Ugeskrift for laeger
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Bicipitoradial bursitis is a rare pathological condition of the elbow and is seen as a distension of the bicipitoradial bursa in the cubital fossa. The bursa is located at the insertion of the distal biceps tendon and the role of this bursa is to reduce friction between the biceps tendon and the tuberosity of the radius. Most often, enlargement or bursitis results from repetitive mechanical trauma. In the present case report, we describe the condition in a 71-year-old woman using both MR and ultra sound scanning.
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Postoperative ileus (POI) after abdominal surgery is characterized by delayed passage of flatus and stool due to decreased bowel motility. Research has been performed in order to find new approaches such as fast track to reduce patient discomfort and durability of POI. ⋯ Four controlled studies have been published on the subject and the results of two of these studies found a significant decrease in time until first passage of flatus and defaecation. The remaining two studies showed no significant difference, but a slight tendency towards a reduction of POI.
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The randomized clinical trial (RCT) is accepted as the best method for comparing therapeutic effects. Most RCTs are superiority trials that aim to show that a new therapy is superior to a control therapy. However, some RCTs are equivalence trials or non-inferiority trials. ⋯ The various types of trials differ significantly in terms of methodology. Few are aware of these differences. This paper reviews the methodology of these trials with a particular focus on planning, performance, analysis and reporting of the trial.
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Despite intensive research, gliomas still lead to death in most cases. The isolation of brain tumour stem cells from gliomas has paved the way for a growing body of evidence suggesting that these cells are responsible for the resistance of gliomas towards conventional therapy. Recent results suggest that the growth of brain tumours can be inhibited by treatment strategies targeting the brain tumour stem cells. Here, the brain tumour stem cell paradigm is described with a focus on tumour stem cell characteristics and the role of this subpopulation of tumour cells in the resistance towards radiation and chemotherapy.
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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterised by airflow limitation and is associated with an inflammatory response of the lungs primarily caused by cigarette smoking. Cigarette smoking is by far the most important environmental risk factor for COPD, but less than half of all heavy smokers develop COPD. ⋯ Although many genes have been examined, the puzzle of COPD genetics seems still largely unsolved. It is therefore important to measure phenotypes and to perform genome-wide scans of COPD patients in order to unravel the contribution of the COPD susceptibility genes.