OBJECTIVE To describe lung function findings in overweight children and adolescents without respiratory disease. METHODS This was a cross-sectional study involving male and female overweight children and adolescents in the 8-18 year age bracket, without respiratory disease. All of the participants underwent anthropometric assessment, chest X-ray, pulse oximetry, spirometry, and lung volume me...

BACKGROUND There is a growing body of evidence relating to how information and communication technology (ICT) can be used to support people with physical health conditions. Less is known regarding mental health, and in particular, mood disorder. OBJECTIVE To conduct a metasynthesis of all qualitative studies exploring the use of ICTs by people with mood disorder. METHODS Searches were run i...

The temperature and magnetic field dependences of the electronic specific heat cp in the superconducting mixed state as well as the upper critical field Hc2(T ) have been measured on a series of polycrystalline YxLu1−xNi2B2C samples with the aim to study the influence of disorder. The electronic specific heat contribution cesm = γ(H) · T in the mixed (vortex) state exhibits significant deviatio...

Atypical antipsychotic medications have assumed growing importance for the treatment of bipolar disorder, an illness that affects approximately 1.2%-3.7% of the general population in a given year. Current practice guidelines for the treatment of bipolar mania support the use of atypical antipsychotic medications as monotherapy or as a component of polytherapy, and in clinical settings the use o...

Deficiency of iduronate-2-sulphatase (IDS) results in the X linked recessive lysosomal storage disorder Hunter syndrome. Determination of carrier status in families affected by this disorder has been performed using a variety of enzymatic tests. None of these tests has proved to be 100% effective at identifying carriers. The aim of this study was to perform carrier testing in a family affected ...

OBJECTIVE To characterise balance disorders occurring after head trauma, using videonystagmography, and to test the efficiency of videonystagmography as a diagnostic and monitoring tool. METHOD Prospective, cohort analysis of 126 head trauma patients managed with vestibular evaluation, monitoring and treatment, in a tertiary referral centre. Analytical parameters included: head injury severit...

BACKGROUND Valproate is one of the most used mood stabilisers for bipolar disorder, although the evidence for the effectiveness of valproate is sparse. AIMS To compare the effect of valproate v. lithium for treatment of bipolar disorder in clinical practice. METHOD An observational cohort study with linkage of nationwide registers of all people with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder in psychi...

BACKGROUND Studies in patients with chronic severe constipation, suggest the presence of a diffuse motor disorder of the gastrointestinal tract. AIM To investigate small bowel motor activity in a group of patients with severe constipation. MATERIAL AND METHODS Forty three patients (age range 13 to 70 years, 40 women) with severe constipation referred to our motility laboratory, where studie...

BACKGROUND Little is known about how functional imaging changes in bipolar disorder relate to different phases of the illness. AIMS To compare cognitive task activation in participants with bipolar disorder examined in different phases of illness. METHOD Participants with bipolar disorder in mania (n = 38), depression (n = 38) and euthymia (n = 38), as well as healthy controls (n = 38), und...

OBJECTIVES Females with a lifetime diagnosis of major mood disorder (Bipolar Disorder BD, Major Depressive Disorder MMD) investigated during the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle and in a condition of clinical well-being showed higher blood serum concentrations of progesterone and allopregnanolone compared to healthy controls. Women with BD presented even higher levels than those affected b...