Upsala journal of medical sciences
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Left atrial catheter ablation is useful as symptomatic treatment in selected patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Evaluation requires measurement of arrhythmia-related symptoms. Many of the published protocols have drawbacks and have been used in AF only, with no possible comparison to other ablations that compete for the same resources. U22 is a published protocol that quantifies paroxysmal tachycardia symptoms through scales with 11 answer alternatives, translated into discrete numerical scales 0-10. It has been shown to reflect the clinical improvement after ablation of supraventricular tachycardia. Here we report the use of U22 in measuring improvement after catheter ablation for AF. ⋯ U22 quantifies the symptomatic improvement after AF ablation with adequate internal consistency and construct validity. U22 mirrors aspects of the arrhythmia symptomatology other than SF-36.
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Hyaluronan (HA) is the dominant glycosaminoglycan in the renomedullary interstitium. Renomedullary HA has been implicated in tubular fluid handling due to its water-attracting properties and the changes occurring in parallel to acute variations in the body hydration status. ⋯ Reduction of renomedullary interstitial HA using 4-MU reduces the ability of the kidney to respond appropriately upon acute hydration. The results strengthen the concept of renomedullary HA as a modulator of tubular fluid handling by changing the physicochemical properties of the interstitial space.
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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common cause of death. Despite the heavy symptom burden in late stages, these patients are relatively seldom referred to specialist palliative care. ⋯ The survey indicates that the priorities and resources for palliative care in COPD are insufficient in Sweden. The data, despite limitations, reveal a lack of established team-work with specialized palliative care units and actual plans for such co-operation.
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To improve neurointensive care (NIC) and outcome for traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients it is crucial to define and monitor indexes of the quality of patient care. With this purpose we established the web-based Uppsala TBI register in 2008. In this study we will describe and analyze the data collected during the first three years of this project. ⋯ The Uppsala TBI register enables the routine monitoring of NIC quality indexes.
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Comparative Study
Whole-body MRI including diffusion-weighted imaging compared to CT for staging of malignant melanoma.
Whole-body (WB) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), has been increasingly used for the detection of metastatic disease. ⋯ WB MRI is still not ready to replace CT for staging of malignant melanoma, especially in the thorax region. However, WB MRI is advantageous for detection of bone lesions and lesions outside the investigated volume of the conventional CT. When WB MRI is evaluated, both DWI and conventional MRI sequences must be scrutinized.