Eye–hand coordination during manual object transport with the affected and less affected hand in adolescents with hemiparetic cerebral palsy

In the present study we investigated eye–hand coordination in adolescents with hemiparetic cerebral palsy (CP) and neurologically healthy controls. Using an object prehension and transport task, we addressed two hypotheses, motivated by the question whether early brain damage and the ensuing limitations of motor activity lead to general and/or effector-specific effects in visuomotor control of manual actions. We hypothesized that individuals with hemiparetic CP would more closely visually monitor actions with their affected hand, compared to both their less affected hand and to control participants without a sensorimotor impairment. A second, more speculative hypothesis was that, in relation to previously established deficits in prospective action control in individuals with hemiparetic CP, gaze patterns might be less anticipatory in general, also during actions performed with the less affected hand. Analysis of the gaze and hand movement data revealed the increased visual monitoring of participants with CP when using their affected hand at the beginning as well as during object transport. In contrast, no general deficit in anticipatory gaze control in the participants with hemiparetic CP could be observed. Collectively, these findings are the first to directly show that individuals with hemiparetic CP adapt eye–hand coordination to the specific constraints of the moving limb, presumably to compensate for sensorimotor deficits

Was There Shortening of the Interval Between Diagnosis and Treatment of Colorectal Cancer in Southern Netherlands Between 2005 and 2008?

Background: The Dutch Cancer Society proposed that the interval between diagnosis and start of treatment should be less than 15 working days. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the interval from diagnosis to treatment for patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) shortened between 2005 and 2008 in hospitals in southern Netherlands. Methods: Patients with CRC diagnosed in six hospitals in southern Netherlands during January to December in 2005 (n = 445) and January to July in 2008 (n = 353) were included. The time between diagnosis and start of treatment was assessed, and the proportion of patients treated within the recommended time (70 years and those with stage I disease. Substantial variation was seen among hospitals. Conclusions: Time to treatment for patients with CRC in southern Netherlands did not shorten between 2005 and 2008. The time to treatment should be reduced to meet the advice of the Dutch Cancer Society

Nationwide review of mixed and non-mixed components from different manufacturers in total hip arthroplasty: A Dutch Arthroplasty Register study

Background and purpose — Combining components from different manufacturers in total hip arthroplasty (THA) is common practice worldwide. We determined the proportion of THAs used in the Netherlands that consist of components from different manufacturers, and compared the revision rates of these mixed THAs with those of non-mixed THAs. Patients and methods — Data on primary and revision hip arthroplasty are recorded in the LROI, the nationwide population-based arthroplasty register in the Netherlands. We selected all 163,360 primary THAs that were performed in the period 2007–2014. Based on the manufacturers of the components, 4 groups were discerned: non-mixed THAs with components from the same manufacturer (n = 142,964); mixed stem-head THAs with different manufacturers for the femoral stem and head (n = 3,663); mixed head-cup THAs with different head and cup manufacturers (n = 12,960), and mixed stem-head-cup THAs with different femoral stem, head, and cup manufacturers (n = 1,773). Mixed prostheses were defined as THAs (stem, head, and cup) composed of components made by different manufacturers. Results — 11% of THAs had mixed components (n = 18,396). The 6-year revision rates were similar for mixed and non-mixed THAs: 3.4% (95% CI: 3.1w–3.7) for mixed THAs and 3.5% (95% CI: 3.4–3.7) for non-mixed THAs. Revision of primary THAs due to loosening of the acetabulum was more common in mixed THAs (16% vs. 12%). Interpretation — Over an 8-year period in the Netherlands, 11% of THAs had mixed components—with similar medium-term revision rates to those of non-mixed THAs

The strengths and limitations of routine staging before treatment with abdominal CT in colorectal cancer

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Advanced colorectal cancer (CRC), either locally advanced, metastasized (mCRC) or both, is present in a relevant proportion of patients. The chances on curation of advanced CRC are continuously improving with modern multi-modality treatment options. For incurable CRC the focus lies on palliation of symptoms, which is not necessarily a resection of the primary tumor. Both situations motivate adequate staging before treatment in CRC. This prospective observational study evaluates the outcomes after the introduction of routine staging with abdominal CT before treatment.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In a prospective observational study of 612 consecutive patients (2007-2009), the ability of abdominal CT to find liver metastases (LM), peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) and T4 stage in colon cancer (CC) was analysed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Advanced CRC was present in 58% of patients, mCRC in 31%. The ability to find LM was excellent (99%), cT4 stage CC good (86%) and PC poor (33%). In the group of surgical patients with emergency presentations, the incidences of both mCRC (51%) and locally advanced colon cancer (LACC) (69%) were higher than in the elective group (20% and 26% respectively). Staging tended to be omitted more often in the emergency group (35% versus 12% in elective surgery).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The strengths of staging with abdominal CT are to find LM and LACC, however it fails in diagnosing PC. On grounds of the incidence of advanced CRC, staging is warranted in patients with emergency presentations as well.</p

Auditory presentation and synchronization in Adobe Flash and HTML5/JavaScript Web experiments

Substantial recent research has examined the accuracy of presentation durations and response time measurements for visually presented stimuli in Web-based experiments, with a general conclusion that accuracy is acceptable for most kinds of experiments. However, many areas of behavioral research use auditory stimuli instead of, or in addition to, visual stimuli. Much less is known about auditory accuracy using standard Web-based testing procedures. We used a millisecond-accurate Black Box Toolkit to measure the actual durations of auditory stimuli and the synchronization of auditory and visual presentation onsets. We examined the distribution of timings for 100 presentations of auditory and visual stimuli across two computers with difference specs, three commonly used browsers, and code written in either Adobe Flash or JavaScript. We also examined different coding options for attempting to synchronize the auditory and visual onsets. Overall, we found that auditory durations were very consistent, but that the lags between visual and auditory onsets varied substantially across browsers and computer systems

Spontaneous life-threatening hemobilia during acute liver failure successfully treated with transarterial embolization

A 28-year-old patient admitted with jaundice, vomiting and deteriorating coagulopathy was diagnosed with acute liver failure. After listing for urgent transplantation, he developed Boerhaave’s syndrome and massive hemobilia, two life-threatening complications. Massive hemobilia secondary to a fistula between the right hepatic artery and the right bile duct occurred several days after transjugular biopsy and was controlled with fluid resuscitation, transfusion and arterial embolization. Two days later he was transplanted successfully, and is currently doing well after more than 72 months. Aggressive treatment of potentially reversible complications during acute liver failure whilst awaiting transplantation is mandatory to allow survival of these patients