Enhanced didactic methods of smoking cessation training for medical students--a randomized study.

BACKGROUND: It is essential that medical students are adequately trained in smoking cessation. A web-based tobacco abstinence training program might supplement or replace traditional didactic methods. METHODS: One-hundred and forty third-year medical students were all provided access to a self-directed web-based learning module on smoking cessation. Thereafter, they were randomly allocated to attend 1 of 4 education approaches: (a) web-based training using the same tool, (b) lecture, (c) role playing, and (d) supervised interaction with real patients. RESULTS: Success of the intervention was measured in an objective structured clinical examination. Scores were highest in Group 4 (35.9 ± 8.7), followed by Groups 3 (35.7 ± 6.5), 2 (33.5 ± 9.4), and 1 (28.0 ± 9.6; p = .007). Students in Groups 4 (60.7%) and 3 (57.7%) achieved adequate counseling skills more frequently than those in Groups 2 (34.8%) and 1 (30%; p = .043). There was no difference in the scores reflecting theoretical knowledge (p = .439). Self-assessment of cessation skills and students' satisfaction with training was significantly better in Groups 3 and 4 as compared with 1 and 2 (p < .001 and p = .006, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Role playing and interaction with real patients are equally efficient and both more powerful learning tools than web-based learning with or without a lecture.

High prevalence of newly detected hypertension in hospitalized patients: the value of inhospital 24-h blood pressure measurement.

OBJECTIVE: Screening for hypertension in hospitalized patients could reduce the number of individuals with unrecognized hypertension. We hypothesized that 24-h blood pressure monitoring is an adequate tool to detect unrecognized hypertension among inpatients. METHODS: Clinically stable inpatients in the Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Visceral Surgery and Department of Orthopaedics were included in the cross-sectional study. Every patient underwent inhospital 24-h blood pressure measurement. Previously unknown hypertension was defined as 24-h blood pressure of at least 125/80 mmHg in the absence of known hypertension. Forty-two patients had an additional 24-h blood pressure measurement after discharge, to compare mean inhospital and outpatient 24-h blood pressure values. RESULTS: In 314 consecutive inpatients, 24-h blood pressure measurement was performed. Among 139 patients without known hypertension, 53 were hypertensive. The mean routine and 24-h blood pressures in these patients were 135/77 and 137/82 mmHg, respectively. Thirty-seven of these patients had normal routine blood pressure and could be detected only by 24-h blood pressure measurement. Patients with unknown hypertension had a marked cardiovascular risk profile, 26 being at high or very high cardiovascular risk. However, documented cardiovascular disease was present in only seven patients, suggesting that effective treatment could prevent a considerable number of cardiovascular events. The agreement between inhospital and outpatient 24-h blood pressure measurement in 42 patients was good. CONCLUSIONS: By performing inhospital 24-h blood pressure measurement, a considerable number of patients with previously unknown hypertension can be detected.

Incidence of contrast nephropathy in patients receiving comprehensive intravenous and oral hydration.

BACKGROUND: Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) remains a major complication of percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) and a common cause of acute renal failure. The most effective preventive strategy is unknown. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to estimate the incidence of CIN in patients receiving comprehensive intravenous and oral volume supplementation for PCI during which iopromide (Ultravist 370, Schering, Berlin, Germany) was used. METHODS: We prospectively studied the development of CIN in 425 consecutive patients undergoing PCI, applying comprehensive intravenous and oral hydration in all patients. Baseline renal function was assessed by calculating the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) with the use of the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study equation. CIN was defined as an increase in serum creatinine of at least 0.5 mg/dl (44 mmol/l) within 48 hours. RESULTS: Mean patients' age (mean +/- SD) was 64 +/- 10 years. A total of 133/425 patients (31%) were 70 years or older, 107 (25%) were women, 70 (16%) were diabetics, 218 (51%) had prior myocardial infarction, and 43 (10%) underwent PCI for an acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Mean GFR was 89 ml/min/1.73 m2. Glomerular filtration rate was below 60 ml/min/ 1.73 m2 in 43 patients (10%). During PCI 226 +/- 80 ml of iopromide were used. With the comprehensive hydration strategy used, CIN developed in only 6 of 425 (1.4%; 95% confidence interval 0.5-3.1%) patients. No patient required dialysis. CONCLUSIONS: Applying the combination of intravenous and oral volume supplementation results in a very low incidence of CIN following PCI. Hydration remains the cornerstone for the prevention of CIN.

Search for occult malignancy in patients with deep venous thrombosis. Results of a retrospective cohort study.

