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The false Rhodes grasses [Leptochloa crinita (Lag.) P.M. Peterson and N.W. Snow and Leptochloa pluriflora (E. Fourn.) P.M. Peterson and N.W. Snow] are considered valuable native forage resources for arid and semiarid rangelands in Argentina and the United States. Effectively using plant materials as forage under aridity conditions requires understanding their resource allocation under those conditions. In the present study, plant functional traits were evaluated in six populations of each false Rhodes grass species from different geographic origin in a humid and an arid region. The evaluation was focused on seed weight, due to the key role of this trait in plant survival. The implication of seed weight in germination under osmotic stress and trade-off relationships between functional traits were also analysed. A fixed ontogenetic variation was found in both species, since populations maintained a stable seed weight across environments. The tolerance to osmotic stress at germination stage was more related to seed weight than to population origin or maternal environment of seeds; heavier-seeded populations produced heavier seedlings instead of a higher number of germinated seeds or higher germination rates. Some traits varied between environments but other traits exhibited a fixed response. Variation patterns among populations were similar within environments and in some cases even for populations from the same geographic origin, revealing a fixed ontogenetic variation; this phenomenon was clearer in L. crinita than in L. pluriflora. Moreover, several different trade-off strategies were detected in both species. These results reinforce the knowledge about the key role of seed weight in survival and performance of seedlings at initial growth stages under arid conditions; however, at advanced stages, other traits would have an important function in growth and development of false Rhodes grasses.

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Plant species disjunctions have attracted the interest of ecologists for decades. We investigated Trichloris crinita, a native C4 perennial grass with disjunct distribution between subtropical regions of North and South America, testing the hypothesis that the species has a similar realized climatic niche in both subcontinents. The climatic niche of T. crinita in North and South America was characterized and compared using presence records and five uncorrelated bioclimatic variables selected according to their ecological importance for the species. We used reciprocal modeling to make geographic projections of the realized niche within each subcontinent. Niche overlap between T. crinita distributions in North and South America was intermediate for the individual climatic variables and the multivariate space. In all cases the test of equivalence between climates inhabited by T. crinita indicated that the realized niche of the species differ significantly between subcontinents. Also, the similarity test showed that in the majority of cases the realized niche in both subcontinents was significantly different than that expected by chance. T. crinita occupied a greater diversity of environments in South than in North America, while in the latter its distribution was displaced to drier and warmer environments. The modeled geographic distribution using the actual occurrences of the species in North America did not accurately predict the distribution in South America, and vice versa. Together, these results led us to reject the hypothesis of similar niche of T. crinita in both subcontinents. This information may be useful to manage restoration efforts by presenting the suitable areas and climates for the species, and suggesting that translocation of individuals between subcontinents could only be recommended with caution because introduced genotypes can be potentially maladaptive, and could colonize sites actually not occupied by the species within each subcontinent.

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La Neurofibromatosis fue descrita por Von Recklinghausen en 1882. Es una genodermatosis autosómica dominante con alta penetrancia, expresividad variable y curso progresivo; se calcula que en el 50% de los casos se deben a mutaciones espontáneas (de novo), con una incidencia de 1/3000 recién nacidos. Clínicamente se manifiesta por el compromiso de los tejidos derivados del neuroectodermo y mesodermo. Muestra alteraciones oculares, neurológicas, de partes blandas, cutáneas, óseas, endocrinológicas y lesiones viscerales. En la actualidad se admiten dos formas clínicas principales: la Neurofibromatosis clásica o de tipo I que representa el 85-90 % de los casos y la Neurofibromatosis tipo II (Neurofibromatosis del acústico bilateral) muy poco frecuente.

The Neurofibromatosis was described by von Recklinghausen in 1882. It is a dominant autosomic genodermatosis with a high penetration, variable clinic and progressive course; it is calculate, that in 50% of the cases the origin is a spontaneous mutations (novo). The incidence is 1/3000 newly born. The clinical manifestations are: the compromise of tissues derived from neuroectoderm and mesoderm. It also has ocular symptoms, visceral injuries, neurological alterations and endocrinological pathologies. Soft pars, cutaneous tissue and bones are affected. At the present time two main clinical forms are admitted: the Classic Neurofibromatosis or type I, that represents 85-90% of the cases and the Neurofibromatosis type II (Neurofibromatosis of the bilateral hearing aid) that it ´s not so frequent.

