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[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim of this study was to determine whether thyroxine treatment would improve nerve conduction in infants with down syndrome .", "a single-center , nationwide , randomized , double-blind , clinical trial was performed .", "neonates with down syndrome were assigned randomly to thyroxine ( n = @ ) or placebo ( n = @ ) treatment for @ years .", "daily thyroxine doses were adjusted regularly to maintain plasma thyrotropin levels in the normal range and free thyroxine concentrations in the high-normal range .", "the outcome measures were nerve conduction velocity and central conduction time , determined through median nerve somatosensory evoked potential recording , at the age of @ months .", "at the age of @ months , somatosensory evoked potential recordings for @ thyroxine-treated and @ placebo-treated infants were available for analysis .", "nerve conduction velocity and central conduction time did not differ significantly between the @ treatment groups ( nerve conduction velocity : thyroxine : @ m/second ; placebo : @ m/second ; difference : @ m/second ; central conduction time : thyroxine : @ milliseconds ; placebo : @ milliseconds ; difference : @ milliseconds ) .", "postnatal thyroxine treatment of infants with down syndrome did not alter somatosensory evoked potential-measured peripheral or central nerve conduction significantly .", "the absence of favorable effects suggests that pathologic mechanisms other than mild postnatal hypothyroidism underlie the impaired nerve conduction .", "the absence of adverse effects suggests that longstanding plasma free thyroxine concentrations in the high-normal range are not harmful to nerve maturation ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "colesevelam is a bile acid sequestrant that differs structurally from traditional bile acid sequestrants , allowing it to bind bile acids with greater affinity .", "studies have shown that colesevelam significantly reduces low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ( ldl-c ) levels and , in some cases , significantly increases high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ( hdl-c ) levels in adults with primary hypercholesterolemia .", "to investigate the safety and efficacy of colesevelam in adults with primary hypercholesterolemia .", "this multicenter , open-label , titration-based extension study enrolled subjects who completed one of three multicenter , randomized , double-blind , placebo-controlled phase ii studies with colesevelam .", "this study consisted of a @-week washout/dietary stabilization period , a @-week open-label treatment period , and a @-week follow-up period .", "ten clinical centers within the us .", "males and females @ years of age or older who had completed a previous short-term ( @ - or @-week ) phase ii clinical study with colesevelam .", "at week @ ( following a @-week washout of all lipid-lowering medication ) , subjects initiated treatment with colesevelam at a dosage of @ g/day .", "colesevelam was uptitrated to a maximum dosage of @ g/day as necessary to achieve a @-@ % reduction from baseline in ldl-c level .", "at week @ , an hmg-coa reductase inhibitor ( statin ) or niacin ( nicotinic acid ) could be added if colesevelam @ g/day was not sufficient to result in a @-@ % reduction from baseline in ldl-c level .", "the primary efficacy measure was the change in ldl-c level from baseline to week @ across all treatment regimens .", "secondary efficacy parameters included the change and percent change in total cholesterol , hdl-c , and triglyceride levels from baseline to week @ .", "there were three cohorts analyzed : ( i ) colesevelam monotherapy ( included all subjects who received colesevelam monotherapy , regardless of dose ) ; ( ii ) all treatment regimens ( included all subjects who received colesevelam monotherapy or colesevelam plus low-dose statin or niacin therapy ) ; and ( iii ) combination therapy ( included only subjects who received colesevelam plus low-dose statin therapy ) .", "two additional cohorts were also evaluated : ( iv ) maximum-dose colesevelam monotherapy ( included only subjects who received colesevelam @ g/day monotherapy ) ; and ( v ) all maximum-dose colesevelam treatment regimens ( included all subjects who received colesevelam @ g/day , either as monotherapy or in combination with low-dose statin or niacin therapy ) .", "in total , @ subjects were screened , @ enrolled , and @ completed the study .", "in total , @ subjects were included in the intent-to-treat population .", "the maximum dosage of colesevelam ( @ g/day ) was taken by @ % of subjects ( n = @/@ ) at week @ ; only @ subjects received low-dose statin or niacin by study end .", "at week @ , ldl-c levels were significantly ( p < @ ) reduced from baseline across all treatment regimens ( by @ mg/dl [ from @ to @ mg/dl ; @ % ] ) .", "colesevelam also significantly reduced total cholesterol levels and significantly increased hdl-c and triglyceride levels across all treatment regimens ( p < @ for all ) .", "drug-related adverse events were reported by @ % of subjects across all treatment regimens ( and by @ % of subjects who received colesevelam plus low-dose statin or niacin therapy ) .", "in this study , colesevelam was found to be safe and effective for the management of ldl-c levels in adults with primary hypercholesterolemia ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to assess the advantages and adverse effects of intraoperative low-dose mitomycin c in filtering glaucoma surgery .", "sixty eyes of @ patients undergoing surgery for uncontrolled glaucoma were randomized to two groups : one underwent standard trabeculectomy , the other had trabeculectomy with intraoperative application of @ mg/ml mitomycin c. follow-up was at least one year .", "the success rate ( iop < @ mmhg ) was @ % in the mitomycin c group and @ % in the control group .", "mean iop at one year of successful cases was @ + / - @ mmhg in the mitomycin c group and @ + / - @ mmhg in controls ( p < @ ) .", "two patients in the mitomycin c group ( @ % ) and six ( @ % ) in the control group needed antiglaucomatous drugs to keep iop below @ mmhg .", "mitomycin c is a useful adjunct to glaucoma surgery .", "adverse effects at the dosage used are mainly due to hypotony and are preventable with two-layer suture .", "low-dose mitomycin c may be useful in standard primary trabeculectomy ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim of this study was to determine if a stapled side-to-side closure of an ileostomy results in decreased length of hospital stay compared with a handsewn closure .", "from march @ to august @ , patients who had previously undergone total proctocolectomy with pelvic pouch formation and loop ileostomy were studied .", "at the time of ileostomy closure , patients were randomized to have their stoma closed by a handsewn technique or stapled closure .", "data were prospectively gathered .", "during @ months , @ consecutive patients ( @ male , @ female ) with a mean age of @ ( range , @-@ ) years had their ileostomy closed and were entered into this study .", "there were @ patients in the stapled group and @ in the handsewn group .", "mean operative time was @ ( range , @-@ ) minutes in the stapled group and @ ( range , @-@ ) minutes in the handsewn group ( p = @ wilcoxon 's test ) .", "average length of stay was three ( range , @-@ ) days in the stapled group and @ ( range , @-@ ) days in the handsewn group .", "one patient from the stapled group and two patients from the handsewn group were readmitted because of small-bowel obstruction .", "one patient from the stapled group underwent additional surgery for a leaking enterotomy with no defect in staple closure .", "two patients from the handsewn group underwent additional surgery for small-bowel obstruction .", "there was no significant difference in day of first stool or day of solid diet for the two groups .", "handsewn and stapled closures of loop ileostomy are not significantly different with respect to day of first stool , day until solid diet , or discharge day .", "complications were similar in the two groups .", "stapled closure is significantly quicker than handsewn closure ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the use of lightweight meshes in incisional hernia repair could have beneficial effects on quality of life .", "this study aimed to compare a new titanium-coated lightweight mesh with a standard composite mesh after laparoscopic incisional hernia repair .", "a randomized controlled single-center clinical trial was designed using the basic principle of one unit , one surgeon , one technique ( midline incisional hernia with a laparoscopic approach ) , and two meshes : a lightweight titanium-coated mesh ( group @ ) and a medium-weight collagen-polyester composite mesh ( group @ ) used in @ patients .", "the primary end points were pain and recurrence .", "the secondary end points were morbidity and patient outcomes ( analgesic consumption , return to everyday activities ) .", "the postoperative complication rates were similar for the two meshes .", "pain was significantly less common in group @ than in group @ at @ month ( p = @ ) but was similar for the two groups at @ months and @ year .", "there was a significant difference between the two groups in the average use of analgesics : @ days in group @ versus @ days in group @ ( p < @ ) .", "the lightweight group returned to everyday activities after @ days versus @ days for the composite group ( p < @ ) .", "the rate of recurrence did not differ between the two groups at the @-year follow-up evaluation .", "the light titanium-covered polypropylene mesh was associated with less postoperative pain in the short term , lower analgesic consumption , and a quicker return to everyday activities than the parietex composite medium-weight mesh .", "the recurrence rates at @ years showed no difference between the two groups ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the effectiveness of case-managed residential care ( cmrc ) in reducing substance abuse , increasing employment , decreasing homelessness , and improving health was examined .", "a five-year prospective experiment included @ homeless addicted male veterans @ , @ , and @ months during their enrollment and at @ , @ , and @ months after the completion of the experimental case-managed residential care program .", "the customary control condition was a @-day hospital program with referral to community services .", "the experimental group averaged @ months in transitional residential care with ongoing and follow-up case management for a total of up to @ year of treatment .", "the experimental group showed significant improvement compared with the control group on the medical , alcohol , employment , and housing measures during the @-year period .", "an examination of the time trends indicated that these group differences tended to occur during the treatment year , however , and to diminish during the follow-up year .", "within groups , significant improvements were observed with time from baseline to all posttests on the four major outcomes .", "we learned , however , that veterans had access to and used significant amounts of services even without the special case-managed residential care program .", "this partially may account for improvements in the control group and may have muted the differences between groups ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "weight loss is recognised as a marker of poor prognosis in patients with cancer but the aetiology of cancer cachexia remains unclear .", "the aim of the present study was to examine the relationships between ct measured parameters of body composition and the systemic inflammatory response in patients with primary operable colorectal cancer .", "@ patients with primary operable colorectal cancer who underwent resection with curative intent ( @-@ ) .", "image analysis of ct scans was used to measure total fat index ( cm ( @ ) / m ( @ ) ) , subcutaneous fat index ( cm ( @ ) / m ( @ ) ) , visceral fat index ( cm ( @ ) / m ( @ ) ) and skeletal muscle index ( cm ( @ ) / m ( @ ) ) .", "systemic inflammatory response was measured by serum white cell count ( wcc ) , neutrophil : lymphocyte ratio ( nlr ) and the glasgow prognostic score ( mgps ) .", "there were no relationships between any parameter of body composition and serum wcc or nlr .", "there was a significant relationship between low skeletal muscle index and an elevated systemic inflammatory response , as measured by the mgps ( p = @ ) .", "this was confirmed by linear relationships between skeletal muscle index and both c-reactive protein ( r = -@ , p = @ ) and albumin ( r = @ , p < @ ) .", "there was no association between skeletal muscle index and tumour stage .", "the present study highlights a direct relationship between low levels of skeletal muscle and the presence of a systemic inflammatory response in patients with primary operable colorectal cancer ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "in small trials with control groups that receive no intervention , acupuncture has been reported to improve functional outcome after stroke .", "we studied effects of acupuncture and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation on functional outcome and quality of life after stroke versus a control group that received subliminal electrostimulation .", "in a multicenter randomized controlled trial involving @ university and district hospitals in sweden , @ patients with moderate or severe functional impairment were included .", "at days @ to @ after acute stroke , patients were randomized to @ of @ intervention groups : ( a ) acupuncture , including electroacupuncture ; ( b ) sensory stimulation with high-intensity , low-frequency transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation that induces muscle contractions ; and ( c ) low-intensity ( subliminal ) high-frequency electrostimulation ( control group ) .", "a total of @ treatment sessions were performed over a @-week period .", "outcome variables included motor function , activities of daily living function , walking ability , social activities , and life satisfaction at @-month and @-year follow-up .", "at baseline , patients in each group were closely similar in all important prognostic variables .", "at @-month and @-year follow-ups , no clinically important or statistically significant differences were observed between groups for any of the outcome variables .", "the @ treatment modalities were all conducted without major adverse effects .", "when compared with a control group that received subliminal electrostimulation , treatment during the subacute phase of stroke with acupuncture or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation with muscle contractions had no beneficial effects on functional outcome or life satisfaction ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the newer atypical antipsychotics seem to be as effective as previous antipsychotics for impulsivity and aggressiveness of patients with borderline personality disorder ( bpd ) .", "objective of this assessment was to compare the effectiveness of olanzapine versus haloperidol in bpd .", "twenty-eight female inpatients , meeting the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders , fourth edition , text revision , criteria for bpd , were randomly entered in one of the @ matching contemporaneous groups for an @-week parallel double-blind study .", "this included the random assignment to olanzapine or haloperidol in a @:@ ratio .", "primary outcome measurements were as follows : brief psychiatric rating scale , clinical global impression-severity scale , buss-durkee hostility inventory .", "baselines were created at the beginning of the trial through patient assessments and final assessments at the end of the experiment .", "analysis of effect size , calculation of confidence intervals and power analysis were also prepared .", "all of the patients from within both groups completed the study .", "intragroup analysis at the eighth week interval revealed significant positive response by both olanzapine and haloperidol in comparison with the baseline ( p < @ ) ; however , the between-group analysis showed no significant difference , among the patients , at the end of the experiment .", "the analysis of specific brief psychiatric rating scale subscales in both groups revealed considerable and comparable improvements in anxiety , tension , depressive mood , and hostility .", "the effect size analyzes illustrated remarkable improvements with both groups .", "there seems to be no significant difference between olanzapine and haloperidol regarding the management of mental and behavioral symptoms of patients with bpd ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to evaluate the effect of two doses of vardenafil hydrochloride on penile rigidity and tumescence while determining the pharmacokinetics .", "twenty-one patients with erectile dysfunction completed three oral single-dose regimens ( placebo , @ and @ mg vardenafil ) in a randomized , placebo-controlled , @-way cross-over study .", "penile rigidity and tumescence were measured at the base and tip with a rigiscan for up to @ h after dosing .", "the period included three @-min repeated episodes of visual sexual stimulation .", "blood samples were taken periodically up to @ h after dosing .", "after @ and @ mg vardenafil , the mean duration of > @ % rigidity of the base of the penis was greater than after placebo by @ min ( @ % cl @-@ @ ) and by @ min ( @ % cl @-@ @ ) , respectively ( p < @ ) , and greater than after placebo by @ min ( @ % cl @-@ @ ) for both doses at the tip .", "additionally , significantly greater rigidity activity units and tumescence activity units were found for both doses compared with placebo ( p < @ ) .", "the plasma concentrations of vardenafil increased rapidly , with a median t ( max ) of about @ min and a mean t@/@ of @-@ @ h. relative bioavailability was slightly higher for the @-mg dose than for the @-mg dose .", "the treatments were well tolerated , although slightly more adverse events , primarily headache , flushing and nasal congestion , were seen with the @-mg dose compared with placebo .", "the findings confirm that vardenafil was able to generate stronger erections of longer duration than placebo under conditions of visual sexual stimulation in patients with erectile dysfunction .", "the pharmacokinetic , pharmacodynamic and tolerability profiles support vardenafil hydrochloride as a strong candidate for further testing as a treatment for erectile dysfunction ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "microbial infection of the pancreatic tissue in patients with severe acute pancreatitis increases the morbidity and mortality rates .", "colonization of the lower gastrointestinal tract and oropharynx with gram-negative , but sometimes also gram-positive , bacteria precedes contamination of the pancreas .", "the aim of this study was to determine whether lactic acid bacteria such as lactobacillus plantarum @ could prevent colonization of the gut by potential pathogens and thus reduce the endotoxaemia associated with acute pancreatitis .", "patients with acute pancreatitis were randomized into two double-blind groups .", "the treatment group received a freeze-dried preparation containing live l. plantarum @ in a dose of @ organisms , together with a substrate of oat fibre , for @ week by nasojejunal tube .", "the control group received a similar preparation but the lactobacillus was inactivated by heat .", "a total of @ patients completed the study .", "twenty-two patients received treatment with live and @ with heat-killed l. plantarum @ .", "infected pancreatic necrosis and abscesses occurred in one of @ patients in the treatment group , compared with seven of @ in the control group ( p = @ ) .", "the mean length of stay was @ days in the treatment group versus @ days in the control group ( p not significant ) .", "supplementary l. plantarum @ was effective in reducing pancreatic sepsis and the number of surgical interventions ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to evaluate the effectiveness of integrated , multidisciplinary care as compared with usual care for patients with moderate to severe , chronic hand eczema after @ weeks of follow-up .", "this study was designed as a randomized , controlled trial .", "patients who visited one of the participating hospitals were randomized to integrated care or usual care .", "integrated care was carried out by a multidisciplinary team , and integrated clinical and occupational care to optimize treatment , and the patient 's quality of life and social functioning .", "outcome variables were clinical assessment of hand eczema with the hand eczema severity index ( hecsi ) ( primary outcome ) , quality of life , patient 's global assessment of hand eczema , and sick leave .", "average improvement on the hecsi was @ points in the intervention group and @ points in the control group .", "the mean difference in improvement on the hecsi between both groups after @ weeks was @ points in favour of the integrated care group ( standard error @ , @ % confidence interval @-@ @ , p = @ ) .", "no differences in improvement between the groups were found for any of the other outcomes .", "the integrated care programme significantly improved clinical outcome measures as compared with usual care , and was effective for treating patients with chronic hand eczema ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "infection with human papillomavirus ( hpv ) and diseases caused by hpv are common in boys and men .", "we report on the safety of a quadrivalent vaccine ( active against hpv types @ , @ , @ , and @ ) and on its efficacy in preventing the development of external genital lesions and anogenital hpv infection in boys and men .", "we enrolled @ healthy boys and men @ to @ years of age , from @ countries in a randomized , placebo-controlled , double-blind trial .", "the primary efficacy objective was to show that the quadrivalent hpv vaccine reduced the incidence of external genital lesions related to hpv-@ , @ , @ , or @ .", "efficacy analyses were conducted in a per-protocol population , in which subjects received all three vaccinations and were negative for relevant hpv types at enrollment , and in an intention-to-treat population , in which subjects received vaccine or placebo , regardless of baseline hpv status .", "in the intention-to-treat population , @ external genital lesions were seen in the vaccine group as compared with @ in the placebo group , for an observed efficacy of @ % ( @ % confidence interval [ ci ] , @ to @ ) ; the efficacy was @ % ( @ % ci , @ to @ ) for lesions related to hpv-@ , @ , @ , or @ .", "in the per-protocol population , efficacy against lesions related to hpv-@ , @ , @ , or @ was @ % ( @ % ci , @ to @ ) .", "efficacy with respect to persistent infection with hpv-@ , @ , @ , or @ and detection of related dna at any time was @ % ( @ % ci , @ to @ ) and @ % ( @ % ci , @ to @ ) , respectively , in the intention-to-treat population and @ % ( @ % ci , @ to @ ) and @ % ( @ % ci , @ to @ ) in the per-protocol population .", "injection-site pain was significantly more frequent among subjects receiving quadrivalent hpv vaccine than among those receiving placebo ( @ % vs. @ % , p < @ ) .", "quadrivalent hpv vaccine prevents infection with hpv-@ , @ , @ , and @ and the development of related external genital lesions in males @ to @ years of age .", "( funded by merck and others ; clinicaltrials.gov number , nct@ . )" ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "local nasal immunotherapy by means of an extract in `` macronized '' powder from was studied in allergic rhinitis to dermatophagoides species .", "twenty-four dermatophagoides-sensitive patients were studied for @ months in a double-blind controlled trial .", "subjects were selected on the basis of a positive history , skin test , radioallergosorbent test , and intranasal challenge to dermatophagoides antigen .", "two @-patient groups were selected at random ; the first group was given active treatment , and the second received placebo .", "after @ months , the mean weekly symptom and medication scores were significantly lower in the treated group than in the control group .", "the treated group had a significant increase of specific nasal threshold to dermatophagoides antigen after treatment .", "adverse reactions to local nasal immunotherapy , which were limited to the upper respiratory tract , occurred very rarely and did not interfere with dose schedule .", "local nasal immunotherapy in powder form may be a suitable alternative to the traditional subcutaneous immunotherapy in terms of clinical efficacy and safety ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of postoperative autotransfusion method on prevention of the need of allogeneic blood transfusion in hip and knee arthroplasty .", "seventy-four patients who underwent @ hip and knee arthroplasty operations were randomized into control and study groups , and evaluated prospectively .", "in the knee group ( @ patients ; @ females , @ males ; mean age @ years ) , cemented , cruciate retaining , and bicompartmental arthroplasty was performed under tourniquet control ; whereas in the hip group ( @ patients ; @ females , @ males ; mean age @ years ) cementless arthroplasty with posterolateral approach was performed .", "none of the patients received preoperative and intraoperative allogeneic blood transfusion .", "the collected blood in the surgical area was transfused with autotransfusion system to the patients in the study groups at the end of the fourth hour postoperatively .", "the mean amounts of autotransfused blood in hip and knee groups were @ ml and @ ml , respectively .", "allogeneic blood transfusion was applied to the patients with hemoglobin level below @ g/dl , hematocrit level below @ % , and clinical symptoms of anemia .", "preoperative and postoperative hemoglobin-hematocrit levels did not differ significantly between study and control groups .", "allogeneic blood transfusion was applied to one patient ( @ % ) in study and @ patients ( @ % ) in control groups during knee arthroplasty ( p = @ ) ; whereas @ patients ( @ % ) in study and @ patients ( @ % ) in control groups received allogeneic blood transfusion during hip arthroplasty ( p = @ ) .", "the amount of allogeneic blood transfusion in study groups was significantly lower than that in control groups ( p = @ for knee arthroplasty , p = @ for hip arthroplasty ) .", "the need and amount of allogeneic transfusion were reduced with postoperative autotransfusion in both knee and hip arthroplasty groups with greater extent in knee arthroplasty ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "correct mediastinal staging is a cornerstone in the treatment of patients with non-small cell lung cancer .", "a large range of methods is available for this purpose , making the process of adequate staging complex .", "the objective of this study was to describe faults and benefits of positron emission tomography ( pet ) - ct in multimodality mediastinal staging .", "a randomised clinical trial was conducted including patients with a verified diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer , who were considered operable .", "patients were assigned to staging with pet-ct ( pet-ct group ) followed by invasive staging ( mediastinoscopy and/or endoscopic ultrasound with fine needle aspiration ( eus-fna ) ) or invasive staging without prior pet-ct ( conventional work up ( cwu ) group ) .", "mediastinal involvement ( dichotomising n stage into n@-@ versus n@-@ ) was described according to ct , pet-ct , mediastinoscopy , eus-fna and consensus ( based on all available information ) , and compared with the final n stage as verified by thoracotomy or a conclusive invasive diagnostic procedure .", "a total of @ patients were recruited , @ in the pet-ct group and @ in the cwu group .", "in an intention-to-treat analysis the overall accuracy of the consensus n stage was not significantly higher in the pet-ct group than in the cwu group ( @ % ( @ % confidence interval @ % to @ % ) vs @ % ( @ % ci @ % to @ % ) ) .", "excluding the patients in whom pet-ct was not performed ( n = @ ) the difference was significant ( @ % ( @ % ci @ % to @ % ) vs @ % ( @ % ci @ % to @ % ) , p = @ ) .", "this was mainly based on a higher sensitivity of the staging approach including pet-ct .", "an approach to lung cancer staging with pet-ct improves discrimination between n@-@ and n@-@ .", "in those without enlarged lymph nodes and a pet-negative mediastinum the patient may proceed directly to surgery .", "however , enlarged lymph nodes on ct needs confirmation independent of pet findings and a positive finding on pet-ct needs confirmation before a decision on surgery is made .", "nct@ ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the objectives of this randomized comparative effectiveness study conducted by members of the practitioners engaged in applied research and learning ( pearl ) network were to determine whether using a resin-modified glass ionomer ( rmgi ) liner reduces postoperative hypersensitivity ( poh ) in dentin-bonded class i and class ii resin-based composite ( rbc ) restorations , as well as to identify other factors ( putative risk factors ) associated with increased poh .", "pearl network practitioner-investigators ( p-is ) ( n = @ ) were trained to assess sensitivity determination , enamel and dentin caries activity rankings , evaluation for sleep bruxism , and materials and techniques used .", "the p-is enrolled @ participants who had hypersensitive posterior lesions .", "participants were randomly assigned to receive an rbc restoration with or without an rmgi liner before p-is applied a one-step , self-etching bonding agent .", "p-is conducted sensitivity evaluations at baseline , at one and four weeks after treatment , and at all visits according to patient-reported outcomes .", "p-is collected complete data regarding @ restorations ( @ participants ) at baseline , with @ ( @ percent ) ( @ participants ) recalled at four weeks .", "treatment groups were balanced across baseline characteristics and measures .", "rbc restorations with or without an rmgi liner had the same one-week and four-week poh outcomes , as measured clinically ( by means of cold or air stimulation ) and according to patient-reported outcomes .", "use of an rmgi liner did not reduce clinically measured or patient-reported poh in moderate-depth class i and class ii restorations .", "cold and air clinical stimulation findings were similar between groups .", "practical implications .", "the time , effort and expense involved in placing an rmgi liner in these moderate-depth rbc restorations may be unnecessary , as the representative liner used did not improve hypersensitivity outcomes ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "as new members of a drug class are developed , head-to-head trials are an important strategy to guide personalised treatment decisions .", "we assessed two glucagon-like peptide-@ receptor agonists , once-weekly albiglutide and once-daily liraglutide , in patients with type @ diabetes inadequately controlled on oral antidiabetic drugs .", "we undertook this @-week , open-label , phase @ non-inferiority study at @ sites in eight countries : usa ( @ sites ) , australia ( @ sites ) , peru ( @ sites ) , philippines ( @ sites ) , south korea ( @ sites ) , uk ( @ sites ) , israel ( @ sites ) , and spain ( @ sites ) .", "@ adult participants ( aged @ years ) with inadequately controlled type @ diabetes and a bmi between @ and @ kg/m ( @ ) were enrolled and randomised in a @:@ ratio to receive albiglutide @ mg once weekly titrated to @ mg at week @ , or liraglutide @ mg once daily titrated to @ mg at week @ and @ mg at week @ .", "the randomisation schedule was generated by an independent randomisation team by the permuted block method with a fixed block size of @ .", "participants and investigators were unmasked to treatment .", "the primary endpoint was change from baseline in hba@c for albiglutide versus liraglutide , with a @ % ci non-inferiority upper margin of @ % .", "the primary analysis was by modified intention to treat .", "the study is registered with clinicaltrials.gov , number nct@ .", "@ patients were randomly allocated to the albigultide group and @ to the liraglutide group ; @ patients in the abliglutide group and @ in the liraglutide group received the study drugs .", "the primary endpoint analysis was done on the modified intention-to-treat population , which included @ participants in the albiglutide group and @ in the liraglutide group .", "model-adjusted change in hba@c from baseline to week @ was -@ % ( @ % ci -@ to -@ ) in the albigludite group and -@ % ( -@ to -@ ) in the liraglutide group ; treatment difference was @ % ( @-@ ; non-inferiority p value = @ ) .", "injection-site reactions occurred in more patients given albiglutide than in those given liraglutide ( @ % vs @ % ; treatment difference @ % [ @ % ci @-@ ] ; p = @ ) , whereas the opposite was the case for gastrointestinal events , which occurred in @ % of patients in the liraglutide group versus @ % in the albiglutide group ( treatment difference -@ % [ @ % ci -@ to -@ ] ; p = @ ) .", "patients who received once-daily liraglutide had greater reductions in hba@c than did those who received once-weekly albiglutide .", "participants in the albiglutide group had more injection-site reactions and fewer gastrointestinal events than did those in the liraglutide group .", "glaxosmithkline ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "twice-daily administration of inhaled budesonide ( @ micrograms ) suppresses short-term growth in children with asthma .", "to compare short-term growth and markers of collagen turnover during treatment with @ micrograms of inhaled budesonide administered once daily in the morning and @ micrograms administered twice daily .", "twenty-four children with asthma aged @ to @ years .", "an outpatient secondary referral center .", "a randomized , double-blind , crossover trial with @ treatment periods of @ weeks was conducted , and growth was assessed with a knemometer .", "the carboxy terminal propeptide of type i procollagen , the amino terminal propeptide of type i procollagen ( pinp ) , the carboxy terminal pyridinoline cross-linked telopeptide of type i collagen , the amino terminal propeptide of type iii procollagen ( piiinp ) , and urinary pyridinoline and deoxypyridinoline were evaluated .", "mean lower leg growth rate ( p = @ ) , pinp ( p = @ ) , and piiinp ( p < @ ) were suppressed during twice-daily administration of budesonide , @ micrograms .", "otherwise , no statistically significant differences were detected .", "as compared with @ micrograms of inhaled budesonide administered twice daily , @ micrograms administered once daily in the morning has a sparing effect on short-term growth and collagen turnover ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to evaluate total intravenous anesthesia with propofol alone or in combination with s ( + ) - ketamine in rabbits undergoing surgery .", "prospective , randomized , blinded trial .", "nine @-month-old new zealand white rabbits , weighing @-@ kg .", "animals received acepromazine ( @ mg kg ( -@ ) ) and buprenorphine ( @ microg kg ( -@ ) ) im , and anesthesia was induced with propofol ( @ mg kg ( -@ ) ) and s ( + ) - ketamine ( @ mg kg ( -@ ) ) iv .", "rabbits received two of three treatments : propofol ( @ mg kg ( -@ ) minute ( -@ ) ) ( control treatment , p ) , propofol ( @ mg kg ( -@ ) minute ( -@ ) ) + s ( + ) - ketamine ( @ microg kg ( -@ ) minute ( -@ ) ) ( pk@ ) or propofol ( @ mg kg ( -@ ) minute ( -@ ) ) + s ( + ) - ketamine ( @ microg kg ( -@ ) minute ( -@ ) ) ( pk@ ) .", "all animals received @ % o ( @ ) during anesthesia .", "heart rate , mean arterial pressure , hemoglobin oxygen saturation and respiratory rate were measured every @ minutes for @ minutes .", "blood-gas parameters were measured at zero time and @ minutes .", "additional propofol injections , if necessary , and recovery time were recorded .", "an increase in heart rate was observed in p and pk@ up to @ minutes after induction of anesthesia .", "blood pressure decreased from baseline values during the first @ minutes in p and pk@ , and during the first @ minutes and between @ and @ minutes in pk@ .", "a reduction in respiratory rate was observed after @ minutes in all treatments .", "respiratory acidosis was observed in all treatments .", "six ( @ ) [ median ( interquartile range ) ] further propofol injections were necessary in p , which differed statistically from pk@ [ @ ( @ ) ] and pk@ [ @ ( @ ) ] .", "recovery time was shorter in p compared with pk@ and pk@ , being [ @ minutes ( @ ) ] , [ @ minutes ( @ ) ] , and [ @ minutes ( @ ) ] , respectively .", "s ( + ) - ketamine potentiates propofol-induced anesthesia in rabbits , providing better maintenance of heart rate .", "all of these techniques were accompanied by clinically significant respiratory depression ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "we examined staff utilization and procedure length for percutaneous and open bedside tracheostomies in an intensive care setting .", "prospective clinical outcomes study .", "intensive care unit ( icu ) tracheostomy consults meeting criteria for bedside procedures were randomized to open or percutaneous procedures .", "the cook percutaneous kit and a prepackaged tracheostomy tray were used .", "icu nursing and respiratory therapy staff was present for all procedures .", "the total resident time , staff time , and procedure length were recorded .", "twelve patients underwent percutaneous tracheostomy , and @ received an open tracheostomy .", "an operating room nurse was present for @ of the open procedures .", "ancillary medical staff was present for @ open tracheostomies : anesthesia for @ and critical care for @ .", "ancillary medical staff was present for @ percutaneous tracheostomies : anesthesia staff for @ and critical care for @ .", "the average resident presence , staff presence , and procedure length for open tracheostomies were @ , @ , and @ minutes , respectively .", "for percutaneous tracheostomies , the times were @ , @ , and @ minutes , respectively .", "one intraoperative complication occurred during a percutaneous procedure and @ perioperative complications occurred : @ in the open group and @ in the percutaneous group .", "there was no significant difference in procedure length , resident time , or staff time between the @ procedures .", "ancillary staff was occasionally used but was not thought to be necessary for the majority of procedures .", "both procedures can be safely and expediently performed in the icu ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim of this study was to investigate the association between the intensity of craving and the types of coping skills used by nicotine-dependent patients .", "this was an experimental study .", "the sample comprised @ subjects , mean age @ years .", "the participants were randomly divided into groups of zero , @ and @ minutes of nicotine abstinence .", "the following instruments were administered : the chart of sociodemographic data , the fagerstrm test for nicotine dependence , the questionnaire of smoking urges , and the coping strategies inventory .", "the most frequently used coping strategies are presented in descending order : accepting responsibility , self-control and distancing .", "there was a positive correlation between the confrontive coping strategy and the total score on the questionnaire of smoking urges ( rs = @ ; p = @ ) and the score on factor @ ( rs = @ ; p = @ ) .", "the most intense craving can lead nicotine-dependent individuals to use confrontive coping strategies that make them unable to control their emotions or to face the situations of high risk of relapse .", "this finding demonstrates that the treatment of smokers should include psychological education about the pitfalls of using these types of strategy and should teach them new types of coping strategies for craving management ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "hypertension and electrocardiographic left ventricular hypertrophy ( ecg-lvh ) are strong predictors of heart failure ( hf ) .", "it is unclear whether regression of ecg-lvh during treatment predicts less new-onset hf in patients with isolated systolic hypertension ( ish ) .", "a total of @,@ patients with hypertension and ecg-lvh and without a history of hf were randomized to losartan - or atenolol-based treatment in the losartan intervention for endpoint reduction in hypertension study .", "incident hf and the combined endpoint of hf and death were evaluated in @,@ ish patients and as compared with @,@ patients with systolic-diastolic hypertension or isolated diastolic hypertension ( non-ish ) during mean @ @ years follow-up .", "new-onset hf and hf or death occurred in @ ( @ % ) and @ ( @ % ) ish patients and @ ( @ % ) and @ ( @ % ) non-ish patients .", "in cox regression analyses adjusting for treatment and hf risk factors , time-varying cornell product was associated with lower risk of new-onset hf in ish ( adjusted hazard ratio ( hr ) @ , @ % confidence interval ( ci ) @-@ @ , p = @ , per @,@ mm ms ( @ sd ) lower cornell product ) and in non-ish ( adjusted hr @ , @ % ci @-@ @ , p < @ , per sd lower cornell product ) .", "in parallel analyses , time-varying cornell product was associated with lower risk of new-onset hf or death in ish and non-ish ( adjusted hr @ , @ % ci @-@ @ , p = @ and @ , @ % ci @-@ @ , p < @ , per sd lower cornell product ) .", "regression of time-varying cornell product was associated with similar reductions in risk of new-onset hf and the combined endpoint of hf or death in ish and non-ish patients ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "description of the relationship between repeated measurements of cd@ lymphocyte count and development of aids in asymptomatic hiv-infected patients .", "repeated measurements of cd@ lymphocyte counts over an aids-free period in asymptomatic hiv-infected patients , and follow-up of the cohort to record subsequent clinical progression to aids .", "the cohort was studied in a double-blind randomized clinical trial .", "cd@ lymphocyte counts were measured on three occasions over @ months in @ patients .", "eighty subsequent clinical progressions to aids were recorded during a median follow-up period of @ months .", "each of the three measurements of cd@ lymphocyte count were separately predictive of subsequent progression to aids .", "however , when the three measurements were included simultaneously in a predictive model only the last measurement showed a significant predictive value .", "change in individual cd@ count was also related to the risk of developing aids , but was no longer significant when the most recent measurement was included in the model .", "these results indicate the closeness of the relationship between the actual state of the immune system and subsequent progression to aids ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "anemia secondary to iron deficiency is common in patients with non-dialysis dependent chronic kidney disease ( nd-ckd ) but it is unclear if oral supplementation is as effective as intravenous ( iv ) supplementation in re-establishing iron stores .", "the purpose of this study was to determine if oral heme iron polypeptide ( hip ) is as effective as iv iron sucrose in the treatment of iron-deficiency anemia for patients with nd-ckd .", "forty nd-ckd patients were randomized ; @ to hip @ mg orally @ times per day and @ to iv iron sucrose @ mg monthly for @ months .", "baseline clinical and laboratory data were collected for all patients .", "the primary and secondary outcomes for the study were hemoglobin ( hgb ) concentration and iron indices [ ferritin and percentage transferrin saturation ( tsat ) ] at the end of @ months respectively .", "adverse events were also compared .", "the baseline demographic characteristics and laboratory values were similar for the two groups .", "after @ months of treatment , hb in the hip group was @ g/l and @ g/l in the iv sucrose group ( p = @ ) .", "the tsat at @ months was not different between the two groups { p = @ } but the serum ferritin was significantly higher in the iv iron sucrose group { @ ug/l in hip and @ ug/l ; p = @ } .", "overall adverse events were not different between the groups .", "hip is similar in efficacy to iv iron sucrose in maintaining hemoglobin in nd-ckd patients with no differences in adverse events over @ months .", "it is unclear if the greater ferritin values in the iv iron sucrose group are clinically significant .", "clinicaltrials.gov : nct@ ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the recommendation of adjuvant chemotherapy for colon cancer with lymph node metastases , based on two studies from usa , was reluctantly accepted by norwegian medical doctors .", "it was therefore decided to assess the role of adjuvant therapy with @fluorouracil ( @-fu ) combined with levamisole ( lev ) in a confirmatory randomised study .", "four hundred and twenty five patients with operable colon and rectum cancer , stage ii and iii ( dukes ' stage b and c ) , were from january @ to october @ , included in a randomised