Use of propranolol for the treatment infantile hemangiomas in the maxillofacial region.

Propranolol has been used successfully in a limited number of children with infantile hemangiomas (IHs). This study describes the efficacy and adverse effects of propranolol in IH. Seventy-one infants with IHs were treated with oral propranolol, administered at a dose of 2 mg/kg/day, for at least 12 weeks. A photograph-based severity scoring assessment was performed by five observers to evaluate efficacy, utilizing a score of 10 as the original IHs before treatment and 0 as completely normal skin. The mean of the five independent measurements was used in the analysis. Propranolol was a rapid and effective treatment for IHs at 4 weeks (P<0.001), at 8 weeks (P<0.001 compared with the value at 4 weeks), at 12 weeks (P<0.05 compared with the value at 8 weeks), and thereafter up to 32 weeks (P<0.01 compared with the value at 16 weeks). The response of IHs to propranolol was similar regardless of gender, age at the onset of treatment, type of involvement (local and extended), facial segments affected, special locations (eyelid, nasal tip, and parotid regions), ulceration, and depth of IHs. In the series of patients in this study, oral propranolol at a dosage of 2 mg/kg/day was a well-tolerated and effective treatment for IHs.

Chiral properties of structure and magnetism in Mn(1-x)Fe(x)Ge compounds: when the left and the right are fighting, who wins?

Magnetic susceptibility measurements have shown that the compounds Mn(1-x)Fe(x)Ge are magnetically ordered through the whole range of concentrations x = [0.0,1.0]. Small-angle neutron scattering reveals the helical nature of the spin structure with a wave vector, which changes from its maximum (|k| = 2.3 nm(-1)) for pure MnGe, through its minimum (|k| → 0) at x(c) ≈ 0.75, to the value of |k| = 0.09 nm(-1) for pure FeGe. The macroscopic magnetic measurements confirm the ferromagnetic nature of the compound with x = x(c). The observed transformation of the helix structure to the ferromagnet at x = x(c) is explained by different signs of chirality for the compounds with x > x(c) and x

Electrotransport and magnetic properties of Cr-GaSb phases synthesized under high pressure.

The electrotransport and magnetic properties of new phases in the Cr-GaSb system were studied. The samples were prepared by high-pressure (P=6-8 GPa), high-temperature treatment and identified by x-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. One of the CrGa(2)Sb(2) phases with an orthorhombic structure Iba2 has a combination of ferromagnetic and semiconductor properties and is potentially promising for spintronic applications. Another high-temperature phase is paramagnetic and identified as tetragonal I4/mcm.

Interplay between magnetism and superconductivity and the appearance of a second superconducting transition in α-FeSe at high pressure.

We synthesized tetragonal α-FeSe by melting a powder mixture of iron and selenium at high pressure. Subsequent annealing at normal pressure results in removing traces of hexagonal ß-FeSe, formation of a rather sharp transition to a superconducting state at T(c)∼7 K, and the appearance of a magnetic transition near T(M) = 120 K. Resistivity and ac-susceptibility were measured on the annealed sample at hydrostatic pressure up to 4.5 GPa. A magnetic transition visible in ac-susceptibility shifts down under pressure and a resistive anomaly typical for a spin density wave (SDW) antiferromagnetic transition develops near the susceptibility anomaly. T(c), determined by the appearance of a diamagnetic response in susceptibility, increases linearly under pressure at a rate dT(c)/dP = 3.5 K GPa(-1). Below 1.5 GPa, the resistive superconducting transition is sharp, the width of transition does not change with pressure and, T(c), determined by a peak in dρ/dT, increases at a rate ∼3.5 K GPa(-1). At higher pressure, a giant broadening of the resistive transition develops. This effect cannot be explained by possible pressure gradients in the sample and is inherent to α-FeSe. The dependences dρ(T)/dT show a signature for a second peak above 3 GPa which is indicative of the appearance of another superconducting state in α-FeSe at high pressure. We argue that this second superconducting phase coexists with SDW antiferromagnetism in a partial volume fraction and originates from pairing of charge carriers from other sheets of the Fermi surface.

[The isolation of Helicobacter pylori from the gastric juice]. / Vydelenie Helicobacter pylori iz zheludochnogo soka.

