Timed rise from floor as a predictor of disease progression in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: An observational study

The role of timed items, and more specifically, of the time to rise from the floor, has been reported as an early prognostic factor for disease progression and loss of ambulation. The aim of our study was to investigate the possible effect of the time to rise from the floor test on the changes observed on the 6MWT over 12 months in a cohort of ambulant Duchenne boys.A total of 487 12-month data points were collected from 215 ambulant Duchenne boys. The age ranged between 5.0 and 20.0 years (mean 8.48 ±2.48 DS).The results of the time to rise from the floor at baseline ranged from 1.2 to 29.4 seconds in the boys who could perform the test. 49 patients were unable to perform the test at baseline and 87 at 12 month The 6MWT values ranged from 82 to 567 meters at baseline. 3 patients lost the ability to perform the 6mwt at 12 months. The correlation between time to rise from the floor and 6MWT at baseline was high (r = 0.6, p<0.01).Both time to rise from the floor and baseline 6MWT were relevant for predicting 6MWT changes in the group above the age of 7 years, with no interaction between the two measures, as the impact of time to rise from the floor on 6MWT change was similar in the patients below and above 350 m. Our results suggest that, time to rise from the floor can be considered an additional important prognostic factor of 12 month changes on the 6MWT and, more generally, of disease progression

Upper limb function in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: 24 month longitudinal data

The aim of the study was to establish 24 month changes in upper limb function using a revised version of the performance of upper limb test (PUL 2.0) in a large cohort of ambulant and non-ambulant boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and to identify possible trajectories of progression. Of the 187 patients studied, 87 were ambulant (age range: 7\u201315.8 years), and 90 non-ambulant (age range: 9.08\u201324.78). The total scores changed significantly over time (p&lt;0.001). Non-ambulant patients had lower total scores at baseline (mean 19.7) when compared to the ambulant ones (mean 38.4). They also had also a bigger decrease in total scores over 24 months compared to the ambulant boys (4.36 vs 2.07 points). Multivariate model analysis showed that the Performance of Upper Limb changes reflected the entry level and ambulation status, that were independently associated to the slope of Performance of Upper Limb changes. This information will be of help both in clinical practice and at the time of designing clinical trials

Upper limb function in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: 24 month longitudinal data.

The aim of the study was to establish 24 month changes in upper limb function using a revised version of the performance of upper limb test (PUL 2.0) in a large cohort of ambulant and non-ambulant boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and to identify possible trajectories of progression. Of the 187 patients studied, 87 were ambulant (age range: 7-15.8 years), and 90 non-ambulant (age range: 9.08-24.78). The total scores changed significantly over time (p&lt;0.001). Non-ambulant patients had lower total scores at baseline (mean 19.7) when compared to the ambulant ones (mean 38.4). They also had also a bigger decrease in total scores over 24 months compared to the ambulant boys (4.36 vs 2.07 points). Multivariate model analysis showed that the Performance of Upper Limb changes reflected the entry level and ambulation status, that were independently associated to the slope of Performance of Upper Limb changes. This information will be of help both in clinical practice and at the time of designing clinical trials

Upper limb function in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: 24 month longitudinal data

The aim of the study was to establish 24 month changes in upper limb function using a revised version of the performance of upper limb test (PUL 2.0) in a large cohort of ambulant and non-ambulant boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and to identify possible trajectories of progression. Of the 187 patients studied, 87 were ambulant (age range: 7–15.8 years), and 90 non-ambulant (age range: 9.08–24.78). The total scores changed significantly over time (p<0.001). Non-ambulant patients had lower total scores at baseline (mean 19.7) when compared to the ambulant ones (mean 38.4). They also had also a bigger decrease in total scores over 24 months compared to the ambulant boys (4.36 vs 2.07 points). Multivariate model analysis showed that the Performance of Upper Limb changes reflected the entry level and ambulation status, that were independently associated to the slope of Performance of Upper Limb changes. This information will be of help both in clinical practice and at the time of designing clinical trials

Papel da cirurgia bariátrica no controle do diabete melito tipo II

RACIONAL: Sabe-se que hoje um dos grandes problemas de saúde pública refere-se a diabete melito com projeção de atingir 366 milhões de pacientes até 2030, entre indivíduos insulino (DM tipo I) e não-insulino (DM tipo II) dependentes. OBJETIVOS: Avaliar por meio de revisão ampla da literatura os resultados encontrados no controle do DM tipo II com diferentes modalidades de tratamento cirúrgico disponíveis em nosso meio. MÉTODO: A partir de 2004 foram levantados 73 trabalhos, sendo que destes 22 versavam especificamente sobre o tema nas bases de dados LiIacs, Medline, Pubmed cruzando os descritores diabete melito e cirurgia. RESULTADOS: Dentre as operações avaliadas obtiveram resultados satisfatórios em 98,9% a derivação biliopancreática ou duodenal, em 83,7% bypass gástrico, em 71,6% gastroplastia e em 47,9% bandas gástricas. Quanto às complicações, encontram-se descritas as mais diversas, desde as da ferida operatória até casos de insuficiência hepática aguda após cirurgia bariátrica que evoluíram com necessidade de transplante ou mesmo óbito, demonstrando que a decisão pelo tratamento operatório deve ser feita de maneira criteriosa ponderando-se o custo benefício. CONCLUSÃO: As técnicas cirúrgicas bariátricas, exercem melhora do diabete tipo II e as derivações biliopancreática, duodenal switch, Scopinaro e bypass gástrico com Y de Roux são as mais indicadas

Application of Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry to the Identification of Single Particles of Uranium and their Isotopic Measurement.

An instrumental method based on the use of secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is presented for the identification of uranium particles, and the determination of their isotopic composition. The particles collected on swipe samples were transferred to a special adhesive sopport for analysis by SIMS> Charging effects duringanalysis were avoidedby a coating with 20 nm carbon. For the measurements of the isotope ratios a mass resolution of 1000 was sufficient. At this resolution flat top peaks were obtained which greatly improve the accuracy of the measurement. A detection limit in the ng/g - range was obtained by optimising different instrumental parameters, such as the acquisition time. Blank samples, consisting only of the adhesive support and of swipes collected in an environment where uranium was absent, were employed for the evaluation of the background signals in the mass range 233-240. The level of background was eliminated by applying a voltage offset. From the results obtained on simulated swipe samples containing certified enriched uranium, the approach used was found to be very promising and after further improvements has been applied for the routine analysis of uranium particles in swipe samples.JRC.E-Institute for Transuranium Elements (Karlsruhe