standard deviation 1.4, were inhaled under reproducible breathing conditions on two occasions. Hypotonic and hypertonic solutions were used in 11 normals subjects, isotonic and hypertonic solutions in 9 asthmatics. The regional deposition was quantified by a penetration index measured with the help of a tomographic technique. There was a small but significant increase (6.7%) in the penetration index of the hypotonic as compared to the hypertonic aerosols in the normal subjects. The region that was markedly affected was the trachea. The differences in the penetration of the isotonic and hypertonic aerosols in the asthmatics appeared to be strongly dependent on the state of the airways at the time of the study. These findings can be interpreted in terms of effects of growth or shrinkage of nonisotonic aerosols, as well as of airway narrowing, on regional deposition of aerosols. Tonicity of aerosols appears to affect their deposition both through physical and physiological mechanisms. This should be taken into account when interpreting the effects of inhaled aqueous solutions of various tonicities in patients in vivo. (au) (44 refs.)

Vortex flow during early and late left ventricular filling in normal subjects: quantitative characterization using retrospectively-gated 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance and three-dimensional vortex core analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Elbaz, Mohammed S M; Calkoen, Emmeline E; Westenberg, Jos J M; Lelieveldt, Boudewijn P F; Roest, Arno A W; van der Geest, Rob J

2014-09-27

LV diastolic vortex formation has been suggested to critically contribute to efficient blood pumping function, while altered vortex formation has been associated with LV pathologies. Therefore, quantitative characterization of vortex flow might provide a novel objective tool for evaluating LV function. The objectives of this study were 1) assess feasibility of vortex flow analysis during both early and late diastolic filling in vivo in normal subjects using 4D Flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) with retrospective cardiac gating and 3D vortex core analysis 2) establish normal quantitative parameters characterizing 3D LV vortex flow during both early and late ventricular filling in normal subjects. With full ethical approval, twenty-four healthy volunteers (mean age: 20±10 years) underwent whole-heart 4D Flow CMR. The Lambda2-method was used to extract 3D LV vortex ring cores from the blood flow velocity field during early (E) and late (A) diastolic filling. The 3D location of the center of vortex ring core was characterized using cylindrical cardiac coordinates (Circumferential, Longitudinal (L), Radial (R)). Comparison between E and A filling was done with a paired T-test. The orientation of the vortex ring core was measured and the ring shape was quantified by the circularity index (CI). Finally, the Spearman's correlation between the shapes of mitral inflow pattern and formed vortex ring cores was tested. Distinct E- and A-vortex ring cores were observed with centers of A-vortex rings significantly closer to the mitral valve annulus (E-vortex L=0.19±0.04 versus A-vortex L=0.15±0.05; p=0.0001), closer to the ventricle's long-axis (E-vortex: R=0.27±0.07, A-vortex: R=0.20±0.09, p=0.048) and more elliptical in shape (E-vortex: CI=0.79±0.09, A-vortex: CI=0.57±0.06; vortex. The circumferential location and orientation relative to LV long-axis for both E- and A-vortex ring cores were similar. Good to strong correlation was found between vortex shape and

Effect of Colour of Object on Simple Visual Reaction Time in Normal Subjects

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Sunita B. Kalyanshetti

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The measure of simple reaction time has been used to evaluate the processing speed of CNS and the co-ordination between the sensory and motor systems. As the reaction time is influenced by different factors; the impact of colour of objects in modulating the reaction time has been investigated in this study. 200 healthy volunteers (female gender 100 and male gender100 of age group 18-25 yrs were included as subjects. The subjects were presented with two visual stimuli viz; red and green light by using an electronic response analyzer. Paired‘t’ test for comparison of visual reaction time for red and green colour in male gender shows p value<0.05 whereas in female gender shows p<0.001. It was observed that response latency for red colour was lesser than that of green colour which can be explained on the basis of trichromatic theory.

Effect of normalization heat treatment on creep and tensile properties of modified 9Cr-1Mo steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panneer Selvi, S.; Sakthivel, T.; Parameswaran, P.; Laha, K.

2016-01-01

Creep and tensile properties have been investigated on modified 9Cr-1Mo steel subjected to single and double normalization heat treatments. Optical, scanning and transmission electron microscopic investigation revealed the presence of refined prior austenite grain size and fine M 23 C 6 precipitates in the double normalized steel compared to the steel subjected to single normalization heat treatment. Increased creep strain and significant reduction in creep rupture life were observed with the double normalized steel in comparison with single normalized steel. Increased tensile ductility coupled with marginal decrease in tensile strength at higher test temperature was observed with double normalized steel compared to single normalized steel. It has been attributed to the presence of refined prior austenite grain size and coarsening of Nb rich MX precipitates in double normalized steel. (author)

Normal probability plots with confidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Chantarangsi, Wanpen; Liu, Wei; Bretz, Frank; Kiatsupaibul, Seksan; Hayter, Anthony J; Wan, Fang

2015-01-01

Normal probability plots are widely used as a statistical tool for assessing whether an observed simple random sample is drawn from a normally distributed population. The users, however, have to judge subjectively, if no objective rule is provided, whether the plotted points fall close to a straight line. In this paper, we focus on how a normal probability plot can be augmented by intervals for all the points so that, if the population distribution is normal, then all the points should fall into the corresponding intervals simultaneously with probability 1-α. These simultaneous 1-α probability intervals provide therefore an objective mean to judge whether the plotted points fall close to the straight line: the plotted points fall close to the straight line if and only if all the points fall into the corresponding intervals. The powers of several normal probability plot based (graphical) tests and the most popular nongraphical Anderson-Darling and Shapiro-Wilk tests are compared by simulation. Based on this comparison, recommendations are given in Section 3 on which graphical tests should be used in what circumstances. An example is provided to illustrate the methods. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Comparison of visual working memory in deaf and hearing-impaired students with normal counterparts: A research in people without sign language

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Farideh Tangestani Zadeh

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: The hearing defects in deaf and hearing-impaired students also affect their cognitive skills such as memory in addition to communication skills. Hence, the aim of this study was to compare visual working memory in deaf and hearing-impaired students with that in normal counterparts.Method: In the present study, which was a causal-comparative study using the André Rey test, 30 deaf and 30 hearing-impaired students were compared with 30 students in a normal group, and they were matched based on gender, intelligence, educational grade, and socioeconomic status.Findings: Findings show that there is significant difference between the three groups’ subjects (p0.05.Conclusion: Function of deaf or hard-of-hearing students in the visual working memory task was weaker in comparison with the normal counterparts, while the two deaf and hard-of-hearing groups have similar functions. With a better identification and understanding of the factors that affect the development of this cognitive ability, we can offer new methods of teaching and reduce many of the disadvantages of this group of people in the different fields of cognitive science.

Determinants of dynamic hyperinflation during metronome-paced tachypnea in COPD and normal subjects.

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Cooper, C B; Calligaro, G L; Quinn, M M; Eshaghian, P; Coskun, F; Abrazado, M; Bateman, E D; Raine, R I

2014-01-01

In COPD, dynamic hyperinflation (DH) occurs during exercise and during metronome-paced tachypnea (MPT). We investigated the relationship of DH with breathing pattern and ventilation (V˙E) in COPD and normal subjects (NS). In 35 subjects with moderate COPD and 17 younger healthy volunteers we measured inspiratory capacity (IC), breathing frequency (fR), expiratory time (TE), ventilation (V˙E) and end-tidal carbon dioxide tension (PETCO2) at baseline and after 30s of MPT at 40breaths/min with metronome-defined I:E ratios of 1:1 and 1:2. A reduction in IC (ΔIC) was taken to indicate DH. In COPD subjects, DH correlated with TE but not with V˙E or PETCO2, and was best predicted by total lung capacity. NS also showed DH (although less than in COPD), which correlated with PETCO2 but not with fR, TE or V˙E. We conclude that MPT evokes DH in both NS and patients with COPD. TE is the most important determinant of DH during MPT in patients with COPD. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Analysis of visual appearance of retinal nerve fibers in high resolution fundus images: a study on normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Kolar, Radim; Tornow, Ralf P; Laemmer, Robert; Odstrcilik, Jan; Mayer, Markus A; Gazarek, Jiri; Jan, Jiri; Kubena, Tomas; Cernosek, Pavel

2013-01-01

The retinal ganglion axons are an important part of the visual system, which can be directly observed by fundus camera. The layer they form together inside the retina is the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL). This paper describes results of a texture RNFL analysis in color fundus photographs and compares these results with quantitative measurement of RNFL thickness obtained from optical coherence tomography on normal subjects. It is shown that local mean value, standard deviation, and Shannon entropy extracted from the green and blue channel of fundus images are correlated with corresponding RNFL thickness. The linear correlation coefficients achieved values 0.694, 0.547, and 0.512 for respective features measured on 439 retinal positions in the peripapillary area from 23 eyes of 15 different normal subjects.

Uricosuric effect of Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa) in normal and renal-stone former subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Prasongwatana, Vitoon; Woottisin, Surachet; Sriboonlue, Pote; Kukongviriyapan, Veerapol

2008-05-22

The Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa) was investigated for its uricosuric effect. A human model with nine subjects with no history of renal stones (non-renal stone, NS) and nine with a history of renal stones (RS) was used in this study. A cup of tea made from 1.5 g of dry Roselle calyces was provided to subjects twice daily (morning and evening) for 15 days. A clotted blood and two consecutive 24-h urine samples were collected from each subject three times: (1) at baseline (control); (2) on days 14 and 15 during the tea drinking period; and (3) 15 days after the tea drinking was stopped (washout). Serum and 24-h urinary samples were analyzed for uric acid and other chemical compositions related to urinary stone risk factors. All analyzed serum parameters were within normal ranges and similar; between the two groups of subjects and among the three periods. Vis-à-vis the urinary parameters, most of the baseline values for both groups were similar. After taking the tea, the trend was an increase in oxalate and citrate in both groups and uric acid excretion and clearance in the NS group. In the RS group, both uric acid excretion and clearance were significantly increased (pRoselle calyces. Since the various chemical constituents in Roselle calyces have been identified, the one(s) exerting this uricosuric effect need to be identified.

Digital music exposure reliably induces temporary threshold shift (TTS) in normal hearing human subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Le Prell, C. G.; Dell, S.; Hensley, B.; Hall, J. W.; Campbell, K. C. M.; Antonelli, P. J.; Green, G. E.; Miller, J. M.; Guire, K.

2012-01-01

Objectives One of the challenges for evaluating new otoprotective agents for potential benefit in human populations is availability of an established clinical paradigm with real world relevance. These studies were explicitly designed to develop a real-world digital music exposure that reliably induces temporary threshold shift (TTS) in normal hearing human subjects. Design Thirty-three subjects participated in studies that measured effects of digital music player use on hearing. Subjects selected either rock or pop music, which was then presented at 93–95 (n=10), 98–100 (n=11), or 100–102 (n=12) dBA in-ear exposure level for a period of four hours. Audiograms and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) were measured prior to and after music exposure. Post-music tests were initiated 15 min, 1 hr 15 min, 2 hr 15 min, and 3 hr 15 min after the exposure ended. Additional tests were conducted the following day and one week later. Results Changes in thresholds after the lowest level exposure were difficult to distinguish from test-retest variability; however, TTS was reliably detected after higher levels of sound exposure. Changes in audiometric thresholds had a “notch” configuration, with the largest changes observed at 4 kHz (mean=6.3±3.9dB; range=0–13 dB). Recovery was largely complete within the first 4 hours post-exposure, and all subjects showed complete recovery of both thresholds and DPOAE measures when tested 1-week post-exposure. Conclusions These data provide insight into the variability of TTS induced by music player use in a healthy, normal-hearing, young adult population, with music playlist, level, and duration carefully controlled. These data confirm the likelihood of temporary changes in auditory function following digital music player use. Such data are essential for the development of a human clinical trial protocol that provides a highly powered design for evaluating novel therapeutics in human clinical trials. Care must be

Trajectories of cortical surface area and cortical volume maturation in normal brain development

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Simon Ducharme

2015-12-01

Full Text Available This is a report of developmental trajectories of cortical surface area and cortical volume in the NIH MRI Study of Normal Brain Development. The quality-controlled sample included 384 individual typically-developing subjects with repeated scanning (1–3 per subject, total scans n=753 from 4.9 to 22.3 years of age. The best-fit model (cubic, quadratic, or first-order linear was identified at each vertex using mixed-effects models, with statistical correction for multiple comparisons using random field theory. Analyses were performed with and without controlling for total brain volume. These data are provided for reference and comparison with other databases. Further discussion and interpretation on cortical developmental trajectories can be found in the associated Ducharme et al.׳s article “Trajectories of cortical thickness maturation in normal brain development – the importance of quality control procedures” (Ducharme et al., 2015 [1].

Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Segmentation on FD-OCT Scans of Normal Subjects and Glaucoma Patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayer, Markus A; Hornegger, Joachim; Mardin, Christian Y; Tornow, Ralf P

2010-11-08

Automated measurements of the retinal nerve fiber layer thickness on circular OCT B-Scans provide physicians additional parameters for glaucoma diagnosis. We propose a novel retinal nerve fiber layer segmentation algorithm for frequency domain data that can be applied on scans from both normal healthy subjects, as well as glaucoma patients, using the same set of parameters. In addition, the algorithm remains almost unaffected by image quality. The main part of the segmentation process is based on the minimization of an energy function consisting of gradient and local smoothing terms. A quantitative evaluation comparing the automated segmentation results to manually corrected segmentations from three reviewers is performed. A total of 72 scans from glaucoma patients and 132 scans from normal subjects, all from different persons, composed the database for the evaluation of the segmentation algorithm. A mean absolute error per A-Scan of 2.9 µm was achieved on glaucomatous eyes, and 3.6 µm on healthy eyes. The mean absolute segmentation error over all A-Scans lies below 10 µm on 95.1% of the images. Thus our approach provides a reliable tool for extracting diagnostic relevant parameters from OCT B-Scans for glaucoma diagnosis.

A new method for registration of kinesthetic evoked potentials for studies of proprioceptive sensitivity in normal subjects and patients with organic lesions in the brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Gordeev, S A; Voronin, S G

2015-01-01

The proprioceptive sensitivity of healthy volunteers and convalescents after acute cerebrovascular episodes was studied by a new neurophysiological method for registration of kinesthetic evoked potentials emerging in response to passive 50(o) bending of the hand in the wrist joint with the angular acceleration of 350 rad/sec(2). Kinesthetic evoked potentials were recorded above the somatosensory cortex projection areas in the hemispheres contra- and ipsilateral to the stimulated limb. The patients exhibited significantly longer latencies and lesser amplitudes of the early components of response in the involved hemisphere in comparison with normal subjects. The method for registration of the kinesthetic evoked potentials allows a more detailed study of the mechanisms of kinesthetic sensitivity in health and in organic involvement of the brain.

Avaliação da vertical visual subjetiva em indivíduos brasileiros normais Subjective visual vertical evaluation in normal Brazilian subjects

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Aline M. Kozoroski Kanashiro

2007-06-01

Full Text Available A função otolítica pode ser avaliada pela Vertical Visual Subjetiva (VVS que determina a capacidade de um indivíduo julgar se objetos estão na posição vertical na ausência de outras referências visuais. O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar a VVS em indivíduos brasileiros normais usando um aparelho portátil. As medidas da VVS foram realizadas em 160 indivíduos (16 a 85 anos. O valor médio da VVS foi obtido após dez ajustes. A VVS teve valores médios entre -2,0º e +2,4º (média=0,18º, e DP=0,77º. Não houve diferença entre as médias da VVS em relação à idade (teste de Kruskal-Wallis; p=0,40, mas as faixas etárias maiores tiveram variância maior (teste de Levene; p=0,016. Os valores da VVS encontrados neste estudo foram semelhantes aos registrados na literatura. Não houve diferença nas médias das inclinações da VVS de acordo com a idade, mas foi encontrada maior variância entre indivíduos mais idosos.Otolith function can be evaluated by subjective visual vertical (SVV that determine the capacity of a subject to judge if the objects are on vertical position with absence of any visual reference. The aim of this study was to evaluate the SVV in a sample of normal Brazilian subjects using a portable device. Measurements of SVV were performed in 160 normal subjects (aged from 16 to 85. SVV mean value was obtained after ten adjustments. SVV mean values ranged from -2.0º to +2.4º (mean=0.18º, and SD=0.77. Considering all age groups, there was no difference of SVV mean values (Kruskal-Wallis test; p=0.40, but older groups had a greater variance (Levene test; p=0.016. SVV values observed in this study are comparable to those described in previous studies. Although there was no difference in mean SVV-inclination according to age, there was a greater variance in older subjects.

Intra-arterial infusion of prostaglandin E1 in normal subjects and patients with peripheral arterial disease

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, P E; Nielsen, S L; Holstein, P

1976-01-01

Acute vasodilatation was produced by infusion of prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) in the femoral artery in 6 patients with occlusive arterial disease of the legs and in 3 normal subjects. The effect on blood flow and on blood pressure was measured at different segments of the leg with the strain gauge...

Reexamining the validity and reliability of the clinical version of the Iowa gambling task: Evidence from a normal subject group

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ching-Hung eLin

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Over past decade, the Iowa gambling task (IGT has been utilized to test various decision deficits induced by neurological damage or psychiatric disorders. The IGT has recently been standardized for identifying 13 different neuropsychological disorders. Neuropsychological patients choose bad decks frequently, and normal subjects prefer good EV decks. However, the IGT has several validity and reliability problems. Some research groups have pointed out that the validity of IGT is influenced by the personality and emotional state of subjects. Additionally, several other studies have proposed that the prominent deck B phenomenon (PDB phenomenon – that is, normal subjects preferring bad deck B – may be the most serious problem confronting IGT validity. Specifically, deck B offers a high frequency of gains but negative EV. In the standard IGT administration, choice behavior can be understood with reference to gain-loss frequency (GLF rather than inferred future consequences (EV, the basic assumption of IGT. Furthermore, using two different criteria (basic assumption vs. professional norm results in significantly different classification results. Therefore, we recruited 72 normal subjects to test the validity and reliability of IGT. Each subject performed three runs of the computer-based clinical IGT version. The PDB phenomenon has been observed to a significant degree in the first and second stages of the clinical IGT version. Obviously, validity, reliability and the practice effect were unstable between two given stages. The present form of the clinical IGT version has only one stage, so its use should be reconsidered for examining normal decision makers; results from patient groups must also be interpreted with great care. GLF could be the main factor to be considered in establishing the constructional validity and reliability of the clinical IGT version.

Classifying depression patients and normal subjects using machine learning techniques and nonlinear features from EEG signal.

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseinifard, Behshad; Moradi, Mohammad Hassan; Rostami, Reza

2013-03-01

Diagnosing depression in the early curable stages is very important and may even save the life of a patient. In this paper, we study nonlinear analysis of EEG signal for discriminating depression patients and normal controls. Forty-five unmedicated depressed patients and 45 normal subjects were participated in this study. Power of four EEG bands and four nonlinear features including detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA), higuchi fractal, correlation dimension and lyapunov exponent were extracted from EEG signal. For discriminating the two groups, k-nearest neighbor, linear discriminant analysis and logistic regression as the classifiers are then used. Highest classification accuracy of 83.3% is obtained by correlation dimension and LR classifier among other nonlinear features. For further improvement, all nonlinear features are combined and applied to classifiers. A classification accuracy of 90% is achieved by all nonlinear features and LR classifier. In all experiments, genetic algorithm is employed to select the most important features. The proposed technique is compared and contrasted with the other reported methods and it is demonstrated that by combining nonlinear features, the performance is enhanced. This study shows that nonlinear analysis of EEG can be a useful method for discriminating depressed patients and normal subjects. It is suggested that this analysis may be a complementary tool to help psychiatrists for diagnosing depressed patients. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cerebral circulation and metabolism in the patients with higher brain dysfunction caused by chronic minor traumatic brain injury. A study by the positron emission tomography in twenty subjects with normal MRI findings

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Kabasawa, Hidehiro; Ogawa, Tetsuo; Iida, Akihiko; Matsubara, Michitaka [Nagoya City Rehabilitation and Sports Center (Japan)

2002-06-01

Many individuals are affected on their higher brain functions, such as intelligence, memory, and attention, even after minor traumatic brain injury (MTBI). Although higher brain dysfunction is based on impairment of the cerebral circulation and metabolism, the precise relationship between them remains unknown. This study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between the cerebral circulation or cerebral metabolism and higher brain dysfunction. Twenty subjects with higher brain dysfunction caused by chronic MTBI were studied. They had no abnormal MRI findings. The full-scale intelligence quotient (FIQ) were quantitatively evaluated by the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R), and the subjects were classified into the normal group and the impaired group. Concurrent with the evaluation of FIQ, positron emission tomography (PET) was performed by the steady state method with {sup 15}O gases inhalation. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF), oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) and cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO{sub 2}) were calculated in the bilateral frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobe. First, of all twenty subjects, we investigated rCBF, OEF and CMRO{sub 2} in all regions. Then we compared rCBF, OEF, and CMRO{sub 2} between the normal group and the impaired group based on FIQ score. We also studied the change of FIQ score of 13 subjects 9.3 months after the first evaluation. In addition, we investigated the change of rCBF, OEF and CMRO{sub 2} along with the improvement of FIQ score. Although rCBF and OEF of all subjects were within the normal range in all regions, CMRO{sub 2} of more than half of subjects was under the lower normal limit in all regions except in the right occipital lobe, showing the presence of ''relative luxury perfusion''. Comparison of rCBF, OEF and CMRO{sub 2} between normal group and impaired group revealed that CMRO{sub 2} of the impaired group was significantly lower than that of the

Cerebral circulation and metabolism in the patients with higher brain dysfunction caused by chronic minor traumatic brain injury. A study by the positron emission tomography in twenty subjects with normal MRI findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kabasawa, Hidehiro; Ogawa, Tetsuo; Iida, Akihiko; Matsubara, Michitaka

2002-01-01

Many individuals are affected on their higher brain functions, such as intelligence, memory, and attention, even after minor traumatic brain injury (MTBI). Although higher brain dysfunction is based on impairment of the cerebral circulation and metabolism, the precise relationship between them remains unknown. This study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between the cerebral circulation or cerebral metabolism and higher brain dysfunction. Twenty subjects with higher brain dysfunction caused by chronic MTBI were studied. They had no abnormal MRI findings. The full-scale intelligence quotient (FIQ) were quantitatively evaluated by the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R), and the subjects were classified into the normal group and the impaired group. Concurrent with the evaluation of FIQ, positron emission tomography (PET) was performed by the steady state method with 15 O gases inhalation. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF), oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) and cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO 2 ) were calculated in the bilateral frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobe. First, of all twenty subjects, we investigated rCBF, OEF and CMRO 2 in all regions. Then we compared rCBF, OEF, and CMRO 2 between the normal group and the impaired group based on FIQ score. We also studied the change of FIQ score of 13 subjects 9.3 months after the first evaluation. In addition, we investigated the change of rCBF, OEF and CMRO 2 along with the improvement of FIQ score. Although rCBF and OEF of all subjects were within the normal range in all regions, CMRO 2 of more than half of subjects was under the lower normal limit in all regions except in the right occipital lobe, showing the presence of ''relative luxury perfusion''. Comparison of rCBF, OEF and CMRO 2 between normal group and impaired group revealed that CMRO 2 of the impaired group was significantly lower than that of the normal group in the bilateral frontal, temporal, and occipital

Comparison of CSF Distribution between Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus and Alzheimer Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Yamada, S; Ishikawa, M; Yamamoto, K

2016-07-01

CSF volumes in the basal cistern and Sylvian fissure are increased in both idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus and Alzheimer disease, though the differences in these volumes in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus and Alzheimer disease have not been well-described. Using CSF segmentation and volume quantification, we compared the distribution of CSF in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus and Alzheimer disease. CSF volumes were extracted from T2-weighted 3D spin-echo sequences on 3T MR imaging and quantified semi-automatically. We compared the volumes and ratios of the ventricles and subarachnoid spaces after classification in 30 patients diagnosed with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus, 10 with concurrent idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus and Alzheimer disease, 18 with Alzheimer disease, and 26 control subjects 60 years of age or older. Brain to ventricle ratios at the anterior and posterior commissure levels and 3D volumetric convexity cistern to ventricle ratios were useful indices for the differential diagnosis of idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus or idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus with Alzheimer disease from Alzheimer disease, similar to the z-Evans index and callosal angle. The most distinctive characteristics of the CSF distribution in idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus were small convexity subarachnoid spaces and the large volume of the basal cistern and Sylvian fissure. The distribution of the subarachnoid spaces in the idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus with Alzheimer disease group was the most deformed among these 3 groups, though the mean ventricular volume of the idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus with Alzheimer disease group was intermediate between that of the idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus and Alzheimer disease groups. The z-axial expansion of the lateral ventricle and compression of the brain just above the ventricle were the common findings in the parameters for differentiating

Analysis of Visual Appearance of Retinal Nerve Fibers in High Resolution Fundus Images: A Study on Normal Subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Radim Kolar

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The retinal ganglion axons are an important part of the visual system, which can be directly observed by fundus camera. The layer they form together inside the retina is the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL. This paper describes results of a texture RNFL analysis in color fundus photographs and compares these results with quantitative measurement of RNFL thickness obtained from optical coherence tomography on normal subjects. It is shown that local mean value, standard deviation, and Shannon entropy extracted from the green and blue channel of fundus images are correlated with corresponding RNFL thickness. The linear correlation coefficients achieved values 0.694, 0.547, and 0.512 for respective features measured on 439 retinal positions in the peripapillary area from 23 eyes of 15 different normal subjects.

Performance in normal subjects on a novel battery of driving-related sensory-motor and cognitive tests.

Science.gov (United States)

Innes, Carrie R H; Jones, Richard D; Anderson, Tim J; Hollobon, Susan G; Dalrymple-Alford, John C

2009-05-01

Currently, there is no international standard for the assessment of fitness to drive for cognitively or physically impaired persons. A computerized battery of driving-related sensory-motor and cognitive tests (SMCTests) has been developed, comprising tests of visuoperception, visuomotor ability, complex attention, visual search, decision making, impulse control, planning, and divided attention. Construct validity analysis was conducted in 60 normal, healthy subjects and showed that, overall, the novel cognitive tests assessed cognitive functions similar to a set of standard neuropsychological tests. The novel tests were found to have greater perceived face validity for predicting on-road driving ability than was found in the equivalent standard tests. Test-retest stability and reliability of SMCTests measures, as well as correlations between SMCTests and on-road driving, were determined in a subset of 12 subjects. The majority of test measures were stable and reliable across two sessions, and significant correlations were found between on-road driving scores and measures from ballistic movement, footbrake reaction, hand-control reaction, and complex attention. The substantial face validity, construct validity, stability, and reliability of SMCTests, together with the battery's level of correlation with on-road driving in normal subjects, strengthen our confidence in the ability of SMCTests to detect and identify sensory-motor and cognitive deficits related to unsafe driving and increased risk of accidents.

Comparison of spectrum normalization techniques for univariate ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy; univariate study; normalization models; stainless steel; standard error of prediction. Abstract. Analytical performance of six different spectrum normalization techniques, namelyinternal normalization, normalization with total light, normalization with background along with their ...

The acute effects of ethanol on acetanilide disposition in normal subjects, and in patients with liver disease.

Science.gov (United States)

McKay, J; Rawlings, M D; Cobden, I; James, O F

1982-10-01

1 The effects of single doses (25 g and 50 g) oral ethanol on the disposition of acetanilide (50 mg/kg metabolic active mass) has been studied in normal subjects, and in patients with chronic non-alcoholic liver disease. 2 In normal subjects, ethanol produced a dose-dependent increase in acetanilide half-life, and a decrease in acetenilide clearance. There was a significant correlation (rs = 0.71, P less than 0.01) between the 90 min blood ethanol concentration and the reduction in acetanilide clearance. 3 In patients with liver disease, ethanol produced a similar proportional change in acetanilide half-life and clearance, but these were less consistent. Moreover, liver disease itself was associated with an increase in acetenilide half-life, and a reduction in clearance. 4 It is concluded that single oral doses of ethanol, comparable to those consumed during social drinking, may inhibit some forms of microsomal oxidation and thus have important clinical implications.

Comparison of Reading Literacy in Hearing Impaired and Normal Hearing Students

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Dr. Ali Asghar Kakojoibari

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: listening, speaking, reading and writing are considered the lingual skills. These skills are in direct relation with each other. Listening is the first skill learnt by the individual through development. If damaged by hearing impairment, listening can cause serious defect to lingual skills. The goal of our research was to study the effect of hearing loss on reading literacy in hearing impairment students in comparison with normal hearing students.Methods: Study was performed using the examination booklets of Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS 2001. 119 hearing impairment students of 4th grade primary school, last year guidance school, and last year high school levels in schools providing exceptional student education were included. These individuals were compared to 46 normal hearing students of 4th grade primary school of ordinary schools. Comparative statistical analysis was performed using t-test.Results: Reading literacy and literal contents understanding was shown to have a significant difference between normal hearing and whole hearing impaired student (p<0.05, except the ones in high school level with moderate hearing loss. There was also seen a significant difference between normal hearing and hearing impairment students in understanding of information contents (p=0.03.Conclusion: Hearing loss has a negative effect on reading literacy. Consequently, curriculum change and evolution of educational programs in exceptional centers is needed, in order to promote reading literacy and to enhance rest hearing

Comparison of plantar pressure distribution in subjects with normal and flat feet during gait DOI: 10.5007/1980-0037.2010v12n4p290

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrik Felipe Nazario

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to determine the possible relationship between loss of the normal medial longitudinal arch measured by the height of the navicular bone in a static situation and variables related to plantar pressure distribution measured in a dynamic situation. Eleven men (21 ± 3 years, 74 ± 10 kg and 175 ± 4 cm participated in the study. The Novel Emed-AT System was used for the acquisition of plantar pressure distribution data (peak pressure, mean pressure, contact area, and relative load at a sampling rate of 50 Hz. The navicular drop test proposed by Brody (1982 was used to assess the height of the navicular bone for classification of the subjects. The results were compared by the Mann-Whitney U test, with the level of significance set at p ≤ 0.05. Differences were observed between the two groups in the mid-foot region for all variables studied, with the observation of higher mean values in subjects with flat feet. There were also significant differences in contact area, relative load, peak pressure, and mean pressure between groups. The present study demonstrates the importance of paying attention to subjects with flat feet because changes in plantar pressure distribution are associated with discomfort and injuries.

Is early adulthood a critical developmental stage for psychosis proneness? A survey of delusional ideation in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Verdoux, H; van Os, J; Maurice-Tison, S; Gay, B; Salamon, R; Bourgeois, M

1998-02-09

It has been hypothesized that late adolescence and early adulthood might be a brain developmental stage favoring the clinical expression of psychotic symptoms in psychiatric or neurological diseases. The aim of the present survey was to examine the relationship between age and delusional ideation in a sample of subjects with no psychiatric disorder. The survey was carried out with the Aquitaine Sentinel Network of general practitioners. Consecutive practice attenders were invited to complete the PDI-21 (Peters Delusional Inventory 21 items), a self-report questionnaire designed to measure delusional ideation in the normal population. The study concerned 444 patients who had no lifetime history of psychiatric disorder and who completed the PDI-21. A principal component analysis of the PDI-21 items was performed in order to identify delusional dimensions. An age-related decrease in the likelihood to report delusional ideas was found, younger subjects scoring higher on most dimensions of delusional ideation, such as 'persecution', 'thought disturbance', 'grandiosity' and 'paranormal beliefs'. 'Religiosity' was the only dimension positively associated with age. The results suggest that there may be a physiological neurodevelopmental stage favouring the expression of psychosis proneness in normal subjects, and support the hypothesis that the association between age and positive psychotic symptoms in functional and organic psychoses may be linked to the interaction between normal brain maturational processes and cerebral abnormalities involved in the aetiology of functional and organic psychoses.

Saturation analysis studies of corticosteroid levels in normal Greek subjects and in subjects with haemolytic diseases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vyzantiadis, A.

1975-07-01

Between 1970 and 1974 a saturation analysis for cortisol in plasma and free cortisol in urine, and a radioimmunoassay method for aldosterone in plasma and urine were developed. In order to permit a comparative evaluation it was necessary to study corticosteroids, diurnal rhythm and the probable effect of a siesta on this rhythm both in normal subjects and in patients suffering from hemic diseases, in particular from sickle-cell anemia. Saturation assay for cortisol, using serum from pregnant women as source of transcortin, and radioimmunoassay for aldosterone were the basic methods used. Serum cortisol was estimated twice a day (8-9 a.m. and 5-6 p.m.). Cortisol and aldosterone were also estimated in serum and in urine before and after adrenalin stimulation with ACTH. No significant influence of a siesta on the diurnal rhythm of cortisol was observed, nor did the levels of serum cortisol or the diurnal rhythm appear affected in congenital hemolytic anemias, following adrenalin stimulation. The report lists experimental results briefly and refers to a paper in which these are published in more detail

Assessment of gastric emptying in normal subjects with sucralfate (Carafate) and Amphojel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marano, A.R.; Prokop, E.K.; Caride, V.J.; McCallum, R.

1984-01-01

Aluminum-containing antacids (e.g Amphojel) and aluminum-containing compounds such as sucralfate (Carafate) have been shown in animal and human studies to delay gastric emptying, and are one proposed mechanism of action for healing of duodenal ulcers. Therefore, the authors designed a study to study the effects of Carafate and Amphojel on gastric emptying. Ten normal volunteers of mean age 27 years with no previous history of upper gastrointestinal diseases were studied. For each test the subject ingested a meal composed of 30gm of cooked chicken liver injected with lmCi of 99m-Tc-S-C, mixed with 7.5 oz. of beef stew, and eaten with 4 oz. of water labeled with 100μCi of 111-In-DTPA. Immediately after ingestion of the meal, the subject was placed supine under a gamma camera. Gastric emptying (GE) was expressed as percent emptied. On separate days the subject was given either lgm of Carafate (190mg Al/gm) or placebo in a double blind fashion one hour prior to the test meal. On the third day, each subject was given 30cc of Amphojel (105mg Al/5cc) followed 30 minutes later by the test meal. GE at 2 hours for the solid meal was 60%, 69%, and 54% and 79%, 86% and 68% at 3 hours for placebo, Carafate, and Amphojel respectively. A small but not significant difference in gastric emptying between Amphojel and placebo was seen from 2 to 3 hours. For the liquid meal approximately 90% emptying was present at 1 hour for all three studies. Further studies are needed to determine whether these medications administered in the standard doses given here may affect gastric emptying in duodenal ulcer patients

Assessment of gastric emptying in normal subjects with sucralfate (Carafate) and Amphojel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marano, A.R.; Prokop, E.K.; Caride, V.J.; McCallum, R.

1984-01-01

Aluminum-containing antacids (e.g Amphojel) and aluminum-containing compounds such as sucralfate (Carafate) have been shown in animal and human studies to delay gastric emptying, and are one proposed mechanism of action for healing of duodenal ulcers. Therefore, the authors designed a study to study the effects of Carafate and Amphojel on gastric emptying. Ten normal volunteers of mean age 27 years with no previous history of upper gastrointestinal diseases were studied. For each test the subject ingested a meal composed of 30gm of cooked chicken liver injected with lmCi of 99m-Tc-S-C, mixed with 7.5 oz. of beef stew, and eaten with 4 oz. of water labeled with 100..mu..Ci of 111-In-DTPA. Immediately after ingestion of the meal, the subject was placed supine under a gamma camera. Gastric emptying (GE) was expressed as percent emptied. On separate days the subject was given either lgm of Carafate (190mg Al/gm) or placebo in a double blind fashion one hour prior to the test meal. On the third day, each subject was given 30cc of Amphojel (105mg Al/5cc) followed 30 minutes later by the test meal. GE at 2 hours for the solid meal was 60%, 69%, and 54% and 79%, 86% and 68% at 3 hours for placebo, Carafate, and Amphojel respectively. A small but not significant difference in gastric emptying between Amphojel and placebo was seen from 2 to 3 hours. For the liquid meal approximately 90% emptying was present at 1 hour for all three studies. Further studies are needed to determine whether these medications administered in the standard doses given here may affect gastric emptying in duodenal ulcer patients.

Small Sample Robust Testing for Normality against Pareto Tails

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Stehlík, M.; Fabián, Zdeněk; Střelec, L.

2012-01-01

Roč. 41, č. 7 (2012), s. 1167-1194 ISSN 0361-0918 Grant - others:Aktion(CZ-AT) 51p7, 54p21, 50p14, 54p13 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10300504 Keywords : consistency * Hill estimator * t-Hill estimator * location functional * Pareto tail * power comparison * returns * robust tests for normality Subject RIV: BB - Applied Statistics, Operational Research Impact factor: 0.295, year: 2012

Effects of substrate availability on myocardial C-11 palmitate kinetics by positron emission tomography in normal subjects and patients with ventricular dysfunction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schelbert, H.R.; Henze, E.; Sochor, H.; Grossman, R.G.; Huang, S.C.; Barrio, J.R.; Schwaiger, M.; Phelps, M.E.

1986-01-01

The possibility of demonstrating noninvasively with C-11 palmitate and positron emission tomography (PET) changes in myocardial substrate metabolism in normal and diseased human myocardium in response to altered substrate availability in blood and disease-related abnormalities was examined in five normal volunteers and 16 patients with ventricular dysfunction. C-11 palmitate injection and serial PET imaging were performed after an overnight fast (control period) and again 2 hours later after oral glucose (50 gm). Myocardial C-11 time-activity curves from serial PET images revealed a biexponential clearance pattern. An early rapid phase, defined by relative size and clearance half-time, reflects C-11 palmitate oxidation and the late slow phase tracer deposition in the endogenous lipid pool. During the control period, the tracer fraction entering the early rapid phase averaged 47 +/- 13% (SD) in normal subjects and 45 +/- 12% in patients. Corresponding clearance half-times were 19 +/- 7 and 20 +/- 5 minutes, respectively. Heart rate and blood pressure remained unchanged after glucose, but plasma glucose levels rose by 72.5% in normal subjects and by 98.9% in patients, while free fatty acid levels fell by 72% and 42% respectively. In normal subjects, the tracer fraction in the early rapid phase fell by 43% (p less than 0.005) and the clearance half-time increased by 46%. In patients, the response of C-11 palmitate tissue kinetics to glucose was variable. In nine patients, it was similar to normal subjects while in the other seven patients, the tracer fraction entering the rapid clearance phase increased after glucose by 30% (p less than 0.05) associated with a 36% (p less than 0.05) decline in clearance half-times. This was unrelated to disease etiology or plasma substrate levels but occurred mostly in left ventricles with more severely depressed function

Comparison of normal adult and children brain SPECT imaging using statistical parametric mapping(SPM)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Myoung Hoon; Yoon, Seok Nam; Joh, Chul Woo; Lee, Dong Soo [Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Jae Sung [Seoul national University College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2002-07-01

This study compared rCBF pattern in normal adult and normal children using statistical parametric mapping (SPM). The purpose of this study was to determine distribution pattern not seen visual analysis in both groups. Tc-99m ECD brain SPECT was performed in 12 normal adults (M:F=11:1, average age 35 year old) and 6 normal control children (M:F=4:2, 10.5{+-}3.1y) who visited psychiatry clinic to evaluate ADHD. Their brain SPECT revealed normal rCBF pattern in visual analysis and they were diagnosed clinically normal. Using SPM method, we compared normal adult group's SPECT images with those of 6 normal children subjects and measured the extent of the area with significant hypoperfusion and hyperperfusion (p<0.001, extent threshold=16). The areas of both angnlar gyrus, both postcentral gyrus, both superior frontal gyrus, and both superior parietal lobe showed significant hyperperfusion in normal adult group compared with normal children group. The areas of left amygdala gyrus, brain stem, both cerebellum, left globus pallidus, both hippocampal formations, both parahippocampal gyrus, both thalamus, both uncus, both lateral and medial occipitotemporal gyrus revealed significantly hyperperfusion in the children. These results demonstrated that SPM can say more precise anatomical area difference not seen visual analysis.

Comparison of normal adult and children brain SPECT imaging using statistical parametric mapping(SPM)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Myoung Hoon; Yoon, Seok Nam; Joh, Chul Woo; Lee, Dong Soo; Lee, Jae Sung

2002-01-01

This study compared rCBF pattern in normal adult and normal children using statistical parametric mapping (SPM). The purpose of this study was to determine distribution pattern not seen visual analysis in both groups. Tc-99m ECD brain SPECT was performed in 12 normal adults (M:F=11:1, average age 35 year old) and 6 normal control children (M:F=4:2, 10.5±3.1y) who visited psychiatry clinic to evaluate ADHD. Their brain SPECT revealed normal rCBF pattern in visual analysis and they were diagnosed clinically normal. Using SPM method, we compared normal adult group's SPECT images with those of 6 normal children subjects and measured the extent of the area with significant hypoperfusion and hyperperfusion (p<0.001, extent threshold=16). The areas of both angnlar gyrus, both postcentral gyrus, both superior frontal gyrus, and both superior parietal lobe showed significant hyperperfusion in normal adult group compared with normal children group. The areas of left amygdala gyrus, brain stem, both cerebellum, left globus pallidus, both hippocampal formations, both parahippocampal gyrus, both thalamus, both uncus, both lateral and medial occipitotemporal gyrus revealed significantly hyperperfusion in the children. These results demonstrated that SPM can say more precise anatomical area difference not seen visual analysis

Intelligence or years of education: which is better correlated with memory function in normal elderly Japanese subjects?

