No abstract

These data confirm the benefit of extending adjuvant tamoxifen therapy beyond 5 years with anastrozole compared with no further treatment. Further research is required to define the optimum length of extended adjuvant therapy and to investigate the possibility of tailoring this period to suit different disease types.

ABSTRACT. Objective. To prospectively investigate the development of amplitude-integrated electroencephalographic (aEEG) activity during the first 2 weeks of life in neurologically normal and clinically stable preterm infants <30 weeks' gestational age (GA).Patients and Methods. Infants with a GA of <30 weeks admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of the Vienna University Children's Hospital (Vienna, Austria) were studied prospectively by using aEEG and cranial ultrasound. Clinically stable infants without clinical or sonographic evidence of neurologic abnormalities were eligible for inclusion in the reference group. The distribution of 3 background aEEG activity patterns (discontinuous low-voltage, discontinuous high-voltage, and continuous), presence of sleep-wake cycles, and number of bursts per hour in the reference group were determined by visual analysis.Results. Seventy-five infants (median GA: 27 weeks; range: 23-29 weeks) were eligible for inclusion in the reference group and had aEEG recordings during the first 2 weeks of life available. Analysis of aEEG background activity showed that with higher GA the relative amount of continuous activity increased while discontinuous patterns decreased. The number of bursts per hour decreased with increasing GA. Cyclical changes in aEEG background activity resembling early sleep-wake cycles were observed in all infants.Conclusions. Normal values for aEEG background activity were determined in preterm infants <30 weeks' GA. Clinically stable and neurologically normal preterm infants exhibit at least 2 different patterns of aEEG activity. There is a correlation between the GA and the relative duration of continuous aEEG activity. A dvances in neonatal intensive care during the last decades have led to an increased survival rate of extremely low birth weight infants. However, neurologic and developmental disability is still common among survivors. 1 Prevention of brain injury in these patients has become one of the main goals of modern neonatology. Continuous monitoring of neonatal brain function may aid in the identification of risk factors and patients at increased risk for neurologic morbidity. Early recognition and modification of potentially harmful environmental factors may prevent secondary brain injury.Conventional electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the most useful tools for intermittent and continuous assessment of brain function and prediction of neurologic outcome in term infants and children. 2-4 However, conventional EEG has limitations in its application for extremely low birth weight infants. Registration and interpretation of conventional EEG in this age group are difficult because of the electrical interferences on the neonatal intensive care unit, the large volume of data generated during a longer recording, and the need for 24-hour availability of a skilled examiner experienced in EEG of preterm infants. Further, data on normal EEG patterns in extremely premature infants are still limited. 5,6 Recently, amplitude-integrated EEG (aEEG) pro...

Purpose: The present pilot study was performed to elucidate whether early changes in serum Her-2/neu extracellular domain (ECD) levels during trastuzumab-based treatment would predict the clinical course of disease in patients with metastatic breast cancer.Experimental Design: Sera from 55 patients with Her-2/neu-overexpressing metastatic breast cancer obtained immediately before each weekly administration of trastuzumab were analyzed by a serum Her-2/neu ELISA.Results: Whereas response rates were significantly higher in patients with elevated (>15 ng/ml) ECD levels before initiation of treatment (35% versus 7%, P ‫؍‬ 0.045), progression-free and overall survival did not differ significantly between patients with normal and elevated ECD levels. In patients responding to treatment, ECD levels decreased significantly as early as from day 8 of treatment onwards (all P for weekly measurements versus baseline <0.001). In contrast, no significant change in ECD levels was observed in patients with progressive disease. Multiple logistic regression analyses identified kinetics of ECD levels as the only factor that allowed for the accurate prediction of response likelihood as early as from day 8 of trastuzumabbased treatment onwards (P ‫؍‬ 0.020). In addition, determination of serial ECD levels allowed for the prediction of the risk for disease progression within the observed period as early as day 15 of treatment (P ‫؍‬ 0.010).Conclusions: Serial monitoring of the ECD may represent a valuable tool for early prediction of the probability of response and progression-free survival to trastuzumabbased treatment and is thus likely to contribute to an optimization of treatment and resource allocation.

Percutaneous saline-enhanced and impedance-controlled radiofrequency ablation can be effective in the treatment of unresectable hepatic tumors and minimizes potential carbonization. A greater number of radiofrequency applications, general anesthesia, and increasing experience provide significantly better results.

What ' s known on the subject? and What does the study add? Depression plays an important role in pathogenesis of BPH. Our study shows that prostatic symptoms can be helpful in the screening for depression. OBJECTIVE• To evaluate the relationship between lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and depression in men through validated questionnaires. PATIENTS AND METHODS• Healthy male workers ( n = 673) were invited to a free health check-up.• Patients underwent a detailed medical examination.• All participants completed the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) questionnaire and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS• Under multiple logistic regression analysis (adjusted for total testosterone and age), a signifi cant effect of IPSS on BDI score was observed: mild depression (BDI score > 9): odds ratio (OR) 1.092, 95% confi dence interval (CI) 1.056 -1.129; P < 0.001; moderate-to-severe depression (BDI score > 19): OR 1.093, 95% CI 1.031 -1.159; P = 0.003; and severe depression (BDI score > 29): OR 1.176, 95% CI 1.048 -1.320; P = 0.006. CONCLUSIONS• In healthy men, LUTS are signifi cantly associated with depression.• The treatment of LUTS is very important for the mental health of older men.

Aging in the male is accompanied by steroid hormonal decline, and men may develop symptoms associated with hypogonadism. Increased awareness of 'andropause' in recent years has led to greater demand for hormonal assessments, resulting in a rising burden for health economics. We conducted a cross-sectional study to define men at risk for hypogonadism, in whom further hormonal investigation should be performed. We examined 664 blue-collar workers aged 40-60 years at their workplace and determined hormonal status and body mass index (BMI). Men with an abnormal urogenital status and those on medication that might affect endocrine status were excluded from the study. All participants completed the validated Aging Male Symptom (AMS) questionnaire and obtained scores for psychological symptoms, somatovegetative symptoms, and sexual symptoms. Multiple logistic regression analyses revealed a significantly increased risk (represented by the odds ratio) of psychological symptoms for men with low levels of testosterone and/or bioavailable testosterone (BAT). Increased BMI as well as low testosterone levels and/or low BAT levels raised the risk of somatovegetative symptoms. Each decrease of BAT by 1 ng/ml caused an approximately 1.8-fold increase of the risk (odds ratio = 1.832, p = 0.005). Additional independent risk factors were increased age and low luteinizing hormone (LH) level. Men aged 55 years with BMI > 28 kg/m2 and with somatovegetative symptoms and moderate or severe psychological symptoms had a 7.2-fold increase in the risk of a BAT level < 1.5 ng/ml compared to men without these risk factors (p < 0.001). Sensitivity and specificity were 75% and 71%, respectively. The AMS score combined with age and BMI provides an easy and convenient method to identify men with probable androgen deficiency who require hormonal assessment.

BMI contributes strongly to ED. Low T or BAT are only relevant if IIEF-5 questionnaire results in severe ED.