Recent reports in Science and Medicine for January 2003

Some of these links are very transient and may expire within days of posting. Check-in and view frequently to avoid missing great news items.

31 January 

Taming Winfree Turbulence of Scroll Waves in Excitable Media Alonso S, et al.Science Online, 30 January 2003.If registered with Science or look at the news release.

Etiologic Considerations in the Patient With Syncope and an Apparently Normal Heart: Guidelines Subcommittee, North American Society of Pacing and ElectrophysiologyGoldschlager N, et al. Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:165-168

The Prevalence of Myocarditis and Skeletal Muscle Injury During Acute Viral Infection in Adults: Measurement of Cardiac Troponins I and T in 152 Patients With Acute Influenza Infection. Greaves K, et al. Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:165-168

Lack of Efficacy of Acetaminophen in Treating Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-Controlled Comparison Trial With Diclofenac Sodium
John P. Case, MD; Algis J. Baliunas; Joel A. Block, MD Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:169-178

Prevalence and Risk Factors for Carriage of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus at Admission to the Intensive Care Unit: Results of a Multicenter Study. Lucet JC, et al.Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:181-188 .

30 January

From this week's New England Journal:
Multifactorial Intervention and Cardiovascular Disease in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. Gæde P, et al. N Engl J Med 2003;348:383-393

Swimming-induced pulmonary edema. Lund KL, et al. Ann Emerg Med. 2003;41:251-256.

NIH Study Shows MRI Provides Faster, More Accurate Way To Diagnose Heart Attacks: Detecting Acute Coronary Syndrome in the Emergency Department With Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Kwong RY, et al (Published online before print January 6, 2003 Circulation 2003, 10.1161/01.CIR.0000047527.11221.29) (NIH press release)

29 January

Scope and Impact of Financial Conflicts of Interest in Biomedical Research: A Systematic Review. Bekelman JE et al.. JAMA. 2003;289:454-465

Use of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors and Risk of Upper Gastrointestinal Tract Bleeding:. Oksbjerg S, et al.Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:59-64

The Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) Isomer, t10c12-CLA, Is Inversely Associated with Changes in Body Weight and Serum Leptin in Subjects with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Belury MA et al. J. Nutr 2003. 133:257S-260S

Effect of mattress and pillow encasings on children with asthma and house dust mite allergy. Halken A, et al. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2003;111:169-76

28 January

Headlines from the American Heart Association:
AHA/CDC panel issues recommendations on CRP testing
CRP improves cardiovascular risk prediction in metabolic syndrome
Lower blood pressure decreases heart attack risk in diabetics with clogged leg arteries
Young adults with insulin-treated diabetes have elevated stroke risk

Hypertension Management in Patients With Diabetes: The need for more aggressive therapy. Berlowitz, DR, et al, Diabetes Care 2003.;26:355-359

Serum Retinol Levels and the Risk of Fracture. Michaëlsson K, et al. N Engl J Med 2003; 348:287-294

News Releases:
Study Is First To Confirm Link Between Exercise And Changes In Brain ScienceDaily

27 January

Elevated Plasma Homocysteine Levels in Patients Treated With Levodopa: Association With Vascular Disease.  Rogers JD, et al. Arch Neurol. 2003;60:59-64

Activation of human CD4 +cells with CD3 and CD46 induces a T-regulatory cell 1 phenotype. Kemper C, et al. Nature 2003;421:388 - 392 .

Extended Longevity in Mice Lacking the Insulin Receptor in Adipose Tissue. Blüher M, et al. Science 2003;299:572-574. (with registration, otherwise see news)

Dynamics of the Hippocampus During Encoding and Retrieval of Face-Name Pairs. Zeineh MM, et al. Science 2003;299:577-580:(and news)

Angiogenins: A new class of microbicidal proteins involved in innate immunity. Hooper LV, Stappenbeck TS, Hong CV, Gordon JI. Nature Immunology, March 2003.(Journal not available on-line; see news report)

24 January

Published online before print January 23, 2003. Circulation Research 2003
Shear Stress Causes Nuclear Localization of Endothelial Glucocorticoid Receptor and Expression From the GRE Promoter. Ji JY, et al

Paraplegia in a patient receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor therapy for rheumatoid arthritis: Comment on the article by Mohan et al
C. J. Van Der Laken, et al Arthritis & Rheumatism Volume 48, Issue 1, 2003. Pages: 269-270 (pdf of letter)

22 January

This week's JAMA: (links are to current issue and will expire)

Changes in Career Satisfaction Among Primary Care and Specialist Physicians, 1997-2001 .Landon BE, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:442-449

Escalation of Drug Use in Early-Onset Cannabis Users vs Co-twin Controls. Lynskey ME, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:427-433

Patterns and Trends in Food Portion Sizes, 1977-1998. Neilson and Popkin. JAMA. 2003;289:450-453

External Incentives, Information Technology, and Organized Processes to Improve Health Care Quality for Patients With Chronic Diseases. Casalino L, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:434-441
(As interpreted by ABC News: "Most Doctors Behind the Times " )

Haploinsufficiency of ATP1A2 encoding the Na +/K +pump 2 subunit associated with familial hemiplegic migraine type 2 . De Fusco M, et al.Nature Genetics 21 January 2003; (Advanced Online Publication)

Risk Factors and Secondary Prevention in Women with Heart Disease: The Heart and Estrogen/progestin Replacement Study. Vittinghoff E, et al. for the Heart and Estrogen/progestin Replacement Study Research Group. Ann Intern Med. 2003;138:81-89.