QUESTIONS UNDER STUDY: The association of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and cancer is well established. It is controversial how large the association is and how extensive the evaluation for an underlying cancer should be. PRINCIPLES AND METHODS: 485 patients without a known cancer and a proven DVT formed the cohort of a retrospective study. Newly diagnosed (prevalent) cancers in patients with idiopathic (IDVT) and secondary (SDVT) during the index hospitalisation were compared and the contribution of the steps in an institutional tumour search program was analysed. The incidence of cancer in 204 patients with IDVT and 230 patients with SDVT during follow-up was determined. RESULTS: During the index hospitalisation routine evaluation revealed eleven cancers in 236 patients (4.7% [95%-CI: 2.0-7.3]) with IDVT and five cancers in 249 patients (2.0% [95%-CI: 0.3-3.7]) with SDVT. Combining patient history, clinical examination, routine laboratory tests and chest x-ray showed a sensitivity of 88% and a specificity of 79% for the diagnosis of cancer. Abdominal ultrasound did not significantly increase the yield. 93% of the patients were followed for up to 5 years (mean 32 months). Sixteen cancers occurred in 204 patients (7.8% [95%-CI: 4.0-11.5]) with IDVT and ten in 230 patients (4.35% [95%-CI: 1.7-7.0]) with SVDT (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Prevalence and incidence of cancer were higher in IDVT patients compared to those with SDVT. Combining patient history, clinical examination, simple laboratory tests, and a routine chest x-ray is an appropriate strategy to detect underlying cancer in patients with IDVT. Routine abdominal ultrasound can safely be omitted.

Chlamydia pneumoniae activates epithelial cell proliferation via NF-kappaB and the glucocorticoid receptor.

Chlamydia pneumoniae is an obligate intracellular eubacterium and a common cause of acute and chronic respiratory tract infections. This study was designed to show the effect of C. pneumoniae on transcription factor activation in epithelial cells. The activation of transcription factors by C. pneumoniae was determined in human epithelial cell lines (HL and Calu3) by electrophoretic DNA mobility shift assay, Western blotting, and luciferase reporter gene assay. The activation of transcription factors was further confirmed by immunostaining of C. pneumoniae-infected HL cells and mock-infected controls. The effect of transcription factors on C. pneumoniae-induced host cell proliferation was assessed by [(3)H]thymidine incorporation and direct cell counting in the presence and absence of antisense oligonucleotides targeting transcription factors or the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) antagonist RU486. The activation of the GR, CCAAT-enhancer binding protein (C/EBP), and NF-kappaB was induced within 1 to 6 h by C. pneumoniae. While the interleukin-6 promoter was not activated by C. pneumoniae, the GR-driven p21((Waf1/Cip1)) promoter was increased 2.5- to 3-fold over controls 24 h after infection. C. pneumoniae dose-dependently increased the DNA synthesis of the host cells 2.5- to 2.9-fold, which was partly inhibited either by RU486 or by NF-kappaB antisense oligonucleotides. Furthermore, we provide evidence that heat-inactivated C. pneumoniae does not cause a significant increase in cell proliferation. Our results demonstrate that C. pneumoniae activates C/EBP-beta, NF-kappaB, and the GR in infected cells. However, only NF-kappaB and the GR were involved in C. pneumoniae-induced proliferation of epithelial cells.

Prediction of functional reserves after lung resection: comparison between quantitative computed tomography, scintigraphy, and anatomy.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: We prospectively compared five techniques to estimate predicted postoperative function (ppo F) after lung resection: recently proposed quantitative CT scans (CT), perfusion scans (Q), and three anatomical formulae based on the number of segments (S), functional segments (FS), and subsegments (SS) to be removed. METHODS: Four parameters were assessed: FEV(1), FVC, DL(CO) and VO(2max), measured preoperatively and 6 months postoperatively in 44 patients undergoing pulmonary resection, comparing their ppo value to the postoperatively measured value. RESULTS: The correlations (r) obtained with the five methods were for CT: FEV(1) = 0.91, FVC = 0.86, DL(CO) = 0.84, VO(2max) = 0.77; for Q: 0.92, 0.90, 0.85, 0.85; for S: 0.88, 0.86, 0.84, 0.75; for FS: 0.88, 0.85, 0.85, 0.75, and for SS: 0.88, 0.86, 0.85, 0.75, respectively. The mean difference between ppo values and postoperatively measured values was smallest for Q estimates and largest for anatomical estimates using S. Stratification of the extent of resection into lobectomy (n = 30) + wedge resections (n = 4) versus pneumonectomy (n = 10) resulted in persistently high correlations for Q and CT estimates, whereas all anatomical correlations were lower after pneumonectomy. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that both Q- and CT-based predictions of postoperative cardiopulmonary function are useful irrespective of the extent of resection, but Q-based results were the most accurate. Anatomically based calculations of ppo F using FS or SS should be reserved for resections not exceeding one lobe.