Science.gov (United States)

Murayama, Norio; Iseki, Eizo; Tagaya, Hirokuni; Ota, Kazumi; Kasanuki, Koji; Fujishiro, Hiroshige; Arai, Heii; Sato, Kiyoshi

2013-03-01

We compared differences in intelligence and memory function between normal elderly Japanese subjects with more years of education and those with fewer years of education. We also investigated clinical and neuropsychological factors that are strongly correlated with memory function. There were 118 normal elderly subjects who underwent the Mini-Mental State Examination, Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, 3rd edition (WAIS-III), and Wechsler Memory Scale Revised. Subjects with at least 13 years of education were categorized as the H group, and those with 12 years of education or less were categorized as the L group. Age and Mini-Mental State Examination scores were not significantly different between the two groups. On the WAIS-III, there were significant differences between the two groups in Verbal IQ and Full Scale IQ. On the Wechsler Memory Scale Revised, there were significant differences between the two groups in Visual Memory, General Memory, and Delayed Recall. Correlation coefficients between memory function and the other factors demonstrated significant but weak correlations between years of education and General Memory (R = 0.22) and between years of education and Delayed Recall (R = 0.20). Strong correlations were found between Verbal IQ and Verbal Memory (R = 0.45), between Verbal IQ and General Memory (R = 0.49), between Full Scale IQ and General Memory (R = 0.50) and between Full Scale IQ and Delayed Recall (R = 0.48). In normal elderly Japanese subjects, years of education weakly correlated with memory function while Verbal IQ, Full Scale IQ and Verbal Comprehension on WAIS-III had stronger correlations with memory function. Verbal IQ and Verbal Comprehension on WAIS-III were found to be insusceptible to the cognitive decline characteristic of Alzheimer's disease or amnestic mild cognitive impairment. Therefore, verbal intelligence, as measured by Verbal IQ and Verbal Comprehension, may be the most useful factor for inferring premorbid memory function

Influence of insulin on beta-endorphin plasma levels in obese and normal weight subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Brunani, A; Pincelli, A I; Pasqualinotto, L; Tibaldi, A; Baldi, G; Scacchi, M; Fatti, L M; Cavagnini, F

1996-08-01

To establish the possible role of hyperinsulinemia in the elevation of plasma beta-endorphin (beta-EP) levels observed in obese patients after an oral glucose load. Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp. Two groups of six (age: 22-39 y, BMI: 30-48 kg/m2) and eight obese men (age: 18-37 y, BMI: 35-45 kg/m2), respectively, and five normal weight healthy men (age: 22-30 y, BMI 22-23 kg/m2). Glucose, insulin and beta-EP levels at baseline and every 30 min until 180 min during the OGTT; glucose, insulin, C-peptide and beta-EP concentrations at baseline and in steady state condition (i.e. during the last 30 min of insulin infusion) in the euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp studies. In the six obese patients undergoing the OGTT a significant elevation of beta-EP plasma levels was observed between 60 and 90 min after glucose ingestion. In the clamp studies no significant differences in beta-EP plasma levels, blood glucose and serum insulin were observed between obese and normal weight subjects both at baseline and at steady state. A markedly diminished insulin sensitivity along with a lower inhibition of C-peptide during insulin infusion was observed in obese patients compared to control subjects. A rise in serum insulin levels unaccompanied by a concomitant increase in blood glucose concentration is unable to elicit a beta-EP response in obese patients.

Assessment of Microcirculatory Hemoglobin Levels in Normal and Diabetic Subjects using Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy in the Visible Region — a Pilot Study

Science.gov (United States)

Sujatha, N.; Anand, B. S. Suresh; Nivetha, K. Bala; Narayanamurthy, V. B.; Seshadri, V.; Poddar, R.

2015-07-01

Light-based diagnostic techniques provide a minimally invasive way for selective biomarker estimation when tissues transform from a normal to a malignant state. Spectroscopic techniques based on diffuse reflectance characterize the changes in tissue hemoglobin/oxygenation levels during the tissue transformation process. Recent clinical investigations have shown that changes in tissue oxygenation and microcirculation are observed in diabetic subjects in the initial and progressive stages. In this pilot study, we discuss the potential of diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) in the visible (Vis) range to differentiate the skin microcirculatory hemoglobin levels between normal and advanced diabetic subjects with and without neuropathy. Average concentration of hemoglobin as well as hemoglobin oxygen saturation within the probed tissue volume is estimated for a total of four different sites in the foot sole. The results indicate a statistically significant decrease in average total hemoglobin and increase in hemoglobin oxygen saturation levels for diabetic foot compared with a normal foot. The present study demonstrates the ability of reflectance spectroscopy in the Vis range to determine and differentiate the changes in tissue hemoglobin and hemoglobin oxygen saturation levels in normal and diabetic subjects.

Subjective well-being and social media use: Do personality traits moderate the impact of social comparison on Facebook?

OpenAIRE

Gerson, J.; Plagnol, A.; Corr, P. J.

2016-01-01

The purpose of the study was to explore whether personality traits moderate the association between social comparison on Facebook and subjective well-being, measured as both life satisfaction and eudaimonic well-being. Data were collected via an online questionnaire which measured Facebook use, social comparison behavior and personality traits for 337 respondents. The results showed positive associations between Facebook intensity and both measures of subjective well-being, and negative assoc...

Comparison of Age of Thelarche between Obese and Normal Girls

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yunitasari

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Background: Childhood obesity has become a major concern in recent years. The increasing childhood obesity prevalence may occur as the result of food consumption with high content of calories, fat, cholesterol and the lack of physical activity. Obesity in children will also affect their pubertal development. Puberty is a period in which maturation of the reproductive function is achieved.In girls, the initial sign of puberty is thelarche, defined as the appearance of breast bud underneath the areola.The onset of puberty depends on many factors, one of them is nutritional status especially obesity. This study was conducted to compare the age of thelarche between obese and normal girls. Methods: An analytical study using cross sectional method was conducted. This study was held in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia, during the period of SeptemberOctober 2013. Data were obtained from 3 elementary schools, selected by multistage random sampling.The total subject was 46. Data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney and chi-square test. Results: Thelarche occurred at age 9 years 4 months in the obese group compared to 11 years 2 months in the normal group. The analysis using Mann-Whitney test showed the difference was statistically significant (p<0.001. Based on age group, 42% obese girls attained thelarche between ages 89 years, while 63% girls in the normal group attained thelarche between ages 1112 years. The analysis using chi- square test showed that the difference was statistically significant (p<0.001. Conclusions: Thelarche occurs earlier in obese girls compared to normal girls.

A Comparison of Early Maladaptive Schemas in Crystal Addicted Individuals and Normal Individuals

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Zahra Asadi

2011-02-01

Full Text Available Objective: The aim of present research was to compare early maladaptive schemas in crystal addicted individuals and normal individuals. Method: In this ex post facto research, two groups of subjects (normal adolescent=30 and addicted adolescent=30 were selected via cluster sampling and convenience sampling respectively. Yang early maladaptive schemas questionnaire were conducted, then data were analyzed using multiple analysis of variance. Results: The results revealed that there was significant difference between both groups in early maladaptive schemas. Conclusion: The findings provided empirical support for the proposition that early maladaptive schemas may influence on tendency of adolescent toward substance abuse.

Cue-dependent memory-based smooth-pursuit in normal human subjects: importance of extra-retinal mechanisms for initial pursuit.

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Ito, Norie; Barnes, Graham R; Fukushima, Junko; Fukushima, Kikuro; Warabi, Tateo

2013-08-01

Using a cue-dependent memory-based smooth-pursuit task previously applied to monkeys, we examined the effects of visual motion-memory on smooth-pursuit eye movements in normal human subjects and compared the results with those of the trained monkeys. These results were also compared with those during simple ramp-pursuit that did not require visual motion-memory. During memory-based pursuit, all subjects exhibited virtually no errors in either pursuit-direction or go/no-go selection. Tracking eye movements of humans and monkeys were similar in the two tasks, but tracking eye movements were different between the two tasks; latencies of the pursuit and corrective saccades were prolonged, initial pursuit eye velocity and acceleration were lower, peak velocities were lower, and time to reach peak velocities lengthened during memory-based pursuit. These characteristics were similar to anticipatory pursuit initiated by extra-retinal components during the initial extinction task of Barnes and Collins (J Neurophysiol 100:1135-1146, 2008b). We suggest that the differences between the two tasks reflect differences between the contribution of extra-retinal and retinal components. This interpretation is supported by two further studies: (1) during popping out of the correct spot to enhance retinal image-motion inputs during memory-based pursuit, pursuit eye velocities approached those during simple ramp-pursuit, and (2) during initial blanking of spot motion during memory-based pursuit, pursuit components appeared in the correct direction. Our results showed the importance of extra-retinal mechanisms for initial pursuit during memory-based pursuit, which include priming effects and extra-retinal drive components. Comparison with monkey studies on neuronal responses and model analysis suggested possible pathways for the extra-retinal mechanisms.

Cartilage T2 assessment: differentiation of normal hyaline cartilage and reparative tissue after arthroscopic cartilage repair in equine subjects.

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White, Lawrence M; Sussman, Marshall S; Hurtig, Mark; Probyn, Linda; Tomlinson, George; Kandel, Rita

2006-11-01

To prospectively assess T2 mapping characteristics of normal articular cartilage and of cartilage at sites of arthroscopic repair, including comparison with histologic results and collagen organization assessed at polarized light microscopy (PLM). Study protocol was compliant with the Canadian Council on Animal Care Guidelines and approved by the institutional animal care committee. Arthroscopic osteochondral autograft transplantation (OAT) and microfracture arthroplasty (MFx) were performed in knees of 10 equine subjects (seven female, three male; age range, 3-5 years). A site of arthroscopically normal cartilage was documented in each joint as a control site. Joints were harvested at 12 (n = 5) and 24 (n = 5) weeks postoperatively and were imaged at 1.5-T magnetic resonance (MR) with a 10-echo sagittal fast spin-echo acquisition. T2 maps of each site (21 OAT harvest, 10 MFx, 12 OAT plug, and 10 control sites) were calculated with linear least-squares curve fitting. Cartilage T2 maps were qualitatively graded as "organized" (normal transition of low-to-high T2 signal from deep to superficial cartilage zones) or "disorganized." Quantitative mean T2 values were calculated for deep, middle, and superficial cartilage at each location. Results were compared with histologic and PLM assessments by using kappa analysis. T2 maps were qualitatively graded as organized at 20 of 53 sites and as disorganized at 33 sites. Perfect agreement was seen between organized T2 and histologic findings of hyaline cartilage and between disorganized T2 and histologic findings of fibrous reparative tissue (kappa = 1.0). Strong agreement was seen between organized T2 and normal PLM findings and between disorganized T2 and abnormal PLM findings (kappa = .92). Quantitative assessment of the deep, middle, and superficial cartilage, respectively, showed mean T2 values of 53.3, 58.6, and 54.9 msec at reparative fibrous tissue sites and 40.7, 53.6, and 61.6 msec at hyaline cartilage sites. A

Comparison of Attachment Styles and Personality Characteristics in Mothers of Normal and ADHD Students

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Shima Ghalamzan

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Background: The present study has done with the purpose of comparing secure attachment styles and personality characteristics in normal boy student mothers and ADHD students mothers in Isfahan city. Materials and Methods: The present study has done with ex-Post facto method. Two groups of mothers (30 normal students mothers and 30 ADHD students mothers, were selected using cluster sampling method for normal group and simple sampling method for ADHD group. Participants completed the attachment styles of Hazan and Shaver, NEO five-factor Inventory (NEO-FFI, and conners questionnaire. Data was analyzed using multi variance analysis (MANOVA. Results: The results of this study showed that significant differences were evident between normal group and ADHD group in ambivalent insecure and secure (p<0.01; also the results showed that there was a meaningful difference among the neuroticism and conscientiousness in these 2 groups. Conclusion: The results were indicating that in comparison with normal group mothers the ADHD student mothers were more endangered with insecure attachment. It was also important to mention that the ambivalent insecure attachment style was more in the groups with ADHD. The results were also indicating that neuroticism was more in the group with ADHD, and conscientiousness was more the normal group.

Hyperglycaemia attenuates the gastrokinetic effect of erythromycin and affects the perception of postprandial hunger in normal subjects

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Jones, K.L.; Berry, M.; Kong, M.F.; Kwiatek, M.; Samsom, M.; Horowitz, M.; Royal Adelaide Hospital, SA

1998-01-01

Full text: Recent studies have demonstrated that acute changes in the blood glucose concentration may affect gastrointestinal motor function and the perception of sensations arising from the gastrointestinal tract. Erythromycin has been shown to accelerate gastric emptying in both normal subjects and patients with diabetes mellitus. The major aims of this study were to determine in normal subjects whether the effects of erythromycin on gastric emptying, and perceptions of hunger and fullness are modified by the blood glucose concentration. 10 normal subjects (aged 20-39 yr) underwent concurrent measurement of gastric emptying, blood glucose, hunger and fullness on four separate occasions: twice during euglycaemia (∼4 mmol/L) and twice during hyperglycaemia (∼15 mmol/L). Either erythromycin (3 mg/kg) or saline (0.9%) was administered intravenously immediately before ingestion of a radioisotopically labelled solid meal. Gastric emptying was slower (P<0.0001) during hyperglycaemia when compared to euglycaemia after both erythromycin and saline administration. Erythromycin accelerated the post-lag emptying rate during euglycaemia (P<0.05), but not hyperglycaemia. Hunger decreased (P<0.001) and fullness increased (P<0.001) after the meal Postprandial hunger was less (P<0.05) and fullness greater (P<0.05 during hyperglycaemia after saline infusion, but not after erythromycin. Hunger was greater after erythromycin when compared to saline during both hyperglycaemia and euglycaemia (P<0.05). In conclusion, at a blood glucose concentration of ∼15 mmol/L when compared to euglycaemia: (i) after administration of erythromycin (3 mg/kg IV) gastric emptying of a solid meal is much slower, (ii) the effect of erythromycin on gastric emptying of a solid meal is attenuated and (iii) the perception of postprandial hunger is reduced and that of fullness increased

Hyperglycaemia attenuates the gastrokinetic effect of erythromycin and affects the perception of postprandial hunger in normal subjects

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Jones, K.L.; Berry, M.; Kong, M.F.; Kwiatek, M.; Samsom, M.; Horowitz, M. [University of South Australia, SA (Australia). School of Medicine Radiation]|[Royal Adelaide Hospital, SA (Australia). Department of Medicine

1998-06-01

Full text: Recent studies have demonstrated that acute changes in the blood glucose concentration may affect gastrointestinal motor function and the perception of sensations arising from the gastrointestinal tract. Erythromycin has been shown to accelerate gastric emptying in both normal subjects and patients with diabetes mellitus. The major aims of this study were to determine in normal subjects whether the effects of erythromycin on gastric emptying, and perceptions of hunger and fullness are modified by the blood glucose concentration. 10 normal subjects (aged 20-39 yr) underwent concurrent measurement of gastric emptying, blood glucose, hunger and fullness on four separate occasions: twice during euglycaemia ({approx}4 mmol/L) and twice during hyperglycaemia ({approx}15 mmol/L). Either erythromycin (3 mg/kg) or saline (0.9%) was administered intravenously immediately before ingestion of a radioisotopically labelled solid meal. Gastric emptying was slower (P<0.0001) during hyperglycaemia when compared to euglycaemia after both erythromycin and saline administration. Erythromycin accelerated the post-lag emptying rate during euglycaemia (P<0.05), but not hyperglycaemia. Hunger decreased (P<0.001) and fullness increased (P<0.001) after the meal Postprandial hunger was less (P<0.05) and fullness greater (P<0.05) during hyperglycaemia after saline infusion, but not after erythromycin. Hunger was greater after erythromycin when compared to saline during both hyperglycaemia and euglycaemia (P<0.05). In conclusion, at a blood glucose concentration of {approx}15 mmol/L when compared to euglycaemia: (i) after administration of erythromycin (3 mg/kg IV) gastric emptying of a solid meal is much slower, (ii) the effect of erythromycin on gastric emptying of a solid meal is attenuated and (iii) the perception of postprandial hunger is reduced and that of fullness increased

The cerebral functional location in normal subjects with Chinese classical national music auditory stimulus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Da; Xu Wei; Zhan Hongwei; Liu Hongbiao

2004-01-01

Purpose: To detect the cerebral functional location in normal subjects with Chinese classical national music auditory stimulus. Methods: 10 normal young students of the medical collage of Zhejiang University,22-24 years old,5 male and 5 female. The first they underwent a 99mTc-ECD brain imaging during a rest state using a dual detectors gamma camera with fan beam collimators. After 2-4 days they were asked to listen a Chinese classical national music that was played by Erhu and Guzheng for 20 minters. They were also asked to pay special attention to the name of the music, what musical instruments they played and what imagination was opened out in the music. 99mTc-ECD was administered in the first 3 minutes during thy listened the music. The brain imaging was performed in 30-60 minutes after the tracer was administered. Results: To compare the rest state, during listening the Chinese classical national music and paying special attention to the imagination of music the right midtemporal in 6 cases, left midtemporal in 2 cases, right superior temporal in 2 cases, left superior temporal in 6 cases, and right inferior temporal in 2 cases were activated. Among them, dual temporal were activated in 6 cases, right temporal in 3 cases and left temporal in 1 case. It is very interesting that the inferior frontal and/or medial frontal lobes were activated in all 10 subjects, and the activity was markedly higher in frontal than in temporal. Among them dual frontal lobes were activated in 9 subjects, and only right frontal in 1 case. The right superior frontal lobes were activated in 2 cases. The occipital lobes were activated in 4 subjects, and dual occipital in 3 cases, right occipital in 1 case. These 4 subjects stated after listening that they imagined the natural landscape and imagination that was opened out in the music follow the music. Other regions that were activated included parietal lobes (right and left in 1 respectively), pre-cingulated gyms (in 2 cases), and left

A comparison study of lipid profile levels between skin tags affected people and normal population in Tehran, Iran

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Abbas Rasi

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background: For many years the association of skin tags and endocrynopathies has been postulated, although many reports are available but it has never been evaluated to mean normal population. Dyslipidemia is a frequent disorder among people and seemed to be necessary for screening within skin tag condition. This study is designed to find any possible association between skin tags and dyslipidemia. Materials and Methods: From April 2009 to June 2011, 168 patients enrolled the study. Among the remaining 152 patients, there were 89 females (58.5% and 63 males (%41.5. Based on the TLGS study 136 men and 220 women enrolled the control group of study. The mean age was 28.4 years. Patients trained to have normal free diet for at least 1 month then referred to the laboratory. Blood samples were taken over 12 hours fasting with 2 hours intervals. Hypertriglyceridemia was defined as plasma level ≥160 mg/dl for men and ≥130 mg/dl for women. Hypercholesterolemia pointed at its value >200 mg/dl. Normal HDL levels was defined as >39 mg/dl for men and >35 mg/dl to women. Results: Mean skin tag number was 12.6 per subject. The most frequent localizations of skin tags were neck and upper chest (mean number: 13.4, 48.9% followed by axilla (mean number: 11.6, 33% and breast (10.2, 10.1% in the patient group. The mean cholesterol level of case group was 192.2 ± 33.1 mg/dl, while it was 187.0 ± 42 mg/dl in the control group. The mean ± SD for triglyceride was 132.1 ± 69 mg/dl in comparison to 129 ± 74 in the control group. Conclusion: The study showed no significant differences between normal population and patients′ lipid profile.

Comparison of Pre-operative Central Corneal Thickness in Pediatric Cataract Cases versus Normal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, S.; Ali, M.; Zaheer, N.

2014-01-01

Objective: To compare the pre-operative central corneal thickness (CCT) in paediatric cataract patients with reference to normal control group. Study Design: A case control study. Place and Duration of Study: Paediatric Ophthalmology Clinic of Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital (ASTEH), Rawalpindi, from November 2009 to May 2010. Methodology: The study included 116 subjects with equal number of cases and controls. Demographic profile of all the subjects was noted followed by history and detailed ophthalmic examination. CCT was measured using an ultrasonic pachymeter (model Pac Scan 300). The mean of three measurements from the central cornea were recorded in microns. Results were analyzed using SPSS version 17.0. Results: Mean CCT values of the cases was 566.83 +- 37.646 microns while the control group had a mean CCT of 535.81 +- 24.466 microns. Difference between the CCT values of the two groups was highly significant (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Eyes with congenital cataracts have greater CCT values as compared to normal paediatric population. This factor must be kept in mind while interpreting intra-ocular pressure in such patients. (author)

Socio-cultural adaptation and standardization of Dubois' five words testing in a population of normal subject in Mali, West Africa.

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Guinto, Cheick O; Coulibaly, Toumany; Koné, Zeinab; Coulibaly, Souleymane; Maiga, Boubacar; Dembélé, Kekouta; Cissé, Lassana; Konaté, Mamadou; Coulibaly, Thomas; Sissoko, Adama S; Karambé, Mamadou; Burnett, Barrington; Landouré, Guida; Traoré, Moussa

2016-06-01

Dubois' five words testing (5WT) is a verbal memory test that depends on many parameters. The aim of this study is to adapt Dubois' 5WT to the Malian socio-cultural conditions to (i) determine performances of normal subjects to the 5WT and (ii) provide reference scores of the 5WT. A sample of 276 normal subjects aged ≥ 50 years (154 males and 122 females; 144 literates and 132 illiterates) were enrolled from February 2008 to January 2009. Subjects with a history of symptoms likely to modify cognitive functions and those who were found disabled under Lawton's four simplified item test were excluded. The learning score in illiterates was 1.51 in Dubois' 5WT and 4.90 in the modified 5WT. The mean value of the modified 5WT total score was 9.71. Majority (90.22%) of the subjects scored the maximum (10). The modified 5WT reduced with both the age (p culture and the socio-educative level in French. Its adaptation to the socio-cultural context could prove useful and efficient in countries with a low literacy rate and a diverse cultural background.

Relative activity of cerebral subcortical gray matter in varying states of attention and awareness in normal subjects and patient studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cooper, M.; Chen, C.T.; Levy, J.; Wagner, N.; Spire, J.P.; Jacobsen, J.; Meltzer, H.; Metz, J.; Beck, R.N.

1985-01-01

An important aspect of the study of brain function involves measurement of the relationships; between activities in the subcortical gray matter of the caudate and of the thalamus; and between these structures and functional cortical areas. The authors have studied these relationships in 22 subjects under different conditions of activation, sleep and sensory deprivation using a PET VI system and F-18-2DG to determine regional cerebral metabolism. Subject activating conditions were maintained throughout the period of equilibration of F-18-2DG and E.E.G.'s were monitored. Multiple tomographic slices of 1-2 million counts were obtained simultaneously with slice separation of 14mm and each plane parallel to the cantho-meatal line. In activated and non-activated awake conditions for normal subjects, left and right thalmus-to-caudate ratios were similar and greater than unity. This relationship was maintained in non-REM sleep, but was reversed and divergent in REM sleep and sensory deprivation; this was also evident in 3/4 narcoleptics awake and asleep in non-REM and REM and 2/3 schizophrenics and affective disorder, subjects. This approach appears to have potential for characterizating normal and disordered regional cerebral function

A comparison of the effects of caffeine following abstinence and normal caffeine use.

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Addicott, Merideth A; Laurienti, Paul J

2009-12-01

Caffeine typically produces positive effects on mood and performance. However, tolerance may develop following habitual use, and abrupt cessation can result in withdrawal symptoms, such as fatigue. This study investigated whether caffeine has a greater stimulant effect in a withdrawn state compared to a normal caffeinated state, among moderate daily caffeine consumers. Using a within-subjects design, 17 caffeine consumers (mean +/- sd = 375 +/- 101 mg/day) ingested placebo or caffeine (250 mg) following 30-h of caffeine abstention or normal dietary caffeine use on four separate days. Self-reported mood and performance on choice reaction time, selective attention, and memory tasks were measured. Caffeine had a greater effect on mood and choice reaction time in the abstained state than in the normal caffeinated state, but caffeine improved selective attention and memory in both states. Although improvements in mood and reaction time may best explained as relief from withdrawal symptoms, other performance measures showed no evidence of withdrawal and were equally sensitive to an acute dose of caffeine in the normal caffeinated state.

A Comparison of Linguistic Skills between Persian Cochlear Implant and Normal Hearing Children

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Mohammad Rahimi

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Objectives: A large number of congenitally deaf children are born annually. If not treated, this will have destructive effects on their language and speech development, educational achievements and future occupation. In this study it has been tried to determine the level of language skills in children with Cochlear Implants (CI in comparison with Normal Hearing (NH age-mates. Methods: Test of Language Development was administered to 30 pre-lingual, severe-to-profound CI children between the ages of 5 to 8. The obtained scores were compared to a Persian database from scores of normally hearing children with the same age range. Results: Results indicated that in spite of great advancements in different areas of language after hearing gain, CI children still lag behind their hearing age-mates in almost all aspects of language skills. Discussion: Based on the results, it is suggested that children with average or above average cognitive skills who use CI have the potential to produce and understand language comparable to their normally hearing peers.

Response of growth hormone (GH), FFA, blood sugar and insulin to exercise in obese patients and normal subjects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schwarz, F.; Haar, D.J. ter; Riet, H.G. van; Thijssen, J.H.H.

1969-01-01

Ergometer tests with a constant workload of 600 Kg./min. during 30 minutes were done on eight normal subjects, eight severely obese patients, and two women who had formerly been obese. Arterial blood was sampled three times before, four times during and three times after exercise. The incidence and

Could Intermittent Energy Restriction and Intermittent Fasting Reduce Rates of Cancer in Obese, Overweight, and Normal-Weight Subjects? A Summary of Evidence.

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Harvie, Michelle N; Howell, Tony

2016-07-01

Animal studies and human observational data link energy restriction (ER) to reduced rates of carcinogenesis. Most of these studies have involved continuous energy restriction (CER), but there is increasing public and scientific interest in the potential health and anticancer effects of intermittent energy restriction (IER) or intermittent fasting (IF), which comprise periods of marked ER or total fasting interspersed with periods of normal eating. This review summarizes animal studies that assessed tumor rates with IER and IF compared with CER or ad libitum feed consumption. The relevance of these animal data to human cancer is also considered by summarizing available human studies of the effects of IER or IF compared with CER on cancer biomarkers in obese, overweight, and normal-weight subjects. IER regimens that include periods of ER alternating with ad libitum feed consumption for 1, 2, or 3 wk have been reported to be superior to CER in reducing tumor rates in most spontaneous mice tumor models. Limited human data from short-term studies (≤6 mo) in overweight and obese subjects have shown that IER can lead to greater improvements in insulin sensitivity (homeostasis model assessment) than can CER, with comparable reductions in adipokines and inflammatory markers and minor changes in the insulin-like growth factor axis. There are currently no data comparing IER or IF with CER in normal-weight subjects. The benefits of IER in these short-term trials are of interest, but not sufficient evidence to recommend the use of IER above CER. Longer-term human studies of adherence to and efficacy and safety of IER are required in obese and overweight subjects, as well as normal-weight subjects. © 2016 American Society for Nutrition.

An obesity provoking behaviour negatively influences young normal weight subjects' health related quality of life and causes depressive symptoms.

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Ernersson, Asa; Frisman, Gunilla Hollman; Sepa Frostell, Anneli; Nyström, Fredrik H; Lindström, Torbjörn

2010-12-01

In many parts of the world the prevalence of a sedentary lifestyle in combination with high consumption of food has increased, which contributes to increased risk for becoming overweight. Our primary aim was, in an intervention, to examine the influence on health related quality of life (HRQoL) and mood in young normal weight subjects of both sexes, when adopting an obesity provoking behaviour by increasing the energy intake via fast food and simultaneously adopting a sedentary lifestyle. A secondary aim was to follow-up possible long-term effects on HRQoL and mood 6 and 12 months after this short-term intervention. In this prospective study, 18 healthy normal weight subjects (mean age 26±6.6 years), mainly university students were prescribed doubled energy intake, and maximum 5000 steps/day, during 4 weeks. An age and sex matched control group (n=18), who were asked to have unchanged eating habits and physical activity, was recruited. Before and after the intervention questionnaires including Short Form-36, Hospital Anxiety Depression scale, Center of Epidemiological Studies Depression scale, Sense of Coherence and Mastery scale were completed by the subjects in the intervention group and by the controls with 4 weeks interval. Six and 12 months after the intervention the subjects underwent the same procedure as at baseline and the controls completed the same questionnaires. During the intervention, subjects in the intervention group increased their bodyweight and developed markedly lower physical and mental health scores on Short Form-36 as well as depressive symptoms while no changes appeared in the controls. The increase of depressive symptoms was associated with increases of energy intake, body weight and body fat. When followed up, 6 and 12 months after the intervention, physical and mental health had returned completely to baseline values, despite somewhat increased body weight. In conclusion, adopting obesity provoking behaviour for 4 weeks decreases HRQo

Comparison of the Deep Optic Nerve Head Structure between Normal-Tension Glaucoma and Nonarteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy.

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Lee, Eun Ji; Choi, Yun Jeong; Kim, Tae-Woo; Hwang, Jeong-Min

2016-01-01

To compare the deep optic nerve head (ONH) structure between normal-tension glaucoma (NTG) and nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) and also in healthy subjects as a control using enhanced depth imaging (EDI) spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). This prospective cross-sectional study included 21 NAION patients who had been diagnosed as NAION at least 6 months prior to study entry, and 42 NTG patients and 42 healthy controls who were matched with NAION patients in terms of age, intraocular pressure (IOP), and optic disc area. The retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in the affected sector was also matched between NAION and NTG patients. The ONH was imaged using SD-OCT with the EDI technique. The anterior lamina cribrosa surface depth (LCD) and average prelaminar tissue (PT) thickness were measured in a sector of interest in each eye and compared among the three groups. In the sector-matched comparison, LCD was largest in NTG patients, followed by NAION patients, while PT was thinner in NTG patients than in NAION patients (all P < 0.001). NAION patients had a comparable LCD and a thinner PT relative to normal controls (P = 0.170 and < 0.001, respectively). The deep ONH configuration is strikingly different between NTG and NAION. The differing features provide comparative insight into the pathophysiology of the two diseases, and may be useful for differential diagnosis.

A Comparison of Religious Orientation and General Health in Runaway Girls and Normal Ones

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Abolfazl Mohammadbeigi

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Due to the negative consequence of girls’ escape, this study was conducted to compare personality, demographic, and religious characteristics of runaway girls and normal ones in Qom city. Methods: In a case control study, 66 single runaway girls and 66 normal girls were selected as experimental group and control group, respectively. Data was culled using interview method, demographic information questionnaire, Allport religious orientation, and general health questionnaires (GHQ. Chi square and independent t-test were applied to analyze final data. Results: Average general health scores were calculated to be 13.9±11 and 9±6.2 in runaway and normal girls, respectively. The score of religious orientation is significantly lower in runaway girls than normal girls (p0.05. Conclusion: Religious orientation was found to be lower in runaway girls than in normal ones. Since runaway girls are subject to physical and sexual abuse, their psychological health is highly vulnerable—the fact which might pave the way for other social abnormalities.

Simultaneous 13C/14C dual isotope breath test measurement of gastric emptying of solid and liquid in normal subjects and patients: comparison with scintigraphy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chew, C. G.; Bartholomeusz, F.D.L.; Bellon, M.; Chatterton, B. E.

2003-01-01

To develop a simple method for simultaneous solid and liquid gastric emptying assessment using a dual isotope labelled breath test. 13 patients were given 100 g ground beef labelled with 25 MBq 99m Tc sulphur colloid and 74 KBq 14 C octanoic acid, and 150 ml 10% glucose drink labelled with 8 MBq 67 Ga citrate and 150 mg 13 C acetate. 10 normal volunteers were given the same test meals but labelled with 14 C and 13 C only. Breath was collected at baseline and regularly for 4 hours. The 14 CO 2 and 13 CO 2 activity was measured with liquid scintillation counting and mass spectroscopy. The times to maximum 14 CO 2 and 13 CO 2 , were determined. Comparison was made between times to maximum 14 CO 2 with scintigraphic retention of 99m Tc at 100 minutes and times to maximum 13 CO 2 with the scintigraphic half-clearance time of 67 Ga. For the solid meal, the times to maximum 14 CO 2 were: 60-120 minutes in the 8 patients with normal gastric emptying of 99m Tc; 75-145 minutes for the 10 healthy volunteers; 75-180 minutes for the remaining 5 patients with abnormal gastric emptying of 99m Tc. There was a weak but significant correlation (r = 0.56, p 14 CO 2 and gastric retention of 99m Tc at 100 minutes. For the liquid meal, times to maximum 13 CO 2 were: 20-35 minutes for the 4 with normal gastric emptying of 67 Ga; 15-40 minutes for the 10 healthy volunteers; 20-75 minutes for the remaining 9 patients with abnormal gastric emptying of 67 Ga. There was a strong and significant correlation (r = 0.88, p 13 CO 2 and gastric half-clearance time of 67 Ga. Breath tests utilising test meals labelled with *C isotopes are valid alternatives to scintigraphic studies using 99m Tc and 67 Ga for the simultaneous assessment of gastric emptying of solids and liquids. (author)

Studies on the kinetics of unconjugated [14C]bilirubin metabolism in normal subjects and patients with compensated cirrhosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Owens, D.; Jones, E.A.; Carson, E.R.

1977-01-01

The kinetics of unconjugated 14 C-bilirubin metabolism have been investigated and analysed in terms of a three-pool model in a group of seven normal subjects and in a group of eight cirrhotic patients who had appreciable impairment of liver cell function. The results indicate that, in patients with compensated cirrhosis, the efficiency of the liver in extracting unconjugated bilirubin from plasma against a concentration gradient is impaired, even though the liver's capacity to conjugate bilirubin may be normal. As a consequence of the increased volume of distribution, the absolute hepatic clearance of unconjugated bilirubin is relatively well maintained. (author)

MRI Volumetry of Hippocampus and Amygdala in Normal Aging, Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease Subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suphaphong, S.; Tritanon, O.; Laothamatas, J.; Sungkarat, W.

2012-01-01

The Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can affect memory and daily living. Non- invasive diagnostic tools such as MRI can be useful to discriminate the patients from normal group.This study aims to compare the relative volumes of hippocampus and amygdala, to suggest the relative normal volumes, and to evaluate MRI automatic volumetry as a diagnostic tool. The MRI images of 130 subjects were retrospectively studied (Turbo field echo (TFE), acquired with a 3-Tesla Philips scanner). The image data were processed with Free Surfer (automatic segmentation and volumetry). The resultant volumes were corrected for brain size differences with intracranial volumes (ICV), and then analysed with SPSS (v. 17.0). There are differences of hippocampus and amygdala relative volumes between normal, MCI, and AD subjects at p < 0.001. The volume reductions of hippocampus in MCI and AD groups compared to normal group are about 8 % and 28 %, while those of amygdala are about 10 % and 34 %, respectively. The relative volumes of hippocampus (compared to ICV) in normal aging are 0.002617 ± 0.000278 (right) and 0.002553 ± 0.000257 (left), while those of amygdala are 0.001231 ± 0.000165 (right) and 0.001096 ± 0.000144 (left). There are no differences of relative volumes affected by gender in normal, MCI, and AD. There is a highly significant difference of relative volume affected by brain side in normal group (p < 0.001) but not in MCI (p = 0.119 and 0.077) and AD (p = 0.713 and 0.250), for hippocampus and amygdala, respectively. These results demonstrate that there are volume losses of hippocampus and amygdala in both diseases. Automatically measured hippocampus and amygdala volumes can be used as a measure indicating MCI and AD. The abnormal disturbance of volume affected by brain side may indicate the progression of both diseases. The hippocampus and amygdala volumes can be used as one of diagnostic tools to confirm the diagnosis of MCI or AD. The volume

Cytokine and chemokine levels in tears from healthy subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Carreño, Ester; Enríquez-de-Salamanca, Amalia; Tesón, Marisa; García-Vázquez, Carmen; Stern, Michael E; Whitcup, Scott M; Calonge, Margarita

2010-11-01

There is growing evidence for the existence of an 'immune tone' in normal tears. The aim of this study was to determine the levels of a large panel of cytokines and chemokines in tears obtained from healthy subjects. These levels can then serve as baseline values for comparison with patients suffering from ocular surface diseases. Nine healthy subjects participated in this study, and normal ocular surface health was documented by the results of a dry eye questionnaire, Schirmer strip wetting, and vital staining of the cornea. Four microliters of tears were collected from each eye and analysed separately with multiplex bead-based assays for the concentration of 30 cytokines and chemokines. Twenty-five cytokines/chemokines were detected. CCL11/Eotaxin1, GM-CSF, G-CSF, IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-3, IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-13, IL-12p70, IL-15, CX3CL1/Fractalkine, TNF-α, epidermal growth factor, and CCL4/MIP-1β were present at 5-100 pg/ml. IL-1β, IL-6, IL-7A, CXCL8/IL-8, and CCL2/MCP-1 were present at 100-400 pg/ml. IL-1Ra, CXCL10/IP-10 and vascular endothelial growth factor were present at more than 1000 pg/ml. Multiplex bead-based assays are convenient for cytokine/chemokine detection in tears. Fracktalkine has been detected in human healthy tears for the first time. The knowledge of cytokine/chemokine concentrations in tears from normal subjects is an important reference for further comparison with patients suffering from ocular surface diseases. Variability in their levels can reflect a phenomenon of potential importance for the understanding of the ocular surface cytokine pattern. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 Acta Ophthalmol.

Could Intermittent Energy Restriction and Intermittent Fasting Reduce Rates of Cancer in Obese, Overweight, and Normal-Weight Subjects? A Summary of Evidence12

Science.gov (United States)

2016-01-01

Animal studies and human observational data link energy restriction (ER) to reduced rates of carcinogenesis. Most of these studies have involved continuous energy restriction (CER), but there is increasing public and scientific interest in the potential health and anticancer effects of intermittent energy restriction (IER) or intermittent fasting (IF), which comprise periods of marked ER or total fasting interspersed with periods of normal eating. This review summarizes animal studies that assessed tumor rates with IER and IF compared with CER or ad libitum feed consumption. The relevance of these animal data to human cancer is also considered by summarizing available human studies of the effects of IER or IF compared with CER on cancer biomarkers in obese, overweight, and normal-weight subjects. IER regimens that include periods of ER alternating with ad libitum feed consumption for 1, 2, or 3 wk have been reported to be superior to CER in reducing tumor rates in most spontaneous mice tumor models. Limited human data from short-term studies (≤6 mo) in overweight and obese subjects have shown that IER can lead to greater improvements in insulin sensitivity (homeostasis model assessment) than can CER, with comparable reductions in adipokines and inflammatory markers and minor changes in the insulin-like growth factor axis. There are currently no data comparing IER or IF with CER in normal-weight subjects. The benefits of IER in these short-term trials are of interest, but not sufficient evidence to recommend the use of IER above CER. Longer-term human studies of adherence to and efficacy and safety of IER are required in obese and overweight subjects, as well as normal-weight subjects. PMID:27422504

Controlled cross-over study in normal subjects of naloxone-preceding-lactate infusions; respiratory and subjective responses: relationship to endogenous opioid system, suffocation false alarm theory and childhood parental loss.

Science.gov (United States)

Preter, M; Lee, S H; Petkova, E; Vannucci, M; Kim, S; Klein, D F

2011-02-01

The expanded suffocation false alarm theory (SFA) hypothesizes that dysfunction in endogenous opioidergic regulation increases sensitivity to CO2, separation distress and panic attacks. In panic disorder (PD) patients, both spontaneous clinical panics and lactate-induced panics markedly increase tidal volume (TV), whereas normals have a lesser effect, possibly due to their intact endogenous opioid system. We hypothesized that impairing the opioidergic system by naloxone could make normal controls parallel PD patients' response when lactate challenged. Whether actual separations and losses during childhood (childhood parental loss, CPL) affected naloxone-induced respiratory contrasts was explored. Subjective panic-like symptoms were analyzed although pilot work indicated that the subjective aspect of anxious panic was not well modeled by this specific protocol. Randomized cross-over sequences of intravenous naloxone (2 mg/kg) followed by lactate (10 mg/kg), or saline followed by lactate, were given to 25 volunteers. Respiratory physiology was objectively recorded by the LifeShirt. Subjective symptomatology was also recorded. Impairment of the endogenous opioid system by naloxone accentuates TV and symptomatic response to lactate. This interaction is substantially lessened by CPL. Opioidergic dysregulation may underlie respiratory pathophysiology and suffocation sensitivity in PD. Comparing specific anti-panic medications with ineffective anti-panic agents (e.g. propranolol) can test the specificity of the naloxone+lactate model. A screen for putative anti-panic agents and a new pharmacotherapeutic approach are suggested. Heuristically, the experimental unveiling of the endogenous opioid system impairing effects of CPL and separation in normal adults opens a new experimental, investigatory area.

Controlled cross-over study in normal subjects of naloxone-preceding-lactate infusions; respiratory and subjective responses: relationship to endogenous opioid system, suffocation false alarm theory and childhood parental loss

Science.gov (United States)

Preter, M.; Lee, S. H.; Petkova, E.; Vannucci, M.; Kim, S.; Klein, D. F.

2015-01-01

Background The expanded suffocation false alarm theory (SFA) hypothesizes that dysfunction in endogenous opioidergic regulation increases sensitivity to CO2, separation distress and panic attacks. In panic disorder (PD) patients, both spontaneous clinical panics and lactate-induced panics markedly increase tidal volume (TV), whereas normals have a lesser effect, possibly due to their intact endogenous opioid system. We hypothesized that impairing the opioidergic system by naloxone could make normal controls parallel PD patients' response when lactate challenged. Whether actual separations and losses during childhood (childhood parental loss, CPL) affected naloxone-induced respiratory contrasts was explored. Subjective panic-like symptoms were analyzed although pilot work indicated that the subjective aspect of anxious panic was not well modeled by this specific protocol. Method Randomized cross-over sequences of intravenous naloxone (2 mg/kg) followed by lactate (10 mg/kg), or saline followed by lactate, were given to 25 volunteers. Respiratory physiology was objectively recorded by the LifeShirt. Subjective symptomatology was also recorded. Results Impairment of the endogenous opioid system by naloxone accentuates TV and symptomatic response to lactate. This interaction is substantially lessened by CPL. Conclusions Opioidergic dysregulation may underlie respiratory pathophysiology and suffocation sensitivity in PD. Comparing specific anti-panic medications with ineffective anti-panic agents (e.g. propranolol) can test the specificity of the naloxone + lactate model. A screen for putative anti-panic agents and a new pharmacotherapeutic approach are suggested. Heuristically, the experimental unveiling of the endogenous opioid system impairing effects of CPL and separation in normal adults opens a new experimental, investigatory area. PMID:20444308

Regional Fluid-Attenuated Inversion Recovery (FLAIR at 7 Tesla correlates with Amyloid beta in Hippocampus and Brainstem of cognitively normal elderly subjects.

