Sternalis muscle: an underestimated anterior chest wall anatomical variant

Over the recent years, an increased alertness for thorough knowledge of anatomical variants with clinical significance has been recorded in order to minimize the risks of surgical complications. We report a rare case of bilateral strap-like sternalis muscle of the anterior chest wall in a female cadaver. Its presence may evoke alterations in the electrocardiogram or confuse a routine mammography. The incidental finding of a sternalis muscle in mammography, CT, and MRI studies must be documented in a patient's medical records as it can be used as a pedicle flap or flap microvascular anastomosis during reconstructive surgery of the anterior chest wall, head and neck, and breast. Moreover, its presence may be misdiagnosed as a wide range of benign and malignant anterior chest wall lesions and tumors

Septal aperture of the humerus: Aetiology and frequency rates in two European populations.

Analysis of the septal aperture was conducted on two documented European populations. Collections from the National Museum of Natural History Lisbon, Portugal and University of Athens, Greece were used for the study. Both collections are modern and documented for sex and age. The Portuguese sample comprises 297 individuals (149 males and 148 females) between the ages of 18 and 88. A septal aperture was observed in 50 individuals resulting in a frequency of 16.83%. The Greek sample comprises 117 individuals (68 males and 49 females) between the ages of 20 and 65. Twenty-five septal apertures were observed, giving a frequency of 21.37%. Both populations had high frequencies which exceeded those observed in European countries in previous studies. Sex analysis shows that both samples confirm that septal apertures are more common in females. The Portuguese sample also supports that septal apertures are more common in the left humerus, however the Greek sample had a higher frequency of bilateral cases. Measurements of the Portuguese sample were taken to determine whether robusticity correlates with presence of septal apertures. These measurements concluded that there was no difference in robusticity with presence or absence of a septal aperture, challenging previous studies

Cardiovascular disease and the role of oral bacteria

In terms of the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease (CVD) the focus has traditionally been on dyslipidemia. Over the decades our understanding of the pathogenesis of CVD has increased, and infections, including those caused by oral bacteria, are more likely involved in CVD progression than previously thought. While many studies have now shown an association between periodontal disease and CVD, the mechanisms underpinning this relationship remain unclear. This review gives a brief overview of the host-bacterial interactions in periodontal disease and virulence factors of oral bacteria before discussing the proposed mechanisms by which oral bacterial may facilitate the progression of CVD

Iron Behaving Badly: Inappropriate Iron Chelation as a Major Contributor to the Aetiology of Vascular and Other Progressive Inflammatory and Degenerative Diseases

The production of peroxide and superoxide is an inevitable consequence of aerobic metabolism, and while these particular "reactive oxygen species" (ROSs) can exhibit a number of biological effects, they are not of themselves excessively reactive and thus they are not especially damaging at physiological concentrations. However, their reactions with poorly liganded iron species can lead to the catalytic production of the very reactive and dangerous hydroxyl radical, which is exceptionally damaging, and a major cause of chronic inflammation. We review the considerable and wide-ranging evidence for the involvement of this combination of (su)peroxide and poorly liganded iron in a large number of physiological and indeed pathological processes and inflammatory disorders, especially those involving the progressive degradation of cellular and organismal performance. These diseases share a great many similarities and thus might be considered to have a common cause (i.e. iron-catalysed free radical and especially hydroxyl radical generation). The studies reviewed include those focused on a series of cardiovascular, metabolic and neurological diseases, where iron can be found at the sites of plaques and lesions, as well as studies showing the significance of iron to aging and longevity. The effective chelation of iron by natural or synthetic ligands is thus of major physiological (and potentially therapeutic) importance. As systems properties, we need to recognise that physiological observables have multiple molecular causes, and studying them in isolation leads to inconsistent patterns of apparent causality when it is the simultaneous combination of multiple factors that is responsible. This explains, for instance, the decidedly mixed effects of antioxidants that have been observed, etc...Comment: 159 pages, including 9 Figs and 2184 reference

Elbow Joint

This chapter reviews the anatomical variations of the distal humerus, proximal radius, proximal ulna, and capsule‐ligament structures of the elbow joint. The articular portion of the distal humerus comprises bony and cartilaginous structures within the joint capsule. The trochlear sulcus, the lateral trochlear ridge, the trochleocapitellar sulcus, and the trochlear notch angle were then measured objectively. The proximal radius consists of two main elements: the head and the neck. During the last decade, several anatomical studies have assessed the shape and size of the proximal radius using a range of methods including digital calipers, X‐ray, CT scanning, magnetic resonance imaging, and coordinate measuring machines. The proximal ulna consists of two curved processes, the olecranon and the coronoid, which form the greater sigmoid notch