6,963 publications from this institution
To investigate the clinical and angiographic outcome of patients with mild coronary lesions treated with balloon angioplasty or coronary stenting (coronary plaque sealing, i.e. dilatation of angiographically non-significant lesions) compared to moderate and severe stenoses.Patients with chronic stable angina and a single de novo lesion in a native coronary vessel scheduled to undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were selected from 14 different studies. Off-line analysis of angiographic outcomes was assessed in all patients using identical and standardised methods of data acquisition, analysis and definitions. Clinical endpoints were adjudicated by independent clinical events committees. All quantitative coronary angiographic (QCA) analyses were performed in the same core laboratory. Stenosis severity prior to PCI was categorised into three groups: <50% diameter stenosis (DS), 50-99%DS and >99%DS pre. A total of 3812 patients were included in this study; 1484 patients (39%) were successfully treated with balloon angioplasty (BA) only and stented angioplasty was performed in 2328 patients (61%).One-year mortality and rate of non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI) (Kaplan-Meier) did not differ between BA and stented angioplasty for any of the stenosis severity categories. Following BA, the combined event rate (death and non-fatal MI) was 4.8, 4.6 and 0% in the <50, 50-99 and >99%DS categories, respectively. Following stented angioplasty, the combined event rate was 3.1, 4.4 and 4.8% in the same categories. The need for repeat revascularisation corrected for stenosis severity in the Cox proportional-hazards regression model was reduced by 20% after stented angioplasty (hazard ratio (HR) 0.80, 95%CI 0.69-0.93).The concept of plaque sealing is appealing from the theoretical point of view. However, with current technology, plaque sealing cannot prevent death and future non-fatal MIs in the long-term because 1-year event rates after PCI of non-significant stenoses remain unacceptably elevated when compared with the estimated 1-year probability of a non-fatal MI in lesions with a <50%DS. Moreover, major adverse cardiac events at 1-year after PCI are not directly related to the degree of pre-procedural stenosis severity.
Chronic neutrophilic airway inflammation is an important feature of cystic fibrosis (CF). Noninvasive inflammatory markers may be useful in monitoring CF. Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) and interleukin (IL)-6 are inflammatory mediators that are increased in chronic neutrophilic inflammation. The aim of this study was to assess whether LTB4 and IL-6 were increased in exhaled breath condensate of CF patients and whether they could be used to monitor inflammation. Twenty patients with CF (13 males, age of 28 ± 9 years) were recruited together with 15 age-matched healthy subjects (8 males, age 35 ± 7 years). LTB4 and IL-6 levels were markedly elevated in patients with acute exacerbations (28.8 ± 4.3 and 8.7 ± 0.4 pg/ml) compared with control subjects (6.8 ± 0.7 and 2.6 ± 0.1 pg/ml, p < 0.0001). We also observed a decrease of exhaled LTB4 and IL-6 concentrations after antibiotic treatment in six patients who were followed until clinically stable (31.1 ± 4.4 and 9.5 ± 0.4 pg/ml vs. 18.8 ± 0.8 and 6.4 ± 0.2 pg/ml, respectively) and an increase in 15 CF patients infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (34.3 ± 5.0 and 9.3 ± 0.3 pg/m) compared with those infected with other bacteria (18.3 ± 0.7 and 6.9 ± 0.5 pg/ml). These findings suggest that LTB4 and IL-6 levels are increased in exhaled breath condensate of patients with CF during exacerbation and could be used to monitor airway inflammation in these patients.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the cause of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), emerged in China in December 2019 and quickly spread around the globe, killing more than 4 million people and causing a severe economic crisis. ...Read More
Review(s) of: A readers ' lexicon of the apostolic fathers, edited by Daniel B. Wallace, Brittany C. Burnette, and Terri Darby Moore, (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2013), 256pp., hbk, $US34.99, ISBN: 9780825439490.
Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) both cause airway obstruction and are associated with chronic inflammation of the airways. However, the nature and sites of the inflammation differ between these diseases, resulting in different pathology, clinical manifestations and response to therapy. In this review, the inflammatory and cellular mechanisms of asthma and COPD are compared and the differences in inflammatory cells and profile of inflammatory mediators are highlighted. These differences account for the differences in clinical manifestations of asthma and COPD and their response to therapy. Although asthma and COPD are usually distinct, there are some patients who show an overlap of features, which may be explained by the coincidence of two common diseases or distinct phenotypes of each disease. It is important to better understand the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms of asthma and COPD in order to develop new treatments in areas of unmet need, such as severe asthma, curative therapy for asthma and effective anti-inflammatory treatments for COPD.
Stainless steel is gaining increasing usage in construction owing to its durability, favourable mechanical properties and its aesthetic appearance, with the austenitic grades being the most commonly utilised. Austenitic stainless steels have a high nickel content (8%-11%), resulting in high initial material cost and significant price fluctuations; this, despite its desirable properties, represents a considerable disadvantage in terms of material selection. Ferritic stainless steels, having no or very low nickel content, may offer a more viable alternative for structural applications, reducing both the level and variability of the initial material cost. In comparison to the most widely used austenitic grades, the ferritic grades typically have higher yield strengths (250-350 N/mm 2 ) and are easier to machine and work. Furthermore, by varying the chromium content (10.5%-29%), and with additions of other alloying elements, the required corrosion resistance for a wide range of structural applications and operating environments can be achieved. There is currently limited information available on the structural performance of this type of stainless steel. Therefore, to overcome this limitation, a series of material and crosssection tests have been performed, covering both the standard 1.4003 grade and the 1.4509 grade, which has improved weldability and corrosion resistance. The experimental results are reported, analysed and compared to the results of tests performed on other stainless steel grades. Finally, design recommendations suitable for incorporation into Eurocode 3: Part 1.4 (2006) have been proposed.