multicentre trial in norway .", "the age limits were @-@ years .", "therapy started with a loading course of bolus i.v. @-fu ( @ mg/m ( @ ) ) daily for @ days and p.o. doses of lev ( @ mg x @ ) for @ days .", "from day @ a weekly i.v. @-fu dose ( @ mg/m ( @ ) ) were administered for @ weeks .", "from day @ also p.o. doses of lev ( @ mg x @ ) for @ days were given every @ days .", "in total @ patients were randomised to @fu/lev and @ were included in the control group with surgery alone .", "some did not comply with the inclusion and exclusion criteria , thus leaving @ evaluable patients in each group .", "there was no significant survival difference between the two groups at @ years : disease-free survival ( dfs ) was @ % after chemotherapy , @ % ( p = @ ) in the control group , and corresponding cancer specific survival ( css ) @ % and @ % , respectively ( p = @ ) .", "there was no difference between the two groups when analysed for colon and rectum separately .", "however , the subgroup of colon cancer with stage iii exhibited a statistically significant difference both for dfs , @ % vs. @ % ( p = @ ) and css , @ % vs. @ % ( p = @ ) in favour of adjuvant chemotherapy .", "the benefit was further statistically significant for women but not for men .", "toxicity was generally mild and acceptable with no drug related fatalities .", "colon cancer patients with lymph node metastases benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy with @-fu/lev with acceptable toxicity .", "in a subgroup analysis females did better than males .", "rectal cancer does not benefit from this regimen ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "statins inhibit the rate-limiting step in cholesterol biosynthesis , the conversion of @-hydroxy-@-methylglutaryl coenzyme a ( hmg-coa ) to mevalonate by hmg-coa reductase .", "statins are usually taken in the evening as the hmg-coa reductase activity is high during the night .", "this recommendation might not apply if statins are given as extended-release ( er ) formulations .", "the present study investigated the influence of time of intake of fluvastatin @ mg er on cholesterol biosynthesis .", "main objectives were to measure the change in @-hour urinary mevalonic acid excretion , to determine plasma concentrations of mevalonic acid and fluvastatin and to monitor triglycerides , total cholesterol , hdl-cholesterol and ldl-cholesterol .", "this was a randomized , @-period crossover study in @ hypercholesterolemic patients who received a single daily dose of fluvastatin both in the morning and in the evening .", "at baseline , the amount of mevalonic acid was @ + / - @ microg/g creatinine .", "after a single dose of fluvastatin mean urine values of mevalonate were significantly reduced to @ + / - @ micro/g ( evening ) and to @ + / -@ microg/g ( morning ; n.s. between groups ) , thus representing a reduction of about @ % .", "compared to baseline , plasma mevalonate concentrations were decreased by fluvastatin resulting in similar @-hour profiles after the morning and the evening dosage .", "the pharmacokinetics of fluvastatin were similar in both periods of the study , with higher plasma concentrations for several hours following the evening dosage .", "this study demonstrates that fluvastatin er is equally effective in inhibiting cholesterol biosynthesis when given once daily in the morning and once daily in the evening ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the present study evaluated the prevalence of radicular sensitivity to scratching as well as the effects of a common oxalate desensitizing agent on sensitivity to air blast and scratching .", "eighty-seven patients self-reporting dentin hypersensitivity , with at least two hypersensitive teeth , were included .", "prior to any treatment , their sensitivity to air blast was recorded and rated as absent or present , and the force necessary to trigger pain when scratching was measured with a scratchometer in cn .", "for each patient one sensitive tooth was treated with an oxalate desensitizing agent and the other one with a placebo solution .", "the same measurements were carried out after treatment .", "following treatment with a placebo solution , @ % of the teeth remained sensitive to air blast while only @ % of the desensitizing agent-treated teeth remained sensitive to air blast ( p < @ ) .", "the mean force required to elicit pain prior to any treatment was @ + / - @ cn .", "this force statistically increased significantly after application of the placebo ( @ + / - @ cn ) ( p < @ ) .", "after using the desensitizing agent , the force was even higher ( @ + / - @ cn ) ( p < @ ) .", "only @ % of the teeth treated with the desensitizing agent did not respond to treatment compared to @ % of the teeth treated with the placebo solution .", "the placebo solution had a significant effect on sensitivity to air blast and to scratching ( p < @ ) .", "the oxalate desensitizing agent was more effective than the placebo solution at decreasing the sensitivity both to air blast and to scratching ( p < @ ) .", "the sensitivity to air blast seems to be overestimated because , after using the desensitizing agent , @ % of the teeth remained sensitive to air blast but only @ % remained sensitive to scratching .", "pulpal inflammation may be involved in those teeth that did not respond to treatment ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "long-acting beta-agonists and inhaled corticosteroids are used to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ( copd ) , but their effect on survival is unknown .", "we conducted a randomized , double-blind trial comparing salmeterol at a dose of @ microg plus fluticasone propionate at a dose of @ microg twice daily ( combination regimen ) , administered with a single inhaler , with placebo , salmeterol alone , or fluticasone propionate alone for a period of @ years .", "the primary outcome was death from any cause for the comparison between the combination regimen and placebo ; the frequency of exacerbations , health status , and spirometric values were also assessed .", "of @ patients in the efficacy population , @ died within @ years after the start of the study treatment .", "all-cause mortality rates were @ % in the combination-therapy group , @ % in the placebo group , @ % in the salmeterol group , and @ % in the fluticasone group .", "the hazard ratio for death in the combination-therapy group , as compared with the placebo group , was @ ( @ % confidence interval [ ci ] , @ to @ ; p = @ , adjusted for the interim analyses ) , corresponding to a difference of @ percentage points or a reduction in the risk of death of @ % .", "the mortality rate for salmeterol alone or fluticasone propionate alone did not differ significantly from that for placebo .", "as compared with placebo , the combination regimen reduced the annual rate of exacerbations from @ to @ and improved health status and spirometric values ( p < @ for all comparisons with placebo ) .", "there was no difference in the incidence of ocular or bone side effects .", "the probability of having pneumonia reported as an adverse event was higher among patients receiving medications containing fluticasone propionate ( @ % in the combination-therapy group and @ % in the fluticasone group ) than in the placebo group ( @ % , p < @ for comparisons between these treatments and placebo ) .", "the reduction in death from all causes among patients with copd in the combination-therapy group did not reach the predetermined level of statistical significance .", "there were significant benefits in all other outcomes among these patients .", "( clinicaltrials.gov number , nct@ [ clinicaltrials.gov ] . )" ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "inhaled nitric oxide has been shown to improve oxygenation in select patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome ( ards ) .", "the purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical response to four concentrations of inhaled nitric oxide ( no ) in @ patients with ards .", "all patients with ards were eligible for the study .", "ards was defined as ( @ ) the presence of a predisposing factor ; ( @ ) a pao@/fio@ ratio < @ ; ( @ ) bilateral infiltrates on chest radiograph ; and ( @ ) absence of evidence of congestive heart failure and pulmonary artery wedge pressure < @ mm hg .", "patients received each of four doses ( @ , @ , @ , and @ ppm ) in random order , each for a @-hour period .", "cardiovascular variables were continuously monitored , and arterial and mixed venous blood gas measurements were obtained at @ minutes and @ hours .", "thirteen of the @ patients demonstrated a significant increase in their pao@/fio@ ( > @ % increase ) when treated with inhaled no .", "the administration of inhaled no was associated with an increase in oxygenation at doses of @ , @ , and @ ppm , but not @ ppm .", "increasing no dose to more than @ ppm did not significantly improve response .", "mean pulmonary artery pressure decreased with increasing no concentration , but this did not reach statistical significance .", "nine of the @ responding patients and @ of the @ nonresponding patients survived .", "inhaled no was successful in increasing pao@/fio@ by > @ % in @ % of the surgical patients in this trial .", "response to no could not be predicted by initial pao@/fio@ or pulmonary artery pressures .", "a trial of inhaled no at a dose of < @ ppm may be helpful in ards patients requiring increasing fio@ and positive end-expiratory pressure ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "hypertension guidelines recommend the use of @ agents with synergistic action when > @ agent is needed to achieve blood pressure goals .", "newer antihypertensive treatment combinations include fixed-dose combinations of an angiotensin receptor blocker and a calcium channel blocker .", "the i-add study aimed to demonstrate whether the antihypertensive efficacy of fixed-dose combination irbesartan @ mg/amlodipine @ mg ( i@/a@ ) was superior to that of irbesartan ( i@ ) monotherapy in lowering home systolic blood pressure after @ weeks ' treatment .", "the i-add study was a @-week , multicenter , phase iii , prospective , randomized , parallel-group , open-label with blinded-end point study .", "the main inclusion criterion was essential uncontrolled hypertension ( systolic blood pressure @ mm hg at office after at least @ weeks of irbesartan @ mg [ i@ ] monotherapy administered once daily ) .", "patients continued to receive i@ for @ to @ days and were randomized to either monotherapy with i@ for @ weeks then i@ for the next @ weeks , or to a fixed-dose combination therapy ( i@/a@ , then i@/a@ ) .", "safety profile was assessed by recording adverse events reported by patients or observed by the investigator .", "following enrollment , @ patients were randomized to treatment , and @ ( mean [ sd ] age , @ [ @ ] years ; @ % male ) were included in the intention-to-treat analysis : @ patients treated with i@/a@ then i@/a@ , and @ patients treated with i@ then i@ .", "at randomization , mean home systolic blood pressure was similar in both groups : @ ( @ ) mm hg in the i@/a@ group and @ ( @ ) mm hg in the i@ group .", "at week @ , the adjusted mean difference in home systolic blood pressure between groups was -@ ( @ ) mm hg ( p < @ ) .", "the percentage of controlled patients ( mean home blood pressure < @ and @ mm hg ) was nearly @-fold higher in the i@/a@ group versus the i@ group ( p < @ ) .", "treatment-emergent adverse events were experienced by @ % of i@/a@-treated patients and @ % of i@-treated patients during the second @-week period .", "three serious adverse events were reported ; @ with monotherapy ( @ with i@ and @ with i@ ) and @ with fixed-dose combination i@/a@ .", "all patients affected by serious adverse events made a full recovery .", "these @-week data from this patient population suggest a greater antihypertensive efficacy of the fixed-dose combination i@/a@ over i@ alone in lowering systolic blood pressure .", "both treatments were well tolerated throughout the study .", "clinicaltrials.gov identifier : nct@ ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the pediatric oncology group ( pog ) acute leukemia in childhood ( alinc ) @ study tested two treatment regimens that used different cns chemoprophylaxis for children older than @ months with non-t , non-b acute lymphoblastic leukemia ( all ) and with no demonstrable cns disease at diagnosis .", "with the first regimen , standard ( s ) , six injections of triple intrathecal chemotherapy ( tic ) , consisting of methotrexate ( mtx ) , hydrocortisone ( hc ) , and cytarabine ( ara-c ) , were administered during intensification treatment and at every-@-week intervals throughout the maintenance phase for @ additional doses .", "the second regimen , standard and mtx pulses ( sam ) , also specified six tics during intensification , but substituted every-@-week pulses of intermediate-dose parenteral methotrexate ( idm ; @ g/m@ ) for the @ maintenance tic injections , with a low-dose intrathecal ( it ) mtx boost administered with the first four maintenance idm pulses .", "otherwise , systemic therapy on regimen sam was identical to regimen s.", "there were @,@ patients randomized to the s and sam regimens after stratification by risk group ( age/leukocyte count ) and immunophenotype .", "the @-year probabilities ( + / - se ) of an isolated cns relapse were regimen s : good risk ( n = @ ) , @ % + / - @ % ; poor risk ( n = @ ) , @ % + / - @ % ; good + poor risk ( n = @ ) , @ % + / - @ % ; regimen sam : good risk ( n = @ ) , @ % + / - @ % ; poor risk ( n = @ ) , @ % + / - @ % ; good + poor risk ( n = @ ) , @ % + / - @ % .", "in poor-risk patients , approximately one third of the isolated cns relapses occurred before preventive cns therapy was begun at week @ .", "hence , regimen s has provided better cns preventive therapy for both good - and poor-risk patients ( p < @ overall ) .", "the difference is statistically significant for good-risk patients ( p < @ ) , but not for poor-risk patients ( p = @ ) .", "neither treatment has shown a significant advantage in terms of general outcome .", "tic injections extended throughout the intensification and maintenance periods are superior to idm pulses for prevention of cns leukemia .", "our results with tic seem comparable with those achieved with other contemporary methods of cns preventative therapy .", "thus , extended tic affords a reasonable alternative to cns irradiation plus upfront it mtx for patients with b-progenitor all ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to compare the clinical outcomes of standard , cylindrical , screw-shaped to novel tapered , transmucosal ( straumann dental implants immediately placed into extraction sockets .", "in this randomized-controlled clinical trial , outcomes were evaluated over a @-year observation period .", "this report deals with the need for bone augmentation , healing events , implant stability and patient-centred outcomes up to @ months only .", "nine centres contributed a total of @ immediate implant placements .", "all surgical and post-surgical procedures and the evaluation parameters were discussed with representatives of all centres during a calibration meeting .", "following careful luxation of the designated tooth , allocation of the devices was randomly performed by a central study registrar .", "the allocated sla titanium implant was installed at the bottom or in the palatal wall of the extraction socket until primary stability was reached .", "if the extraction socket was > or = @ mm larger than the implant , guided bone regeneration was performed simultaneously ( bio oss and biogide .", "the flaps were then sutured .", "during non-submerged transmucosal healing , everything was done to prevent infection .", "at surgery , the need for augmentation and the degree of wound closure was verified .", "implant stability was assessed clinically and by means of resonance frequency analysis ( rfa ) at surgery and after @ months .", "wound healing was evaluated after @ , @ , @ and @ weeks post-operatively .", "the demographic data did not show any differences between the patients receiving either standard cylindrical or tapered implants .", "all implants yielded uneventful healing with @ % wound dehiscences after @ week .", "after @ weeks , @ % , after @ weeks @ % , and after @ weeks @ % of the flaps were closed .", "ninety percent of both implant designs required bone augmentation .", "immediately after implantation , rfa values were @ and @ and at @ months @ and @ for cylindrical and tapered implants , respectively .", "patient-centred outcomes did not differ between the two implant designs .", "however , a clear preference of the surgeon 's perception for the appropriateness of the novel-tapered implant was evident .", "this rct has demonstrated that tapered or standard cylindrical implants yielded clinically equivalent short-term outcomes after immediate implant placement into the extraction socket ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "there is a general belief that the presence of a cast or a bandage eliminates the lowering effects of skin temperature when local cold therapy applied on the surface of the cast or bandage .", "the purpose of this study is to determine the magnitude of temperature changes at the skin of the ankle after the application of frozen ice packs to the surface of various casts and bandages both in normal and swollen ankles .", "thirty-two healthy subjects ( group a ) and @ patients with grade iii inversion type acute ankle sprain ( group b ) were randomly divided into four groups .", "the sensor of the digital thermometer was secured to the ankle over the anterior talo-fibular ligament in every subject before placement of a bandage or cast .", "robert jones bandage , elastic support bandage , a below-knee plaster cast and synthetic below-knee cast were applied in groups @ , @ , @ and @ , respectively .", "two frozen ice packs were placed around the cast or bandage at the level of sensor , and skin temperatures were recorded .", "the skin temperature under dressings and casts decreased significantly relative to the baseline temperatures with local cold therapy in all groups .", "the fall in the temperature with cryotherapy in group a showed a three-phase pattern of change between groups @ and @ , groups @ and @ and groups @ and @ during the experiment .", "the fall in the skin temperature with ice packs differed significantly between groups @ and @ , and also groups @ and @ from the beginning till the end of the experiment .", "there was no significant difference between groups @ and @ in terms of skin temperature fall with cryotherapy during the whole experiment .", "the results were similar in group b.", "a bandage or cast does not prevent measurable skin temperature lowering by frozen ice packs both in normal and swollen ankles ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "nevirapine is a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor of hiv-@ which exhibits synergy in vitro with zidovudine ( zdv ) and also is active against zdv-resistant hiv .", "we evaluated the activity and safety of nevirapine in combination with zdv in patients receiving long-term zdv therapy .", "we conducted a randomized , open-label , controlled @-week study of nevirapine ( @ mg daily for @ weeks followed by @ mg twice daily for @ weeks ) and continued zdv ( @-@ mg daily ) versus continued zdv alone in @ hiv-@ p@ antigenaemic patients with cd@ + lymphocyte counts < @ x @ ( @ ) / l and who had been treated with zdv for at least @ months .", "addition of nevirapine to zdv resulted in a significant and rapid reduction in circulating rna load ( mean , @ ) , a mean cd@ + lymphocyte rise of @ x @ ( @ ) / l , a reduction in serum beta @-microglobulin and a median fall in immune complex dissociated p@ antigen levels of @ % .", "these changes remained statistically significant for @ , @ , @ and at least @ weeks , respectively .", "the principal adverse event due to nevirapine was a hypersensitivity reaction comprising rash with or without fever and mucositis in eight ( @ % ) patients , which was dose-limiting in seven patients .", "nevirapine exhibits significant although transient anti-hiv activity in zdv-pretreated patients but its use is frequently associated with a hypersensitivity reaction ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "elevated plasma levels of atrial natriuretic peptide ( anp ) and the n-terminal fragment of the anp prohormone ( n-anp ) are associated with decreased left ventricular function and decreased long-term survival after acute myocardial infarction ( ami ) .", "previous data suggest that plasma brain natriuretic peptide ( bnp ) may increase proportionally more than plasma anp after ami and in chronic heart failure .", "the diagnostic and prognostic value of plasma bnp as an indicator of left ventricular dysfunction and long-term survival after ami , relative to that of anp and n-anp , remain to be established .", "venous blood samples for analysis of anp , n-anp , and bnp were obtained on day @ after symptom onset from @ patients with documented ami .", "left ventricular ejection fraction was determined by echocardiography in a subsample of @ patients .", "twenty-eight cardiovascular and @ noncardiovascular deaths occurred during the follow-up period ( median , @ days ) .", "all three peptides proved to be powerful predictors of cardiovascular mortality by univariate cox proportional hazards regression analyses ( anp : p < @ ; n-anp : p = @ ; bnp : p < @ ) .", "in a multivariate model , plasma bnp ( p = @ ) but not anp ( p = @ ) or n-anp ( p = @ ) provided additional prognostic information beyond left ventricular ejection fraction .", "logistic regression analysis showed that anp ( p = @ ) and n-anp ( p = @ ) but not bnp ( p = @ ) were significantly associated with a left ventricular ejection fraction < or = @ % .", "these results suggest that plasma bnp determination provides important , independent prognostic information after ami .", "although plasma anp appears to be a better predictor of left ventricular dysfunction , plasma bnp may have greater potential to complement standard prognostic indicators used in risk stratification after ami because of its strong , independent association with long-term survival , enhanced in vitro stability , and simplicity of analysis ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "oral mucositis ( om ) is one of the most frequent complications of chemotherapy for which there is no standard therapy ; treatment is mostly conservative .", "this study was conducted to determine whether low-intensity laser therapy ( lllt ) can reduce the duration of chemotherapy-induced om .", "a placebo-controlled randomized trial was carried out using lllt or placebo ( sham treatment ) .", "children and adolescents with cancer receiving chemotherapy or hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation between october @ and may @ were eligible as soon as they developed om .", "patients received intervention for @ days .", "the lllt group was treated with laser gaalas , wavelength ( lambda ) : @ nm ( infrared ) , power : @ mw , dose : @ j/cm , and placebo group underwent sham treatment .", "the grade of om was clinically assessed by the national cancer institute , common toxicity criteria scale .", "twenty-one patients developed om and were evaluable for analysis ; @ ( @ % ) patients had a diagnosis of leukemia or lymphoma and @ ( @ % ) had solid tumors .", "the mean age was @ ( + / -@ ) years .", "nine patients were randomized in the laser group and @ in the placebo-control group .", "once om was diagnosed , the patients had daily om grading assessments before laser or sham application and thereafter until complete healing of the lesions .", "on day @ after om diagnosis , @/@ of patients remained with lesions in laser group and @/@ of patients in the placebo-control group ( p = @ ) .", "in the laser group , the mean of om duration was @ + / -@ days and in the placebo group was @ + / -@ days ( p = @ ) .", "our study has shown evidence that laser therapy in addition to oral care can decrease the duration of chemotherapy-induced om .", "our results confirm the promising results observed in adult cancer patients and should encourage pediatric oncologists to use laser therapy as first-line option in children with chemotherapy-induced om ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of octatropine methyl bromide plus diazepam ( valpinax ) in patients with irritable bowel syndrome ( ibs ) .", "we conducted a randomized , double-blind , multicentre study in @ patients aged @-@ years with ibs diagnosed according to rome ii criteria .", "following a @-week washout period , patients received octatropine plus diazepam @ mg/@ @ mg twice daily or placebo for @ weeks .", "the primary efficacy endpoint was response to a weekly question : `` did you have satisfactory relief of your abdominal pain and discomfort during the last week ? ''", "other endpoints included abdominal swelling , abdominal pain and discomfort , symptom severity , and the number of bowel movements .", "a prespecified subgroup analysis was conducted in patients with an abdominal pain and discomfort score > or = @ .", "the primary efficacy endpoint showed a tendency towards a statistically significant benefit for octatropine plus diazepam over placebo among patients with a baseline abdominal pain and discomfort score of > or = @ ( @ vs. @ patients ; p = @ ) .", "octatropine plus diazepam demonstrated significant improvements from baseline in all parameters assessed , but not compared with placebo .", "adverse events were reported in @ % of patients receiving octatropine plus diazepam .", "patients with ibs and an abdominal pain and discomfort score of > or = @ , who may be considered in the active phase of the disease , may derive some benefits from octatropine plus diazepam .", "this study highlights that rome ii criteria should be considered with particular care in the design of a clinical trial , since it does not consider disease activity level on admission ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "hypotension following spinal anaesthesia for caesarean section may result in maternal nausea and vomiting and decreased uteroplacental blood flow with possible fetal acidaemia .", "numerous methods have been tried to minimise hypotension .", "in developing countries where resources are limited , this study aimed to compare a standard infusion of ephedrine with traditional prehydration to prevent spinal hypotension .", "sixty patients for elective caesarean section were randomly allocated to group @ : @ l @ % saline before spinal block , and group @ : infusion of ephedrine @ mg in @ l of @ % saline after spinal block , titrated to maternal systolic pressure .", "spinal anaesthesia was achieved with @ ml of @ % heavy bupivacaine in the l@/l@ interspace .", "systolic pressure decreased @ min after spinal block .", "group @ had higher mean values of systolic pressure throughout most of the study period than group @ ( p < @ ) .", "hypotension occurred in @ % of patients in group @ and @ % of patients in group @ ( p = @ ) .", "severe hypotension occurred in @ % of group @ and @ % of group @ ( p = @ ) .", "nausea was the most common side effect of hypotension , occurring in @ % of all hypotensive patients .", "other complications , including hypertension , tachycardia and bradycardia were similar in the two groups .", "neonatal outcome was similar in the two groups and median apgar scores at one and five minutes were @ .", "prophylactic ephedrine given by standard infusion set was more effective than crystalloid prehydration in the prevention of hypotension during spinal anaesthesia for elective caesarean section ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to observe the correlation relationship between acupuncture at dicang ( st @ ) , hegu ( li @ ) and houxi ( si @ ) on the affected side of peripheral facial paralysis patients and activated areas in brain functional areas and central regulation mechanism of acupuncture at hegu ( li @ ) treatment .", "eighteen cases with left peripheral facial paralysis were randomly divided into a hegu group , a dicang group and a houxi group , @ cases in each group .", "they were treated with electroacupuncture at left dicang ( st @ ) , hegu ( li @ ) and houxi ( si @ ) , respectively , and were examined with fmri covering the whole brain at the same time .", "the fmri data was analyzed by spm software .", "it was found that the left precentral gyrus area and the left postcentral gyrus area were activated when electroacupuncture at left hegu ( li @ ) , and the right precentral gyrus area and the bilateral postcentral gyrus area were activated when electroacupuncture at left dicang ( st @ ) , and there was no activated area at precentral gyrus area and post central gyrus area when electroacupuncture at left houxi ( si @ ) .", "the sensory importation information from hegu ( li @ ) and dicang ( st @ ) can converge and coincide in the brain and may influence each other ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the time to recovery from vapour anaesthesia is shortened by an increase in ventilation while maintaining normocapnia .", "hypercapnia during emergence from anaesthesia in spontaneously breathing patients also increases anaesthetic clearance from the brain by increasing cerebral blood flow .", "we hypothesised that hypercapnia-induced hyperpnoea accelerates emergence from sevoflurane anaesthesia compared to the standard anaesthesia protocol .", "after ethics review board approval , @ asa i-iii patients undergoing elective gynaecological surgery were randomised after surgery to either hypercapnic hyperpnoea or control groups .", "in the hypercapnic hyperpnoea group , the end-tidal co@ was adjusted to a range of @-@ @ kpa to maintain a minute ventilation of @-@ l/min .", "recovery indices were compared using unpaired t-tests and anova .", "prior to extubation , minute ventilation and end-tidal co@ in hypercapnic hyperpnoea and control groups were @ @ l/min vs. @ @ l/min ( p < @ ) and @ @ kpa and @ @ kpa ( p < @ ) , respectively .", "compared to control , the study group had shorter time to extubation [ @ @ ( sd ) vs. @ @ min , p < @ ] , bis recovery to > @ ( @ @ vs. @ @ min , p < @ ) , eye opening ( @ @ vs. @ @ min , p < @ ) , eligibility for leaving operating room ( @ @ vs. @ @ min , p < @ ) , and post-anaesthesia care unit ( @ @ vs. @ @ )", "hypercapnic hyperpnoea in spontaneously breathing patients halves the time of recovery from sevoflurane-induced anaesthesia in the operating room ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the effect of co@ laser irradiation on pdl attachment to resected root ends was evaluated .", "forty dentin wafers were divided into @ equal groups .", "groups i and ii were not subjected to laser irradiation .", "groups iii and iv were subjected to irradiation with co@ laser ( wave length @ mm ) .", "pdl cells attachment to the resected root surface ( lased/non lased ) and cell attachment to the root end filling material ( gutta percha and mta ) were evaluated utilizing immunoflouresence microscopy and sem .", "pdl cell attachment was observed on dentin surfaces ( control samples ) and dentin away from the laser strikes ( irradiated samples ) .", "pdl cell attachment was observed on mta but was absent on gutta percha .", "absence of pdl attachment to laser irradiated dentin could be attributed to morphological surface changes in dentin produced by laser irradiation ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "lung volume reduction surgery improves survival in selected patients with emphysema , and has generated interest in bronchoscopic approaches that might achieve the same effect with less morbidity and mortality .", "previous trials with endobronchial valves have yielded modest group benefits because when collateral ventilation is present it prevents lobar atelectasis .", "we did a single-centre , double-blind sham-controlled trial in patients with both heterogeneous emphysema and a target lobe with intact interlobar fissures on ct of the thorax .", "we enrolled stable outpatients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who had a forced expiratory volume in @ s ( fev@ ) of less than @ % predicted , significant hyperinflation ( total lung capacity > @ % and residual volume > @ % ) , a restricted exercise capacity ( @ min walking distance < @ m ) , and substantial breathlessness ( mrc dyspnoea score @ ) .", "participants were randomised ( @:@ ) by computer-generated sequence to receive either valves placed to achieve unilateral lobar occlusion ( bronchoscopic lung volume reduction ) or a bronchoscopy with sham valve placement ( control ) .", "patients and researchers were masked to treatment allocation .", "the study was powered to detect a @ % improvement in the primary endpoint , the fev@ @ months after the procedure .", "analysis was on an intention-to-treat basis .", "the trial is registered at controlled-trials .", "com , isrctn@ .", "@ patients ( @ % male , fev@ [ % predicted ] mean @ % [ sd @ ] ) were enrolled to receive valves ( n = @ ) or sham valve placement ( control , n = @ ) between march @ , @ , and sept @ , @ .", "in the bronchoscopic lung volume reduction group , fev@ increased by a median @ % ( iqr @-@ ) versus @ % ( @-@ ) in the control group ( mann-whitney p = @ ) .", "there were two deaths in the bronchoscopic lung volume reduction group and one control patient was unable to attend for follow-up assessment because of a prolonged pneumothorax .", "unilateral lobar occlusion with endobronchial valves in patients with heterogeneous emphysema and intact interlobar fissures produces significant improvements in lung function .", "there is a risk of significant complications and further trials are needed that compare valve placement with lung volume reduction surgery .", "efficacy and mechanism evaluation programme , funded by the medical research council ( mrc ) and managed by the national institute for health research ( nihr ) on behalf of the mrc-nihr partnership ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to investigate the effect of thyroxine upon the prevention of recurrence of graves disease after treatment by antithyroid drugs .", "sixty patients newly diagnosed as graves disease were treated with methimazole for @ months and then randomly distributed into three groups .", "patient in group a and group c received small dose of methimazole plus l-t ( @ ) @ microgram/d , and patients in group b were treated with methimazole in small dose only .", "twenty four months later , only l-t ( @ ) @ microgram/d , without methimazole , was administered to the patients of group a ; methimazole in maintenance dose was administered continuously to the patients of group b , and patients in group c were treated with methimazole in maintenance dose plus l-t ( @ ) @ microgram/d .", "such treatments lasted @ months .", "post-treatment follow-up survey was conducted to the three groups .", "the titers of thyroid-stimulating ab ( tsab ) in groups a and c were lower than that in group b. however , the recurrence rates among the three groups ( @/@ , @ % ; @/@ , @ % ; and @/@ , @ % respectively ) were not significantly different .", "both treatment of graves ' disease with methimazole plus l-t@ and treatment with prolonged use of methimazole can not reduce the recurrence rate more effectively than treatment with only methimazole .", "the level of tsab is not the only factor that influences the recurrence of graves disease ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "we have previously shown that ranitidine bismuth citrate-based , clarithromycin-containing triple therapy achieves a higher eradication rate than proton pump inhibitor-based regimens in areas with a high prevalence of metronidazole resistance .", "to evaluate whether this higher efficacy of ranitidine bismuth citrate over proton pump inhibitor can be extended to non-clarithromycin-containing regimens .", "helicobacter pylori-positive dyspeptic patients were randomized to receive either ranitidine bismuth citrate , @ mg , amoxicillin , @ mg , and metronidazole , @ mg , or omeprazole , @ mg , amoxicillin , @ mg , and metronidazole , @ mg , each given twice daily for @ week .", "h. pylori eradication was confirmed by @c-urea breath test @ weeks later .", "the side-effects of the treatments were documented .", "two hundred and twenty-nine patients were eligible for analysis .", "by intention-to-treat and per protocol analysis , the eradication rates were @ % and @ % , respectively , in the ranitidine bismuth citrate-amoxicillin-metronidazole group and @ % and @ % , respectively , in the omeprazole-amoxicillin-metronidazole group ( p = @ and p = @ ) .", "however , patients in the omeprazole-amoxicillin-metronidazole group reported a significantly higher incidence of minor side-effects when compared to those in the ranitidine bismuth citrate-amoxicillin-metronidazole group ( p = @ ) .", "ranitidine bismuth citrate-amoxicillin-metronidazole was equally as effective as omeprazole-amoxicillin-metronidazole triple therapy , and may be considered as an alternative non-clarithromycin-based regimen in the chinese population ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "this double-blind , randomized , multicenter trial was designed to compare the effects of treatment with anistreplase ( apsac ) and alteplase ( rt-pa ) on convalescent left ventricular function , morbidity and coronary artery patency at @ day in patients with acute myocardial infarction .", "anistreplase ( apsac ) is a new , easily administered thrombolytic agent recently approved for treatment of acute myocardial infarction .", "alteplase ( rt-pa ) is a rapidly acting , relatively fibrin-specific thrombolytic agent that is currently the most widely used agent in the united states .", "study entry requirements were age less than or equal to @ years , symptom duration less than or equal to @ h , st segment elevation and no contraindications .", "the two study drugs , apsac , @ u/@ to @ min , and rt-pa , @ mg/@ h , were each given with aspirin ( @ mg/day ) and intravenous heparin .", "prespecified end points were convalescent left ventricular function ( rest/exercise ) , clinical morbidity and coronary artery patency at @ day .", "a total of @ patients were entered , stratified into groups with anterior ( @ % ) or inferior or other ( @ % ) acute myocardial infarction , randomized to receive apsac or rt-pa and followed up for @ month .", "at entry , patient characteristics in the two groups were balanced .", "convalescent ejection fraction at the predischarge study averaged @ % in the apsac group and @ % in the rt-pa group ( p less than @ ) ; at @ month , ejection fraction averaged @ % versus @ % , respectively ( p less than @ ) .", "in contrast , ejection fraction showed similar augmentation with exercise at @ month after apsac ( +@ % points ) and rt-pa ( +@ % points ) , and exercise times were comparable .", "coronary artery patency at @ day was high and similar in both groups ( apsac @ % , rt-pa @ % ) .", "mortality ( apsac @ % , rt-pa @ % ) and the incidence of other serious clinical events , including stroke , ventricular tachycardia , ventricular fibrillation , heart failure within @ month , recurrent ischemia and reinfarction were comparable in the two groups ; and mechanical interventions were applied with equal frequency .", "a combined clinical morbidity index was determined and showed a comparable overall outcome for the two treatments .", "convalescent rest ejection fraction was high after both therapies but higher after rt-pa ; other clinical outcomes , including exercise function , morbidity index , and @-day coronary artery patency , were favorable and comparable after apsac and rt-pa ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to observe the effect of acupuncture combined with speech therapy for dysarthria after stroke or cerebral trauma .", "sixty-one cases were randomly divided into two groups .", "the observation group ( @ cases ) was treated with speech therapy and acupuncture at lianquan ( cv @ ) , jinjin ( ex-hn @ ) , yuye ( ex-hn @ ) , fengchi ( gb @ ) , yifeng ( te @ ) and wangu ( gb @ ) as major acupoints , while the control group ( @ cases ) was treated with speech therapy only .", "the changes of speech and acoustics indices were evaluated after @ weeks treatment .", "the word articulation and correct rate of text of patients in two groups were both obviously improved after treatment ( both p < @ ) .", "the total effective rate of @ % ( @/@ ) in observation group was superior to that of @ % ( @/@ ) in control group ( p < @ ) .", "the maximum phonation time ( mpt ) of patients tested by aeromechanics analyzer were obviously prolonged in observation group ( @ cases ) and control group ( @ cases ) ( both p < @ ) , and the improvement in observation group was more obvious ( p < @ ) .", "acupuncture combined with speech therapy can improve the effect on language and acoustics level for dysarthria ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the locoregional failure rate remains high in advanced cervical carcinoma .", "chemotherapy ( ct ) was added to radiotherapy ( rt ) in order to increase disease control and to improve @-year survival .", "ct + rt included cisplatin administered @mg/m@ , d. @ plus @-fluorouracil @ mg/m@ d. @ to @ , ci ( @ hrs ) , q every @rd week for @ cycles , followed by rt. .", "rt included external beam irradiation @ gy in @ gy fractions , five days a week , by @-field box technique .", "the median follow-up was @ months .", "ninety-four patients were evaluable for survival , @ in the ct + rt group and @ in the rt group .", "ninety-two patients were evaluable for response .", "known prognostic factors were equally distributed between the two groups .", "of the @ patients evaluable before rt , @ ( @ % ) achieved a partial or complete response after ct alone .", "after rt , @ patients attained a complete response , @ in the ct + rt group and @ in the rt-group .", "sixty-three patients developed distant metastases or local relapse , @ in the ct + rt group and @ in the rt group .", "in the ct + rt group @ of the @ patients with metastases also had local progression at relapse , in the rt group , @ of @ patients .", "the survival rates for the two groups are not statistically different .", "thirty-seven patients are alive , @ have no evidence of disease .", "fifty-seven have died , @ in the ct + rt group and @ in the rt group .", "fifty-four deaths were related to cancer , and @ to therapy .", "sequential ct and rt did not improve the survival , local control , or metastasis rate compared with rt alone ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "whereas some studies have shown clear evidence for an augmentation effect of d-cycloserine ( dcs ) on exposure therapy for anxiety disorders , other studies have shown weak effects or no effect at all .", "some preclinical data suggest that the dcs augmentation effect is moderated by the success of extinction learning .", "therefore , we conducted a reanalysis of existing data to examine whether the effects of dcs on clinical outcome would vary as a function of response to the exposure session ( i.e. , exposure success ) .", "in a clinical trial , patients with height phobia received two sessions involving @ minutes of virtual reality exposure therapy and were randomly assigned to a pill placebo ( n = @ ) or @ mg of dcs ( n = @ ) immediately after each session .", "mixed-effects regression analysis showed that the effects of dcs administration on clinical improvement was moderated by the level of fear experienced just before concluding exposure sessions .", "patients receiving dcs exhibited significantly greater improvement in symptoms relative to patients who received placebo when fear was low at the end of the exposure .", "in contrast , when end fear was still elevated , patients receiving dcs improved less compared with those receiving placebo .", "d-cycloserine appears to enhance the benefits of exposure treatment when applied after a successful session , but it seems to have detrimental effects when administered after inadequate/unsuccessful exposure sessions ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to investigate whether the method of retinopexy influences the visual recovery rate and the breakdown of the blood-ocular barrier after conventional retinal detachment surgery .", "forty-eight patients ( @ eyes ) with primary rhegmatogenous retinal detachment entered into the study .", "all eyes were phakic , had an attached macula , and were scheduled for conventional scleral buckling surgery .", "patients were randomly assigned to have either laser or cryotherapy for retinopexy .", "all visual acuity and flare measurements were performed by a masked observer .", "the interventional procedure was cryopexy at the time of scleral buckling surgery or postoperative ( @ weeks ) laser photocoagulation .", "visual acuity testing with etdrs chart and aqueous flare measurement with laser flare photometry were performed by a masked observer at standard intervals : preoperatively and @ day , @ days , @ weeks , and @ weeks postoperatively .", "analysis of covariance by multiple linear regression was used for statistical evaluation .", "postoperative flare values from patients receiving cryotherapy were significantly higher at each