METHODOLOGY: A prospective observational study was conducted by inviting pre-dialysis CKD patients. Fluid overload was assessed by BIS.
RESULTS: A total of 312 CKD patients with mean eGFR 24.5 ± 11.2 ml/min/1.73 m2were enrolled. Based on OH value ≥7 %, 135 (43.3 %) patients were hypervolemic while euvolemia was observed in 177 (56.7 %) patients. Patients were categorized in different regions of hydration reference plot (HRP) generated by BIS i.e., 5.1 % in region-N (normal BP and fluid status), 20.5 % in region I (hypertensive with severe fluid overload), 29.5 % in region I-II (hypertensive with mild fluid overload), 22 % in region II (hypertensive with normohydration), 10.2 % in region III (underhydration with normal/low BP) and 12.5 % in region IV (normal BP with severe fluid overload). A total of 144 (46 %) patients received diuretics on basis of physician assessment of BP and edema. Maximum diuretics 100 (69.4 %) were prescribed in patients belonging to regions I and I-II of HRP. Interestingly, a similar number of diuretic prescriptions were observed in region II (13 %) and region IV (12 %). Surprisingly, 7 (4.9 %) of patients in region III who were neither hypervolemic nor hypertensive were also prescribed with diuretics.
CONCLUSION: BIS can aid clinicians to categorize CKD patients on basis of their fluid status and provide individualized pharmacotherapy to manage hypertensive CKD patients.
DISCUSSION: This paper presents comprehensive report on breast carcinoma disease and its modalities available for detection and diagnosis, as it delves into the screening and detection modalities with special focus placed on the non-invasive techniques and its recent advancement work done, as well as a proposal on a novel method for the application of early breast carcinoma detection.
CONCLUSION: This paper aims to serve as a foundation guidance for the reader to attain bird's eye understanding on breast carcinoma disease and its current non-invasive modalities.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred and fifty mammography patients above 40 years and undergoing EIT were chosen using convenient sampling. Visual interpretation of the images was carried out by a radiologist with minimum of three years experience using the breast imaging - electrical impedance (BI-EIM) classification for detection of abnormalities. A set of thirty blinded EIT images were reinterpreted to determine the intra-rater reliability using kappa. Quantitative assessment was by comparison of the breast average electric conductivity with the norm and correlations with visual interpretation of the images were determined using Chi-square. One-way ANOVA was used to compare the mean electrical conductivity between groups and t-test was used for comparisons with pre-existing Caucasians statistics. Independent t-tests were applied to compare the mean electrical conductivity of women with factors like exogenous hormone use and family history of breast cancer.
RESULTS: The mean electrical conductivity of Malaysian women was significantly lower than that of Caucasians (p<0.05). Quantitative assessment of electrical impedance tomography was significantly related with visual interpretation of images of the breast (p<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Quantitative assessment of electrical impedance tomography images was significantly related with visual interpretation.
METHODS AND STUDY DESIGN: A randomized controlled study was conducted on obese women with high breast adiposity (<0.1 Sm-1), aged 40-60 years in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Subjects were assigned to intervention (n=16) and control group (n=15). Intervention group received a home based health education package with close monitoring weekly, personal diet consultation and physical training in group. Assessment was ascertained at three time points; baseline, weeks 8 and 16. Outcome measures were the energy intake, physical activity, body composition, blood tests, blood biomarkers and electrical impedance tomography (EIT) quantitative values. Analyses were done using 2-way repeated measures ANOVA.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: All subjects completed the program without any drop-out. The HSI group had 100% compliance towards the intervention program; their energy intake was reduced for approximately 35% and their activity score was increased for approximately 11%. A significant interaction effect was found in body weight, body mass index (BMI), total cholesterol/HDL, vitamin C intake and matrix metallopeptidase 9 (MMP-9) (p<0.05). Interestingly, their EIT extremum values were also significantly increased indicating a reduction of breast adiposity. The intervention program was successful in improving body composition, physical activities, MMP9 and breast adipose tissue composition.
METHOD: An electrical cell-substrate impedance-sensing tool was utilized to study the real-time cell-cell barrier or morphological changes in response to the virus infection.
RESULTS: Herpes simplex virus, regardless of type (i.e., 1 or 2), reduced the cell-cell barrier resistance almost immediately after virus addition to endothelial cells, with negligible involvement of cell-matrix adhesion changes. There is no exclusivity in the infection ability of endothelial cells. From 30 h after HSV infection, there was an increase in cell membrane capacitance with a subsequent loss of cell-matrix adhesion capability, indicating a viability loss of the infected endothelial cells.
CONCLUSION: This study shows for the first time that destruction of human brain micro-vascular endothelial cells as an in vitro model of the blood-brain barrier could be an alternative invasion mechanism during herpes simplex virus infection.