SLEEP EVALUATION IN HUMANS HAS BEEN USUALLY PERFORMED WITH POLYSOMNOGRAPHY (PSG), A TECHNIQUE CONSIDERED THE GOLD STANDARD FOR SLEEP STUDIES. In fact, PSG has been used in clinical trials in spite of its limitations for longitudinal and more naturalistic studies. Actigraphs, instruments to measure wrist motor activity and also called activity monitors, provide an indirect assessment of sleep th...

Since the first cases were reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, December 2019,1 rapid global spread of SARS-CoV-2 has created a worldwide public health crisis. The World Health Organization declared new Coronavirus 2 respiratory infection (COVID-19) pandemic March 2020,2 and as 1 February 2021 there have been more than 103 million people infected with over deaths.3 Prevention strategies me...

In this issue of Pediatrics, Cotter et al1 offer valuable analysis the utility molecular (nucleic acid amplification) enteric pathogen diagnostic technology in hospitalized children. These tests return highly worthwhile information for some infections, but many their results are prone to misinterpretation. However, guidelines based on classic microbiologic techniques do not perform well either....

Preconditioning (PreC) and postconditioning (PostC) have been shown to initiate a number of signaling cascades that reduce cell death. However, the mechanisms by which these signals reduce cell death have been elusive.1 PreC has been shown to phosphorylate and thereby inhibit glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3 , and perfusion with GSK inhibitors has been shown to reduce cell death induced by isch...

To the Editor: Stevens–Johnson syndrome (SJS) represents an immunologically mediated disease due to hypersensitivity to drugs or infections. It is a diffuse, severe mucocutaneous eruption involving mucosal surfaces, with or without visceral involvement or fever. Its pathogenesis is not well understood but mechanisms such as keratinocyte apoptosis are well documented. We report the case of a wom...

Race and Sex Differences in the Effects of Dietary Potassium Intake on the Risk of Stroke To the Editor: We read with great interest the 2 articles by Fang et al1 and Bazzano et al2 on the association between dietary potassium intake and stroke mortality. The study by Fang et al has revealed an inverse association between hazard of stroke death and dietary potassium intake in hypertensive men a...

to operate or not to operate, that is the question. In the case of a displaced diaphyseal fracture of the femur, this question is not a challenge. We do not need a randomised controlled trial to determine if intramedullary nailing of a fracture of the femur is more effective, for any outcome, than months in traction. However, some fractures do not offer such a clear clinical decision-making opp...

Heterogeneity of Association Between MTHFR and Stroke Among European Regions: Additional Population Studies Are Needed in Italy To the Editor: The recent meta-analysis of Cronin et al1 examined the association between the MTHFR C677T polymorphism, the strongest genetic determinant of moderate hyperhomocysteinemia, and ischemic stroke. These authors considered 31 studies, including 15 from Europ...

In recent years, there has been an upsurge of interest in elevation of the plasma concentration of homocysteine and closely related metabolites as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (reviewed, for example, in References 1 through 3). Homocysteine itself is a thiol(sulfhydryl-) containing amino acid, but in normal human plasma and other tissues, a variety of related disulfide ...

M a key mineral, is the second most abundant intracellular cation. It is a cofactor of various enzymes, is essential for maintenance of membrane potentials and modification of vascular tone.1It helps to maintain normal nerve and muscle function and supports a healthy immune system. The tota l magnes ium content in humans is 25 mEq (12.4 mmol) per kilogram of body weight. The normal serum magnes...