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Simon J Schreiner

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Background: Accumulation of amyloid beta (Aβ may occur during healthy aging and is a risk factor for Alzheimer Disease (AD. While individual Aβ-accumulation can be measured non-invasively using Pittsburgh compound-B positron-emission-tomography (PiB-PET, Fluid-Attenuated Inversion Recovery (FLAIR is a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI sequence, capable of indicating heterogeneous age-related brain pathologies associated with tissue-edema. In the current study cognitively normal elderly subjects were investigated for regional correlation of PiB- and FLAIR- intensity. Methods: 14 healthy elderly subjects without known history of cognitive impairment received 11C-PiB-PET for estimation of regional Aβ-load. In addition, whole brain T1-MPRAGE and FLAIR-MRI sequences were acquired at high field strength of 7 Tesla (7T. Volume-normalized intensities of brain regions were assessed by applying an automated subcortical segmentation algorithm for spatial definition of brain structures. Statistical dependence between FLAIR- and PiB-PET intensities was tested using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rho, followed by Holm-Bonferroni correction for multiple testing. Results: Neuropsychological testing revealed normal cognitive performance levels in all participants. Mean regional PiB-PET and FLAIR intensities were normally distributed and independent. Significant correlation between volume-normalized PiB-PET signals and FLAIR intensities resulted for Hippocampus (right:rho=0.86; left:rho=0.84, Brainstem (rho=0.85 and left Basal Ganglia vessel region (rho=0.82. Conclusions: Our finding of a significant relationship between PiB- and FLAIR-intensity mainly observable in the Hippocampus and Brainstem, indicates regional Aβ associated tissue-edema in cognitively normal elderly subjects. Further studies including clinical populations are necessary to clarify the relevance of our findings for estimating individual risk for age-related neurodegenerative

Regional Fluid-Attenuated Inversion Recovery (FLAIR) at 7 Tesla correlates with amyloid beta in hippocampus and brainstem of cognitively normal elderly subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Schreiner, Simon J.; Liu, Xinyang; Gietl, Anton F.; Wyss, Michael; Steininger, Stefanie C.; Gruber, Esmeralda; Treyer, Valerie; Meier, Irene B.; Kälin, Andrea M.; Leh, Sandra E.; Buck, Alfred; Nitsch, Roger M.; Pruessmann, Klaas P.; Hock, Christoph; Unschuld, Paul G.

2014-01-01

Background: Accumulation of amyloid beta (Aβ) may occur during healthy aging and is a risk factor for Alzheimer Disease (AD). While individual Aβ-accumulation can be measured non-invasively using Pittsburgh Compund-B positron emission tomography (PiB-PET), Fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) is a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) sequence, capable of indicating heterogeneous age-related brain pathologies associated with tissue-edema. In the current study cognitively normal elderly subjects were investigated for regional correlation of PiB- and FLAIR intensity. Methods: Fourteen healthy elderly subjects without known history of cognitive impairment received 11C-PiB-PET for estimation of regional Aβ-load. In addition, whole brain T1-MPRAGE and FLAIR-MRI sequences were acquired at high field strength of 7 Tesla (7T). Volume-normalized intensities of brain regions were assessed by applying an automated subcortical segmentation algorithm for spatial definition of brain structures. Statistical dependence between FLAIR- and PiB-PET intensities was tested using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rho), followed by Holm–Bonferroni correction for multiple testing. Results: Neuropsychological testing revealed normal cognitive performance levels in all participants. Mean regional PiB-PET and FLAIR intensities were normally distributed and independent. Significant correlation between volume-normalized PiB-PET signals and FLAIR intensities resulted for Hippocampus (right: rho = 0.86; left: rho = 0.84), Brainstem (rho = 0.85) and left Basal Ganglia vessel region (rho = 0.82). Conclusions: Our finding of a significant relationship between PiB- and FLAIR intensity mainly observable in the Hippocampus and Brainstem, indicates regional Aβ associated tissue-edema in cognitively normal elderly subjects. Further studies including clinical populations are necessary to clarify the relevance of our findings for estimating individual risk for age-related neurodegenerative

Benazepril, an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor: drug interaction with salbutamol and bronchial response to histamine in normal subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, K. G.; Brunel, P.; Nell, G.; Quinn, G.; Kaik, G. A.

1997-01-01

Aims To investigate the effect of the angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor, benazepril, on pulmonary function. Methods We investigated the influence of benazepril, on lung function and the interaction with inhaled salbutamol (0.1 to 6.6 mg) and histamine (0.03 to 30.69 g l−1 ) in normal subjects. Benazepril 20 mg, salbutamol 8 mg, propranolol 160 mg, and placebo were given orally once daily over 10 days. Results On day 8, there was no difference in the area under the salbutamol dose-response curves between benazepril, placebo and oral salbutamol (P >0.05), propranolol shifted the curves to the right (Pbenazepril 1.04 (0.99–1.08), salbutamol 1.19 (1.13–1.25), propranolol 0.57 (0.50–0.65). Conclusions Benazepril had no influence on baseline lung function, caused no interaction with inhaled salbutamol and the bronchial response to histamine was similar to placebo. However, our findings in normal subjects cannot be extrapolated automatically to asthmatics. PMID:9431834

Registration-based assessment of regional lung function via volumetric CT images of normal subjects vs. severe asthmatics

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Choi, Sanghun; Hoffman, Eric A.; Wenzel, Sally E.; Tawhai, Merryn H.; Yin, Youbing; Castro, Mario

2013-01-01

The purpose of this work was to explore the use of image registration-derived variables associated with computed tomographic (CT) imaging of the lung acquired at multiple volumes. As an evaluation of the utility of such an imaging approach, we explored two groups at the extremes of population ranging from normal subjects to severe asthmatics. A mass-preserving image registration technique was employed to match CT images at total lung capacity (TLC) and functional residual capacity (FRC) for assessment of regional air volume change and lung deformation between the two states. Fourteen normal subjects and thirty severe asthmatics were analyzed via image registration-derived metrics together with their pulmonary function test (PFT) and CT-based air-trapping. Relative to the normal group, the severely asthmatic group demonstrated reduced air volume change (consistent with air trapping) and more isotropic deformation in the basal lung regions while demonstrating increased air volume change associated with increased anisotropic deformation in the apical lung regions. These differences were found despite the fact that both PFT-derived TLC and FRC in the two groups were nearly 100% of predicted values. Data suggest that reduced basal-lung air volume change in severe asthmatics was compensated by increased apical-lung air volume change and that relative increase in apical-lung air volume change in severe asthmatics was accompanied by enhanced anisotropic deformation. These data suggest that CT-based deformation, assessed via inspiration vs. expiration scans, provides a tool for distinguishing differences in lung mechanics when applied to the extreme ends of a population range. PMID:23743399

Pancreatic α- and β-Cell Function and Metabolic Changes during Oral L-Alanine and Glucose Administration: Comparative Studies between Normal, Diabetic and Cirrhotic Subjects

OpenAIRE

HATTORI, TADAKAZU; HOTTA, NIGISHI; OHARA, KIYOJI; SHINODA, HIROSHI; KUNIEDA, TAKEHIDE; NOMURA, TAKAHIDE; KAKUTA, HIRONOBU; TAMAGAWA, TATSUO; SAKAMOTO, NOBUO

1989-01-01

The present study investigated whether or not, in addition to the oral glucose tolerance test, oral alanine loading was a useful diagnostic tool for hormonal and metabolic diseases. Fifty g of L-alanine was administered orally in 14 normal, 12 diabetic, and 8 liver cirrhotic subjects. The influence of oral alanine loading on hormones and metabolites was compared with the results of 100g oral glucose loading. The results obtained were as follows: 1) In the normal subjects and cirrhotics, lacta...

Magnetic resonance imaging in patients with unstable angina: comparison with acute myocardial infarction and normals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahmad, M.; Johnson, R.F. Jr.; Fawcett, H.D.; Schreiber, M.H.

1988-01-01

The role of magnetic resonance imaging in characterizing normal, ischemic and infarcted segments of myocardium was examined in 8 patients with unstable angina, 11 patients with acute myocardial infarction, and 7 patients with stable angina. Eleven normal volunteers were imaged for comparison. Myocardial segments in short axis magnetic resonance images were classified as normal or abnormal on the basis of perfusion changes observed in thallium-201 images in 22 patients and according to the electrocariographic localization of infarction in 4 patients. T2 relaxation time was measured in 57 myocardial segments with abnormal perfusion (24 with reversible and 33 with irreversible perfusion changes) and in 25 normally perfused segments. T2 measurements in normally perfused segments of patients with acute myocardial infarction, unstable angina and stable angina were within normal range derived from T2 measurements in 48 myocardial segments of 11 normal volunteers (42 +/- 10 ms). T2 in abnormal myocardial segments of patients with stable angina also was not significantly different from normal. T2 of abnormal segments in patients with unstable angina (64 +/- 14 in reversibly ischemic and 67 +/- 21 in the irreversibly ischemic segments) was prolonged when compared to normal (p less than 0.0001) and was not significantly different from T2 in abnormal segments of patients with acute myocardial infarction (62 +/- 18 for reversibly and 66 +/- 11 for irreversibly ischemic segments). The data indicate that T2 prolongation is not specific for acute myocardial infarction and may be observed in abnormally perfused segments of patients with unstable angina

Class and comparison: subjective social location and lay experiences of constraint and mobility.

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Irwin, Sarah

2015-06-01

Lay perceptions and experiences of social location have been commonly framed with reference to social class. However, complex responses to, and ambivalence over, class categories have raised interesting analytic questions relating to how sociological concepts are operationalized in empirical research. For example, prior researchers have argued that processes of class dis-identification signify moral unease with the nature of classed inequalities, yet dis-identification may also in part reflect a poor fit between 'social class' as a category and the ways in which people accord meaning to, and evaluate, their related experiences of socio-economic inequality. Differently framed questions about social comparison, aligned more closely with people's own terms of reference, offer an interesting alternative avenue for exploring subjective experiences of inequality. This paper explores some of these questions through an analysis of new empirical data, generated in the context of recession. In the analysis reported here, class identification was common. Nevertheless, whether or not people self identified in class terms, class relevant issues were perceived and described in highly diverse ways, and lay views on class revealed it to be a very aggregated as well as multifaceted construct. It is argued that it enables a particular, not general, perspective on social comparison. The paper therefore goes on to examine how study participants compared themselves with familiar others, identified by themselves. The evidence illuminates social positioning in terms of constraint, agency and (for some) movement, and offers insight into very diverse experiences of inequality, through the comparisons that people made. Their comparisons are situated, and pragmatic, accounts of the material contexts in which people live their lives. Linked evaluations are circumscribed and strongly tied to these proximate material contexts.The paper draws out implications for theorizing lay perspectives on

19 CFR 351.414 - Comparison of normal value with export price (constructed export price).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... review, when normal value is based on the weighted average of sales of the foreign like product, the... in unusual situations, such as when there are very few sales of subject merchandise and the merchandise sold in each market is identical or very similar or is custom-made. (2) In a review, the Secretary...

Achievement Goal Orientations and Adolescents’ Subjective Well-Being in School: The Mediating Roles of Academic Social Comparison Directions

OpenAIRE

Tian, Lili; Yu, Tingting; Huebner, E. Scott

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the multiple mediational roles of academic social comparison directions (upward academic social comparison and downward academic social comparison) on the relationships between achievement goal orientations (i.e., mastery goals, performance-approach goals, and performance-avoidance goals) and subjective well-being (SWB) in school (school satisfaction, school affect) in adolescent students in China. A total of 883 Chinese adolescent students (430 males;...

Quality of life in glaucoma patients and normal subjects related to the severity of damage in each eye.

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Pujol Carreras, O; Anton, A; Mora, C; Pastor, L; Gudiña, S; Maull, R; Vega, Z; Castilla, M

2017-11-01

To assess the quality of life in glaucoma patients and normal subjects, and to assess its relationship with the severity of damage in each eye. A cross-sectional study was conducted with prospective selection of cases. The study included 464 subjects and were distributed into 4categories. Subjects included in group 1 had both eyes normal, that is with a normal intraocular pressure (IOP), optic disk and visual fields (VF), or mild glaucoma, defined as untreated IOP>21mmHg and abnormal VF with mean defect (MD) over -6dB. Group 2 consisted of patients with both eyes with mild or moderate glaucoma, defined as untreated IOP>21mmHg and abnormal VF with MD between -6 and -12dB. Group 3 included patients with moderate to severe glaucoma, that is, untreated IOP>21mmHg and abnormal VF with MD of less than -12dB in both eyes. Group 4 consisted of patients with asymmetric glaucoma damage, that is, they had one eye with severe glaucoma and the other eye normal or with mild glaucoma. All subjects completed 3 different questionnaires. Global quality of life was evaluated with EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D). Vision related quality of life was assessed with Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25). Quality of life related to ocular surface disease was measured with Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI). VFQ-25 showed that group 3 had significantly lower scores than group 1 in mental health (P=.006), dependence (P=.006), colour vision (P=.002), and peripheral vision (P=.002). EQ-5D showed no significant differences between any group, but a trend was found to greater difficulty in group 3 than in groups 1 and 2, and in all dimensions. OSDI showed a higher score, or which was the same as a major disability, in groups 2 and 3 than group 1 (P=.021 and P=.014, respectively). VFQ-25 only found significant differences between group 1 and group 4. Dimensions with significant differences were found between group 1 and 3 (both eyes with advanced or moderate glaucoma). These were not found between group 1 and

Title: The Comparison of Anxiety Sensitivity and Happiness in Irritable Bowel Syndrome Patients with Normal Matched Group in Shiraz

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Background & Objective: The purpose of this study was the comparison of anxiety sensitivity and happiness between patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS and normal matched group. Materials & Methods: The Subjects were 35 (21 females and 14 male IBS patients diagnosed by gastroenterologist and 35 (25 female and 10 males normal matched group all in 14– 63 old age. Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI-R, Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ, and a checklist applied as measures of anxiety sensitivity, happiness and demographic information. Results: Data analysis indicates that IBS patients significantly are higher than matched group in fear of publicly observable symptoms (P= 0.032, fear of cardiovascular symptoms (P= 0.01, fear of gastrointestinal symptoms (P= 0.001, fear of dissociative and neurological symptoms (P= 0.018, & general anxiety sensitivity (P= 0.003, and lower in joy (P= 0.005, control (P= 0.008, self- esteem (P= 0.001 calm (P= 0.006 and general happiness (P= 0.001. Although no significant differences were found in life satisfaction (P= 0.083 & efficacy (P= 0.09, fear of respiratory symptoms (P= 0.067, and fear of cognitive control deficiency (p= 0.097. Conclusion: As a psychological variable anxiety sensitivity can predict treatment seeking of IBS patient, and happiness negatively influenced by both anxiety sensitivity and IBS.

A novel image toggle tool for comparison of serial mammograms: automatic density normalization and alignment-development of the tool and initial experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Honda, Satoshi; Tsunoda, Hiroko; Fukuda, Wataru; Saida, Yukihisa

2014-12-01

The purpose is to develop a new image toggle tool with automatic density normalization (ADN) and automatic alignment (AA) for comparing serial digital mammograms (DMGs). We developed an ADN and AA process to compare the images of serial DMGs. In image density normalization, a linear interpolation was applied by taking two points of high- and low-brightness areas. The alignment was calculated by determining the point of the greatest correlation while shifting the alignment between the current and prior images. These processes were performed on a PC with a 3.20-GHz Xeon processor and 8 GB of main memory. We selected 12 suspected breast cancer patients who had undergone screening DMGs in the past. Automatic processing was retrospectively performed on these images. Two radiologists subjectively evaluated them. The process of the developed algorithm took approximately 1 s per image. In our preliminary experience, two images could not be aligned approximately. When they were aligned, image toggling allowed detection of differences between examinations easily. We developed a new tool to facilitate comparative reading of DMGs on a mammography viewing system. Using this tool for toggling comparisons might improve the interpretation efficiency of serial DMGs.

Study and Comparison of Phonological Awareness Skills and Naming Speed in Dyslexic and Normal Children

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A'tiyeh Ashtari

2004-10-01

Full Text Available Objective: In recent decades, it has been accepted that , deficiencies in phonological Awareness is related to reading problems, and phonological Awareness is the most important causal factor of dyslexia. Although recent researchers on naming speed skill reveal that this skill is orther possible source of dyslexia. Materials & Methods: Present research has been fulfilled on 58 second elementary grade students on the aim of reviewing and comparing the phonological awareness and naming speed. There was 28 dyslexic subject and 30 normal people. There was analyzing of all collected information in this research by independent statistical “ T “ and U – man Whitney Test . Likewise, The correlation between phonological awarecess skills and naming speed in two subject groups by Pearson and Spearman correlated coefficint. Results: Results shiwed that, it was significant differences detween both dyslexia and normal groups in mentioned skills, and dyslexic groupe is weaker than normal group for both skills. Furthermore, in this research there was not significant corellation between phonological awareness and naming speed. Keywords dyslexia/ phonological awarness/ naming speed. Conclusion: consistent with the previous studies , the results of this study revealed that dyslexic individuals have problems in phonological awareness and naming speed . Also insignificant Correlation between the above skills may show that naming speed is independant of phonological awareness.

A comparison study of the two-bladed partial pitch turbine during normal operation and an extreme gust conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, T; Petersen, M M; Larsen, T J

2014-01-01

This paper shows the load comparisons between the numerical simulation and the full-scale load measurement data. First part of this paper includes the comparisons of statistic load in terms of maximum, mean, and minimum values for the selected normal operation cases. The blade root bending moments and tower top bending moments are compared. Second part of this paper introduces the dynamic response comparisons during an extreme wind gust condition where the wind speed changed approximately 10 m/s during three seconds. The rotor speed and blade root flapwise and edgewise bending moment are compared. The nonlinear aeroelastic simulation code HAWC2 is used for the simulations. A very fine agreement between the simulated and the full-scale measured loads is seen for the both comparisons

A preliminary investigation into the effects of ocular lubricants on higher order aberrations in normal and dry eye subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

McGinnigle, Samantha; Eperjesi, Frank; Naroo, Shehzad A

2014-04-01

To study the effects of ocular lubricants on higher order aberrations in normal and self-diagnosed dry eyes. Unpreserved hypromellose drops, Tears Again™ liposome spray and a combination of both were administered to the right eye of 24 normal and 24 dry eye subjects following classification according to a 5 point questionnaire. Total ocular higher order aberrations, coma, spherical aberration and Strehl ratios for higher order aberrations were measured using the Nidek OPD-Scan III (Nidek Technologies, Gamagori, Japan) at baseline, immediately after application and after 60 min. The aberration data were analyzed over a 5mm natural pupil using Zernike polynomials. Each intervention was assessed on a separate day and comfort levels were recorded before and after application. Corneal staining was assessed and product preference recorded after the final measurement for each intervention. Hypromellose drops caused an increase in total higher order aberrations (p=dry eyes) and a reduction in Strehl ratio (normal eyes: p=dry eyes p=0.01) immediately after instillation. There were no significant differences between normal and self-diagnosed dry eyes for response to intervention and no improvement in visual quality or reduction in higher order aberrations after 60 min. Differences in comfort levels failed to reach statistical significance. Combining treatments does not offer any benefit over individual treatments in self-diagnosed dry eyes and no individual intervention reached statistical significance. Symptomatic subjects with dry eye and no corneal staining reported an improvement in comfort after using lubricants. Copyright © 2013 British Contact Lens Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparison of the Deep Optic Nerve Head Structure between Normal-Tension Glaucoma and Nonarteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy.

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Eun Ji Lee

Full Text Available To compare the deep optic nerve head (ONH structure between normal-tension glaucoma (NTG and nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION and also in healthy subjects as a control using enhanced depth imaging (EDI spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT.This prospective cross-sectional study included 21 NAION patients who had been diagnosed as NAION at least 6 months prior to study entry, and 42 NTG patients and 42 healthy controls who were matched with NAION patients in terms of age, intraocular pressure (IOP, and optic disc area. The retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL thickness in the affected sector was also matched between NAION and NTG patients. The ONH was imaged using SD-OCT with the EDI technique. The anterior lamina cribrosa surface depth (LCD and average prelaminar tissue (PT thickness were measured in a sector of interest in each eye and compared among the three groups.In the sector-matched comparison, LCD was largest in NTG patients, followed by NAION patients, while PT was thinner in NTG patients than in NAION patients (all P < 0.001. NAION patients had a comparable LCD and a thinner PT relative to normal controls (P = 0.170 and < 0.001, respectively.The deep ONH configuration is strikingly different between NTG and NAION. The differing features provide comparative insight into the pathophysiology of the two diseases, and may be useful for differential diagnosis.

Long-term clearance from small airways in subjects with ciliary dysfunction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hjelte Lena

2006-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract The objective of this study was to investigate if long-term clearance from small airways is dependent on normal ciliary function. Six young adults with primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD inhaled 111 Indium labelled Teflon particles of 4.2 μm geometric and 6.2 μm aerodynamic diameter with an extremely slow inhalation flow, 0.05 L/s. The inhalation method deposits particles mainly in the small conducting airways. Lung retention was measured immediately after inhalation and at four occasions up to 21 days after inhalation. Results were compared with data from ten healthy controls. For additional comparison three of the PCD subjects also inhaled the test particles with normal inhalation flow, 0.5 L/s, providing a more central deposition. The lung retention at 24 h in % of lung deposition (Ret24 was higher (p 24 with slow inhalation flow was 73.9 ± 1.9 % compared to 68.9 ± 7.5 % with normal inhalation flow in the three PCD subjects exposed twice. During day 7–21 the three PCD subjects exposed twice cleared 9 % with normal flow, probably representing predominantly alveolar clearance, compared to 19 % with slow inhalation flow, probably representing mainly small airway clearance. This study shows that despite ciliary dysfunction, clearance continues in the small airways beyond 24 h. There are apparently additional clearance mechanisms present in the small airways.

Early Alzheimer-type lesions in cognitively normal subjects.

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Tsartsalis, Stergios; Xekardaki, Aikaterini; Hof, Patrick R; Kövari, Enikö; Bouras, Constantin

2018-02-01

Amyloid deposits and tau-immunoreactive neurofibrillary tangles, together with neuronal and synaptic loss, are the neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Both proteins are present in the normal brain during aging. However, the temporal sequence of their involvement in the onset of AD pathology remains controversial. To define whether amyloid β protein deposits or tau protein lesions appear first during normal brain aging, we performed an immunohistological study on serial sections from 105 autopsy brains (age range: 40-104 years) from patients free of clinical signs of cognitive decline, using anti-tau (AT8) and anti-amyloid (4G8) antibodies in the hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, inferior temporal cortex (Brodmann area 20), prefrontal cortex (Brodmann area 9), occipital cortex (Brodmann areas 17 and 18), and in the brainstem. All cases older than 48 years displayed at least a few neurofibrillary tangles, which appeared more frequently in the entorhinal than in the transentorhinal cortex. Tau pathology in these areas preceded tau inclusions in the brainstem. Furthermore, the first site of the apparition of tau pathology is inconsistent, being the entorhinal cortex in most cases, and in fewer cases, the transentorhinal region. There was no case presenting with amyloid deposition in the absence of neurofibrillary tangles, lending evidence to the fact that neurofibrillary tangles appear earlier than amyloid plaques during normal brain aging. However, the role of amyloid in promoting tau deposition cannot be excluded in some cases but may not represent the sole mechanism of disease induction and progression. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

13C/14C dual isotope breath test measurement of gastric emptying in normal subjects and patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chew, G.; Bartholomeusz, F.D.L.; Bellon, M.; Chatterton, B.E.

2000-01-01

Full text: A more flexible alternative to dual isotope scintigraphy for gastric emptying involves measuring breath C0 2 after administration of absorbable tracers. Method: six patients were given 100g hamburger labelled with 25 MBq 99 Tc m sulphur colloid and 74 KBq 14 C octanoic acid, and 150 ml 10% glucose drink labelled with 8 MBq 67 Ga citrate and ISO mg 13 C acetate and seven normals with 14 C and 13 C labels only. Breath was collected at baseline and then regularly for four hours. The 14 CO 2 and 13 CO 2 activity was measured with liquid scintillation counting and mass spectroscopy. The times to maximum 14 CO 2 , and 13 CO 2 , T max, were determined. Results: Comparison was made between 14 CO 2 T max with scintigraphic retention of 99 Tc m at 100 minutes (SR100m) and 13 CO 2 T max with the scintigraphic half-clearance time of 67 Ga (scint T1/2). In conclusion 14 CO 2 T max and 13 CO 2 T max correlate significantly with SR100m and scint T1/2 respectively. The normal threshold is between 165 and 180 minutes for 14 Co 2 T max; probably > 40 minutes for 13 CO 2 T max but overlap exists between normal and abnormal results in this small preliminary study. Recruitment is to continue to better define normal ranges. Copyright (2000) The Australian and New Zealand Society of Nuclear Medicine Inc

Comorbid subjective health complaints in patients with sciatica: a prospective study including comparison with the general population.

Science.gov (United States)

Grøvle, Lars; Haugen, Anne J; Ihlebaek, Camilla M; Keller, Anne; Natvig, Bård; Brox, Jens I; Grotle, Margreth

2011-06-01

Chronic nonspecific low back pain is accompanied by high rates of comorbid mental and physical conditions. The aims of this study were to investigate if patients with specific back pain, that is, sciatica caused by lumbar herniation, report higher rates of subjective health complaints (SHCs) than the general population and if there is an association between change in sciatica symptoms and change in SHCs over a 12-month period. A multicenter cohort study of 466 sciatica patients was conducted with follow-up at 3 months and 1 year. Comorbid SHCs were measured by 27 items of the SHC inventory. Odds ratios (ORs) for each SHC were calculated with comparison to a general population sample (n=928) by logistic regression. The SHC number was calculated by summing all complaints present. At baseline, the ORs for reporting SHCs for the sciatica patients were significantly elevated in 15 of the 27 items with a mean (S.D.) SHC number of 7.5 (4.4), compared to 5.2 (4.4) in the general population (Psciatica, the SHC number was reduced to normal levels. Among those with persisting or worsening sciatica, the number increased to a level almost double that of the general population. Compared to the general population, the prevalence of subjective health complaints in sciatica is increased. During follow-up, the number of health complaints increased in patients with persisting or worsening sciatica. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Biliary scanning with /sup 99m/Tc pyridoxylideneglutamate. The effect of food in normal subjects: concise communication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baker, R.J.; Marion, M.A.

1977-01-01

Technetium-99m pyridoxylideneglutamate biliary scans were performed in 19 normal subjects in both the fasted and nonfasted state. The effect of eating was to reduce visualization of the gallbladder from 100% (fasted) to 47% (nonfasted). The common bile duct was seen in 84% on both occasions but intrahepatic and cystic ducts were seen less frequently in the nonfasted group. Preparation of patients by fasting is essential if information concerning gallbladder function is sought

Comparison between Subjective Sensations during First and Second Phacoemulsification Eye Surgeries in Patients with Bilateral Cataract

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Ji-guo Yu

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose. To evaluate and compare the subjective sensations reported by patients during first and second cataract extractions. Methods. Consecutive patients undergoing bilateral sequential cataract extraction using phacoemulsification were recruited. Following cataract surgery, patients completed questionnaires designed to evaluate subjective sensations, including anxiety, eye bulges, pain, and light sensitivity. Changes in painful sensations experienced by patients between the two surgeries were also recorded. Comparisons were also performed for each subjective sensation between different age groups (79 years. Results. A total of 127 patients were included in the final evaluation. Statistical comparison of the results showed that there were significant differences in perception of anxiety, eye bulges, and pain scores between the first and second cataract surgeries (P0.05 for all. Conclusions. Our research confirms the common observation that patients with bilateral cataracts often report more ocular discomfort during the second surgery. There are, therefore, additional factors that should be considered upon treating patients with bilateral cataracts, and the provision of preoperative counseling could play an important role in providing adequate patient care.

The Effects of Counterforce Brace Size on the Wrist Range of Motility, Pain, Grip & Wrist Extension Sterngth in Normal Subjects and Patients with Tennis Elbow

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Ali Asghar Jameh-Bozorgi

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Objective: Counter force brace is one of the most usefull treatments for lateral opicondylitis (Tennis elbow because it decreases grip pain and increases the power of grip, power of wrist extension and Wrist Range of Motility. The purpose of this quasi experimental (repeated measurementsstudy was to determine the effect of 3 counterforce brace sizes on the wrist R.O.M, grip and wrist extension strength and pain intensity in two groups of healthy subjects and patients with tennis elbow. Materials & Methods: 18 normal subjects & 18 patients with tennis elbow were selected simple conveniently and were tested with no brace and 3 size of counterforce (1,2 and 3 inches. The R.O.M , strength and pain intensity were measured by jamar goniometry and Nicholas MMT dynamometry & VAS, respectively. Results: 1 With all sizes there was a significant decrease of R.O.M on normal subjects but no significant difference in patients. 2 There was a significant decrease of grip strength with 1-inch brace in normal subjects but a significant increase of grip strength with 2 and 3-inch brace in patiens. 3 All sizes of brace caused significant decrease of extension strength in normal subjects but increase in patients. 4All size caused significant decrease of pain intensity that was more considerable in the case of 2 and 3 inch size. Conclusion: The results shows that the counterforce brace may be considered as an effective treatment for increasing strength and decreasing pain in patients with tennis elbow.

Assessment of cerebral perfusion with single-photon emission tomography in normal subjects and in patients with Alzheimer's disease: effects of region of interest selection

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Claus, J J [Dept. of Neurology, Univ. Hospital, Rotterdam (Netherlands) Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Erasmus Univ. Medical School, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Harskamp, F van [Dept. of Neurology, Univ. Hospital, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Breteler, M M.B. [Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Erasmus Univ. Medical School, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Krenning, E P [Dept. of Nuclear Medicine, Univ. Hospital, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Cammen, T.J.M. van der (Dept. of Geriatric Medicine, Univ. Hospital, Rotterdam (Netherlands)); Hofman, A [Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Erasmus Univ. Medical School, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Hasan, D [Dept. of Neurology, Univ. Hospital, Rotterdam (Netherlands)

1994-10-01

We compared three different ROIs in a SPET study with 60 controls and in 48 patients with probable Alzheimer's disease diagnosed according to the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was assessed with SPET using technetium-99m d,l-hexamethylpropylene amine oxime ([sup 99m]Tc-HMPAO), normalized to the mean activity in a cerebellar reference slice. The three different ROIs were: a multi-slice and a single-slice ROI with reference to the normal brain anatomy (using an anatomical atlas), and a rectangular (2x4 pixels) ROI in the frontal, temporal, temporoparietal and occipital cortices. No differences were observed for the means of rCBF values between the single-slice and multi-slice ROI's with reference to the normal anatomy, but some variability was present for individual comparisons. In contrast, significantly higher mean rCBF values were obtained with the single-slice rectangular ROIs in all four regions for both patients and controls and considerable variability was shown for individual subjects. After analysis with multivariate logistic regression and receiver operator characteristic curves, the ability of SPET to discriminate between controls and Alzheimer patients was similar in the three methods for mild and moderate Alzheimer patients (Global Deterioration Scale = GDS of 3 and 4). However, with increasing dementia severity (GDS>4) the rectangular ROIs showed lower ability to discriminate between groups compared to the single-slice and multi-slice anatomically defined ROIs. This study suggests that results of rCBF assessment with SPET using [sup 99m]Tc-HMPAO in patients with severe Alzheimer's disease are influenced by the shape and size of the ROI. (orig.)

Assessment of cerebral perfusion with single-photon emission tomography in normal subjects and in patients with Alzheimer's disease: effects of region of interest selection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Claus, J.J.; Harskamp, F. van; Breteler, M.M.B.; Krenning, E.P.; Cammen, T.J.M. van der; Hofman, A.; Hasan, D.

1994-01-01

We compared three different ROIs in a SPET study with 60 controls and in 48 patients with probable Alzheimer's disease diagnosed according to the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was assessed with SPET using technetium-99m d,l-hexamethylpropylene amine oxime ( 99m Tc-HMPAO), normalized to the mean activity in a cerebellar reference slice. The three different ROIs were: a multi-slice and a single-slice ROI with reference to the normal brain anatomy (using an anatomical atlas), and a rectangular (2x4 pixels) ROI in the frontal, temporal, temporoparietal and occipital cortices. No differences were observed for the means of rCBF values between the single-slice and multi-slice ROI's with reference to the normal anatomy, but some variability was present for individual comparisons. In contrast, significantly higher mean rCBF values were obtained with the single-slice rectangular ROIs in all four regions for both patients and controls and considerable variability was shown for individual subjects. After analysis with multivariate logistic regression and receiver operator characteristic curves, the ability of SPET to discriminate between controls and Alzheimer patients was similar in the three methods for mild and moderate Alzheimer patients (Global Deterioration Scale = GDS of 3 and 4). However, with increasing dementia severity (GDS>4) the rectangular ROIs showed lower ability to discriminate between groups compared to the single-slice and multi-slice anatomically defined ROIs. This study suggests that results of rCBF assessment with SPET using 99m Tc-HMPAO in patients with severe Alzheimer's disease are influenced by the shape and size of the ROI. (orig.)

Reduction in reactive oxygen species production by mitochondria from elderly subjects with normal and impaired glucose tolerance.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghosh, Sangeeta; Lertwattanarak, Raweewan; Lefort, Natalie; Molina-Carrion, Marjorie; Joya-Galeana, Joaquin; Bowen, Benjamin P; Garduno-Garcia, Jose de Jesus; Abdul-Ghani, Muhammad; Richardson, Arlan; DeFronzo, Ralph A; Mandarino, Lawrence; Van Remmen, Holly; Musi, Nicolas

2011-08-01

Aging increases the risk of developing impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and type 2 diabetes. It has been proposed that increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation by dysfunctional mitochondria could play a role in the pathogenesis of these metabolic abnormalities. We examined whether aging per se (in subjects with normal glucose tolerance [NGT]) impairs mitochondrial function and how this relates to ROS generation, whether older subjects with IGT have a further worsening of mitochondrial function (lower ATP production and elevated ROS generation), and whether exercise reverses age-related changes in mitochondrial function. Mitochondrial ATP and ROS production were measured in muscle from younger individuals with NGT, older individuals with NGT, and older individuals with IGT. Measurements were performed before and after 16 weeks of aerobic exercise. ATP synthesis was lower in older subjects with NGT and older subjects with IGT versus younger subjects. Notably, mitochondria from older subjects (with NGT and IGT) displayed reduced ROS production versus the younger group. ATP and ROS production were similar between older groups. Exercise increased ATP synthesis in the three groups. Mitochondrial ROS production also increased after training. Proteomic analysis revealed downregulation of several electron transport chain proteins with aging, and this was reversed by exercise. Old mitochondria from subjects with NGT and IGT display mitochondrial dysfunction as manifested by reduced ATP production but not with respect to increased ROS production. When adjusted to age, the development of IGT in elderly individuals does not involve changes in mitochondrial ATP and ROS production. Lastly, exercise reverses the mitochondrial phenotype (proteome and function) of old mitochondria.

Classification of Normal Subjects and Pulmonary Function Disease Patients using Tracheal Respiratory Sound Detection System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Im, Jae Joong; Yi, Young Ju; Jeon, Young Ju [Chonbuk National University (Korea)

2000-04-01

A new auscultation system for the detection of breath sound from trachea was developed in house. Small size microphone(panasonic pin microphone) was encapsuled in a housing for resonant effect, and hardware for the sound detection was fabricated. Pulmonary function test results were compared with the parameters extracted from frequency spectrum of breath sound obtained from the developed system. Results showed that the peak frequency and relative ratio of integral values between low(80-400Hz) and high(400-800Hz) frequency ranges revealed the significant differences. Developed system could be used for distinguishing normal subject and the patients who have pulmonary disease. (author). 13 refs., 9 figs.

The cerebral functional location in normal subjects when they listened to story in Chinese

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Da; Zhan Hongwei; Xu Wei; Liu Hongbiao; Bao Chengkan

2004-01-01

Purpose: To detect the cerebral functional location when normal subjects listened to a story in Chinese. Methods: 9 normal young students of the medical collage of Zhejiang University, 23-24 years old, 5 male and 4 female. The first they underwent a 99m Tc-ECD brain imaging at rest using a dual-head gamma camera with fan beam collimators. After 2-4 days they were asked to listen a story in Chinese on a tap for 20 minters. The related an emotional story about a young president of a radio station and his girlfriend as well as his audience and fan, a young girl. They were also asked to pay special attention to the name of the personage in the story, what time and site did the story open out. They were also asked to imagine the imagination of the story. 99m Tc-ECD was administered in the first 3 minutes during they listened the story. The brain imaging was performed in 30-60 minutes after the tracer was administered. Results: To compare the rest state, during listen to the story in Chinese and asked to remember the imagination of story the right superior temporal in 5 cases, left superior temporal in 3 cases, right mid temporal in 2 cases were activated. Among them, dual temporal were activated in l case, only right temporal in 6 cases and left temporal in 2 cases. It is very interesting that the inferior frontal and/or medial frontal lobes were activated lightly in all 9 subjects. Among them dual frontal lobes were activated in 5 subjects, and only right frontal in 3 cases and left frontal in 1 case. The occipital lobes were activated in 6 subjects, and dual occipital in 5 cases, left occipital in 1 case. Other regions that were activated included pre-cingulated gyrus (in 1 case), and left thalamic (in 1 case). Conclusion: During listened to the story in Chinese and asked remember the plot of the story the auditory association cortex in the superior temporal (it is more in right than in left) and some right mid temporal were activated. The inferior frontal and

Evaluation of visual stress symptoms in age-matched dyslexic, Meares-Irlen syndrome and normal adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Alanazi, Mana A; Alanazi, Saud A; Osuagwu, Uchechukwu L

2016-01-01

To examine the prevalence of dyslexia and Meares-Irlen syndrome (MIS) among female students and determine their level of visual stress in comparison with normal subjects. A random sample of 450 female medical students of King Saud University Riyadh (age range, 18-30y) responded to a wide range of questions designed to accomplish the aims of this study. The detailed questionnaire consisted of 54 questions with 12 questions enquiring on ocular history and demography of participants while 42 questions were on visual symptoms. Items were categorized into critical and non-critical questions (CQ and NCQ) and were rated on four point Likert scale. Based on the responses obtained, the subjects were grouped into normal (control), dyslexic with or without MIS (Group 1) and subjects with MIS only (Group 2). Responses were analysed as averages and mean scores were calculated and compared between groups using one way analysis of variance to evaluate total visual stress score (TVSS=NCQ+CQ), critical and non-critical visual stress scores. The relationship between categorical variables such as age, handedness and condition were assessed with Chi-square test. The completion rate was 97.6% and majority of the respondents (92%) were normal readers, 2% dyslexic and 6% had MIS. They were age-matched. More than half of the participants had visited an eye care practitioner in the last 2y. About 13% were recommended eye exercises and one participant experienced pattern glare. Hand preference was not associated with any condition but Group 1 subjects (3/9, 33%) were significantly more likely to be diagnosed of lazy eye than Group 2 (2/27, 7%) and control (27/414, 7%) subjects. The mean±SD of TVSS responses were 63±14 and it was 44±9 for CQ and 19±5 for NCQ. Responses from all three variables were normally distributed but the CQ responses were on the average more positive (82%) in Group 2 and less positive (46%) in Group 1 than control. With NCQ, the responses were equally less positive

Analysis of AHWR downcomer piping supported on elastoplastic dampers and subjected to normal and earthquake loadings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dubey, P.N.; Reddy, G.R.; Vaze, K.K.; Ghosh, A.K.

2010-05-01

Three layouts have been considered for AHWR downcomer for codal qualification in order to ensure its structural integrity under normal and occasional loads. In addition to codal qualification a good piping layout should have less number of bends and weld joints in order to reduce the in-service inspection cost. Less number of bends will reduce the pressure drop in natural circulation and lesser number of weld joints will reduce the total time of in-service inspection that finally reduces the radiation dose to the workers. Conventional seismic design approach of piping with snubbers leads to high cost, maintenance and possible locking causing undue higher thermal stress during normal operation. New seismic supports in the form of Elasto-Plastic Damper (EPD) are the best suited for nuclear piping because of their simple design, low cost, passive nature and ease in installation. In this report the characteristics of EPD obtained from theory, finite element analysis and tests have been presented and comparison has also been made among the three. Analysis method and code qualification of AHWR downcomer piping considering the loadings due to normal operating and occasional loads such as earthquake have been discussed in detail. This report also explains the concept of single support and multi-support response spectrum analysis methods. The results obtained by using both types of supports i.e. conventional and EPD supports have been compared and use of EPD supports in AHWR downcomer pipe is recommended. (author)

Stimulus-Dominance Effects and Lateral Asymmetries for Language in Normal Subjects and in Patients with a Single Functional Hemisphere

Science.gov (United States)

Di Stefano, Marirosa; Marano, Elena; Viti, Marzia

2004-01-01

The assessment of language laterality by the dichotic fused-words test may be impaired by interference effects revealed by the dominant report of one member of the stimuli-pair. Stimulus-dominance and ear asymmetry were evaluated in normal population (48 subjects of both sex and handedness) and in 2 patients with a single functional hemisphere.…

Dentofacial growth changes in subjects with untreated Class II malocclusion from late puberty through young adulthood.

Science.gov (United States)

Baccetti, Tiziano; Stahl, Franka; McNamara, James A

2009-02-01

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to compare dentofacial growth changes in untreated subjects with Class II Division 1 malocclusion with those in subjects with normal (Class I) occlusion from late puberty through young adulthood. The Class II Division 1 sample consisted of 23 subjects (10 male, 13 female). The Class I sample included 30 subjects (13 male, 17 female). The lateral cephalograms of the subjects in both groups were analyzed at 2 consecutive stages of development: T1, postpubertal observation (cervical vertebral maturation stage 6), and T2, young adulthood stage. The average time between T1 and T2 was 3.5 years. The statistical comparisons of the growth changes in the 2 groups were performed with Mann-Whitney U tests. From late puberty through young adulthood, dentofacial growth in subjects with untreated Class II malocclusion does not show significant differences when compared with that observed in untreated subjects with normal occlusion. These findings show that Class II dentoskeletal disharmony does not exhibit significant growth change from late puberty through young adulthood.

