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Friday, March 9, 2012

Widespread vitamin D deficiency among nursing home residents linked to earlier death; strategies to improve vitamin D status "urgently needed"


Friday, March 9, 2012. A study of nursing home residents described in an article scheduled for publication in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism reveals a link between being deficient in vitamin D and having a greater risk of dying over more than two years of follow up. While reduced vitamin D levels have been associated with an increased risk of premature mortality in the general population, the association in an institutionalized population has not been well explored.

The study included 961 nursing home residents residing in Austria whose age was greater than 70 years. Participants' serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels averaged 17.5 nanomoles per liter, and 92.8 percent of the subjects had levels lower than the recommended 50 nanomoles per liter.

Over an average follow-up of 27 months, 284 deaths occurred. For subjects whose vitamin D level was among the lowest 25 percent of participants at less than 14 nanomoles per liter, the risk of dying was 49 percent greater than those whose level was highest at over 25.5 nanomoles per liter. Adjustment for various factors failed to significantly modify the association. "We believe that our findings, together with previous data on institutionalized elderly, strongly point to the need for immediate action to prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency in these patients," the authors write. "Considering the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency it seems reasonable to initiate vitamin D supplementation (at least 800 IU per day) even without previous 25-hydroxyvitamin D testing in such individuals."

"Our findings show that the vast majority of nursing home residents are severely vitamin D deficient and those with the lowest vitamin D levels are at high risk of mortality," commented lead author Stefan Pilz, MD, of the Medical University of Graz, Austria.

"Vitamin D supplementation in these patients can exert significant benefits on clinically relevant outcomes such as fractures," he added. "In light of our findings, and the existing literature on adverse effects of vitamin D deficiency, there exists now an urgent need for effective strategies to improve vitamin D status in older institutionalized patients."


About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.

Friday, March 9, 2012. A study of nursing home residents described in an article scheduled for publication in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism reveals a link between being deficient in vitamin D and having a greater risk of dying over more than two years of follow up. While reduced vitamin D levels have been associated with an increased risk of premature mortality in the general population, the association in an institutionalized population has not been well explored.

The study included 961 nursing home residents residing in Austria whose age was greater than 70 years. Participants' serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels averaged 17.5 nanomoles per liter, and 92.8 percent of the subjects had levels lower than the recommended 50 nanomoles per liter.

Over an average follow-up of 27 months, 284 deaths occurred. For subjects whose vitamin D level was among the lowest 25 percent of participants at less than 14 nanomoles per liter, the risk of dying was 49 percent greater than those whose level was highest at over 25.5 nanomoles per liter. Adjustment for various factors failed to significantly modify the association. "We believe that our findings, together with previous data on institutionalized elderly, strongly point to the need for immediate action to prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency in these patients," the authors write. "Considering the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency it seems reasonable to initiate vitamin D supplementation (at least 800 IU per day) even without previous 25-hydroxyvitamin D testing in such individuals."

"Our findings show that the vast majority of nursing home residents are severely vitamin D deficient and those with the lowest vitamin D levels are at high risk of mortality," commented lead author Stefan Pilz, MD, of the Medical University of Graz, Austria.

"Vitamin D supplementation in these patients can exert significant benefits on clinically relevant outcomes such as fractures," he added. "In light of our findings, and the existing literature on adverse effects of vitamin D deficiency, there exists now an urgent need for effective strategies to improve vitamin D status in older institutionalized patients."


About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.
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JOIN THE REVOLUTION IN SCOLIOSIS CARE!





About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.




About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.
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Ask Dr Kevin Lau Scoliosis Questions - Connect with him on social media ...





About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.




About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.
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Thursday, March 8, 2012

Raw food diets for kittens

Progress report, Winn grant 09-002
Nutritional adequacy and performance of raw food diets in kittens
Investigators: Beth Hamper, Claudia Kirk, Joe Bartges
University of Tennessee

MP900430956This study examined the feeding of a raw diet and its effects on kittens. The feeding trials have been completed using 24 kittens and two different raw food diets (homemade and commercial). The control diet was a commercially available kitten food. Weight gain over a 10-week period was at the high end of previously determined data for all kittens. Male kittens had higher weight gain than females, but all diets performed equally well. Blood protein and amino acid levels were in the normal range. Evidence of Salmonella infection was evident in some kittens fed the raw diet, but was not clinically significant.

