Effects of n-3 fatty acids on postprandial triacylglycerol and hormone concentrations in normal subjects

The present study reports results from two investigations to determine effects of a 6-week period of moderate n-3 fatty acid supplementation (2.7 g/d) on fasting and on postprandial triacylglycerol and metabolic hormone concentrations in response to standard test meals. In the first study postprandial responses were followed for 210 min after an early morning test meal challenge; in the second study responses to an evening test meal were followed during the evening and overnight for a total period of 12 h. In both studies postprandial triacylglycerol responses to the test meals were significantly reduced after compared with before fish-oil supplementation. In the second study the triacylglycerol peak response seen between 200 and 400 min in subjects studied before supplementation with fish oils was almost completely absent in the same subjects after 6 weeks of n-3 fatty acid supplementation. Analysis of fasting concentrations of metabolites and hormones was carried out on the combined data from the two studies. There were no significant differences in total, low-density-lipoprotein- or high-density-lipoprotein-cholesterol concentrations during fish-oil supplementation, although there was considerable individual variation in cholesterol responses to the supplement. Concentrations of Apo-B and Apo-A1 were unchanged during supplementation with fish oils. Fasting and early morning postprandial GIP concentrations were lower in subjects taking fish oils, possibly due to acute effects of fish-oil capsules taken on the evening before the studies. In both studies fasting insulin and glucose and postprandial insulin concentrations remained unchanged following fish-oil supplementation. The results do not support the view that triacylglycerol-lowering effects of n-3 fatty acids are due to modulation of insulin secretion mediated via the enteroinsular axis. Further studies are required to determine the precise mechanism by which fish oils reduce both fasting and postprandial triacylglycerol concentrations.

Evidence that AMP triggers phosphorylation as well as direct allosteric activation of rat liver AMP-activated protein kinase. A sensitive mechanism to protect the cell against ATP depletion

1. In freshly isolated rat hepatocytes, the activity of the AMP-activated protein kinase is high, but decreases by 5-10-fold during incubation of the cells for 60 min. The expressed activity of acetyl-CoA carboxylase is initially very low, then rises in a reciprocal manner to the AMP-activated protein kinase activity. For both enzymes, treatment of partially purified preparations under dephosphorylating conditions abolishes the difference in activity between freshly isolated and preincubated cells. Thus, both the high activity of the AMP-activated protein kinase and the low activity of acetyl-CoA carboxylase in freshly isolated cells can be explained by phosphorylation. 2. Immediately after isolation, the hepatocytes have AMP/ATP ratios that are unphysiologically high (approximately 1:1.5). During incubation of the cells for 60 min, AMP levels fall and ATP levels rise so that the ratio becomes about 1:15, close to previous estimates of the ratio in freeze-clamped liver. The fall in AMP/ATP ratio precedes the decrease in AMP-activated protein kinase activity. 3. In cells which have been incubated for 60 min, treatment with 20 mM fructose, which causes a large but transient increase in the AMP/ATP ratio, also causes concomitant activation of the AMP-activated protein kinase and inactivation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase. 4. In all cases described above, the increases in activity of acetyl-CoA carboxylase were blocked by treatment with the cell-permeable protein phosphatase inhibitor, okadaic acid. However, the decreases in activity of the AMP-activated protein kinase were not blocked by this inhibitor. This is consistent with the finding that okadaic-acid-insensitive protein phosphatase 2C is the most effective at dephosphorylating the kinase in cell-free assays. 5. The results above suggested that AMP either promotes phosphorylation, or inhibits dephosphorylation, of the kinase. Studies in a partially purified cell-free system suggested that the former hypothesis was correct; reactivation of dephosphorylated AMP-activated protein kinase by kinase kinase was completely dependent on the presence of AMP. 6. Our results, obtained in both intact cells and a cell-free system, suggest that rises in the AMP/ATP ratio promote phosphorylation of the AMP-activated protein kinase by the kinase kinase, as well as causing direct allosteric activation. This represents a very sensitive system for switching off lipid biosynthetic pathways when ATP levels are limiting. The results with okadaic acid also suggest that protein phosphatase 2C is mainly responsible for dephosphorylation of the AMP-activated protein kinase in intact hepatocytes.

