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- Bajc, Marika, et al.
(author)
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Lung ventilation/perfusion SPECT in the artificially embolized pig.
- 2002
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In: Journal of Nuclear Medicine. - 0161-5505. ; 43:5, s. 640-647
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Planar lung scintigraphy is a standard method used for the diagnosis of lung embolism, but it is hampered by the high incidence of nondiagnostic tests. Ventilation/perfusion SPECT may possibly improve this situation. The objective of this study was to compare planar lung scintigraphy with ventilation/perfusion SPECT using pigs with artificially engendered lung emboli labeled with (201)Tl. METHODS: Sixteen anesthetized pigs were each injected with zero to 4 latex emboli. Cylindric emboli were used in the first 7 pigs and flat 3-tailed emboli were used in the remaining 9 pigs. The pigs spontaneously inhaled 30 MBq (99m)Tc-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid aerosol for ventilation scintigraphy. Planar scintigraphy and SPECT were performed using a double-head gamma camera in (99m)Tc and (201)Tl windows. Immediately thereafter, 100 MBq (99m)Tc-labeled macroaggregated albumin were injected intravenously followed by SPECT and, finally, planar scintigraphy. The ventilation background was subtracted from the perfusion tomograms for calculation of a normalized ventilation/perfusion (V/P) quotient image set. RESULTS: The cylindric emboli caused artifacts in the ventilation images; therefore, these were excluded from the final analysis. However, for the planar perfusion images of these pigs, sensitivity and specificity were 71% and 91%, respectively, whereas SPECT yielded 100% for both. For the 3-tailed emboli and ventilation/perfusion images, the sensitivity and specificity were 64% and 79%, respectively, for the planar modality, whereas SPECT yielded values of 91% and 87%, respectively. CONCLUSION: V/P SPECT may improve the diagnostic power of lung scintigraphy.
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- Fellström, Bengt, et al.
(author)
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Effect of fluvastatin on renal end points in the Assessment of Lescol in Renal Transplant (ALERT) trial
- 2004
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In: Kidney International. - : Elsevier BV. - 0085-2538 .- 1523-1755. ; 66:4, s. 1549-1555
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Hyperlipidemia is a risk factor for long-term renal transplant dysfunction, but no prospective clinical trials have investigated the effects of statin treatment on graft function in renal transplant recipients. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of fluvastatin on long-term renal transplant function and development of chronic allograft nephropathy in the ALERT (Assessment of Lescol in Renal Transplantation) study. METHODS: ALERT was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the effect of fluvastatin, 40 mg and 80 mg daily, in renal transplant recipients. Patients were randomized to receive either fluvastatin (N= 1050) or placebo (N= 1052) and followed for five to six years. Renal end points included graft loss or doubling of serum creatinine or death; glomerular filtration rate (GFR) was also measured during follow-up in a subset of patients (N= 439). RESULTS: There were 283 patients (13.5%) with graft loss, mainly due to chronic rejection (82%), yielding an annual rate of 2.4%. Fluvastatin treatment significantly lowered mean low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol levels by 32% (95% CI -33 to -30) compared with placebo, but had no significant effect on the incidence of renal graft loss or doubling of serum creatinine, or decline in GFR throughout follow-up in the whole study population. Neither was any treatment effect by fluvastatin found in any of the subgroups analyzed. CONCLUSION: Fluvastatin treatment significantly improves lipid values in renal transplant recipients but has no effect on graft loss or doubling of serum creatinine.
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- Olsson, Anders, 1940-, et al.
(author)
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Effects of rosuvastatin and atorvastatin compared over 52 weeks of treatment in patients with hypercholesterolemia
- 2002
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In: American Heart Journal. - : Elsevier BV. - 0002-8703 .- 1097-6744. ; 144:6, s. 1044-1051
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Despite the demonstrated benefits of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) reduction in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease, many patients receiving lipid-lowering therapy fail to achieve LDL-C goals. We compared the effects of rosuvastatin and atorvastatin in reducing LDL-C and achieving LDL-C goals in patients with primary hypercholesterolemia. Methods and Results: In this 52-week, randomized, double-blind, multicenter trial (4522IL/0026), 412 patients with LDL-C 160 to <250 mg/dL received a 5-mg dose of rosuvastatin (n = 138), a 10-mg dose of rosuvastatin (n = 134), or a 10-mg dose of atorvastatin (n = 140) for 12 weeks, during the following 40 weeks, dosages could be sequentially doubled up to 80 mg if National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel II (ATP-II) LDL-C goals were not achieved. At 12 weeks, 5- and 10-mg doses of rosuvastatin were associated with significantly greater LDL-C reductions than 10-mg doses of atorvastatin (46% and 50% vs 39%, both P < .001). At 12 weeks, both rosuvastatin dosages brought more patients to within ATP-II and European LDL-C goals than atorvastatin (86% and 89% vs 73% and 75%, and 86% vs 55%, respectively). At 52 weeks, compared with atorvastatin, both initial rosuvastatin treatment groups significantly reduced LDL-C (47% and 53% vs 44%, P < .05 and P < .001). Overall, more patients in the initial rosuvastatin 10-mg group achieved their ATP-II LDL-C goal than those in the initial atorvastatin 10-mg group (98% vs 87%), with 82% of patients treated with rosuvastatin achieving their goal at the 10-mg starting dosage without the need for titration, compared with 59% of patients treated with atorvastatin. Both treatments were well tolerated over 52 weeks. Conclusion: Compared with atorvastatin, rosuvastatin produced greater reductions in LDL-C, which may offer advantages in LDL-C goal attainment over existing lipid-lowering therapies.
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- Samuelsson, Bo, 1942, et al.
