Evaluation of the Total Design Method in a survey of Japanese dentists

BACKGROUND: This study assessed the application of the Total Design Method (TDM) in a mail survey of Japanese dentists. The TDM was chosen because survey response rates in Japan are unacceptably low and the TDM had previously been used in a general population survey. METHODS: Four hundred and seventy eight dentist members of the Okayama Medical and Dental Practitioner's Association were surveyed. The nine-page, 27-item questionnaire covered dentist job satisfaction, physical practice, and dentist and patient characteristics. Respondents to the first mailing or the one-week follow-up postcard were defined as early responders; others who responded were late responders. Responder bias was assessed by examining age, gender and training. RESULTS: The overall response rate was 46.7% (223/478). The response rates by follow-up mailing were, 18% after the first mailing, 35.4% after the follow-up postcard, 42.3% after the second mailing, and 46.7% after the third mailing. Respondents did not differ from non-respondents in age or gender, nor were there differences between early and late responders. CONCLUSION: The application of TDM in this survey of Japanese dentists produced lower rates of response than expected from previous Japanese and US studies

Visual function and serous retinal detachment in patients with branch retinal vein occlusion and macular edema: a case series

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The influence of serous retinal detachment (SRD) on retinal sensitivity in patients with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) and macular edema remains unclear. This is despite the frequent co-existence of SRD and cystoid macular edema (CME) in BRVO patients on optical coherence tomography (OCT) and the fact that CME is the most common form of macular edema secondary to BRVO. We investigated visual function (visual acuity and macular sensitivity), macular thickness, and macular volume in patients with BRVO and macular edema.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Fifty-three consecutive BRVO patients (26 women and 27 men) were divided into two groups based on optical coherence tomography findings. Macular function was documented by microperimetry, while macular thickness and volume were measured by OCT.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were 15 patients with SRD and 38 patients with CME. Fourteen of the 15 patients with SRD also had CME. Visual acuity was significantly worse in the SRD group than in the CME group (P = 0.049). Also, macular thickness and macular volume within the central 4°, 10°, and 20° fields were significantly greater in the SRD group (P = 0.008, and P = 0.007, P < 0.001 and P < 0.001, and P < 0.001 and P < 0.001, respectively). However, macular sensitivity within the central 4°, 10°, and 20° fields was not significantly worse in the SRD group than in the CME group.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>SRD itself may decrease visual acuity together with CME, because nearly all SRD patients also had CME. SRD does not seem to influence macular function on microperimetry.</p

Estimation of Fracture Toughness of Anisotropic Rocks by Semi-Circular Bend (SCB) Tests Under Water Vapor Pressure

In order to investigate the influence of water vapor pressure in the surrounding environment on mode I fracture toughness (KIc) of rocks, semi-circular bend (SCB) tests under various water vapor pressures were conducted. Water vapor is one of the most effective agents which promote stress corrosion of rocks. The range of water vapor pressure used was 10−2 to 103 Pa, and two anisotropic rock types, African granodiorite and Korean granite, were used in this work. The measurement of elastic wave velocity and observation of thin sections of these rocks were performed to investigate the microstructures of the rocks. It was found that the distribution of inherent microcracks and grains have a preferred orientation. Two types of specimens in different orientations, namely Type-1 and Type-3, were prepared based on the anisotropy identified by the differences in the elastic wave velocity. KIc of both rock types was dependent on the water vapor pressure in the surrounding environment and decreased with increasing water vapor pressure. It was found that the degree of the dependence is influenced by the orientation and density of inherent microcracks. The experimental results also showed that KIc depended on the material anisotropy. A fracture process was discussed on the basis of the geometry of fractures within fractured specimens visualized by the X-ray computed tomography (CT) method. It was concluded that the dominant factor causing the anisotropy of KIc is the distribution of grains rather than inherent microcracks in these rocks

Remodeling of Retinal Fatty Acids in an Animal Model of Diabetes: A Decrease in Long-Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Is Associated With a Decrease in Fatty Acid Elongases Elovl2 and Elovl4