Predictors of methacholine responsiveness in a general population.

OBJECTIVE: Methacholine responsiveness is an end point widely used in epidemiologic studies of asthma. This study aims to quantify the relative importance of different predictors of responsiveness such as age, sex, airway caliber, smoking and atopic status, and potential interactions deserving further investigation. METHODS: Methacholine challenge was performed in 7,126 participants (aged 18 to 60 years) of the Swiss Study on Air Pollution and Lung Diseases in Adults according to the European Respiratory Health Survey protocol. Responsiveness was quantified by the slope between percentage decrements in FEV(1) and cumulative methacholine dose. Variation of slopes according to sex, smoking, and atopy was then examined separately by multivariate regression models that controlled for baseline FEV(1). RESULTS: We found a nonlinear relationship between methacholine slope and baseline FEV(1) for both sexes, which could be well described by a quadratic function. The corresponding curves were almost identical in the region of overlap for male and female neversmokers. Methacholine responsiveness declined with age. The slope of this decline was less steep among nonatopic persons and nonsmokers compared with atopic neversmokers. Methacholine responsiveness increased with the number of cigarettes smoked per day and with the number of positive skin-prick test results (except among heavy smokers). CONCLUSIONS: Our multiple regression results show that bronchial responsiveness (BR) varies with age, FEV(1), and smoking and atopic status. They suggest that there is a physiologic basis for the univariate sex difference in BR. Secondly, they show that while smaller airways are more responsive than larger ones, the reduction of responsiveness diminishes with each increase of lung size. The quantification of the relative influence of the different factors examined should help in the interpretation of BR.

Identification of a novel IL-6 isoform binding to the endogenous IL-6 receptor.

Interleukin (IL)-6 is a multifunctional cytokine showing a wide variety of biologic functions on various tissues. Extracellular IL-6 signals through heterohexameric complex formation with IL-6 receptor-alpha (IL-6Ralpha) and IL-6 receptor-beta (IL-6Rbeta). In analogy to cytokines IL-2 and IL-4, we investigated the expression of IL-6 splice variants in lung tissue and cultivated fibroblasts. In human lung specimens, four different IL-6 transcripts were characterized as follows: native IL-6; IL-6 missing either exon 2 (IL-6Delta2), exon 4 (IL-6Delta4), or missing both; and exons 2 and 4 (IL-6Delta2,4). Only native IL-6 and IL-6Delta4 encoded for proteins of ~ 26 and 17 kD, respectively. Although the overall structure and most functional sites of the IL-6Delta4 protein were predicted to be maintained, IL-6Delta4 was found to lack two amino acids necessary for IL-6/IL-6 homodimerization as well as two of the six amino acids required for interaction with IL-6Rbeta. Receptor mobility shift assays confirmed that the new isoform formed a stable complex with IL-6Ralpha; however, no interaction with IL-6Rbeta was observed. Thus, IL-6Delta4 is likely to compete with native IL-6 for IL-6Ralpha binding but fails to transmit IL-6Rbeta-mediated signaling.

Influence of long-term smoking reduction on health risk markers and quality of life.

We have recently published efficacy and safety data of a study using an oral nicotine inhaler in smoking reduction. The current analysis was undertaken to assess the secondary objectives of the trial: the influence of long-term smoking reduction on health risk markers. Four hundred healthy volunteers, unable or unwilling to stop smoking immediately, were enrolled in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in smoking reduction; 310 were evaluable up to 2 years. Participants were randomized to active or placebo inhalers as needed for up to 18 months, with subjects encouraged to reduce their smoking as much as possible; counseling took place over a 2-year period. For the current prospective cohort study, the number of daily cigarettes, carbon monoxide (CO), cotinine, cardiovascular risk factors, pulmonary function tests, and quality of life were compared between successful reducers (n = 25) and unsuccessful reducers (control group, n = 285). Success was defined as a reduction of daily cigarettes of at least 50% from week 6 to 2 years, verified by a decrease in exhaled CO at all visits compared with baseline. At 2 years, successful reducers showed a significantly greater decrease in cotinine levels (60% vs. 1%, p < 0.001), cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein (HDL) ratios (-2.42 vs. -1.67, p = 0.025), hemoglobin concentrations (-5.67 vs. -1.34 g/l, p = 0.023), pulse rate (-3.7 vs. +1.0 bpm, p = 0.043), and significantly improved general health score (9.40 vs. 2.34, p = 0.049); whereas no difference was found in forced expiratory volume during 1 s (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) compared with controls. The benefits of long-term smoking reduction of at least 50% of daily cigarettes were not offset by compensatory smoking, and the marked decrease in markers of smoke exposure had a positive influence on several cardiovascular risk markers and quality of life assessments.