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We report a patient who suffered an accidental complete amputation of the right forearm followed by a successful replantation and comment on the indications and management of macro-replantations of the upper limbs. This is the first time that a successful surgical procedure of this nature has been performed in Bolivia, with no post-operative complications and excellent long-term functional recovery.

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We discuss the optical recording and relaxation of low spatial frequency gratings and negative microlenses by a dyed polyacrylamide gel. An analysis of the grating diffraction efficiency and the focal distance of microlenses is shown. A study of the evolution of the surface modulation of both types of elements with an interference microscope is also included.

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La lucha antileprosa se incia en Venezuela en el siglo XIX, y se refuerza a comienzos del siglo XX. Con la creación del Ministerio de Sanidad en 1936 se inicia el servicio de lucha antileprosa y en 1946 se crea la División de Lepra, que se convertirá después en el Departamento de Dermatología, el cual actualmente forma parte del Instituto de Biomedicina, que es organismo rector de esta actividad a nivel estatal, y cuyas actividades a nivel operativo se realizan a través de los 31 servicios regionales de Dermatología Sanitaria. En 1985 se inició la aplicación de la poliquimioterapia supervisada como tratamiento de elección. La evolución de la lepra en Venezuela desde 1946 se caracteriza por un aumento de la detección y la prevalencia en los años inmediatos a esta fecha, con un descenso posterior desde la década del 60, estabilizándose la deteción desde inicios de la década del 80, con tasas alrededor de 0'25 (algo más de 500 casos) por 10.000 habitantes por año. Para este período de ha mantenido el descenso de la prevalencia, la cual mostró cambios bruscos en 1982 y 1995, por actuatualización de los registros. En nivel de eliminación de la lepra como problema de salud (de acuerdo al criterio de la OMS de una tasa de prevalencia inferior a uno ano por 10.000 habitantes), se alcanzó en Venezuela en 1997. En las entidadades federales, soleamente cuatro de las 23 (Apure, Barinas, Dojedes y Portuguesa) mantienen tasas de prevalencia por encima del nivel de eliminación. Dado el hecho de haber alcanzado el nivel de eliminación, manteniéndose relaticamente estables el número de casos nuevos y la tasa de detección, se propone que el criterio para clasificar a un país como "en fase de eliminación) sea más estricto e incluya, además de la tasa de prevaelncia, datos relativos a la detección de casos. El tipo clínico predominante es el multibacilar. Las tasas de detección por edade muestran un aumento gradual al avanzar en edad. La racón masculino/femenino se mantiene alrededor de 2. Un 10% de los casos presentaron algún grado de discapacidad, aunque discreta en la mayoría de los casos. Existe un porcentaje de casos nacidos en el ixterior que es superior a la proporción de población con esta característica en el país. La mayor proporción de casos proviene del área urbana, especialmente de las zonas marginales, aun cuando las tasas son mayores para la zona...

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This study evaluated the performance, acceptability, and appropriateness of a new, single-use, prefilled injection device called UniJect for an outreach immunization application. Between April and June 1995, UniJect devices were used by 36 traditional birth attendants to administer tetanus toxoid injections to 2,240 pregnant women during routine, antenatal home visits in the Northern, Ichilos, and Warnes Districts of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Because tetanus toxoid is relatively heat stable, the traditional birth attendants were able to keep the tetanus toxoid-filled UniJect devices in their homes for up to one month without refrigeration. The devices were stored, transported, and disposed of in an outreach carrier designed to reduce the risks of improper handling and disposal. Data were collected from injection recipients, traditional birth attendants, and supervisors via observation, questionnaires, and post-study interviews. The performance of the UniJect device and its acceptability among all groups was very high. The traditional birth attendants used UniJect properly and safely; there were no reports or observations of device misuse, reuse, or needle-stick. Advantages cited included the fact that the device required no assembly, offered assured sterility, and reduced vaccine wastage sometimes associated with multi-dose vials. The ability to store and transport the vaccine-filled devices without ice also greatly simplified logistics.

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An attempt was made to identify guidelines to help establish epilepsy monitoring units in developing countries. We assessed the time distribution of seizures during video-EEG monitoring and we also estimated the minimum time required for such a procedure and the impact of these variables upon the health insurance system. Mean time for recording five stereotyped clinical events was 72 hours, with a significant number of events recorded between midnight and 0600 hours (P < 0.05). This pilot study may help to establish local policies that will warrant an adequate work-up for our patients.