Pheochromocytoma presenting as a skull metastasis with massive extracranial and intracranial extension

A case of metastatic pheochromocytoma is reported in which the diagnosis was determined on the basis of a painless scalp mass. Subsequent to biopsy and histological diagnosis, further investigations revealed a large skull lesion with intracranial extension, an adrenal mass, and various catecholamine abnormalities. The radiological characteristics and operative findings of this case are described, and the literature regarding pheochromocytoma with intracranial metastatic extension is reviewed.

Roles of the AMP-activated and cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinases in the adrenaline-induced inactivation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase in rat adipocytes

1. In isolated rat adipocytes, acetyl-CoA carboxylase is inactivated by treatment of the cells with adrenaline or the beta-agonist isoproterenol, but not by the alpha-agonist phenylephrine. The inactivation is stable during purification in the presence of protein phosphatase inhibitors, and is associated with a 30-40% increase in the labelling of enzyme isolated from 32P-labelled cells. 2. Increased phosphorylation occurs within peptide T1, which was identified by sequencing to be the peptide Ser-Ser77-Met-Ser79-Gly-Leu-His-Leu-Val-Lys, containing Ser-77 (phosphorylated by cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase) and Ser-79 (phosphorylated by the AMP-activated protein kinase). Analysis of the release of radioactivity as free phosphate during Edman degradation of peptide T1 revealed that all of the phosphate was in Ser-79 in both basal and hormone- or agonist-stimulated cells. Treatment of adipocytes with various agents which activate cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase by receptor-independent mechanisms (forskolin, cyclic AMP analogues, isobutylmethylxanthine) also produced inactivation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase and increased phosphorylation at Ser-79. 3. The (Rp)-[thio]phosphate analogue of cyclic AMP, which is an antagonist of binding of cyclic AMP to the regulatory subunit of cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase, opposes the effect of adrenaline on phosphorylation and inactivation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase. Together with the effects of isobutylmethylxanthine and the stimulatory cyclic AMP analogues, this strongly indicates that cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase is an essential component of the signal transduction pathway, although clearly it does not directly phosphorylate acetyl-CoA carboxylase. 4. As shown by okadaic acid inhibition, greater than 95% of the acetyl-CoA carboxylase phosphatase activity in extracts of rat adipocytes or liver is accounted for by protein phosphatase-2A, with less than 5% attributable to protein phosphatase-1. Inhibition of protein phosphatase-1 via phosphorylation of inhibitor-1 is therefore unlikely to be the mechanism by which cyclic-AMP-dependent protein kinase indirectly increases phosphorylation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase. Various other potential mechanisms are discussed.

Angiogenin activates phospholipase C and elicits a rapid incorporation of fatty acid into cholesterol esters in vascular smooth muscle cells

Angiogenin activates the phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PLC) in cultured rat aortic smooth muscle cells to yield a transient (30 s) peak of 1,2-diacylglycerol (DG) and inositol trisphosphate. Within 1 min, the DG level falls below that of the control and remains so for at least 20 min. A transient increase in monoacylglycerol indicates that depletion of DG may be the consequence of hydrolysis by DG lipase. In addition to these changes in second messengers, a rapid increase in incorporation of radiolabeled tracer into cellular cholesterol esters is observed. Stimulated cholesterol ester labeling is inhibited by preincubation with either the DG lipase inhibitor RHC 80267 or the acyl coenzyme A:cholesterol acyltransferase inhibitor Sandoz 58035. Cells prelabeled with [3H]arachidonate show a sustained increase in labeling of cholesterol esters following exposure to angiogenin. In contrast, cells prelabeled with [3H]oleate show only a transient elevation that returns to the basal level by 5 min. This suggests initial cholesterol esterification by oleate followed by arachidonate that is released by stimulation of the PLC/DG lipase pathway.