OBJECTIVE: The results of the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial/Epidemiology of Diabetes Interventions and Complications cohort study revealed a strong association between dyslipidemia and the development of diabetic retinopathy. However, there are no experimental data on retinal fatty acid metabolism in diabetes. This study determined retinal-specific fatty acid metabolism in control and diabetic animals. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Tissue gene and protein expression profiles were determined by quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot in control and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats at 3-6 weeks of diabetes. Fatty acid profiles were assessed by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, and phospholipid analysis was performed by nano-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. RESULTS: We found a dramatic difference between retinal and liver elongase and desaturase profiles with high elongase and low desaturase gene expression in the retina compared with liver. Elovl4, an elongase expressed in the retina but not in the liver, showed the greatest expression level among retinal elongases, followed by Elovl2, Elovl1, and Elovl6. Importantly, early-stage diabetes induced a marked decrease in retinal expression levels of Elovl4, Elovl2, and Elovl6. Diabetes-induced downregulation of retinal elongases translated into a significant decrease in total retinal docosahexaenoic acid, as well as decreased incorporation of very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), particularly 32:6n3, into retinal phosphatidylcholine. This decrease in n3 PUFAs was coupled with inflammatory status in diabetic retina, reflected by an increase in gene expression of proinflammatory markers interleukin-6, vascular endothelial growth factor, and intercellular adhesion molecule-1. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first comprehensive study demonstrating diabetes-induced changes in retinal fatty acid metabolism. Normalization of retinal fatty acid levels by dietary means or/and modulating expression of elongases could represent a potential therapeutic target for diabetes-induced retinal inflammation

A Systematic Meta-Analysis of Genetic Association Studies for Diabetic Retinopathy

OBJECTIVE: Diabetic retinopathy is a sight-threatening microvascular complication of diabetes with a complex multifactorial pathogenesis. A systematic meta-analysis was undertaken to collectively assess genetic studies and determine which previously investigated polymorphisms are associated with diabetic retinopathy. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: All studies investigating the association of genetic variants with the development of diabetic retinopathy were identified in PubMed and ISI Web of Knowledge. Crude odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs were calculated for single nucleotide polymorphisms and microsatellite markers previously investigated in at least two published studies. RESULTS: Twenty genes and 34 variants have previously been studied in multiple cohorts. The aldose reductase (AKR1B1) gene was found to have the largest number of polymorphisms significantly associated with diabetic retinopathy. The z-2 microsatellite was found to confer risk (OR 2.33 [95% CI 1.49-3.64], P = 2 x 10(-4)) in type 1 and type 2 diabetes and z+2 to confer protection (0.58 [0.36-0.93], P = 0.02) against diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes regardless of ethnicity. The T allele of the AKR1B1 promoter rs759853 variant is also significantly protective against diabetic retinopathy in type 1 diabetes (0.5 [0.35-0.71], P = 1.00 x 10(-4)), regardless of ethnicity. These associations were also found in the white population alone (P < 0.05). Polymorphisms in NOS3, VEGF, ITGA2, and ICAM1 are also associated with diabetic retinopathy after meta-analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Variations within the AKR1B1 gene are highly significantly associated with diabetic retinopathy development irrespective of ethnicity. Identification of genetic risk factors in diabetic retinopathy will assist in further understanding of this complex and debilitating diabetes complication

Automatic mapping of atoms across both simple and complex chemical reactions

Mapping atoms across chemical reactions is important for substructure searches, automatic extraction of reaction rules, identification of metabolic pathways, and more. Unfortunately, the existing mapping algorithms can deal adequately only with relatively simple reactions but not those in which expert chemists would benefit from computer&apos;s help. Here we report how a combination of algorithmics and expert chemical knowledge significantly improves the performance of atom mapping, allowing the machine to deal with even the most mechanistically complex chemical and biochemical transformations. The key feature of our approach is the use of few but judiciously chosen reaction templates that are used to generate plausible &quot;intermediate&quot; atom assignments which then guide a graph-theoretical algorithm towards the chemically correct isomorphic mappings. The algorithm performs significantly better than the available state-of-the-art reaction mappers, suggesting its uses in database curation, mechanism assignments, and - above all - machine extraction of reaction rules underlying modern synthesis-planning programs