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At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Measuring functional outcomes in work-related upper extremity disorders. Development and validation of the Upper Extremity Function Scale.

Questionnaire-based measures of function have been validated extensively in studies of chronic illness and work-related low back pain. These measures have only recently been developed for upper extremity disorders (UEDs), and there is little information on their utility in evaluation of injured workers. We developed the Upper Extremity Function Scale (UEFS), an eight-item, self-administered questionnaire, to measure the impacts of UEDs on function. This instrument was tested in a cohort of 108 patients with work-related UEDs and 165 patients with the carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS); both groups were enrolled in prospective follow-up studies. The UEFS demonstrated excellent psychometric properties, including good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha > 0.83), relative absence of floor effects, and excellent convergent and discriminant validity, compared with measures of symptom severity and clinical findings. In the CTS group, the UEFS was more responsive to significant improvements over time than clinical measures such as grip and pinch strength. These data support the use of a self-reported functional scale as a measure of outcome in studies of work-related UEDs. Further investigations in working populations are needed to substantiate its utility in workers with UEDs who have not yet sought medical care.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

[Clinical aspects of using extremely high frequency electromagnetic radiation in the complex treatment of occlusive vascular diseases of the lower extremities].

A method of local influencing with the extremely high frequency electromagnetic irradiation on the points of acupuncture was used in the complex treatment of 44 patients with obliterative diseases of the vessels of the lower extremities at the age of 34-75 years. Obliterative atherosclerosis was diagnosed in 15 of them, obliterative endarteritis --in 29. A high effectiveness of the method even in late stages of vascular pathology was noted. No complications were observed.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

[Primary reconstruction in extremity saving resection of the lower extremity].

Limb sparing procedures have become possible in many cases of tumor resections of the lower extremity by using the new free-tissue transplantation technique. In some cases the stump can be elongated. Forty-four patients were treated for soft tissue sarcoma of the lower extremity. In only one case conventional amputation was necessary. In all other cases the limb was saved by primary reconstruction. In four cases a distalisation of the stump was achieved.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

[Control of puerperium in swine under conditions of extremely shortened nursing method. 1. Results of histological studies in postpartum involution and regeneration of the uterus under conditions of extremely shortened nursing period and medicamentous control of puerperium].

Uterus tissue samples were taken from 31 sows which had been under regimes of extremely shortened nursing periods and differentiated medication to control their puerperium. The samples were taken following laparotomy during the first postpartum oestrus as well as in subsequent phases of the cycle and histologically tested for puerperal involution and regeneration. The endometrium and myometrium of sows in oestrus were found to be in a condition which widely corresponded to normal oestrus condition of the uterus wall, when their piglets had been weaned in the third postpartum week. However, untreated sows in oestrus, whose piglets had been weaned extremely soon, that is in the second postpartum week, displayed numerous signs of inadequate postpartum involution and regeneration. Oxytocin was found to work well in speeding up regeneration of both the endometrium and myometrium. Intramuscular injection of twice nine International Units per die, from the first through ninth days postpartum, helped to complete largely all regeneration processes up to the first oestrus, when piglets had been weaned in the second postpartum week. Oral antibiotic medication (chlortetracycline) and parenteral application of vitamins failed to produce any substantive and histologically recordable effect on puerperal involution processes.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in children surviving extremely premature delivery and extremely low birthweight with cerebral palsy.

