Patient morbidity and management patterns of community-based primary health care services in Hong Kong

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Behaviourally Mediated Phenotypic Selection in a Disturbed Coral Reef Environment

Natural and anthropogenic disturbances are leading to changes in the nature of many habitats globally, and the magnitude and frequency of these perturbations are predicted to increase under climate change. Globally coral reefs are one of the most vulnerable ecosystems to climate change. Fishes often show relatively rapid declines in abundance when corals become stressed and die, but the processes responsible are largely unknown. This study explored the mechanism by which coral bleaching may influence the levels and selective nature of mortality on a juvenile damselfish, Pomacentrus amboinensis, which associates with hard coral. Recently settled fish had a low propensity to migrate small distances (40 cm) between habitat patches, even when densities were elevated to their natural maximum. Intraspecific interactions and space use differ among three habitats: live hard coral, bleached coral and dead algal-covered coral. Large fish pushed smaller fish further from the shelter of bleached and dead coral thereby exposing smaller fish to higher mortality than experienced on healthy coral. Small recruits suffered higher mortality than large recruits on bleached and dead coral. Mortality was not size selective on live coral. Survival was 3 times as high on live coral as on either bleached or dead coral. Subtle behavioural interactions between fish and their habitats influence the fundamental link between life history stages, the distribution of phenotypic traits in the local population and potentially the evolution of life history strategies

Review of the safety, efficacy, and pharmacokinetics of elvitegravir with an emphasis on resource-limited settings

Janice Soo Fern Lee1, Alexandra Calmy1,2, Isabelle Andrieux-Meyer1, Nathan Ford1,31Médecins Sans Frontières, 2HIV/AIDS Unit, Infectious Disease Service, Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland; 3Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Research, University of Cape Town, South AfricaAbstract: Integrase inhibitors represent an important new class of antiretroviral drugs. Elvitegravir, the second available integrase inhibitor to be submitted for regulatory approval appears to be a promising once-daily agent when combined with other antiretroviral drugs. Elvitegravir has demonstrated good efficacy and safety, with minimal side effects and no specific requirements in terms of laboratory monitoring. In addition, elvitegravir is available as a fixed-dose combination. However, the drug requires boosting and this leads to a number of drug–drug interactions and necessary dose adjustment when dosing with certain drugs, including dose reduction in the presence of atazanavir, lopinavir, rifabutin, and ketoconazole, and dose increase for ethinyl estradiol when co-administered with boosted elvitegravir. The main advantage of elvitegravir lies in its potential to be administered as a once-daily, single pill. Limitations include dose adjustment requirements, a relatively low genetic barrier to resistance, high price, and lack of data for use in children. Clinical trials addressing specific challenges encountered in resources-limited settings should be encouraged.Keywords: elvitegravir, efficacy, safety, resistance, resource-limited setting

Predictive factors and radiological features of radiation-induced cranial nerve palsy in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma following radical radiotherapy

Objectives: To identify the key predictive factors of radiation-induced cranial nerve palsy in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Method and materials: From November 1998 to December 2007, all consecutive patients with newly diagnosed NPC who were curatively treated with radiotherapy and subsequently developed radiation-induced cranial nerve palsy (RICNP) were included in our study. Patients with cranial nerve palsy due to disease recurrence were excluded. Their records were retrospectively reviewed. Results: Amongst 965 patients with NPC treated with radical radiotherapy, 41 developed new cranial nerve palsy. After exclusion of 5 patients with cranial nerve palsy due to recurrence, 36 (3.7%) developed RICNP. The median follow-up was 8.9 years (range, 3.2-11.3 years). Ten of the 36 patients had cranial nerve palsy at presentation. Twenty-seven patients had single cranial nerve palsy and 9 patients had multiple cranial nerve palsy. The most commonly involved cranial nerve was cranial nerve XII, with 30 patients having palsy of cranial nerve XII and 6 of them having bilateral cranial nerve XII palsies. Magnetic resonance imaging features of radiation-induced hypoglossal nerve palsy were demonstrated in our study. Multivariate analysis revealed that cranial nerve palsy at presentation was an independent prognostic factor for the development of RICNP. Other factors including T staging, N staging, gender, age, radiotherapy technique and the use of chemotherapy have no significant relationship with the risk of developing RICNP. Conclusion: RICNP in patients with NPC is not a rare complication, and cranial nerve palsy at presentation is an important prognostic factor. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

SEM micrographs of <i>P. aeruginosa</i> biofilm treated with different concentrations of R-FV-I16. A greater reduction in bacteria cell density and changer of morphology were observed at 1/2 and 1/4× MIC. (A) Control, (B) 1/2× MIC, (C) 1/4× MIC.

<p>SEM micrographs of <i>P. aeruginosa</i> biofilm treated with different concentrations of R-FV-I16. A greater reduction in bacteria cell density and changer of morphology were observed at 1/2 and 1/4× MIC. (A) Control, (B) 1/2× MIC, (C) 1/4× MIC.</p

Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Coronary Sinus: Anatomic Variants and Congenital Anomalies

The coronary sinus (CS) is an important vascular structure that allows for access into the coronary veins in multiple interventional cardiology procedures, including catheter ablation of arrhythmias, pacemaker implantation and retrograde cardioplegia. The success of these procedures is facilitated by the knowledge of the CS anatomy, in particular the recognition of its variants and anomalies. This pictorial essay reviews the spectrum of CS anomalies, with particular attention to the distinction between clinically benign variants and life-threatening defects. Emphasis will be placed on the important role of cardiac CT and cardiovascular magnetic resonance in providing detailed anatomic and functional information of the CS and its relationship to surrounding cardiac structures. Teaching Points • Cardiac CT and cardiovascular magnetic resonance offer 3D high-resolution mapping of the coronary sinus in pre-surgical planning. • Congenital coronary sinus enlargement occurs in the presence or absence of a left-to-right shunt. • Lack of recognition of coronary sinus anomalies can lead to adverse outcomes in cardiac procedures. • In coronary sinus ostial atresia, coronary venous drainage to the atria occurs via Thebesian or septal veins. • Coronary sinus diverticulum is a congenital outpouching of the coronary sinus and may predispose to cardiac arrhythmias