Antimyeloperoxidase antibody in Chinese patients in Hong Kong: a five-year review

An analysis was made of 51 Chinese patients who tested positive for antimyeloperoxidase antibody (anti-MPO) in the five-year period from 1989 to 1993 in Hong Kong. Nineteen could be clearly classified as having an identifiable vasculitic illness, while the features of the remainder were suggestive of vasculitic syndromes in most cases. Renal disease was present in 84% of all cases and was the commonest manifestation, followed by pulmonary diseases. Acute or acute-on-chronic renal failure developed in 20 patients (39%). Of those who had renal biopsy performed, over half had histologic evidence of crescentic glomerulonephritis. Anti-MPO associated disease carried a grave prognosis with significant morbidity and mortality. Steroid and immunosuppressive therapy was given to most of the patients and in those who responded to immunosuppressive therapy, anti-MPO was a useful marker for monitoring disease activity. Twenty patients died, either of complications or as a result of disease activity.published_or_final_versio

A Grade-Norming Exercise to Increase Consistency and Perceived Consistency in Grading among Public Speaking Instructors

This study reports the results of a grade-norming training exercise in a mid-Atlantic university. The study’s goals were to improve consistency in grading among Public Speaking instructors, and to see whether self-report normative perception behavior and self-efficacy also improved. Four training sessions on speech evaluation were conducted with a group of instructors over the course of one semester. A control group was asked to evaluate speeches independently at the same time period, but its members did not have any training. Results show that the training led to greater consistency in grading over time in the training group compared to the control group. The training group also had higher levels of perceived normative behavior over time, and normative behavior perception was significantly correlated with self-efficacy regardless of group

Use of anti-ribosomal P antibody in diagnosis of cerebral lupus: superiority of western blotting over elisa

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The Poor Outcome of the Delayed Diagnosis of Acute Spontaneous Spinal Epidural Hematoma : Two Cases Report

We present two patients who had acute paraplegia with sensory loss due to spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma (SSEH). One had myocardial infraction and the other had deep vein thrombosis, and the former was treated with anticoagulants and the latter was treated with thrombolytic agent. We analyzed the neurological status of our two cases each between its preoperative and postoperative state. Postoperatively both showed no improvement of neurologic symptom, and on follow-up of 12 months, one showed no neurologic improvement and the other showed a insignificant improvement of lower extremity muscle power (trace knee extensor/ankle dorsiflexor). We thought that this poor outcome was due to delayed operation, which was done more than 24 hr after the symptom onset. The outcome in SSEH is essentially determined by the time taken from symptom onset to operation. Therefore, early and precise diagnosis such as careful history taking and MRI evaluation is necessary

Let's talk about sex – what do older men and women say about their sexual relations and sexual activities? A qualitative analysis of ELSA Wave 6 data

In 2012/2013 the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) included a comprehensive Sexual Relationships and Activities questionnaire (SRA-Q). A total of 7,079 men and women aged 50 to >90, primarily heterosexual and in a coupled relationship, completed the SRA-Q answering a series of questions about their attitudes to sexual relationships, their own sexual activities, problems and concerns with sexual functioning, and quality of intimate relationships. The questions aimed to gain insights into the ways in which sexual relations and activities related to health, well-being and other lifestyle factors as people grow older. The primary mode of data collection was a tick box response to a series of questions. However, at the end of the questionnaire an open comment box was provided, which asked respondents whether there was anything else that they would like to say. 1,084 respondents provided additional information and these comments created a unique qualitative dataset. The analysis of this data then illustrated how people’s health, relationships, experiences and perceptions of ageing, along with sexual satisfaction, impact on sexual relationships and activities