Subject-Specific Sparse Dictionary Learning for Atlas-Based Brain MRI Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Snehashis; He, Qing; Sweeney, Elizabeth; Carass, Aaron; Reich, Daniel S; Prince, Jerry L; Pham, Dzung L

2015-09-01

Quantitative measurements from segmentations of human brain magnetic resonance (MR) images provide important biomarkers for normal aging and disease progression. In this paper, we propose a patch-based tissue classification method from MR images that uses a sparse dictionary learning approach and atlas priors. Training data for the method consists of an atlas MR image, prior information maps depicting where different tissues are expected to be located, and a hard segmentation. Unlike most atlas-based classification methods that require deformable registration of the atlas priors to the subject, only affine registration is required between the subject and training atlas. A subject-specific patch dictionary is created by learning relevant patches from the atlas. Then the subject patches are modeled as sparse combinations of learned atlas patches leading to tissue memberships at each voxel. The combination of prior information in an example-based framework enables us to distinguish tissues having similar intensities but different spatial locations. We demonstrate the efficacy of the approach on the application of whole-brain tissue segmentation in subjects with healthy anatomy and normal pressure hydrocephalus, as well as lesion segmentation in multiple sclerosis patients. For each application, quantitative comparisons are made against publicly available state-of-the art approaches.

Somatostatin and serum gastrin in normal subjects and in patients with pernicious anaemia, chronic liver and renal disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Le Roith, D; Vinik, A I; Epstein, S; Baron, P; Olkenitzky, M N; Pimstone, B L

1975-09-13

The effects of somatostatin (growth hormone release inhibiting hormone) on basal gastrin were studied in patients suffering from pernicious anaemia and chronic renal and liver disease, and during sequential arginine/insulin-stimulated gastrin release in normal subjects. When basal gastrin concentrations were normal (10-50 pg/ml) in controls and in patients who were in renal and liver failure, somatostatin had no effect on gastrin levels. Raised basal gastrin levels in pernicious anaemia and in 2 cases of chronic renal disease, were significantly inhibited by somatostatin with a half-life (T-half) of 3 to 4 minutes. Arginine infusion caused an insignificant rise in serum gastrin which was unaffected by somatostatin, whereas insulin hypoglycaemia significantly stimulated gastrin release, which was inhibited by somatostatin.

The normalization of data in the Constant-Murley score for the shoulder. A study conducted on 563 healthy subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Grassi, F A; Tajana, M S

2003-01-01

The study was conducted in order to evaluate the theoretical design of the Constant-Murley system and to reveal any difficulties in obtaining data when it is used in 563 subjects not affected with shoulder pathology. The total mean score for the subjects examined was 85.2 points (minimum 75, maximum 100 points). Values revealed a decreasing trend beginning at 50 years of age for men and 30 for women. Only 4 subjects achieved a maximum score of 100. The measurements taken allowed us to elaborate a reference table based on sex and age, which was required to calculate the correct score. These values differ from those reported by the inventors of the system and they reveal the need to compile personal tables for the normalization of scores.

Acute effects of ethanol and acetate on glucose kinetics in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yki-Jaervinen, H.; Koivisto, V.A.; Ylikahri, R.; Taskinen, M.R.

1988-01-01

The authors compared the effects of two ethanol doses on glucose kinetics and assessed the role of acetate as a mediator of ethanol-induced insulin resistance. Ten normal males were studied on four occasions, during which either a low or moderate ethanol, acetate, or saline dose was administered. Both ethanol doses similarly inhibited basal glucose production. The decrease in R a was matched by a comparable decrease in glucose utilization (R d ), resulting in maintenance of normoglycemia. During hyperinsulinemia glucose disposal was lower in the moderate than the low-dose ethanol or saline studies. During acetate infusion, the blood acetate level was comparable with those in the ethanol studies. Acetate had no effect on glucose kinetics. In conclusion, (1) in overnight fasted subjects, ethanol does not cause hypoglycemia because its inhibitory effect on R a is counterbalanced by equal inhibition of R d ; (2) basal R a and R d are maximally inhibited already by small ethanol doses, whereas inhibition of insulin-stimulated glucose disposal requires a moderate ethanol dose; and (3) acetate is not the mediator of ethanol-induced insulin resistance

Dynamic changes of anterior segment in patients with different stages of primary angle-closure in both eyes and normal subjects.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jialiu Lin

Full Text Available To compare changes in anterior segment parameters under light and dark (light-to-dark conditions among eyes with chronic primary angle-closure glaucoma (CPACG, fellow eyes with confirmed or suspect primary angle-closure (PAC or PACS, and age-matched healthy eyes.Consecutive patients with CPACG in one eye and PAC/PACS in the fellow eye, as well as age-matched healthy subjects were recruited. Anterior segment optical coherence tomography measurements were conducted under light and dark conditions, and anterior chamber, lens, and iris parameters compared. Demographic and biometric factors associated with light-to-dark change in iris area were analyzed by linear regression.Fifty-seven patients (mean age 59.6±8.9 years and 30 normal subjects matched for age (60.6±9.3 years and sex ratio were recruited. In regards to differences under light-to-dark conditions, angle opening distance at 500 μm (AOD500μm and iris area during light-to-dark transition were smaller in CPACG eyes than fellow PACS/PAC eyes and normal eyes (P<0.017. Pupil diameter change was largest in normal eyes, and larger in PACS/PAC eyes than CPACG eyes (P<0.017. There was an average reduction of 0.145 mm2 in iris area for each millimeter of pupil diameter increase in CPACG eyes, 0.161 mm2 in fellow PAC/PACS eyes, and 0.165 mm2 in normal eyes. Larger iris curvature in the dark and diagnosis of PACG were significantly associated with less light-to-dark iris area changes.Dynamic changes in iris parameters with light-to-dark transition differed significantly among CPACG eyes, fellow PAC/PACS eyes, and normal eyes. Greater iris curvature under dark conditions was correlated with reduced light-to-dark change in iris area and pupil diameter, which may contribute to disease progression.

Comparison of plantar pressure on normal -footed vs. high arch-footed badminton players in two-way lunge

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parvane bazipoor

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Compared to the individuals with a normal arch structure, those with high or low arch can be at an increased risk of overuse injuries. The risk of overuse injury among athletes is high due, in part, to the repeated loading of the lower extremities. The current study aimed to determine if foot type (high-arched or normal results in differences in plantar pressure during two badminton-specific movements (right-reverse lunge and right-lateral lunge. Methods: Twenty badminton players (10 with normal feet and 10 with higharched feet completed five trials in both right-reverse and right-lateral lunge, while in-shoe pressure data were collected at 100 Hz. The peak pressure and mean pressure were analyzed among the subjects for five major anatomical regions of the foot, using the independent t test in SPSS version 20. The foot type was determined by the foot posture index (FPI (α<0.05. Results: Results showed that the plantar pressure characteristics of normal and high-arched feet were different; such that in high-arched feet, as compared to normal subjects, there were significantly fewer pressure strikes in the medial (P=0.010 and lateral (P=0.002 mid-foot in right-reverse lunge and this was significantly higher in forefoot (P=0.003 and toes (P=0.010. However, the peak (P=0.157 and mean (P=0.104 pressure in the heel was higher but not significant. In the right- lateral lunge, we found statistically lower peak pressure stroke for the lateral mid-foot (P=0.010 and forefoot (P=0.011; however, the mean pressure was lower in the lateral (P=0.010 and medial (P=0.040 mid-foot and forefoot (P=0.120, although it was not significant in the forefoot. Conclusion: Results showed that the medial longitudinal arch of the foot might cause pressure differences in the feet among the players with normal and higharched feet. As the results demonstrated, in high-arched feet, there are some regions where plantar pressure is higher and some where it is lower

Real-Time Classification of Patients with Balance Disorders vs. Normal Subjects Using a Low-Cost Small Wireless Wearable Gait Sensor

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Bhargava Teja Nukala

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Gait analysis using wearable wireless sensors can be an economical, convenient and effective way to provide diagnostic and clinical information for various health-related issues. In this work, our custom designed low-cost wireless gait analysis sensor that contains a basic inertial measurement unit (IMU was used to collect the gait data for four patients diagnosed with balance disorders and additionally three normal subjects, each performing the Dynamic Gait Index (DGI tests while wearing the custom wireless gait analysis sensor (WGAS. The small WGAS includes a tri-axial accelerometer integrated circuit (IC, two gyroscopes ICs and a Texas Instruments (TI MSP430 microcontroller and is worn by each subject at the T4 position during the DGI tests. The raw gait data are wirelessly transmitted from the WGAS to a near-by PC for real-time gait data collection and analysis. In order to perform successful classification of patients vs. normal subjects, we used several different classification algorithms, such as the back propagation artificial neural network (BP-ANN, support vector machine (SVM, k-nearest neighbors (KNN and binary decision trees (BDT, based on features extracted from the raw gait data of the gyroscopes and accelerometers. When the range was used as the input feature, the overall classification accuracy obtained is 100% with BP-ANN, 98% with SVM, 96% with KNN and 94% using BDT. Similar high classification accuracy results were also achieved when the standard deviation or other values were used as input features to these classifiers. These results show that gait data collected from our very low-cost wearable wireless gait sensor can effectively differentiate patients with balance disorders from normal subjects in real time using various classifiers, the success of which may eventually lead to accurate and objective diagnosis of abnormal human gaits and their underlying etiologies in the future, as more patient data are being collected.

Pilot study on quantitative assessment of muscle imbalance: differences of muscle synergies, equilibrium-point trajectories, and endpoint stiffness in normal and pathological upper-limb movements.

Science.gov (United States)

Oku, Takanori; Uno, Kanna; Nishi, Tomoki; Kageyama, Masayuki; Phatiwuttipat, Pipatthana; Koba, Keitaro; Yamashita, Yuto; Murakami, Kenta; Uemura, Mitsunori; Hirai, Hiroaki; Miyazaki, Fumio; Naritomi, Hiroaki

2014-01-01

This paper proposes a novel method for assessment of muscle imbalance based on muscle synergy hypothesis and equilibrium point (EP) hypothesis of motor control. We explain in detail the method for extracting muscle synergies under the concept of agonist-antagonist (AA) muscle pairs and for estimating EP trajectories and endpoint stiffness of human upper limbs in a horizontal plane using an electromyogram. The results of applying this method to the reaching movement of one normal subject and one hemiplegic subject suggest that (1) muscle synergies (the balance among coactivation of AA muscle pairs), particularly the synergies that contributes to the angular directional kinematics of EP and the limb stiffness, are quite different between the normal subject and the hemiplegic subject; (2) the concomitant EP trajectory is also different between the normal and hemiplegic subjects, corresponding to the difference of muscle synergies; and (3) the endpoint (hand) stiffness ellipse of the hemiplegic subject becomes more elongated and orientation of the major axis rotates clockwise more than that of the normal subject. The level of motor impairment would be expected to be assessed from a comparison of these differences of muscle synergies, EP trajectories, and endpoint stiffness among normal and pathological subjects using the method.

Dose and effect of inhaled ozone in resting versus exercising human subjects: comparison with resting rats

Science.gov (United States)

Dose and effect of inhaled ozone in resting versus exercising human subjects: comparison with resting rats Authors: Gary E. Hatch, John McKee, James Brown, Bill McDonnell, Elston Seal, Joleen Soukup, Ralph Slade, Kay Crissman and Robert Devlin, National Health and Environmental...

[Music therapy in adults with cochlear implants : Effects on music perception and subjective sound quality].

Science.gov (United States)

Hutter, E; Grapp, M; Argstatter, H

2016-12-01

People with severe hearing impairments and deafness can achieve good speech comprehension using a cochlear implant (CI), although music perception often remains impaired. A novel concept of music therapy for adults with CI was developed and evaluated in this study. This study included 30 adults with a unilateral CI following postlingual deafness. The subjective sound quality of the CI was rated using the hearing implant sound quality index (HISQUI) and musical tests for pitch discrimination, melody recognition and timbre identification were applied. As a control 55 normally hearing persons also completed the musical tests. In comparison to normally hearing subjects CI users showed deficits in the perception of pitch, melody and timbre. Specific effects of therapy were observed in the subjective sound quality of the CI, in pitch discrimination into a high and low pitch range and in timbre identification, while general learning effects were found in melody recognition. Music perception shows deficits in CI users compared to normally hearing persons. After individual music therapy in the rehabilitation process, improvements in this delicate area could be achieved.

Reference Clinical Database for Fixation Stability Metrics in Normal Subjects Measured with the MAIA Microperimeter.

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Marco U; Saker, Saker; Wilde, Craig; Pellizzari, Carlo; Pallikaris, Aristophanes; Notaroberto, Neil; Rubinstein, Martin; Rui, Chiara; Limoli, Paolo; Smolek, Michael K; Amoaku, Winfried M

2016-11-01

The purpose of this study was to establish a normal reference database for fixation stability measured with the bivariate contour ellipse area (BCEA) in the Macular Integrity Assessment (MAIA) microperimeter. Subjects were 358 healthy volunteers who had the MAIA examination. Fixation stability was assessed using two BCEA fixation indices (63% and 95% proportional values) and the percentage of fixation points within 1° and 2° from the fovea (P1 and P2). Statistical analysis was performed with linear regression and Pearson's product moment correlation coefficient. Average areas of 0.80 deg 2 (min = 0.03, max = 3.90, SD = 0.68) for the index BCEA@63% and 2.40 deg 2 (min = 0.20, max = 11.70, SD = 2.04) for the index BCEA@95% were found. The average values of P1 and P2 were 95% (min = 76, max = 100, SD = 5.31) and 99% (min = 91, max = 100, SD = 1.42), respectively. The Pearson's product moment test showed an almost perfect correlation index, r = 0.999, between BCEA@63% and BCEA@95%. Index P1 showed a very strong correlation with BCEA@63%, r = -0.924, as well as with BCEA@95%, r = -0.925. Index P2 demonstrated a slightly lower correlation with both BCEA@63% and BCEA@95%, r = -0.874 and -0.875, respectively. The single parameter of the BCEA@95% may be taken as accurately reporting fixation stability and serves as a reference database of normal subjects with a cutoff area of 2.40 ± 2.04 deg 2 in MAIA microperimeter. Fixation stability can be measured with different indices. This study originates reference fixation values for the MAIA using a single fixation index.

Long-range correlations of serial FEV1 measurements in emphysematous patients and normal subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dirksen, A; Holstein-Rathlou, N H; Madsen, F

1998-01-01

are autocorrelated. The purpose of this study was to describe the correlation structure in time series of FEV1 measurements. Nineteen patients with severe alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency (phenotype PiZ) and moderate to severe emphysema and two subjects with normal lungs were followed for several years with daily self......In obstructive lung disease the annual change in lung function is usually estimated from serial measurements of forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1). Frequent measurements in each patient may not improve this estimate because data are not statistically independent; i.e., the measurements...... measurements show long-range correlations. The practical implication is that FEV1 need not be measured more often than once every 3 mo in studies of the long-term trends in lung function....

Self-reported cold sensitivity in normal subjects and in patients with traumatic hand injuries or hand-arm vibration syndrome

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Dahlin Lars B

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Cold sensitivity is a common and disabling complaint following hand injuries. The main purpose of this study was to describe self-reported consequences of cold sensitivity and the association with disability and health-related quality of life in patients with hand injuries or hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS and in normal subjects. Methods Responses to the Cold Intolerance Symptom Severity (CISS questionnaire, Potential Work Exposure Scale (PWES, Disability of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH and Short-Form 36 questionnaire (SF-36 were investigated in normal subjects (n = 94, hand injured patients (amputation and nerve injuries, n = 88 and patients with HAVS (n = 30. The results are presented as median (range, percent and mean deviation from norms. The Kruskal Wallis Test or Mann-Whitney U-Test were used to identify significant differences between multiple groups or subgroups. The Spearman rank correlation was used to study the relationship between cold sensitivity and disability. Results Abnormal cold sensitivity (CISS score > 50 was seen in 75% and 45% of patients with HAVS and a traumatic hand injury, respectively. Patients were significantly more exposed to cold in their work environment than the normal population, with a consequently negative effect on work ability due to cold sensitivity. Patients with abnormal cold sensitivity were more seriously disabled and had a poorer health-related quality of life than patients with normal cold sensitivity [higher DASH scores and e.g. significantly larger mean deviation from norms in the subscales Role Physical and Bodily Pain (SF-36]. Conclusion Severe and abnormal cold sensitivity may have a profound impact on work capacity, leisure, disability and health-related quality of life. It is frequently seen in patients with traumatic hand injuries and particularly apparent in patients with HAVS.

Simultaneous estimation of liquid and solid gastric emptying using radiolabelled egg and water in supine normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Kris, M G; Yeh, S D; Gralla, R J; Young, C W

1986-01-01

To develop an additional method for the measurement of gastric emptying in supine subjects, 10 normal subjects were given a test meal containing 99Tc-labelled scrambled egg as the "solid" phase marker and 111In in tapwater as the marker for the "liquid" phase. The mean time for emptying 50% of the "solid" phase (t1/2) was 85 min and 29 min for the "liquid" phase. Three individuals were restudied with a mean difference between the two determinations of 10.8% for the "solid" phase and 6.5% for the "liquid" phase. Twenty-six additional studies attempted have been successfully completed in symptomatic patients with advanced cancer. This method provides a simple and reproducible procedure for the determination of gastric emptying that yields results similar to those reported for other test meals and can be used in debilitated patients.

SSRI effects on pyschomotor performance: assessment of citalopram and escitalopram on normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Paul, Michel A; Gray, Gary W; Love, Ryan J; Lange, Marvin

2007-07-01

Standard aeromedical doctrine dictates that aircrew receiving treatment for depression are grounded during treatment and follow-up observation, generally amounting to at least 1 yr. The Canadian Forces has initiated a program to return selected aircrew being treated for depression to restricted flying duties once stabilized on an approved antidepressant with resolution of depression. The currently approved medications are sertraline (a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) and bupropion (noradrenaline and dopamine reuptake inhibitor). This study was undertaken to determine whether or not citalopram or escitalopram affect psychomotor performance. In a double-blind crossover protocol with counter-balanced treatment order, 24 normal volunteer subjects (14 men and 10 women) were assessed for psychomotor performance during placebo, citalopram (40 mg), and escitalopram (20 mg) treatment. Each treatment arm lasted 2 wk, involving a daily morning ingestion of one capsule. There was a 1-wk washout period between medication courses. Subjects completed a drug side-effect questionnaire and were tested on three psychomotor test batteries once per week. Neither citalopram nor escitalopram affected serial reaction time, logical reasoning, serial subtraction, multitask, or MacWorth clock task performance. While we found some of the expected side effects due to citalopram and escitalopram, there was no impact on psychomotor performance. These findings support the possibility of using citalopram and escitalopram for returning aircrew to restricted flight duties (non-tactical flying) under close observation as a maintenance treatment after full resolution of depression.

Moderating Effects of Cortisol on Neural-Cognitive Association in Cognitively Normal Elderly Subjects

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Lau, Way K. W.; Leung, Mei Kei; Law, Andrew C. K.; Lee, Tatia M. C.

2017-01-01

Cortisol homeostasis is important for healthy brain and cognitive aging. The aim of the current study is to investigate the role of serum cortisol levels in the relationship between regional brain volumes and cognitive processing speed in a group of cognitively normal elderly subjects. Forty-one healthy elderly participants were from a parallel longitudinal study. The reported data in this study reflects baseline measurements. Whole-brain anatomical scanning was performed using a 3.0 Tesla Philips Medical Systems Achieva scanner. Cognitive processing speed was assessed by the digit-symbol and symbol search tests, from the Chinese version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—third edition (WAIS-III). Serum cortisol levels (sampled in the late morning) were measured by ELISA kits. Whole-brain regression analysis revealed that serum cortisol levels positively predicted the white matter volumes (WMV) of the right thalamus, the gray matter volumes (GMV) of the left thalamus and right cerebellar tonsil, and negatively predicted the WMV and GMV of the left middle temporal gyrus (MTG) in 41 healthy elderly participants. Furthermore, serum cortisol significantly moderated the relationship between the GMV of the left MTG and processing speed, as well as the GMV of the left thalamus and processing speed. This study provided the first piece of evidence supporting serum cortisol levels in moderating the relationship between regional brain volumes and processing speed in healthy elderly subjects. This observation enriches our understanding of the role of cortisol in brain morphology and cognitive functioning. PMID:28596732

Moderating Effects of Cortisol on Neural-Cognitive Association in Cognitively Normal Elderly Subjects

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Way K. W. Lau

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Cortisol homeostasis is important for healthy brain and cognitive aging. The aim of the current study is to investigate the role of serum cortisol levels in the relationship between regional brain volumes and cognitive processing speed in a group of cognitively normal elderly subjects. Forty-one healthy elderly participants were from a parallel longitudinal study. The reported data in this study reflects baseline measurements. Whole-brain anatomical scanning was performed using a 3.0 Tesla Philips Medical Systems Achieva scanner. Cognitive processing speed was assessed by the digit-symbol and symbol search tests, from the Chinese version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—third edition (WAIS-III. Serum cortisol levels (sampled in the late morning were measured by ELISA kits. Whole-brain regression analysis revealed that serum cortisol levels positively predicted the white matter volumes (WMV of the right thalamus, the gray matter volumes (GMV of the left thalamus and right cerebellar tonsil, and negatively predicted the WMV and GMV of the left middle temporal gyrus (MTG in 41 healthy elderly participants. Furthermore, serum cortisol significantly moderated the relationship between the GMV of the left MTG and processing speed, as well as the GMV of the left thalamus and processing speed. This study provided the first piece of evidence supporting serum cortisol levels in moderating the relationship between regional brain volumes and processing speed in healthy elderly subjects. This observation enriches our understanding of the role of cortisol in brain morphology and cognitive functioning.

Quantification of the right ventricular wall using stress myocardial emission computed tomography with thallium-201 in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akanabe, Hiroshi; Oshima, Motoo; Sakuma, Sadayuki; Yamamoto, Shuhei; Kawai, Naoki; Sotobata, Iwao

1985-01-01

Although many studies of quantitative analysis of left ventricular myocardial wall (LVMW) have been reported using stress thallium-201 (Tl-201), few reports of right ventricular myocardial wall (RVMW) have been estimated. In this study we determined whether single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with Tl-201 could accurately define normal range of RVMW in normal subjects. Twelve persons who have no valvular disease, nor coronary artery disease were included in this study. Stress SPECT study was reconstructed to make a short axial images of ventricles. RVMW and LVMW were flagged by mamual. Each ventricle was divided into 36 parts at every 10 degree. Relative activity counts in each ventricle were calculated as a percent counts of maximum counts in left ventricle. The normal range of RVMW with stress SPECT was as follows: anterior wall (33.2 +- 11.4 %, mean +- 2 standard deviation, -62.7 +- 18.4 %), free wall (30.1 +- 12.4 % - 38.5 +- 8.8 %), inferior wall (40.4 +- 7.8 % - 60.0 +- 21.4 %), septal wall (65.2 +- 17.2 % - 71.1 +- 14.2 %). Above the results, SPECT with Tl-201 can accurately define the normal range of RVMW, and this method is usefull to quantify the degree of ischemia and hypertrophy in RVMW. (author)

Relationship of tumor necrosis factor alpha genotypes with various biochemical parameters of normal, over weight and obese human subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raza, M.; Chaudhary, B.; Shakoori, A.R.

2008-01-01

Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF-alpha) is expressed primarily in adipocytes and elevated levels of this cytokine have been associated with obesity. The purpose of this investigation was to test whether the TNF-alpha -308 polymorphism were associated with insulin resistance or obesity related traits in non-diabetic and diabetic patients visiting Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, Fatima Hospital and Irfan Clinic in Sargodha. In non diabetic subjects the AA allele carriers, compared with homozygous G allele carriers had significantly lower (28%) triglyceride values and 15% higher HDL yal ues, whereas other parameters tested 81id not show any significant variation. In diabetic patients the AA allele carriers, compared with GG allele carriers, besides having 31 % higher FBS and 26% higher creatinine, had 20% higher cholesterol and 34% higher triglycerides. The HDL values were 14% less, compared to GG allele carriers. In normal subjects (BMI 22.85:1:0.25 kgim2), the AA allele carriers showed 132%, 125%, 65% and 112% higher triglycerides, cholesterol and LDL values compared with GG allele carriers. The HDL and creatinine did not show any significant change. In the overweight subjects (BMI: 27.17+-0.17 kgim/sup 2/) all these values were lower than in AA allele carriers compared with GG allele carriers. The AA allele carries had FBS, triglycerides, cholesterol and LDL 28%, 48%, 14% and 14% lower than in the GG allele' carriers, respectively. In obese subjects, (BMI: 36.73+-0.78kgm/sup 2/), however, the FBS, triglycerides, cholesterol and creatinine values were 5%, 8%, 7% and 14% higher in AA allele carries compared to GG allele carriers, respectively. The LDL content was 8% lower in AA allele carrier as compared with the respective GG allele carriers, It is concluded that replacement of G at -308 with A leads to reduced risk for cardiovascular disease in non-diabetic subject, whereas in diabetic patients this mutation-increases the risk of CVD. Using BMI as index of obesity, it was

Effects of indomethacin on plasma homovanillic acid concentration in normal subjects: a study of prostaglandin-dopamine interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kahn, R S; Davidson, M; Kanof, P; McQueeney, R T; Singh, R R; Davis, K L

1991-01-01

In laboratory animals, prostaglandins have been shown to act as endogenous neuromodulators of central dopamine (DA) activity. To examine the interaction between prostaglandins and DA in man, the effect of a prostaglandin synthesis inhibitor, indomethacin, was studied on plasma concentrations of the DA metabolite, homovanillic acid (pHVA). Indomethacin (150 mg PO) as compared to placebo significantly elevated mean pHVA concentrations in eight normal subjects. Results of this study support the hypothesis that, as in animals, inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis increases central DA turnover in man.

Comparison of Child Abuse between Normal Children and Children with Learning Disorder

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Narges Keshavarz-Valiyan

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Objective: The aim of this study was to compare child abuse between normal children and children with learning disorder, aged 7-12 in Tehran city. Materials & Methods: This analytical and cross sectional study is a research in causative-comparative method. 120 normal children of primary school from districts 3.7 and 15 of Tehran education and 120 children with learning disorder from three center of primary school students with learning disorder (1.2 and 3 were selected by multistage cluster sampaling method and evaluated by Reliable Child Abuse Questionnaire. Data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient Friedman rank test and Paired T and independent T tests. Results: In children view, there were signifivant differences in mean scores of affective abuse (p<0.001 and total score of child abuse (p=0.002 between two groups. Likewise in parent's view. there were significant differences in mean scores of affective abuse (p<0.001, physical abuse (p<0.011 and total score of child abuse (p<0.001 between two groups. Also, there were significant differences between the ideas of children and their parents about physical abuse (p<0.002, sexual abuse (p<0.001 and ignorance (p<0.001 Conclusion: The tindings reveal that there is a difference between normal chidren and children with learning disorder in the extent of child abuse regarding it's type and in comparison with previous researches, affective abuse is more than other abuse types. So. it is necessary for mental health professionals to provide programs for training parents in future.

Comparison of bioavailability and pharmacokinetics of diclofenac sodium and diclofenac potassium in normal and dehydrated rabbits.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Mahmood; Iqbal, Muhammad; Murtaza, Ghulam

2009-01-01

Two different salts of diclofenac, diclofenac sodium and diclofenac potassium, in tablet dosage form were tested for their bioavailability and disposition kinetics in a group of eighteen rabbits in normal and experimentally induced dehydrated conditions with a wash out period of 7 days between both stages of study. Biochemical and physiological parameters were also measured in both normal and dehydrated states. Diclofenac levels in plasma were determined using a validated reversed phase HPLC method. Primary kinetic parameters i.e. AUC(0-infinity), Cmax, Tmax and other disposition kinetics were obtained with non-compartmental procedure. Biochemical parameters i.e. packed cell volume, plasma glucose and total lipid concentration in dehydrated rabbits increased significantly. Plasma concentration of diclofenac sodium and diclofenac potassium decreased significantly in water deprived rabbits. In comparison, diclofenac potassium in normal and dehydrated state of the same group of rabbits showed a significantly increased plasma concentration when compared with diclofenac sodium.

Impact of Insulin Resistance on Silent and Ongoing Myocardial Damage in Normal Subjects: The Takahata Study

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Taro Narumi

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Insulin resistance (IR is part of the metabolic syndrome (Mets that develops after lifestyle changes and obesity. Although the association between Mets and myocardial injury is well known, the effect of IR on myocardial damage remains unclear. Methods and Results. We studied 2200 normal subjects who participated in a community-based health check in the town of Takahata in northern Japan. The presence of IR was assessed by homeostasis model assessment ratio, and the serum level of heart-type fatty acid binding protein (H-FABP was measured as a maker of silent and ongoing myocardial damage. H-FABP levels were significantly higher in subjects with IR and Mets than in those without metabolic disorder regardless of gender. Multivariate logistic analysis showed that the presence of IR was independently associated with latent myocardial damage (odds ratio: 1.574, 95% confidence interval 1.1–2.3 similar to the presence of Mets. Conclusions. In a screening of healthy subjects, IR and Mets were similarly related to higher H-FABP levels, suggesting that there may be an asymptomatic population in the early stages of metabolic disorder that is exposed to myocardial damage and might be susceptible to silent heart failure.

Kinetics of sup(99m)technetium-tin-methylene-diphosphonate in normal subjects and pathological conditions: A simple index of bone metabolism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caniggia, A.; Vattimo, A.

1980-01-01

The blood clearance and the urinary excretion of the bone scanning complex technetium-tin-methylene-diphosphonate sup(99m)Tc-Sn-MDP administered intravenously have been measured in 27 normal subjects and 104 patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis, osteomalacia, primary hyperparathyroidism, Paget's disease, pagetoid metastases of prostatic cancer, osteolyses, chronic renal failure, and liver cirrhosis to quantitative the skeletal uptake of the radiopharmaceutical. Kinetic analysis of the data was performed in terms of a four-compartment model; correspondent rate constants and fitted values were estimated. In normal subjects the whole-body retention (WBR) up to 24 h was 33.3% +- 7.4 SD, whereas significantly more elevated values were observed in several pathological conditions, the highest values being ascertained in patients with pagetoid metastases, primary hyperparathyroidism, and chronic renal failure and whenever large osteoid seams were present. Differences were found between osteoporosis and osteomalacia, monostotic and polyostotic Paget's, pagetoid and osteolytic metastases of bone. (orig./AJ) [de

Measurement of cerebral blood flow with two-dimensional cine phase-contrast MR imaging. Evaluation of normal subjects and patients with vertigo

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Kashimada, Akio; Machida, Kikuo; Honda, Norinari; Mamiya, Toshio; Takahashi, Taku; Kamano, Tsuyoshi; Osada, Hisato [Saitama Medical School, Kawagoe (Japan). Saitama Medical Center

1995-03-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not the vertebral flow of patients with vertigo and normal brain magnetic resonance (MR) images was decreased in comparison with normal controls. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was quantitatively measured by a two-dimensional phase contrast cine MR imaging technique in 24 normal controls (mean age, 38.6 years; range, 12-70) and 23 patients (mean age, 53.7 years; range, 19-76) with a 1.5 Tesla MR imaging unit. Inter-and intraobserver variation in blood flow measurements was small (r=0.970, standard error of the estimate [SEE]=2.9 ml, n=80; r=0.963, SEE=4.6 ml, n=40, respectively), In the normal group, mean summed vertebral flow (171 ml/min, SD=40.6) was significantly less than mean summed carotid flow (523 ml/min, SD=111). Right vertebral flow (80.2 ml/min, SD=30.5) was less than left vertebral flow (91.2 ml/min, SD=38.2), but the difference was not statistically significant (p<0.05), In the 23 patients, although the summed vertebral flows of two patients (63.3, 88.8 ml/min) were significantly less than that of the normal group, mean summed vertebral flow (165 ml/min, SD=59.1) showed no significant difference from that of the normal group (p<0.05). In this study, the majority of patients had normal CBF. This method is clinically useful for estimating CBF. (author).

Measurement of cerebral blood flow with two-dimensional cine phase-contrast MR imaging. Evaluation of normal subjects and patients with vertigo

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kashimada, Akio; Machida, Kikuo; Honda, Norinari; Mamiya, Toshio; Takahashi, Taku; Kamano, Tsuyoshi; Osada, Hisato

1995-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not the vertebral flow of patients with vertigo and normal brain magnetic resonance (MR) images was decreased in comparison with normal controls. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was quantitatively measured by a two-dimensional phase contrast cine MR imaging technique in 24 normal controls (mean age, 38.6 years; range, 12-70) and 23 patients (mean age, 53.7 years; range, 19-76) with a 1.5 Tesla MR imaging unit. Inter-and intraobserver variation in blood flow measurements was small (r=0.970, standard error of the estimate [SEE]=2.9 ml, n=80; r=0.963, SEE=4.6 ml, n=40, respectively), In the normal group, mean summed vertebral flow (171 ml/min, SD=40.6) was significantly less than mean summed carotid flow (523 ml/min, SD=111). Right vertebral flow (80.2 ml/min, SD=30.5) was less than left vertebral flow (91.2 ml/min, SD=38.2), but the difference was not statistically significant (p<0.05), In the 23 patients, although the summed vertebral flows of two patients (63.3, 88.8 ml/min) were significantly less than that of the normal group, mean summed vertebral flow (165 ml/min, SD=59.1) showed no significant difference from that of the normal group (p<0.05). In this study, the majority of patients had normal CBF. This method is clinically useful for estimating CBF. (author)

Effect of physical activity on pulse wave velocity in elderly subjects with normal glucose, prediabetes or Type 2 Diabetes.

Science.gov (United States)

Metsämarttila, Erja; Rodilla, Enrique; Jokelainen, Jari; Herrala, Sauli; Leppäluoto, Juhani; Keinänen-Kiukaanniemi, Sirkka; Herzig, Karl-Heinz

2018-05-23

Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity ((cf)PWV) is a measure of arterial stiffness, predicting cardiovascular disease. We hypothesized that the amount of physical activity (PA) is correlated with reduced arterial stiffness in Type 2 diabetic (T2D) subjects. 570 subjects from the 1945 Oulu birth cohort were included in the analysis. (cf)PWV was determined by a non-invasive applanation tonometry. Oral glucose tolerance test was performed and LDL and HDL cholesterol analyzed. PA was registered daily with a wrist-worn acceleration meter for two weeks. (cf)PWV values in subjects with impaired glucose metabolism (IGM) and T2D were higher than in normal glycemic subjects (P < 0.001). PA, fasting and 2 h glucose and HbA1c correlated significantly with (cf)PWV, but HDL or LDL cholesterol did not. The 2 h glucose, heart rate and alcohol consumption in T2D subjects had independent effects on (cf)PWV in multiple regression analysis. T2D and IGM were significantly associated to (cf)PWV. Interestingly, lipids did not have an additional effect on (cf)PWV. Subjects walking more than 10 000 steps/day had 0.2 m/s lower (cf)PWV than those walking less than 6000 steps/day. Presence of T2D, elevated heart rate and alcohol consumption in males were associated with increased aortic stiffening in elderly subjects.

Study of the muscular metabolism using Phosphorus 31 Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (31P-MRS) in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batista, T.S.; Salmon, C.E.G.; Santos, A.C.

2008-01-01

Phosphorus 31 Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ( 31 P-MRS) is a powerful technique for evaluating human muscular metabolism. Some reports indicated the behavior of phosphorylated metabolites (PCr, ADP and Pi) and other indirect parameters (intracellular pH and [Mg 2+ ]) in muscles at rest and after an exercise load. The aim of this work is a quantitative study of the phosphorylated metabolite levels in the calf muscle of normal subjects at rest and post-exercise, in order to create a normal control database. 31 P spectra of seven volunteers were acquired in both conditions. Firstly, different quantification methodologies were evaluated to use the more reliable. The P Cr metabolite was the more stable at rest and it had mono-exponential behavior after exercise. The Pi was the more sensible indicator of the physical activities. The time constants of the recuperation process are report for all the evaluated metabolites and parameters. Finally, the temporal behavior of phospho monoesters was quantified. (author)

Serum Amino Acid Profiles in Normal Subjects and in Patients with or at Risk of Alzheimer Dementia.

Science.gov (United States)

Corso, Gaetano; Cristofano, Adriana; Sapere, Nadia; la Marca, Giancarlo; Angiolillo, Antonella; Vitale, Michela; Fratangelo, Roberto; Lombardi, Teresa; Porcile, Carola; Intrieri, Mariano; Di Costanzo, Alfonso

2017-01-01

Abnormalities in the plasma amino acid profile have been reported in Alzheimer disease (AD), but no data exist for the prodromal phase characterized by subjective memory complaint (SMC). It was our aim to understand if serum amino acid levels change along the continuum from normal to AD, and to identify possible diagnostic biomarkers. Serum levels of 15 amino acids and 2 organic acids were determined in 4 groups of participants - 29 with probable AD, 18 with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 24 with SMC, and 46 cognitively healthy subjects (HS) - by electrospray tandem mass spectrometry. Glutamate, aspartate, and phenylalanine progressively decreased, while citrulline, argi-ninosuccinate, and homocitrulline progressively increased, from HS over SMC and MCI to AD. The panel including these 6 amino acids and 4 ratios (glutamate/citrulline, citrulline/phenylalanine, leucine plus isoleucine/phenylalanine, and arginine/phenylalanine) discriminated AD from HS with about 96% accuracy. Other panels including 20 biomarkers discriminated SMC or MCI from AD or HS with an accuracy ranging from 88 to 75%. Amino acids contribute to a characteristic metabotype during the progression of AD along the continuum from health to frank dementia, and their monitoring in elderly individuals might help to detect at-risk subjects.

CT identification of bronchopulmonary segments: 50 normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osbourne, D.; Vock, P.; Godwin, J.D.; Silverman, P.M.

1984-01-01

A systematic evaluation of the fissures, segmental bronchi and arteries, bronchopulmonary segments, and peripheral pulmonary parenchyma was made from computed tomographic (CT) scans of 50 patients with normal chest radiographs. Seventy percent of the segmental bronchi and 76% of the segmental arteries were identified. Arteries could be traced to their sixth- and seventh-order branches; their orientation to the plane of the CT section allowed gross identification and localization of bronchopulmonary segments

Multifocal electroretinogram in normal emmetropic subjects: Correlation with optical coherence tomography

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Rajvardhan Azad

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Aim of the Study: To establish the normative database for multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG parameters in a normal emmetropic population. To correlate the data so obtained with the central macular thickness obtained using the optical coherence tomography (OCT scan. Materials and Methods: mfERG data were obtained from 222 eyes of 111 emmetropic subjects. The amplitude (nv/deg 2 and implicit times (ms of the first-order kernel mfERG responses (N1, P1, and N2 waves were obtained and grouped into five rings (Ring 1: Central 2°, Ring 2: 2-5°, Ring 3: 5-10°, Ring 4: 10-15°, Ring 5: >15°. The central macular thickness (CMT was obtained using the macular thickness scan protocol of the OCT. Results: The mfERG data obtained were used to create a normative database. The amplitudes of the mfERG waves were maximum in the fovea and progressively decreased with increasing eccentricity (P = 0.0001. The latencies of the P1 and N2 waves were longest in the central ring and progressively shortened with eccentricity (P = 0.0001. No statistically significant correlations were observed between central ring 1 parameters and the CMT. Conclusion: This study establishes normative database for mfERG parameters in an emmetropic population. No statistically significant correlation was noted between CMT and mfERG parameters.

Serum thyroglobulin in normal subjects and patients with hyperthyroidism due to Graves' disease: effects of T3, iodide, 131I and antithyroid drugs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gardner, D.F.; Rothman, J.; Utiger, R.D.

1979-01-01

A sensitive, reproducible radioimmunoassay for thyroglobulin (Tg) in unextracted human serum is described. The mean (+SD) serum thyroglobulin concentration in ninety-three normal subjects was 8.8 +- 5.1 ng/ml. The mean serum concentration in forty-seven patients with hyperthyroidism due to Graves' disease was 162 +- 145 ng/ml, and in nine patients with subacute thyroiditis 140 +- 75 ng/ml. In normal subjects, the effects of T3 and inorganic iodide on the levels of serum Tg and T4 were measured. In hyperthyroid (Graves' disease) patients, the effects of iodide, radioactive iodine and antithyroid drugs on serum Tg, T3 and T4 levels were measured. The data suggested that; (1) Tg release by the thyroid is normally under TSH control; (2) iodide inhibits thyroidal T4 and T3 release without affecting Tg secretion; (3) thyroidal injury results in marked increases in serum Tg concentrations; and (4) initial and/or serial Tg determinations may be useful in predicting remission in patients with hyperthyroidism due to Graves' disease treated with antithyroid drugs. (author)

Comparison of Biomedical Variables in PCOS Patients with Normal Iranian Women.

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Maryam Bagheri

2015-03-01

Full Text Available To compared serum CRP levels and biochemical relation in PCOS patients with normal Iranian women.This case-control study was performed on 52 individuals with PCOS (Rotterdam 2003 criteria. The cases were compared to 104 healthy non-PCOS, 20 to 35-year-old female subjects with no history of diabetes or renal diseases. Blood samples were taken on the 2(nd to the 5(th day of menstrual cycle for the evaluation of CRP levels, triglyceride, insulin, androstronedion, testestrone and total cholesterol.The mean CRP was 1.38 (± 0.43 mg /dl in the PCOS group, and 1.08 (± 0.49 mg /dl (p= 0.240 in control group.High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (HS-CRP was positively correlated with the Body Mass Index (BMI (r = 0.36, p= 0. 001. Before adjusting for age and BMI, CRP was correlated with LDL (r= 0.16, p= 0.03, total cholesterol (TC (r= 0.17, p= 0. 03, Triglycerid (TG (r= 0.23, p= 0.003, and the insulin (r= 0.20, p= 0. 01 notably in PCOS group. However, after adjustment was made for age and BMI, the correlation was attenuated in PCOS. The regression analyses depicted that CRP level was not under the influence of other medical parameters Conclusion:The results showed that mean CRP level was not significantly different between PCOs and normal women. After adjustment for age and BMI, CRP was not associated with any biochemical marker evaluated in this study. It seems that studied biochemical serum levels were mostly associated with obesity. So reduction of BMI may normalize the serum levels of CRP and other biochemical parameters.

