PURPOSE It has been recommended that multiple visual field examinations be performed in the first 2 years after glaucoma diagnosis so that rapid visual field progression (≤-2 dB/year, using ordinary least squares regression over time of the summary index mean deviation [MD]) can be detected. Here I investigate how predictive a statistically significant regression slope is of truly rapid visual ...

Ubiquicidin (UBI) [29-41] is a synthetic cationic antimicrobial peptide that preferentially binds to bacterial cell membrane at the site of infection. We aimed to assess diagnostic value of 99mTc-UBI [29-41] as a radiopharmaceutical in differentiation of bacterial infection from sterile inflammation in suspected orthopedic implants. Nine patients suspected for orthopedic implant infection, all ...

This study assessed the effectiveness of a fully automated surveillance system for the detection of healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) in intensive care units. Manual ward surveillance (MS) and electronic surveillance (ES) were performed for two intensive care units of the Vienna General Hospital. All patients admitted for a period longer than 48 h between 13 November 2006 and 7 February ...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of integrated positron emission tomography/computerized tomography (PET/CT) in patients with gynecological cancer. METHODS Fifty-three consecutive patients with gynecologic malignancies were included. The patients were referred to our tertiary center to undergo a PET/CT scan. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negati...

BACKGROUND Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most important contagious bacteria causing subclinical bovine mastitis. This bacterial infection is commonly identified by determine the pathogen in bovine milk samples through conventional technique including coagulase test. However, this test has several disadvantages as low sensitivity, risk of biohazard, cost expensive, and limited preparation ...

OBJECTIVE Very few studies are available to relate the final histology of excised appendix with the detailed intra-operative findings during appendectomy, both open and laparoscopic. This study was aimed to correlate the histological features of appendix specimen with the intra operative findings at open appendicectomy (OA) in a bid to determine when to change the planned procedure to include f...

Objective. To test the value of quantifiable electrical stimuli as a reliable method to assess electroencephalogram reactivity (EEG-R) for the early prognostication of outcome in comatose patients. Methods. EEG was recorded in consecutive adults in coma after cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or stroke. EEG-R to standard electrical stimuli was tested. Each patient received a 3-month follow-up...

PURPOSE To assess the clinical value of FDG PET/CT and evaluate the complementary roles of serum squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCAg) and FDG PET/CT in the diagnosis of suspected recurrent of cervical squamous cell cancer. METHODS Serum SCCAg levels were retrospectively reviewed in patients previously treated for cervical squamous cell carcinoma, who had suspected recurrence of cervical ca...

BACKGROUND Because the arterial/alveolar oxygen tension ratio (a/APO2) is relatively constant throughout the entire range of fractional inspired oxygen concentration (FiO2), its use in determining the prognosis of acute pulmonary embolism (APE) was investigated. METHODS AND RESULTS This study retrospectively assessed 202 consecutive patients with APE confirmed by computed tomography or high p...

Objective. Although differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) usually has an indolent course, some cases show a poor prognosis; therefore, risk stratification is required. The objective of this study is to compare the predictive ability of classical risk stratification systems proposed by the European Thyroid Association (ETA) and American Thyroid Association (ATA) with the system proposed by Tuttle ...