Systemic biodistribution of radioiodinated interleukin-2 in the rat

Interleukin-2 (IL-2) is a lymphokine capable of modulating a variety of immune functions. In vitro and in vivo studies have shown promising cytotoxic potential. Despite numerous ongoing clinical trials, however, little is known about the biodistribution of this lymphokine after in vivo administration. In this study using a rat model, the fate of radioiodinated human recombinant IL-2 (RIL-2) was analyzed by camera imaging, autoradiography, and well counting experiments. Camera imaging demonstrated the liver and kidney to be the organs of greatest radioactivity accumulation with peak liver uptake noted at approximately 10 min from onset of infusion, and peak kidney uptake at approximately 20 min. Autoradiographic assessment of selected organs (kidney, adrenal, liver, lung, and brain) revealed marked heterogeneity of uptake in the kidney and adrenal gland with preponderance of RIL-2 in the cortex of these organs. A more homogeneous distribution of RIL-2 uptake was noted in liver, lung, and brain parenchyma. Well counting confirmed the liver and kidney as the organs of greatest RIL-2 accumulation. Knowledge of the biodistribution of IL-2 may be of benefit both in studying mechanisms of toxicity and in designing novel therapeutic approaches.

Modulation of mitogenic stimuli by angiogenin correlates with in vitro phosphatidylinositol bisphosphate synthesis

125I-labeled angiogenin binds rapidly to the plasma membrane of several cell lines at 37 degrees C (t1/2 less than 1 min) but in comparatively small amounts. Competition with unlabeled angiogenin varies markedly with different cell lines, being most effective in vascular smooth muscle and fibroblast cells. Angiogenin modulates mitogenic stimuli in bovine adrenal capillary endothelial (BACE), rat aortic smooth muscle (RASM), and fibroblast (3T3) cells. Thus, it enhances the mitogenic effect of certain conditioned media on RASM and 3T3 cells, but it inhibits the mitogenic effect on BACE cells. In RASM and 3T3 cells, mitogenesis is increased at low (less than 5 ng/ml) and high (greater than 100 ng/ml) but not at intermediate concentrations of angiogenin. Plasma membranes from RASM and 3T3 cells that have been treated with angiogenin show an enhanced in vitro synthesis of phosphatidylinositol bisphosphate (PtdInsP2) with an angiogenin concentration dependence similar to that of enhanced mitogenesis. PtdInsP2 synthesis arises by activation of a fatty acid (arachidonyl) coenzyme A synthetase and either a plasma membrane fatty acid acyltransferase or phosphatidylinositol kinase(s), or both. Increased PtdInsP2 or the derived second messengers (e.g., diacylglycerol) may mediate modulation of the mitogenic stimulus. The differential mitogenic interaction of angiogenin with several cell types, either stimulation or inhibition, probably reflects the multistep nature of angiogenesis.

Stopover and fat deposition by North American wood-warblers (Parulinae) following spring migration over the Gulf of Mexico

Length of stopover and rate of weight gain (fat deposition) were studied in several species of passerine birds that stopped in southwestern Louisiana along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico after a trans-Gulf flight. Fatdepleted birds were more common among the birds that arrived at our study site in southwest Louisiana, though variability characterized our samples. Migrants that landed after encountering opposing winds or rain over the northern Gulf of Mexico were, on average, fatter than migrants that landed when weather was favorable for continued migration. Some of the variation in the energetic condition of arrivals may be explained by the location where migrants initiated crossings. Our simulation of flight over the Gulf of Mexico showed that with following winds a warbler can cross the Gulf of Mexico from Yucatan with fat reserves to spare, and stronger tailwinds make flights from as far south as Honduras energetically permissible. The length of stay after a trans-Gulf flight was related to the extent of fat-depletion upon arrival: lean birds stayed longer than fat migrants. Migrants stopped over for 1-7 days and replenished energy reserves at rates that varied from 0.19 g/d for Hooded Warblers (Wilsonia citrina) to 0.87 g/d for Ovenbirds (Seiurus aurocapillus). Within each species, most individuals gained weight at a rapid rate, though a few individuals lost or maintained weight during their stay.