measurement point in time ( p < or = @ ) .", "the visual recovery was slower in the patients receiving cryotherapy ( @ week , p = @ ; @ weeks , p = @ ; @ weeks , p = @ ) .", "laser flare photometry proved sufficiently sensitive to quantify an increase in aqueous flare after limited external retinal cryotherapy .", "postoperative flare , as a measure of blood-ocular barrier breakdown , was significantly higher and visual recovery slower in the cryotherapy group .", "visual acuity after @ weeks was not significantly different between both groups ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to identify predictors of sexual dysfunction using baseline data from the reduction by dutasteride of prostate cancer events ( reduce ) study .", "reduce was a @-year randomized , double-blind , placebo-controlled study evaluating the efficacy and safety of once-daily dutasteride @ mg in over @ men aged @-@ years with a prostate-specific antigen ( psa ) level of @-@ ng/ml ( @-@ years ) or @-@ ng/ml ( > @ years ) and a negative prostate biopsy within @ months of enrolment .", "baseline values ( mean serum testosterone , age , international prostate symptom score [ ipss ] , total prostate volume [ tpv ] , body mass index [ bmi ] , and presence of diabetes/glucose intolerance ) were compared in subjects with and without sexual dysfunction ( sexual inactivity , impotence , decreased libido or a problem assessment scale of the sexual function index [ pas-sfi ] score < @ ) .", "multivariate logistic regression showed that baseline age and ipss were significant predictors of all four sexual function criteria examined ( p < @ ) .", "bmi was a significant predictor of decreased libido , impotence and a pas-sfi score < @ , while diabetes/glucose intolerance was a significant predictor of sexual inactivity , impotence and a pas-sfi score < @ .", "testosterone and tpv were not significant predictors of any sexual function criterion examined .", "age , ipss , bmi and diabetes/glucose intolerance , but not serum testosterone or tpv , were significant independent predictors of sexual dysfunction in the reduce study population .", "the lack of association between sexual dysfunction and serum testosterone questions the value of modestly reduced or low normal testosterone levels as criteria for choosing testosterone replacement in older men with sexual dysfunction ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "we determined whether the decrease in serum psa seen with @alpha-reductase inhibitors affects the clinical usefulness of psa for prostate cancer screening using data from @ dutasteride benign prostatic hyperplasia studies .", "a total of @,@ men @ years or older with a clinical diagnosis of benign prostatic hyperplasia , no history of prostate cancer , psa @ to @ ng/ml , prostate volume @ cc or greater , an american urological association symptom score of @ or greater and peak urinary flow rate @ ml per second or less were randomized to @ mg dutasteride daily or matching placebo for @ months .", "increases in psa from baseline and the maximum increase from nadir to month @ were compared between the groups and analyzed by prostate cancer status , as determined by psa driven biopsy and an advised cutoff of more than @ ng/ml after doubling to correct for dutasteride treatment with sensitivity and specificity calculated for each .", "in placebo treated men without prostate cancer there was an @ % median increase in psa at month @ compared with -@ % in those who received dutasteride , using doubled values to correct for dutasteride treatment .", "in those with prostate cancer these changes were @ % and -@ % , respectively .", "using the upper psa limit of @ ng/ml sensitivity for prostate cancer in men receiving dutasteride vs placebo was @ vs @ , while specificity was @ vs @ .", "using a psa increase from nadir of @ ng/ml the sensitivity of dutasteride was @ and its specificity was @ .", "a doubling factor is effective for maintaining the sensitivity and specificity of psa for prostate cancer detection in men on dutasteride .", "increases in serum psa in men receiving dutasteride should be considered suspicious and serial psa measurements should be used to evaluate changes from nadir ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "this study investigated the influence of mechanical bowel preparation ( mbp ) on faecal microflora , using rrna-targeted reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction in patients undergoing colonic cancer resection .", "forty-two patients undergoing elective colonic surgery were randomized into mbp or no-mbp groups ( @ in each group ) .", "the main outcome was the bacterial microflora and faecal organic acid content of faecal material obtained at operation .", "clinical characteristics were similar in the two groups .", "bowel content in the resected specimens did not differ significantly .", "the count of bacterial microflora , such as bifidobacterium and total lactobacillus , in both intraoperative faecal material and first material after surgery was significantly lower in the mbp group than the no-mbp group ( p < @ ) .", "levels of faecal organic acids , such as acetic acid , propionic acid and butyric acid , in intraoperative faecal material were significantly lower , and levels of lactic acid were significantly higher , in the mbp group than in the no-mbp group ( p < @ ) .", "the succinic acid level was significantly higher after surgery than before operation in the mbp group ( p = @ ) .", "preoperative mbp caused an imbalance in the bowel microflora , suggesting that it offers no advantages in terms of enterobacterial microflora for patients undergoing colonic cancer resection .", "umin@ ( http://www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/index.htm ) ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the main purpose of this study was to establish bioavailability data in humans for the new ( fe ) fortification compound ferrous ammonium phosphate ( fap ) , which was specially developed for fortification of difficult-to-fortify foods where soluble fe compounds can not be used due to their negative impact on product stability .", "a double-blind , randomized clinical trial with cross-over design was conducted to obtain bioavailability data for fap in humans .", "in this trial , fe absorption from fap-fortified full-cream milk powder was compared to that from ferric pyrophosphate ( fpp ) and ferrous sulfate .", "fe absorption was determined in @ young women using the erythrocyte incorporation dual stable isotope technique ( fe , fe ) .", "geometric mean fe absorption from ferrous sulfate , fap and fpp was @ , @ and @ % , respectively .", "fe from fap was significantly better absorbed from milk than fe from fpp ( p < @ ) .", "fe absorption from fap was significantly lower than fe absorption from ferrous sulfate , which was used as water-soluble reference compound ( p = @ ) .", "absorption ratios of fap and fpp relative to ferrous sulfate as a measure of relative bioavailability were @ and @ , respectively .", "the results of the present studies show that replacing fpp with fap in full-cream milk could significantly improve iron bioavailability ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to investigate the effect on glycaemic control of adding glimepiride to on-going treatment with metformin and insulin in patients with known diabetes more than @ years .", "glimepiride @ mg or placebo was added in randomised order for three months with a washout period of @ weeks .", "all insulin regimens were allowed .", "insulin doses were reduced if considered necessary .", "continuous glucose monitoring was performed at the end of each period .", "forty-three patients , median age @ years ( @-@ ) , diabetes duration @ ( @-@ ) , bmi @ kg/m ( @ ) ( @-@ ) and mean hba@c @ % ngsp , ( @ mmol/mol ifcc ) were randomised .", "with placebo there was no change in hba@c while a decrease of @ % , ( @ mmol/mol ifcc ) ( p < @ ) , was observed with glimepiride even though insulin doses had to be reduced in @ patients ( median change @ % , range @-@ % ) .", "minor hypoglycaemia was reported but no severe hypoglycaemic event was observed .", "the ratio between c-peptide/glucose increased significantly ( p < @ ) with glimepiride , both fasting and postprandially and , in a stepwise multiple regression analysis of possible predictive factors for response , a more pronounced decrease in hba@c was associated with the magnitude of the increment in c-peptide/glucose .", "older age was associated with a smaller response .", "twenty-nine patients ( @ % ) were defined as responders if this was defined as an hba@c decrease @ % ( @ mmol/mol ifcc ) or an insulin dose reduction @ % .", "even after long duration of diabetes , addition of glimepiride to insulin and metformin can be effective in lowering hba@c and/or reducing the need for exogenous insulin ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "offset analgesia , in which a disproportionally large amount of analgesia becomes apparent upon a slight decrease in noxious heat stimulation , has not been described previously in patients with chronic pain .", "offset analgesia responses in @ patients with neuropathic pain ( in both legs ) were compared with @ matched healthy controls and volunteers from a convenience sample ( n = @ ) with an age range of @-@ yr .", "offset analgesia was defined by the reduction in electronic pain score upon the @c decrease in noxious heat stimulus relative to the peak pain score where pain was administered at the volar side of the arm .", "offset analgesia was present in healthy volunteers irrespective of age and sex ( pain score decrease = @ @ % [ mean sem ] ) .", "in contrast , a reduced or absent offset analgesia response was observed in patients with neuropathic pain ( pain score decrease = @ @ % vs. controls @ @ % , p < @ ) .", "intravenous treatment with ketamine , morphine , and placebo had no effect on offset analgesia in patients , despite sharp reductions in spontaneous pain scores .", "these data indicate that offset analgesia is fully developed at the age of @ yr and does not undergo additional maturation .", "the reduced or absent responses observed in patients with chronic neuropathic pain indicate the inability to modulate changes in pain stimulation , with perseverance of pain perception in situations in which healthy subjects display signs of strong analgesia .", "both central and peripheral sites may be involved in the altered offset analgesia responses in these patients ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "atrial fibrillation ( af ) , the most common chronic cardiac dysrhythmia , is an important cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality .", "however , there is a paucity of studies examining the potential benefits of optimizing the postdischarge management of patients with chronic af .", "to examine the effects of a nurse-led , multidisciplinary , home-based intervention ( hbi ) on the pattern of recurrent hospitalization and mortality in patients with chronic af in the presence and absence of chronic heart failure ( hf ) .", "patient cohort and methods : health outcomes in a total of @ hospitalized patients ( @ % male ) with a mean age of @ + / - @ years and a diagnosis of chronic af who were randomly allocated to either hbi ( n = @ ) or usual postdischarge care ( uc : n = @ ) were examined .", "specifically , the pattern of unplanned hospitalization and all-cause mortality during @-year follow-up were compared on the basis of the presence ( n = @ ) and absence ( n = @ ) of hf at baseline .", "patients with concurrent hf exposed to hbi ( n = @ ) had fewer readmissions ( @ vs @ / patient ) , days of associated hospital stay ( @ vs @ : p = ns ) and fatal events ( @ % vs @ % ) relative to uc ( n = @ ) : p = ns for all comparisons .", "in the absence of hf , morbidity and mortality rates were significantly lower but still substantial during @-year follow-up .", "in these patients , hbi was associated with a trend towards prolonged event-free survival ( adjusted rr = @ ; p = @ ) and fewer fatal events ( @ % vs @ % , adjusted rr = @ ; p = @ ) .", "hbi patients ( n = @ ) also had fewer readmissions ( @ vs @ / patient ) and days of associated hospital stay ( @ vs @ / patient ) , although this did not reach statistical significance .", "on the basis of these data , it was calculated that a randomized study of an af-specific hbi would require @ patients followed for a median of @ years to detect a @ % variation in recurrent hospital stay relative to uc .", "these unique data provide sufficient preliminary evidence to support the hypothesis that the benefits of hbi in relation to the management of hf may extend to `` high risk '' patients with chronic af in whom morbidity and mortality rates are also unacceptably high .", "further , appropriately powered studies are required to confirm these benefits ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to investigate the analgesic effect of low power radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation ( rf ) in osteoarthritis ( oa ) of the knee .", "in a randomized study on @ patients the analgesic effect of rf was compared with the effect of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation ( tens ) .", "rf and tens applications were repeated every day for a period of @ days .", "the therapeutic effect was evaluated by a visual analogue scale ( vas ) and by lequesne 's index : tests were performed before , immediately after and @ days after therapy .", "rf therapy induced a statistically significant and long lasting decrease of vas and of lequesne 's index ; tens induced a decrease of vas and of lequesne 's index which was not statistically significant .", "a therapeutic effect of rf was therefore demonstrated on pain and disability due to knee oa .", "this effect was better than the effect of tens , which is a largely used analgesic technique .", "such a difference of the therapeutic effect may be due to the fact that tens acts only on superficial tissues and nerve terminals , while rf acts increasing superficial and deep tissue temperature ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to assess the long term effect of early mobilisation exercises in patients with acute sprains of the neck after road accidents .", "single blind randomised prospective study of patients receiving physiotherapy , advice on mobilisation , or on an initial period of rest followed up after two years by postal questionnaire .", "accident and emergency department in urban hospital .", "@ consecutive patients ( mean age at injury @ years ) presenting within @ hours after injury with no pre-existing disease of the neck or serious skeletal injury .", "of these , @ patients responded to the questionnaire ; @ who responded but had not completed their treatment or review course were included in the analysis as a fourth group ( non-attenders ) .", "presence of symptoms after two years .", "of the @ patients ( @ % ) responding , the percentage of patients still with symptoms was not significantly different in those receiving rest or physiotherapy ( @ % , @/@ v @ % , @/@ ) , but that in those receiving advice on early mobilisation was significantly lower ( @ % , @/@ , p = @ ) .", "of the @ patients without symptoms , @ ( @ % ) recovered within six months and @ ( @ % ) within three months .", "patients without symptoms who received advice or physiotherapy wore a collar for a significantly shorter time than those with persistent symptoms ( mean duration @ ( sd @ ) months v @ ( @ ) months , p = @ and @ ( @ ) months v @ ( @ ) months , p = @ respectively ) .", "advice to mobilise in the early phase after neck injury reduces the number of patients with symptoms at two years and is superior to manipulative physiotherapy .", "prolonged wearing of a collar is associated with persistence of symptoms ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to evaluate the effects of an appearance-focused intervention to reduce the risk of skin cancer by decreasing indoor tanning , examine potential heterogeneity in tanning across this time , and correlate the subtypes with predictors collected at baseline .", "randomized controlled trial with @ female college students measured at @ monthly time points .", "self-reported indoor tanning frequency .", "the intervention was effective at decreasing tanning over the period between the fall and spring .", "longitudinal latent class analysis found @ patterns of tanners among the treatment individuals : abstainers , moderate tanners , and heavy tanners .", "these classes appeared in both the treatment and control conditions , and the intervention had a harm reduction effect by reducing levels of exposure within the moderate and heavy tanner classes .", "participant age and self-reported tanning patterns were found to be predictive of class membership .", "this research suggests that brief intervention approaches can be effective at reducing risk for skin cancer and illustrates several ways in which these protective effects can be enhanced ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "atherosclerosis is the most common pathologic process underlying cardiovascular disease ( cvd ) .", "it is not well known whether subclinical atherosclerosis is an independent risk factor for lower cognitive function among individuals without clinically evident cvd .", "we examined cross-sectional associations between subclinical atherosclerosis and cognitive function in a community-based sample of otherwise healthy adults with plasma homocysteine > or = @ micromol/l enrolled in the bvait study ( n = @ , mean age @ years ) .", "carotid artery intima-media thickness ( cimt ) , coronary artery calcium ( cac ) and abdominal aortic calcium ( aac ) were used to measure subclinical atherosclerosis .", "cognitive function was assessed with a battery of neuropsychological tests .", "a principal components analysis was used to extract five uncorrelated cognitive factors from scores on individual tests , and a measure of global cognition was derived .", "multivariable linear regression was used to examine the association between subclinical atherosclerosis and cognitive function , adjusting for other correlates of cognition .", "increasing thickness of cimt was associated with significantly lower scores on the verbal learning factor ( beta = -@ per @ mm increase cimt [ se ( beta ) = @ ] , p = @ ) .", "cac and aac were not individually associated with any of the cognitive factors .", "this study provides evidence that increasing cimt is weakly associated with lower verbal learning abilities but not global cognition in a population of otherwise healthy middle-to-older aged adults with elevated plasma homocysteine levels but without clinically evident cvd .", "the association between cimt and poor verbal learning may pertain particularly to men ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to compare the neuromuscular and hemodynamic effects of rocuronium and atracurium when administered during a desflurane-based anesthetic .", "randomized , double-blind clinical trial .", "@ adult asa physical status i and ii patients scheduled for general surgical operations .", "university-based nci-designated cancer center .", "patients received either @ mg/kg rocuronium ( n = @ ) or atracurium @ mg/kg ( n = @ ) .", "induction of anesthesia was accomplished by @ microg/kg fentanyl intravenously ( iv ) and @ mg/kg propofol iv and maintained by a nitrous oxide/oxygen desflurane anesthetic .", "a neuromuscular monitor was used at the adductor pollicis to monitor and record twitch response to train-of-four electrical stimulation .", "baseline heart rate ( hr ) and blood pressure ( bp ) were measured and again at @ , @ , @ , and @ minutes after muscle relaxant administration .", "patients in the rocuronium group were found to have shorter times to @ % t ( @ ) depression ( @ + / - @ vs. @ + / - @ sec ) , although those differences did not reach statistical significance ( p = @ ) .", "percent of the first twitch ( t ( @ ) ) was significantly lower in the patients receiving rocuronium at @ seconds ( @ + / - @ vs. @ + / - @ sec ; p = @ ) and @ seconds ( @ + / - @ vs. @ + / - @ sec ; p = @ ) than in the patients receiving atracurium .", "duration was shorter in rocuronium-treated patients ( @ % t ( @ ) recovery = @ + / - @ vs. @ + / - @ min ; p < @ ) than the patients receiving atracurium .", "intubation scores were better at @ seconds after muscle relaxant administration in the rocuronium group .", "no significant differences in hr or bp were seen between the patients in the two groups .", "rocuronium at a dose of @ mg/kg possesses a fairly rapid onset of neuromuscular blockade and has short : intermediate duration of action when used with a desflurane anesthetic .", "this quality makes it a desirable drug for operations of relatively short duration .", "rocuronium at a dose of @ mg/kg has a faster onset and shorter duration than atracurium , at @ mg/kg , when used with a desflurane anesthetic ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "over @ million americans are diagnosed with a stroke each year , and excessive flexion or extension ( hypertonia ) of upper extremity joints are common secondary conditions .", "the purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of botulinum toxin type-a and manual therapy , with the adjunct treatment of dynamic splinting on range of motion , spasticity , and elbow flexor hypertonia , in a randomized trial .", "thirty-six subjects were recruited for this pilot study and all exhibited hypertonia in elbow flexion .", "six patients were excluded due to noncompliance .", "testing was done with pre/post active range of motion in elbow extension , and the modified ashworth scale ( extension ) for spasticity .", "all patients received the current standard of care : botulinum toxin type-a injections and manual therapy .", "experimental patients were randomly assigned adjunct treatment with elbow extension dynasplint .", "thirty patients completed the study ( mean age [ sd ] @ + / -@ years ) .", "the percentage of change in active range of motion in elbow extension was greater for the experimental than for control subjects ( @ % vs. @ % ) .", "the modified ashworth scale ( extension ) scores showed comparable changes of a mean @ % improvement for experimental versus @ % for the control subjects .", "this study confirmed the efficacy of botulinum toxin type-a in tone management and occupational therapy in contracture reduction .", "it also showed the value of dynamic splinting in maintaining gains in range of motion ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "hepatic veno-occlusive disease is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality after haemopoietic stem-cell transplantation ( hsct ) .", "we aimed to assess whether defibrotide can reduce the incidence of veno-occlusive disease in this setting .", "in our phase @ open-label , randomised controlled trial , we enrolled patients at @ european university hospitals or academic medical centres .", "eligible patients were younger than @ years , had undergone myeloablative conditioning before allogeneic or autologous hsct , and had one or more risk factor for veno-occlusive disease based on modified seattle criteria .", "we centrally assigned eligible participants on the basis of a computer-generated randomisation sequence ( @:@ ) , stratified by centre and presence of osteopetrosis , to receive intravenous defibrotide prophylaxis ( treatment group ) or not ( control group ) .", "the primary endpoint was incidence of veno-occlusive disease by @ days after hsct , adjudicated by a masked , independent review committee , in eligible patients who consented to randomisation ( intention-to-treat population ) , and was assessed with a competing risk approach .", "patients in either group who developed veno-occlusive disease received defibrotide for treatment .", "we assessed adverse events to @ days after hsct in all patients who received allocated prophylaxis .", "this trial is registered with clinicaltrials.gov , number nct@ .", "between jan @ , @ , and jan @ , @ , we enrolled @ eligible patients to the intention-to-treat population .", "@ ( @ % ) of @ patients randomly allocated to the defibrotide group had veno-occlusive disease by @ days after hsct compared with @ ( @ % ) of @ controls ( risk difference -@ % , @ % ci -@ to -@ ; z test for competing risk analysis p = @ ; log-rank test p = @ ) .", "@ ( @ % ) of @ patients in the defibrotide group had adverse events by day @ compared with @ ( @ % ) of @ controls .", "defibrotide prophylaxis seems to reduce incidence of veno-occlusive disease and is well tolerated .", "thus , such prophylaxis could present a useful clinical option for this serious complication of hsct .", "gentium spa , european group for blood and marrow transplantation ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "although patient-reported cancer symptoms and quality-of-life issues ( sqlis ) have been promoted as essential to a comprehensive assessment , efficient and efficacious methods have not been widely tested in clinical settings .", "the purpose of this trial was to determine the effect of the electronic self-report assessment-cancer ( esra-c ) on the likelihood of sqlis discussed between clinicians and patients with cancer in ambulatory clinic visits .", "secondary objectives included comparison of visit duration between groups and usefulness of the esra-c as reported by clinicians .", "this randomized controlled trial was conducted in @ patients with various cancer diagnoses and stages at two institutions of a comprehensive cancer center .", "patient-reported sqlis were automatically displayed on a graphical summary and provided to the clinical team before an on-treatment visit ( n = @ ) ; in the control group , no summary was provided ( n = @ ) .", "sqlis were scored for level of severity or distress .", "one on-treatment clinic visit was audio recorded for each participant and then scored for discussion of each sqli .", "we hypothesized that problematic sqlis would be discussed more often when the intervention was delivered to the clinicians .", "the likelihood of sqlis being discussed differed by randomized group and depended on whether an sqli was first reported as problematic ( p = @ ) .", "clinic visits were similar with regard to duration between groups , and clinicians reported the summary as useful .", "the esra-c is the first electronic self-report application to increase discussion of sqlis in a us randomized clinical trial ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to evaluate the feasibility and clinical benefits of an integrated mental health intervention ( doctor-office collaborative care [ docc ] ) vs enhanced usual care ( euc ) for children with behavioral problems .", "cases were assigned to docc and euc using a @:@ randomization schedule that resulted in @ docc and @ euc cases .", "preassessment was conducted in @ pediatric primary care practices .", "postassessment was conducted in the pediatric or research office .", "doctor-office collaborative care was provided in the practice ; euc was initiated in the office but involved a facilitated referral to a local mental health specialist .", "of @ referrals ( age range , @-@ years ) , @ children participated .", "children and their parents were assigned to receive docc or euc .", "preassessment diagnostic status was evaluated using the schedule for affective disorders and schizophrenia for school-aged children .", "preassessment and @-month postassessment ratings of behavioral and emotional problems were collected from parents using the vanderbilt attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder diagnostic parent rating scale , as well as individualized goal achievement ratings forms .", "at discharge , care managers and a diagnostic evaluator completed the clinical global impression scale , and pediatricians and parents completed satisfaction and study feedback measures .", "group comparisons found significant improvements for docc over euc in service use and completion , behavioral and emotional problems , individualized behavioral goals , and overall clinical response .", "pediatricians and parents were highly satisfied with docc .", "the feasibility and clinical benefits of docc for behavioral problems support the integration of collaborative mental health services for common mental disorders in primary care ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the purpose of this study was to assess the quantitative effects of contrast material concentration on hepatic parenchymal and vascular enhancement in multiphasic computed tomography ( ct ) , using multi-detector row helical ct. .", "we designed a prospective randomized study to test two different concentrations of contrast material on five phasic scans of the liver .", "one hundred patients were randomly assigned to two groups : an iodine concentration of @ mg/ml in group a and @ mg/ml in group b. all patients received a fixed volume of @ ml at a @ ml/sec injection rate .", "enhancement values for the hepatic parenchyma and aorta at three levels ( upper , middle , and lower level of the liver ) , and values for portal and hepatic veins were statistically compared between the two groups .", "hepatic parenchymal enhancement values at all levels of the liver in portal phase ( pp ) and equilibrium phase ( ep ) were significantly higher in group b than in group a ( p < @ ) .", "aortic enhancement values at two levels of the liver ( middle and lower ) in early hepatic arterial phase ( eap ) were significantly higher in group b than in group a ( p < @ ) , however , there was no significant difference between groups a and b in aortic enhancement during the delayed hepatic arterial phase ( dap ) .", "portal and hepatic venous enhancement values in pp and ep were significantly higher in group b than in group a ( p < @ ) .", "on multiphasic dynamic ct , the use of a higher iodine concentration of contrast material results in higher hepatic parenchymal enhancement and aortic enhancement , as well as higher portal and hepatic venous enhancement ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "few pharmacological treatments for alcohol dependence are available .", "moreover , the best supported treatment , naltrexone hydrochloride , appears to work for only some .", "to investigate potential predictors of these differential responses , @ social drinkers ( @ women ) were administered @ days of treatment with naltrexone vs. placebo in a double-blind , counterbalanced , crossover design .", "at the end of each treatment period , participants received a single dose of their preferred alcoholic beverage followed by the opportunity to work for additional alcohol units using a progressive ratio ( pr ) breakpoint paradigm .", "all subjects but one were genotyped for the a@g polymorphism of the mu opioid receptor gene ( oprm@ ) .", "naltrexone decreased the ethanol-induced ` euphoria ' to a priming dose of alcohol in two subgroups : ( i ) in women , and ( ii ) in subjects with the a@g polymorphism of the mu opioid receptor gene ( oprm@ ) .", "naltrexone did not decrease motivation to work for additional alcoholic beverages on the pr task regardless of gender or genotype .", "the results add to the evidence that naltrexone decreases positive subjective effects of alcohol , with preferential effects in distinct subgroups .", "similar effects in heavier drinkers might decrease alcohol use ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of a programme for the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases which affect fertility .", "design of the prevention programme : the programme took place in six french geographical departments .", "three of these , randomly selected , served as experimental departments while the other three were matched with the first three and served as controls .", "design of the evaluation : genital discharge was used as the indicator of a sexually transmitted disease .", "in each department , about @ voluntarily participating general practitioners ( @ in total ) gathered information on the frequency of infected patients and on their characteristics , both before and after the campaign .", "before and after the programme respectively , @ and @ women and @ and @ men with a genital discharge were described .", "after the programme , tests for chlamydia trachomatis were prescribed more often to both women and men with a discharge in the experimental departments .", "the characteristics of women having consulted a general practitioner with a discharge differed according to the department group studied .", "in the experimental departments , the women were younger than those in the control departments and had fewer sexual partners .", "in contrast to the results obtained for women , no behavioural changes were observed among men with a discharge .", "the results may indicate a decreased risk in spread of infection .", "methodological problems associated with such a design are discussed .", "there is a need to develop specific messages aimed at changing male sexual behaviour .", "the study design has implications for the best strategy in delivering prevention messages to the general population which are relevant to the present aids epidemic ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "in corrective osteotomy , wound closure is undertaken with or without deflation of the tourniquet .", "hypoxia from the tourniquet causes vasodilatation associated with reactionary haemorrhage and reduced haemoglobin concentration and possibly increased blood transfusion rate .", "reactionary haemorrhage and related transfusion need can be reduced through vasoconstriction from adrenaline infiltration .", "a randomized , placebo-controlled trial was done to compare adrenaline-saline solution to normal saline in the control of reactionary haemorrhage after proximal tibial osteotomy in children .", "sixty-one eligible patients were divided into two groups and had corrective osteotomy under the same surgeon over a period of @ years .", "wound infiltration with adrenaline-saline solution @:@,@ and normal saline was done in groups one and two , respectively .", "no intra-operative adverse effect was recorded .", "there was a @ % incidence of superficial wound dehiscence in group @ and none in controls .", "the mean volume of blood in drains in the first @ h post operation was @ ml in group @ and @ ml in group @ ( p < @ ) .", "the mean haemoglobin level on the fifth day post operation was @ g/dl in group @ and @ g/dl in group @ ( p < @ ) .", "there was no blood transfusion in group one while two patients were transfused in group two .", "in conclusion , wound infiltration with adrenaline was effective in reducing the extent of reactionary haemorrhage and post-operative drop in haemoglobin concentration .", "there was no significant difference in the transfusion rates in both groups ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "we sought to determine whether the combination of ixabepilone plus capecitabine improved overall survival ( os ) compared with capecitabine alone in patients with metastatic breast cancer ( mbc ) previously treated with anthracyclines and taxanes .", "a total of @,@ patients with mbc previously treated with anthracycline and taxanes were randomly assigned to ixabepilone ( @ mg/m ( @ ) intravenously on day @ ) plus capecitabine ( @,@ mg/m ( @ ) orally on days @ through @ ) or capecitabine alone ( @,@ mg/m ( @ ) on the same schedule ) given every @ days .", "the trial was powered to detect a @ % reduction in the hazard ratio ( hr ) for death .", "there was no significant difference in os between the combination and capecitabine monotherapy arm , the primary end point ( median , @ v @ months ; hr = @ ; @ % ci , @ to @ ; p = @ ) .", "the arms were well balanced with the exception of a higher prevalence of impaired performance status ( karnofsky performance status @ % to @ % ) in the combination arm ( @ % v @ % ) .", "in a secondary cox regression analysis adjusted for performance status and other prognostic factors , os was improved for the combination ( hr = @ ; @ % ci , @ to @ ; p = @ ) .", "in @ % of patients with measurable disease , the combination significantly improved progression-free survival ( pfs ; median , @ v @ months ; hr = @ ; p = @ ) and response rate ( @ % v @ % ; p < @ ) .", "grade @ to @ neuropathy occurred in @ % treated with the combination , but was reversible .", "this study confirmed a previous trial demonstrating improved pfs and response for the ixabepilone-capecitabine combination compared with capecitabine alone , although this did not result in improved survival ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the present study was designed to compare two methods of vitamin d supplementation in infants : every two months as a routine vaccination versus a daily dose .", "a randomised clinical trial was performed on @ healthy breastfed infants between january and september @ in yazd , iran .", "the infants were randomly divided into three groups with different doses of vitamin d@ supplementation : @ iu daily , @ iu daily and a bolus of @,@ iu every two months .", "a blood sample was taken and evaluated for @-hydroxy vitamin d and calcium levels when the infants were six months old .", "the data was reported as the mean and standard deviation .", "no significant differences were observed between the serum level of @-hydroxy vitamin d in the groups administered with @ iu and @ iu vitamin d daily .", "however , the serum level of @-hydroxy vitamin d reached significance in the third group ( p is less than @ ) .", "all the blood calcium measured was below @ mg/dl in the bolus group .", "a few complications such as diarrhoea and agitation , all of which were self-limited , were seen in the bolus group .", "no other significant side effects were reported in the other groups .", "this study demonstrates that a bolus of @,@ iu of vitamin d every two months with a routine child vaccination program provides the ideal serum level of vitamin d.", "this method produces no serious side effects and offers a highly convenient way to supply vitamin d , especially among non-compliant parents ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "controversy exists with regard to whether to treat ao/ota @-a@ fractures of the proximal part of the femur with an intramedullary device or an extramedullary device .", "a prospective , randomized , controlled trial was performed to compare the outcome of treatment of these unstable fractures of the proximal part of the femur with either a sliding hip screw or a long gamma nail .", "two hundred and ten patients presenting with an ao/ota @-a@ fracture of the proximal part of the femur were randomized , at the time of admission , to fixation with use of either a long gamma nail or a sliding hip screw .", "the primary outcome measure was reoperation within the first postoperative year .", "secondary measures included mortality , length of hospital stay , transfusion rate , change in mobility and residence , and quality of life as measured with the euroqol @d outcome score .", "there was no significant difference between the reoperation rates for the two groups .", "in total , five patients ( three from the long-gamma-nail group and two from the sliding-hip-screw group ) underwent revision surgery because of cut-out .", "tip-apex distance was found to correlate with the implant cut-out rate .", "there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of the euroqol @d outcome scores , the mortality rates after correction for the mini-mental score , or any of the secondary outcome measures .", "when compared with the long gamma nail , the sliding hip screw should remain the gold standard for the treatment of ao/ota @-a@ fractures of the proximal part of the femur because it is associated with similar outcomes with less expense ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "we conducted an international , randomized , phase iii trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of consolidation with yttrium-@ ( ( @ ) y ) - ibritumomab tiuxetan in patients with advanced-stage follicular lymphoma in first remission .", "patients with cd@ ( + ) stage iii or iv follicular lymphoma , who achieved a complete response ( cr ) / unconfirmed cr ( cru ) or partial response ( pr ) after first-line induction treatment , were randomly assigned to receive ( @ ) y-ibritumomab tiuxetan ( rituximab @ mg/m ( @ ) on day -@ and day @ followed on day @ by ( @ ) y-ibritumomab tiuxetan @ mbq/kg ; maximum of @,@ mbq ) or no further treatment ( control ) .", "the primary end point was progression-free survival ( pfs ) , which was calculated from the time of random assignment .", "a total of @ patients ( consolidation , n = @ ; control , n = @ ) were enrolled at @ centers .", "( @ ) y-ibritumomab tiuxetan consolidation significantly prolonged median pfs ( after a median observation time of @ years ) in all patients ( @ v @ months in control arm ; hazard ratio [ hr ] = @ ; p < @ ) and regardless of whether patients achieved pr ( @ v @ months in control arm ; hr = @ ; p < @ ) or cr/cru ( @ v @ months in control arm ; hr = @ ; p = @ ) after induction treatment .", "median pfs with consolidation was prolonged in all follicular lymphoma international prognostic index risk subgroups .", "after ( @ ) y-ibritumomab tiuxetan consolidation , @ % of patients in pr after induction converted to cr/cru , resulting in a final cr rate of @ % .", "the most common toxicity with ( @ ) y-ibritumomab tiuxetan was hematologic , and grade @ or @ infections occurred in @ % of patients .", "consolidation of first remission with ( @ ) y-ibritumomab tiuxetan in advanced-stage follicular lymphoma is highly effective with no unexpected toxicities , prolonging pfs by @ years and resulting in high pr-to-cr conversion rates regardless of type of first-line induction treatment ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "this open-label , randomized phase iii study was designed to investigate the effects of erythropoietin alfa ( epo ) in addition to adjuvant chemotherapy and pelvic radiotherapy ( crt ) in patients with stage ib to ii cervical cancer who had undergone radical hysterectomy .", "two hundred fifty-seven patients were randomly assigned to four cycles of carboplatin/ifosfamide chemotherapy followed by external-beam pelvic radiotherapy ( crt group ) or four cycles of carboplatin/ifosfamide chemotherapy and epo followed by pelvic radiotherapy and epo ( crt + epo group ) .", "the primary end point was recurrence-free survival ( rfs ) .", "secondary end points included overall survival ( os ) , change in hemoglobin levels , and safety , including thromboembolic events .", "the estimated @-year rfs rates were @ % for patients receiving crt + epo and @ % for patients receiving crt .", "there was no statistically significant difference in rfs , although a trend favoring patients treated with crt + epo was observed ( hazard ratio [ hr ] , @ ; @ % ci , @ to @ ; log-rank p = @ ) .", "exploratory analyses suggest a benefit with crt + epo for patients with stage ib to iia disease ( hr , @ ; @ % ci , @ to @ ; p = @ ) or patients with complete resection ( hr , @ ; @ % ci , @ to @ ; p = @ ) .", "os was similar in both groups ( hr , @ ; @ % ci , @ to @ ; log-rank p = @ ) .", "patients treated with epo maintained higher hemoglobin levels throughout crt .", "no significant differences in safety profiles were observed between the two groups .", "incidence of thrombovascular events was low ( @ % ) and comparable between both groups .", "this study confirms that epo can be added safely to crt in patients with cervical cancer , but it failed to demonstrate a significant benefit in rfs and os ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "CONCLUSIONS", "BACKGROUND" ]