Potentiation by caffeine of x-ray damage to cultured human skin fibroblasts from normal subjects and ataxia-telangiectasia patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Furcinitti, P.S.

1983-01-01

Caffeine was found to potentiate x-ray-induced killing of human diploid fibroblasts from a normal subject and an ataxia-telangiectasia (AT) patient when it was present at 2 mM concentration for 30 to 66 h postirradiation. The dose-modifying factor for caffeine-treated normal cells had an average value of 1.26 +- 0.13 which did not vary significantly with treatment time or x-ray dose. The dose-modifying factor for caffeine-treated AT cells was 1.12 +- 0.12 at 30 h, rose to 1.66 +- 0.17 at 41 h, and decreased to 1.31 +- 0.13 at 66 h. Thus no clear difference was observed between these two cell strains' susceptibility to postirradiation caffeine treatment

The comparison of quadriceps muscle strength between sprint runner and normal un-trained individuals (Determined by Kin-Com

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Talebian Moghaddam S "

2002-08-01

Full Text Available Introduction: It is suggested that quadriceps muscle has an important role in stability & mobility of Knee joint in athletics and normal individuals; therefore, the purpose of this study was evaluation of the strength in Power Athletics (PA and Normal Un-trained Individuals (NUI groups. Methods and Materials: 31 Females (20 NUI & 11 PA participated in this study. For measuring the strength, each individual performed 5 continuous concentric-eccentric maximal contraction at angular velocities of 90°/s, 135°/s. Twenty five percent of each individual (Maximum Voluntary Isometric Contraction MVIC was determined and used as Pre-load force. Results: Averages concentric & eccentric torques were greater in PA group in comparison with NUI group. The significant difference (P<0.02 existed between PA and NUI groups. Average concentric torques of quadriceps muscle decreased (with increasing of speed from 90°/s to 135°/s and average eccentric torques increased. Average eccentric torques were greater (P<0.01 in PA & NUI groups in comparison with average concentric torques. Conclusion: PA group strength was greater in comparison with NUI group. This is possibly due to the type of muscle fibers in this group have (greater type II fibers. Accordingly, it is critical to consider the role of eccentric exercise in PA group for preventing sport injury.

Frontopolar and anterior temporal cortex activation in a moral judgment task. Preliminary functional MRI results in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moll, Jorge; Oliveira-Souza, Ricardo de

2001-01-01

The objective was to study the brain areas which are activated when normal subjects make moral judgments. Ten normal adults underwent BOLD functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during the auditory presentation of sentences that they were instructed to silently judge as either 'right' or 'wrong'. Half of the sentences had an explicit moral content ('We break the law when necessary'), the other half comprised factual statements devoid of moral connotation ('Stones are made of water'). After scanning, each subject rated the moral content, emotional valence, and judgment difficulty of each sentence on Likert-like scales. To exclude the effect of emotion on the activation results, individual responses were hemo dynamically modeled for event-related f MRI analysis. The general linear model was used to evaluate the brain areas activated by moral judgment. Regions activated during moral judgment included the frontopolar cortex (FPC), medial frontal gyrus, right anterior temporal cortex, lenticular nucleus, and cerebellum. Activation of FPC and medial frontal gyrus (B A 10/46 and 9) were largely independent of emotional experience and represented the largest areas of activation. These results concur with clinical observations assigning a critical role for the frontal poles and right anterior temporal cortex in the mediation of complex judgment processes according to moral constraints. The FPC may work in concert with the orbitofrontal and dorsolateral cortex in the regulation of human social conduct. (author)

Establishing the proteome of normal human cerebrospinal fluid.

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Steven E Schutzer

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Knowledge of the entire protein content, the proteome, of normal human cerebrospinal fluid (CSF would enable insights into neurologic and psychiatric disorders. Until now technologic hurdles and access to true normal samples hindered attaining this goal.We applied immunoaffinity separation and high sensitivity and resolution liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to examine CSF from healthy normal individuals. 2630 proteins in CSF from normal subjects were identified, of which 56% were CSF-specific, not found in the much larger set of 3654 proteins we have identified in plasma. We also examined CSF from groups of subjects previously examined by others as surrogates for normals where neurologic symptoms warranted a lumbar puncture but where clinical laboratory were reported as normal. We found statistically significant differences between their CSF proteins and our non-neurological normals. We also examined CSF from 10 volunteer subjects who had lumbar punctures at least 4 weeks apart and found that there was little variability in CSF proteins in an individual as compared to subject to subject.Our results represent the most comprehensive characterization of true normal CSF to date. This normal CSF proteome establishes a comparative standard and basis for investigations into a variety of diseases with neurological and psychiatric features.

The value of MR perfusion weighted imaging in normal and abnormal kidneys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi Hao; Ding Hongyu; Duan Ruiping; Sun Yongping; Xing Yiyong

2008-01-01

Objective: To explore the characteristics and the clinical application of MR perfusion weighted imaging (PWI) in the normal kidneys and the renal diseases. Methods: Thirty-one subjects including 9 cases without urinary diseases, 14 cases with renal carcinoma, 6 cases with renal cyst and 2 cases with renal tuberculosis who had been examined with T 1 WI, T 2 WI and PWI were analyzed retrospectively. All the data were processed by a workstation to obtain time-signal intensity curves, color perfusion maps and relative perfusion value. The relative renal blood volume (RBV), relative renal blood flow (RBF), mean transition time (MTY) and the time to peak (TTP) in the normal renal cortex and medulla and the renal lesions were calculated. Comparisons between the right and the left normal kidneys, and between the cortex and the medulla of the normal kidneys were performed using t test, and comparisons between the normal and the abnormal kidneys were performed using q test. Results: Relative RBV and relative RBF of the cortex were 1.33±0.08 and 1.44±0.09 respectively, and for medulla were 0.58± 0.05 and 0.78±0.13 respectively (t=9.2241 and 5.0336, P 0.05). The values of relative RBF of the renal carcinoma (1.35±0.34) were significantly higher than that of the normal tissues (1.02±0.06) (q=3.0882, P< 0.01). Conclusion: PWI is able to demonstrate the hemodynamic change of the normal renal tissues and the renal lesions, and it maybe an ideal method for showing the functional changes of the kidney and for differentiating the renal diseases. (authors)

Measurement of intestinal progression of a meal and its residues in normal subjects and patients with functional diarrhoea by a dual isotope technique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jian, R; Najean, Y; Bernier, J J [Hopital Saint-Lazare, 75 - Paris (France). Service de Medecine; Hopital Saint-Louis, 75 - Paris (France))

1984-07-01

A new double isotopic method was used to measure the gastrointestinal progression of a meal in nine healthy subjects and seven patients with functional diarrhoea. 51 Chromium chloride (colonic marker) was ingested eight hours before the beginning of the scintigraphic study so that it was by then located in the colon at that time. A second marker, 99m Technetium sulphur colloid labelled the meal. Scintigraphic images were taken before and after the meal for two hours, detecting simultaneously the two isotopes. In the 51Cr window right colon was localised and intracolonic propulsion was studied; and in the 99m Tc window gastric emptying and colon filling of the meal marker was quantified. A propulsive gastrocolic reflex was evidenced in five of the seven patients with functional diarrhoea but in none of the normal subjects. Unabsorbed residues of the meal are propelled rapidly in the ileocaecal region. Small intestinal transit of the meal marker was twice as rapid in patients with functional diarrhoea as in normal subjects.

Comparison of Normalized and Unnormalized Single Cell and Population Assemblies (MICW - Metagenomics Informatics Challenges Workshop: 10K Genomes at a Time)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hugenholtz, Phil

2011-10-12

University of Queensland's Phil Hugenholtz on "Comparison of Normalized and Unnormalized Single Cell and Population Assemblies" at the Metagenomics Informatics Challenges Workshop held at the DOE JGI on October 12-13, 2011.

The cerebral functional location in normal subjects when they listened to a story in unfamiliar Japanese

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Da; Xu Wei; Zhang Hongwei; Liu Hongbiao; Liu Qichang

2004-01-01

Purpose: To detect the cerebral functional location when normal subjects listened to a story in unfamiliar Japanese. Methods: 7 normal young students of the medical collage of Zhejiang University, 22-24 years old, 4 male and 3 female. The first they underwent a 99mTc-ECD brain imaging at rest using a dual-head gamma camera with fan beam collimators. After 2-4 days they were asked to listen a story in unfamiliar Japanese carefully on a tap for 20 minters. 99mTc-ECD was administered in the first 3 minutes during they listened the story. The brain imaging was performed in 30-60 minutes after the tracer was administered. Results: To compare the rest state, during listen to the story in unfamiliar Japanese the right superior temporal in 5 cases, left superior temporal in 2 cases, right inferior temporal in 2 cases, and left inferior temporal in 1 case were activated. Among them, dual temporal were activated in 2 cases, only right temporal in 4 cases and left temporal in 1 case. Although they were no asked to remember the plot of the story, the frontal lobes were activated lightly in all 9 subjects. Among them dual inferior frontal and/or medial frontal lobes (3 cases), right inferior frontal and/or medial frontal lobes (2 cases), left inferior frontal (5 cases), right inferior frontal (1 case), right superior frontal (3 cases) were activated. The were activated in 6 subjects, and dual occipital in 5 cases, left occipital in 1 case. Other regions that were activated included parietal lobes (right in 2 cases and left in 1 case), and left occipital lobes (in 1 case) were activated. Conclusion: During listened to the story in unfamiliar Japanese the auditory association cortex in the superior temporal and some right midtemporal (it is more in right than in left) were activated. The frontal lobes were activated widely too, and mainly in left inferior frontal lobes (Broca's area), and in the frontal eye fields and the superolateral prefrontal cortex. It is consistent with the

Subcutaneous blood flow during insulin-induced hypoglycaemia: studies in juvenile diabetics with and without autonomic neuropathy and in normal subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hilsted, J; Madsbad, S; Sestoft, L

1982-08-01

Subcutaneous blood flow was measured preceding insulin-induced hypoglycaemia, at the onset of hypoglycaemic symptoms and 2 h later in juvenile diabetics with and without autonomic neuropathy and in normal males. In all groups subcutaneous blood flow decreased at the onset of hypoglycaemic symptoms compared with pre-hypoglycaemic flow. Two hours after onset of hypoglycaemic symptoms, subcutaneous blood flow was still significantly decreased compared with pre-hypoglycaemic flow. In normal subjects local nerve blockade had no effect on blood flow changes during hypoglycaemia, whereas local alpha-receptor blockade abolished the vasoconstrictor response. We suggest that circulating catecholamines stimulating vascular alpha-receptors are probably responsible for flow reduction in the subcutaneous tissue during hypoglycaemia.

The effect of glutamine administration on urinary ammonium excretion in normal subjects and patients with renal disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Welbourne, T; Weber, M; Bank, N

1972-07-01

The effect of acute changes in the delivery rate of glutamine to the kidney on urinary ammonium excretion was studied in man. Healthy subjects and patients with intrinsic renal disease were studied under three different acid-base conditions: unaltered acid-base balance; NH(4)Cl-induced acidosis; and NaHCO(3)-induced alkalosis. Anhydrous L-glutamine was administered orally in a single dose of 260 mmoles during each of these three acid-base states. We found that endogenous venous plasma glutamine concentration fell during acidosis and rose during alkalosis in both healthy subjects and patients with renal disease. In healthy subjects, orally administered glutamine raised plasma glutamine concentration markedly over a 2-3 hr period. This was accompanied by an increase in urinary ammonium excretion and a rise in urine pH under normal acid-base conditions and during metabolic acidosis. No increase in ammonium excretion occurred when glutamine was administered during metabolic alkalosis in spite of an equivalent rise in plasma glutamine concentration. In patients with renal disease, endogenous venous plasma glutamine concentration was lower than in healthy subjects, perhaps as a result of mild metabolic acidosis. Acute oral glutamine loading failed to increase urinary ammonium excretion significantly during either unaltered acid-base conditions or after NH(4)Cl-induced acidosis, even though plasma glutamine rose as high as in healthy subjects. We conclude from these observations that glutamine delivery to the kidney is a rate-limiting factor for ammonium excretion in healthy subjects, both before and after cellular enzyme adaptation induced by metabolic acidosis. In contrast, in patients with renal disease, glutamine delivery is not rate-limiting for ammonium excretion. Presumably other factors, such as surviving renal mass and the activity of intracellular enzymes necessary for ammonia synthesis limit ammonium excretion in these patients.

Normative values for CT-based texture analysis of vertebral bodies in dual X-ray absorptiometry-confirmed, normally mineralized subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mannil, Manoj; Eberhard, Matthias; Becker, Anton S.; Alkadhi, Hatem; Guggenberger, Roman; Schoenenberg, Denise; Osterhoff, Georg; Frey, Diana P.; Konukoglu, Ender

2017-01-01

To develop age-, gender-, and regional-specific normative values for texture analysis (TA) of spinal computed tomography (CT) in subjects with normal bone mineral density (BMD), as defined by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and to determine age-, gender-, and regional-specific differences. In this retrospective, IRB-approved study, TA was performed on sagittal CT bone images of the thoracic and lumbar spine using dedicated software (MaZda) in 141 individuals with normal DXA BMD findings. Numbers of female and male subjects were balanced in each of six age decades. Three hundred and five TA features were analyzed in thoracic and lumbar vertebrae using free-hand regions-of-interest. Intraclass correlation (ICC) coefficients were calculated for determining intra- and inter-observer agreement of each feature. Further dimension reduction was performed with correlation analyses. The TA features with an ICC 0.8 with other features were excluded from further analysis for dimension reduction. From the remaining 31 texture features, a significant correlation with age was found for the features mean (r = -0.489, p < 0.001), variance (r = -0.681, p < 0.001), kurtosis (r = 0.273, p < 0.001), and WavEnLL_s4 (r = 0.273, p < 0.001). Significant differences were found between genders for various higher-level texture features (p < 0.001). Regional differences among the thoracic spine, thoracic-lumbar junction, and lumbar spine were found for most TA features (p < 0.021). This study established normative values of TA features on CT images of the spine and showed age-, gender-, and regional-specific differences in individuals with normal BMD as defined by DXA. (orig.)

Effect of chloroquine on insulin and glucose homoeostasis in normal subjects and patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

OpenAIRE

Smith, G D; Amos, T A; Mahler, R; Peters, T J

1987-01-01

Plasma glucose, insulin, and C peptide concentrations were determined after an oral glucose load in normal subjects and in a group of patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus before and during a short course of treatment with chloroquine. In the control group there was a small but significant reduction in fasting blood glucose concentration but overall glucose tolerance and hormone concentrations were unaffected. In contrast, the patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes melli...

Studies in radioaerosol lung scanning in urban health survey subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doshi, V.B.; Gregat, I.K.; Kamat, S.R.; Papewar, V.N.; Raikar, U.R.; Sharma, S.M.; Ganatra, R.D.

1984-01-01

As a part of health survey in relation to air pollution, 16 smokers(11 from 'high' and 5 from 'low' zone) were studied with extensive serial lung functions, chest radiography and radioaerosol lung scanning. The clinical diagnosis were chronic bronchitis(COPD) in 9 subjects; but others (4 'High' and 3 'Low') were considered normal. The values of FVC, FEV were normal in most of these three groups, but FEV 1 /FVC percent values were lower in subjects from 'high' zone.The functional declines were higher in normals of 'high' zone. Radioaerosol (ventilation) scans (with technetium 99 ) showed a normal picture in 2 COPD and 3 normal subjects; in 3 COPD and 1 normal subjects the abnormalities were definite. For perfusion scans, 2 COPD and 3 normal subjects showed a normal pattern while definite abnormalities were seen in 1 COPD and 1 normal subjects. Lung scans may pick up abnormalities in normal smokers at an early stage. (author)

Clinical evaluation of Tc-99m-mebrofenin and comparison with Tc-disofenin for radionuclide hepatobiliary imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klingensmith, W. III; Fritzberg, A.; Spitzer, V.

1982-01-01

The clinical comparison reported indicates that Tc-mebrofenin has a significantly lower level of renal excretion that Tc-disofenin at all bilirubin levels. At a total bilirubin level of 25 mg/dl the renal excretion of Tc-mebrofenin is still less than the renal excretion of Tc-disofenin in subjects with normal bilirubin levels. In addition, renal radioactivity in images was never seen in subjects with normal bilirubins while visualization of renal radioactivity is routine in normal subjects with Tc-disofenin. No significant differences were found in any other parameter including hepatocyte extraction efficiency, time of maximum hepatic radioactivity, and hepatic parenchymal washout. This study indicates that Tc-mebrofenin is equal to Tc-disofenin in its hepatobiliary characteristics and superior in its renal characteristics

Empirical Power Comparison Of Goodness of Fit Tests for Normality In The Presence of Outliers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saculinggan, Mayette; Balase, Emily Amor

2013-01-01

Most statistical tests such as t-tests, linear regression analysis and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) require the normality assumptions. When the normality assumption is violated, interpretation and inferences may not be reliable. Therefore it is important to assess such assumption before using any appropriate statistical test. One of the commonly used procedures in determining whether a random sample of size n comes from a normal population are the goodness-of-fit tests for normality. Several studies have already been conducted on the comparison of the different goodness-of-fit(see, for example [2]) but it is generally limited to the sample size or to the number of GOF tests being compared(see, for example [2] [5] [6] [7] [8]). This paper compares the power of six formal tests of normality: Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (see [3]), Anderson-Darling test, Shapiro-Wilk test, Lilliefors test, Chi-Square test (see [1]) and D'Agostino-Pearson test. Small, moderate and large sample sizes and various contamination levels were used to obtain the power of each test via Monte Carlo simulation. Ten thousand samples of each sample size and contamination level at a fixed type I error rate α were generated from the given alternative distribution. The power of each test was then obtained by comparing the normality test statistics with the respective critical values. Results show that the power of all six tests is low for small sample size(see, for example [2]). But for n = 20, the Shapiro-Wilk test and Anderson – Darling test have achieved high power. For n = 60, Shapiro-Wilk test and Liliefors test are most powerful. For large sample size, Shapiro-Wilk test is most powerful (see, for example [5]). However, the test that achieves the highest power under all conditions for large sample size is D'Agostino-Pearson test (see, for example [9]).

Right ventricular ejection fraction during exercise in normal subjects and in coronary artery disease patients: assessment by multiple-gated equilibrium scintigraphy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maddahi, J.; Berman, D.S.; Matsuoka, D.T.; Waxman, A.D.; Forrester, J.S.; Swan, H.J.C.

1980-01-01

The response of right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) during exercise and its relationship to the location and extent of coronary artery disease are not fully understood. We have recently developed and validated a new method for scintigraphic evaluation of RVEF using rapid multiple-gated equilibrium scintigraphy and multiple right ventricular regions of interest. The technique has been applied during upright bicycle exercise in 10 normal subjects and 20 patients with coronary artery disease. Resting RVEF was not significantly different between the groups (0.49 +- 0.04 vs 0.47 +- 0.09, respectively, mean +- SD). In all 10 normal subjects RVEF rose (0.49 +- 0.04 to 0.66 +- 0.08, p < 0.01) at peak exercise. At peak exercise in coronary artery disease patients, the group RVEF remained unchanged (0.47 +- 0.09 to 0.50 +- 0.11, p = NS), but the individual responses varied. In the coronary artery disease patients, the relationship between RVEF response to exercise and exercise left ventricular function, septal motion and right coronary artery stenosis were studied. Significant statistical association was found only between exercise RVEF and right coronary artery stenosis. RVEF rose during exercise in seven of seven patients without right coronary artery stenosis (0.42 +- 0.06 to 0.58 +- 0.08, p = 0.001) and was unchanged or fell in 12 of 13 patients with right coronary artery stenosis (0.50 +- 0.09 to 0.45 +- 0.10, p = NS). We conclude that (1) in normal subjects RVEF increases during upright exercise and (2) although RVEF at rest is not necessarily affected by coronary artery disease, failure of RVEF to increase during exercise, in the absence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or valvular heart disease, may be related to the presence of significant right coronary artery stenosis

Right ventricular ejection fraction during exercise in normal subjects and in coronary artery disease patients: assessment by multiple-gated equilibrium scintigraphy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maddahi, J.; Berman, D.S.; Matsuoka, D.T.; Waxman, A.D.; Forrester, J.S.; Swan, H.J.C.

1980-07-01

The response of right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) during exercise and its relationship to the location and extent of coronary artery disease are not fully understood. We have recently developed and validated a new method for scintigraphic evaluation of RVEF using rapid multiple-gated equilibrium scintigraphy and multiple right ventricular regions of interest. The technique has been applied during upright bicycle exercise in 10 normal subjects and 20 patients with coronary artery disease. Resting RVEF was not significantly different between the groups (0.49 +- 0.04 vs 0.47 +- 0.09, respectively, mean +- SD). In all 10 normal subjects RVEF rose (0.49 +- 0.04 to 0.66 +- 0.08, p < 0.01) at peak exercise. At peak exercise in coronary artery disease patients, the group RVEF remained unchanged (0.47 +- 0.09 to 0.50 +- 0.11, p = NS), but the individual responses varied. In the coronary artery disease patients, the relationship between RVEF response to exercise and exercise left ventricular function, septal motion and right coronary artery stenosis were studied. Significant statistical association was found only between exercise RVEF and right coronary artery stenosis. RVEF rose during exercise in seven of seven patients without right coronary artery stenosis (0.42 +- 0.06 to 0.58 +- 0.08, p = 0.001) and was unchanged or fell in 12 of 13 patients with right coronary artery stenosis (0.50 +- 0.09 to 0.45 +- 0.10, p = NS). We conclude that (1) in normal subjects RVEF increases during upright exercise and (2) although RVEF at rest is not necessarily affected by coronary artery disease, failure of RVEF to increase during exercise, in the absence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or valvular heart disease, may be related to the presence of significant right coronary artery stenosis.

Comparison of Mechanical Properties of Lightweight and Normal Weight Concretes Reinforced with Steel Fibers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Ali

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Compared to conventional concrete, lightweight concrete is more brittle in nature however, in many situations its application is advantageous due to its lower weight. The associated brittleness issue can be, to some extent, addressed by incorporation of discrete fibers. It is now established that fibers modify some fresh and hardened concrete properties. However, evaluation of those properties for lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete (LWFC against conventional/normal weight concrete of similar strength class has not been done before. Current study not only discusses the change in these properties for lightweight concrete after the addition of steel fibers, but also presents a comparison of these properties with conventional concrete with and without fibers. Both the lightweight and conventional concrete were reinforced with similar types and quantity of fibers. Hooked end steel fibers were added in the quantities of 0, 20, 40 and 60kg/m3. For similar compressive strength class, results indicate that compared to normal weight fiber-reinforced concrete (NWFC, lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete (LWFC has better fresh concrete properties, but performs poorly when tested for hardened concrete properties.

Frontopolar and anterior temporal cortex activation in a moral judgment task. Preliminary functional MRI results in normal subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moll, Jorge [LABS and Rede D' Or Hospitais, Rio de Janeiro RJ (Brazil). Grupo de Neuroimagem e Neurologia do Comportamento; Eslinger, Paul J. [Pensylvania State Univ. (United States). College of Medicine. Div. of Neurology and Behavioral Science; The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PN (United States); Oliveira-Souza, Ricardo de [Universidade do Rio de Janeiro (UNI-Rio), RJ (Brazil). Hospital Universitario Gaffree e Guinle]. E-mail: neuropsychiatry@hotmail.com

2001-09-01

The objective was to study the brain areas which are activated when normal subjects make moral judgments. Ten normal adults underwent BOLD functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during the auditory presentation of sentences that they were instructed to silently judge as either 'right' or 'wrong'. Half of the sentences had an explicit moral content ('We break the law when necessary'), the other half comprised factual statements devoid of moral connotation ('Stones are made of water'). After scanning, each subject rated the moral content, emotional valence, and judgment difficulty of each sentence on Likert-like scales. To exclude the effect of emotion on the activation results, individual responses were hemo dynamically modeled for event-related f MRI analysis. The general linear model was used to evaluate the brain areas activated by moral judgment. Regions activated during moral judgment included the frontopolar cortex (FPC), medial frontal gyrus, right anterior temporal cortex, lenticular nucleus, and cerebellum. Activation of FPC and medial frontal gyrus (B A 10/46 and 9) were largely independent of emotional experience and represented the largest areas of activation. These results concur with clinical observations assigning a critical role for the frontal poles and right anterior temporal cortex in the mediation of complex judgment processes according to moral constraints. The FPC may work in concert with the orbitofrontal and dorsolateral cortex in the regulation of human social conduct. (author)

Influence of chronic neck pain on cervical joint position error (JPE): Comparison between young and elderly subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Alahmari, Khalid A; Reddy, Ravi Shankar; Silvian, Paul; Ahmad, Irshad; Nagaraj, Venkat; Mahtab, Mohammad

2017-11-06

Evaluation of cervical joint position sense in subjects with chronic neck pain has gained importance in recent times. Different authors have established increased joint position error (JPE) in subjects with acute neck pain. However, there is a paucity of studies to establish the influence of chronic neck pain on cervical JPE. The objective of the study was to understand the influence of chronic neck pain on cervical JPE, and to examine the differences in cervical JPE between young and elderly subjects with chronic neck pain. Forty-two chronic neck pain patients (mean age 47.4) were compared for cervical JPE with 42 age-matched healthy subjects (mean age 47.8), using a digital inclinometer. The cervical JPE were measured in flexion, extension, and rotation in right and left movement directions. The comparison of JPE showed significantly larger errors in subjects with chronic neck pain when compared to healthy subjects (ppain revealed no significant differences (P> 0.05) in cervical JPE. Cervical joint position sense is impaired in subjects with chronic neck pain.

Plasma clearance of noradrenaline does not change with age in normal subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hilsted, J; Christensen, N J; Larsen, S

1985-01-01

Noradrenaline kinetics (plasma concentrations, plasma clearance and appearance rates) were investigated in seven elderly healthy subjects and in six young healthy subjects. Forearm venous plasma noradrenaline concentrations were higher in the elderly subjects compared with the young subjects. Pla....... Plasma clearance of noradrenaline was identical in the two groups. The increase in plasma noradrenaline concentration, with age, probably reflects an increased sympathetic nervous activity.......Noradrenaline kinetics (plasma concentrations, plasma clearance and appearance rates) were investigated in seven elderly healthy subjects and in six young healthy subjects. Forearm venous plasma noradrenaline concentrations were higher in the elderly subjects compared with the young subjects...

The relationship of normal body temperature, end-expired breath temperature, and BAC/BrAC ratio in 98 physically fit human test subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Cowan, J Mack; Burris, James M; Hughes, James R; Cunningham, Margaret P

2010-06-01

The relationship between normal body temperature, end-expired breath temperature, and blood alcohol concentration (BAC)/breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) ratio was studied in 98 subjects (84 men, 14 women). Subjects consumed alcohol sufficient to produce a BrAC of at least 0.06 g/210 L 45-75 min after drinking. Breath samples were analyzed using an Intoxilyzer 8000 specially equipped to measure breath temperature. Venous blood samples and body temperatures were then taken. The mean body temperature of the men (36.6 degrees C) was lower than the women (37.0 degrees C); however, their mean breath temperatures were virtually identical (men: 34.5 degrees C; women: 34.6 degrees C). The BAC exceeded the BrAC for every subject. BAC/BrAC ratios were calculated from the BAC and BrAC analytical results. There was no difference in the BAC/BrAC ratios for men (1:2379) and women (1:2385). The correlation between BAC and BrAC was high (r = 0.938, p body temperature and end-expired breath temperature, body temperature and BAC/BrAC ratio, and breath temperature and BAC/BrAC ratio were much lower. Neither normal body temperature nor end-expired breath temperature was strongly associated with BAC/BrAC ratio.

Deep pain thresholds in the distal limbs of healthy human subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Rolke, R; Andrews Campbell, K; Magerl, W; Treede, R-D

2005-02-01

Pressure pain thresholds (PPTs) in distal limbs have been under-investigated despite their potential clinical importance. Therefore, we compared PPTs over nail bed, bony prominences, and muscle in distal parts of upper and lower limbs. We investigated 12 healthy subjects using three handheld devices: a spring-loaded, analogue pressure threshold meter (PTM) with two operating ranges, and an electronic Algometer. PPTs were determined with three series of ascending stimulus intensities with a ramp of about 50 kPa/s. PPTs were normally distributed in logarithmic space. PPTs over different tissues varied significantly (ANOVA, pAlgometer than with PTMs (ANOVA, ptesting over muscle. There was no significant right-left difference (ANOVA, p=0.33). In spite of considerable variability across subjects, reproducibility within subjects was high (correlation coefficients>0.90). For within-subject comparisons, threshold elevations beyond 33-43% would be abnormal (95% confidence intervals), whereas only deviations from the group mean by at least a factor of two would be abnormal with respect to absolute normative values. PPTs over distal muscles were comparable to published values on proximal limb and trunk muscles. These findings suggest that pressure pain testing over distal muscles may be a sensitive test for deep pain sensitivity and that the simple and less expensive devices are sufficient for testing this tissue type. Intra-individual site-to-site comparisons will be more sensitive than absolute normative values.

High-density lipoprotein apolipoproteins in urine: I. Characterization in normal subjects and in patients with proteinuria.

Science.gov (United States)

Gomo, Z A; Henderson, L O; Myrick, J E

1988-09-01

A high-resolution two-dimensional electrophoretic method for protein, with silver staining, has been used to characterize and identify urinary high-density-lipoprotein apolipoproteins (HDL-Apos) and their isoforms in healthy subjects and in patients with kidney disease. Analytical techniques based on both molecular mass and ultracentrifugal flotation properties were used to isolate urinary lipoprotein particles with characteristics identical to those of HDL in plasma. HDL-Apos identified in urine of normal subjects and patients with glomerular proteinuria were Apos A-I, A-II, and C. Five isoforms of Apo A-I were present. Immunostaining of electroblotted proteins further confirmed the presence of HDL-Apos in urine. Creatinine clearance rate was decreased in the patients with proteinuria, and ranged from 32.5 to 40 mL/min. Concentrations of cholesterol and triglycerides in serum were greater in the patients' group, whereas mean HDL-cholesterol (0.68, SD 0.10 mmol/L) and Apo A-I (0.953, SD 0.095 g/L) were significantly (each P less than 0.01) lower. Results of this study suggest that measurement of urinary Apo A-I will reflect excretion of HDL in urine.

Effects of Propranolol on the Left Ventricular Volume of Normal Subjects During CT Coronary Angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mo, Yuan Heng; Jaw, Fu Shan; Wang, Yung Cheng; Jeng, Chin Ming; Peng, Shinn Forng

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of propranolol on the left ventricular (LV) volume during CT coronary angiography. The LV volume of 252 normal Chinese subjects (126 subjects with propranolol medication and 126 age- and gender-matched Chinese subjects without medication) was estimated using 64 slices multi-detector CT (MDCT). The heart rate difference was analyzed by the logistic linear regression model with variables that included gender, age, body height, body weight, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and the dosage of propranolol. The following global LV functional parameters were calculated: the real-end diastolic volume (EDV), the real-end systolic volume (ESV) and the real-ejection fraction (EF). The female subjects had a greater decrease of heart rate after taking propranolol. The difference of heart rate was negatively correlated with the dosage of propranolol. The real-EDV, the real-ESV and the real-EF ranged from 48.1 to 109 mL/m2, 6.1 to 57.1 mL/m2 and 41% to 88%, respectively. There was no significant difference in the SBP and DBP between the groups without and with propranolol medication (123 ± 17 and 80 ± 10 mmHg; 120 ± 14 and 80 ± 11 mmHg, respectively). The real-EDV showed no significant difference between these two groups, but the real-ESV and real-EF showed significant differences between these two groups (69.4 ± 9.3 and 70.6 ± 8.9 mL/m2; 23.5 ± 5.7 and 25.6 ± 3.7 mL/m2, 66.5 ± 5.1% and 63.5 ± 4.6%, respectively). The difference of heart rate is significantly influenced by gender and the dosage of propranolol. Propranolol will also increase the ESV, which contributes to a decreased EF, while the SBP, DBP and EDV are not statistically changed.

Neural circuits of eye movements during performance of the visual exploration task, which is similar to the responsive search score task, in schizophrenia patients and normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nemoto, Yasundo; Matsuda, Tetsuya; Matsuura, Masato

2004-01-01

Abnormal exploratory eye movements have been studied as a biological marker for schizophrenia. Using functional MRI (fMRI), we investigated brain activations of 12 healthy and 8 schizophrenic subjects during performance of a visual exploration task that is similar to the responsive search score task to clarify the neural basis of the abnormal exploratory eye movement. Performance data, such as the number of eye movements, the reaction time, and the percentage of correct answers showed no significant differences between the two groups. Only the normal subjects showed activations at the bilateral thalamus and the left anterior medial frontal cortex during the visual exploration tasks. In contrast, only the schizophrenic subjects showed activations at the right anterior cingulate gyms during the same tasks. The activation at the different locations between the two groups, the left anterior medial frontal cortex in normal subjects and the right anterior cingulate gyrus in schizophrenia subjects, was explained by the feature of the visual tasks. Hypoactivation at the bilateral thalamus supports a dysfunctional filtering theory of schizophrenia. (author)

Normative values for CT-based texture analysis of vertebral bodies in dual X-ray absorptiometry-confirmed, normally mineralized subjects

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Mannil, Manoj; Eberhard, Matthias; Becker, Anton S.; Alkadhi, Hatem; Guggenberger, Roman [University Hospital Zurich, Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Zurich (Switzerland); Schoenenberg, Denise; Osterhoff, Georg [University Hospital Zurich, Division of Trauma Surgery, Zurich (Switzerland); Frey, Diana P. [University Hospital Zurich, Department of Rheumatology, Zurich (Switzerland); Konukoglu, Ender [Computer Vision Laboratory, Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, Zurich (Switzerland)

2017-11-15

To develop age-, gender-, and regional-specific normative values for texture analysis (TA) of spinal computed tomography (CT) in subjects with normal bone mineral density (BMD), as defined by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and to determine age-, gender-, and regional-specific differences. In this retrospective, IRB-approved study, TA was performed on sagittal CT bone images of the thoracic and lumbar spine using dedicated software (MaZda) in 141 individuals with normal DXA BMD findings. Numbers of female and male subjects were balanced in each of six age decades. Three hundred and five TA features were analyzed in thoracic and lumbar vertebrae using free-hand regions-of-interest. Intraclass correlation (ICC) coefficients were calculated for determining intra- and inter-observer agreement of each feature. Further dimension reduction was performed with correlation analyses. The TA features with an ICC < 0.81 indicating compromised intra- and inter-observer agreement and with Pearson correlation scores r > 0.8 with other features were excluded from further analysis for dimension reduction. From the remaining 31 texture features, a significant correlation with age was found for the features mean (r = -0.489, p < 0.001), variance (r = -0.681, p < 0.001), kurtosis (r = 0.273, p < 0.001), and WavEnLL{sub s}4 (r = 0.273, p < 0.001). Significant differences were found between genders for various higher-level texture features (p < 0.001). Regional differences among the thoracic spine, thoracic-lumbar junction, and lumbar spine were found for most TA features (p < 0.021). This study established normative values of TA features on CT images of the spine and showed age-, gender-, and regional-specific differences in individuals with normal BMD as defined by DXA. (orig.)

Normative values for CT-based texture analysis of vertebral bodies in dual X-ray absorptiometry-confirmed, normally mineralized subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Mannil, Manoj; Eberhard, Matthias; Becker, Anton S; Schönenberg, Denise; Osterhoff, Georg; Frey, Diana P; Konukoglu, Ender; Alkadhi, Hatem; Guggenberger, Roman

2017-11-01

To develop age-, gender-, and regional-specific normative values for texture analysis (TA) of spinal computed tomography (CT) in subjects with normal bone mineral density (BMD), as defined by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and to determine age-, gender-, and regional-specific differences. In this retrospective, IRB-approved study, TA was performed on sagittal CT bone images of the thoracic and lumbar spine using dedicated software (MaZda) in 141 individuals with normal DXA BMD findings. Numbers of female and male subjects were balanced in each of six age decades. Three hundred and five TA features were analyzed in thoracic and lumbar vertebrae using free-hand regions-of-interest. Intraclass correlation (ICC) coefficients were calculated for determining intra- and inter-observer agreement of each feature. Further dimension reduction was performed with correlation analyses. The TA features with an ICC  0.8 with other features were excluded from further analysis for dimension reduction. From the remaining 31 texture features, a significant correlation with age was found for the features mean (r = -0.489, p < 0.001), variance (r = -0.681, p < 0.001), kurtosis (r = 0.273, p < 0.001), and WavEnLL_s4 (r = 0.273, p < 0.001). Significant differences were found between genders for various higher-level texture features (p < 0.001). Regional differences among the thoracic spine, thoracic-lumbar junction, and lumbar spine were found for most TA features (p < 0.021). This study established normative values of TA features on CT images of the spine and showed age-, gender-, and regional-specific differences in individuals with normal BMD as defined by DXA.

Comparison of performance coatings thermally sprayed subject to testing adhesive wear

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marangoni, G.F.; Arnt, A.B.C.; Rocha, M.R. da

2014-01-01

In this work, the microstructural changes and wear resistance adhesive coatings obtained from powders thermally sprayed by high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) were evaluated. Based coatings chrome-nickel and tungsten-cobalt are applied in conditions subject to intense wear especially abrasive. With the aim of evaluate the performance of these coatings under conditions of adhesive wear, these coatings samples were tested by the standard ASTM G99. As test parameters were used: Tungsten carbide pin (SAE 52100) with 6 mm diameter, normal load of 50N and a tangential velocity of 0.5 m / s. The worn surfaces of the coatings were characterized by optical and scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Results indicate that the performance front wear is related to the conditions of adhesion and uniformity of the coating applied. (author)

The 10-year course of adult aggression toward others in patients with borderline personality disorder and axis II comparison subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Zanarini, Mary C; Temes, Christina M; Ivey, Alexandra M; Cohn, Danielle M; Conkey, Lindsey C; Frankenburg, Frances R; Fitzmaurice, Garrett M

2017-06-01

This study had two aims. The first was to assess and compare various types of aggressive behavior toward others reported by borderline patients and axis II comparison subjects over time. The second was to determine the best baseline and time-varying predictors of aggressive behavior in these borderline patients. At baseline, a series of interviews and self-report measures were administered to 290 borderline patients and 72 axis II comparison subjects. Measures assessing aggression toward others, axis I and II disorders as well as adult adversity were re-administered every two years over the course of ten years. It was found that borderline patients reported significantly higher rates of verbal, emotional, and physical aggression toward others than comparison subjects but the rates of these forms of aggression toward others declined significantly for those in both study groups. Multivariate analyses indicated that the strongest predictors of adult aggression towards others were severity of adult adversity and a substance use disorder. Taken together, these results suggest that borderline patients commonly report aggression toward others but that this aggression declines significantly over time. These results also suggest that this aggression toward others is most strongly associated with adult experiences of adversity and concurrent substance abuse. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

In vivo kinetics of 123I-labelled insulin: studies in normal subjects and patients with diabetes mellitus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sinclair, A.J.; Signore, A.; Bomanji, J.; Britton, K.E.; Pozzilli, P.; Gale, E.A.M.

1987-01-01

Radioactive tracer techniques using 131 I- and 125 I-insulin have been applied to study insulin metabolism. A simple method to label human insulin with 123 I to a high specific activity is described. We have used this radiotracer to study insulin kinetics in vivo in normal subjects and in two groups of diabetic patients. The rate of decline in plasma radioactivity was shown to be significantly reduced in patients with diabetes. There were no significant differences in the time -activity profiles of liver and kidneys between the groups studied. This technique may provide insight into the mechanism of some forms of insulin resistance. (author)

Biases and power for groups comparison on subjective health measurements.

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Hamel, Jean-François; Hardouin, Jean-Benoit; Le Neel, Tanguy; Kubis, Gildas; Roquelaure, Yves; Sébille, Véronique

2012-01-01

Subjective health measurements are increasingly used in clinical research, particularly for patient groups comparisons. Two main types of analytical strategies can be used for such data: so-called classical test theory (CTT), relying on observed scores and models coming from Item Response Theory (IRT) relying on a response model relating the items responses to a latent parameter, often called latent trait. Whether IRT or CTT would be the most appropriate method to compare two independent groups of patients on a patient reported outcomes measurement remains unknown and was investigated using simulations. For CTT-based analyses, groups comparison was performed using t-test on the scores. For IRT-based analyses, several methods were compared, according to whether the Rasch model was considered with random effects or with fixed effects, and the group effect was included as a covariate or not. Individual latent traits values were estimated using either a deterministic method or by stochastic approaches. Latent traits were then compared with a t-test. Finally, a two-steps method was performed to compare the latent trait distributions, and a Wald test was performed to test the group effect in the Rasch model including group covariates. The only unbiased IRT-based method was the group covariate Wald's test, performed on the random effects Rasch model. This model displayed the highest observed power, which was similar to the power using the score t-test. These results need to be extended to the case frequently encountered in practice where data are missing and possibly informative.

