The American journal of the medical sciences
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Inhaled sevoflurane may promote progression of amnestic mild cognitive impairment: a prospective, randomized parallel-group study.
Amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) is thought to be a transitional stage between normal aging and the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recent studies have suggested that the inhalational anesthetic isoflurane can induce caspase activation and apoptosis, increase aggregates of β-amyloid (Aβ) levels, and enhance Aβ aggregation. The aim of this study was to investigate whether previous exposure to different anesthetics induced progression of aMCI. ⋯ Inhaled sevoflurane accelerated the progression of aMCI to progressive MCI in this selected Chinese population.
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An estimated 25.8 million children and adults in the United States, approximately 8.3% of the population, have diabetes. Diabetes prevalence varies by race and ethnicity. African Americans have the highest prevalence (12.6%), followed closely by Hispanics (11.8%), Asian Americans (8.4%) and whites (7.1%). ⋯ Finally, advances in telemedicine technology are discussed that show improvements in metabolic control and cardiovascular risk in adults with type 2 diabetes. Improving provider and patient understanding of diabetes complications may improve management and self-care practices that are important for diabetes control. Telemedicine may improve access to diabetes specialists and may improve self-management education and diabetes control particularly in rural and underserved communities.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of diabetic ketoacidosis in patients with type-1 and type-2 diabetes mellitus.
Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) occurs most often in patients with type 1 diabetes, however patients with type 2 diabetes are also susceptible to DKA under stressful conditions. The aims of our study were to evaluate and compare the clinical and biochemical characteristics and outcomes of type 1 versus type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) patients with DKA. ⋯ DKA in patients with type-2 DM is a more severe disease with worse outcomes compared with type-1 DM. Advanced age, mechanical ventilation and bed-ridden state were independent predictors of 30-day mortality.
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Review Meta Analysis
The role of TNF-α 308G>A polymorphism in the risk for ischemic stroke.
Stroke is a common health problem; however, its pathogenesis is not clear. Several studies have examined the association of -308G>A promoter polymorphism in the tumor necrosis factor-α gene (TNF-α) with ischemic stroke susceptibility. However, the results of these studies are inconsistent and the sample sizes of most of the studies were small. Thus, a meta-analysis was conducted to provide a more robust estimate of the effect of the TNF-α 308G>A polymorphism on the risk for ischemic stroke. ⋯ This study suggests that TNF-α 308G>A polymorphism is associated with the risk for juvenile ischemic stroke, whereas it is a protective factor for ischemic stroke in Asians and the adult population. However, in the overall analysis and in Caucasians, a significant association was not found.