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PIP: This article briefly reviews the literature on migration in Latin America and examines migration decision making in Ecuador. Aggregate data are obtained from the 1974 census of agriculture and population for cantones. Individual level data are obtained from the 1982 census of population. Migration refers to all census persons who recorded differences in their present and previous place of residence during 1974-82. Migration is modeled as dependent upon gender, age, education, marital status, income at origin and at destination, and population pressure or agrarian reform. Logistic model findings indicate that migration decisions are influenced by individual characteristics of migrants and contextual variables. Migration varied by gender. The results confirm Todaro's hypothesis that the probability of migrating is related to income differences between place of destination and origin, but only for males. Findings suggest that females migrate for primary reasons other than economic ones. The probability of migration was greater with increased levels of education. The decision to migrate was affected by quality of life differences, such as literacy rates and levels of urbanization. The probability of migration was reduced by the effects of land reform. Population pressure had a significant effect in increasing migration. The effects of land reform differ from findings in Mexico by William E. Cole and Richard D. Sanders. Land reforms were initiated in 1964 in Ecuador, but by 1974 there was still considerable inequality in land distribution and increased population pressure. Traditional haciendas were modernized, and peasants increased their dependency on non-farm income.^ieng

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UNLABELLED: From Jan-21-91 to Jan-8-92 we performed percutaneous transvenous mitral commissurotomy (PTCM) with a Medi-tech balloon catheter (MBC) in 41 patients bearing mitral stenosis simple o predominant. We utilized an anterograde transseptal approach in order to access the mitral valve, the procedure failed in 5 patients, in 30 of them we used double MBC and single MBC were utilized in 6 patients. Both left ventriculogram and hemodynamic parameters were taken before and after PTCM. Posterior to PTCM an important decrease appeared in the mitral transvalvular gradient from 20.6 +/- 2.7 to 2.4 +/- 1.7 mmHg (p < 0.0001) and an average pressure of pulmonary artery of 46.2 +/- 9.8 to 23.9 +/- 6 mmHg (p < 0.0001), and also the pulmonary arterial resistance from 1178.1 to 557.1 dinas/cm-5/seg. There was an important concomitant increase in mitral valvular area from 0.84 +/- 0.11 to 2.38 +/- 0.08 cm2 (p < 0.0001) and in cardiac rate from 2.7 +/- 0.7 to 2.9 +/- 0.52 L/min (p < 0.001). COMPLICATIONS: Two female patients developed cardiac tamponade, one of them the procedure was successful, and for the other it was decided to submit her to valvular replacement. Mitral insufficiency was present in three patients; GI/IV in two of them and GII/IV angiographic in one. Another patient presented cerebral thromboembolism with complete recovery within 15 days. Short left to right shunt was detected only in 8 patients being 1.2/1 in 6 of them, 1.3/1 in one and 1.4/1 in other patient. Thirty three uncomplicated were dismissed within a maximum of 48 hours after procedure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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Our group initiated a program of coronary angioplasty (CA) in patients with symptomatic one vessel disease, or multivascular lesions with a critical "culprit" stenosis. In a 16 month period we have performed CA of 28 lesions in 25 patients (20 men) with a mean age of 54 +/- 10 years. Stable angina was diagnosed in 14 patients, unstable angina in 7, and post-myocardial infarction residual angina or stenosis in 4 patients treated with streptokinase. Successful dilatation was obtained in 23 (82.1%) of 28 stenotic segments, reducing the stenosis from 90 +/- 8% (range 70-100) to 9 +/- 12% (range 0-30; p less than 0.00001). In 4 cases with total occlusion, dilatation was not obtained, and in one case the procedure was complicated by fatal brain embolism. There were 4 complications due to coronary occlusion or spasm, all of them resolved during CA without sequelae. The 20 cases with primary success have been followed during an average of 8.6 months. In three cases (15%) restenosis was detected; two of them underwent surgery, and CA was repeated successfully in the other. Disappearance of myocardial ischemia was confirmed in 14 patients, and functional improvement in the other three. In conclusion, CA is an effective and relatively safe therapeutic alternative in different clinical forms of coronary heart disease with a single vessel stenosis, or in selected cases of multivascular lesions with a critical stenosis.