Gastric contents was examined in 49 patients with duodenal bulb ulcers. Helicobacter pylori were isolated in 83.7% of cases. H. pylori density was found to be 10(3)-10(5) microbial cells per ml. Bacterioscopic studies with gram staining helped detect H. pylori in 79.6% of cases, cultural method revealed the bacteria in 63.3%, and urease test in 4.1% of cases. Poor efficacy of urease test is explained by its poor sensitivity (10(6) microbial cells per ml or higher). The authors analyze the frequency of H. pylori isolation in relation to the month of the examination and gastric contents coloring.

[The use of lasers in treating soft-tissue suppurative-inflammatory diseases]. / Ispol'zovanie lazerov v lechenii gnoino-vospalitel'nykh zabolevanii miagkikh tkanei.

The authors have established in vitro, that helium-neon (HN) laser rays at the therapeutic doses had no bactericidal effect. Bactericidal effect of the rays of an ultraviolet (UV) laser is manifested in exposure for 5 min (output power of 3 mW, pulse frequency of 100 Hz, diameter of the irradiated area of 3 mm). In the clinic, a combined method with the use of HN-laser with radiant power of 20 J/cm2 and UV laser with radiant power of 7 J/cm2 was employed. Duration of treatment of purulent-inflammatory diseases reduced 2-5-fold as compared with that in use of conventional methods of treatment.

[The use of low-intensity laser irradiation in the immediate postoperative period in patients with gastroduodenal ulcer]. / Primenenie nizkointensivnogo lazernogo izlucheniia v blizhaishem posleoperatsionnom periode u bol'nykh s gastroduodenal'noi iazvoi.

In patients with an ulcer of the stomach and duodenum at the immediate postoperative period in the complex of treatment, the low intensity laser irradiation of the anastomosis (after gastric resection) and ulcer (after the organ-preserving operations) according to the developed method by means of the modified LG-75 apparatus was used. The use of a helium-neon laser contributed to development of the severe form of anastomositis and subsequent gastrostasis. In study of gastric secretion, no considerable changes in acid formation were revealed.

[Intensification of the penicillin drying process based on the theory of short-term contact of material with a heat-exchange surface]. / Intensifikatsiia protsessa sushki penitsillina na osnove teorii kratkovremennogo kontakta materiala s teploobmennoi poverkhnost'iu.

The process of potassium benzylpenicillin vacuum drying was investigated. The kinetics of the process showed that a larger period of the drying process was needed for eliminating bound moisture. The influence of the angular velocity of the drier drum rotation on drying duration was studied in a short-term contact model. It was shown that intensity of drying increased with increasing velocity of the drum rotation. Experimental trials confirmed the conclusion and revealed adequacy of the relationship between the drying time and dispersion intensity in the short-term contact model. A qualitative dependence of the coefficient of convective heat exchange between the heating surface and the product on the angular velocity of the drier drum rotation was constructed.

[State of the gastric mucosa after organ-saving operations in duodenal ulcer]. / Sostoianie slizistoi obolochki zheludka posle organosokhraniaiushchikh operatsii pri iazvennoi bolezni dvenadtsatiperstnoi kishki.

Organ-preserving operations on the stomach when combined with vagotomy were found to reduce the acid formation in the stomach which facilitates healing of the duodenal ulcer.

[Effect of truncal vagotomy on the state of pyloric muciferous cells]. / Vliianie stvolovoi vagotomii na sostoianie slizeobrazuiushchikh kletok privratnika zheludka.

The pyloric glands and muciferous superficial cells of the pyloric mucosal membrane have been studied in 62 patients with complicated forms of duodenal ulcer--preoperatively, 2--4 weeks, 6--12 months following truncal vagotomy with drainaged stomach. The light transmission and scanning electron microscopy and stereometry, were used as well as the determination of mucosal production and intragastric pHmetry. It is shown that vagotomy leads to a decrease of inflammatory changes without an essential influence on the pyloric gland size. Ultrastructure of muciferous cells gives evidence of their significant possibilities for mucus production, although the production of gastric mucosal components decreases postoperatively. Apart from this essential decrease of the main and parietal cell size and their secretory activity was noted. This provides an adequate level of acid-neutralizing gastric function following vagotomy.

[Availability and clinical informative value of thyroid function tests]. / Dostupnost' i klinicheskaia informativnost' tireoidnykh testov.

The use of quantitative analysis (point system) suggests that informativeness of a complex of tests of radioactive iodine absorption by the thyroid and radioimmunoassay of hormones is conclusive. It is recommended that a staged approach (primary application of the available tests) be used in the diagnosis of thyroid dysfunction.