Biases and power for groups comparison on subjective health measurements.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jean-François Hamel

Full Text Available Subjective health measurements are increasingly used in clinical research, particularly for patient groups comparisons. Two main types of analytical strategies can be used for such data: so-called classical test theory (CTT, relying on observed scores and models coming from Item Response Theory (IRT relying on a response model relating the items responses to a latent parameter, often called latent trait. Whether IRT or CTT would be the most appropriate method to compare two independent groups of patients on a patient reported outcomes measurement remains unknown and was investigated using simulations. For CTT-based analyses, groups comparison was performed using t-test on the scores. For IRT-based analyses, several methods were compared, according to whether the Rasch model was considered with random effects or with fixed effects, and the group effect was included as a covariate or not. Individual latent traits values were estimated using either a deterministic method or by stochastic approaches. Latent traits were then compared with a t-test. Finally, a two-steps method was performed to compare the latent trait distributions, and a Wald test was performed to test the group effect in the Rasch model including group covariates. The only unbiased IRT-based method was the group covariate Wald's test, performed on the random effects Rasch model. This model displayed the highest observed power, which was similar to the power using the score t-test. These results need to be extended to the case frequently encountered in practice where data are missing and possibly informative.

Biases and Power for Groups Comparison on Subjective Health Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Hamel, Jean-François; Hardouin, Jean-Benoit; Le Neel, Tanguy; Kubis, Gildas; Roquelaure, Yves; Sébille, Véronique

2012-01-01

Subjective health measurements are increasingly used in clinical research, particularly for patient groups comparisons. Two main types of analytical strategies can be used for such data: so-called classical test theory (CTT), relying on observed scores and models coming from Item Response Theory (IRT) relying on a response model relating the items responses to a latent parameter, often called latent trait. Whether IRT or CTT would be the most appropriate method to compare two independent groups of patients on a patient reported outcomes measurement remains unknown and was investigated using simulations. For CTT-based analyses, groups comparison was performed using t-test on the scores. For IRT-based analyses, several methods were compared, according to whether the Rasch model was considered with random effects or with fixed effects, and the group effect was included as a covariate or not. Individual latent traits values were estimated using either a deterministic method or by stochastic approaches. Latent traits were then compared with a t-test. Finally, a two-steps method was performed to compare the latent trait distributions, and a Wald test was performed to test the group effect in the Rasch model including group covariates. The only unbiased IRT-based method was the group covariate Wald’s test, performed on the random effects Rasch model. This model displayed the highest observed power, which was similar to the power using the score t-test. These results need to be extended to the case frequently encountered in practice where data are missing and possibly informative. PMID:23115620

Comparison of optic disc topography in non-glaucomatous eyes of children with juvenile diabetes mellitus and normal children.

Science.gov (United States)

Elgin, Ufuk; Cankaya, Bülent; Simsek, Tulay; Batman, Aygen

2010-01-01

To compare the optic disc topography parameters of children with juvenile diabetes mellitus and normal children using the Heidelberg Retinal Tomograph (HRT III) (Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany). The topographic optic disc parameters (cup volume, cup area, rim volume, rim area, disc area, mean cup-to-disc ratio, and mean cup depth) of 28 non-glaucomatous eyes of 28 children with type 1 diabetes mellitus and 28 eyes of 28 age-matched healthy children were compared using the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test. No statistically significant differences were found between cup volume (P = .782), cup area (P = .878), rim volume (P = .853), disc area (P = .452), mean cup-to-disc ratio (P = .852), and mean cup depth (P = .711) of eyes of cases with diabetes mellitus and normal subjects. This result suggests that non-glaucomatous eyes of children with type 1 diabetes mellitus and healthy subjects have similar topographic optic disc characteristics. Copyright 2010, SLACK Incorporated.

Función del diafragma durante la colocación de cargas sobre el abdomen en sujetos normales Study of diaphragmatic muscle function during abdominal weight in normal subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergio G. Monteiro

2012-04-01

increase this rate more than did the AP alone. Our findings suggest abdominal weight increases propioception related to the respiratory movements and descent of the diaphragm. The loads on the abdomen produce minor changes in mechanics of the diaphragm (1/3 of the load required to develop fatigue in normal subjects. Al least in normal subjects these changes appear to be insufficient to produce respiratory muscle training.

Quantitative analysis of normal thallium-201 tomographic studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eisner, R.L.; Gober, A.; Cerqueira, M.

1985-01-01

To determine the normal (nl) distribution of Tl-201 uptake post exercise (EX) and at redistribution (RD) and nl washout, Tl-201 rotational tomographic (tomo) studies were performed in 40 subjects: 16 angiographic (angio) nls and 24 nl volunteers (12 from Emory and 12 from Yale). Oblique angle short axis slices were subjected to maximal count circumferential profile analysis. Data were displayed as a ''bullseye'' functional map with the apex at the center and base at the periphery. The bullseye was not uniform in all regions because of the variable effects of attenuation and resolution at different view angles. In all studies, the septum: lateral wall ratio was 1.0 in males and approximately equal to 1.0 in females. This occurred predominantly because of anterior defects due to breast soft tissue attenuation. EX and RD bullseyes were similar. Using a bi-exponential model for Tl kinetics, 4 hour normalized washout ranged 49-54% in each group and showed minimal variation between walls throughout the bullseye. Thus, there are well defined variations in Tl-201 uptake in the nl myocardium which must be taken into consideration when analyzing pt data. Because of these defects and the lack of adequate methods for attenuation correction, quantitative analysis of Tl-201 studies must include direct comparison with gender-matched nl data sets

Measurement of cerebral blood flow in normal subjects by phase contrast MR imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kashimada, Akio; Machida, Kikuo; Honda, Norinari; Mamiya, Toshio; Takahashi, Taku; Kamano, Tsuyoshi; Inoue, Yusuke; Osada, Hisato

1994-01-01

Global cerebral blood flow (CBF) was quantitatively measured with a two-dimensional phase contrast cine magnetic resonance (MR) imaging technique in 24 normal subjects (mean age, 38.6 years; range, 12-70 years). Cine transverse images of the upper cervical region (32 phases/cardiac cycle) were acquired with a 1.5 Tesla MR imaging unit. In five subjects, measurement of CBF was performed before and after intravenous administration of acetazolamide (DIAMOX, 15 mg/kg). Inter- and intra-observer variations in flow volume measurement were small (r=0.970, standard error of the estimate (SEE)=2.9 ml/min, n=8; r=0.963, SEE=4.6 ml/min, n=40, respectively). In measuring flow velocity, they were inferior to those of flow volume measurement. On a visually determined setting of region of interest (ROI), reproducibility of the measurement of flow velocity was not satisfactory in this study. Thus only the results of flow volume measurement are presented. Mean summed vertebral flow volume (171 ml/min, SD=40.6) was significantly less than mean summed internal carotid flow volume (523 ml/min, SD=111). Total blood flow volume showed a significant decline with age (r=-0.45, p<0.05). The mean proportions of carotid and vertebral flow volume to total flow volume were 75.3% and 24.7%, respectively, and showed no significant change with age. The left-to-right ratio of vertebral flow volume (1.39) was significantly higher than that of internal carotid flow volume (0.99, r=0.05). After DIAMOX i.v., the mean rate of increase in total flow volume was 157%. Mean rates of increase in carotid and vertebral flow volume were 154% and 166%, respectively, which were not significantly different. In conclusion, this method is useful for estimating carotid and vertebral flow volume. (author)

Brain perfusion ratios by 99mTc HMPAO SPECT utilizing a mean value of the visual cortex to the cerebellum ratio derived from normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanchez Catasus, C.; Rodriguez, R.; Cisnero, M.; Palmero, R.; Diaz, O.; Aguila, A.

2002-01-01

Aim: Previous results shows that the cerebellum (CER) is the best reference to calculate relative indexes of perfusion (IP) by brain SPECT. However, it can not be used on patients with bilateral cerebellar hypoperfusion. In such cases visual cortex (VC) or an average of the whole brain activity is recommended (WB). VC and WB are less reliable than CER, making it difficult to compare SPECT scans that have been normalized with different values. Materials and Methods: To overcome this difficulty, we developed a method to calculate IP utilizing a reference value defined as (VC / ), where is the mean value of the VC/CER ratio derived from a normal database which was assumed to be constant. We called the value VC/ the 'Pseudocerebellum' (PCER). For clinical validation, we first tested statistically the VC/CER ratio on a group of 60 [ 99m Tc]-HMPAO SPECT scans of 20 normal subjects and 40 neurological patients with positive SPECT but without involvement of VC and CER. To demonstrate that IP PCER approx. IP CER , we calculated the mean value of the absolute differences CER - IP PCER vertical bar> on two groups of scans from subjects without involvement of VC and CER: 10 normal subjects (GI); and 40 patients (GII). Finally, using an indirect procedure the method was tested on a third group of SPECT scans of 30 patients with bilateral cerebellar hypoperfusion (G III). Results: The VC/CER ratio was approximately constant with gender and age at a 95% confidence level; CER - IP PCER vertical bar> was 1.22%±0.35 and 1.20%±0.42 for GI and GII, respectively. This is less than the within-subject replicability of the HMPAO SPECT studies; and thus demonstrated by an indirect approach that IP PCER is a valid procedure by which to evaluate relative perfusion on patients with bilateral cerebellar hypoperfusion and quantitatively comparable to using CER as reference region. Conclusion: The VC/CER ratio has very little inter-subject variability in individuals where these regions are not

Strain Map of the Tongue in Normal and ALS Speech Patterns from Tagged and Diffusion MRI.

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Xing, Fangxu; Prince, Jerry L; Stone, Maureen; Reese, Timothy G; Atassi, Nazem; Wedeen, Van J; El Fakhri, Georges; Woo, Jonghye

2018-02-01

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a neurological disease that causes death of neurons controlling muscle movements. Loss of speech and swallowing functions is a major impact due to degeneration of the tongue muscles. In speech studies using magnetic resonance (MR) techniques, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is used to capture internal tongue muscle fiber structures in three-dimensions (3D) in a non-invasive manner. Tagged magnetic resonance images (tMRI) are used to record tongue motion during speech. In this work, we aim to combine information obtained with both MR imaging techniques to compare the functionality characteristics of the tongue between normal and ALS subjects. We first extracted 3D motion of the tongue using tMRI from fourteen normal subjects in speech. The estimated motion sequences were then warped using diffeomorphic registration into the b0 spaces of the DTI data of two normal subjects and an ALS patient. We then constructed motion atlases by averaging all warped motion fields in each b0 space, and computed strain in the line of action along the muscle fiber directions provided by tractography. Strain in line with the fiber directions provides a quantitative map of the potential active region of the tongue during speech. Comparison between normal and ALS subjects explores the changing volume of compressing tongue tissues in speech facing the situation of muscle degradation. The proposed framework provides for the first time a dynamic map of contracting fibers in ALS speech patterns, and has the potential to provide more insight into the detrimental effects of ALS on speech.

Comparison of waxy and normal potato starch remaining granules after chemical surface gelatinization: Pasting behavior and surface morphology

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Huang, J.; Chen Zenghong,; Xu, Yalun; Li, Hongliang; Liu, Shuxing; Yang, Daqing; Schols, H.A.

2014-01-01

o understand the contribution of granule inner portion to the pasting property of starch, waxy potato starch and two normal potato starches and their acetylated starch samples were subjected to chemical surface gelatinization by 3.8 mol/L CaCl2 to obtain remaining granules. Native and acetylated,

Comparison of 25-hydroxyvitamin D and Calcium Levels between Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and Normal Women

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Ashraf Moini

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Background: Given the relationship of vitamin D deficiency with insulin resistance syndrome as the component of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS, the main aim of this study was to compare serum level of 25- hydroxyvitamin D [25(OHD] between PCOS patients and normal individuals. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted to compare 25(OHD level between117 normal and 125 untreated PCOS cases at our clinic in Arash Hospital, Tehran, Iran, during 2011-2012. The obtained levels of 25(OHD were classified as follows: lower than 25 nmol/ml as severe deficiency, between 25-49.9 nmol/ml as deficiency, 50-74.9 nmol/ml as insufficiency, and above 75 nmol/ml asnormal. In addition, endocrine and metabolic variables were evaluated. Results: Among PCOS patients, our findings shows 3(2.4% normal, 7(5.6% with insufficiency, 33(26.4% with deficiency and 82(65.6% with severe deficiency, whereas in normal participants, 5(4.3% normal, 4(3.4% with insufficiency, 28(23.9% with deficiency and 80(68.4% with severe deficiency. Comparison of 25(OHD level between two main groups showed no significant differences (p= 0.65. Also, the calcium and 25(OHD levels had no significant differences in patients with overweight (p=0.22 and insulin resistance (p=0.64. But we also found a relationship between 25(OHD level and metabolic syndrome (p=0.01. Furthermore, there was a correlation between 25(OHD and body mass index (BMI in control group (p=0.01, while the C-reactive protein (CRP level was predominantly higher in PCOS group (p<0.001. Conclusion: Although the difference of 25(OHD level between PCOS and healthy women is not significant, the high prevalence of 25(OHD deficiency is a real alarm for public health care system and may influence our results.

Comparison of the electrical activity of trunk core muscles and knee muscles in subjects with and without patellofemoral pain syndrome during gait

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Raheleh Dorosti

2017-10-01

Conclusion: It seems that electromyographic activities of some of core muscles in patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome in comparison with healthy subjects are different. However, there was no differences in electromyographic activities in some of the muscles around the knee between patients and healthy subjects.

[Comparison of Inflammatory Biomarkers Between Bipolar Disorder I Patients and Control Subjects].

Science.gov (United States)

Palacio, Juan David; Guzman, Sandra; Vargas, Cristian; Díaz-Zuluaga, Ana María; López-Jaramillo, Carlos

2016-01-01

Inflammatory changes have been described in different affective episodes, as well as in the euthymic phase of Bipolar I Disease. These changes have been proposed as possible peripheral markers of the disease. For this reason well-designed studies are needed to explore this hypothesis. Quantify and compare the serum levels of interleukins (IL) and tumour necrosis factor (TNF) in bipolar I patients and healthy subjects, including the comparison between the affective episodes of the disease. Cross-sectional study including 41 bipolar I patients and 11 healthy control subjects. Serum levels of IL-1B, IL-RA, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12, and TNF were measured during the euthymic, depressive, and manic phases and were compared with the serum levels of the healthy subjects. Manic phase patients had low education and high number of hospitalisations. Depressive phase patients showed high number of depressive episodes throughout life. No statistically significant differences were found in IL and TNF levels between bipolar I patients and healthy controls, or between the bipolar I subgroups (euthymic, manic and depressive states). An increase in the size of the sample is necessary in future studies, in order to enhance the statistical value of the results, and explore the inflammatory hypothesis of the bipolar disease. Copyright © 2015 Asociación Colombiana de Psiquiatría. Publicado por Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Lipid Peroxidation, Nitric Oxide Metabolites, and Their Ratio in a Group of Subjects with Metabolic Syndrome

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Gregorio Caimi

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Our aim was to evaluate lipid peroxidation, expressed as thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS, nitric oxide metabolites (nitrite + nitrate expressed as NOx, and TBARS/NOx ratio in a group of subjects with metabolic syndrome (MS. In this regard we enrolled 106 subjects with MS defined according to the IDF criteria, subsequently subdivided into diabetic (DMS and nondiabetic (NDMS and also into subjects with a low triglycerides/HDL-cholesterol (TG/HDL-C index or with a high TG/HDL-C index. In the entire group and in the four subgroups of MS subjects we found an increase in TBARS and NOx levels and a decrease in TBARS/NOx ratio in comparison with normal controls. Regarding all these parameters no statistical difference between DMS and NDMS was evident, but a significant increase in NOx was present in subjects with a high TG/HDL-C index in comparison with those with a low index. In MS subjects we also found a negative correlation between TBARS/NOx ratio and TG/HDL-C index. Considering the hyperactivity of the inducible NO synthase in MS, these data confirm the altered redox and inflammatory status that characterizes the MS and suggest a link between lipid peroxidation, inflammation, and insulin resistance, evaluated as TG/HDL-C index.

Is normal science good science?

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Adrianna Kępińska

2015-09-01

Full Text Available “Normal science” is a concept introduced by Thomas Kuhn in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962. In Kuhn’s view, normal science means “puzzle solving”, solving problems within the paradigm—framework most successful in solving current major scientific problems—rather than producing major novelties. This paper examines Kuhnian and Popperian accounts of normal science and their criticisms to assess if normal science is good. The advantage of normal science according to Kuhn was “psychological”: subjective satisfaction from successful “puzzle solving”. Popper argues for an “intellectual” science, one that consistently refutes conjectures (hypotheses and offers new ideas rather than focus on personal advantages. His account is criticized as too impersonal and idealistic. Feyerabend’s perspective seems more balanced; he argues for a community that would introduce new ideas, defend old ones, and enable scientists to develop in line with their subjective preferences. The paper concludes that normal science has no one clear-cut set of criteria encompassing its meaning and enabling clear assessment.

Dichotomous Effect of Caffeine, Curcumin, and Naringenin on Genomic DNA of Normal and Diabetic Subjects

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Debarati Chattopadhyay

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Nutraceutical compounds show antioxidant and prooxidant properties under stress conditions like cancer, diabetes, and other diseases. The objective of this study is to find the dichotomic behavior of caffeine, curcumin, and naringenin on DNA of diabetic and normal subjects in the presence and absence of copper, hydrogen peroxide, and complex of copper-hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide releases hydroxyl free radicals (•OH on oxidation of Cu (I to Cu (II through Fenton-type reaction to cause DNA damage. In the results, agarose gel electrophoretic pattern speculates the prooxidant effect of caffeine and antioxidant effect of curcumin on DNA in the presence of copper and hydrogen peroxide. UV-Vis spectral analysis shows hyperchromism on addition of DNA to caffeine, hypochromism with curcumin, and subtle changes with naringenin. The chosen nutraceuticals act as inducers and quenchers of oxidative free radicals arising from diabetes.

Lack of effect of laboratory-provoked anxiety on plasma homovanillic acid concentration in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Zemishlany, Z; Davidson, M

1996-08-15

The present study was undertaken to investigate if acute anxiety can affect plasma concentrations of homovanillic acid (pHVA). Since elevated pHVA levels have been associated with severity of schizophrenic symptoms, the results of this study will help determine if the pHVA elevations are directly related to psychosis or if anxiety is also a contributory factor. Anxiety was provoked in 10 young normal subjects by a combined paradigm of mental arithmetic task and threat of electrical shock. A significant increase in self-ratings of anxiety, blood pressure, and plasma levels of norepinephrine, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethyleneglycol and growth hormone indicated that the paradigm used was effective in provoking anxiety; however, anxiety did not affect pHVA concentrations. The results may support the notion that increased pHVA levels in severely ill schizophrenic patients are related to the schizophrenic pathophysiology rather than to anxiety.

Comparison of Apraxia between Patients with Senile Dementia of Alzheimer Type and Normal Aged People

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Fariba Yadegari

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Objective: In addition to memory deficits and aphasia, many patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD are apraxic which may bring about disturbances in their daily living. The purpose of present study was investigating the presence of any apraxic disorder in patients with senile dementia of Alzheimer type (SDAT and comparison with normal aged people. Materials & Methods: In this case–control and analytical study 14 SDAT patients were compared with 20 normal ageing people that they were matched with patients according to age and education. Patients were selected from Iranian Alzheimer Association clients with psychiatrist diagnostic confirmation and MMSE scores between 15-27 and compared with controls with MMSE scores between 25-30. Apraxia Test was administered on both groups. The Test included 4 subtests: conceptual movements gestured conceptual movements, oral and respiratory movements & pantomime of movements of object manipulations. Data was analyzed by using Kolmogoroff – Smirnoff test, Man – Witney, T-test for independent groups and pearsonian correlation coefficient. Results: Findings showed that apraxia scores were significantly (P<0/001 different between groups so that (SDAT patients were diagnosed as apraxic and controls were not. Besides, comparison of subtests scores of (SDAT patients revealed that conceptual movements scores were significantly (P<0/001 less than the other subtests (more apraxic and oral and respiratory movements scores were significantly (P<0/001 higher than the other subtests (less apraxic. Conclusion: Apraxia could be considered as one of the neuropsychological signs early in the disease development. It can be applied complementarily for differential diagnosis. Also apraxia subgroup scoring could be used for apraxia categorization, understanding observed disorders and determining possible rehabilitation ways.

Noncontrast-enhanced magnetic resonance renal angiography using a repetitive artery and venous labelling technique at 3 T: comparison with contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography in subjects with normal renal function

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Park, Sung Yoon [Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology and Center for Imaging Science, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiological Science, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Chan Kyo; Park, Byung Kwan [Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology and Center for Imaging Science, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kim, EunJu [Philips Healthcare Korea, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-09-13

To investigate the feasibility of noncontrast-enhanced MR angiography (NC-MRA) using the repetitive artery and venous labelling (RAVEL) technique to evaluate renal arteries compared to contrast-enhanced MR angiography (CE-MRA). Twenty-five subjects with normal renal function underwent NC-MRA using a RAVEL technique and CE-MRA at 3 T. Two independent readers analysed the MRA images. Image quality, number of renal arteries, presence or absence of an early branching vessel, and diameter of the main renal arteries were evaluated. The overall image quality of NC-MRA was fair or greater in 88 % of right and 92 % of left renal arteries, while it was 96 % in both sides with CE-MRA. On NC-MRA, the number of renal arteries in all subjects was perfectly predicted by both readers. Sensitivity and specificity for predicting early branching vessels were 82 % and 100 % for reader 1 and 82 % and 95 % for reader 2. Inter-modality agreement for comparing the diameters of main renal arteries was good or excellent at all segments for both readers. Inter-reader agreement was moderate or good at all segments except at the right distal segment on NC-MRA. NC-MRA with the RAVEL technique at 3 T may have comparable diagnostic feasibility for evaluating renal arteries compared to CE-MRA. (orig.)

A Comparison of Foot Plantar Pressure in Badminton Players with Normal and High-Arched Feet during the Two-Way Lunge

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Parvane Bazipoor

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Compared to the individuals with a normal arch structure, those with high or low arch can be at an increased risk of overuse injuries. The risk of overuse injury among athletes is high due, in part, to the repeated loading of the lower extremities. The current study aimed to determine if foot type (high-arched or normal results in differences in plantar pressure during two badminton-specific movements (right-reverse lunge and right-lateral lunge. Methods: Twenty badminton players (10 with normal feet and 10 with higharched feet completed five trials in both right-reverse and right-lateral lunge, while in-shoe pressure data were collected at 100 Hz. The peak pressure and mean pressure were analyzed among the subjects for five major anatomical regions of the foot, using the independent t test in SPSS version 20. The foot type was determined by the foot posture index (FPI (α<0.05. Results: Results showed that the plantar pressure characteristics of normal and high-arched feet were different; such that in high-arched feet, as compared to normal subjects, there were significantly fewer pressure strikes in the medial (P=0.010 and lateral (P=0.002 mid-foot in right-reverse lunge and this was significantly higher in forefoot (P=0.003 and toes (P=0.010. However, the peak (P=0.157 and mean (P=0.104 pressure in the heel was higher but not significant. In the right- lateral lunge, we found statistically lower peak pressure stroke for the lateral mid-foot (P=0.010 and forefoot (P=0.011; however, the mean pressure was lower in the lateral (P=0.010 and medial (P=0.040 mid-foot and forefoot (P=0.120, although it was not significant in the forefoot. Conclusion: Results showed that the medial longitudinal arch of the foot might cause pressure differences in the feet among the players with normal and higharched feet. As the results demonstrated, in high-arched feet, there are some regions where plantar pressure is higher and some where it is lower

Comparison of reading comprehension and working memory in hearing-impaired and normal-hearing children

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Mohammad Rezaei

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: Reading is the most important human need for learning. In normal-hearing people working memory is a predictor of reading comprehension. In this study the relationship between working memory and reading comprehension skills was studied in hearing-impaired children, and then compared with the normal-hearing group.Methods: This was a descriptive-analytic study. The working memory and reading comprehension skills of 18 (8 male, 10 female sever hearing-impaired children in year five of exceptional schools were compared by means of a reading test with 18 hearing children as control group. The subjects in the control group were of the same gender and educational level of the sample group.Results: The children with hearing loss performed similarly to the normal-hearing children in tasks related to auditory-verbal memory of sounds (reverse, visual-verbal memory of letters, and visual-verbal memory of pictures. However, they showed lower levels of performance in reading comprehension (p<0.001. Moreover, no significant relationship was observed between working memory and reading comprehension skills.Conclusion: Findings indicated that children with hearing loss have a significant impairment in the reading comprehension skill. Impairment in language knowledge and vocabulary may be the main cause of poor reading comprehension in these children. In hearing-impaired children working memory is not a strong predictor of reading comprehension.

Optimal consistency in microRNA expression analysis using reference-gene-based normalization.

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Wang, Xi; Gardiner, Erin J; Cairns, Murray J

2015-05-01

Normalization of high-throughput molecular expression profiles secures differential expression analysis between samples of different phenotypes or biological conditions, and facilitates comparison between experimental batches. While the same general principles apply to microRNA (miRNA) normalization, there is mounting evidence that global shifts in their expression patterns occur in specific circumstances, which pose a challenge for normalizing miRNA expression data. As an alternative to global normalization, which has the propensity to flatten large trends, normalization against constitutively expressed reference genes presents an advantage through their relative independence. Here we investigated the performance of reference-gene-based (RGB) normalization for differential miRNA expression analysis of microarray expression data, and compared the results with other normalization methods, including: quantile, variance stabilization, robust spline, simple scaling, rank invariant, and Loess regression. The comparative analyses were executed using miRNA expression in tissue samples derived from subjects with schizophrenia and non-psychiatric controls. We proposed a consistency criterion for evaluating methods by examining the overlapping of differentially expressed miRNAs detected using different partitions of the whole data. Based on this criterion, we found that RGB normalization generally outperformed global normalization methods. Thus we recommend the application of RGB normalization for miRNA expression data sets, and believe that this will yield a more consistent and useful readout of differentially expressed miRNAs, particularly in biological conditions characterized by large shifts in miRNA expression.

No effect of beta-adrenergic blockade on hypoglycaemic effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) in normal subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Toft-Nielsen, M; Hvidberg, A; Hilsted, Jannik

1996-01-01

GLP-1 administration decreases blood glucose levels in normal subjects and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus patients and is therefore proposed as a treatment for diabetic hyperglycaemia. The glucose lowering effect of GLP-1 is glucose dependent and therefore self-limiting, but it is not kn...... on the two GLP-1 infusion days; and (5) an increase in catecholamine levels in the GLP-1/saline experiment and also in the beta-blockade experiments. We conclude that adrenergic counterregulation plays an insignificant role in curtailing GLP-1's glucose lowering effect....

Body composition in normal subjects: relation to lipid and glucose variables

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rosenfalck, A M; Almdal, Thomas Peter; Gotfredsen, A

1996-01-01

-sectional study. SUBJECTS: 173 (84 male and 89 female) healthy subjects, BMI mineral content (TBMC), total bone mineral density (TBMD), lean body soft tissue mass (LTM), total and regional fat mass (FM) were estimated in all......-cholesterol, S-triglyceride, and in males S-insulin was found. CONCLUSION: The present study gives coherent data on bone mineral content, lean body soft tissue mass total and regional fat mass for 173 healthy subjects with a BMI below 30 kg/m2. Total body fat mass increases, and lean mass decreases with age...

Beyond intensity: Spectral features effectively predict music-induced subjective arousal.

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Gingras, Bruno; Marin, Manuela M; Fitch, W Tecumseh

2014-01-01

Emotions in music are conveyed by a variety of acoustic cues. Notably, the positive association between sound intensity and arousal has particular biological relevance. However, although amplitude normalization is a common procedure used to control for intensity in music psychology research, direct comparisons between emotional ratings of original and amplitude-normalized musical excerpts are lacking. In this study, 30 nonmusicians retrospectively rated the subjective arousal and pleasantness induced by 84 six-second classical music excerpts, and an additional 30 nonmusicians rated the same excerpts normalized for amplitude. Following the cue-redundancy and Brunswik lens models of acoustic communication, we hypothesized that arousal and pleasantness ratings would be similar for both versions of the excerpts, and that arousal could be predicted effectively by other acoustic cues besides intensity. Although the difference in mean arousal and pleasantness ratings between original and amplitude-normalized excerpts correlated significantly with the amplitude adjustment, ratings for both sets of excerpts were highly correlated and shared a similar range of values, thus validating the use of amplitude normalization in music emotion research. Two acoustic parameters, spectral flux and spectral entropy, accounted for 65% of the variance in arousal ratings for both sets, indicating that spectral features can effectively predict arousal. Additionally, we confirmed that amplitude-normalized excerpts were adequately matched for loudness. Overall, the results corroborate our hypotheses and support the cue-redundancy and Brunswik lens models.

The Effects of 6 Isocaloric Meals on Body Weight, Lipid Profiles, Leptin, and Adiponectin in Overweight Subjects (BMI > 25).

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Hatami Zargaran, Zeynab; Salehi, Moosa; Heydari, Seyed Taghi; Babajafari, Siavash

2014-04-01

It seems that meal frequency is negatively related to body weight, but the relationship between meal frequency and weight loss is not clearly known yet. The present study aimed to investigate whether 6 isocaloric meals affected body weight, lipid profiles, leptin, and adiponectin in overweight subjects. The present randomized controlled trial was conducted on 90 overweight subjects in 3 months. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups. The control group continued their normal diet, while the intervention group was required to follow a 6 isocaloric meal diet instead of their previous meal pattern (3 meals and 2 snacks). The planned reduced calorie diets for both groups were identical, except for meal pattern. Blood samples were analyzed prior to and at the end of the study for total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL-C, LDL-C, leptin, and adiponectinn concentrations. Paired t-test was used for comparison of the measurements before and after the study in each group. Besides, independent t-test was used for comparison of the measurements between the groups. P value less than 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. The mean age of the participants was 36.38 ± 9.7 in the intervention group and 37.6 ± 10.9 in the control group. In comparison to the control group, the intervention group showed a significant decrease in total cholesterol (P meal pattern led to a reduction in BMI, lipid profiles (total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglyceride), and leptin concentrations and an increase in HDL and adiponectin compared to the normal diet.

Age Effects on Cortical Thickness in Cognitively Normal Elderly Individuals

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Sona Hurtz

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Background/Aims: Atrophy in both grey and white matter is found in normal aging. The prefrontal cortex and the frontal lobe white matter are thought to be the most affected regions. Our aim was to examine the effects of normal aging on cortical grey matter using a 3D quantitative cortical mapping method. Methods: We analyzed 1.5-tesla brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 44 cognitively normal elderly subjects using cortical pattern matching and cortical thickness analyses. Linear regression analysis was used to study the effect of age on cortical thickness. 3D map-wide correction for multiple comparisons was conducted with permutation analyses using a threshold of p Results: We found a significant negative association between age and cortical thickness in the right hemisphere (pcorrected = 0.009 and a trend level association in the left hemisphere (pcorrected = 0.081. Age-related changes were greatest in the sensorimotor, bilateral dorsal anterior cingulate and supplementary motor cortices, and the right posterior middle and inferior frontal gyri. Age effects greater in the medial than lateral visual association cortices were also seen bilaterally. Conclusion: Our novel method further validates that normal aging results in diffuse cortical thinning that is most pronounced in the frontal and visual association cortices.

[Motor skills and safety of patients with bi- or trimalleolar ankle injury : Comparison with healthy, active, age-matched control subjects].

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Loudovici-Krug, Dana; Benkenstein, Monique; Derlien, Steffen; Best, Norman

2018-06-01

Do patients with bi- or trimalleolar ankle injury show differences in motor skills and safety in comparison with healthy, active, age-matched control subjects? Prospective controlled cross-sectional study. Inclusion of 17 patients with bi- or trimalleolar ankle injury (mean 1.5 years postsurgery) and 23 healthy, active subjects of comparable age (fitness studio). Measurement instruments: motor test procedures and questionnaires. Comparison of patients and control subjects by routine daily motor function: patients  0.05), fear of falling: patients > controls (p = 0.003) and physical activity: patients motor deficits in activities of daily life between the patients and controls, only tendencies; however, the patients showed definite limitations with an increased fear of falling and a reduced physical activity compared with the healthy control group. The resulting differences should be positively influenced by appropriate enhancement of training or participation in sports courses. The aim is to achieve a similar quality of life by a perception of safety and trust in one's own motor skills.

The effects of increasing liquid calories on gastric emptying in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Collins, P.; Cook, D.; Horowitz, M.; Shearman, D.; Harding, P.

1982-01-01

Radionuclide methods are the simplest and potentially the most accurate techniques for the measurement of gastric emptying, but there are methodological problems which may limit the sentivity and specificity of these tests. A significant source of error is photon attenuation, due to the changing depth of radionuclides in the stomach during the study. This error can be eliminated by adding counts obtained in both anterior and posterior views or by applying attenuation correction factors to the data. Radionuclides were used to study the effect of increasing the calorie content of the liquid component of a mixed solid-liquid meal on gastric emptying in normal subjects, using a single detector system, and assessed the reproductibility of the technique. The solid meal comprised 1-1.5 mCi ''in vivo'' sup(99m)Tc-labelled chicken liver which was added to 100 g of ground beef and the resultant ''hamburger'' grilled. The liquids studied were 0.5 mCi sup(113m)In-diethyltriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) added to 100 ml of either water, 10% dextrose or 25% dextrose. In this study the progressive increase in caloric content of the liquid meal from 0 to 0.4 to 1 kcal/ml resulted in a corresponding delay in both solid and liquid emptying. For liquids a generalised slowing of the entire emptying curve was evident, while the delay in solid emptying reflected a lengthening of the lag period, with no alteraction in the rate of linear emptying

[Statistical (Poisson) motor unit number estimation. Methodological aspects and normal results in the extensor digitorum brevis muscle of healthy subjects].

Science.gov (United States)

Murga Oporto, L; Menéndez-de León, C; Bauzano Poley, E; Núñez-Castaín, M J

Among the differents techniques for motor unit number estimation (MUNE) there is the statistical one (Poisson), in which the activation of motor units is carried out by electrical stimulation and the estimation performed by means of a statistical analysis based on the Poisson s distribution. The study was undertaken in order to realize an approximation to the MUNE Poisson technique showing a coprehensible view of its methodology and also to obtain normal results in the extensor digitorum brevis muscle (EDB) from a healthy population. One hundred fourteen normal volunteers with age ranging from 10 to 88 years were studied using the MUNE software contained in a Viking IV system. The normal subjects were divided into two age groups (10 59 and 60 88 years). The EDB MUNE from all them was 184 49. Both, the MUNE and the amplitude of the compound muscle action potential (CMAP) were significantly lower in the older age group (page than CMAP amplitude ( 0.5002 and 0.4142, respectively pphisiology of the motor unit. The value of MUNE correlates better with the neuromuscular aging process than CMAP amplitude does.

Skin perfusion pressure measured with a photo sensor in an air-filled plastic balloon: validity and reproducibility on the lower leg in normal subjects and patients suspected of obliterative arterial disease

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Steen Levin; Nielsen, Anne Lerberg; Vind, Susanne Haase

2011-01-01

An inflatable small plastic bag including a photo sensor was constructed for measurement of skin perfusion pressure avoiding the rim of the photo sensor over bony and tendineous surfaces of the tibia below the knee, at the ankle, and on the dorsal forefoot. Compression was obtained using a conical...... blood pressure cuff with continuous decrease from suprasystolic arm pressure. The validity of skin perfusion pressure with the new device was compared to that of isotope washout below the knee in normal subjects and in patients with an ischemic forefoot with acceptable agreement. The method had a high...... reproducibility within and between days in normal subjects. Compared to systolic arterial pressure measured using a strain gauge with a cuff on the ankle in normal subjects and patients with intermittent claudication the new device showed blood pressure in the skin closer to the diastolic pressure. The new...

Comparison in stress of caring mothers of children with developmental, external and internal disorders and normal children

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Narges Zamani

2017-06-01

Full Text Available However, having a baby brings positive emotions such as happiness, sense of maturity and proud, parenting's issue could cause high level of stress and child's characteristics was a detrimental factor which can effect on parent's stress, so the aim of this research was comparison of stress of caring in mothers of children with developmental, external, and internal disorders and normal children. The study population included all mothers of children with developmental, emotional, and disruptive behavior disorders, and mothers with normal children in Hamadan (a city in Iran. 240 mothers (4 groups include 60 mothers were chosen based on simple random sampling. Family inventory of life events and changes Mc Cubbin, Patterson & Wilson was used for assessing participants. The results showed that maternal stress in mothers with children who have diagnosis of disruptive behavior disorders were significantly more than of mothers of children with developmental disorders, emotional and mothers of normal children. The present study showed that disruptive behavior disorders in children have a greater impact on their mothers. So, we suggest approved psychological interventions for helping mothers of children with psychological problems, particularly children with external disorders.

COMPARISON OF OXYGEN UPTAKE KINETICS AND OXYGEN DEFICIT IN SEVERELY OVERWEIGHT AND NORMAL WEIGHT ADOLESCENT FEMALES

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Mark Loftin

2005-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to determine if differences in oxygen uptake kinetics and oxygen deficit existed between normal weight and severely overweight adolescent girls. Subjects included 10 normal weight and 8 severely overweight girls. The participants performed a leg cycling VO2 peak test and a constant load leg cycling test at 80% of the ventilatory threshold (T-vent. In the constant workload test O2 kinetics as indicated by Phase I (VO2 L at 20 sec and Phase II time constants (t were determined. Also, the O2 deficit (VO2 L was measured. As expected significant differences were noted in body composition and VO2 peak relative to mass with normal weight body mass averaging 55.3 ± 7.0 kg, severely overweight 90.5 ± 18.0 kg, % fat normal weight 27.3 ± 3.9%, severely overweight 49.7 ± 4.9% and VO2 peak (ml·kg-1·min-1 normal weight 32.0 ± 2.7 and severely overweight 22.0 ± 5.3. VO2 peak (l·min-1 and T-vent (%VO2 max were similar between groups. Results revealed similar O2 kinetic responses between groups; phase I kinetics normal weight 0.72 ± 0.15 L; severely overweight 0.75 ± 0.13L, phase II (t normal weight 41.5 ± 21.3 sec; severely overweight 33.9 ± 22.7 sec. However, the O2 deficit was significantly higher in the severely overweight (0.75 ± 0.15L when compared to the normal weight group (0.34 ± 0.13L. Correlations ranged from r = -0.15 to 0.51 between VO2 peak (L·min-1 or fat weight and phase I, t and O2 deficit. These data generally support previous research concerning the independence of O2 uptake response and body size

Dimensions of the cleft nasal airway in adults: a comparison with subjects without cleft.

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Hairfield, W M; Warren, D W

1989-01-01

The prevalence of mouthbreathing among individuals with cleft lip and palate is significantly higher than in the normal population. This has been attributed to nasal deformities that tend to reduce nasal airway size. The purpose of the present study was to determine how a heterogeneous adult group with cleft lip and palate differs in terms of nasal airway cross-sectional area from an adult group without cleft during the inspiratory and expiratory phases of breathing. The pressure-flow technique was used to estimate nasal airway size in 15 adults without cleft (15 years or older) and 37 adults with cleft lip, cleft palate, or both. Mean areas and standard deviations for subjects without cleft were 0.63 cm2 +/- 0.17 during inspiration and 0.56 cm2 +/- 0.14 during expiration. This difference is statistically significant (p less than 0.01). Mean areas and standard deviations for all subjects with cleft were 0.37 cm2 +/- 0.18 during inspiration and 0.40 cm2 +/- 0.20 during expiration. This difference is not statistically significant (p greater than 0.15). Twenty-two of the subjects with cleft had nasal areas considered to be impaired (below 0.40 cm2) as compared with only three of the subjects without cleft. A two factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that area changes during respiration are different for subjects with and without cleft (p less than 0.005), and that cleft nasal areas are smaller than noncleft areas for both phases of breathing (p less than 0.001). Inspiratory-expiratory differences between subjects with and without cleft are probably the result of developmental defects, reparative surgery or both.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The effects of familiarity and complexity on appraisal of complex songs by cochlear implant recipients and normal hearing adults.

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Gfeller, Kate; Christ, Aaron; Knutson, John; Witt, Shelley; Mehr, Maureen

2003-01-01

The purposes of this study were (a) to develop a test of complex song appraisal that would be suitable for use with adults who use a cochlear implant (assistive hearing device) and (b) to compare the appraisal ratings (liking) of complex songs by adults who use cochlear implants (n = 66) with a comparison group of adults with normal hearing (n = 36). The article describes the development of a computerized test for appraisal, with emphasis on its theoretical basis and the process for item selection of naturalistic stimuli. The appraisal test was administered to the 2 groups to determine the effects of prior song familiarity and subjective complexity on complex song appraisal. Comparison of the 2 groups indicates that the implant users rate 2 of 3 musical genres (country western, pop) as significantly more complex than do normal hearing adults, and give significantly less positive ratings to classical music than do normal hearing adults. Appraisal responses of implant recipients were examined in relation to hearing history, age, performance on speech perception and cognitive tests, and musical background.

A comparison of vowel normalization procedures for language variation research

Science.gov (United States)

Adank, Patti; Smits, Roel; van Hout, Roeland

2004-11-01

An evaluation of vowel normalization procedures for the purpose of studying language variation is presented. The procedures were compared on how effectively they (a) preserve phonemic information, (b) preserve information about the talker's regional background (or sociolinguistic information), and (c) minimize anatomical/physiological variation in acoustic representations of vowels. Recordings were made for 80 female talkers and 80 male talkers of Dutch. These talkers were stratified according to their gender and regional background. The normalization procedures were applied to measurements of the fundamental frequency and the first three formant frequencies for a large set of vowel tokens. The normalization procedures were evaluated through statistical pattern analysis. The results show that normalization procedures that use information across multiple vowels (``vowel-extrinsic'' information) to normalize a single vowel token performed better than those that include only information contained in the vowel token itself (``vowel-intrinsic'' information). Furthermore, the results show that normalization procedures that operate on individual formants performed better than those that use information across multiple formants (e.g., ``formant-extrinsic'' F2-F1). .

Comparison of Ganglion Cell and Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness in Pigment Dispersion Syndrome, Pigmentary Glaucoma, and Healthy Subjects with Spectral-domain OCT.

