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Purpose Newborn screening (NBS) methods to detect congenital hypothyroidism (CH) vary regarding whether total thyroxine (T4), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), or both are measured. Neonates with low T4 and normal or low TSH (lowT4/TSH) may only be detected by T4-inclusive methods or age-dependent repeat screens. Premature neonates and those with pituitary-hypothalamic disorders frequently manifest lowT4/TSH. Methods This is a retrospective case-study of newborns who were screen-positive for lowT4/TSH in Alabama in 2009-2016 using a combined T4 and TSH method and 2 routine NBS. The clinical, laboratory, and final diagnosis after 3 years were determined. Results Over 8 years, 225 infants were referred to our institution for evaluation and treatment of CH. Twelve infants were screen-positive for lowT4/TSH by first or second NBS. Four of the 12 infants had permanent CH (30%): 2 with primary and 2 with central etiologies. One infant with moderately severe central CH was only detected by the routine second NBS. Six of 7 premature infants had elevated TSH on serum confirmation labs consistent with a delay in hypothalamic-pituitary maturation, yet 2 of these patients were later established to have permanent primary CH. While most cases of lowT4/TSH resolved by 3 years of age, several neonates had extended periods of moderate to severe hypothyroxinemia prior to detection and treatment. Conclusion One third of the infants with lowT4/TSH on NBS in this study had permanent CH. These results emphasize the importance of T4-based assay methods, subsequent (repeat) screens and long-term follow-up in the management of neonates with lowT4/TSH on newborn screen.

The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence of dental caries of first permanent molars in a group of children of Craiova. The sample of the study consisted of 83 children aged 7-15 years. The children were examined in a dental office and for each patient it had been analyzed the clinical status of first permanent molars, and it had been calculated the DMFT index. 332 of first permanent molars of 83 children were examined. The percentage of caries damages of first permanent molars was: 6% of girls and 12% of boys had extractions, 21% of girls and 51% of boys had very damaged molars, 38% of girls and 66% of boys had at least one cavity of first permanent molars. The prevalence of caries increases with age, and the extracted molars were found to the children aged 10-15 years. The prevalence of first permanent molars caries is high. The study reveals high percentage of damaged and lost molars to the children aged under 15 years. It is necessary to apply preventive methods in order to improve children’s oral health.

Ipilimumab is a monoclonal antibody targeting the cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen-4 receptor, which was originally approved for the treatment of metastatic melanoma. It is the first immune checkpoint inhibitor to enter clinical practice. Immune toxicity due to ipilimumab causing colitis, hepatitis, and dermatitis are well-described in literature. We report a case of hypophysitis resolving with corticosteroid treatment, following which the patient developed long-term primary thyroid impairment. This highlights the importance of vigilance for rarer immune-related toxicities as clinical utilization of ipilimumab becomes more widespread.

Background and aims: In this study the results of endovascular treatment of aortic aneurysms in Finland are presented and compared to the results of the Eurostar registry. Material and methods: A total of 229 patients with aortic aneurysm were treated in five different Finnish centres during 1996–2000. The data of these patients were collected prospectively by surgeon or interventional radiologist involved. During the same period of time 2464 patients were registered in the Eurostar registry. Results: The procedure was performed successfully in 97 % of patients in Finland, and the 30-day mortality was 0,9 %. A graft limb thrombosis was detected in 9 % of the patients in Finland. A permanent primary endoleak at the first 30-day control was seen in 23 patients (10 %). During the follow-up 17 secondary endoleaks (7 %) were detected. A secondary intervention was necessary in 26 % of the patients. Three patients (1.3 %) had late rupture of the abdominal aortic aneurysm. Conclusions: According to the Finnish short-time results, endovascular treatment of aortic aneurysms is safe and associated with relatively low morbidity and mortality. The mid-term results are more disappointing with relatively many graft thromboses and endoleaks, and a frequent need of secondary interventions.

[Purpose] To evaluate the results of Bobath-based rehabilitation performed at a pediatric cerebral palsy (CP) inpatient clinic. [Subjects and Methods] The study subjects were 28 children with CP who were inpatients at a pediatric service. Inclusion criteria were: being an inpatient of our hospital aged 2–12 with a diagnosis of CP; having one permanent primary caregiver; and the caregiver having no medical or psychotic problems. All of the patients received Bobath treatment for 1 hour per day, 5 days a week. The locomotor system, neurologic and orthopedic examination, Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM) of the patients, and Short Form-36 (SF-36) of permanent caregivers were evaluated at the time of admission to hospital, discharge from hospital, and at 1 and 3 months after discharge. [Results] Post-admission scores of GMFM at discharge, and 1 and 3 months later showed significant increase. Social function and emotional role subscores of SF-36 had increased significantly at discharge. [Conclusion] Bobath treatment is promising and randomized controlled further studies are needed for rehabilitation technics.

Background Purse-string suture is a simple technique that can be used to reduce the surface area of circular wounds in an effort to obtain minimal scarring. In this report, we provide evidence of the effectiveness of the purse-string suture as a stand-alone procedure that allows a permanent primary complete closure of small to moderate skin defects. The procedure is used primarily for the repair of skin defects due to cutaneous tumor excision in older patients. Methods The purse-string suture is executed by using a 1-0 absorbable suture, always by exiting and reentering intradermally and never penetrating the epidermis, in a circumferential fashion. Results The immediate postoperative folds flatten in about a 4-week postoperative time span, and the resulting scar is the smallest obtainable. Conclusions The round block purse-string suture is a simple technique which allows complete closure of skin defects without importing tissue from a distance, and it can be particularly suitable for older patients because of their skin laxity.

