Lower uterine segment thickness measurement in pregnant women with previous Cesarean section: reliability analysis using two- and three-dimensional transabdominal and transvaginal ultrasound

Objective To evaluate the reliability of two- and three-dimensional ultrasonographic measurement of the thickness of the lower uterine segment (LUS) in pregnant women by transvaginal and transabdominal approaches. Methods This was a study of 30 pregnant women who bad bad at least one previous Cesarean section and were between 36 and 39 weeks` gestation, with singleton pregnancies in cephalic presentation. Sonographic examinations were performed by two observers using both 4-7-MHz transabdominal and 5-8-MHz transvaginal volumetric probes. LUS measurements were performed using two- and three-dimensional ultrasound, evaluating the entire LUS thickness transabdominally and the LUS muscular thickness transvaginally. Each observer measured the LUS four times by each method. Reliability was analyzed by comparing the mean of the absolute differences, the intraclass correlation coefficients, the 95% limits of agreement and the proportion of differences <1 mm. Results Transvaginal ultrasound provided greater reliability in LUS measurements than did transabdominal ultrasound. The use of three-dimensional ultrasound improved significantly the reliability of the LUS muscular thickness measurement obtained transvaginally. Conclusions Ultrasonographic measurement of the LUS muscular thickness transvaginally appears more reliable than does that of the entire LUS thickness transabdominally. The use of three-dimensional ultrasound should be considered to improve measurement reliability. Copyright (c) 2009 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Assessment of two central auditory tests in elderly patients without hearing complaints

Speech understanding disorders in the elderly may be due to peripheral or central auditory dysfunctions. Asymmetry of results in dichotic testing increases with age, and may reflect on a lack of inter-hemisphere transmission and cognitive decline. Aim: To investigate auditory processing of aged people with no hearing complaints. Study design: clinical prospective. Materials and Methods: Twenty-two voluntary individuals, aged between 55 and 75 years, were evaluated. They reported no hearing complaints and had maximal auditory thresholds of 40 dB HL until 4 KHz, 80% of minimal speech recognition scores and peripheral symmetry between the ears. We used two kinds of tests: speech in noise and dichotic alternated dissyllables (SSW). Results were compared between males and females, right and left ears and between age groups. Results: There were no significant differences between genders, in both tests. Their Left ears showed worse results, in the competitive condition of SSW. Individuals aged 65 or older had poorer performances than those aged 55 to 64. Conclusion: Central auditory tests showed worse performance with aging. The employment of a dichotic test in the auditory evaluation setting in the elderly may help in the early identification of degenerative processes, which are common among these patients.

Embodied women at work in neo-liberal times and places

In this article five women explore (female) embodiment in academic work in current workplaces. In a week-long collective biography workshop they produced written memories of themselves in their various workplaces and memories of themselves as children and as students. These memories then became the texts out of which the analysis was generated. The authors examine the constitutive and seductive effects of neoliberal discourses and practices, and in particular, the assembling of academic bodies as particular kinds of working bodies. They use the concept of chiasma, or crossing over, to trouble some aspects of binary thinking about bodies and about the relations between bodies and discourses. They examine the way that we simultaneously resist and appropriate, and are seduced by and appropriated within, neoliberal discourses and practices.

Periodontal disease in gestational and type 1 diabetes mellitus pregnant women

Objective: The present study evaluated the relationship between periodontal disease and its clinical variables in Brazilian non-diabetic pregnant women (C), gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), or type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Subjects and methods: A periodontal exam was performed in one hundred and sixty-one pregnant women (GDM:80; T1DM:31; C:50) by a single-blinded calibrated examiner who recorded plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), bleeding index (BI), gingival margin location (GM), probing depth (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL), bleeding on probing (BOP), and tooth mobility index (MI). The medical variables were age, pregestational body mass index (pre-BMI), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and glycated hemoglobin (HbA(1c)). Results: The GI, GM, PD, CAL, BOP, and MI were significantly higher (P < 0.01) among GDM and T1DM than for C. The PI was higher in GDM and similar between C and T1DM. The Adjusted Final Model for medical variables to evaluate the effects of groups on periodontal parameters confirmed these results. Conclusions: The presence of periodontal disease was significantly higher in Brazilian diabetic pregnancies (GDM and T1DM) when compared to non-diabetic pregnant women (C). The degree of periodontal disease was similar between the GDM and T1DM groups. Age, pregestational BMI, and HbA(1c) were factors related to CAL development in these two types of diabetes mellitus.