Int J Med Sci
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Some forms of tinnitus are considered to be auditory phantom phenomena related to reorganization and hyperactivity of the auditory central nervous system. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a non-invasive tool capable of modulating human brain activity, using single pulse or burst stimuli. Burst rTMS has only been performed in the theta range, and has not been used clinically. The authors analyze whether burst TMS at theta (5 Hz), alpha (10 Hz) and beta (20 Hz) frequencies can temporarily suppress narrow band noise/white noise tinnitus, which has been demonstrated to be intractable to tonic stimulation. ⋯ Burst rTMS can be used clinically, not only theta burst, but also alpha and beta burst. Burst rTMS is capable of suppressing narrow band/white noise tinnitus very much better than tonic rTMS. This could be due the simple fact that burst neuromodulation is more powerful than tonic neuromodulation or to a differential effect of burst and tonic stimulation on the lemniscal and extralemniscal auditory system. In some patients only alpha or beta burst rTMS is capable of suppressing tinnitus, and theta burst not. Therefore in future rTMS studies it could be worthwhile not to limit burst stimulation to theta burst rTMS.
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Association between vitamin D receptor gene haplotypes and chronic periodontitis among Japanese men.
The vitamin D receptor (VDR) is involved in a variety of biological processes, such as bone metabolism and modulation of the immune response. Recent findings suggest that the pathway involving bone mineral density-mediated effects is important for the development of periodontitis, but their effects of combined VDR gene polymorphisms have not been confirmed on periodontitis. We assessed the relationship between ApaI, BsmI, and FokI VDR polymorphisms and the risk of severe chronic periodontitis among Japanese adult men. ⋯ The VDR haplotype constructed from the ApaI, BsmI, and FokI polymorphisms is related to the risk of severe chronic periodontitis in Japanese men.
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Acute oral consumption of various natural inhibitors of amylase (bean and hibiscus extracts) and sucrase (L-arabinose) reduce absorption of starch and sucrose respectively in rats and pigs measured by lessened appearance of circulating glucose levels. The present subchronic study was designed to determine whether these selected inhibitors of gastrointestinal starch and sucrose absorption (so-called "carb blockers") remain effective with continued use and to assess their metabolic influences after prolonged intake. Sprague-Dawley rats were gavaged twice daily over nine weeks with either water or an equal volume of water containing a formula that included bean and hibiscus extracts and L-arabinose. ⋯ Blood chemistries revealed significantly lower circulating glucose levels and a trend toward decreased HbA1C in the nondiabetic rats receiving the natural formulation compared to control. Subchronic administration of enzyme inhibitors was also associated with many metabolic changes including lowered systolic blood pressure and altered fluid-electrolyte balance. We postulate that proper intake of natural amylase and sucrase inhibitors may be useful in the prevention and treatment of many chronic disorders associated with perturbations in glucose-insulin homeostasis secondary to the rapid absorption of refined CHO.
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We investigated changes in the geography of Chronic Obstructuve Pulmonary Disease (COPD) hospitalization charges in California over the period of 1993 and 1999. There is little information available at less than the county level for this increasingly costly disease in California. We found, using a uniform grid unit method, (4X4 and 16X16 mile urban and rural grids respectively, using zip codes as the base source for information) positive relationships between COPD charges and age, percentage Hispanics, and number of tobacco outlets. ⋯ In summary, the Los Angeles area had a marked increase in hotspots both in 1993 and 1999, and also experienced a significant increase in COPD hospitalization charges between 1993 and 1999. Transforming zip code level data into a uniform grid allows for relatively simple comparisons across time, without such a transformation, such temporal comparisons are extremely difficult to implement. This more, "fine grained" geographical analysis allows public health planners a better platform than is typically available to assess changes in COPD.
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Although it is well documented that persons suffering from diabetes type 2 profit from muscular activities, just a negligible amount of patients take advantage of physical exercises. During the last decade, vibration exercise (VE) could be established as an effective measure to prevent muscular atrophy and osteoporosis with low expenditure of overall exercise-time. Unfortunately, little is known about the metabolic effects of VE. ⋯ The area under curve and maximal glucose concentration of OGTT were reduced in the vibration and strength training group. HbA1c values tended to decrease below baseline date in the vibration training group while it increased in the two other intervention groups. Theses findings suggest that vibration exercise may be an effective and low time consuming tool to enhance glycemic control in type 2 diabetes patients.