To delineate the frequency, severity, and characteristics of the brain injury occurring in children surviving extremely premature birth, we reviewed brain magnetic resonance images (MRIs) of children with cerebral palsy whose birthweight was less than 1000 g and whose gestational age was less than 28 weeks. The patients were all enrolled in the state Children's Rehabilitative Services clinic, where cerebral palsy is an automatic qualifying condition. We tabulated the MRI findings with respect to the cerebellum, periventricular white matter, and corpus callosum. The inclusion criteria were met by 157 children; 94 had an MRI. The available scans were reviewed by the authors, and the findings were tabulated. Fifty scans were available for review. There were 4 totally normal scans, 18 scans had normal cerebellar imaging, and 8 scans were felt to have normal cerebral findings. The common cerebral abnormalities included decreased white-matter volume without gliosis (n = 36), periventricular leukomalacia (n = 16), and a thin corpus callosum (n = 18). Cerebellar abnormalities were found in 32. The cerebellar findings included destruction of major portions of the cerebellum (usually the inferior vermis and hemispheres) (n = 23) and focal or unilateral loss of cerebellar tissue (n = 4). The high incidence of injury to the cerebellum has not been previously appreciated. The most common cerebral injury is decreased volume of white matter in the periventricular regions without gliosis. The pattern of cerebellar injury suggests a vascular insult, and the deficient white matter without gliosis suggests immaturity of oligodendrogliocytes with limited response to injury. Both lesions are more or less unique to the age at which the insult occurred and represent an emerging, newly recognized type of cerebral palsy.

Arizona↗
PubMed1993

N5,N10-methenyltetrahydromethanopterin cyclohydrolase from the extremely thermophilic sulfate reducing Archaeoglobus fulgidus: comparison of its properties with those of the cyclohydrolase from the extremely thermophilic Methanopyrus kandleri.

Archaeoglobus fulgidus and Methanopyrus kandleri are both extremely thermophilic Archaea with a growth temperature optimum at 83 degrees C and 98 degrees C, respectively. Both Archaea contain an active N5,N10-methenyltetrahydromethanopterin cyclohydrolase. The enzyme from M. kandleri has recently been characterized. We describe here the purification and properties of the enzyme from A. fulgidus. The cyclohydrolase from A. fulgidus was purified 180-fold to apparent homogeneity and its properties were compared with those recently published for the cyclohydrolase from M. kandleri. The two cytoplasmic enzymes were found to have very similar molecular and catalytic properties. They differed, however, significantly with respect of the effect of K2HPO4 and of other salts on the activity and the stability. The cyclohydrolase from A. fulgidus required relatively high concentrations of K2HPO4 (1 M) for optimal thermostability at 90 degrees C but did not require salts for activity. Vice versa, the enzyme from M. kandleri was dependent on high K2HPO4 concentrations (1.5 M) for optimal activity but not for thermostability. Thus the activity and structural stability of the two thermophilic enzymes depend in a completely different way on the concentration of inorganic salts. The molecular basis for these differences are discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Molecular physiology of carbamoylation under extreme conditions: what can we learn from extreme thermophilic microorganisms?

The importance of protein-protein interactions in the physiology of extreme thermophiles was investigated by analyzing the enzymes involved in biosynthetic carbamoylation in Thermus ZO5 and by comparing the results obtained with already available or as yet unpublished information concerning other thermophilic eu- and archaebacteria such as Thermotoga, Sulfolobus, and Pyrococcus. Salient observations were that (i) the highly thermolabile and reactive carbamoylphosphate molecule appears to be protected from thermodegradation by channelling towards the synthesis of citrulline and carbamoylaspartate, respectively precursors of arginine and the pyrimidines; (ii) Thermus ornithine carbamoyltransferase is clearly a thermophilic enzyme, intrinsically thermostable and showing a biphasic Arrhenius plot, whereas aspartate carbamoyltransferase is inherently unstable and is stabilized by its association with dihydroorotase, another enzyme encoded by the Thermus pyrimidine operon. Possible implications of these results are discussed.

Archaea↗
PubMed1988

[Excessive stress damage of the lower extremity caused by sports. The value of sonographic diagnosis in stress damage of the lower extremity].