Specific causes of death in miners and ex-miners of the Rhondda Fach 1950-80

The specific causes of death for miners and ex-miners of the Rhondda Fach have been examined in detail using the data base provided by the 30 year follow up. The main findings are the lower specific mortality for those with category A, compared with those with categories 0, 1, 2, and 3, for all circulatory diseases (particularly ischaemic heart disease) and the raised mortality for gastric cancer. These results are surprising because a high proportion of those with, especially, categories 2 and 3 developed category A during the 30 years but fail to show the specific death rates typical of those with category A. Possible reasons for this are discussed and an explanation put forward.

The postcraniectomy site: CT appearance

The hospital records and computed tomographic (CT) scans of 124 postcraniectomy patients were reviewed. The normal CT appearance of the operative site was defined and referred to as the "meningogaleal complex" (MGC). The CT characteristics of postoperative infections, intraaxial tumor recurrences, extraaxial tumor recurrences, and the various forms of postoperative cerebrospinal fluid collections were identified and differentiated by comparison with the normal scans. Specifically, when compared with the "postoperative baseline" anatomy, smooth thickening of the MGC often indicated postoperative infection (six cases), while nodular thickening heralded recurrent extraaxial tumor (eight cases). Recurrent intraaxial tumor adjacent to the craniectomy site caused no change in the MGC itself. A knowledge of the normal postoperative appearance of the MGC as well as good communication with the neurosurgeon can allow earlier detection of postoperative complications.

Mortality of men in the Rhondda Fach 1950-80

In a 30 year follow up study of 8526 men aged 20 and over in the Rhondda Fach 99.9% of the population was traced. Generally, the results are similar to those found in a 20 year follow up of the same subjects. Miners and ex-miners had an excess mortality compared with non-miners, but within the former only those who had had categories B and C pneumoconiosis showed a raised mortality. Category A pneumoconiosis was not associated with any excess compared with other miners and ex-miners. Two further aspects of the data relating to gastric cancer and progressive massive fibrosis will be examined in later reports.

Truncal vagotomy and drainage: a comparison of elective and emergency operations

A comparison has been made between truncal vagotomy and drainage (TV + D) performed from 1968 to 1981 in 209 patients electively and in 68 patients as an emergency. The male:female distribution was 167:42 and 59:9 with a significant difference (P less than 0.001) in the mean ages of 49 years and 55 years respectively. Major postoperative complications following emergency TV + D (22 per cent) were significantly more common (P less than 0.001) than following elective TV + D (6.7 per cent) with seven (10.3 per cent) and one (0.5 per cent) deaths respectively. Of 163 patients in the elective and 54 in the emergency group followed up for an average of 5.7 and 5.9 years respectively, 132 patients (81 per cent) and 46 (82.5 per cent) had a good functional result graded as Visick I and II, but 31 (19 per cent) and 8 (14.8 per cent) patients respectively had a poor result due to recurrent ulceration in 23 (14.1 per cent) after elective TV + D and in all 8 (14.8 per cent) after emergency TV + D. These results are not statistically different. Thus emergency TV + D carries a higher mortality and morbidity than elective TV + D, but the long term results are similar. This conclusion substantiates the equivalent effectiveness of emergency and of elective TV + D.

