Articles: disease.
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Ugeskrift for laeger · Feb 1997
Review[Tuberculosis and the HIV pandemic. Risk of nosocomial tuberculosis infection].
Spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection has had a major impact on the epidemiology of tuberculosis. In several African countries the incidence of tuberculosis has doubled, and the prevalence of HIV infection among patients with tuberculosis is 20 to 60%. A similar change has occurred in some developed countries. ⋯ The mortality among patients has been high, and there have been several cases of transmission to healthcare workers. Analyses of these recent outbreaks indicate that it is possible to intervene by well known prophylactic measures. Rapid diagnosis and treatment, and correct isolation procedures are essential to prevent outbreaks.
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Feb 1997
Birth cohort and calendar period trends in breast cancer mortality in the United States and Canada.
Previous studies of regional and temporal variation in U.S. breast cancer mortality rates have been confined largely to analyses of rates for white women. ⋯ Widespread environmental exposures are unlikely to explain the higher relative breast cancer mortality rates observed for U.S. white women in the Northeast, since the rates for black women in this region were not higher than in other regions. The moderation of breast cancer mortality rates for women born between 1924 and 1938 coincides with increased fertility rates following World War II. Stable or decreasing mortality rates for U.S. women and Canadian women born after 1950 were not expected in view of declining fertility rates, suggesting a change in a breast cancer risk factor or protective factor. The increase in calendar period trend slope in the 1980s likely reflects the coincident rise in breast cancer diagnosis via mammography. The recent decline in calendar period trend for white women in the United States and for Canadian women may be the result of earlier detection and increased use of adjuvant therapy.
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Syphilis remains a major cause of premature birth, fetal and perinatal death, and congenital syphilis in South Africa, despite systematic antenatal screening by rapid plasma reagin and treatment with 2.4 million U of benzathine penicillin G. ⋯ One intramuscular injection of 2.4 million U benzathine penicillin G or treponemicidal concentrations lasting 3 weeks or less is not sufficient therapy for pregnant women with syphilis. Although fetal outcome is clearly improved at birth with more than one injection, without follow-up of the neonates, complete cure cannot be predicted from these data. To obtain treponemicidal activity for longer than 3 weeks, the authors recommend administration of two injections of 2.4 million U benzathine penicillin at least 1 week apart, if possible at 4 weeks or more before delivery. This therapy is especially important for patients who attend prenatal care before 28 weeks of pregnancy or when the rapid plasma reagin titer is higher than 16.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Blood loss during first trimester termination of pregnancy: comparison of two anaesthetic techniques.
We have compared the effects of two anaesthetic techniques on blood loss during suction termination of pregnancy. Forty-eight ASA grade I-II patients were allocated randomly to one of two groups: group 1 received propofol induction followed by a standard propofol infusion; group 2 received propofol induction followed by maintenance with 1% isoflurane. Both groups received bolus doses of either propofol (group 1) or isoflurane (group 2) if anaesthesia was too light. ⋯ Estimation of blood loss was performed by atomic absorption spectrometry. Mean blood losses were 40.4 ml for the isoflurane group and 18.8 ml for the propofol group. This difference was statistically significant (P = 0.0011), although actual volumes of blood loss were small and not clinically significant.
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This study identifies age-specific factors related to new cases of stunting that develop in Filipino children from birth to 24 mo of age. Data come from nearly 3000 participants in the Cebu Longitudinal Health and Nutrition Survey, a community-based study conducted from 1983 to 1995. Length, morbidity, feeding and health-related data were collected bimonthly during home visits. ⋯ Breast-feeding, preventive health care and taller maternal stature significantly decreased the likelihood of stunting. Males were more likely to become stunted in the first year, whereas females were more likely to become stunted in the second year of life. Because stunting is strongly related to poor functional outcomes such as impaired intellectual development during childhood, and to short stature in adulthood, these results emphasize the need for prevention of growth retardation through promotion of prenatal care and breast-feeding, as well as control of infectious diseases.