Both raw diets met the claims for nutritional adequacy. White blood cell counts were slightly elevated in the kittens fed the homemade raw diet, likely a reflection of the higher microbial content. Innate immunity appeared to function at a higher level in the kittens fed a raw diet. One litter of 4 kittens experienced diarrhea. Overgrowth of Clostridium perfringens was later documented; this bacterium thrives in the gut on high protein diets. Two of the litters had diarrhea due to Anaerobiosprillium spp, a normal flora but capable of causing disease. Digestibility was highest for the raw diets, leading to less fecal matter. A final report will be available upon completion of the primary investigator’s dissertation. [MK]

Related articles: Stiver S, Frazier K, Mauel M and Styer E. Septicemic salmonellosis in two cats fed a raw-meat diet. J Am Anim Hosp Assoc. 2003; 39: 538-42.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+ 
Progress report, Winn grant 09-002
Nutritional adequacy and performance of raw food diets in kittens
Investigators: Beth Hamper, Claudia Kirk, Joe Bartges
University of Tennessee

MP900430956This study examined the feeding of a raw diet and its effects on kittens. The feeding trials have been completed using 24 kittens and two different raw food diets (homemade and commercial). The control diet was a commercially available kitten food. Weight gain over a 10-week period was at the high end of previously determined data for all kittens. Male kittens had higher weight gain than females, but all diets performed equally well. Blood protein and amino acid levels were in the normal range. Evidence of Salmonella infection was evident in some kittens fed the raw diet, but was not clinically significant.

Both raw diets met the claims for nutritional adequacy. White blood cell counts were slightly elevated in the kittens fed the homemade raw diet, likely a reflection of the higher microbial content. Innate immunity appeared to function at a higher level in the kittens fed a raw diet. One litter of 4 kittens experienced diarrhea. Overgrowth of Clostridium perfringens was later documented; this bacterium thrives in the gut on high protein diets. Two of the litters had diarrhea due to Anaerobiosprillium spp, a normal flora but capable of causing disease. Digestibility was highest for the raw diets, leading to less fecal matter. A final report will be available upon completion of the primary investigator’s dissertation. [MK]

Related articles: Stiver S, Frazier K, Mauel M and Styer E. Septicemic salmonellosis in two cats fed a raw-meat diet. J Am Anim Hosp Assoc. 2003; 39: 538-42.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+ 
Read More


Altered Stem Cells Limit Transplant Rejection


March 7, 2012 -- New research holds the promise of freeing manyorgan transplant patients from a lifetime of anti-rejection drugs.
In the first study of its kind, eight kidney transplant patients received stem cells from their kidney donors manipulated to “trick” their bodies into accepting the foreign organ as its own.
Transplant recipients who are not perfectly matched with their donors typically take several drugs a day for the rest of their lives to keep their bodies from rejecting the new organ and to treat the side effects of those drugs.
Lindsay Porter, who was the last of the eight patients enrolled in the new study, had her kidney transplant in the summer of 2010 and was weaned off all anti-rejection drugs within a year.
The Chicago actress and mother says she feels better than she has in 15 years and sometimes has to remind herself that she had a kidney transplant.
“I was 45 when I had the surgery, and I knew I would probably need another kidney at some point,” she tells WebMD. “The opportunity to have a transplant that would last for the rest of my life and to avoid all of those drugs was very appealing.”

Stem Cells Made Transplant Friendly

The ongoing research is the culmination of many years of work by researcher Suzanne Ildstad, MD, of the University of Louisville, and other researchers, including transplant surgeon Joseph Leventhal, MD, PhD, of Chicago’s Northwestern University.
The new wrinkle is that organ donors who are not a perfect genetic match with the patient donate blood as well as a kidney for the procedure.
Bone marrow stem cells collected from the blood were processed in an 18-hour procedure to remove cells associated with organ rejection, leaving behind “facilitating” cells that do not promote rejection, Ildstad says.
Porter and the other patients in the study had chemotherapy about a month before their surgeries to suppress their own immune systems before receiving the manipulated donor stem cells in an effort to increase the likelihood that those stem cells would reprogram the body to accept the transplant.
The procedures were performed in the eight patients between February 2009 and July 2010, and five of the eight have maintained normal kidney function and were able to stop taking all anti-rejection drugs within a year of having their transplants.
Ildstad says the stem cell approach may prove useful for other solid-organ transplants and for many other conditions, including type 1 diabetes and sickle cellanemia.

Research Is a Possible ‘Paradigm Shift’ for Transplants

Leventhal says the research team is now working to modify the approach so that it can be used when the transplanted kidney comes from a donor who has died.
About two-thirds of the roughly 17,000 kidney transplants performed in the U.S. each year involve deceased donors.
He says once this hurdle is overcome, the enriched stem-cell technique could end the need for immunosuppressive drugs in transplant patients.
“These drugs are, quite frankly, toxins,” he tells WebMD. “We use them as a means to an end, but they very negatively impact quality of life and how long transplanted organs last.”
In an editorial published with the study, Massachusetts General Hospital transplant researchers James F. Markmann, MD, and Tatsuo Kawai, MD, noted that the research has the potential to have “an enormous paradigm-shifting impact” on solid-organ transplants.
The study and editorial appear in the March 7 issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine.
“Although only a taste of things to come, few transplant developments in the past half-century have been more enticing than these that put transplantation tolerance within our grasp,” they wrote.
Lindsay Porter is just grateful to be able to keep up with a very active 5-year-old son.
“Frankly, every day that I am not on immunosuppressive drugs is a much better day for my body,” she says.



