A study of correlation between seismicity and mental health: Crete, 2008–2010

We compared the number of M > 2 earthquakes in an area, including the island of Crete, Greece, to the number of admissions to the Psychiatric Inpatient Unit of the University of Crete (IPU/UoC), during the period 2008–2010. We found that when earthquakes with M 6.4 occurred in the region examined, the number of monthly admissions to the Acute Care Unit of the IPU/UoC, NAA, reached lowest values, whereas this number increased when the monthly number NE of small (M < 3) earthquakes increased. We also found a positive correlation between the total number of monthly admissions NA and NE (r = 0.601/P = 0.001). When a daily resolution analysis was performed for the month with the highest value of NE, we found that an abrupt increase in the number of small earthquakes was followed by an increase in the number of admissions after ∼2 days (during that month, from a total of 71 patients, 38/10 people were diagnosed with schizophrenia/bipolar disorder). We hypothesize that seismic activity might be a significant contributing factor influencing the frequency of admissions of psychotic disorders in Crete in the period 2008–2010 and that the beneficial/adverse effects are related to the anomalous electric field/extra low frequency–ultra low frequency emissions

Biweekly Carboplatin Plus Gemcitabine as First-Line Treatment of Elderly Patients With Advanced Squamous Non–Small-cell Lung Cancer: A Multicenter Phase I-II Trial by the Hellenic Oncology Research Group

In the present phase I/II study, the biweekly carboplatin (area under the curve, 2.5) plus gemcitabine (1100 mg/m2) combination in patients aged &amp;amp;#x2265; 70 years with advanced and metastatic squamous non&amp;amp;#x2013;small-cell lung cancer achieved an overall response rate of 35.8%, a median progression-free survival of 6.7 months, and a median overall survival of 13.3 months, with favorable toxicity. Background The present study was a phase I/II study to determine the maximum tolerated doses (MTDs) and dose-limiting toxicities of the biweekly carboplatin/gemcitabine combination and evaluate its safety and efficacy in patients aged &amp;amp;#x2265; 70 years with advanced squamous non&amp;amp;#x2013;small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Patients and Methods Patients aged &amp;amp;#x2265; 70 years with advanced or metastatic squamous NSCLC received escalated doses of carboplatin (area under the curve [AUC] 2-2.5 intravenously) and gemcitabine (800-1100 mg/m2 intravenously) every 2 weeks (phase I). In the phase II, the drugs were administered at their previously defined MTDs (carboplatin, AUC 2.5; gemcitabine, 1100 mg/m2). The primary endpoint was the overall response rate. Results A total of 69 patients were enrolled (phase I, n = 15). The median age was 76 years (range, 70-84 years); 52 patients had stage IV disease, and 61 and 8 patients had Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 to 1 and 2, respectively. The MTDs could not be reached at the predefined last dose levels. The dose-limiting toxicities were grade 5 renal toxicity and grade 3 thrombocytopenia. In the phase II study, the overall response rate was 35.8% (95% confidence interval [CI], 23.0%-48.8%). In the intention-to-treat analysis, the median progression-free survival was 6.7 months (95% CI, 4.2-8.8 months), and the median overall survival was 13.3 months (95% CI, 7.1-19.6 months). Grade 3 or 4 neutropenia was observed in 7 patients (12.3%), grade 3 or 4 thrombocytopenia in 4 patients (7.1%), and grade 2 or 3 fatigue in 10 patients (17.5%). One toxic death occurred in the phase I of the study. Conclusion The biweekly regimen of gemcitabine and carboplatin showed satisfactory efficacy and a favorable toxicity profile in elderly patients with advanced or metastatic squamous cell NSCLC. © 2016 Elsevier Inc

A frequency-domain identification approach to the study of neuromuscular systems - a combined experimental and modelling study

Experimental investigation of the neuromuscular system involves not only analysis of continuous signals but also necessitates the study of sequences of action potentials recorded from individual neurones together with the interactions between several sequences. Trains of action potentials may be regarded as realisations of stochastic point processes and techniques for the identification of point process systems can provide valuable experimental tools for the investigation of neuromuscular systems. Computational methods are presented for estimating the finite Fourier transform of a point process, and the associated spectral estimation procedures are described. An example is presented to illustrate the application of linear point process model identification techniques to the muscle spindle receptor. Using this example, simulation techniques are applied to demonstrate that spectral estimates can provide valuable physiological insight