(author)
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From Here to Sustainability – Is the Lisbon/Göteborg agenda delivering?
- 2004
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Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Executive Summary The European Councils held in Lisbon (2000) and in Göteborg (2001) gave the Union a new direction by establishing a long term strategy with sustainable development as the overarching objective. Sustainable development means, in this context, goals for economic, social and environmental policy, which are both mutually consistent and capable of delivering enhanced economic growth. To assure progress towards an agreed range of targets, the open method of coordination (OMC) has been adopted as the process for the implementation of the strategy. The strategy for sustainable development is a long-term one and, although the deadline originally set for the Lisbon agenda was 2010, it is clear that sustainable development has a much longer time-horizon and also that there is a global dimension to sustainable development, not just an EU one. In the run up to the mid-term review of the Lisbon strategy, this report by the European Panel for Sustainable Development, EPSD, offers an assessment of the EU approach to sustainable development. The report is based on official documents, research reports and background reports prepared by researchers from different disciplines. It concentrates on the EU-15 Member States, because the ten new members that acceded to the EU in May 2004 have not (yet!) been subject to the same commitments in relation to sustainable development. However, in future work by the EPSD, it is anticipated that the coverage will be extended to embrace all 25 Member States. The report starts with a discussion on the political process, followed by an examination of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of the strategy, of the potential of new technologies, and of the results delivered by the Member States. The final chapters include discussions on impact assessment and the global dimension of sustainable development. The focus of the report is on: − The integration of the three dimensions of sustai nable development and the policies that affect them into one coherent strategy − The implementation of the strategy through the open method of co-ordination The main messages of the report are that it is vital to: • Maintain the original commitment to sustainable development as the overarching objective of the Lisbon strategy and improve the co-ordination between the three pillars of the strategy: the economic, social and environmental dimensions [...]
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| 12. |
- Sjögren, Klara, 1970, et al.
(author)
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Disproportional skeletal growth and markedly decreased bone mineral content in growth hormone receptor -/- mice.
- 2000
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In: Biochemical and biophysical research communications. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-291X. ; 267:2, s. 603-8
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Growth hormone (GH) is important for skeletal growth as well as for a normal bone metabolism in adults. The skeletal growth and adult bone metabolism was studied in mice with an inactivated growth hormone receptor (GHR) gene. The lengths of femur, tibia, and crown-rump were, as expected, decreased in GHR-/- mice. Unexpectedly, GHR-/- mice displayed disproportional skeletal growth reflected by decreased femur/crown-rump and femur/tibia ratios. GHR-/- mice demonstrated decreased width of the growth plates in the long bones and disturbed ossification of the proximal tibial epiphysis. Furthermore, the area bone mineral density (BMD) as well as the bone mineral content (BMC)/body weight were markedly decreased in GHR-/- mice. The decrease in BMC in GHR-/- mice was not due to decreased trabecular volumetric BMD but to a decreased cross-sectional cortical bone area In conclusion, GHR-/- mice demonstrate disproportional skeletal growth and markedly decreased bone mineral content.
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- Stenmark Askmalm, Marie, et al.
(author)
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Mutation and accumulation of p53 related to results of adjuvant therapy of postmenopausal breast cancer patients
- 2004
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In: Acta Oncologica. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0284-186X .- 1651-226X. ; 43:3, s. 235-244
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- p53 protein accumulation and gene mutation have been implicated in resistance to cytotoxic treatment. This study was performed to further assess the predictive value of p53 in breast cancer. Postmenopausal patients were randomized to adjuvant chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide, metothrexate, or 5-fluorouracil (CMF) vs. Postoperative radiotherapy. The patients were also randomized to adjuvant tamoxifen vs. No endocrine treatment. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP), followed by direct sequencing, was performed. The p53 altered group, regarded as positive for p53 gene mutation and/or p53 protein accumulation, tended to benefit more from CMF than from radiotherapy as compared with others regarding distant recurrences. In the group lacking p53 alteration there was a significantly decreased local recurrence rate in the radiotherapy group as compared with the CMF group (RR = 0.24, 95% CI = 0.083-0.62), whereas no benefit from radiotherapy was found for patients snowing p53 alterations. Tamoxifen significantly decreased the rate of distant recurrence for estrogen receptor-positive patients with no apparent difference in relation to p53 alteration. It is suggested that p53 alteration indicates benefit from CMF compared with radiotherapy regarding distant recurrence-free survival and the best local control with radiotherapy is achieved in the absence of p53 alteration. Finally, altered p53 status is probably not a marker of resistance to tamoxifen.
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- Waterworth, Eva Lindh, et al.
(author)
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Mood Devices : Interactive media and mental health
- 2004
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In: E-Society 2004 : proceedings of the IADIS International Conference, Ávila, Spain, July 16-19, 2004. - : IADIS Press.
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We introduce Mood Devices, interactive digital media and environments designed to alter the inter-actor’s psychological state. In particular, we describe three very different virtual reality (VR) environments: Relaxation Island, the Exploratorium, and the Achievement Room, developed with our partners as part of the EMMA (Engaging Media for Mental Health) project. Relaxation Island is designed to support established relaxation techniques, as part of interventions to assist individuals cope with specific anxieties such as examination stress. The Achievement Room gives users with chronic restricted mobility the opportunity to sing and play in a virtual concert, in front of an audience of avatars programmed to respond to their performance. The aim is to provide a sense of achievement and encourage a more positive attitude. The Exploratorium, as the name suggests, takes a more user-directed approach: It provides an environment that can be explored in an embodied way, with three specific zones designed to elicited widely different moods. All three environments can be run on a range of platforms, from high-end immersive VR, to pocket-sized PDAs and web-based applications. We see such interactive media as providing an important contribution to the future of ehealth programmes.
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