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INTRODUCTION: Compared to their civilian counterparts, military personnel can have more exposure to sunlight and, as recent studies have shown, do have an increased incidence of melanoma. Given the inherent challenges service members may face in getting appropriate care whether because of operational tempo, deployments, and/or austere locations, many are initially diagnosed by specialties other than dermatology. In this study, we sought to determine if patients within the military health system were receiving appropriate follow-up management after biopsies by non-dermatologists led to the diagnosis of melanoma by pathology. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using the Co-Path system, 1,000 patients were identified who had first time biopsies positive for melanoma. Of these, 73 were originally biopsied by non-dermatologists. Retrospective medical record review was performed to determine specialties of the non-dermatologists, staging of melanoma at diagnosis, referrals to specialists and dermatologists, and adherence to National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines. The study protocol was approved by the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Institutional Review Board, protocol number WRNMMC-EDO-2017-0030, in compliance with all applicable federal regulations governing the protection of human subject research. RESULTS: Family medicine physicians made up the majority of non-dermatologists involved in performing biopsies that led to the diagnosis of melanoma in this study. Most patients were Stage I (pT1a), and the average time from initial biopsy to further wide excision biopsy was 18 days. Sixty-seven of the 73 patients biopsied by non-dermatologists received referrals to dermatologists, and 55 of the 67 patients followed through with being seen. Follow-up full body skin exams were performed on 55 of the 73 patients, with dermatologists conducting the majority of them. National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines were followed in 45 of the 73 patients, with an additional 24 patients having insufficient evidence to determine if guidelines were adhered to. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that a number of different specialties outside of dermatology are involved in performing biopsies on patients in which melanoma is a concern. Although the results show that the majority of patients biopsied by non-dermatologists received appropriate follow-up care, there is still room to improve to ensure that all melanoma patients receive referrals to and are seen by dermatologists after a diagnosis of melanoma.

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Focal linear elastosis (FLE) is a benign skin findingcharacterized by hypertrophic linear plaques withabnormal elastic fibers on histology. We present aunique case in which focal linear elastosis occurredin the setting of joint hypermobility syndrome(JHS). Our patient, a 20-year-old man with a medicalhistory significant for symptoms consistent with JHS,had been followed by the rheumatology clinic formany months. He was referred to the dermatologydepartment for further evaluation of asymptomaticlongitudinal bands on his back that had been presentfor many years. He denied trauma but endorsed ahistory of 'stretch marks.' On examination there werenumerous horizontally oriented, firm, linear, yellowto flesh colored bands, all non-tender to palpation.Punch biopsies were performed of involved anduninvolved skin. Histopathology of normal skinrevealed no significant abnormalities whereasinvolved skin demonstrated broadened collagenbundles in the deep dermis. The elastic fiber stain,Verhoeff-Van Gieson, revealed a gross increase in thenumber of elastic fibers, fragmented fibers, fiberswith "paintbrush" or widened-ends, fibers of varyingthickness, and clumped fibers. This combination ofhistopathologic and clinical features was consistent with FLE.

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Arterial stenosis is known to be one of the most serious cardiovascular diseases. Angiographical estimation of arterial stenosis provides limited information on the severity of the occlusion and the flow of blood through it. Hemodynamical assessment of the flow and pressure behaviour, is known to be clinically important. Hemodynamically based parameters, such as pressure based myocardial fractional flow reserve (FFR) and the flow based coronary flow reserved (CFR) were introduced to provide a much better tool for treating arterial diseases. We have developed a new method for simultaneous measurement of pressure-derived CFR and FFR. The advantage of pressure derived hemodynamic parameters is very substantial, and its relatively straightforward application in clinical setting is solid. The method has been validated by means of a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of the arterial stenosis and in vitro bench studies.