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Se estudió el efecto del Factor de Transferencia dializable (FT) en 30 pacientes con herpes zoster activo y se comparó con 10 pacientes con la misma enfermedad que fueron tratados con la terapia convencional. Los 40 pacientes fueron estudiados de manera integral y en ninguno de ellos se encontraron procesos malignos u otras causas que depriman la respuesta inmune. Por otro lado, las edades de ambos grupos fueron similares. A 10 de los 30 pacientes que fueron tratados con el FT se les hizo recuento de rosetas T activas (RA) y espontáneas (RE), previo al tratamiento y 45 días después de concluído éste. Se encontró que las RA y las RE se encontraban por debajo de lo normal y posteriormente se normalizaron. Los 30 pacientes que fueron tratados con FT tuvieron un tiempo promedio de regresión de las lesiones de 5,9 días y del dolor de 7,3 días; en cuanto a los casos tratados por el método convencional fue de 21,3 días (p<0,001) para la regresión de las lesiones y 26,1 días (p<0,001) para el dolor. Los pacientes tratados con FT tuvieron una remisión atípica de las lesiones herpéticas, ya que de la etapa de mácula pasaron a la de cicatrización sin dejar neuritis postherpética u otra complicación (AU)

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Se estudió el efecto del Factor de Transferencia dializable (FT) en 30 pacientes con herpes zoster activo y se comparó con 10 pacientes con la misma enfermedad que fueron tratados con la terapia convencional. Los 40 pacientes fueron estudiados de manera integral y en ninguno de ellos se encontraron procesos malignos u otras causas que depriman la respuesta inmune. Por otro lado, las edades de ambos grupos fueron similares. A 10 de los 30 pacientes que fueron tratados con el FT se les hizo recuento de rosetas T activas (RA) y espontáneas (RE), previo al tratamiento y 45 días después de concluído éste. Se encontró que las RA y las RE se encontraban por debajo de lo normal y posteriormente se normalizaron. Los 30 pacientes que fueron tratados con FT tuvieron un tiempo promedio de regresión de las lesiones de 5,9 días y del dolor de 7,3 días; en cuanto a los casos tratados por el método convencional fue de 21,3 días (p<0,001) para la regresión de las lesiones y 26,1 días (p<0,001) para el dolor. Los pacientes tratados con FT tuvieron una remisión atípica de las lesiones herpéticas, ya que de la etapa de mácula pasaron a la de cicatrización sin dejar neuritis postherpética u otra complicación

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Fifty healthy Mexican women from 21 to 70 years of age volunteered to undergo radial bone densitometry. The bone density in ten women per decade was assessed at two sites in the radius of the nondominant forearm; one site was the distal radius at 5 mm of separation from the ulna and the other at one-third of the distal radius. Calcium, inorganic phosphates and alkaline phosphatase were measured in serum samples and the calcium/creatinine ratio in fasting urine samples. Bone density at the distal radius was 360.6 +/- 36.2 mg/cm2, 369.8 +/- 47.9 mg/cm2 and 364.7 +/- 53.7 mg/cm2 in the 21-50 age group. There was no significant difference between these groups; the pooled value of all these samples was 365 +/- 46 mg/cm2. There was significant difference in the 51-60 age group, 290 +/- 48. mg/cm2 (p less than 0.01) and in the 61-70 age group. 277.9 +/- 49.9 mg/cm2 (p less than 0.01). Bone density at the one-third distal radius in the 21-20 age group was 696.3 +/- 60.9 mg/cm2; 31-40, 683.6 +/- 68.4 mg/cm2 and 41-50, 697.9 +/- 53.9 mg/cm2. There was no significant difference among these group; the pool of all these samples showed 692.6 +/- 59.6 mg/cm2. In the 51-60 age group it was 628.0 +/- 63.3 mg/cm2, a non significant difference. On the other hand, the density in the 61-70 group was 573.7 +/- 83.5 mg/cm2, significant (p less than 0.01) when compared to the 21-50 age group.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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A nutritional inquest was carried out in 1857 children attending kindergartens in Córdoba, Argentina, in 1974. Determinations were made for the socioeconomical level each child belonged (NES) and clinical and anthropometric examinations. Nutritional inquests were carried out in 414 of these children, psychological examinations in 51, and biochemical inquests in 61 children.

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