The relevance in adults of air-flow obstruction, but not of mucus hypersecretion, to mortality from chronic lung disease. Results from 20 years of prospective observation

From 1954 to 1961, pulmonary function was assessed in 2,718 British men by forced expiratory maneuvers, and mucus hypersecretion and smoking habits were assessed by questionnaires. In 20 to 25 yr of follow-up, 104 men (all of whom had smoked) died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The risk of death from COPD was strongly correlated with the initial degree of air-flow obstruction. Among men with similar initial air-flow obstruction, however, age-specific COPD death rates were not significantly related to initial mucus hypersecretion, supporting the concept that air-flow obstruction and mucus hypersecretion are largely independent disease processes. A moderate relationship existed between initial mucus hypersecretion and subsequent lung cancer mortality, but it is not known whether this was due solely to a common correlation of both conditions with the effective degree of exposure of the large bronchi to causative factors such as tobacco smoke.

Theophylline antagonizes diazepam-induced psychomotor impairment

Eight healthy men received an oral dose of 0.25 mg/kg diazepam followed 40 min later by an intravenous infusion of 100 ml physiological sodium chloride solution, with or without 4.4 mg/kg theophylline. Psychomotor function was assessed after each blood sampling up to 5 h post-infusion. Thirty min after diazepam psychomotor performance measured by Card Sorting test and Digit Symbol Substitution test was impaired and subjects felt sleepy and could think less clearly (two factors of the Clyde Mood Scale). Theophylline antagonized the diazepam-induced impairment statistically significantly for up to 5 h and subjects felt less tense and less apprehensive (State Anxiety Inventory). Since pharmacokinetic parameters of diazepam seemed not to be different after theophylline, interaction at receptor level can be assumed.

Are coalminers, with low "risk factors" for ischaemic heart disease at greater risk of developing progressive massive fibrosis?

Coalminers with "A" shadows (the first stage of progressive massive fibrosis (PMF)) have a similar standardised mortality ratio (SMR) to those without PMF, and those with A shadows have a much higher specific mortality from pneumoconiosis. It is therefore argued that either A shadows confer immunity against some other disease(s) or that those developing A shadows are selected on the basis of increased life expectancy. These two hypotheses were investigated and as the selection hypothesis appeared promising further studies were made to discover which specific cause of death might be associated with this selection. This, surprisingly, appeared to be ischaemic heart disease.

Prostaglandin vaginal suppositories: a simple and safe approach to the induction of labor

The results of 1000 consecutive unselected cases of induction of labor for medical or obstetric reasons using prostaglandin E2 suppositories are presented. The overall rate of failed induction resulting in a cesarean section in those patients with an unfavorable cervix has fallen from 42 to 2.5%. Only 27% of the entire series required augmentation of labor with intravenous oxytocin, the range being from 9.9% of multigravidas with a favorable cervix to 42.4% of primigravidas with an unfavorable cervix. Both low- and high-risk pregnancies are suitable for induction by this method and trials of vaginal breech delivery and of uterine scars have been safely and successfully carried out. This method has now become routine for the induction of labor at the authors' institution. It has proved to be simple, safe, and highly acceptable to patients and obstetricians alike in all cases in which a simple amniotomy would not suffice.

A 20-year follow-up of a population sample (aged 25-34) including coal-miners and foundry workers in Staveley, Derbyshire

A 20-year follow-up of a population sample of men aged 25-34 has been completed in Staveley, Derbyshire. The sample was based on a private census, with brief industrial histories, that enabled four groups to be established--"non-dusty," "pure coal-mining," "pure foundry," and "other and mixed." The similarity of the mortality rates of non-dusty, coal-mining, and foundry groups is satisfactory, but there is, however, a surprisingly high mortality rate in the other and mixed group. We were unable to explain this on the basis of their industrial exposure, and only to a very limited extent by their smoking habits. We suggest that there is a small group of uncooperative men, overweight for their height and heavy smokers, who self-select themselves into jobs that are classified in a study such as this as other and mixed.

