BACKGROUND Fatigue is common in both Sjögren's syndrome (SS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and can restrict functioning. AIMS We tested the convergent validity of the Profile of Fatigue (ProF) using the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI) in SS and RA. METHODS The 16-item ProF and the 20-item MFI were completed by 82 White-British women aged 35-79 years (mean 60.4 years). Thirty-four h...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the expression of CD64 and CD163 on neutrophils and monocytes in SIRS with/without sepsis and to compare the diagnostic accuracy of CD64 and CD163 molecules expression determined as (1) mean fluorescence intensities (MFI) of CD64 and CD163; and (2) the ratio (index) of linearized MFI to the fluorescence signal of standardized beads. PATIENTS AND METHODS Fifty-six critica...

OBJECTIVE To determine the abnormal patterns of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in male factor infertility (MFI) patients and to define the ROS reference values in such patients. DESIGN A retrospective study. SETTING Male infertility clinic at a tertiary healthcare center. PATIENT(S) We examined 132 MFI patients (all normal sperm parameters, n = 24, and all abnormal sperm paramet...

Using hydrothermal synthesis process a series of Mobil Five (MFI) zeolites were synthesized with silica to alumina ratio (SAR) of 50, 100 and 200. The synthesized MFI zeolites were used to exchange with 0.5%, 1.0% and 2.0% Ca(NO3)2 solutions for modification of MFI zeolites to Ca-MFI zeolite. The formation of MFI zeolite phases was identified by XRD and FT-IR analysis. TGA...

In this paper, the author describes the process of converting from a microfinance institution (MFI) to a regulated bank in Haiti. The literature was helpful as far as some of the procedures were concerned, and the MFI was able to use the recommendations. However there were major omissions in those recommendations from an infrastructure perspective. Using a VPN was a major saving for the MFI in ...

A Mo-modified H-MFI zeolite (Mo/H-MFI) catalyst is one of a typical catalyst for direct GTL (Gas to liquid), because it shows high activity for dehydroaromatization of methane in absence of oxygen. In this reaction, reduction of Mo species is brought about in contact with methane in initial step, and reduced Mo ions react methane to form carbide and/or oxycarbide species in next step. It has be...

OBJECTIVES Familial haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (FHL) is a disorder characterized by deficient cytotoxic T-cell function and activated macrophages, owing to a defect in the perforin gene and absent perforin expression. Because symptoms of patients with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA) are sometimes clinically very similar to those with FHL, we studied whether perforin expre...

STUDY DESIGN Retrospective study of prospectively collected data. OBJECTIVE To analyze the modified frailty index (mFI) as a predictor of adverse postoperative events following posterior lumbar fusion. METHODS The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) database including all adult patients undergoing posterior lumbar interbody fusion or transf...

IMPORTANCE The increasing number of elderly and comorbid patients undergoing surgical procedures raises interest in better identifying patients at increased risk of morbidity and mortality, independent of age. Frailty has been identified as a predictor of surgical complications. OBJECTIVE To establish the implications of frailty as a predictor of morbidity and mortality in inpatient otolaryng...

BACKGROUND Previous in vitro and animal studies demonstrated that transcription factors p-STAT6 and PU.1 are required to induce interleukin (IL)-9 secretion by T helper (Th) 9 cells. It is believed that n factor-kappaB (NF-κB) plays a role in eosinophil survival. The importance of these transcription factors in the pathogenesis of allergic asthma (AA) in humans is poorly understood. We evaluate...