Radiation-induced temporary epilation after a neuroradiologically guided embolization procedure

A 34-year-old woman underwent embolization of a left paraorbital arteriovenous malformation guided with a bi-plane x-ray system in two sessions separated by 3 days. Imaging included 110 minutes of fluoroscopy and 46 digital subtraction angiography acquisitions. Entrance skin dose rates were determined with measurements performed on a skull phantom. The maximum possible skin dose was estimated to be 6.6 Gy, which is consistent with the temporary epilation in the right occipital region of the skull reported by the patient approximately 5 weeks later.     

Do women really excel over men in manual dexterity?

One of the axiomatic claims of both academic and folk psychology is that women have greater manual dexterity than men. On the basis of the performance of right-handed men (N?=?47) and women (N?=?57) on 6 different motor tasks, this general claim is shown not to be valid. On a peg-moving task with thick pegs that can easily be picked up by large hands and that required a large movement trajectory, men performed better than women, whereas on a peg-moving task with very thin pegs, women performed better than men. When the same thin pegs were picked up and placed with tweezers, eliminating finger size as a factor, sex differences disappeared. A tapping and a sequencing task favored men. The results show that a variety of factors other than dexterity determine magnitude and direction of sex differences on fine motor tasks. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Low prevalence of coronary artery spasm in patients with normal coronary angiograms and unexplained ventricular fibrillation

AIMS: The aetiology of ventricular fibrillation in patients without identifiable structural heart disease is unknown. Recently, high prevalence of silent ischaemia due to coronary artery spasm has been reported in such patients. However, in at least one report, all patients had non-critical coronary artery lesions. Identification of coronary artery spasm as the underlying aetiology of ventricular fibrillation has important therapeutic implications. METHODS AND RESULTS: We performed ergonovine provocation tests in 18 patients (14 males, and four females; mean age, 36 years) with documented ventricular fibrillation in the absence of identifiable structural heart disease who had undergone aborted sudden death. In group I (n = 7) ergonovine provocation tests were performed at a mean interval of 31 months (range 21-42 months) after the index episode. These patients had already received an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, after failed electrophysiologically guided antiarrhythmic therapy. In group II (n = 11) the ergonovine provocation test was performed prospectively as part of the diagnostic evaluation. All patients were off antiarrhythmic drugs, calcium entry or beta-adrenoceptor blockers at the time of the ergonovine provocation test. Ergonovine was administered intravenously as a bolus injection, beginning with 0.05 mg followed every 3 min by incremental doses up to a cumulative maximum dose of 0.45 mg. Predefined end-points were (1) recording of ischaemic ST segment shifts of > or = 1 mm in at least two corresponding leads of the 12-lead electrocardiogram; (2) induction of ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation; and (3) administration of a cumulative dose of 0.45 mg. A positive response to ergonovine was seen in only one patient (5%) in group I in whom there developed ST segment elevation without angina and a short burst of rapid ventricular tachycardia. CONCLUSIONS: This study found a low prevalence of coronary artery spasm in patients with aborted sudden death resulting from documented ventricular fibrillation and non-apparent underlying heart disease. All patients had normal coronary angiograms and a negative history for spontaneous episodes of chest pain. The mechanism of arrhythmogenesis in such patients remains largely unknown.     

Effect of plasma TNF-alpha on filgrastim-stimulated hematopoiesis in mice and humans

Marshall syndrome is a rare, autosomal dominant skeletal dysplasia that is phenotypically similar to the more common disorder Stickler syndrome. For a large kindred with Marshall syndrome, we demonstrate a splice-donor-site mutation in the COL11A1 gene that cosegregates with the phenotype. The G+1-->A transition causes in-frame skipping of a 54-bp exon and deletes amino acids 726-743 from the major triple-helical domain of the alpha1(XI) collagen polypeptide. The data support the hypothesis that the alpha1(XI) collagen polypeptide has an important role in skeletal morphogenesis that extends beyond its contribution to structural integrity of the cartilage extracellular matrix. Our results also demonstrate allelism of Marshall syndrome with the subset of Stickler syndrome families associated with COL11A1 mutations.     

The Physico-chemical Hydrodynamics of Dyeing

Meetings of the Leeds Junior Section, held in the Department of Colour Chemistry and Dyeing, University of Leeds, on 11 November 1969, Mr K. R. F. Cockett in the chair; and of the Manchester Region, held at the Literary and Philosophical Society, Manchester, on 20 November 1969, Mr H. R. Hadfield in the chair Films of methoxymethylnylon 6.6 have been inserted into a stream of dye-liquor. The rates of dyeing of an acid dye at different points down the film were measured. Under some conditions of dyeing, the rate was shown to be controlled by the diffusion in the liquid phase. Values of the thickness of the diffusional boundary layer were calculated from the flux and shown to agree with theory. Modifications of the dyeing conditions, e.g. by increasing the pH or lowering thedyebath concentration, reduced the diffusion coefficient of the dye in the film, and the rate of dyeing became dependent on diffusion both in the film and in the liquid.