Science.gov (United States)

Arifoglu, Hasan Basri; Simavli, Huseyin; Midillioglu, Inci; Berk Ergun, Sule; Simsek, Saban

2017-01-01

To evaluate the ganglion cell complex (GCC) and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness in pigment dispersion syndrome (PDS) and pigmentary glaucoma (PG) with RTVue spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). A total of 102 subjects were enrolled: 29 with PDS, 18 with PG, and 55 normal subjects. Full ophthalmic examination including visual field analysis was performed. SD-OCT was used to analyze GCC superior, GCC inferior, and average RNFL thickness. To compare the discrimination capabilities, the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves were assessed. Superior GCC, inferior GCC, and RNFL thickness values of patients with PG were statistically signicantly lower than those of patients with PDS (p  0.05). The SD-OCT-derived GCC and RNFL thickness parameters can be useful to discriminate PG from both PDS and normal subjects.

Use of Sine Shaped High-Frequency Rhythmic Visual Stimuli Patterns for SSVEP Response Analysis and Fatigue Rate Evaluation in Normal Subjects

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Ahmadreza Keihani

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Background: Recent EEG-SSVEP signal based BCI studies have used high frequency square pulse visual stimuli to reduce subjective fatigue. However, the effect of total harmonic distortion (THD has not been considered. Compared to CRT and LCD monitors, LED screen displays high-frequency wave with better refresh rate. In this study, we present high frequency sine wave simple and rhythmic patterns with low THD rate by LED to analyze SSVEP responses and evaluate subjective fatigue in normal subjects.Materials and Methods: We used patterns of 3-sequence high-frequency sine waves (25, 30, and 35 Hz to design our visual stimuli. Nine stimuli patterns, 3 simple (repetition of each of above 3 frequencies e.g., P25-25-25 and 6 rhythmic (all of the frequencies in 6 different sequences e.g., P25-30-35 were chosen. A hardware setup with low THD rate (<0.1% was designed to present these patterns on LED. Twenty two normal subjects (aged 23–30 (25 ± 2.1 yrs were enrolled. Visual analog scale (VAS was used for subjective fatigue evaluation after presentation of each stimulus pattern. PSD, CCA, and LASSO methods were employed to analyze SSVEP responses. The data including SSVEP features and fatigue rate for different visual stimuli patterns were statistically evaluated.Results: All 9 visual stimuli patterns elicited SSVEP responses. Overall, obtained accuracy rates were 88.35% for PSD and > 90% for CCA and LASSO (for TWs > 1 s. High frequency rhythmic patterns group with low THD rate showed higher accuracy rate (99.24% than simple patterns group (98.48%. Repeated measure ANOVA showed significant difference between rhythmic pattern features (P < 0.0005. Overall, there was no significant difference between the VAS of rhythmic [3.85 ± 2.13] compared to the simple patterns group [3.96 ± 2.21], (P = 0.63. Rhythmic group had lower within group VAS variation (min = P25-30-35 [2.90 ± 2.45], max = P35-25-30 [4.81 ± 2.65] as well as least individual pattern VAS (P25

Mitral valve coaptation and its relationship to late diastolic flow: A color Doppler and vector flow map echocardiographic study in normal subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Sherrid, Mark V; Kushner, Josef; Yang, Georgiana; Ro, Richard

2017-04-01

Three competing theories about the mechanism of mitral coaptation in normal subjects were evaluated by color Doppler and vector flow mapping (VFM): (1) beginning of ventricular (LV) ejection, (2) "breaking of the jet" of diastolic LV inflow, and (3) returning diastolic vortices impacting the leaflets on their LV surfaces. We analyzed 80 color Doppler frames and 320 VFM measurements. In all 20 normal subjects, coaptation occurred before LV ejection, 78±16 ms before onset. On color Doppler frames the larger anterior, and smaller posterior vortices circle back and, in all cases, strike the ventricular surfaces of the leaflets. On the first closing-begins frame, for the first time, vortex velocity normal to the ventricular surface of the anterior leaflet (AML) is greater than that in the mitral orifice, and the angle of attack of LV vortical flow onto the AML is twice as high as the angle of flow onto the valve in orifice. Thus, at the moment coaptation begins, vortical flow strikes the mitral leaflet with higher velocity, and higher angle of attack than orifice flow, and thus with greater force. According to the "breaking of the jet" theory, one would expect to see de novo LV flow perpendicular to the leaflets beginning after transmitral flow terminates. Instead, the returning continuous LV vortical flow that impacts the valve builds continuously after the P-wave. Late diastolic vortices strike the ventricular surfaces of the mitral leaflets and contribute to valve coaptation, permitted by concomitant decline in transmitral flow. © 2017, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cognition of normal pattern of myocardial polar map

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujisawa, Yasuo; Sasaki, Jiro; Kashima, Kenji; Matsumura, Yasushi; Yamamoto, Kazuhiro; Kodama, Kazuhisa

1989-01-01

When we diagnose the presence of ischemic heart disease by the diagrams of computer-generated polar map of exercised thallium images, the estimation of the presence of the deficit is not sufficient, because many normal subjects are considered as abnormal. The mean+2SD of defect severity index (DSI) of 118 normal subjects was 120, and we defined the patients with DSI≤120 as normal. But in 139 patients with their DSI≤120, 28 patients had significant coronary stenosis (>75%) and this means that false negative was 20%. We estimated the pattern of the deficit and found that in 109 of 111 subjects with normal coronary arteries, and 16 of 28 patients with ischemic heart disease, the patterns of the diagrams of polar map were patchy. This means that the diagram of the polar map show patchy pattern more frequently in normal subjects. In 125 patients whose diagrams of polar map were patchy, 16 patients with ischemic heart disease were included (false negative was 13%). We conclude that the estimation of DSI and the pattern of the diagram of polar map should be simultaneously considered and this makes the more accurate diagnosis possible. (author)

The effects of psychoactive drugs and neuroleptics on language in normal subjects and schizophrenic patients: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Salomé, F; Boyer, P; Fayol, M

2000-12-01

The aim of this survey is to present an overview of research into psychopharmacology as regards the effects of different psychoactive drugs and neuroleptics (NL) on language in normal subjects and schizophrenic patients. Eighteen studies that have investigated the effects of different drugs (alcohol, amphetamines, secobarbital, L-dopa, psilocybin, ketamine, fenfluramine) and neuroleptics (conventional and atypical) on language are reviewed. There are no studies concerning the effects of neuroleptics on language in healthy subjects. The results of the effects of other molecules indicate that language production can be increased (alcohol, amphetamine, secobarbital), rendered more complex (d-amphetamine), more focused (L-dopa) or more unfocused (psilocybin) and clearly impaired (ketamine). For schizophrenic patients, most studies show that conventional neuroleptic treatments, at a therapeutic dosage and in acute or chronic mode, reduce language disorders at all levels (clinic, linguistic, psycholinguistic). In conjunction with other molecules, the classical NL, when administered at a moderate dosage and in chronic mode, modify language in schizophrenia, either by improving the verbal flow and reducing pauses and positive thought disorder (NL + amphetamine) or by inducing an impairment in the language measurements (NL + fenfluramine). Clinical, methodological and theoretical considerations of results are debated in the framework of schizophrenic language disorders.

VISUAL ABILITY IN AMBLYOPIC CHILDREN COMPARED TO CHILDREN WITH NORMAL VISUAL ACUITY

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Zorica Tončić

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Vision rehabilitation in adults with low vision, even in children, is achieved with special devices, called low vision aids, LVA. The aim of the study is to determine the degree of visual function in amblyopic children and daily activities that are best related to those of normally sighted peers with normal visual acuity. The subjects were divided into two groups, matched 1:1 by age and gender: the first group consisted of 19 amblyopic children, and the second one consisted of 19 children with normal visual acuity. The questionnaire used to assess visual ability was Cardiff Visual Ability Questionnaire for Children (CVAQC, a reliable instrument for measuring visual ability in children with low vision. The study was conducted in the only rehabilitation center for amblyopic children in this region, so this is also a pioneer study. The overall result of CVAQC in amblyopic children was 1.287 log vs.-2.956, representing statistically significantly poorer visual ability in comparison to peers without vision deficit (p˂0.005. Amblyopic children function best in entertainment activities, especially in listening music (-2.31 log; as for sport, these children report swimming to be their favourite activity (-0.99 log. In the field of education they show best results in language acquisition (-0.79 log and the worst in mathematics (3.13 log. The greatest problem is reading small print texts books (2.61 log. Low vision children have poorer result of visual function in comparison to their peers with normal visual acuity. A precise deficit assessment in the most important spheres of life can be determined by using the questionnaires, so the rehabilitation can be rightly chosen.

Exercise induced pulmonary, hepatic and splenic blood volume changes in diabetic subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mubashar, M.

1993-01-01

Exercise induced blood volume changes in visceral organs were determined by scintillation gamma camera imaging in 11 normal healthy male volunteers and 15 NIDDM male diabetics without clinical signs of neuropathy. After in-vivo labelling of red cells with Technetium-99m, the data was acquired in the supine position at rest and immediately after graded upright ergometer bicycle exercise. From rest to peak exercise, pulmonary blood volume increased 19% and 75% in normal volunteers of less than and more than 40 years of age respectively. A decrease of 18% and 42% was noted in the hepatic and splenic blood volume respectively, regardless of the age, in the normal subjects. In contrast to normals, the diabetic patients showed in response to peak exercise as compared to age-matched controls. A significant difference in the drop in pulmonary blood volume 82.37% and 90% was observed between diabetics of more than and less than 7 years duration respectively. The liver and spleen of the diabetic subjects revealed a lesser decrease of 87.6% and 71.33% respectively in response to peak stress in comparison to the age matched controls. The reduction in the hepatic and splenic blood volume was equally evident in diabetics of more than or less than 50 years of age and it was statistically nonsignificant. This study demonstrates that the normal pattern of redistribution of blood volume in response to maximum exercise in diabetics is altered such that there is restricted pulmonary perfusion and diminished vasoconstriction of the hepato splenic vascular bed and the changes in the pulmonary circulation are related to the duration of the diabetics rather than the age of the patient. (author)

The relationship between oxidized lipoprotein(a and carotid atherosclerosis in asymptomatic subjects: A comparison with native lipoprotein(a

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Taniguchi Nobuyuki

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Oxidized lipoprotein(a (oxLp(a can be a more potent marker of atherogenesis than native Lp(a, although Lp(a is considered to be a risk factor for atherosclerotic diseases. Limited clinical data are available regarding the significance of oxLp(a in atherosclerotic manifestations. This study aimed to investigate the association between the serum oxLp(a and carotid artery intima-media thickness (CIMT, in comparison to the serum Lp(a levels, among asymptomatic subjects. Methods The atheroscrerosis-related variables including Lp(a and oxLp(a were measured in 136 cardiovascular disease-free subjects (61 males and 75 females, mean age of 64 years. The serum oxLp(a level was quantified using a sandwich ELISA system. The CIMT level was ultrasonographically measured on bilateral carotid arteries. Results The median level of Lp(a was 120 μmol/L, oxLp(a was 0.06 nmol/L, and CIMT was 0.7 mm, respectively. A simple correlation test showed that the CIMT was significantly and positively correlated with age, systolic blood pressure and oxLp(a (r = 0.208, P Conclusions These results suggest that oxLp(a may be more closely associated with accelerated carotid atherosclerosis, in comparison to Lp(a, in this population. This finding can be important for obtaining a better understanding of the different atherogenic roles played by oxLp(a in comparison to Lp(a.

Comparison between particulate matter and ultrafine particle emission by electronic and normal cigarettes in real-life conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruprecht, Ario Alberto; De Marco, Cinzia; Pozzi, Paolo; Munarini, Elena; Mazza, Roberto; Angellotti, Giorgia; Turla, Francesca; Boffi, Roberto

2014-01-01

Electronic cigarettes may be safer than conventional cigarettes as they generate less indoor pollution in terms of particulate matter (PM); however, recent findings in experimental conditions demonstrated that secondhand exposure to PM may be expected from e-cigarette smoking. The aim of the present study was to investigate the emission of PM generated by e-cigarettes and normal cigarettes under real-life conditions. Real-time measurement and comparison of PM and ultrafine particles (UFP) generated by electronic cigarettes with and without nicotine and by normal cigarettes in a 50 m3 office of an Italian comprehensive cancer center was performed. PM mass as PM1, PM2.5, PM7, PM10, total suspended particles (TSP) in μg/m³ and UFP in number of particles per cubic centimeter from 10 to 1,000 nanometers were measured. Outdoor concentrations were measured contemporaneously to compensate for urban background changes. Regardless of their nicotine content, e-cigarettes generated lower PM levels than conventional cigarettes. Notably, nicotine-enriched e-cigarettes produced lower PM levels than their nicotine-free counterparts. E-cigarettes appear to generate less indoor pollution than normal cigarettes and may therefore be safer. Further studies are required to investigate the long-term health-related effects of secondhand e-cigarette exposure.

Evaluating Transfer Entropy for Normal and y-Order Normal Distributions

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hlaváčková-Schindler, Kateřina; Toulias, T. L.; Kitsos, C. P.

2016-01-01

Roč. 17, č. 5 (2016), s. 1-20 ISSN 2231-0851 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : Transfer entropy * time series * Kullback-Leibler divergence * causality * generalized normal distribution Subject RIV: BC - Control Systems Theory http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2016/AS/hlavackova-schindler-0461261.pdf

Achievement Goal Orientations and Adolescents' Subjective Well-Being in School: The Mediating Roles of Academic Social Comparison Directions.

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Lili; Yu, Tingting; Huebner, E Scott

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the multiple mediational roles of academic social comparison directions (upward academic social comparison and downward academic social comparison) on the relationships between achievement goal orientations (i.e., mastery goals, performance-approach goals, and performance-avoidance goals) and subjective well-being (SWB) in school (school satisfaction, school affect) in adolescent students in China. A total of 883 Chinese adolescent students (430 males; Mean age = 12.99) completed a multi-measure questionnaire. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the hypotheses. Results indicated that (1) mastery goal orientations and performance-approach goal orientations both showed a statistically significant, positive correlation with SWB in school whereas performance-avoidance goal orientations showed a statistically significant, negative correlation with SWB in school among adolescents; (2) upward academic social comparisons mediated the relation between the three types of achievement goal orientations (i.e., mastery goals, performance-approach goals, and performance-avoidance goals) and SWB in school; (3) downward academic social comparisons mediated the relation between mastery goal orientations and SWB in school as well as the relation between performance-avoidance goal orientations and SWB in school. The findings suggest possible important cultural differences in the antecedents of SWB in school in adolescent students in China compared to adolescent students in Western nations.

Bioinformatic Description of Immunotherapy Targets for Pediatric T-Cell Leukemia and the Impact of Normal Gene Sets Used for Comparison

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Rimas J Orentas

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Pediatric lymphoid leukemia has the highest cure rate of all pediatric malignancies, yet due to its prevalence, still accounts for the majority of childhood cancer deaths and requires long-term highly toxic therapy. The ability to target B-cell ALL with immunoglobulin-like binders, whether anti-CD22 antibody or anti-CD19 CAR-Ts, has impacted treatment options for some patients. The development of new ways to target B cell antigens continues at rapid pace. T-cell ALL accounts for up to 20% of childhood leukemia but has yet to see a set of high value immunotherapeutic targets identified. To find new targets for T-ALL immunotherapy, we employed a bioinformatic comparison to broad normal tissue arrays, hematopoietic stem cells (HSC, and mature lymphocytes, then filtered the results for transcripts encoding plasma membrane proteins. T-ALL bears a core T cell signature and transcripts encoding TCR/CD3 components and canonical markers of T cell development predominate, especially when comparison was made to normal tissue or HSC. However, when comparison to mature lymphocytes was also undertaken, we identified two antigens that may drive, or be associated with leukemogenesis; TALLA-1 and hedgehog interacting protein, HHIP. In addition, TCR subfamilies, CD1, activation and adhesion markers, membrane organizing molecules, and receptors linked to metabolism and inflammation were also identified. Of these, only CD52, CD37, and CD98 are currently being targeted clinically. This work provides a set of targets to be considered for future development of immunotherapies for T-ALL.

Coronary flow reserve/diastolic function relationship in angina-suffering patients with normal coronary angiography.

Science.gov (United States)

Anchisi, Chiara; Marti, Giuliano; Bellacosa, Ilaria; Mary, David; Vacca, Giovanni; Marino, Paolo; Grossini, Elena

2017-05-01

Coronary blood flow and diastolic function are well known to interfere with each other through mechanical and metabolic mechanisms. We aimed to assess the relationship between coronary flow reserve (CFR) and diastolic dysfunction in patients suffering from angina but with normal coronary angiography. In 16 patients with chest pain and angiographically normal coronary arteries, CFR was measured using transthoracic echo-Doppler by inducing hyperemia through dipyridamole infusion. Diastolic function (E/A, deceleration time, isovolumetric relaxation time [IVRT], propagation velocity [Vp]) and left ventricular mass were evaluated by means of two-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography. The patients were initially divided into two groups on the grounds of CFR only (ACFR: altered CFR, n = 9; NACFR: unaltered CFR, n = 7). Thereafter they were divided into four groups on the grounds of CFR and diastolic function (NN: normal; AA: altered CFR/diastole; AN: altered CFR/normal diastole; NA: normal CFR/altered diastole). Most of the subjects were scheduled in AA (n = 8) or NA (n = 5) groups, which were taken into consideration for further analysis. Patients were not different regarding various risk factors. ACFR and AA patients were older with normal body weight in comparison with NACFR and NA patients (P relationship between altered CFR and diastole.

Left ventricular functional, structural and energetic effects of normal aging: Comparison with hypertension.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jehill D Parikh

Full Text Available Both aging and hypertension are significant risk factors for heart failure in the elderly. The purpose of this study was to determine how aging, with and without hypertension, affects left ventricular function.Cross-sectional study of magnetic resonance imaging and 31P spectroscopy-based measurements of left ventricular structure, global function, strains, pulse wave velocity, high energy phosphate metabolism in 48 normal subjects and 40 treated hypertensive patients (though no other cardiovascular disease or diabetes stratified into 3 age deciles from 50-79 years.Normal aging was associated with significant increases in systolic blood pressure, vascular stiffness, torsion, and impaired diastolic function (all P<0.05. Age-matched hypertension exacerbated the effects of aging on systolic pressure, and diastolic function. Hypertension alone, and not aging, was associated with increased left ventricular mass index, reduced energetic reserve, reduced longitudinal shortening and increased endocardial circumferential shortening (all P<0.05. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that these unique hypertensive features were significantly related to systolic blood pressure (P<0.05.1 Hypertension adds to the age-related changes in systolic blood pressure and diastolic function; 2 hypertension is uniquely associated with changes in several aspects of left ventricular structure, function, systolic strains, and energetics; and 3 these uniquely hypertensive-associated parameters are related to the level of systolic blood pressure and so are potentially modifiable.

The subject of exemption: through discourses of normalization and individualization in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hamre, Bjørn Frithiof; Fristrup, Tine; Christensen, Gerd

2016-01-01

This article examines the constructions of the deviant subject in Danish Foucauldian educational research. Following the work of Foucault, we argue that the deviant subject, on the one hand, could be considered as a subject of exemption. In this case, exemption is deduced from Foucault’s understa...... discourses of general education. Thus, this article argues that Foucauldian disability studies could benefit from taking into account Foucauldian research in the field of general education. Until recently, the two research fields have been mutually isolated....

Subjective video quality comparison of HDTV monitors

Science.gov (United States)

Seo, G.; Lim, C.; Lee, S.; Lee, C.

2009-01-01

HDTV broadcasting services have become widely available. Furthermore, in the upcoming IPTV services, HDTV services are important and quality monitoring becomes an issue, particularly in IPTV services. Consequently, there have been great efforts to develop video quality measurement methods for HDTV. On the other hand, most HDTV programs will be watched on digital TV monitors which include LCD and PDP TV monitors. In general, the LCD and PDP TV monitors have different color characteristics and response times. Furthermore, most commercial TV monitors include post-processing to improve video quality. In this paper, we compare subjective video quality of some commercial HD TV monitors to investigate the impact of monitor type on perceptual video quality. We used the ACR method as a subjective testing method. Experimental results show that the correlation coefficients among the HDTV monitors are reasonable high. However, for some video sequences and impairments, some differences in subjective scores were observed.

Cognition in anxious children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a comparison with clinical and normal children

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Young Arlene

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Cognition in children with anxiety disorders (ANX and comorbid Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD has received little attention, potentially impacting clinical and academic interventions in this highly disabled group. This study examined several cognitive features relative to children with either pure condition and to normal controls. Methods One hundred and eight children ages 8–12 and parents were diagnosed by semi-structured parent interview and teacher report as having: ANX (any anxiety disorder except OCD or PTSD; n = 52, ADHD (n = 21, or ANX + ADHD (n = 35. All completed measures of academic ability, emotional perception, and working memory. Clinical subjects were compared to 35 normal controls from local schools. Results Groups did not differ significantly on age, gender, or estimated IQ. On analyses of variance, groups differed on academic functioning (Wide Range Achievement Test, p Conclusion Though requiring replication, findings suggest that ANX + ADHD relates to greater cognitive and academic vulnerability than ANX, but may relate to reduced perception of anger.

Experimental studies of breaking of elastic tired wheel under variable normal load

Science.gov (United States)

Fedotov, A. I.; Zedgenizov, V. G.; Ovchinnikova, N. I.

2017-10-01

The paper analyzes the braking of a vehicle wheel subjected to disturbances of normal load variations. Experimental tests and methods for developing test modes as sinusoidal force disturbances of the normal wheel load were used. Measuring methods for digital and analogue signals were used as well. Stabilization of vehicle wheel braking subjected to disturbances of normal load variations is a topical issue. The paper suggests a method for analyzing wheel braking processes under disturbances of normal load variations. A method to control wheel baking processes subjected to disturbances of normal load variations was developed.

Studies of osmotic diarrhea induced in normal subjects by ingestion of polyethylene glycol and lactulose.

Science.gov (United States)

Hammer, H F; Santa Ana, C A; Schiller, L R; Fordtran, J S

1989-10-01

The purpose of these studies was to gain insight into the pathophysiology of pure osmotic diarrhea and the osmotic diarrhea caused by carbohydrate malabsorption. Diarrhea was induced in normal volunteers by ingestion of polyethylene glycol (PEG), which is nonabsorbable, not metabolized by colonic bacteria, and carries no electrical charge. In PEG-induced diarrhea, (a) stool weight was directly correlated with the total mass of PEG ingested; (b) PEG contributed 40-60% of the osmolality of the fecal fluid, the remainder being contributed by other solutes either of dietary, endogenous, or bacterial origin; and (c) fecal sodium, potassium, and chloride were avidly conserved by the intestine, in spite of stool water losses exceeding 1,200 g/d. Diarrhea was also induced in normal subjects by ingestion of lactulose, a disaccharide that is not absorbed by the small intestine but is metabolized by colonic bacteria. In lactulose-induced diarrhea, (a) a maximum of approximate 80 g/d of lactulose was metabolized by colonic bacteria to noncarbohydrate moieties such as organic acids; (b) the organic acids were partially absorbed in the colon; (c) unabsorbed organic acids obligated the accumulation of inorganic cations (Na greater than Ca greater than K greater than Mg) in the diarrheal fluid; (d) diarrhea associated with low doses of lactulose was mainly due to unabsorbed organic acids and associated cations, whereas with larger doses of lactulose unmetabolized carbohydrates also played a major role; and (e) the net effect of bacterial metabolism of lactulose and partial absorption of organic acids on stool water output was done dependent. With low or moderate doses of lactulose, stool water losses were reduced by as much as 600 g/d (compared with equimolar osmotic loads of PEG); with large dose, the increment in osmotically active solutes within the lumen exceeded the increment of the ingested osmotic load, and the severity of diarrhea was augmented.

Difference in diaphragmatic motion during tidal breathing in a standing position between COPD patients and normal subjects: Time-resolved quantitative evaluation using dynamic chest radiography with flat panel detector system (“dynamic X-ray phrenicography”)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Yoshitake; Ueyama, Masako; Abe, Takehiko; Araki, Tetsuro; Abe, Takayuki; Nishino, Mizuki; Jinzaki, Masahiro; Hatabu, Hiroto

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Dynamic X-ray phrenicography is a useful method for the evaluation of the diaphragms. • Its radiation dose is comparable to conventional two projection chest radiography. • Diaphragm motion during tidal breathing is larger in COPD than in normal subjects. • Higher BMI is also associated with increased excursions of the bilateral diaphragm. - Abstract: Objectives: To quantitatively compare diaphragmatic motion during tidal breathing in a standing position between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and normal subjects using dynamic chest radiography. Materials and methods: Thirty-nine COPD patients (35 males; age, 71.3 ± 8.4 years) and 47 normal subjects (non-smoker healthy volunteers) (20 males; age, 54.8 ± 9.8 years) underwent sequential chest radiographs during tidal breathing using dynamic chest radiography with a flat panel detector system. We evaluated the excursions and peak motion speeds of the diaphragms. The results were analyzed using an unpaired t-test and a multiple linear regression model. Results: The excursions of the diaphragms in COPD patients were significantly larger than those in normal subjects (right, 14.7 ± 5.5 mm vs. 10.2 ± 3.7 mm, respectively, P < 0.001; left, 17.2 ± 4.9 mm vs. 14.9 ± 4.2 mm, respectively, P = 0.022). Peak motion speeds in inspiratory phase were significantly faster in COPD patients compared to normal subjects (right, 16.3 ± 5.0 mm/s vs. 11.8 ± 4.2 mm/s, respectively, P < 0.001; left, 18.9 ± 4.9 mm/s vs. 16.7 ± 4.0 mm/s, respectively, P = 0.022). The multivariate analysis demonstrated that having COPD and higher body mass index were independently associated with increased excursions of the bilateral diaphragm (all P < 0.05), after adjusting for other clinical variables. Conclusions: Time-resolved quantitative evaluation of the diaphragm using dynamic chest radiography demonstrated that the diaphragmatic motion during tidal breathing in a standing position is larger and

Difference in diaphragmatic motion during tidal breathing in a standing position between COPD patients and normal subjects: Time-resolved quantitative evaluation using dynamic chest radiography with flat panel detector system (“dynamic X-ray phrenicography”)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yamada, Yoshitake, E-mail: yamada@rad.med.keio.ac.jp [Department of Radiology, Center for Pulmonary Functional Imaging, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis St., Boston, MA 02215 (United States); Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582 (Japan); Ueyama, Masako, E-mail: ueyamam@fukujuji.org [Department of Health Care, Fukujuji Hospital, Japan Anti-Tuberculosis Association, 3-1-24 Matsuyama, Kiyose, Tokyo 204-8522 (Japan); Abe, Takehiko, E-mail: takehikoabe@hotmail.com [Department of Radiology, Fukujuji Hospital, Japan Anti-Tuberculosis Association, 3-1-24 Matsuyama, Kiyose, Tokyo 204-8522 (Japan); Araki, Tetsuro, E-mail: TARAKI@partners.org [Department of Radiology, Center for Pulmonary Functional Imaging, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis St., Boston, MA 02215 (United States); Abe, Takayuki, E-mail: abe.t@keio.jp [Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Biostatistics Unit at Clinical and Translational Research Center, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582 (Japan); Nishino, Mizuki, E-mail: Mizuki_Nishino11@dfci.harvard.edu [Department of Radiology, Center for Pulmonary Functional Imaging, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis St., Boston, MA 02215 (United States); Jinzaki, Masahiro, E-mail: jinzaki@rad.med.keio.ac.jp [Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582 (Japan); Hatabu, Hiroto, E-mail: hhatabu@partners.org [Department of Radiology, Center for Pulmonary Functional Imaging, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis St., Boston, MA 02215 (United States); and others

2017-02-15

Highlights: • Dynamic X-ray phrenicography is a useful method for the evaluation of the diaphragms. • Its radiation dose is comparable to conventional two projection chest radiography. • Diaphragm motion during tidal breathing is larger in COPD than in normal subjects. • Higher BMI is also associated with increased excursions of the bilateral diaphragm. - Abstract: Objectives: To quantitatively compare diaphragmatic motion during tidal breathing in a standing position between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and normal subjects using dynamic chest radiography. Materials and methods: Thirty-nine COPD patients (35 males; age, 71.3 ± 8.4 years) and 47 normal subjects (non-smoker healthy volunteers) (20 males; age, 54.8 ± 9.8 years) underwent sequential chest radiographs during tidal breathing using dynamic chest radiography with a flat panel detector system. We evaluated the excursions and peak motion speeds of the diaphragms. The results were analyzed using an unpaired t-test and a multiple linear regression model. Results: The excursions of the diaphragms in COPD patients were significantly larger than those in normal subjects (right, 14.7 ± 5.5 mm vs. 10.2 ± 3.7 mm, respectively, P < 0.001; left, 17.2 ± 4.9 mm vs. 14.9 ± 4.2 mm, respectively, P = 0.022). Peak motion speeds in inspiratory phase were significantly faster in COPD patients compared to normal subjects (right, 16.3 ± 5.0 mm/s vs. 11.8 ± 4.2 mm/s, respectively, P < 0.001; left, 18.9 ± 4.9 mm/s vs. 16.7 ± 4.0 mm/s, respectively, P = 0.022). The multivariate analysis demonstrated that having COPD and higher body mass index were independently associated with increased excursions of the bilateral diaphragm (all P < 0.05), after adjusting for other clinical variables. Conclusions: Time-resolved quantitative evaluation of the diaphragm using dynamic chest radiography demonstrated that the diaphragmatic motion during tidal breathing in a standing position is larger and

Attenuation correction of myocardial SPECT by scatter-photopeak window method in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okuda, Koichi; Nakajima, Kenichi; Matsuo, Shinro; Kinuya, Seigo; Motomura, Nobutoku; Kubota, Masahiro; Yamaki, Noriyasu; Maeda, Hisato

2009-01-01

Segmentation with scatter and photopeak window data using attenuation correction (SSPAC) method can provide a patient-specific non-uniform attenuation coefficient map only by using photopeak and scatter images without X-ray computed tomography (CT). The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of attenuation correction (AC) by the SSPAC method on normal myocardial perfusion database. A total of 32 sets of exercise-rest myocardial images with Tc-99m-sestamibi were acquired in both photopeak (140 keV±10%) and scatter (7% of lower side of the photopeak window) energy windows. Myocardial perfusion databases by the SSPAC method and non-AC (NC) were created from 15 female and 17 male subjects with low likelihood of cardiac disease using quantitative perfusion SPECT software. Segmental myocardial counts of a 17-segment model from these databases were compared on the basis of paired t test. AC average myocardial perfusion count was significantly higher than that in NC in the septal and inferior regions (P<0.02). On the contrary, AC average count was significantly lower in the anterolateral and apical regions (P<0.01). Coefficient variation of the AC count in the mid, apical and apex regions was lower than that of NC. The SSPAC method can improve average myocardial perfusion uptake in the septal and inferior regions and provide uniform distribution of myocardial perfusion. The SSPAC method could be a practical method of attenuation correction without X-ray CT. (author)

Subjective cognitive decline: The first clinical manifestation of Alzheimer's disease?

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Adalberto Studart Neto

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Background: Mild cognitive impairment is considered as the first clinical manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD, when the individual exhibits below performance on standardized neuropsychological tests. However, some subjects before having a lower performance on cognitive assessments already have a subjective memory complaint. Objective: A review about subjective cognitive decline, the association with AD biomarkers and risk of conversion to dementia. Methods: We performed a comprehensive non-systematic review on PubMed. The keywords used in the search were terms related to subjective cognitive decline. Results: Subjective cognitive decline is characterized by self-experience of deterioration in cognitive performance not detected objectively through formal neuropsychological testing. However, various terms and definitions have been used in the literature and the lack of a widely accepted concept hampers comparison of studies. Epidemiological data have shown that individuals with subjective cognitive decline are at increased risk of progression to AD dementia. In addition, there is evidence that this group has a higher prevalence of positive biomarkers for amyloidosis and neurodegeneration. However, Alzheimer's disease is not the only cause of subjective cognitive decline and various other conditions can be associated with subjective memory complaints, such as psychiatric disorders or normal aging. The features suggestive of a neurodegenerative disorder are: onset of decline within the last five years, age at onset above 60 years, associated concerns about decline and confirmation by an informant. Conclusion: These findings support the idea that subjective cognitive complaints may be an early clinical marker that precedes mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's disease.

Effects of dietary carbohydrates on metabolism of calcium and other minerals in normal subjects and patients with noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Garg, A; Bonanome, A; Grundy, S M; Unger, R H; Breslau, N A; Pak, C Y

1990-04-01

Transient hypercalciuria has been noted after high carbohydrate meals which is independent of dietary calcium and is probably due to impaired renal calcium reabsorption mediated by an increase in plasma insulin levels. Based on these observations, some investigators believe that long term intake of high carbohydrate diets may increase the risk of nephrolithiasis and possibly osteoporosis. Using a randomized cross-over design, we compared high carbohydrate diets (60% carbohydrate and 25% fat) with high fat diets (50% fat and 35% carbohydrate) for effects on metabolism of calcium and other minerals in eight normal subjects and eight euglycemic patients with noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. All other dietary constituents, such as protein, fiber, fluid, minerals (including Ca, Mg, Na, K, and P), and caffeine intake, were kept constant. Despite higher daylong levels of plasma insulin on the high carbohydrate diets compared to the high fat diet in both normal and noninsulin-dependent diabetic subjects, no changes in daily urinary excretion of calcium or other constituents, associated with renal stone risk, were observed. Furthermore, there was no change in fractional intestinal 47Ca absorption. Although hypercalciuria may ensue transiently after high carbohydrate meals, we conclude that substitution of simple or complex carbohydrates for fats in an isocaloric manner for a longer duration does not result in significant urinary calcium loss, and therefore, high intakes of digestible carbohydrates may not increase the risk of nephrolithiasis or osteoporosis via this mechanism.

Comparisons of stomatal parameters between normal and abnormal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Jane

2011-07-18

Jul 18, 2011 ... plant's different parts attract more people's attention. Bougainvillea ... When this plant flowered, leaf length was divided into six stages. Normal leaves which length ..... and driving environmental change. Nature. 424: 901-908.

Finite Element Simulation and Assessment of Single-Degree-of-Freedom Prediction Methodology for Insulated Concrete Sandwich Panels Subjected to Blast Loads

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-01

Precast /prestressed components, along with their connections to the structure, should be designed to withstand the blast to prevent falling or...response of the component. Connections used for precast components subjected to blast are normally designed with small to zero dynamic increase...methodology considers fixed boundary condition to be more similar to continuous beams or columns . Figure 71 and Table 14 present the comparisons

Color Doppler US of normal cerebral venous sinuses in neonates: a comparison with MR venography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, Elka; Daneman, Alan; Doria, Andrea S.; Blaser, Susan; Traubici, Jeffrey; Jarrin, Jose; Shroff, Manohar; Moineddin, Rahim; Moore, Aideen

2012-01-01

Color Doppler US (CDUS) has been used for evaluation of cerebral venous sinuses in neonates. However, there is very limited information available regarding the appearance of superficial and deep normal cerebral venous sinuses using CDUS and the specificity of the technique to rule out disease. To determine the specificity, inter-modality and inter-reader agreement of color Doppler US (CDUS). To evaluate normal cerebral venous sinuses in neonates in comparison to MR venography (MRV). Newborns undergoing a clinically indicated brain MRI were prospectively evaluated. All underwent a dedicated CDUS of the cerebral venous sinuses within 10 h (mean, 3.5 h, range, and 2-7.6 h) of the MRI study using a standard protocol. Fifty consecutive neonates participated in the study (30 males [60%]; 25-41 weeks old; mean, 37 weeks). The mean time interval between the date of birth and the CDUS study was 19.1 days. No cases showed evidence of thrombosis. Overall agreement for US reading was 97% (range, 82-100%), for MRV reading, 99% (range, 96-100%) and for intermodality, 100% (range, 96-100%). Excellent US-MRI agreement was noted for superior sagittal sinus, cerebral veins, straight sinus, torcular Herophili, sigmoid sinus, superior jugular veins (94-98%) and transverse sinuses (82-86%). In 10 cases (20%), MRV showed flow gaps whereas normal flow was demonstrated with US. Visualization of the inferior sagittal sinus was limited with both imaging techniques. Excellent reading agreement was noted for US, MRV and intermodality. CDUS is highly specific to rule out cerebral venous thrombosis in neonates and holds potential for clinical application as part of clinical-laboratory-imaging algorithms of pre/post-test probabilities of disease. (orig.)

Interaction between corticosteroid and beta-agonist drugs. Biochemical and cardiovascular effects in normal subjects.

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Taylor, D R; Wilkins, G T; Herbison, G P; Flannery, E M

1992-08-01

The aim of this study was to investigate whether the administration of prednisone potentiates any of the acute biochemical and cardiovascular effects of high-dose inhaled beta-agonist drugs. These agents are known to cause dose-related changes in plasma potassium and glucose, as well as ECG changes in heart rate, corrected QT interval (QTc), T wave, and U wave. On theoretical grounds, the concomitant use of systemic corticosteroids might enhance these actions. Twenty-four healthy subjects were randomized to receive one of three treatments: salbutamol 5 mg or fenoterol 5 mg or normal saline solution. Each drug was administered twice, 30 min apart by nebulizer, and the procedure was repeated after each subject had received prednisone 30 mg daily for one week. Plasma potassium and glucose levels were measured, and ECGs were obtained after each treatment, together with 12-h Holter monitoring for arrhythmias. Changes in plasma potassium and glucose following nebulized beta-agonist were significantly greater after treatment with prednisone. Baseline potassium level fell from 3.75 mmol/L (95 percent CI 3.61, 3.89) to 3.50 mmol/L (95 percent CI 3.36, 3.64), and thereafter all values were significantly lower at each time point (p = 0.003). The lowest mean plasma potassium was obtained 90 min after fenoterol administration with prednisone pretreatment: 2.78 mmol/L (95 percent CI 2.44, 3.13). Increases in heart rate and QTc interval following both beta-agonist drugs were significant, but T-wave amplitude reductions did not reach significance. Prednisone treatment did not significantly alter the cardiovascular responses. Supraventricular and ventricular ectopic activity was related to beta-agonist use, but no potentiating effect was noted following steroid treatment. We conclude that the acute biochemical effects of beta-agonist administration are augmented by prior treatment with prednisone, but this is not the case for ECG effects. However, the degree of hypokalemia noted as

Autobiographical Memory in Normal Ageing and Dementia

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Harvey J. Sagar

1991-01-01

Full Text Available Autobiographical memories in young and elderly normal subjects are drawn mostly from the recent past but elderly subjects relate a second peak of memories from early adulthood. Memory for remote past public events is relatively preserved in dementia, possibly reflecting integrity of semantic relative to episodic memory. We examined recall of specific, consistent autobiographical episodes in Alzheimer's disease (AD in response to cue words. Patients and control subjects drew most memories from the recent 20 years: episode age related to anterograde memory function but not subject age or dementia. Subjects also related a secondary peak of memories from early adulthood; episode age related to subject age and severity of dementia. The results suggest that preferential recall of memories from early adulthood is based on the salience of retrieval cues, altered by age and dementia, superimposed on a temporal gradient of semantic memory. Further, AD shows behavioural similarity to normal ageing.

Achievement Goal Orientations and Adolescents’ Subjective Well-Being in School: The Mediating Roles of Academic Social Comparison Directions

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Tian, Lili; Yu, Tingting; Huebner, E. Scott

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the multiple mediational roles of academic social comparison directions (upward academic social comparison and downward academic social comparison) on the relationships between achievement goal orientations (i.e., mastery goals, performance-approach goals, and performance-avoidance goals) and subjective well-being (SWB) in school (school satisfaction, school affect) in adolescent students in China. A total of 883 Chinese adolescent students (430 males; Mean age = 12.99) completed a multi-measure questionnaire. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the hypotheses. Results indicated that (1) mastery goal orientations and performance-approach goal orientations both showed a statistically significant, positive correlation with SWB in school whereas performance-avoidance goal orientations showed a statistically significant, negative correlation with SWB in school among adolescents; (2) upward academic social comparisons mediated the relation between the three types of achievement goal orientations (i.e., mastery goals, performance-approach goals, and performance-avoidance goals) and SWB in school; (3) downward academic social comparisons mediated the relation between mastery goal orientations and SWB in school as well as the relation between performance-avoidance goal orientations and SWB in school. The findings suggest possible important cultural differences in the antecedents of SWB in school in adolescent students in China compared to adolescent students in Western nations. PMID:28197109

The cerebral functional location in normal subjects during listening to a story in Chinese, English or Japanese

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Da; Zhan Hongwei; Xu Wei; Liu Hongbiao; Bao Chengkan

2004-01-01

Objectives: To compare the cerebral functional location in normal subjects during listening to a story in Chinese (native language), English (learned language) or Japanese (unfamiliar language). Methods: 9, 14,7 normal young students were asked to listen an emotional story in Chinese, the deeds of life of Aiyinsitan in English, and a dialogue in unfamiliar Japanese on a tap for 20 minters respectively. They were also asked to pay special attention to the name of the personage, time and site during listening Chinese or English story. 99mTc-ECD was administered in the first 3 minutes during they listened the story. The brain imaging was performed in 30 60 minutes after the tracer was administered. The results were compared with their brain imaging at rest respectively. Results: During listened to the story in Chinese, learned English, and unfamiliar Japanese, the auditory association cortex in the dual superior temporal and some midtemporal were activated. The inferior frontal and/or medial frontal lobes were activated too, special during listening to familiar language, and asked to remember the plot of the story, such as Chinese and English. But to compare with listening English, the activity in right frontal lobe was higher than in left during listened to the Chinese. During listened to unfamiliar Japanese, the frontal lobes were activated widely too. Conclusions: The results of our study shows that besides the auditory association cortex in the superior temporal and midtemporal, language can activates, the left inferior frontal (Broca s area), and in right and left frontal eye field, midtemporal, and superior frontal lobes were activated by language too. These regions in frontal have a crucial role in the decoding of familiar spoken language. And the attempt to decode unfamiliar spoken languages activates more auditory association areas. The left hemisphere is dominance hemisphere for language. But in our study, right temporal and frontal lobes were activated more

The Effects of 6 Isocaloric Meals on Body Weight, Lipid Profiles, Leptin, and Adiponectin in Overweight Subjects (BMI > 25

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Zeynab Hatami Zargaran

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Background: It seems that meal frequency is negatively related to body weight, but the relationship between meal frequency and weight loss is not clearly known yet. Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate whether 6 isocaloric meals affected body weight, lipid profiles, leptin, and adiponectin in overweight subjects. Methods: The present randomized controlled trial was conducted on 90 overweight subjects in 3 months. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups. The control group continued their normal diet, while the intervention group was required to follow a 6 isocaloric meal diet instead of their previous meal pattern (3 meals and 2 snacks. The planned reduced calorie diets for both groups were identical, except for meal pattern. Blood samples were analyzed prior to and at the end of the study for total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL-C, LDL-C, leptin, and adiponectinn concentrations. Paired t-test was used for comparison of the measurements before and after the study in each group. Besides, independent t-test was used for comparison of the measurements between the groups. P value less than 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: The mean age of the participants was 36.38 ± 9.7 in the intervention group and 37.6 ± 10.9 in the control group. In comparison to the control group, the intervention group showed a significant decrease in total cholesterol (P < 0.001, LDL-C (P < 0.001, BMI (P < 0.001, triglyceride (P < 0.001, and leptin (P = 0.002 and a significant increase in HDL (P < 0.001 and adiponectin (P = 0.031. Conclusions: The 6 isocaloric meal pattern led to a reduction in BMI, lipid profiles (total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglyceride, and leptin concentrations and an increase in HDL and adiponectin compared to the normal diet.