150 sportsmen with lesions and diseases of the lower extremity served as basis for demonstrating the possibilities offered by diagnosis via sonography. Main indications were articular and paraarticular diseases of the large joints (hip and knee) to demonstrate effusions, ganglia, bursae and tendon ruptures, diseases and injuries of the musculature at the thigh and lower leg, as well as the Achilles tendon with its various changes such as rupture, achillodynia and peritendinitis. Muscular and tendon ruptures can be differentiated via sonography in respect of extension, type, age and localisation. This makes differentiated treatment possible. Intraarticular lesions of the knee joint remain the domain of arthroscopy. Sonographic findings should always be supplemented by anamnesis, clinical findings and x-ray film so as not to overlook any bony injuries and damage of the capsular ligaments.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Effects of chloramphenicol on photosynthesis, protein profiles and transketolase activity under extremely high CO2 concentration in an extremely-high-CO2-tolerant green microalga, Chlorococcum littorale.

An extremely-high-CO2-tolerant alga, Chlorococcum littorale, showed high quantum efficiency of PSII (PhiII) in the light at 40% CO2, as well as at 5% CO2. However, PhiII decreased greatly when chloramphenicol (CAP) was added at 40% CO2, while no such decrease was observed at 5% CO2. Cycloheximide showed no effect on PhiII at either 5% or 40% CO2. The amount of a 76 kDa polypeptide (p76) on SDS-PAGE decreased markedly in the presence of CAP at 40% CO2 but not at 5% CO2. A partial amino acid sequence of p76 was 71-100% identical (10-14 identical residues out of 14 amino acids determined) to those of transketolases (TKLs) reported in higher plants and a cyanobacterium. In agreement with these observations, the TKL activity in C. littorale was decreased by CAP at 40% CO2, but not at 5% CO2. The transient decrease in TKL activity caused by CAP under 40% CO2 was well correlated with that in PhiII. These results indicate that the addition of CAP directly or indirectly influences the stability of TKL in C. littorale at 40% CO2, but not at 5% CO2, and that photosynthetic activity was reduced by a decrease in TKL activity.

Acclimatization↗
PubMed2005

Crystal structure of tetrameric homoisocitrate dehydrogenase from an extreme thermophile, Thermus thermophilus: involvement of hydrophobic dimer-dimer interaction in extremely high thermotolerance.

The crystal structure of homoisocitrate dehydrogenase involved in lysine biosynthesis from Thermus thermophilus (TtHICDH) was determined at 1.85-A resolution. Arg85, which was shown to be a determinant for substrate specificity in our previous study, is positioned close to the putative substrate binding site and interacts with Glu122. Glu122 is highly conserved in the equivalent position in the primary sequence of ICDH and archaeal 3-isopropylmalate dehydrogenase (IPMDH) but interacts with main- and side-chain atoms in the same domain in those paralogs. In addition, a conserved Tyr residue (Tyr125 in TtHICDH) which extends its side chain toward a substrate and thus has a catalytic function in the related beta-decarboxylating dehydrogenases, is flipped out of the substrate-binding site. These results suggest the possibility that the conformation of the region containing Glu122-Tyr125 is changed upon substrate binding in TtHICDH. The crystal structure of TtHICDH also reveals that the arm region is involved in tetramer formation via hydrophobic interactions and might be responsible for the high thermotolerance. Mutation of Val135, located in the dimer-dimer interface and involved in the hydrophobic interaction, to Met alters the enzyme to a dimer (probably due to steric perturbation) and markedly decreases the thermal inactivation temperature. Both the crystal structure and the mutation analysis indicate that tetramer formation is involved in the extremely high thermotolerance of TtHICDH.

Alcohol Oxidoreductases↗
PubMed2001

Design and intermediate results of the Lower Extremity Arterial Disease Event Reduction (LEADER)* trial of bezafibrate in men with lower extremity arterial disease [ISRCTN4119421].