About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.

March 7, 2012 -- New research holds the promise of freeing manyorgan transplant patients from a lifetime of anti-rejection drugs.
In the first study of its kind, eight kidney transplant patients received stem cells from their kidney donors manipulated to “trick” their bodies into accepting the foreign organ as its own.
Transplant recipients who are not perfectly matched with their donors typically take several drugs a day for the rest of their lives to keep their bodies from rejecting the new organ and to treat the side effects of those drugs.
Lindsay Porter, who was the last of the eight patients enrolled in the new study, had her kidney transplant in the summer of 2010 and was weaned off all anti-rejection drugs within a year.
The Chicago actress and mother says she feels better than she has in 15 years and sometimes has to remind herself that she had a kidney transplant.
“I was 45 when I had the surgery, and I knew I would probably need another kidney at some point,” she tells WebMD. “The opportunity to have a transplant that would last for the rest of my life and to avoid all of those drugs was very appealing.”

Stem Cells Made Transplant Friendly

The ongoing research is the culmination of many years of work by researcher Suzanne Ildstad, MD, of the University of Louisville, and other researchers, including transplant surgeon Joseph Leventhal, MD, PhD, of Chicago’s Northwestern University.
The new wrinkle is that organ donors who are not a perfect genetic match with the patient donate blood as well as a kidney for the procedure.
Bone marrow stem cells collected from the blood were processed in an 18-hour procedure to remove cells associated with organ rejection, leaving behind “facilitating” cells that do not promote rejection, Ildstad says.
Porter and the other patients in the study had chemotherapy about a month before their surgeries to suppress their own immune systems before receiving the manipulated donor stem cells in an effort to increase the likelihood that those stem cells would reprogram the body to accept the transplant.
The procedures were performed in the eight patients between February 2009 and July 2010, and five of the eight have maintained normal kidney function and were able to stop taking all anti-rejection drugs within a year of having their transplants.
Ildstad says the stem cell approach may prove useful for other solid-organ transplants and for many other conditions, including type 1 diabetes and sickle cellanemia.

Research Is a Possible ‘Paradigm Shift’ for Transplants

Leventhal says the research team is now working to modify the approach so that it can be used when the transplanted kidney comes from a donor who has died.
About two-thirds of the roughly 17,000 kidney transplants performed in the U.S. each year involve deceased donors.
He says once this hurdle is overcome, the enriched stem-cell technique could end the need for immunosuppressive drugs in transplant patients.
“These drugs are, quite frankly, toxins,” he tells WebMD. “We use them as a means to an end, but they very negatively impact quality of life and how long transplanted organs last.”
In an editorial published with the study, Massachusetts General Hospital transplant researchers James F. Markmann, MD, and Tatsuo Kawai, MD, noted that the research has the potential to have “an enormous paradigm-shifting impact” on solid-organ transplants.
The study and editorial appear in the March 7 issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine.
“Although only a taste of things to come, few transplant developments in the past half-century have been more enticing than these that put transplantation tolerance within our grasp,” they wrote.
Lindsay Porter is just grateful to be able to keep up with a very active 5-year-old son.
“Frankly, every day that I am not on immunosuppressive drugs is a much better day for my body,” she says.



About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.
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Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Long-Term Clinical Outcomes of Surgery for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis 21 to 41 Years Later


ABSTRACT: Study Design. A case control study.
Objective. To determine the clinical outcome of middle-aged patients surgically treated for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis and compare their outcomes to assessments of age- and sex-matched healthy controls.
Summary of Background Data. Several long-term follow-up studies have been published on the clinical outcomes of surgical treatment for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis in patients who have reached their 20s or 30s. However, clinical outcomes in patients who have reached middle age remain unknown.
Methods: This study included 256 patients surgically treated for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) between 1968 and 1988. The Scoliosis Research Society Patient Questionnaire (SRS-22) and Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RDQ) were used for evaluating long-term clinical outcomes. Sixty-six (25.8%; 62 females, 4 males; mean age, 46.0 years [range 34-56]) of the 256 patients responded to the questionnaires. The mean follow-up period was 31.5 (range 21-41) years. Seventy-six healthy age- and sex-matched individuals with neither a history of spinal surgery nor scoliosis were selected as a control (CTR) group.
Results. Based on SRS-22 responses, AIS patients had significantly decreased function and decreased self-image in comparison with the controls, but the two groups were similar with respect to pain and mental health. The RDQ responses indicated that low back pain was not significantly increased in the AIS group compared with the CTR group.
Conclusion. Surgery had no demonstrable adverse effects on pain or mental health in these middle-aged AIS patients 21-41 years after surgery, although the AIS patients did have significantly lower function and lower self-image than the controls. (my emphasis)
This is pretty telling, in my opinion.
Source: PubMed


About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.