Systematic changes in position sense accompany normal aging across adulthood.

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Herter, Troy M; Scott, Stephen H; Dukelow, Sean P

2014-03-25

Development of clinical neurological assessments aimed at separating normal from abnormal capabilities requires a comprehensive understanding of how basic neurological functions change (or do not change) with increasing age across adulthood. In the case of proprioception, the research literature has failed to conclusively determine whether or not position sense in the upper limb deteriorates in elderly individuals. The present study was conducted a) to quantify whether upper limb position sense deteriorates with increasing age, and b) to generate a set of normative data that can be used for future comparisons with clinical populations. We examined position sense in 209 healthy males and females between the ages of 18 and 90 using a robotic arm position-matching task that is both objective and reliable. In this task, the robot moved an arm to one of nine positions and subjects attempted to mirror-match that position with the opposite limb. Measures of position sense were recorded by the robotic apparatus in hand-and joint-based coordinates, and linear regressions were used to quantify age-related changes and percentile boundaries of normal behaviour. For clinical comparisons, we also examined influences of sex (male versus female) and test-hand (dominant versus non-dominant) on all measures of position sense. Analyses of hand-based parameters identified several measures of position sense (Variability, Shift, Spatial Contraction, Absolute Error) with significant effects of age, sex, and test-hand. Joint-based parameters at the shoulder (Absolute Error) and elbow (Variability, Shift, Absolute Error) also exhibited significant effects of age and test-hand. The present study provides strong evidence that several measures of upper extremity position sense exhibit declines with age. Furthermore, this data provides a basis for quantifying when changes in position sense are related to normal aging or alternatively, pathology.

Comparisons of stomatal parameters between normal and abnormal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

ED), guard cell length (GCL) and guard cell width (GCW) of normal and abnormal leaf of Bougainvillea spectabilis Willd were studied. This can be useful for further research of physical mechanism of abnormal leaf. Epidermal cells were ...

Subjective and objective image qualities: a comparison of sagittal T2 weighted spin-echo and turbo-spin-eco sequences in magnetic resonance imaging of the spine by use of a subjective ranking system

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Goerres, G. [Institut fuer diagnostische Radiologie, Departement Radiologie, Universitaetskliniken, Kantonsspital Basel (Switzerland); Mader, I. [Radiologische Gemeinschaftspraxis Dres. Siems, Grossmann, Bayreuth (Germany); Proske, M. [Klinikum Rosenheim (Germany). Inst. fuer Diagnostische Radiologie

1998-12-31

We evaluated the subjective image impression of two different magnetic resonance (MR) sequences by using a subjective ranking system. This ranking system was based on 20 criteria describing several tissue characteristics such as the signal intensity of normal anatomical structures and the changes of signal intensities and shape of lesions as well as artefacts. MR of the vertebral spine was performed in 48 female and 52 male patients (mean age 44.8 years) referred consecutively for investigation of a back problem. Ninety-six pathologies were found in 82 patients. Sagittal and axial T1 weighted spin-echo before and after administration of Gadolinium (Gd-DOTA), and sagittal T2 weighted spin-echo (T2wSE) and Turbo-spin-echo (TSE) sequences were performed by means of surface coils. Using the subjective ranking system the sagittal T2wSE and sagittal TSE were compared. Both sequences were suitable for identification of normal anatomy and pathologic changes and there was no trend for increased detection of disease by one imaging sequence over the other. We found that sagittal TSE sequences can replace sagittal T2wSE sequences in spinal MR and that artefacts at the cervical and lumbar spine are less frequent using TSE, thus confirming previous studies. In this study, our ranking system reveiled, that there are differences between the subjective judgement of image qualities and objective measurement of SNR. However, this approach may not be helpful to compare two different MR sequences as it is limited to the anatomical area investigated and is time consuming. The subjective image impression, i.e. the quality of images, may not always be represented by physical parameters such as a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), radiologists should try to define influences of image quality also by subjective parameters. (orig.)

Diabetic subjects diagnosed through the Diabetes Prevention Trial-Type 1 (DPT-1) are often asymptomatic with normal A1C at diabetes onset.

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Triolo, Taylor M; Chase, H Peter; Barker, Jennifer M

2009-05-01

Upon diagnosis of type 1 diabetes, patients are usually symptomatic, and many have ketoacidosis. Screening for islet autoantibodies (IAs) has been shown to decrease A1C level and rate of hospitalization at diabetes onset. Metabolic tests and the presence of symptoms were described at diabetes onset during the Diabetes Prevention Trial-Type 1 (DPT-1). The DPT-1 screened relatives of patients with type 1 diabetes for islet cell autoantiobodies (ICAs). Those with positive ICAs had intravenous and oral glucose tolerance tests (IVGTTs and OGTTs) and were randomized into one of two prevention trials. Throughout the DPT-1 parenteral and oral insulin study, 246 people were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Of the 246 subjects diagnosed with diabetes, 218 had data regarding the presence of symptoms, and 138 (63.3%) reported no symptoms suggestive of diabetes. Eight subjects (3.67%) presented with ketosis. Subjects presented with a mean +/- SD A1C of 6.41 +/- 1.15%. At diagnosis, 90 subjects (50.8%) had A1C in the normal range (IA followed by OGTT) may allow diagnosis of diabetes before severe metabolic decompensation. Screening with A1C will miss identifying many of the subjects with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes in this cohort.

Skin perfusion pressure measured with a photo sensor in an air-filled plastic balloon: validity and reproducibility on the lower leg in normal subjects and patients suspected of obliterative arterial disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nielsen, Steen Levin; Nielsen, Anne Lerberg; Vind, Susanne Haase; Thomassen, Anders

2011-01-01

An inflatable small plastic bag including a photo sensor was constructed for measurement of skin perfusion pressure avoiding the rim of the photo sensor over bony and tendineous surfaces of the tibia below the knee, at the ankle, and on the dorsal forefoot. Compression was obtained using a conical blood pressure cuff with continuous decrease from suprasystolic arm pressure. The validity of skin perfusion pressure with the new device was compared to that of isotope washout below the knee in normal subjects and in patients with an ischemic forefoot with acceptable agreement. The method had a high reproducibility within and between days in normal subjects. Compared to systolic arterial pressure measured using a strain gauge with a cuff on the ankle in normal subjects and patients with intermittent claudication the new device showed blood pressure in the skin closer to the diastolic pressure. The new pressure device thus had acceptable validity and reproducibility for estimation of the skin perfusion pressure and can be used on bony and tendineous sites on the lower limb in regions where critical wound healing is frequent, e.g. ankle and forefoot

Thin-plate spline analysis of craniofacial growth in Class I and Class II subjects.

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Franchi, Lorenzo; Baccetti, Tiziano; Stahl, Franka; McNamara, James A

2007-07-01

To compare the craniofacial growth characteristics of untreated subjects with Class II division 1 malocclusion with those of subjects with normal (Class I) occlusion from the prepubertal through the postpubertal stages of development. The Class II division 1 sample consisted of 17 subjects (11 boys and six girls). The Class I sample also consisted of 17 subjects (13 boys and four girls). Three craniofacial regions (cranial base, maxilla, and mandible) were analyzed on the lateral cephalograms of the subjects in both groups by means of thin-plate spline analysis at T1 (prepubertal) and T2 (postpubertal). Both cross-sectional and longitudinal comparisons were performed on both size and shape differences between the two groups. The results showed an increased cranial base angulation as a morphological feature of Class II malocclusion at the prepubertal developmental phase. Maxillary changes in either shape or size were not significant. Subjects with Class II malocclusion exhibited a significant deficiency in the size of the mandible at the completion of active craniofacial growth as compared with Class I subjects. A significant deficiency in the size of the mandible became apparent in Class II subjects during the circumpubertal period and it was still present at the completion of active craniofacial growth.

An improved method for sacro-iliac joint imaging: a study of normal subjects, patients with sacro-iliitis and patients with low back pain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ayres, J.; Hilson, A.J.W.; Maisey, M.N.; Laurent, R.; Panayi, G.S.; Saunders, A.J.

1981-01-01

A new method is described for quantitative measurement of the uptake of sup(99m)Tc-methylene diphosphonate (MDP) by the sacro-iliac joints. The method uses 'regions of interest' providing advantages over the previously described 'slice' method; the two methods are compared in normal subjects, patients with known sacro-iliitis and patients with low back pain. Sacro-iliac activity, as calculated by the sacro-iliac index (SII) in normal patients, was shown to decrease with age in females but not in males. The SII was compared with radiographs of the sacro-iliac joints in the patients with known sacro-iliac joint disease and in those with low back pain. The method is useful for the exclusion of sacro-iliitis as a specific cause of back pain. (author)

Speech perception performance of subjects with type I diabetes mellitus in noise

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Bárbara Cristiane Sordi Silva

Full Text Available Abstract Introduction: Diabetes mellitus (DM is a chronic metabolic disorder of various origins that occurs when the pancreas fails to produce insulin in sufficient quantities or when the organism fails to respond to this hormone in an efficient manner. Objective: To evaluate the speech recognition in subjects with type I diabetes mellitus (DMI in quiet and in competitive noise. Methods: It was a descriptive, observational and cross-section study. We included 40 participants of both genders aged 18-30 years, divided into a control group (CG of 20 healthy subjects with no complaints or auditory changes, paired for age and gender with the study group, consisting of 20 subjects with a diagnosis of DMI. First, we applied basic audiological evaluations (pure tone audiometry, speech audiometry and immittance audiometry for all subjects; after these evaluations, we applied Sentence Recognition Threshold in Quiet (SRTQ and Sentence Recognition Threshold in Noise (SRTN in free field, using the List of Sentences in Portuguese test. Results: All subjects showed normal bilateral pure tone threshold, compatible speech audiometry and "A" tympanometry curve. Group comparison revealed a statistically significant difference for SRTQ (p = 0.0001, SRTN (p < 0.0001 and the signal-to-noise ratio (p < 0.0001. Conclusion: The performance of DMI subjects in SRTQ and SRTN was worse compared to the subjects without diabetes.

Magnetization transfer imaging of normal and abnormal testis: preliminary results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsili, Athina C.; Ntorkou, Alexandra; Maliakas, Vasilios; Argyropoulou, Maria I.; Baltogiannis, Dimitrios; Sylakos, Anastasios; Sofikitis, Nikolaos; Stavrou, Sotirios; Astrakas, Loukas G.

2016-01-01

The aim was to determine the magnetization transfer ratio (MTR) of normal testes, possible variations with age and to assess the feasibility of MTR in characterizing various testicular lesions. Eighty-six men were included. A three-dimensional gradient-echo MT sequence was performed, with/without an on-resonance binomial prepulse. MTR was calculated as: (SIo-SIm)/(SIo) x 100 %, where SIm and SIo refers to signal intensities with and without the saturation pulse, respectively. Subjects were classified as: group 1, 20-39 years; group 2, 40-65 years; and group 3, older than 65 years of age. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the least significant difference test was used to assess variations of MTR with age. Comparison between the MTR of normal testis, malignant and benign testicular lesions was performed using independent-samples t testing. ANOVA revealed differences of MTR between age groups (F = 7.51, P = 0.001). Significant differences between groups 1, 2 (P = 0.011) and 1, 3 (P < 0.001) were found, but not between 2, 3 (P = 0.082). The MTR (in percent) of testicular carcinomas was 55.0 ± 3.2, significantly higher than that of benign lesions (50.3 ± 4.0, P = 0.02) and of normal testes (47.4 ± 2.2, P < 0.001). MTR of normal testes decreases with age. MTR might be helpful in the diagnostic work-up of testicular lesions. (orig.)

DSM-IV obsessive-compulsive personality disorder: prevalence in patients with anxiety disorders and in healthy comparison subjects.

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Albert, Umberto; Maina, Giuseppe; Forner, Federica; Bogetto, Filippo

2004-01-01

The relationship between obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) has not yet been fully clarified. The aim of the present study was to analyze DSM-IV OCPD prevalence rates in OCD and panic disorder (PD) patients to test for the specificity of the OCPD-OCD link, and to compare them to OCPD prevalence in a control group of subjects without any psychiatric disorder. A total of 109 patients with a principal diagnosis of DSM-IV (SCID-I) OCD and 82 with PD were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Disorders (SCID-II) in order to assess the prevalence of OCPD. All patients with a coexisting axis I diagnosis were excluded from the study to eliminate confounding factors when evaluating the association between prevalence rates of OCPD and anxiety disorder diagnoses. An exclusion criteria was also a Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) score >/=16. A sample of comparison subjects (age 18 to 65 years) without any psychiatric disorder was recruited from people registered with two general practitioners (GPs), whether or not they consulted the doctor, in order to evaluate OCPD prevalence rate in the community. A significant difference was found between the prevalence of OCPD in OCD (22.9%) and in PD (17.1%) on one hand, and that in the comparison sample (3.0%) on the other. No differences were found between the two psychiatric groups, even when splitting the samples according to gender. Our study failed to support the hypothesis of a specific relationship between OCPD and OCD; we confirmed the higher prevalence rate of this personality disorder in OCD subjects with regard to the general population, but we also confirmed the higher rate of OCPD in another anxiety disorder which is phenomenologically well characterized and different from OCD, such as PD.

Studies on immunoproteasome in human liver. Part I: Absence in fetuses, presence in normal subjects, and increased levels in chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasuri, Francesco; Capizzi, Elisa; Bellavista, Elena; Mishto, Michele; Santoro, Aurelia; Fiorentino, Michelangelo; Capri, Miriam; Cescon, Matteo; Grazi, Gian Luca; Grigioni, Walter Franco; D'Errico-Grigioni, Antonia; Franceschi, Claudio

2010-01-01

Despite the central role of proteasomes in relevant physiological pathways and pathological processes, this topic is unexpectedly largely unexplored in human liver. Here we present data on the presence of proteasome and immunoproteasome in human livers from normal adults, fetuses and patients affected by major hepatic diseases such as cirrhosis and chronic active hepatitis. Immunohistochemistry for constitutive (α4 and β1) and inducible (LMP2 and LMP7) proteasome subunits, and for the PA28αβ regulator, was performed in liver samples from 38 normal subjects, 6 fetuses, 2 pediatric cases, and 19 pathological cases (10 chronic active hepatitis and 9 cirrhosis). The immunohistochemical data have been validated and quantified by Western blotting analysis. The most striking result we found was the concomitant presence in hepatocyte cytoplasm of all healthy subjects, including the pediatric cases, of constitutive proteasome and immunoproteasome subunits, as well as PA28αβ. At variance, immunoproteasome was not present in hepatocytes from fetuses, while a strong cytoplasmic and nuclear positivity for LMP2 and LMP7 was found in pathological samples, directly correlated to the histopathological grade of inflammation. At variance from other organs such as the brain, immunoproteasome is present in livers from normal adult and pediatric cases, in apparent absence of pathological processes, suggesting the presence of a peculiar regulation of the proteasome/immunoproteasome system, likely related to the physiological stimuli derived from the gut microbiota after birth. Other inflammatory stimuli contribute in inducing high levels of immunoproteasome in pathological conditions, where its role deserve further attention.

Studies on immunoproteasome in human liver. Part I: Absence in fetuses, presence in normal subjects, and increased levels in chronic active hepatitis and cirrhosis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vasuri, Francesco; Capizzi, Elisa [Pathology Unit of the ' F. Addarii' Institute of Oncology, S.Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bologna University (Italy); Bellavista, Elena [Department of Experimental Pathology, Bologna University (Italy); Interdepartmental Center for Studies on Biophysics, Bioinformatics and Biocomplexity ' L. Galvani' (CIG), Bologna University (Italy); Mishto, Michele [Department of Experimental Pathology, Bologna University (Italy); Interdepartmental Center for Studies on Biophysics, Bioinformatics and Biocomplexity ' L. Galvani' (CIG), Bologna University (Italy); Institute of Biochemistry, Medical Faculty Charite, Berlin (Germany); Santoro, Aurelia [Department of Experimental Pathology, Bologna University (Italy); Interdepartmental Center for Studies on Biophysics, Bioinformatics and Biocomplexity ' L. Galvani' (CIG), Bologna University (Italy); Fiorentino, Michelangelo [Pathology Unit of the ' F. Addarii' Institute of Oncology, S.Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bologna University (Italy); Capri, Miriam [Department of Experimental Pathology, Bologna University (Italy); Interdepartmental Center for Studies on Biophysics, Bioinformatics and Biocomplexity ' L. Galvani' (CIG), Bologna University (Italy); Cescon, Matteo; Grazi, Gian Luca [Unit of General and Transplantation Surgery, S.Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bologna University (Italy); Grigioni, Walter Franco; D' Errico-Grigioni, Antonia [Pathology Unit of the ' F. Addarii' Institute of Oncology, S.Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bologna University (Italy); Franceschi, Claudio, E-mail: claudio.franceschi@unibo.it [Department of Experimental Pathology, Bologna University (Italy); Interdepartmental Center for Studies on Biophysics, Bioinformatics and Biocomplexity ' L. Galvani' (CIG), Bologna University (Italy)

2010-06-25

Despite the central role of proteasomes in relevant physiological pathways and pathological processes, this topic is unexpectedly largely unexplored in human liver. Here we present data on the presence of proteasome and immunoproteasome in human livers from normal adults, fetuses and patients affected by major hepatic diseases such as cirrhosis and chronic active hepatitis. Immunohistochemistry for constitutive ({alpha}4 and {beta}1) and inducible (LMP2 and LMP7) proteasome subunits, and for the PA28{alpha}{beta} regulator, was performed in liver samples from 38 normal subjects, 6 fetuses, 2 pediatric cases, and 19 pathological cases (10 chronic active hepatitis and 9 cirrhosis). The immunohistochemical data have been validated and quantified by Western blotting analysis. The most striking result we found was the concomitant presence in hepatocyte cytoplasm of all healthy subjects, including the pediatric cases, of constitutive proteasome and immunoproteasome subunits, as well as PA28{alpha}{beta}. At variance, immunoproteasome was not present in hepatocytes from fetuses, while a strong cytoplasmic and nuclear positivity for LMP2 and LMP7 was found in pathological samples, directly correlated to the histopathological grade of inflammation. At variance from other organs such as the brain, immunoproteasome is present in livers from normal adult and pediatric cases, in apparent absence of pathological processes, suggesting the presence of a peculiar regulation of the proteasome/immunoproteasome system, likely related to the physiological stimuli derived from the gut microbiota after birth. Other inflammatory stimuli contribute in inducing high levels of immunoproteasome in pathological conditions, where its role deserve further attention.

Human studies of prepulse inhibition of startle: normal subjects, patient groups, and pharmacological studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Braff, D L; Geyer, M A; Swerdlow, N R

2001-07-01

Since the mid-1970s, cross-species translational studies of prepulse inhibition (PPI) have increased at an astounding pace as the value of this neurobiologically informative measure has been optimized. PPI occurs when a relatively weak sensory event (the prepulse) is presented 30-500 ms before a strong startle-inducing stimulus, and reduces the magnitude of the startle response. In humans, PPI occurs in a robust, predictable manner when the prepulse and startling stimuli occur in either the same or different modalities (acoustic, visual, or cutaneous). This review covers three areas of interest in human PPI studies. First, we review the normal influences on PPI related to the underlying construct of sensori- (prepulse) motor (startle reflex) gating. Second, we review PPI studies in psychopathological disorders that form a family of gating disorders. Third, we review the relatively limited but interesting and rapidly expanding literature on pharmacological influences on PPI in humans. All studies identified by a computerized literature search that addressed the three topics of this review were compiled and evaluated. The principal studies were summarized in appropriate tables. The major influences on PPI as a measure of sensorimotor gating can be grouped into 11 domains. Most of these domains are similar across species, supporting the value of PPI studies in translational comparisons across species. The most prominent literature describing deficits in PPI in psychiatrically defined groups features schizophrenia-spectrum patients and their clinically unaffected relatives. These findings support the use of PPI as an endophenotype in genetic studies. Additional groups of psychopathologically disordered patients with neuropathology involving cortico-striato-pallido-pontine circuits exhibit poor gating of motor, sensory, or cognitive information and corresponding PPI deficits. These groups include patients with obsessive compulsive disorder, Tourette's syndrome

Sensation seeking in opium abusers compared to normal people

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2004-05-01

Full Text Available Recent research shows that it is possible to identify people at risk of substance abuse using some personality variables. Identification of these people might help social planners to deal with these people specifically in their prevention attempts. The aim of this study was to compare the sensation seeking of opium addicted and non-addicted people using the sensation seeking scale. Such a comparison might help to identify personality variables that are effective in turning toward substance abuse. In order to measure the sensation seeking of subjects “Sensation Seeking Scale” (SSS were used. 31 opium abusers were matched to 31 normal controls according to the following variables: age, education, father and mother education. Results showed that opium abusers obtain higher scores on the total sensation seeking score ,“variety seeking” and “experience seeking” subscales.

PET imaging and quantitation of Internet-addicted patients and normal controls

Science.gov (United States)

Jeong, Ha-Kyu; Kim, Hee-Joung; Jung, Haijo; Son, Hye-Kyung; Kim, Dong-Hyeon; Yun, Mijin; Shin, Yee-Jin; Lee, Jong-Doo

2002-04-01

Internet addicted patients (IAPs) have widely been increased, as Internet games are becoming very popular in daily life. The purpose of this study was to investigate regional brain activation patterns associated with excessive use of Internet games in adolescents. Six normal controls (NCs) and eight IAPs who were classified as addiction group by adapted version of DSM-IV for pathologic gambling were participated. 18F-FDG PET studies were performed for all adolescents at their rest and activated condition after 20 minutes of each subject's favorite Internet game. To investigate quantitative metabolic differences in both groups, all possible combinations of group comparison were carried out using Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM 99). Regional brain activation foci were identified on Talairach coordinate. SPM results showed increased metabolic activation in occipital lobes for both groups. Higher metabolisms were seen at resting condition in IAPs than that of in NCs. In comparison to both groups, IAPs showed different patterns of regional brain metabolic activation compared with that of NCs. It suggests that addictive use of Internet games may result in functional alteration of developing brain in adolescents.

Longitudinal Lung Function Decrease in Subjects with Spontaneous Healed Pulmonary Tuberculosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seung Heon; Kwon, Amy M; Yang, Hae-Chung; Lee, Seung Ku; Kim, Young; Choi, Jong Hyun; Kim, Je Hyeong; Shin, Chol

2016-01-01

We compared the longitudinal course of post-bronchodilator Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second (pFEV1) over a 10-year period in subjects with spontaneous healed pulmonary tuberculosis (SHPTB) with that in normal subjects. We prospectively investigated 339 subjects with SHPTB and 3211 normal subjects. pFEV1 values measured biannually over 10 years were analyzed using mixed effects model. At baseline, there were no differences in gender, smoking amount, and mean height, except mean age (50.0 ± 8.1 VS. 48.1 ± 7.3, P< 0.001) between the SHPTB and normal group. 52% of the 339 participants with SHPTB and 56% of the 3211 normal participants participated till the end of study. According to the final model, the SHPTB group showed significantly larger decrease in the average pFEV1 over the time than the normal group (P< 0.001) adjusted for gender, age, height, smoking pack years, and time effects. Especially, the interaction effect between time and group was statistically significant (P = 0.036). The average lung function in terms of pFEV1 decreases faster in subjects with SHPTB than in normal individuals over time.

The variability problem of normal human walking

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simonsen, Erik B; Alkjær, Tine

2012-01-01

Previous investigations have suggested considerable inter-individual variability in the time course pattern of net joint moments during normal human walking, although the limited sample sizes precluded statistical analyses. The purpose of the present study was to obtain joint moment patterns from...... a group of normal subjects and to test whether or not the expected differences would prove to be statistically significant. Fifteen healthy male subjects were recorded on video while they walked across two force platforms. Ten kinematic and kinetic parameters were selected and input to a statistical...... cluster analysis to determine whether or not the 15 subjects could be divided into different 'families' (clusters) of walking strategy. The net joint moments showed a variability corroborating earlier reports. The cluster analysis showed that the 15 subjects could be grouped into two clusters of 5 and 10...

Fluidelastic instability of a flexible tube in a rigid normal square array subjected to uniform two-phase cross-flows

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Axisa, F.; Villard, B.; Antunes, J.

1989-01-01

During the last decade several researchers, investigated fluidelastic instability in tube arrays by restricting the problem to a single degree of freedom system. This is a very attractive idea because of obvious theoretical and experimental simplifications. Nevertheless, it has still to be clarified how far such results can be applied to fully flexible arrays. This paper is presenting a few experimental data obtained on a rigid normal square array subjected to uniform air-water cross flows, at various homogeneous void fractions α H from O to 1. Fluidelastic instability was clearly observed in air and in water. However instability was progressively vanishing in two-phase flow, when α H was increased. Such a result is contrasting with those obtained on fully flexible arrays

Effect of chloroquine on insulin and glucose homoeostasis in normal subjects and patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, G D; Amos, T A; Mahler, R; Peters, T J

1987-01-01

Plasma glucose, insulin, and C peptide concentrations were determined after an oral glucose load in normal subjects and in a group of patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus before and during a short course of treatment with chloroquine. In the control group there was a small but significant reduction in fasting blood glucose concentration but overall glucose tolerance and hormone concentrations were unaffected. In contrast, the patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus showed a significant improvement in their glucose tolerance, which paralleled the severity of their diabetes. This response seems to reflect decreased degradation of insulin rather than increased pancreatic output. These observations suggest that treatment with chloroquine or suitable analogues may be a new approach to the management of diabetes. PMID:3103729

Comparison of renal venous blood flow between normal pregnant women and non-pregnant women by colour and duplex doppler sonography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, S.; Butt, R.W.; Masoud, R; Umar, M.; Shakil, U.

2012-01-01

To investigate whether normal pregnancy has a significant effect on intrarenal venous blood flow and to assess whether the physiological maternal pyelocaliectasis causes a measurable change in venous impedance indices in pregnant women. Study Design: Cross sectional comparative study. Place and duration of study: Radiology Departments, KRL Hospital Islamabad and Combined Military Hospital Lahore from Jan 2010 to Jul 2010 Patients and Methods: A total of 50 normal pregnant women in their second and third trimester and 50 controls, i.e. normal non-pregnant married healthy women of childbearing age were included in the study. Confounding variables were controlled by excluding subjects having recent or previous renal calculi, pathological renal conditions or congenital renal anomalies or generalized disorders affecting haemodynamics ruled out by history, clinical examination and ultrasound examination in both pregnant and non-pregnant women. Results: After grading the degree of hydronephrosis, venous impedance index was obtained from the interlobar veins. Overall the collecting system dilatation was present in 60 % of 50 right kidneys and 42 % of 50 left kidneys in the pregnant women. The venous impedance indices were significantly lower in 50 pregnant women than the values in non-pregnant subjects (p< 0.001 for the right and the left kidney). The overall difference in venous impedance indices between right and left kidneys was not significant in pregnant women (p = 0.11). There was an inverse correlation between the grade of pelvicalyceal dilatation and the venous impedance indices in both kidneys in 50 pregnant women. Conclusion: Normal pregnancy causes dilatation of the pelvicalyceal system and significant reduction in renal venous impedance index values in second and third trimesters. Therefore one should be careful in interpretation of an abnormally reduced venous impedance index and hydronephrosis as a sign of pathological ureteral obstruction in pregnant women

Noncontrast-enhanced magnetic resonance renal angiography using a repetitive artery and venous labelling technique at 3 T: comparison with contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography in subjects with normal renal function.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Sung Yoon; Kim, Chan Kyo; Kim, EunJu; Park, Byung Kwan

2015-02-01

To investigate the feasibility of noncontrast-enhanced MR angiography (NC-MRA) using the repetitive artery and venous labelling (RAVEL) technique to evaluate renal arteries compared to contrast-enhanced MR angiography (CE-MRA). Twenty-five subjects with normal renal function underwent NC-MRA using a RAVEL technique and CE-MRA at 3 T. Two independent readers analysed the MRA images. Image quality, number of renal arteries, presence or absence of an early branching vessel, and diameter of the main renal arteries were evaluated. The overall image quality of NC-MRA was fair or greater in 88% of right and 92% of left renal arteries, while it was 96% in both sides with CE-MRA. On NC-MRA, the number of renal arteries in all subjects was perfectly predicted by both readers. Sensitivity and specificity for predicting early branching vessels were 82% and 100% for reader 1 and 82% and 95% for reader 2. Inter-modality agreement for comparing the diameters of main renal arteries was good or excellent at all segments for both readers. Inter-reader agreement was moderate or good at all segments except at the right distal segment on NC-MRA. NC-MRA with the RAVEL technique at 3 T may have comparable diagnostic feasibility for evaluating renal arteries compared to CE-MRA. • Accurate pre-treatment evaluation of renal artery anatomy helps clinical decision-making. • NC-MRA using RAVEL offers acceptable imaging quality for renal artery evaluation. • The 3 T RAVEL technique provides excellent diagnostic performance for renal artery evaluation. • The 3 T RAVEL technique may be an alternative to contrast-enhanced MRA.

Yoga Poses Increase Subjective Energy and State Self-Esteem in Comparison to 'Power Poses'.

Science.gov (United States)

Golec de Zavala, Agnieszka; Lantos, Dorottya; Bowden, Deborah

2017-01-01

Research on beneficial consequences of yoga focuses on the effects of yogic breathing and meditation. Less is known about the psychological effects of performing yoga postures. The present study investigated the effects of yoga poses on subjective sense of energy and self-esteem. The effects of yoga postures were compared to the effects of 'power poses,' which arguably increase the sense of power and self-confidence due to their association with interpersonal dominance (Carney et al., 2010). The study tested the novel prediction that yoga poses, which are not associated with interpersonal dominance but increase bodily energy, would increase the subjective feeling of energy and therefore increase self-esteem compared to 'high power' and 'low power' poses. A two factorial, between participants design was employed. Participants performed either two standing yoga poses with open front of the body ( n = 19), two standing yoga poses with covered front of the body ( n = 22), two expansive, high power poses ( n = 21), or two constrictive, low power poses ( n = 20) for 1-min each. The results showed that yoga poses in comparison to 'power poses' increased self-esteem. This effect was mediated by an increased subjective sense of energy and was observed when baseline trait self-esteem was controlled for. These results suggest that the effects of performing open, expansive body postures may be driven by processes other than the poses' association with interpersonal power and dominance. This study demonstrates that positive effects of yoga practice can occur after performing yoga poses for only 2 min.

Potential Benefits and Harms of Intermittent Energy Restriction and Intermittent Fasting Amongst Obese, Overweight and Normal Weight Subjects—A Narrative Review of Human and Animal Evidence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michelle Harvie

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Intermittent energy restriction (IER has become popular as a means of weight control amongst people who are overweight and obese, and is also undertaken by normal weight people hoping spells of marked energy restriction will optimise their health. This review summarises randomised comparisons of intermittent and isoenergetic continuous energy restriction for weight loss to manage overweight and obesity. It also summarises the potential beneficial or adverse effects of IER on body composition, adipose stores and metabolic effects from human studies, including studies amongst normal weight subjects and relevant animal experimentation. Six small short term (<6 month studies amongst overweight or obese individuals indicate that intermittent energy restriction is equal to continuous restriction for weight loss, with one study reporting greater reductions in body fat, and two studies reporting greater reductions in HOMA insulin resistance in response to IER, with no obvious evidence of harm. Studies amongst normal weight subjects and different animal models highlight the potential beneficial and adverse effects of intermittent compared to continuous energy restriction on ectopic and visceral fat stores, adipocyte size, insulin resistance, and metabolic flexibility. The longer term benefits or harms of IER amongst people who are overweight or obese, and particularly amongst normal weight subjects, is not known and is a priority for further investigation.

Potential Benefits and Harms of Intermittent Energy Restriction and Intermittent Fasting Amongst Obese, Overweight and Normal Weight Subjects—A Narrative Review of Human and Animal Evidence

Science.gov (United States)

Harvie, Michelle; Howell, Anthony

2017-01-01

Intermittent energy restriction (IER) has become popular as a means of weight control amongst people who are overweight and obese, and is also undertaken by normal weight people hoping spells of marked energy restriction will optimise their health. This review summarises randomised comparisons of intermittent and isoenergetic continuous energy restriction for weight loss to manage overweight and obesity. It also summarises the potential beneficial or adverse effects of IER on body composition, adipose stores and metabolic effects from human studies, including studies amongst normal weight subjects and relevant animal experimentation. Six small short term (obese individuals indicate that intermittent energy restriction is equal to continuous restriction for weight loss, with one study reporting greater reductions in body fat, and two studies reporting greater reductions in HOMA insulin resistance in response to IER, with no obvious evidence of harm. Studies amongst normal weight subjects and different animal models highlight the potential beneficial and adverse effects of intermittent compared to continuous energy restriction on ectopic and visceral fat stores, adipocyte size, insulin resistance, and metabolic flexibility. The longer term benefits or harms of IER amongst people who are overweight or obese, and particularly amongst normal weight subjects, is not known and is a priority for further investigation. PMID:28106818

Comparison of radiosensitivities of human autologous normal and neoplastic thyroid epithelial cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, R.C.; Kopecky, K.J.; Hiraoka, T.; Ezaki, H.; Clifton, K.H.

1986-01-01

Studies were conducted to examine differences between the radiosensitivities of normal and neoplastic epithelial cells of the human thyroid. Freshly excised thyroid tissues from the tumours of eight patients with papillary carcinoma (PC) and five with follicular adenoma (FA) were cultured in vitro separately from normal thyroid tissue obtained from the surgical margins of the same patients. Plating efficiency of unirradiated control tissue was lower, on average for tumour tissue compared with normal tissue. Radiosensitivity, measured by the 37% inactivation dose D 0 , was greater for carcinoma tissue than for normal tissue in seven out of eight PC cases. Adenomatous tissue was less radiosensitive than normal tissue in four out of five FA cases. This is the first report comparing the radiosensitivity of autologous normal and abnormal epithelial tissue from the human thyroid. (author)

Effect of subcutaneous injection of a long-acting analogue of somatostatin (SMS 201-995) on plasma thyroid-stimulating hormone in normal human subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Itoh, S.; Tanaka, K.; Kumagae, M.; Takeda, F.; Morio, K.; Kogure, M.; Hasegawa, M.; Horiuchi, T.; Watabe, T.; Miyabe, S.

1988-01-01

SMS 201-995 (SMS), a synthetic analogue of somatostatin (SRIF) has been shown to be effective in the treatment of the hypersecretion of hormones such as in acromegaly. However, little is known about the effects of SMS on the secretion of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) in normal subjects. In this study, plasma TSH was determined with a highly sensitive immunoradiometric assay, in addition to the concentration of SMS in plasma and urine with a radioimmunoassay, following subcutaneous injection of 25, 50, 100 ..mu..g of SMS or a placebo to normal male subjects, at 0900 h after an overnight fast. The plasma concentrations of SMS were dose-responsive and the peak levels were 1.61 +/- 0.09, 4.91 +/- 0.30 and 8.52 +/- 1.18 ng/ml, which were observed at 30, 15 and 45 min after the injection of 25, 50, and 100 ..mu..g of SMS, respectively. Mean plasma disappearance half-time of SMS was estimated to be 110 +/- 3 min. Plasma TSH was suppressed in a dose dependent manner and the suppression lasted for at least 8 hours. At 8 hours after the injection of 25, 50, and 100 ..mu..g of SMS, the plasma TSH levels were 43.8 +/- 19.4, 33.9 +/- 9.4 and 24.9 +/- 3.2%, respectively, of the basal values.

Semi-quantitative X-ray microanalysis of bronchoalveolar lavage samples from silica-exposed and nonexposed subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lusuardi, M.; Capelli, A.; Donner, C.F.; Capelli, O.; Velluti, G.

1992-01-01

To evaluate the possibility of quantifying alveolar dust burden in conditions of exposure to silica, four groups of subjects were submitted to bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL): 10 healthy control subjects and 39 patients affected by diffuse interstitial lung disease (DILD) never exposed to dust, 23 silicotic patients and 12 chronic bronchitis patients with a history of occupational exposure to silica dust. Five to ten million BAL recovered cells were analysed with an energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDXA) system to determine the silicon content, expressed in a semi-quantitative way as silicon to sulphur (Si/S) ratio. The results were independent of smoking habit. The Si/S median values (interquartile range in brackets) for the four groups were 0.53 (0.5-0.65), 0.60 (0.41-0.8), 1.23 (1.06-1.39); 1.31 (1.11-1.97), respectively. Silicotics and simply exposed individuals did not show a significant discrepancy, but they were both significantly different in comparison with normal and DILD patients without history of exposure (p<0.001). 14.3% false negative cases were found, and 4.1% false positive cases (none among normal subjects). We did not se any significant relationships between the amount of silicon and the duration of exposure or the degree of chest X-ray involvement. A study of cytocentrifuge slides from the same subjects by polarizing light microscopy revealed a lower sensitivity (34% false negative cases). (au)

Serial position effects in patients with mild cognitive impairment and early and moderate Alzheimer's disease compared with healthy comparison subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Moser, B; Deisenhammer, E A; Marksteiner, J; Papousek, I; Fink, A; Weiss, E M

2014-01-01

This study aimed to investigate whether the serial position effects in memory can differentiate patients with different subtypes of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) from healthy controls and patients with different stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The serial position effects was tested with the CERAD word list task in 184 persons (39 healthy control subjects, 15 amnestic MCI single domain subjects, 23 amnestic MCI multiple domain subjects, 31 nonamnestic MCI subjects, 45 early or mild AD patients, and 31 moderate AD patients). With progression of dementia, memory deficits increased and the impairment in the primacy effect during the learning trials advanced, whereas the recall of recent items was less impaired. The serial position profile of nonamnestic MCI patients resembled that of healthy control subjects, whereas amnestic MCI patients showed poorer performance in all 3 positions but no significant difference as a function of serial word position. Analyses of the serial position effect may be a useful complement to clinical neuropsychological measures for distinguishing amnestic MCI patients from normal aging and patients with different stages of dementia. © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Do brain image databanks support understanding of normal ageing brain structure? A systematic review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dickie, David Alexander; Job, Dominic E.; Wardlaw, Joanna M.; Poole, Ian; Ahearn, Trevor S.; Staff, Roger T.; Murray, Alison D.

2012-01-01

To document accessible magnetic resonance (MR) brain images, metadata and statistical results from normal older subjects that may be used to improve diagnoses of dementia. We systematically reviewed published brain image databanks (print literature and Internet) concerned with normal ageing brain structure. From nine eligible databanks, there appeared to be 944 normal subjects aged ≥60 years. However, many subjects were in more than one databank and not all were fully representative of normal ageing clinical characteristics. Therefore, there were approximately 343 subjects aged ≥60 years with metadata representative of normal ageing, but only 98 subjects were openly accessible. No databank had the range of MR image sequences, e.g. T2*, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR), required to effectively characterise the features of brain ageing. No databank supported random subject retrieval; therefore, manual selection bias and errors may occur in studies that use these subjects as controls. Finally, no databank stored results from statistical analyses of its brain image and metadata that may be validated with analyses of further data. Brain image databanks require open access, more subjects, metadata, MR image sequences, searchability and statistical results to improve understanding of normal ageing brain structure and diagnoses of dementia. (orig.)

Nitroglycerin provocation in normal subjects is not a useful human migraine model?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tvedskov, J F; Iversen, Helle Klingenberg; Olesen, J

2010-01-01

Provoking delayed migraine with nitroglycerin in migraine sufferers is a cumbersome model. Patients are difficult to recruit, migraine comes on late and variably and only 50-80% of patients develop an attack. A model using normal volunteers would be much more useful, but it should be validated...... aspirin 1000 mg, zolmitriptan 5 mg or placebo to normal healthy volunteers. The design was double-blind, placebo-controlled three-way crossover. Our hypothesis was that these drugs would be effective in the treatment of the mild constant headache induced by long-lasting GTN infusion. The headaches did...... experiment suggests that headache caused by direct nitric oxide (NO) action in the continued presence of NO is very resistance to analgesics and to specific acute migraine treatments. This suggests that NO works very deep in the cascade of events associated with vascular headache, whereas tested drugs work...

Relationship between hamstring length and gluteus maximus strength with and without normalization.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Dong-Kyu; Oh, Jae-Seop

2018-01-01

[Purpose] This study assessed the relationship between hamstring length and gluteus maximus (GM) strength with and without normalization by body weight and height. [Subjects and Methods] In total, 34 healthy male subjects volunteered for this study. To measure GM strength, subjects performed maximal hip joint extension with the knee joints flexed to 90° in the prone position. GM strength was normalized for body weight and height. [Results] GM strength with normalization was positively correlated with hamstring length, whereas GM strength without normalization was negatively correlated with hamstring length. [Conclusion] The normalization of GM strength by body weight and height has the potential to lead to more appropriate conclusions and interpretations about its correlation with hamstring length. Hamstring length may be related to GM strength.