21 January

Annal of Internal Medicine: CURRENT CLINICAL ISSUES - Menopausal Hormone Therapy: Summary of a Scientific Workshop and Update Sessions from ACP–ASIM's 2002 Annual Session : Update in Women's Health

New AHRQ Evidence Report Finds Autopsies Help To Uncover Medical Diagnostic Discrepancies AHRQ press release and study resource.

20 January

High-Altitude Pulmonary Edema at Moderate Altitude (< 2,400 m; 7,870 feet): A Series of 52 Patients. GabryAL Chest 2003;123:49-53

Use of Ephedra -containing products and risk for hemorrhagic stroke. Morgenstern L B, et al. Neurology 2003;60:132-135

17 January

Roles of Drinking Pattern and Type of Alcohol Consumed in Coronary Heart Disease in Men. Mukamal KJ et al.. N Engl J Med 2003;348:109-118.

Nephron Number in Patients with Primary Hypertension Keller G, et al. N Engl J Med 2003;348:101-8.

Association Between Hemochromatosis (HFE) Gene Mutation Carrier Status and the Risk of Colon Cancer. Shaheen NJ. Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 2003; 95:154-159,

16 January

Viagra May Influence Blood's Stickiness: A Stimulatory Role for cGMP-Dependent Protein Kinase in Platelet Activation. Li Z, et al. Cell 2003;112, 77-86. (Cell requires a free registration for entry to site)

Intratumoral T Cells, Recurrence, and Survival in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer. Zhang L, et al. N Engl J Med 2003;348:203-213.

15 January

Lung Cancer Screening With Helical Computed Tomography in Older Adult Smokers: A Decision and Cost-effectiveness Analysis. Mahadevia PJ, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:313-322

Articles on Bioterrorism
Six articles on bioterrorism by the Working Group on Civilian Biodefense—addressing anthrax ,smallpox ,plague ,botulinum toxin ,tularemia , and viral hemorrhagic fever —are online and free of charge. In addition, a collection of the articles addressing bioterrorism published in JAMA and the Archives Journals are available free of charge.  

14 January

Response Rate, Durability of Response, and Survival After Thalidomide Therapy for Relapsed Multiple Myeloma. Kumar S, et al. Mayo Clinic Proceedings Jan 2003;78:34.

Marked Improvement in Nocturnal Gastroesophageal Reflux in a Large Cohort of Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea Treated With Continuous Positive Airway Pressure.Green BT, et al. Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:41-45
Editorial from same Archives issues: Advice for Young Physicians  by Joseph S. Alpert, MD .

Suggested Conference topic. Biofilms and microbial communications. See Bassler's site.(A MacArthur "Genius" award winner) for a start.

13 January

Impact of Whole-Body 18 F-FDG PET on Staging and Managing Patients for Radiation Therapy. Dizendorf EV, et al. Journal of Nuclear Medicine . 2003; 44:24-29

High-dose cyclophosphamide without stem cell transplantation in systemic lupus erythematosus Petri M, et al. Arthritis & Rheumatism 2003;48:166-173

Study Identifies C-reactive Protein As Cause Of Blood Clot Formation. The study appears in the Jan. 25 print edition of the journal Circulation, a publication of the American Heart Association, and will be available on the Web at http://www.circulationaha.org . A direct link will be posted then. In the interim, go to the library or ask your favorite cardiologist for their copy.

10 January

Platelet responsiveness to aspirin in patients with hyperlipidaemia. BMJ 2003;326:82-83 ( 11 January ) (This whole issue of the BMJ is worth looking through.)

9 January

FDA Approves New Labels for Estrogen and Estrogen with Progestin Therapies for Postmenopausal Women Following Review of Women's Health Initiative Data (FDA News)

Roles of Drinking Pattern and Type of Alcohol Consumed in Coronary Heart Disease in Men. Mukama KJ, et al. NEJM 2003; 348:109-118.


8 January

Years of Life Lost Due to Obesity .Fontaine KR, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:187-193

Burden of Systolic and Diastolic Ventricular Dysfunction in the Community Appreciating the Scope of the Heart Failure Epidemic. Redfield MM, et al. JAMA. 2003;289:194-202

7 January

Obesity in Adulthood and Its Consequences for Life Expectancy: A Life-Table Analysis. Peeters A, et al.Ann Int Med 2003; 138:24-32.

3 January

The underutilization of cardiac medications of proven benefit, 1990 to 2002 .Stafford RS. J Am Coll Card 1 January 2003, Volume 41, Issue 1 Pages 56-61

2 January

A Controlled Trial of Natalizumab for Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis. Miller DH et al.N Engl J Med 2003; 348:15-23

Gender-related changes in the practice and outcomes of percutaneous coronary interventions in northern New England from 1994 to 1999. Malenka DJ. et al.: Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2002;40:2092-2101

Tooth Loss, Gum Disease May Up Man's Stroke Risk. Stroke: January 2003.