A 20-year follow-up of men aged 55-64 including coal-miners and foundry workers in Staveley, Derbyshire

A survey carried out in 1957 by the Medical Research Council's Pneumoconiosis Unit was based on a private census, with brief industrial histories of men aged 55-64 and 25-34. Four groups were established in this way--"non-dusty," "pure coal-mining," "pure foundry," and "other and mixed." In the 55-64 age group all 387 men have been followed up except for one man, about whom we have no information, and another man, for whom we know the date of death but not the certified cause. The mortality from all causes is similar in all four groups, but there is a slight suggestion of a past or present dust problem, or both, in the foundry population. It is suggested that Staveley is, so far, the bet area we have found for studying simple pneumoconiosis of coal-miners. If this suggestion is accepted the mortality rates for miners and ex-miners with simple pneumoconiosis seem similar to those of the same age not exposed to industrial dusts, living in the same area, with similar smoking habits.

Mortality in two radom samples of women aged 55-64 followed up for 20 years

Two random samples of women aged 55-64 living in the Vale of Glamorgan and the Rhondda Fach were followed up for 20 years. In each sample heights, weights, serum cholesterol concentrations, and specific causes of death were noted and the Quetelet index (weight/height2) calculated. The two samples were combined for analysis of total mortality. In the combined sample there was a strong positive association between Quetlet index and both total mortality and mortality from ischaemic heart disease. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that both of these associations were significant, as was the strong positive association between Quetelet index and mortailty from ischaemic heart disease in the samples considered separately. There was no significant association between cholesterol concentration and mortality from ischaemic heart disease in each sample. There was a small negative association between cholesterol concentration and both total mortaility in the combined sample and ischaemic heart disease in the Rhondda Fach sample. These results suggest that the Quetelet index is important for prognosis, whereas the serum cholesterol concentration is not.

A randomised controlled trial of the effect of the provision of free school milk on the growth of children

A randomised controlled study was carried out of the effect on growth of the provision of free milk supplements to schoolchildren aged 7 and 8. In selecting children for this study, the aim was to identify those whose socioeconomic circumstances might place them at a disadvantage for growth. Five hundred and eighty-one-children were selected from schools where a high proportion of the pupils received free school meals, and from families with four or more children. The subjects were randomly allocated to receive a third of a pint (190 ml) of free milk daily for six school terms or to a control group. The mean difference in height gain at the end of twenty-one-and-a-half months was 3% or 2.93 mm (P less than 0.05) in favour of the children provided with free milk. The mean difference in weight gain was 130 g (P greater than 0.05) in their favour. The height and weight gain associated with the provision of free mild was very small in the study population, and it is therefore likely that the benefit to growth of providing free milk for the whole unselected population of schoolchildren of these ages would be even smaller.

Studies of blood pressure in Tecumseh, Michigan. I. Blood pressure in young people and its relationship to personal and familial characteristics and complications of pregnancy in mothers

Relationships between blood pressures (BPs) of young people and a number of personal, parental and familial characteristics have been assessed in the population of Tecumseh, Michigan. Systolic and fifth phase diastolic BPs were measured in 4500 persons under 20 years of age at the time of their first examination. Body size, fatness and heart rates of the subjects themselves were significantly related to their age- and sex-adjusted BP scores. The parents' BP scores were also correlated with those of the young subjects, and scores were significantly higher in those whose mothers had had high BP or toxemia in pregnancy of a stillbirth. A weak association between BP and socioeconomic circumstances was suggested by the slightly higher mean BP scores found in sons and daughters of men in blue collar jobs and of men and women with the least education. BP levels were not associated with birth order, sibship size or birth weight nor with the numbers of pregnancies, live births or abortions experienced by the mothers of young subjects. In a stepwise multiple regression, the most important determinants of BP were weight/height ratios of the subjects themselves and BP levels of their parents; a small additional effect of complications of pregnancy in the mother was detectable in the offspring 0--19 years laters.

