OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and BC incidence.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: We obtained data from 15 population-based cohorts enrolled between 1985 and 2005 in eight European countries (N=303431; mean follow-up 14.1 yr). We estimated exposure to nitrogen oxides (NO2 and NOx), particulate matter (PM) with diameter <10μm (PM10), <2.5μm (PM2.5), between 2.5 and 10μm (PM2.5-10), PM2.5absorbance (soot), elemental constituents of PM, organic carbon, and traffic density at baseline home addresses using standardized land-use regression models from the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects project.
OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: We used Cox proportional-hazards models with adjustment for potential confounders for cohort-specific analyses and meta-analyses to estimate summary hazard ratios (HRs) for BC incidence.
RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: During follow-up, 943 incident BC cases were diagnosed. In the meta-analysis, none of the exposures were associated with BC risk. The summary HRs associated with a 10-μg/m3 increase in NO2 and 5-μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 were 0.98 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.89-1.08) and 0.86 (95% CI 0.63-1.18), respectively. Limitations include the lack of information about lifetime exposure.
CONCLUSIONS: There was no evidence of an association between exposure to outdoor air pollution levels at place of residence and risk of BC.
PATIENT SUMMARY: We assessed the link between outdoor air pollution at place of residence and bladder cancer using the largest study population to date and extensive assessment of exposure and comprehensive data on personal risk factors such as smoking. We found no association between the levels of outdoor air pollution at place of residence and bladder cancer risk.
OBJECTIVE: This study analyzed the flexibility of the unfused thoracic segments above the "potential upper instrumented vertebrae (UIV)" (T1-T12) and its compensatory ability in Lenke 5 and 6 curves using supine side bending (SSB) radiographs.
STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective study was used.
PATIENT SAMPLE: This study comprised 100 patients.
OUTCOME MEASURES: The ability of the unfused thoracic segments above the potential UIV, that is, T1-T12, to compensate in Lenke 5 and 6 curves was determined. We also analyzed postoperative radiological outcome of this cohort of patients with a minimum follow-up of 12 months.
METHODS: Right and left SSB were obtained. Right side bending (RSB) and left side bending (LSB) angles were measured from T1 to T12. Compensatory ability of thoracic segments was defined as the ability to return to neutral (center sacral vertical line [CSVL]) with the assumption of maximal correction of lumbar curve with a horizontal UIV. The Lenke 5 curves were classified as follows: (1) Lenke 5-ve (mobile): main thoracic Cobb angle <15° and (2) Lenke 5+ve (stiff): main thoracic Cobb angle 15.0°-24.9°. This study was self-funded with no conflict of interest.
RESULTS: There were 43 Lenke 5-ve, 31 Lenke 5+ve, and 26 Lenke 6 curves analyzed. For Lenke 5-ve, >70% of thoracic segments were able to compensate when UIV were at T1-T8 and T12 and >50% at T9-T11. For Lenke 5+ve, >70% at T1-T6 and T12, 61.3% at T7, 38.7% at T8, 3.2% at T9, 6.5% at T10, and 22.6% at T11 were able to compensate. For Lenke 6 curve, >70% at T1-T6, 69.2% at T7, 19.2% at T8, 7.7% at T9, 0% at T10, 3.8% at T11, and 34.6% at T12 were able to compensate. There was a significant difference between Lenke 5-ve versus Lenke 5+ve and Lenke 5-ve versus Lenke 6 from T8 to T11. There were no significance differences between Lenke 5+ve and Lenke 6 curves from T1 to T11.
CONCLUSIONS: The compensatory ability of the unfused thoracic segment of Lenke 5+ve curves was different from the Lenke 5-ve curves, and it demonstrated characteristics similar to the Lenke 6 curves.
METHODS: Women with SUI (n = 120) were randomized to either active or sham PMS for 8 weeks (twice/week). Patients answered seven questions on their perception and acceptability, each measured on a 5-point Likert scale. Treatment satisfaction was assessed using two parameters: (i) the single-item question "Overall, please rate how satisfied you are with the treatment" and (ii) Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I). All adverse events were documented.
