B Acad Nat Med Paris
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B Acad Nat Med Paris · Mar 2007
Review Comparative Study[Intraepithelial lesions and neoplasia associated with human papillomavirus infection].
Anogenital lesions induced by human papillomaviruses (HPV) are due to both high-risk HPV types involved in carcinogenesis of the cervix (and also, to a lesser extent, of the vulva, anus and vagina) and to low-risk HPV types that cause external genital warts in the perianal region, perineum, vulva and vagina (less often the cervix). Cervical cancer is thus virus-induced, and there is a continuum from intraepithelial lesions to invasive cancer. This offers the opportunity to screen cervical smears for cytological abnormalities or to detect high-risk HPV infection by molecular methods. Although the causal link between human genital papillomavirus infection and cervical neoplasia is well established, the role of beta-HPV in non melanoma skin cancers is unclear.
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B Acad Nat Med Paris · Feb 2007
Comparative Study[Trends in stroke incidence and case-fatality rates over a 20-year period (1985-2004) in Dijon, France].
With progress in stroke prevention it is important to evaluate epidemiological trends over a long period and in an unselected population. We estimated changes in stroke incidence, the case-fatality rate, risk factors, and the use of primary prevention, based on a continuous registry of a well-defined population, from 1985 to 2004. We recorded 3142 ischemic strokes, 341 primary cerebral hemorrhages and 74 subarachnoid hemorrhages. ⋯ The frequency of pre-stroke antiplatelet and anticoagulant treatment increased significantly (p < 0.01). The age - and sex-adjusted incidence rates of stroke in Dijon, France, have thus been stable for the past 20 years. Age at stroke onset has increased, the case-fatality rate has fallen, antiplatelet treatment is more frequent, and the frequency of some pre-stroke risk factors has fallen.
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B Acad Nat Med Paris · Oct 2006
[Public health education in France: challenges and future perspectives].
Public health difers from other fields of health education by its vast scope and by the diversity of its target populations. University training in public health is currently ensured in France by more than 300 permanent lecturers with significant research activity. ⋯ Currently, university training is poorly organized and coordinated in France. The creation of the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Santo Publique provides an opportunity to reorganize the training infrastructure and calls for a reassessment of the place of universities in public health education.
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In addition to aging, obesity is one of the most common underlying causes of osteoarthritis (OA). Mechanical loading, together with biochemical and systemic factors linked to altered lipid metabolism, are thought to contribute to the onset of OA. It has been suggested that OA is a systemic metabolic disease associated with lipid disorders affecting joint homeostasis. ⋯ Indeed, their relative levels in joints differ from that found in plasma. In particular, leptin levels are increased and adiponectin and resistin levels are reduced This hypothesis is supported by--leptin overexpression in OA cartilage and its correlation with the degree of cartilage destruction,--abundant leptin synthesis by osteophytes, and--the high leptin levels found in OA joints from female patients. This link between OA and adipokines provides new leads regarding the prevention of OA and the identification of new drug targets.
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Emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases have again entered the public arena in recent years. This is due to factors such as evolving lifestyles, ecological and socio-political upheavals, and recent diagnostic advances. Numerous pathogens, including viruses like West Nile, Chikungunya and Japanese encephalitis on the one hand, and hemorrhagic fever viruses like Ebola and Maburg, are particular concerns. ⋯ It is in this context that so-called "bird flu'", may be on the verge of causing a human pandemic. Pox and Monkeypox are "virtually emerging" viruses that have potential for use in bioterrorism. The management and treatment of these emerging infectious diseases calls for new approaches, organizations and infrastructures.