Intertester reliability of brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation using upper and lower arm occlusion in healthy subjects

The assessment of endothelial function as brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilatation is a widely used technique that determines the effect of risk factor intervention and may have the potential to predict the clinical benefit of antiatherogenic therapy. Previous studies suggest that flow-mediated dilation is greater using the upper-arm occlusion technique, but no data are available to compare intertester reliability between technicians. This study was undertaken to compare the amount of hyperemia between upper and lower occlusion techniques and to determine reproducibility between testers. Nineteen healthy adults, ages 25 to 50, were included in the study. Brachial artery vasodilatation was measured 1 and 3 minutes post cuff deflation and was compared with the baseline and expressed as a percent change. There was a tester effect in the percent change in diameter across all measurements. The results of this study reveal inconsistencies between testers when using a blood pressure cuff to induce hyperemia for the assessment of endothelial function through brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation. However, upper arm as compared to lower arm blood pressure cuff occlusion results in significantly greater hyperemia and vasodilatation, even though there was a difference in measurements between testers

Prematurity and high risk of thyroid failure

Abstractinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Increased risk of primary hypothyroidism in preterm infants.

Serum levels of thyroid stimulating hormone, thyroxine, triiodothyronine, free T4, thyroxine-binding globulin, reverse T3, and the TSH secretory areas and peak T3 after intravenous injection of 40 micrograms thyrotropin-releasing hormone were determined weekly from day 5 to 6 to 11 weeks of age in 42 unselected full-term and 61 preterm Belgian infants. The results on day 5 indicated a progressive deficit of thyroid function related to the degree of prematurity. In 92 infants this deficit progressively decreased with age and disappeared at 5 to 7 weeks. However, 11 infants developed biochemical evidence of overt but transient hypothyroidism. Belgian neonates are relatively iodine deficient, and this factor affects the constitution of iodine stores within the thyroid gland: (1) the urinary concentrations of iodine in the 103 infants studied in Belgium were markedly lower than in 30 infants from California; and (2) The iodine concentration of the thyroid gland in preterm infants who died during the 10 first days of life was almost three times lower in Brussels than in Toronto. The results indicate that, in Belgium, the effects of relative iodine deficiency on thyroid function are superimposed on and mask the physiologic state of tertiary hypothyroidism in prematurity.Comparative StudyJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tResearch Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.ReviewSCOPUS: re.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Comparison of the attack rates of acute myocardial infarction in two Belgian towns

Comparison of the attack rates for acute myocardial infarction in two Belgian towns AMI attack rates in two Belgian towns. Belgium is divided in two main regions: Flanders in the North with a Dutch-speaking population, and Wallonia in the South with a French-speaking community. From 1982 onwards, a register of acute myocardial infarction has been in operation in Ghent, a Flemish town, and in Charleroi in Wallonia, following the procedures of the MONICA (Multinational Monitoring of Trends and Determinants in Cardiovascular Diseases) study. Annual attack rates of myocardial infarction are presented for a 5-year period. During this period, the annual attack rates for men are 10-20% higher in Charleroi than Ghent. In women, the ratio between the two cities is less clear. The results of this community registers confirms the regional differences observed previously in Belgium using other epidemiological techniques.Comparative StudyJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tSCOPUS: NotDefined.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

European Community Atlas of ‘Avoidable Death’ -- 1

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

European Community Atlas of 'Avoidable Death' -- 2

info:eu-repo/semantics/published2

Dendritic cells rapidly recruited into epithelial tissues via CCR6/CCL20 are responsible for CD8+ T cell crosspriming in vivo.

The nature of dendritic cell(s) (DC[s]) that conditions efficient in vivo priming of CD8+ CTL after immunization via epithelial tissues remains largely unknown. Here, we show that myeloid DCs rapidly recruited by adjuvants into the buccal mucosa or skin are essential for CD8+ T cell crosspriming. Recruitment of circulating DC precursors, including Gr1+ monocytes, precedes the sequential accumulation of CD11c+ MHC class II+ DCs in dermis and epithelium via a CCR6/CCL20-dependent mechanism. Remarkably, a defect in CCR6, local neutralization of CCL20, or depletion of monocytes prevents in vivo priming of CD8+ CTL against an innocuous protein antigen administered with adjuvant. In addition, transfer of CCR6-sufficient Gr1+ monocytes restores CD8+ T cell priming in CCR6( degrees / degrees ) mice via a direct Ag presentation mechanism. Thus, newly recruited DCs likely derived from circulating monocytes are responsible for efficient crosspriming of CD8+ CTL after mucosal or skin immunization