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...

BACKGROUND Transcranial Doppler ultrasound (TCD) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) can identify intracranial atherosclerosis but have not been rigorously validated against the gold standard, catheter angiography. The WASID trial (Warfarin Aspirin Symptomatic Intracranial Disease) required performance of angiography to verify the presence of intracranial stenosis, allowing for prospective...

In daily clinical practice, it is not so easy to make a confirma-tive diagnosis of food allergy. Interpretation of skin prick test and serum food-specific IgE (sIgE) test results is influenced by detailed clinical history of an individual patient, but ingested foods which provoke adverse reactions often contain many ingredients and lead to a misdiagnosis of food allergy. Oral food challenge is ...

BACKGROUND Although frequently used for tumor surveillance, the sensitivity of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) to detect recurrent colorectal cancer (CRC) is not optimal. Fluorine 18-fluoro-2-deoxy-glucose-positron emission tomography (18F FDG-PET) scans promise to improve recurrent CRC detection. We aimed to review PET scans of patients with clinically and/or radiologically suspicious tumor rec...

background: the purpose of the present study was to compare the serum levels of il6 and ca125 in women with and without endometriosis. they were also compared in mild, moderate and severe cases. methods: in this case-control study, ca125 and il6 levels in 76 women with laparoscopic proven endometriosis were compared with 76 women without evidence of endometriosis. sensitivity, specificity, posi...

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) often go undetected in toddlers. The Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) was used to screen 3,793 children aged 16-30 months from low- and high-risk sources; screen positive cases were diagnostically evaluated. Rescreening was performed on 1,416 children aged 42-54 months. Time 1 Positive Predictive Value (PPV) was .36 for the initial screening and...

OBJECTIVE To calculate the positive predictive value (ppv) of cytoplasmic antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (c-ANCAs) and anti-proteinase 3 (PR 3) antibodies for Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) and to evaluate their association with other diseases. METHODS The clinical files of all 94 patients who had a positive c- or perinuclear (p)-ANCA test, or both, in the laboratory of the University H...

INTRODUCTION We evaluated the UroVysion (Abbott Molecular, IL, USA) fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay for the diagnosis of urothelial cancer in patients diagnosed with or suspected to have bladder, upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC), and combined upper and lower tract urothelial carcinoma (BC). MATERIALS AND METHODS A single institution retrospective analysis comparing sens...

Certain autoantibodies which are found in autoimmune diseases including CTDs can impair fertility. Reproductive failure may present as pregnancy loss, either as miscarriage, intrauterine fetal death or stillbirth. There are also late obstetric complications such as intrauterine growth restriction, pre-eclampsia and pre-term birth. This review summarizes the possible influences of autoantibodies...

PURPOSE To evaluate the reliability of ultrasound scan (US) findings in the preoperative assessment of the nature of adnexal masses in females. METHODS After detailed history, a preoperative US examination was performed in all women. Tumor diameter, localization, the presence of solid, cystic and multilocular components, excrescences, metastasis and free fluid were assessed. Doppler scan was ...