BACKGROUND The severity of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) is significantly associated with future coronary heart disease (CHD) among individuals without baseline Type 2 diabetes. However, the validity of assessing MetS severity among individuals with diabetes is unknown. OBJECTIVE To assess for differences in MetS severity by timing of Type 2 diabetes diagnosis and to assess for associations b...

indirect immunofluorescence (iif) has been used to identify and measure autoantibody levels in pemphigus vulgaris but data about relationship between clinical severity of disease and antibody titers by iif have been conflicting. we conducted this cross-sectional study to correlate the severity of oral and/or cutaneous involvement in patients with pemphigus vulgaris based on pemphigus area and a...

Understanding the role of foreign aid in poverty alleviation is one of the central inquiries for development economics. To augment past crosscountry studies and randomized evaluations, this project estimates the first sub-national model of foreign aid allocation and impact. Newly geocoded aid project data from Malawi is used in combination with multiple rounds of living standards data to predic...

BACKGROUND Helicopters have become a major part of the modern trauma care system and are frequently used to transport patients from the scene of their injury to a trauma center. While early studies reported decreased mortality for trauma patients transported by helicopters when compared with those transported by ground ambulances, more recent research has questioned the benefit of helicopter tr...

BACKGROUND Little is known about the long-term consequences of severe injuries in terms of return to productivity and quality of life. METHODS In this study we focused on the return to work status and quality of life in 53 severely injured patients (AIS/ISS > or = 16, mean ISS 24, range 16 - 54), mean age 37 years, one to two years after the injury. Questions were asked concerning employment ...

Vitamin D is important in multiple aspects of health and its effects are mediated through the Vitamin D Receptor (VDR). We wanted to test the hypothesis that specific haplotypes of the VDR gene are associated with markers of disease severity, inflammation and bone health in Sickle Cell Disease (SCD). Genotyping was performed on DNA specimens from 1141 study participants in the NIH-funded Silent...

BACKGROUND Trauma is the fifth leading cause of death in patients 65 years and older. This study is a comparison of results of Revised Trauma Score (RTS), Injury Severity Score (ISS), and Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS) in prediction of mortality in cases of geriatric trauma. METHODS This is a cross-sectional study of records of 352 elderly trauma patients who were admitted to Pour-S...