ABSTRACT: Study Design. A case control study.
Objective. To determine the clinical outcome of middle-aged patients surgically treated for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis and compare their outcomes to assessments of age- and sex-matched healthy controls.
Summary of Background Data. Several long-term follow-up studies have been published on the clinical outcomes of surgical treatment for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis in patients who have reached their 20s or 30s. However, clinical outcomes in patients who have reached middle age remain unknown.
Methods: This study included 256 patients surgically treated for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) between 1968 and 1988. The Scoliosis Research Society Patient Questionnaire (SRS-22) and Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RDQ) were used for evaluating long-term clinical outcomes. Sixty-six (25.8%; 62 females, 4 males; mean age, 46.0 years [range 34-56]) of the 256 patients responded to the questionnaires. The mean follow-up period was 31.5 (range 21-41) years. Seventy-six healthy age- and sex-matched individuals with neither a history of spinal surgery nor scoliosis were selected as a control (CTR) group.
Results. Based on SRS-22 responses, AIS patients had significantly decreased function and decreased self-image in comparison with the controls, but the two groups were similar with respect to pain and mental health. The RDQ responses indicated that low back pain was not significantly increased in the AIS group compared with the CTR group.
Conclusion. Surgery had no demonstrable adverse effects on pain or mental health in these middle-aged AIS patients 21-41 years after surgery, although the AIS patients did have significantly lower function and lower self-image than the controls. (my emphasis)
This is pretty telling, in my opinion.
Source: PubMed


About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.
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Monday, March 5, 2012

Feline facial dermatitis & herpesvirus

Persico P, Roccabianca P, Corona A, Vercelli A and Cornegliani L. Detection of feline herpes virus 1 via polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry in cats with ulcerative facial dermatitis, eosinophilic granuloma complex reaction patterns and mosquito bite hypersensitivity. Vet Dermatol. 2011; 22: 521-7.

Mottyl Young 1 Ulcerative dermatitis secondary to feline herpesvirus (FHV) infection is an uncommon disease that may resemble other cutaneous diseases such as eosinophilic granuloma and mosquito bite hypersensitivity. The investigators compared two methods for diagnosis of FHV-associated dermatitis – polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for amplification and detection of viral genetic material and immunohistochemistry (IHC) for detection of viral protein. Skin biopsy specimens from 62 cats with ulcerative skin lesions were tested by both methods. Immunohistochemistry for viral protein is considered the gold standard for diagnosis. PCR detected the presence of FHV genetic material in 12 samples, while IHC was positive in only two. Because of its high sensitivity and ability to detect latent or vaccinal virus, the authors concluded that PCR alone could result in misdiagnosis of FHV-associated dermatitis. They recommend PCR as an initial screening test, and, if positive, confirmation testing should be performed using IHC. [MK]

Related articles: Lee M, Bosward KL and Norris JM. Immunohistological evaluation of feline herpesvirus-1 infection in feline eosinophilic dermatoses or stomatitis. J Feline Med Surg. 2010; 12: 72-9.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+ 
 
Persico P, Roccabianca P, Corona A, Vercelli A and Cornegliani L. Detection of feline herpes virus 1 via polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry in cats with ulcerative facial dermatitis, eosinophilic granuloma complex reaction patterns and mosquito bite hypersensitivity. Vet Dermatol. 2011; 22: 521-7.

Mottyl Young 1 Ulcerative dermatitis secondary to feline herpesvirus (FHV) infection is an uncommon disease that may resemble other cutaneous diseases such as eosinophilic granuloma and mosquito bite hypersensitivity. The investigators compared two methods for diagnosis of FHV-associated dermatitis – polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for amplification and detection of viral genetic material and immunohistochemistry (IHC) for detection of viral protein. Skin biopsy specimens from 62 cats with ulcerative skin lesions were tested by both methods. Immunohistochemistry for viral protein is considered the gold standard for diagnosis. PCR detected the presence of FHV genetic material in 12 samples, while IHC was positive in only two. Because of its high sensitivity and ability to detect latent or vaccinal virus, the authors concluded that PCR alone could result in misdiagnosis of FHV-associated dermatitis. They recommend PCR as an initial screening test, and, if positive, confirmation testing should be performed using IHC. [MK]

Related articles: Lee M, Bosward KL and Norris JM. Immunohistological evaluation of feline herpesvirus-1 infection in feline eosinophilic dermatoses or stomatitis. J Feline Med Surg. 2010; 12: 72-9.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+ 
 
Read More