Condylar volume and surface in Caucasian young adult subjects

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There have been no quantitative standards for volumetric and surface measurements of the mandibular condyle in Caucasian population. However, the recently developed cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) system allows measurement of these parameters with high accuracy.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>CBCT was used to measure the condylar volume, surface and the volume to surface ratio, called the Morphometric Index (MI), of 300 temporo-mandibular joints (TMJ) in 150 Caucasian young adult subjects, with varied malocclusions, without pain or dysfunction of TMJs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The condylar volume was 691.26 ± 54.52 mm³in males and 669.65 ± 58.80 mm³in, and was significantly higher (<it>p</it>< 0.001) in the males. The same was observed for the condylar surface, although without statistical significance (406.02 ± 55.22 mm²in males and 394.77 ± 60.73 mm²in females).</p> <p>Furthermore, the condylar volume (693.61 ± 62.82 mm³) in the right TMJ was significantly higher than in the left (666.99 ± 48.67 mm³, <it>p </it>< 0.001) as was the condylar surface (411.24 ± 57.99 mm²in the right TMJ and 389.41 ± 56.63 mm²in the left TMJ; <it>t </it>= 3.29; <it>p </it>< 0.01). The MI is 1.72 ± 0.17 for the whole sample, with no significant difference between males and females or the right and left sides.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These data from temporomandibular joints of patients without pain or clinical dysfunction might serve as examples of normal TMJ's in the general population not seeking orthodontic care.</p

Molecular Typing and Phenotype Characterization of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Isolates from Blood in Taiwan

BACKGROUND: Staphylococcus aureus causes a variety of severe infections such as bacteremia and sepsis. At present, 60-80% of S. aureus isolates from Taiwan are methicillin resistant (MRSA). It has been shown that certain MRSA clones circulate worldwide. The goals of this study were to identify MRSA clones in Taiwan and to correlate the molecular types of isolates with their phenotypes. METHODS: A total of 157 MRSA isolates from bacteremic patients were collected from nine medical centers. They were typed based on polymorphisms in agr, SCCmec, MLST, spa, and dru. Phenotypes characterized included Panton-Valentine leucocidin (pvl), inducible macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B resistance (MLSBi), vancomycin (VA) and daptomycin (DAP) minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC), and superantigenic toxin gene profiles. Difference between two consecutive samples was determined by Mann-Whitney-U test, and difference between two categorical variables was determined by Fisher's exact test. RESULTS: Four major MRSA clone complexes CC1, CC5, CC8, and CC59 were found, including 4 CC1, 9 CC5, 111 CC8, and 28 CC59 isolates. These clones had the following molecular types: CC1: SCCmecIV and ST573; CC5: SCCmecII and ST5; CC8: SCCmecIII, ST239, and ST241, and CC59: SCCmecIV, SCCmecV(T), ST59, and ST338. The toxin gene profiles of these clones were CC1: sec-seg-(sei)-sell-selm-(seln)-selo; CC5: sec-seg-sei-sell-selm-(seln)-selp-tst1; CC8: sea-selk-selq, and CC59: seb-selk-selq. Most isolates with SCCmecV(T), ST59, spat437, and dru11 types were pvl(+) (13 isolates), while multidrug resistance (≥4 antimicrobials) were associated with SCCmecIII, ST239, spa t037, agrI, and dru14 (119 isolates) (p<0.001). One hundred and twenty four isolates with the following molecular types had higher VA MIC: SCCmecII and SCCmecIII; ST5, ST239, and ST241; spa t002, t037, and t421; dru4, dru10, dru12, dru13, and dru14 (p<0.05). No particular molecular types were found to be associated with MLSBi phenotype. CONCLUSIONS: Four major MRSA clone complexes were found in Taiwan. Further studies are needed to delineate the evolution of MRSA isolates