Anomalous bottom water South of the grand banks suggests turbidity current activity.

Highly turbid bottom water at the margin of the Sohm Abyssal Plain was identified by its temperature, salinity, and oxygen content as originating upslope on the continental rise. The fact that the particulate concentrations were one to two orders of magnitude higher than are normally found in deep ocean waters suggests a turbidity current as the agent bringing this water downslope.

Radiological review of interval cancers in an Australian mammographic screening programme. Radiology Quality Assurance Group of BreastScreen Victoria.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the proportion and features of invasive interval cancers that could be considered detectable at the time of the previous screen and the proportion of cases that could be classified as true intervals, false negatives, minimal signs, or radiographically occult lesions. SETTING: BreastScreen Victoria, the Victorian component of the BreastScreen Australia mammography screening programme. METHODS: Two separate review methodologies were adopted. Firstly a blinded review of interval, screen detected, and normal cases was undertaken, followed by a confirmation exercise to determine the proportion of invasive interval cancers that could be considered detectable at the time of the previous screen. Secondly, an unblinded review was performed to classify interval cases as true interval, false negative, minimal signs, or radiographically occult. RESULTS: From the blinded review, it was estimated that 38% of interval cases may be considered "potentially detectable" at the time of screening. Comparison of the characteristics of interval and screen detected cases indicates that interval cases are more likely to be smaller, equivocal, ill defined masses. In the unblinded exercise, 41% of interval cases were classified as false negatives and a further 16% as minimal signs, 33% true intervals, and 10% radiographically occult. Of the interval cancers considered potentially detectable at screening, 97% were classified as false negatives in the unblinded review. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the importance of adopting staged review methods with both blinded and unblinded components. The blinded review and confirmation exercise allows the determination of the proportion of interval cases that could be considered potentially detectable at screening. The unblinded review provides an active important opportunity for professional development and review and a mechanism to link into the blinded review through further classification of interval cases.

The rising global burden of diabetes and its complications: estimates and projections to the year 2010.

Prevention and control programmes are needed to stem the rising epidemic of diabetes and its complications. However, these will not occur unless governments and public health planners are aware of the potential problem. Using published prevalence rates for NIDDM in different populations, and the current and projected age distributions, worldwide prevalence of NIDDM was estimated for 1995 and 1997, and well as projections for 2000 and 2010. Prevalence rates used for projections were chosen to reflect changes in lifestyle with economic development. The global prevalence of IDDM was estimated using published incidence rates and population figures, incorporating the likely survival time from development of IDDM. Data on diabetes complications are also summarised but no attempt has been made to extrapolate to a global estimated. In 1997, an estimated 124 million people worldwide have diabetes, 97% of these having NIDDM. By the year 2010 the total number of people with diabetes is projected to reach 221 million. The regions with the greatest potential increases are Asia and Africa, where diabetes rates could rise to 2 or 3 times those experienced today. With improvements in the treatment of IDDM, the prevalence of this form of diabetes is likely to increase as more people survive for longer after diagnosis. Increases in complications will undoubtedly follow increasing prevalence of diabetes, but population-based studies using standardised methods of diagnosis are required before reliable estimates of the extent of the problem can be made. It is hoped that the information provided in this report, and others like it, will act as an incentive to initiate or improve local diabetes monitoring and prevention strategies.