[ "low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness are associated with high risk of non-communicable diseases and all-cause mortality .", "physical activity level is the primary determinant of cardiorespiratory fitness in adults .", "however , knowledge on how to motivate people to engage in physical activity and maintain an active lifestyle is lacking .", "this study aims to investigate whether a motivational , individual , and locally anchored exercise intervention , in primary care , can improve cardiorespiratory fitness in @ to @ year olds with a low or very low cardiorespiratory fitness .", "two-armed randomised controlled trial with @ and @ months follow-up .", "the primary outcome is cardiorespiratory fitness estimated via a maximal incremental exercise test .", "secondary outcomes include physical activity level and sedentary behavior ( objectively measured ) , self-reported physical activity , biochemical parameters ( hba@c , hdl - and ldl-cholesterol , and triglyceride ) , anthropometric parameters and health-related quality of life .", "a total of @ participants with low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness classified at a local health check programme will be randomised .", "the intervention consists of four motivational interviews , a six months membership to a sport club , and a global positioning watch to upload training activity to endomondo.com .", "the comparison group will receive standard care : a one hour motivational interview followed by another interview if requested .", "effects will be estimated by evaluating the differences in mean changes in cardiorespiratory fitness between the two groups .", "in new and innovative ways the focus of this study will be to improve cardiorespiratory fitness among a @-@ year-old at-risk group using social media , global positioning system-technology , on-going personal support and individually tailored physical activity .", "clinicaltrials.gov ( no.nct@ ) ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "patients with atopic dermatitis ( ad ) have an increased tendency to develop bacterial skin infections .", "colonization with staphylococcus aureus is known to be a major trigger and might also play a pathophysiological role .", "because of their antiseptic action , silver-coated textiles suppress s. aureus colonization and toxin formation , thus damping the inflammatory reaction .", "to evaluate the clinical effectiveness and safety of a special silver textile in the treatment of patients suffering from acute ad .", "in a randomized phase ii monocenter parallel-group comparative study @ patients were recruited ( average age @ years , min .", "@ years , max .", "@ years ) who were affected by ad in an acute phase .", "during the first study phase from day @ to day @ , @ patients received a silver textile ( group @ ) , @ a silver-free textile ( group @ ) , and @ prednicarbate ointment ( group @ ) .", "in the second phase from day @ to day @ all patients wore the silver textile , and during the follow-up period from day @ to day @ no textiles were used .", "prednicarbate ointment was allowed as emergency medication , but ointment consumption was measured .", "the overall severity of the disease was evaluated using the scorad index as the primary efficacy parameter .", "secondary parameters included severity of pruritus and the patients ' assessment of their disease control ( uncontrolled , limited , good or complete ) .", "safety tests included hematology , blood chemistry , urinalysis for silver , and physical examination for silver deposits in the skin and mucous membranes .", "the initial scorad was @ ( iqr @ , min .", "@ , max .", "@ ) .", "at the end of the study phase @ the scorad had improved significantly in the patients of groups @ ( @-@ @ , p = @ ) and @ ( @-@ @ , p = @ ) .", "during study phase @ healing of eczema continued in group @ ( scorad @-@ @ , p = @ ) , was observed in group @ ( @-@ @ , p = @ ) , and remained at an improved level in group @ ( scorad @-@ @ ) .", "consumption of prednicarbate ointment ( phase @ , phase @ , follow-up period , medians are given ) : group @ : @ g , @ g , @ g ; group @ : @ g , @ g , @ g ; group @ : @ g , @ g , @ g. silver textiles reduced the severity of the pruritus ( p = @ ) ; silver-free textiles ( n.s. ) and prednicarbate ( n.s. ) were less effective .", "no undesired events were observed .", "the elastic silver textile worn directly against the skin led to an impressive improvement of ad and a reduction in the use of prednicarbate ointment ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the purpose of this study was to investigate the efficiency of copper-nickel-titanium ( cuniti ) vs nickel-titanium ( niti ) archwires in resolving crowding of the anterior mandibular dentition .", "sixty patients were included in this single-center , single-operator , double-blind randomized trial .", "all patients were bonded with the in ovation-r self-ligating bracket ( gac , central islip , ny ) with a @-in slot , and the amount of crowding of the mandibular anterior dentition was assessed by using the irregularity index .", "the patients were randomly allocated into @ groups of @ patients , each receiving a @-in cuniti @ degrees c ( ormco , glendora , calif ) or a @-in niti ( modernarch , wyomissing , pa ) wire .", "the type of wire selected for each patient was not disclosed to the provider or the patient .", "the date that each patient received a wire was recorded , and all patients were followed monthly for a maximum of @ months .", "demographic and clinical characteristics between the @ wire groups were compared with the t test or the chi-square test and the fisher exact test .", "time to resolve crowding was explored with statistical methods for survival analysis , and alignment rate ratios for wire type and crowding level were calculated with cox proportional hazards multivariate modeling .", "the type of wire ( cuniti vs niti ) had no significant effect on crowding alleviation ( @ vs @ days ; hazard ratio , @ ; p > @ ) .", "severe crowding ( > @ on the irregularity index ) showed a significantly higher probability of crowding alleviation duration relative to dental arches with a score of < @ ( @ vs @ days ; hazard ratio , @ ; p = @ ) .", "the difference of the loading pattern of wires in laboratory and clinical conditions might effectively eliminate the laboratory-derived advantage of cuniti wires ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "osteopenia and osteoporosis are frequent complications of hiv infection and/or its treatment .", "alendronate is the only bisphosphonate approved for the treatment of osteoporosis in men and women .", "we conducted a @-week prospective , randomized , open-label study to evaluate the effects of alendronate , vitamin d , and calcium supplementation on bone mineral density ( bmd ) in patients with hiv infection .", "thirty-one hiv-infected subjects with lumbar spine bmd t-scores less than -@ on antiretroviral therapy for a minimum of @ months were randomized to receive ( n = @ ) or not to receive ( n = @ ) @ mg of alendronate weekly for @ weeks .", "all subjects received calcium ( @ mg daily as calcium carbonate ) and vitamin d supplementation ( @ iu daily ) .", "the study was powered to detect @ % changes in bmd in the lumbar spine within arms at @ weeks .", "thirty-one patients were enrolled ; most were male , with an average length of hiv infection of @ years .", "eighty-four percent had an hiv rna load below @ copies/ml , with a current median cd@ + t-cell count of @ cells/mm@ ( median nadir cd@ cell count of @ cells/mm ) .", "at baseline , the median t-score in the lumbar spine was -@ and the median t-score in the hip was -@ .", "alendronate in combination with vitamin d and calcium increased lumbar spine bmd by @ % ( @ % confidence interval [ ci ] : @-@ @ ) at @ weeks compared with an increase of @ % ( @ % ci : -@ to @ ) in subjects receiving vitamin d and calcium alone .", "one subject discontinued treatment in each arm .", "there were no serious adverse events .", "alendronate , vitamin d , and calcium are safe and potentially useful in the treatment of osteopenia/osteoporosis associated with hiv infection ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "`` difficult visits '' are common in primary care and may contribute to primary care provider ( pcp ) career dissatisfaction and burnout .", "patient requests occur in approximately half of primary care visits and may be a source of clinician-patient miscommunication or conflict , contributing to perceived visit difficulty .", "we aimed to determine associations between types of patient requests and pcp-perceived visit difficulty .", "this was an observational study , nested in a multicenter randomized trial of depression engagement interventions .", "we included @ patient visits within @ pcp practices in northern california occurring from june @ to march @ .", "pcp-perceived visit difficulty was quantified using a three-item scale ( relative visit difficulty , amount of effort required , and amount of time required ; cronbach 's = @ ) .", "using linear regression , the difficulty scale ( score range @-@ from least to most difficult ) was modeled as a function of : patient requests for diagnostics tests , pain medications , and specialist referrals ; pcp perception of likely depression or likely substance abuse ; patient sociodemographics , comorbidity , depression ; pcp characteristics and practice setting .", "patients requested diagnostic tests , pain medications , and specialist referrals in @ , @ and @ % of visits , respectively .", "after adjustment for patient medical and psychiatric complexity , perceived difficulty was significantly higher when patients requested diagnostic tests [ parameter estimate ( pe ) @ , ( @ % ci : @ , @ ) ] but not when patients requested pain medications [ pe -@ ( @ % ci : -@ , @ ) ] or referrals [ pe @ ( @ % ci : -@ , @ ) ] .", "pcp-perceived visit difficulty is associated with patient requests for diagnostic tests , but not requests for pain medications or specialist referrals .", "in this era of `` choosing wisely , '' pcps may be challenged to respond to diagnostic test requests in an evidence-based manner , while maintaining the provider-patient relationship and pcp career satisfaction ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to compare the efficacy of an extended schedule escalated dose of temozolomide versus standard dose dacarbazine in a large population of patients with stage iv melanoma .", "a total of @ patients were randomised to receive oral temozolomide at @ mg/m ( @ ) / day for seven consecutive days every @ weeks or dacarbazine , administered as an intravenous infusion at @ mg/m ( @ ) / day on day @ every @ weeks .", "the primary endpoint was overall survival ( os ) , using an intent-to-treat principle .", "eudract number @-@-@ nci registration number nct@ .", "median os was @ months in the temozolomide arm and @ months in the dacarbazine arm , with a hazard ratio ( hr ) of @ ( @ % confidence interval [ ci ] : @ , @ ; p = @ ) .", "median progression-free survival ( pfs ) was @ months in the temozolomide arm and @ months in the dacarbazine arm , with a hr of @ ( @ % ci : @ , @ ; p = @ ) .", "in patients with measurable disease , overall response rate was higher in the temozolomide arm than in the dacarbazine arm ( @ % versus @ % , respectively ) , but the median duration of response was longer for dacarbazine .", "the extended schedule , escalated dose temozolomide arm showed more toxicity than the standard dose , single agent dacarbazine arm .", "the most common non-haematological treatment emergent adverse events reported in both treatment arms were nausea , fatigue and vomiting and constipation .", "extended schedule escalated dose temozolomide ( @ days on @ days off ) is feasible and has an acceptable safety profile , but does not improve os and pfs in metastatic melanoma when compared to standard dose dacarbazine ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "osseous changes in the temporomandibular joint ( tmj ) were evaluated using computed tomography ( ct ) examinations before and after tmj injections of sodium hyaluronate or a corticosteroid in patients with osteoarthritis ( oa ) .", "forty patients were randomly allocated into @ groups for @ intra-articular injections with either sodium hyaluronate or a corticosteroid .", "bilateral tmj examinations with high resolution ct were obtained in @ patients before and @ months after treatment .", "treated and contralateral tmjs were evaluated for the presence of osteoarthritic osseous abnormalities by @ reviewers independently .", "progression , regression , and no changes of osseous abnormalities were demonstrated in @ , @ , and @ tmjs , respectively , @ months after treatment .", "there was no significant difference between the groups .", "progression/regression and no changes of osteoarthritic abnormalities were observed on ct examinations in both the treated and the contralateral tmjs after treatment with intra-articular injection with sodium hyaluronate or corticosteroid ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "severe hypoglycemia may impair medial temporal-mediated cognitive skills , such as the ability to recall past events explicitly ( delayed declarative memory ) .", "the objective of this study was to determine whether delayed declarative memory deficits are present in a group of diabetic children with an increased risk of severe hypoglycemia .", "nondiabetic children ( n = @ ) and children with type @ diabetes who had been randomly assigned to either intensive ( it ) ( n = @ ) or conventional ( ct ) ( n = @ ) diabetes therapy at the time of diagnosis participated in the study .", "all episodes of severe hypoglycemia were prospectively ascertained .", "all children were tested on memory tasks that have been closely linked to medial temporal functioning and on reaction time measures .", "our results demonstrated that the it group had a threefold higher rate of severe hypoglycemia , performed less accurately on a spatial declarative memory task , and performed more slowly , but not less accurately , on a pattern recognition task than did the ct group or control subjects .", "in addition , both groups of type @ diabetic children were significantly impaired on a motor speed task compared with their nondiabetic peers .", "these results indicate a selective relative memory impairment associated with it that is consistent with the effects of severe hypoglycemia and medial temporal damage or dysfunction .", "if larger prospective studies determine that severe hypoglycemia is the mediating factor for this memory impairment , extreme caution in imposing overly strict standards for glucose control in young patients with type @ diabetes would be indicated because of the increased risk of hypoglycemia associated with it regimens ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim of the present study was to compare the delayed-immediate ( im ) and the delayed ( de ) protocols for placement of single-tooth implants .", "after allocation to the im and de groups by random , @ patients were treated with a single-tooth implant with acid etched surfaces ( osseotite ) in the anterior or pre-molar region of the maxilla or the mandible on average @ days ( im ) or @ months ( de ) following tooth extraction , respectively .", "forty-one patients attended a follow-up visit @ years after implant placement corresponding to @ ( @/@ ) years of loading of the implant restorations .", "peri-implant and prosthetic parameters were evaluated clinically and marginal bone levels measured on radiographs .", "three implants were lost , all before mounting of the crown .", "none of the implant restorations had failed after @ ( @/@ ) years of function .", "probing pocket depths were reduced by up to @ mm on average from the time of loading to the @-year follow-up and at that time , no significant difference between the im and de groups was found ( @ versus @ mm ) .", "a statistically significant radiographic marginal bone loss had occurred in the im group ( mean = @ mm ) as well as in the de group ( mean = @ mm ) in the follow-up period .", "however , a mean marginal bone level of approx .", "@ mm in both groups measured from the implant-abutment junction was found to be acceptable .", "it was demonstrated that probing pocket depths and marginal bone levels after @ ( @/@ ) years of loading of the implant-retained crowns were not influenced by the presence of peri-implant bone defects immediately after implant placement .", "furthermore , no severe prosthodontic complications , such as screw loosening or porcelain fractures , arose in this study material .", "high success rates of single-tooth implants after @ ( @/@ ) years of function were achieved using the delayed-immediate and delayed implant placement techniques ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim of the study was to assess the caries inhibition effect of fluoride varnishes among preschool children with high caries risk .", "at the same time , the suitability of this measure should be examined in the frame of group prevention programmes in kindergartens .", "this was an examiner-blind , clinically controlled @-year study with @ randomly selected @ - to @-year-old preschool children with high caries risk .", "at the baseline , caries-free surfaces , initial caries lesions as well as the caries status ( dmfs ) were recorded .", "after the baseline , all subjects were divided into @ groups .", "subjects of group a received every @ months ( altogether four times ) applications with the fluoride varnish fluoridin n@ ( voco gmbh , cuxhaven , germany ) , children of the group b received every @ months ( altogether four times ) applications with duraphat ( colgate palmolive gmbh , hamburg , germany ) , while the subjects of group c did not receive any fluoride varnish applications and constituted the control group .", "a final examination was performed after two years similar to the baseline .", "statistical analysis was based on the spss programme at a significance level of @ % .", "the results confirmed the caries inhibition efficacy of both fluoride varnishes .", "this is shown as well in the almost constant number of caries-free surfaces and initial caries lesions in the two f-groups during the observation period .", "the caries-free surfaces in group c were significantly reduced along with an increase of initial caries lesions .", "the caries reduction , based on the control group , amounted in group a to @ % and in group b to @ % .", "the results documented the caries inhibition effect of both fluoride varnishes which are suitable for intensive group prevention programmes for pre-school children ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to evaluate the effect of lidocaine inhalation on the circulatory response to direct laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation .", "prospective , randomized study .", "operating theater at a public hospital .", "eighty patients ( asa physical status i and ii ages @ to @ years ) scheduled for major abdominal surgery .", "in the first stage , @ patients were randomly assigned to receive inhalation of either lidocaine @ mg or a @ % solution of sodium chloride ( placebo ) .", "in the second stage , the next @ consecutive patients received inhalation of lidocaine @ mg , and another @ consecutive patients received intravenous ( iv ) lidocaine @ mg/kg .", "mean arterial pressure rose significantly in the i.v. lidocaine group ( @ mmhg ; p < @ ) , the saline inhalation group ( @ mmhg ; p < @ ) , and the lidocaine @ mg inhalation group ( @ mmhg ; p < @ ) , but not in the lidocaine @ mg inhalation group ( @ mmhg ) .", "the heart rate ( hr ) response to intubation with lidocaine inhalation was dose dependent .", "in the saline inhalation group , hr increased by @ beats per minute ( bpm ) ( p < @ ) ; in the lidocaine @ mg inhalation group , hr increased by @ bpm ( p < @ ) ; and in the lidocaine @ mg inhalation group , hr increased by only @ bpm .", "inhalation of lidocaine @ mg prior to induction of anesthesia is an effective , safe , and convenient method to attenuate the circulatory response to laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "health-related quality of life ( hrqol ) is diminished in depressed adult outpatients and especially impaired among depressed patients referred for ect .", "we compare pretreatment hrqol in ect and non-ect depressed patients from two large samples , and examined whether sustained remission in depressive symptoms after ect is associated with normalization of hrqol .", "hrqol was measured with the medical outcomes study short form @ ( sf@ ) before ect and @ months after ect in an effectiveness ( n = @ ) and an efficacy ( n = @ ) clinical trial .", "ect patients had very low baseline sf@ scores .", "with one exception , sf@ subscale scores in both trials were significantly lower than those of depressed outpatients .", "a minority of patients in both trials entered and sustained remission over the @ week timeframe .", "among sustained remitters , average sf@ scores were no different from normative scores of the general adult population , except that in the effectiveness study ect patients reported less bodily pain ( p < @ ) and better mental health ( p < @ ) , while in the efficacy study ect patients reported more difficulty with role-emotional ( p < @ ) .", "only a modest number of patients were observed in sustained remission .", "hrqol is very poor in patients referred for ect .", "depressed patients who experience sustained remission after ect , however , can expect improvement in their quality of life that leaves many in a position indistinguishable from the general adult population ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS" ]

