BACKGROUND Gastric balloons for weight loss have historically been placed after a screening endoscopy. However, the utility and yield of these endoscopies has not been studied. Therefore, we wanted to evaluate the utility of screening endoscopy and to assess patients who had balloons placed without endoscopy. METHODS Data was collected on two cohorts. Cohort 1 consisted of patients who had a ...

OBJECTIVE To compare the results of open and laparoscopic fundoplication. DESIGN Nonrandomized controlled study with a 3-year follow-up. PATIENTS AND METHODS Fifty-seven consecutive patients with erosive reflux esophagitis underwent laparoscopic (30 patients) or open (27 patients) fundoplication. INTERVENTIONS Interview by an independent person. In addition, 52 patients (91%) underwent po...

The study of utterance and pause durations and their frequencies of occurrence in human speech provides important insights into pathologic conditionstional analysis of speech produced by laryngectomized individuals, in particular , is useful in evaluating progress and efficacy of esophageal speech, a most frequently employed alternative method of speech production by laryngecto-mized patients. ...

The diagnosis of occlusion-generated disorders of the dento-maxillary apparatus represents a sensitive stage within the establishment of the therapeutic means for the functional rehabilitation of dental arches. The laborious effort carried out in order to specify the diagnosis resides in the fact that any trauma arising at the level of any component of the stomatognate system may lead to an occ...

We describe a model to calculate the buffering capacity of bicarbonate in the rumen. The addition of NaHCO3 results in the release of CO2 from solution and eventually from the rumen via eructation. This process directly neutralizes ruminal acidity. The degree to which the process continues depends on the partial pressure of CO2 in the gas phase, the pH, and a constant (7.74), according to the H...

Aim of the present study is to evaluate antibacterial efficiency mixed powder preparation from leaf and flower Stereospermum chelonoides its phytochemical evaluation. Bacterial species tested were isolated UTI cases showed multidrug resistance property. one medicinal trees worshiped as Holy plants in Thyagaraja Swamy Temple Thiruvarur. It belongs family Bignoniaceae commonly called Sivappu Path...

This paper examines the very long-run relationship between income and emissions of enteric methane in New Zealand, over the period 1895 to 1996. Controlling the emissions of this particular greenhouse gas is of crucial importance if that country is to meet its obligations as a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol. We use standard parametric regression, nonparametric regression, and a new nonlinear r...

BACKGROUND Patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are treated with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). Those that do not achieve symptom relief, or non-responders, usually undergo esophageal pH monitoring off PPIs in order to confirm the presence of GERD. AIMS To assess the efficacy of the reverse-PPI trial in evaluating the presence of GERD or its recurrence rates, as well as to ide...

STUDY OBJECTIVE External cricoid and thyroid cartilage manipulations are commonly taught to facilitate laryngeal view during intubation. We compare the laryngeal views during laryngoscopy with 4 manipulations (no manipulation, cricoid pressure, backward-upward-rightward pressure [BURP], and bimanual laryngoscopy) to determine the method that optimizes laryngeal view. METHODS This was a random...

Fifty-eight patients with uncomplicated diverticular disease of the colon took bran crispbread, ispaghula drink, and placebo for four months each in a randomised, cross-over, double-blind controlled trial. Assessments were made subjectively, using a monthly self-administered questionnaire, and objectively, by examining a seven-day stool collection at the end of each treatment period. In terms o...