We determined the effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on the expression of the phosphorylated p38 (p-p38) protein and superoxide anion generation (SAG), two important players in the processing of neuropathic pain, in the lumbosacral spinal cord of rats with chronic constriction injury (CCI)-induced neuropathic pain. The sciatic functional index (SFI) was also measured to assess the functional reco...

Background: Evidence indicates that neuropathic pain pathogenesis is not confined to changes in the activity of neuronal systems but involves interactions between neurons, inflammatory immune and immune-like glial cells. Substances released from immune cells during inflammation play an important role in development and maintenance of neuropathic pain. It has been found that minocycline suppress...

On May 12, 2005, the inaugural meeting of the American Dental Education Association Commission on Change and Innovation in Dental Education (ADEA CCI) was convened. Comprised of thought leaders representative of dental education and practice, the ADEA CCI published groundbreaking white papers that effectively helped bring dental education across the threshold of the 21st century. Twelve years l...

Responses resulting from injury to the trigeminal nerve exhibit differences compared with those caused by lesion of other peripheral nerves. With the aim of elucidating the physiopathological mechanisms underlying cephalic versus extracephalic neuropathic pain, we determined the time course expression of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IL-1beta, neuronal injury (ATF3), macrop...

PURPOSE To evaluate the effects of stromal hydration on clear corneal incision (CCI) architecture immediately after surgery using anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). SETTING Department of Ophthalmology, Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading, United Kingdom. METHODS Clear corneal incisions in adult eyes were examined using a Visante AS-OCT imaging system within 1 hour of surg...

PURPOSE To characterize the impact of comorbidity on survival outcomes for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) post radiotherapy (RT). METHODS A total of 4095 patients with NPC treated by RT or RT plus chemotherapy (CT) in the period from 2007 to 2011 were included through Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database. Information on comorbidity present prior to the NPC diagno...

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) triggers many secondary changes in tissue biology, which ultimately determine the extent of injury and clinical outcome. Hyaluronan [hyaluronic acid (HA)] is a protective cementing gel present in the intercellular spaces whose degradation has been reported as a causative factor in tissue damage. Yet little is known about the expression and activities of genes involv...

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of comorbidity assessed by the Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) at the time of diagnosis on the outcome of antineutrophil cytoplasmatic antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis (AAV).This is a longitudinal observational study of 30 consecutive patients with AAV who were diagnosed and followed from January 1996 to December 2011. The degree of comorbi...

Investigations of the basic pathological, cellular, and molecular mechanisms of traumatic brain injury (TBI) over the past two decades have been carried out primarily in rodents. Unfortunately, these studies have not translated into improved outcome in patients with TBI. To better model human TBI, a swine model of controlled cortical impact (CCI) was developed. A CCI device was used to generate...