[ "for many years , the main goal of premedication was prevention of the dangerous side effects sometimes encountered in anesthetics with anticholinergics , antiemetic antihistaminics , and opioids .", "because the rules were always preoperative fasting , premedication was administered i.m. thus , the onset of action was within @-@ min from administration .", "in recent years , with the introduction of newer anesthetics with fewer side effects , anxiolysis became the main aim in premedication .", "moreover , the oral route became popular since it obviously did not increase the acidity or volume of the gastric content .", "however , the uptake and thus onset of action of orally administered drugs may take longer and can differ considerably between individual patients .", "therefore , the optimum interval between administration and induction of anesthesia remains controversial .", "the present study was carried out to examine the time course of drug action and the effects of different premedication regimens on the electroencephalogram ( eeg ) .", "after obtaining informed consent , in @ unselected adult patients ( asa i and ii , < @ years ) scheduled for elective surgery , the eeg was recorded continuously before and after premedication .", "the patients were randomly assigned to four groups : m : midazolam , @ mg/kg bw orally ; n : nordazepam , @ mg/kg bw orally ; ap : atropine , @ mg , plus promethazine , @ mg i.m. ; app : atropine , @ mg , plus promethazine , @ mg , plus pethidine , @ mg/kg bw i.m.", "the eeg was recorded for a reference period of @ min before and a study period of @ min after premedication .", "automated eeg processing was performed with cateem ( computer-aided topographical electroencephalometry ) .", "surface electrodes were placed according to the @-@ system .", "date were collected via an amplifier ( resistance @ m omega ) and a digitalization unit ( filter @-@ hz , sampling rate @ hz , @ bit a/d convertor ) .", "the original eeg signals were used in an interpolation algorythm to produce an additional @ virtual recording points , allowing for high topographical resolution .", "after spectral analysis ( fast fourier transformation ) , the different frequency ranges of the eeg power spectrum are displayed in different colors .", "the screen displays the on-line map with color-based topographical power distribution .", "in order to achieve a pharmacodynamic time profile , the study period was subdivided into three periods of @ min each .", "for clinical evaluation of vigilance , a @-grade scoring system was used @ = awake , @ = not arousable ) .", "all data are presented with respect to reference period .", "the power density of each frequency range for each electrode is integrated over the selected period and mean values are shown .", "changes in power density with time are expressed as percentage change from reference period .", "biometrical data showed no significant differences between groups .", "the median vigilance score @ min after premedication ( end of study period ) was @ in groups m , ap , and app , and @ in group n.", "in both benzodiazepine groups , a distinct increase in power density was found in the beta-bands , while in groups ap and app the increase was most pronounced in the delta and theta bands .", "in group m , there was a linear increase in beta @ power up to @ % , while in the beta @ range there was a @ % maximum within the second period of @ min .", "in group n , there was a similar course with a lower increase in beta @ ( @ % ) and beta @ ( @ % ) .", "increases in both beta-bands were most pronounced with frontal electrodes .", "while group m showed an increase in delta power ( @ % ) , together with moderate suppression in alpha ( alpha @ @ % , alpha @ @ % ) , nordazepam caused only a slight increase in delta ( @ % ) and a distinct increase in alpha @ to @ % , predominantly in the frontal areas .", "group app showed a linear increase in both delta up to @ % and theta power to @ % .", "( abstract truncated )" ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to observe the clinical efficacy of modified huanglian wendan decoction ( hwd ) in treating senile mild cognitive impairment ( mci ) of turbid-phlegm blocking orifice syndrome .", "with a block randomized , double-blinded and controlled design adopted , the @ patients of mci selected from december @ to february @ were randomly and equally assigned to two groups .", "the treatment group was treated with hwd in dose of @ ml , twice a day ; the control group was given aniracetam @ g ( for patients over @-years-old , @ g ) three times a day .", "and the illusive medicine in dosage-form of capsule/decoction simulated to that used in the opposite group was applied .", "the medication and observation lasted for three months .", "chinese medicine syndrome , cognition capacity ( by mmse ) , laboratory indexes [ acetylcholine ( ach ) , superoxide dismutase ( sod ) , malondialdehyde ( mda ) ] and safety related indexes in patients were observed .", "after treatment , mmse score increased in both groups , but the increment in the treatment group was significantly higher than that in the control group ( p < @ ) ; chinese medicine syndrome estimated by scoring showed that after treatment , all scores of syndromes , excepting the expectoration , were improved in the treatment group with the post-treatment scores significantly lower than those in the control group respectively ( p < @ or p < @ ) ; while in the control group , lowering of scores only showed in some symptoms such as poor memory , heavy head or dizziness , and heavy sensation in limbs and body .", "serum levels of ach and sod decreased and mda increased in both groups after treatment , but the change of ach was more significant in the treatment group ( p < @ ) .", "no obvious adverse reactions were found during the treatment .", "for treatment of mci , hwd shows effects in improving patients ' symptoms , cognition capacity and elevating serum ach content better than that of aniracetam ; and with effects for raising sod activity and reducing mda level similar to those of aniracetam ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "increased demand for oral anticoagulants is overwhelming facilities worldwide , resulting in increasing use of computer assistance .", "a multicenter clinical endpoint study has been performed to compare the safety and effectiveness of computer-assisted dosage with dosage by experienced medical staff at the same centers .", "a randomized study of dosage of two commercial computer-assisted dosage programs ( parma @ and dawn ac ) vs. manual dosage at @ centers with an established interest in oral anticoagulation in @ countries .", "the aim was to recruit a minimum of @,@ patient-years randomized to medical staff or computer-assisted dosage .", "in total , @,@ patients participated , @ patients being randomized to medical staff and @ to computer-assisted dosage .", "the safety and effectiveness of computer-assisted dosage were compared with those of medical staff dosage .", "in total , @,@ patients were recruited ( @,@ patient-years ) .", "international normalized ratio ( inr ) tests numbered @ @ with manual dosage and @,@ with computer-assisted dosage .", "the number of clinical events with computer-assisted dosage was lower ( p = @ ) , but in the @ patients with deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism , they were reduced by @ ( @ % , p = @ ) .", "time in target inr range was significantly improved by computer assistance as compared with medical staff dosage at the majority of centers ( p < @ ) .", "the safety and effectiveness of computer-assisted dosage has been demonstrated using two different marketed programs in comparison with experienced medical staff dosage at the centers with established interest in anticoagulation .", "significant prevention of clinical events in patients with deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism and the achievement of target inr in all clinical groups has been observed .", "the reliability and safety of other marketed computer-assisted dosage programs need to be established ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to compare the efficacy difference in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis between acupuncture at neiguan ( pc @ ) and taichong ( lr @ ) and the conventional acupoints .", "forty four cases were random into a neiguanc ( pc @ ) taichong ( lr @ ) group observation group ( @ cases ) and a conventional group control group ( @ cases ) .", "in the observention group , acupuncture was applied to neiguan ( pc @ ) on the healthy side and taichong ( lr @ ) on the affected side .", "the acupoints were selected bilaterally if both knees were affected .", "in the control group , acupuncture was applied to yanglingquan ( gb @ ) , yinlingquan ( sp @ ) , neixiyan ( ex-le @ ) , dubi ( st @ ) , zusanli ( st @ ) and the others on the affected side .", "the visual analogue scale ( vas ) and western ontario and mcmaster university osteoarthritis index ( womac ) were used for assessment of theraputic effect after treatment .", "the score of vas and pain , stiffness and function impairment of womac were lower apparently than those before treatment in both groups ( all p < @ ) .", "vas score after treatment in the observation group was lower apparently than that in the control group ( p < @ ) .", "the differences in each item score of womac after treatment were not significant statistically between the two groups ( all p > @ ) .", "acupuncture at neiguan ( pc @ ) and taichong ( lr @ ) achieves the similar efficacy on knee osteoarthritis as the conventional acupoints , but the former is more simple and convenient ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "although its etiology is unknown , it has been hypothesized that premenstrual syndrome ( pms ) is linked to a deficiency of central serotoninergic activity .", "in the present study , we evaluated the effect of fluoxetine , a specific serotonin uptake inhibitor , on pms symptoms .", "following extensive screening , including several psychological inventories , eight women with severe persistent pms participated in a @-month double-blind , placebo-controlled , crossover study which included three months each of daily fluoxetine @ mg or placebo , administered in a randomized order .", "symptoms were evaluated using the calendar of premenstrual experiences and other psychometric measures .", "compared with placebo , treatment with fluoxetine was associated with an improvement in pms symptoms as judged by highly significant decreases in behavioral ( p less than @ ) , physical ( p less than @ ) , and total ( p less than @ ) calendar of premenstrual experiences scores ; beck depression inventory scores ( p less than @ ) ; profile of mood states subscales scores including depression ( p less than @ ) , tension ( p less than @ ) , and anger ( p less than @ ) ; and state-trait anxiety inventory scores .", "the use of fluoxetine was associated with a greater mean reduction in behavioral ( @ % ) than in physical scores ( @ % ) , with a mean decrease in total calendar of premenstrual experiences scores of @ % , which rendered these scores similar to follicular phase values .", "thus , the luteal phase symptomatology of pms was effectively abolished .", "at this dose , no significant side effects or complications were noted during treatment .", "fluoxetine appears to be a highly effective , well-tolerated treatment for the psychological and physical symptoms accompanying severe pms ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "it is uncertain whether the effort and expense of performing a second walk for the @-min walk test improves test performance .", "hence , we attempted to quantify the improvement in @-min walk distance if an additional walk were to be performed .", "we studied patients consecutively enrolled into the national emphysema treatment trial who prior to randomization and after @ to @ weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation performed two @-min walks on consecutive days ( n = @ ) .", "patients also performed two @-min walks at @-month follow-up after randomization to lung volume reduction surgery ( n = @ ) or optimal medical therapy ( n = @ ) .", "we compared change in the first walk distance to change in the second , average-of-two , and best-of-two walk distances .", "compared with the change in the first walk distance , change in the average-of-two and best-of-two walk distances had better validity and precision .", "specifically , @ months after randomization to lung volume reduction surgery , changes in the average-of-two ( r = @ vs r = @ , p = @ ) and best-of-two walk distances ( r = @ vs r = @ , p = @ ) better correlated with the change in maximal exercise capacity ( ie , better validity ) .", "additionally , the variance of change was @ % to @ % less for the average-of-two walk distances and @ % to @ % less for the best-of-two walk distances than the variance of change in the single walk distance , indicating better precision .", "adding a second walk to the @-min walk test significantly improves its performance in measuring response to a therapeutic intervention , improves the validity of copd clinical trials , and would result in a @ % to @ % reduction in sample size requirements .", "hence , it should be strongly considered by clinicians and researchers as an outcome measure for therapeutic interventions in patients with copd ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "iga nephropathy is one of the most common primary glomerulonephritides , and the clinical course of almost @ % of the patients progresses to end-stage renal disease ( esrd ) within @ years .", "angiotensin-converting enzyme ( ace ) inhibitors and / or angiotensin ii receptor blockers ( arbs ) induce a marked renoprotective effect in nondiabetic chronic proteinuric nephropathies including iga nephropathy .", "however , in japan , ace inhibitors and arbs are not used for normotensive patients .", "the purpose of the present study was to evaluate the antiproteinuric effect of olmesartan , one of the arbs , in normotensive patients with iga nephropathy in japan .", "olmesartan was given to @ patients for @ weeks .", "the initial dose was @ mg and was increased stepwise to @ mg , @ mg and @ mg .", "final doses were @ mg ( n = @ ) , @ mg ( n = @ ) , @ mg ( n = @ ) and @ mg ( n = @ ) .", "the change in urinary protein to creatinine ratio was -@ % + / -@ % at week @ .", "creatinine clearance showed no changes throughout the study period .", "blood pressure ( systolic/diastolic ) was @ + / -@ / @ + / -@ mm hg in the lead-in period and decreased to @ + / -@ / @ + / -@ mm hg at week @ .", "at the end of treatment with olmesartan , no correlation was observed between changes in the urinary protein to creatinine ratio and mean blood pressure based on investigation of dispersion diagrams .", "olmesartan monotherapy showed robust reduction of urinary protein in normotensive iga nephropathy patients , suggesting that this effect is independent of its blood pressure-lowering properties ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "prior research has indicated that the loss of skeletal muscle mass and bone mineral density observed with aging is related to the prominent age-related decline in the concentration of serum growth hormone ( gh ) .", "however , there is limited data on the effects of aging on gh responses to acute bouts of heavy resistance exercise ( hre ) and aerobic exercise ( ae ) .", "the present investigation examined the effects of a hre protocol and an ae protocol on immunoreactive gh ( igh ) and bioactive gh ( bgh ) in active young and old women .", "older women had a diminished serum igh response to both the hre and ae protocols compared to the younger women , however a similar response was not observed in serum bgh .", "additionally , the hre protocol elicited a greater bgh response than the ae protocol exclusively in the younger group .", "regardless of exercise mode , aging induces an increase in growth hormone polymerization that specifically results in a loss of serum growth hormone immunoreactivity without a concurrent loss of serum growth hormone bioactivity .", "the greater bgh response to the hre protocol found in the younger group can be attributed to an unknown serum factor of molecular weight between @ and @kd that either potentiated growth hormone bioactivity in response to hre or inhibited growth hormone bioactivity in response to ae ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the aim of this study was to measure the influence of water on the adhesion between titanium and porcelain by means of the strain energy release rate ( g-value or interfacial toughness ) .", "rectangular specimens of grade ii titanium and a reference gold-palladium porcelain fused to metal ( pfm ) alloy were veneered with feldspathic porcelains .", "in the case of the titanium , two gold and one ceramic bonder systems were used to enhance the adhesion of the porcelain .", "the g-value was measured with a four-point bending configuration developed by charalambides et al. ( journal of applied mechanics ( trans asme ) .", "@ ; @:@ -@ ) , at four different loading rates ( from @ to @ n/s ) in water and at one loading rate ( @ n/s ) in kerosine .", "there was a significant difference ( anova , p < @ ) in the interfacial toughness between the different bonding systems , with the two goldbonder systems exhibiting higher toughness in kerosine and water than the ceramic bonder .", "the two goldbonders achieved the best results across all loading rates .", "their interfacial toughness , tested in kerosine , varied between @ + / -@ and @ + / -@ j/m ( @ ) and tested in water from @ + / -@ to @ + / -@ j/m ( @ ) , respectively .", "the ceramic ti bonder achieved the lowest g-values throughout ( @ + / -@ j/m ( @ ) in kerosine to @ + / -@ j/m ( @ ) in water ) .", "the gold-palladium pfm alloy showed more constant behaviour ( @ + / -@ j/m ( @ ) to @ + / -@ j/m ( @ ) in kerosine and water , respectively ) .", "compared to the gold-palladium pfm alloy , the goldbonders achieved much higher g-values whereas the ceramic ti bonder g-values were lower when tested in water and in kerosine ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "BACKGROUND", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the term angiokeratoma refers to a group of unrelated diseases with similar histopathologic features .", "four clinical variants of angiokeratoma have been described .", "however , it is not known whether some variants of angiokeratoma are of lymphatic origin , and an immunohistochemical study of lymphatic markers has not been previously performed .", "we performed an immunohistochemical study of angiokeratomas using lymphatic markers .", "fifteen cases of angiokeratoma corporis diffusum , @ cases of fordyce angiokeratoma , @ cases of mibelli angiokeratoma and @ cases of solitary angiokeratoma were examined by immunohistochemical analysis using cd@ , d@-@ , prox@ and wilms ' tumor @ ( wt-@ ) .", "the vessels of angiokeratoma corporis diffusum , fordyce angiokeratoma and solitary angiokeratoma were usually focally positive for d@-@ and positive for prox@ , whereas the vessels of mibelli angiokeratoma were negative for d@-@ and positive for prox@ .", "the results suggest lymphatic derivation of angiokeratoma corporis diffusum , fordyce angiokeratoma and solitary angiokeratoma .", "however , the derivation of mibelli angiokeratoma could not be determined based on the present immunohistochemical results ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the cost-effectiveness of tricyclic antidepressants ( tcas ) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors ( ssris ) has not been compared in a prospective study in primary care .", "to determine the relative cost-effectiveness of tcas , ssris and lofepramine in uk primary care .", "an open-label , three-arm randomised trial with a preference arm .", "practitioners referred @ patients with incident depression .", "no significant differences were found in effectiveness or cost-effectiveness .", "the numbers of depression-free weeks over @ months ( on the hospital anxiety and depression scale ) were @ ( @ % ci @-@ @ ) for tcas , @ ( @ % ci @-@ @ ) for ssris and @ ( @ % ci @-@ @ ) for lofepramine .", "mean health service costs per patient were pound @ ( @ % ci @-@ ) for tcas , pound @ ( @ % ci @-@ ) for ssris and pound @ ( @ % ci @-@ ) for lofepramine .", "cost-effectiveness acceptability curves suggested ssris were most cost-effective ( with a probability of up to @ ) .", "the findings support a policy of recommending ssris as first-choice antidepressants in primary care ." ]

[ "BACKGROUND", "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "the duration of action of neuromuscular blocking drugs ( nbds ) varies between individuals and even within individuals in different settings .", "to define predictors of variance in duration of action of rocuronium and cisatracurium administered long-term .", "a prospective , double-blind , multicenter trial that included @ patients scheduled for major abdominal surgery and postoperative admission to the intensive care unit .", "patients received repetitive ( median , @ ) equipotent doses of rocuronium or cisatracurium to maintain deep relaxation ( twitch height of the adductor pollicis muscle < @ % of baseline ) .", "effects of weight , age , sex , american society of anesthesiologists risk score , lowest core temperature , duration of nbd administration , and tobacco smoking history on duration of action of cisatracurium and rocuronium were determined via multiple regression analysis .", "only duration of nbd administration was predictive of the duration of action of rocuronium .", "the predicted increase in time to recovery of the train-of-@ ratio to @ ( duration tof @ ) per hour of continuous nbd treatment was @ minutes .", "in contrast , only lowest core body temperature was predictive of cisatracurium 's duration of action , and the predicted increase in duration tof @ per degree celsius decrease was @ min .", "duration of nbd treatment is strongly predictive of the duration of action of rocuronium , and body temperature is predictive of the duration of action of cisatracurium .", "these data may help decrease the incidence of drug-induced muscle weakness in recovery rooms and surgical intensive care units , particularly if neuromuscular transmission monitoring is not available ." ]

[ "OBJECTIVE", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "METHODS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "RESULTS", "CONCLUSIONS", "CONCLUSIONS" ]

[ "to compare effects on plasma total - , ldl - , and hdl-cholesterol concentrations of margarines enriched with different vegetable oil sterols or sitostanol-ester .", "a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled balanced incomplete latin square design with five treatments and four periods of @ weeks .", "margarines enriched with sterols from soybean , sheanut or ricebran oil or with sitostanol-ester were compared to a non-enriched control margarine .", "sterol intake was between @-@ @ g/d .", "two thirds of the soybean oil sterols were esterified to fatty acids .", "unilever research laboratory , vlaardingen , the netherlands .", "one hundred healthy non-obese normocholesterolaemic and mildly hypercholesterolaemic volunteers aged @ + / -@ y , with plasma total cholesterol levels below @ mmol/l at entry .", "plasma lipid , carotenoid and sterol concentrations , blood clinical chemistry and haematology , fatty acid composition of plasma cholesterylesters and food intake .", "ninety-five volunteers completed the study .", "none of the margarines induced adverse changes in blood clinical chemistry , serum total bile acids or haematology .", "plasma total - and ldl-cholesterol concentrations were significantly reduced by @-@ % ( @-@ @ mmol/l ) compared to control for margarines enriched in soybean oil sterol-esters or sitostanol-ester .", "no effect on hdl-cholesterol concentrations occurred .", "the ldl - to hdl-cholesterol ratio was reduced by @ and @ units for these margarines , respectively .", "effects on blood lipids did not differ between normocholesterolaemic and mildly hypercholesterolaemic subjects .", "plasma sitosterol and campesterol levels were significantly higher for the soybean oil sterol margarine and significantly lower for the sitostanol-ester margarine compared to control .", "dietary intake was very similar across treatments .", "the fatty acid composition of plasma cholesterylesters confirmed the good compliance to the treatment .", "all sterol enriched margarines reduced lipid-standardized plasma alpha - plus beta-carotene levels .", "plasma lycopene levels were also reduced but this effect was not significant for all products .", "a margarine with sterol-esters from soybean oil , mainly esters from sitosterol , campesterol and stigmasterol , is as effective as a margarine with sitostanol-ester in lowering blood total - and ldl-cholesterol levels without affecting hdl-cholesterol concentrations .", "incorporation in edible fat containing products of such substances may substantially reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in the population ." ]