Factors associated with cardiac mortality in developed countries with particular reference to the consumption of wine

Deaths from ischaemic heart-disease in 18 developed countries are not strongly associated with health-service factors such as doctor and nurse density. There is a negative association with gross national product per capita and a positive but inconsistent association with saturated and monounsaturated fat intake. The principal finding is a strong and specific negative association between ischaemic heart-disease deaths and alcohol consumption. This is shown to be wholly attributable to wine consumption.

The mortality of men in the Rhondda Fach, 1950--1970

A more detailed analysis of material from the 20-year follow-up of men in the Rhondda Fach confirms the similarity between the Standardised Mortality Ratios (SMRs) of miners and exminers with radiological categories 0, 1, 2, 3 and A (120.3, 116.5, 119.0, 115.7, and 120.1 respectively) as well as the difference between these SMRs and that of the non-moners (98.7). The specific death rates show a raised SMR for bronchitis and other respiratory diseases excluding pneumoconiosis for all categories including category 0, but little difference between those for category 0 and those for simple pneumoconiosis. The SMRs for ischaemic heart disease and other circulatory diseases for categories A, B and C combined are lower than those for simple pneumoconiosis and category 0 (84.2 and 85.0, compared with 109.8 and 121.8 for simple pneumoconiosis, and 117.5 and 114.6 for category 0). Fortunately the SMR for leukaemia is low. A comparison between the survival rates of men aged 55-64 in Leigh, Lancashire and those in the Rhondda Fach suggests that nonminers in the two areas have similar survival rates while the survival rates for category 0 and simple pneumoconiosis are lower in the Rhondda Fach.

Health service 'input' and mortality 'output' in developed countries

The relationship between age-specific mortality rates and some indices of health facilities and some environmental and dietary factors has been studied in 18 developed couuntries. The indices of health care are not negatively associated with mortality, and there is a marked positive association between the prevalence of doctors and mortality in the younger age groups. No explanation of this doctor anomaly has so far been found. Gross national product per head is the principal variable which shows a consistently strong negative association with mortality.

Medical rehabilitation unit--Palmerston North, the first four years

The first four years of the Palmerston NORTH Medical Rehabilitation Unit are described. Reference is given to buildings, patients and staff considerations and organisation of the Unit. The outcome of the Unit's activities are discussed. Evaluation is attempted. Attention is drawn to the value of work assessment in a hospital setting.

Temperature and deaths from ischaemic heart disease

Certain features of the relationship between 11 measurements of weekly temperature and the number of deaths from ischaemic heart disease (IHD) within age groups in Greater London between 1970 and 1974 are described. Firstly, the correlation coefficients between age-specific deaths from IHD and each of the temperature variables are of a similar order. Secondly, in contrast, the linear regression coefficients between deaths and temperature are more variable and depend upon the particular measurement of temperature chosen. Thirdly, the proportional changes in the number of deaths with the temperature variables are similar within specific age groups; consequently it is suggested that deaths from IHD and temperature may be directly related.

Marihuana metabolites in urine of man. V. Characterization and separation of polar metabolites of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol

Extraction of human urine with ether at pH 12 and thin-layer chromatography using two solvent systems permitted separation of several polar metabolites of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), not previously isolated by these techniques. These metabolites appeared as conjugates and are probably dihydroxy alcohols.

Mortality in punctiform type of coalworkers' pneumoconiosis

Waters, W. E., Cochrane, A. L., and Moore, F. (1974).British Journal of Industrial Medicine,31, 196-200. Mortality in punctiform type of coalworkers' pneumoconiosis. Recent studies conducted on miners at necropsy and on those attending a pneumoconiosis medical panel have suggested that the punctiform type of opacities are associated with a significant gas transfer defect and with emphysema. However, a 10-year follow-up of a random sample of miners and ex-miners in the Rhondda Fach found that the mortality experience of those with the punctiform type was, if anything, more favourable than that for other types of pneumoconiosis. This may be related to radiographic technique, but there may also be physiological reasons. There was no evidence that those with the punctiform type had different smoking habits from those with other types of pneumoconiosis.