BACKGROUND Epidemiological data link low dietary calcium with pre-eclampsia. Current recommendations are for 1.5-2 g/day calcium supplementation for low-intake pregnant women, based on randomised controlled trials of ≥1 g/day calcium supplementation from 20 weeks of gestation. This is problematic logistically in low-resource settings; excessive calcium may be harmful; and 20 weeks may be too la...

PURPOSE The aim of this study was to assess the effect of pre- vs postincisional low-dose iv ketamine on postoperative pain in outpatients scheduled for oral surgery under general anesthesia. METHODS Eighty-four patients were randomly assigned to receive intravenously saline before and after surgery in Group 1, ketamine 300 microg x kg(-1) iv before and saline after surgery in Group 2, saline...

Dysfunction of the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) has been implicated in atherosclerosis development. However, the nature of UPS dysfunction has been proposed to be specific to certain stages of atherosclerosis development, which has implications for proteasome inhibition as a potential treatment option. Recently, low-dose proteasome inhibition with bortezomib has been shown to attenuate ear...

INTRODUCTION We tested the hypothesis that low dose dobutamine stress echocardiography (LDDSE) combined with tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) can be used for the quantitative assessment of the content of viable myocardium. METHODS Forty-one patients with coronary artery disease and left ventricular dysfunction (ejection fraction < or =40%), already scheduled for revascularisation, underwent echoc...

Glufosinate ammonium (GLA) is one of the most widely used herbicides in agriculture. As is the case for most pesticides, potential adverse effects of GLA have not been studied from the perspective of developmental neurotoxicity. Early pesticides exposure may weaken the basic structure of the developing brain and cause permanent changes leading to a wide range of lifelong effects on health and/o...

BACKGROUND The efficacy and safety of low dose misoprostol as a ripening agent compared to the widely used balloon catheter in developing countries is undetermined. OBJECTIVE To compare the safety and efficacy of a low dose intravaginal misoprostol and intracervical Foley's catheter for cervical ripening. DESIGN A prospective randomized controlled trial. SETTING Zonal General Hospital, Kw...

Introduction In a previous study (1) we compared lesion-to-liver contrast-to-noise ratios (CNR's) following ferumoxides administration at doses of 15μmol/kg (high-dose) and 7.5μmol/kg (low-dose) in patients with colorectal liver metastases. Although the percentage signal intensity loss (PSIL) of the liver was significantly greater in the high dose compared with the low-dose group, the change in...

BACKGROUND Whilst electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is routinely administered under anesthesia in developed nations, in many developing countries, ECT is still administered unmodified. This practice has attracted considerable scrutiny with calls to ban unmodified ECT. However, there are no affordable alternatives for many poor, acutely ill psychiatric patients. We evaluated whether administration...

Ionizing radiation induces modification of the tumor microenvironment such as tumor surrounding region, which is relevant to treatment outcome after radiotherapy. In this study, the effects of pre-irradiated tumor beds on the growth of subsequently implanted tumors were investigated as well as underlying mechanism. The experimental model was set up by irradiating the right thighs of C3H/HeN mic...