395 OSTEOPHYTES AND JOINT SPACE NARROWING ARE INDEPENDENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH PAIN IN FINGER JOINTS IN HAND OSTEOARTHRITIS

Objective To study the associations between structural abnormalities on ultrasound (US) or conventional x-rays (CR) and pain in hand osteoarthritis (HOA). Methods In 55 consecutive patients with HOA (mean age 61 years, 86% women) fulfilling the American College of Rheumatology criteria, pain in 30 separate hand joints was assessed upon palpation; osteophytes were assessed by US and CR and joint space narrowing (JSN) by CR. Associations between structural abnormalities and pain per joint were analysed using generalised estimated equations to account for patient effects and adjusted for age, sex, body mass index, US inflammatory features and other remaining structural abnormalities. Results In 1649 joints, 69% and 46% had osteophytes on US and CR, respectively and 47% had JSN. Osteophytes and JSN showed independent associations with pain per joint adjusted: OR for osteophytes: 4.8 (95% CI 3.1 to 7.5) for US and 4.1 (95% CI 2.4 to 7.1) for CR; for JSN: 4.2 (95% CI 2.0 to 9.0). Conclusions Osteophytes and JSN are independently associated with pain in individual HOA joints, taking into account patient effects

Predicting risk for radiographic damage in rheumatoid arthritis:comparative analysis of the multi-biomarker disease activity score and conventional measures of disease activity in multiple studies

Pathophysiology and treatment of rheumatic disease

Anomalous Spin Dynamics observed by High Frequency ESR in Honeycomb Lattice Antiferromagnet InCu2/3V1/3O3

High-frequency ESR results on the S=1/2 Heisenberg hexagonal antiferromagnet InCu2/3V1/3O3 are reported. This compound appears to be a rare model substance for the honeycomb lattice antiferromagnet with very weak interlayer couplings. The high-temperature magnetic susceptibility can be interpreted by the S=1/2 honeycomb lattice antiferromagnet, and it shows a magnetic-order-like anomaly at TN=38 K. Although, the resonance field of our high-frequency ESR shows the typical behavior of the antiferromagnetic resonance, the linewidth of our high-frequency ESR continues to increase below TN, while it tends to decrease as the temperature in a conventional three-dimensional antiferromagnet decreases. In general, a honeycomb lattice antiferromagnet is expected to show a simple antiferromagnetic order similar to that of a square lattice antiferromagnet theoretically because both antiferromagnets are bipartite lattices. However, we suggest that the observed anomalous spin dynamics below TN is the peculiar feature of the honeycomb lattice antiferromagnet that is not observed in the square lattice antiferromagnet.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure

Immunoglobulin G; structure and functional implications of different subclass modifications in initiation and resolution of allergy.

IgE and not IgG is usually associated with allergy. IgE lodged on mast cells in skin or gut and basophils in the blood allows for the prolonged duration of allergy through the persistent expression of high affinity IgE receptors. However, many allergic reactions are not dependent on IgE and are generated in the absence of allergen specific and even total IgE. Instead, IgG plasma cells are involved in induction of, and for much of the pathogenesis of, allergic diseases. The pattern of IgG producing plasma cells in atopic children and the tendency for direct or further class switching to IgE are the principle factors responsible for long-lasting sensitization of mast cells in allergic children. Indirect class switching from IgG producing plasma cells has been shown to be the predominant pathway for production of IgE while a Th2 microenvironment, genetic predisposition, and the concentration and nature of allergens together act on IgG plasma cells in the atopic tendency to undergo further immunoglobulin gene recombination. The seminal involvement of IgG in allergy is further indicated by the principal role of IgG4 in the natural resolution of allergy and as the favourable immunological response to immunotherapy. This paper will look at allergy through the role of different antibodies than IgE and give current knowledge of the nature and role of IgG antibodies in the start, maintenance and resolution of allergy

Human Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Abrogate Plasmablast Formation and Induce Regulatory B Cells Independently of T Helper Cells

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The opposites task: Using general rules to test cognitive flexibility in preschoolers

A brief narrative description of the journal article, document, or resource. Executive functions play an important role in cognitive development, and during the preschool years especially, children's performance is limited in tasks that demand flexibility in their behavior. We asked whether preschoolers would exhibit limitations when they are required to apply a general rule in the context of novel stimuli on every trial (the "opposites" task). Two types of inhibitory processing were measured: response interference (resistance to interference from a competing response) and proactive interference (resistance to interference from a previously relevant rule). Group data show 3-year-olds have difficulty inhibiting prepotent tendencies under these conditions, whereas 5-year-olds' accuracy is near ceiling in the task. (Contains 4 footnotes and 1 table.

The SQUIRE (Standards for QUality Improvement Reporting Excellence) guidelines for quality improvement reporting: explanation and elaboration

As the science of quality improvement in health care advances, the importance of sharing its accomplishments through the published literature increases. Current reporting of improvement work in health care varies widely in both content and quality. It is against this backdrop that a group of stakeholders from a variety of disciplines has created the Standards for QUality Improvement Reporting Excellence, which we refer to as the SQUIRE publication guidelines or SQUIRE statement. The SQUIRE statement consists of a checklist of 19 items that authors need to consider when writing articles that describe formal studies of quality improvement. Most of the items in the checklist are common to all scientific reporting, but virtually all of them have been modified to reflect the unique nature of medical improvement work

Sexual harassment and abuse in sport: The research context

This special issue of the Journal of Sexual Aggression draws on the contributions to a Symposium on ‘Sexual Harassment in Sport – Challenges for Sport Psychology in the New Millennium’, held at the Xth Congress of the International Society for Sport Psychology, Skiathos, Greece from May 28th to June 2nd 2001. The symposium, which was organised by the authors of this editorial, was intended to move forward the international research agenda on sexual harassment and abuse in sport and to examine professional practice issues for sport psychologists. It was clear from the attendance of over 60 delegates at that symposium that international interest in this subject is growing. Further evidence of this came from the attendance of 26 members states – from Azerbaijan to Sweden - at a Council of Europe seminar on The Protection of Children, Young People and Women in Sport, held in Helsinki in September 2001