BACKGROUND: Raised levels of both triglycerides and fibrinogen, each of which are reduced by bezafibrate, may contribute to lower extremity arterial disease (LEAD). This condition is characterized by a particularly high incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, but is little studied thus far in randomised controlled trials. METHOD: Patients were recruited through 85 practices in the British Medical Research Council General Practice Research Framework and through nine hospital vascular clinics. The treatment regimen, which is double-blind and placebo-controlled, is bezafibrate 400 mg/day. The 1568 patients recruited represent 86% of those eligible at screening. RESULTS: None of the anticipated side effects (mainly gastrointestinal) differed between the two groups. Nearly 80% of the total person-years accrued at 3 years were spent on trial treatment. Bezafibrate significantly reduced total cholesterol by approximately 8.0% and low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol by approximately 9.0%, and increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol by approximately 11.0% initially, falling to about 6.0% at 3 years. Triglycerides were significantly reduced by about 23.0% and fibrinogen by about 14.0%. Plasma creatinine rose by approximately 11% in those on active treatment. All of these effects were highly significant (P < 0.0001). Bezafibrate had no effect on the level of C-reactive protein (CRP). CONCLUSION: The trial recruited an unusually high proportion of eligible patients, ensuring the general applicability of its results. The fibrinogen-lowering and lipid-modifying effects of bezafibrate were confirmed. Although bezafibrate lowers fibrinogen, it has no effect on CRP; this suggests that the reduction in fibrinogen is due to an effect on its metabolism rather than suppression of an inflammatory response.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2003

[Effects of upper extremity exercise training using biofeedback and constraint-induced movement on the upper extremity function of hemiplegic patients].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of exercise training using biofeedback and constraint-induced movement on the upper extremity function of hemiplegic patients. METHOD: A non-equivalent pretest-posttest design was used. Study subjects were a conveniently selected group of 40 hemiplegic patients(20 experimental subjects, 20 control subjects) who have been enrolled in two community health centers. After biofeedback training the subjects of experimental group were given constraint-induced movement, involving restraint of unaffected U/E in a sling for about 6 hours in a day over a period of two weeks, while at the same time intensively training the affected U/E. Outcomes were evaluated on the basis of the U/E motor ability(hand function, grip power, pinch power, U/E ROMs), and motor activity(amount, quality). RESULT: 1. After 2 weeks of treatment, the motor abilities of affected U/E(hand function, grip power, pinch power, ROMs of wrist flexion, elbow flexion and shoulder flexion/extension) were significantly higher in subjects who participated in exercise training than in subjects in the control group with no decrement at 4-week follow-up. However, there was no significant difference in wrist extension between experimental or control group. 2. After 2 weeks of treatment, the amount of use and the quality of motor activity of affected U/E were significantly higher in subjects who participated in exercise training than in subjects in the control group with no decrement at 4-week follow-up. CONCLUSION: The above results state that exercise training using biofeedback and constraint-induced movement could be an effective intervention for improving U/E function of chronic hemiplegic patients. Long-term studies are needed to determine the lasting effects of constraint-induced movement.

English Abstract↗
PubMed1999

[On the legality of the term "diabetic angiopathy of the lower extremities". Part III. The influence of the stage of the lower extremities' main artery occlusion on the severity of microangiopathy].

In 40 patients with diabetic angiopathy of lower extremities in terminal stage during investigation of cutaneous biopsies using electronic microscopy it was established that changes in femoral skin are more pronounced than in a foot skin, showing more severe signs of microangiopathy in a preserved main blood flow zone. The author proposes a concept, according to which the angiopathy stage reflects the diabetes mellitus stage.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

[Sports and extreme conditions. Cardiovascular incidence in long term exertion and extreme temperatures (heat, cold)].