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The effects of dichloroacetate (DCA) on fatty acid oxidation and flux through pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) were studied in ischemic, reperfused myocardium supplied with glucose, long-chain fatty acids, lactate, pyruvate, and acetoacetate. The oxidation rates of all substrates were determined by combined 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and oxygen-consumption measurements, and PDH flux was assessed by lactate plus pyruvate oxidation. In nonischemic control hearts, DCA increased PDH flux more than eightfold (from 0.68 +/- 0.28 to 5.81 +/- 1.16 micromol/min/g dry weight; n = 8 each group; p < 0.05) and significantly inhibited the oxidation of acetoacetate and fatty acids. DCA also improved mechanical recovery after 30 min of ischemia plus 30 min of reperfusion but did not significantly increase PDH flux measured at the end of the reperfusion period (1.35 +/- 0.42 micromol/min/g dry weight) compared with untreated ischemic hearts (0.87 +/- 0.28 micromol/min/g dry weight; n = 8 each group; p = NS). Although DCA had a modest effect on functional recovery in the reperfused myocardium, this beneficial effect was not associated with either marked stimulation of PDH flux or inhibition of fatty acid oxidation.

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OBJECTIVES: A recent report (J Clin Invest 1993;92:831-9) found no effect of glutamate plus aspartate on metabolic pathways in the heart, but the experimental conditions did not model clinical cardioplegia. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of glutamate and aspartate on metabolic pathways feeding the citric acid cycle during cardioplegic arrest in the presence of physiologic substrates. METHODS: Isolated rat hearts were supplied with fatty acids, lactate, pyruvate, glucose, and acetoacetate in physiologic concentrations. These substrates were enriched with 13C, which allowed a complete analysis of substrate oxidation by 13C-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy in one experiment. Three groups of hearts were studied: arrest with potassium cardioplegic solution, arrest with cardioplegic solution supplemented with glutamate and aspartate (both in concentrations of 13 mmol/L), and a control group without cardioplegic arrest. RESULTS: In potassium-arrested hearts, the contributions of fatty acids and lactate to acetyl coenzyme A were reduced, and acetoacetate was the preferred substrate for oxidation in the citric acid cycle. The addition of aspartate and glutamate in the presence of cardioplegic arrest did not further alter patterns of substrate utilization substantially, although acetoacetate use was somewhat lower than with simple cardioplegic arrest. When [U-13C]glutamate (13 mmol/L) and [U-13C]aspartate (13 mmol/L) were supplied as the only compounds labeled with 13C, little enrichment in citric acid cycle intermediates could be detected. CONCLUSIONS: Glutamate and aspartate when added to potassium cardioplegic solutions have relatively minor effects on citric acid cycle metabolism.

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Using the electrical impedance measurement technique to investigate stroke volume estimation, three models of the ventricle were simulated. A four-electrode impedance catheter was used; two electrodes to set up an electric field in the model and the other two to measure the potential difference. A new approach, itself an application of the quasi-static case of a method used to solve electromagnetic field problems, was used to solve the electric field in the model. The behaviour of the estimation is examined with respect to the electrode configuration on the catheter and to catheter location with respect to the ventricle walls. Cardiac stroke volume estimation was found to be robust to catheter location generating a 10 per cent error for an offset of 40 per cent of the catheter from the chamber axis and rotation of 20 degrees with respect to the axis. The electrode configuration has a dominant effect on the sensitivity and accuracy of the estimation. Certain configurations gave high accuracy, whereas in others high sensitivity was found with lower accuracy. This led to the conclusion that the electrode configuration should be carefully chosen according to the desired criteria.

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Plasma cholesterol, triglycerides and HDL cholesterol levels were compared in a group of 45 young, normotensive, nonobese and nondiabetic women who used modern combined minidose contraceptive pills, to a matched group of 39 women who did not use any hormonal preparations. Our results show an increase in triglyceride levels as well as significant increase in cholesterol level in the 'pill' users group. We failed to show a significant change in HDL cholesterol levels and HDL cholesterol to total cholesterol ratio between the two groups. Our results concerning triglyceride levels are in consent to previous studies in the medical literature, while the elevation in cholesterol levels has rarely been reported in contemporary papers about minidose pill users. It seems that the contradicting effect of estrogen and progesterone on plasma HDL levels neutralizes each other's effect on this lipoprotein fraction. The elevation in plasma triglycerides and cholesterol may have importance in the vascular abnormalities seen in such pill users.

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Very little is known concerning insulin requirements in diabetic patients who develop acute renal failure, although decrease in daily insulin requirement in patients with chronic renal failure is recognized. A 46-year-old diabetic patient is described, whose daily insulin requirement decreased from 56 to 8 units per day during an episode of acute post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis causing acute reversible renal failure. The insulin requirement returned to its previous level after the patient recovered.

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