RESULTS: A total of 115 patients completed treatments (active: n = 57, sham: n = 58). There were no significant differences between groups in all parameters regarding perception and acceptability (p > 0.05). In terms of treatment satisfaction, a significantly higher proportion of patients in the active group (n = 47/57, 82.4%) were either mostly or completely satisfied compared with those in the sham group (n = 27/58, 46.6%) ((p = 0.001). Similarly, a statistically significantly higher percentage of patients in the active group (n = 39/57, 68.4%) felt much or very much better compared with patients in the sham group (n = 11/58, 19.0%) as measured using the PGI-I (p
RESULTS: PSC-AgNPs with an average particle size of 11.68 nm inhibited the growth of the pathogenic yeast C. albicans. Values for minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum fungicidal concentration were 250 and 500 mg L-1 , respectively. TEM images revealed that the average particle size of PSC-AgNPs was 16.8 nm, with the values for zeta potential and the polydispersity index being -8.54 mV and 0.137, respectively. XRD and FTIR spectra showed PSC-AgNPs to have a face-centered cubic crystalline structure. The polysaccharides and amino acid residues present in P. sajor-caju extract were found to be involved in reducing Ag+ to AgNP. Both CaICL1 transcription and ICL protein expression were found to be suppressed in the cells treated with PSC-AgNPs as compared with the control.
CONCLUSION: Our PSC-AgNP preparation makes for a promising antifungal agent that can downregulate isocitrate lyase. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.
METHODS: This was a retrospective study involving archived data sets of women seen between November 2013 and May 2014. All underwent a clinical interview, POPQ examination, and 4D translabial ultrasound (TLUS). The main outcome measure was organ descent on clinical examination and TLUS. Offline analysis for organ descent was undertaken blinded against all other data.
RESULTS: A total of 224 women were assessed. Mean age was 57 (23-84) years. Median parity was 3 (0-7). Ninety-three percent (n=208) were vaginally parous. Fifty-eight percent (n=129) complained of symptoms of prolapse: 49% (n=110) of a vaginal lump, 27% (n=61) of a dragging sensation. Clinically, mean point B anterior (Ba) was -0.86 (-3 to +7.5) cm, mean cervical station (C) was -4.1 (-9 to +8) cm, mean point B posterior (Bp) was -1.1 (-3 to +5) cm. On imaging, mean bladder, uterine, and rectal descent were -8.3 (-68.0 to 34) mm, +18.6 (-56.4 to 46.3) mm, and -5.3 (-39.8 to 36) mm respectively. On univariate analysis, both symptoms were strongly associated with objective prolapse clinically and on TLUS, with "vaginal lump" consistently the stronger predictor.
CONCLUSIONS: The symptom of a "vaginal lump or bulge" was consistently a stronger predictor of objective POP than "dragging sensation." This finding was insensitive to adjustments for potential confounders. However, a "dragging sensation" is clearly a symptom of prolapse.
METHODS: This study includes 373,293 men and women, 25-70 years old, recruited between 1992 and 2000 from 10 European countries in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. Habitual intake of nuts including peanuts, together defined as nut intake, was estimated from country-specific validated dietary questionnaires. Body weight was measured at recruitment and self-reported 5 years later. The association between nut intake and body weight change was estimated using multilevel mixed linear regression models with center/country as random effect and nut intake and relevant confounders as fixed effects. The relative risk (RR) of becoming overweight or obese after 5 years was investigated using multivariate Poisson regressions stratified according to baseline body mass index (BMI).
RESULTS: On average, study participants gained 2.1 kg (SD 5.0 kg) over 5 years. Compared to non-consumers, subjects in the highest quartile of nut intake had less weight gain over 5 years (-0.07 kg; 95% CI -0.12 to -0.02) (P trend = 0.025) and had 5% lower risk of becoming overweight (RR 0.95; 95% CI 0.92-0.98) or obese (RR 0.95; 95% CI 0.90-0.99) (both P trend <0.008).
CONCLUSIONS: Higher intake of nuts is associated with reduced weight gain and a lower risk of becoming overweight or obese.
METHODS: Demographic data, underlying diseases, procedures and details on polymyxin B therapy were retrospectively analyzed in a cohort of 84 patients who received intravenous polymyxin B in an intensive care unit from 2010 to 2014.
RESULTS: Polymyxin B was used to treat bacteremia (46.4% of cases) and pneumonia (53.6%). Majority of the pathogens isolated were Acinetobacter spp. (96.4%). The mortality rate was 48.8%, of which 82.9% was attributed to polymyxin B treatment failure. The independent predictors of treatment failure were low doses of polymyxin B (p = 0.002), shorter duration of therapy (p = 0.009), not combining with cefoperazone/sulbactam (p = 0.030), female gender (p = 0.004), administered for treatment of bacteremia (p = 0.023) and renal impairment (p = 0.021). Low polymyxin B doses (p = 0.007), not combining with cefoperazone/sulbactam (p = 0.024), female gender (p = 0.048) and renal impairment (p = 0.022) were also significant predictors for in-hospital mortality.
CONCLUSIONS: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the association of inadequate dose of polymyxin B (<15,000 units/kg/day) with poor outcome in critically ill patients. Besides that, further clinical studies are warranted to evaluate the use of cefoperazone/sulbactam as second antibiotic in the combination therapy.