During ultra-endurance exercise, both increase in body temperature and dehydration due to sweat losses, lead to a decrease in central blood volume. The heart rate drift allows maintaining appropriate cardiac output, in order to satisfy both muscle perfusion and heat transfer requirements by increasing skin blood flow. The resulting dehydration can impair thermal regulation and increase the risks of serious accidents as heat stroke. Endurance events, lasting more than 8 hours, result in large sweat sodium chloride losses. Thus, ingestion of large amounts of water with poor salt intake can induce symptomatic hyponatremia (plasma sodium < 130 mEq/L) which is also a serious accident. Heat environment increases the thermal constraint and when the air humidity is high, evaporation of sweat is compromise. Thus, thermal stress becomes uncompensable which increases the risk of cardiovascular collapse. Cold exposure induces physiological responses to maintain internal temperature by both limiting thermal losses and increasing metabolic heat production. Cold can induce accidental hypothermia and local frost-bites; moreover, it increases the risk of arrhythmia during exercise. Some guidelines (cardiovascular fitness, water and electrolyte intakes, protective clothing) are given for each extreme condition.

Cardiovascular Diseases↗
PubMed1995

Comparing the incidence of lower extremity amputations across the world: the Global Lower Extremity Amputation Study.

A substantial proportion of lower extremity amputations (LEAs), particularly in people with diabetes, are thought to be preventable by the provision of appropriate health care. Information on the incidence of LEAs which is accurate, up-to-date, and comparable cross-sectionally and longitudinally is essential to guide and monitor interventions aimed at their prevention. Current information on the incidence of LEAs is limited and differences between studies in case definition, presentation of rates, level of ascertainment, and population age structure often make meaningful comparisons impossible. To remedy this situation the global LEA study has been established. The study is designed to compare the incidence of LEAs over time within and between communities across the world. The methodology includes adherence to a standard definition of LEA, standardized methods of data collection with built-in quality control, and correction for under-ascertainment of cases (using capture-recapture methodology). Centres wishing to take part in the study must be able to identify a study population of at least 250,000, have reasonably up-to-date population numbers by age and sex, and be prepared to stay in the study for at least 2 years. A study registration form (Appendix 1) is provided.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1977

[Effect of sub-extreme and extreme factors on liver lysosomes].

Functional state of the lysosomal liver system in rats under subextreme and extreme influences (an intense muscle tension, fasting and combination of the both factors) was studied. An elevation of the acid hydrolases activity and labilization of the lysosomal membranes could be observed in the course of the body overstraining. Activation of lysosomal system correlated well with the extent of overstraining and reflected an adaptive reconstruction of the cellular structure and metabolism.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

[The floating joint injury of the lower and upper extremity--epidemiology, therapy and results in 40 extremities].

GOAL: Floating Joint Injuries (FJI) are resulting from high energy traumas and are often combined with additional neuro/vascular damage. The high incidence of severe open or closed soft tissue injuries is complicating the initial management and requires a broad surgical know-how also in minimal-invasive fixation techniques. In a retrospective analysis of our cases treated between 1980 and 1995, we try to find out some important therapeutical feedback for the future. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Of the 37 patients, 33 had a FJI of the lower (2 bilateral) and 7 patients of the upper extremity. 90% were road traffic injuries, 75% showed an open fracture situation and 25% an associated neuro-vascular injury. All fractures were stabilised within the first hours, femur, humerus and forearm in one step, the tibia in 33% in two steps (initial external fixator ...). 80% of the FJI have been reexamined after 1-2 y. RESULTS: Local complication: Femur: 4/33 (1 infection, 2 refractures, 1 non-union). Tibia: 11/33 (5 infections, 4 delayed/non-unions, 2 malalignements). Humerus: 0/7. Forearm: 1/7 (1 malalignement). 1-2 y-results: Very good-good: Femur: 26/27 (96%). Tibia: 23/27 (85%). Humerus: 4/5. Forearm: 3/5. DISCUSSION: FJI should be stabilised as soon as possible in a way allowing for early functional aftercare of the affected joint. Most complications are observed in the proximal tibia fracture because of the thin and therefore often severely (open or closed) injured soft tissue cover. Despite a staged procedure, there exists a high complication rate, which probably can be reduced in the future by the single-step use of the hybrid external fixateur.

Adolescent↗