Introduction Numerous reports highlight the problem of declining primary care capacity in the USA, especially in rural and remote areas. The reasons for declining primary care capacity are elusive. Little progress is likely without better definitions, tools, and approaches. The author proposes a standard primary care workforce year to adjust each primary care form for losses due to specialization, lower levels of practice activity, lower primary care volume, and shorter career length. Methods The author reviewed studies to create a standard primary care year estimate representing the total primary care contribution for each of the five training forms of primary care over the career length of the graduate. The standard primary care year was the product of four factors: (1) the career length in years; (2) the percentage estimated to remain in primary care; (3) the percentage active in practice; and (4) the percentage of primary care volume compared with a family practitioner. A best determination was made regarding the value of each of the four factors for each primary care form. Because specialization rates increased substantially to decrease primary care contributions, the estimate for each form also had to be linked to each class year of graduates. Results Family practice is the best example of a permanent primary care training form with 29.3 standard primary care years expected over a 35 year career. Other training forms appear to be more flexible with graduates able to choose primary care or specialty care depending on policy and market forces. The 2008 pediatric residency graduates can be expected to serve 17.6 years of primary care. Internal medicine resident primary care contributions have been reduced by 50% in the past decade to 5.3 years with international medical graduate internal medicine contributions decreasing to 2.5 years. Physician assistant estimates have decreased to 6 years, while nurse practitioner estimates have declined below 3 years per graduate. Without changes in policy or training, the USA must graduate 11.7 international medical graduate internal medicine residents, or 10 nurse practitioners, or 5.5 US internal medicine residents, or 4.8 physician assistants, or 1.7 pediatric residents to equal the same primary care contributions as one family physician. With decreasing rural and underserved distribution levels in the flexible forms, the numbers of graduates needed to match the family practice rural primary care year and underserved primary care year contributions are even higher. Conclusions The primary care year is a versatile tool that can help to estimate primary care contributions across different forms of primary care. Specialization takes a huge toll on primary care capacity. Progressive failure to retain primary care makes expansions of graduates an ineffective and costly intervention. Without graduating more who remain in primary care, the USA can expect consistently lower primary care levels. Primary care contributions of progressively shorter duration could explain the perceived rapid collapse of primary care, particularly when studies of primary care fail to involve the most recent months of changes.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of major congenital malformations in a cohort of children with permanent primary congenital hypothyroidism (PCH). This cross-sectional study was conducted in 76 consecutive, unselected children with PCH recruited from a district hospital outpatient clinic. Malformations were identified by clinical examination. The prevalence of major congenital malformations in these patients was compared with the prevalence of malformations in children born at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA). The etiology of hypothyroidism was established by scintigraphy and ultrasonography. Hypothyroidism was caused by thyroid dysgenesis in 67 patients (one case of hemiagenesis, 24 of ectopia, and 42 of agenesis); the gland was normally located and shaped in nine patients. Ten patients (13.2%) had major congenital malformations (1,316/10,000 patients), mostly cardiac. Malformations were observed only in patients with dysgenesis: thyroid agenesis (n = 7) and sub-lingual ectopic thyroid (n = 3). The prevalence of malformations was significantly higher (RR = 2.6; CI 95%: 1.3-4.8; p = 0.005) in this group than in HCPA newborns (509/10,000 patients). In conclusion, a high rate of extrathyroid congenital malformations, mostly cardiac, was found for patients with permanent PCH, especially thyroid dysgenesis. The present data support the existence of an association between CH and increased prevalence of congenital malformations.

OBJECTIVES: There is little agreement as to the optimal cutoff point for thyrotropin testing in primary thyroxine screening programs for congenital hypothyroidism. Most programs in the United States use a cutoff point of 10% of the lowest thyroxine values, whereas in the Netherlands a cutoff point of 20% is used. Therefore, the results of the Dutch program may provide valuable information about the optimal cutoff point. METHODS. The frequency distribution of screening thyroxine values was studied in all cases of permanent primary congenital hypothyroidism (n = 481) detected in 1,601,603 screened children born during the period from January 1, 1981, to December 31, 1989, in the Netherlands. RESULTS. Programs using a 10% cutoff point would have missed 1.5% of cases. Above the 10% cutoff point, the marginal costs increase quite rapidly because of the escalating numbers of thyrotropin measurements necessary to detect one case of permanent primary congenital hypothyroidism: 20,000 in the range of 11% to 15% and 40,000 in the range of 16% to 20%. CONCLUSIONS. Based on these findings, a cutoff point of at least 10% is recommended.

Epidemiological of the Different Forms of Permanent Primary Congenital Hypothyroidism and Associated Malformations

Neonatal screening for congenital hypothyroidism using cord serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) was initiated in Najran health region in September 1990. A total of 30810 newborn infants were screened by April 1995. Of the 24 infants with abnormal thyroid function tests on recall, 22 had permanent primary congenital hypothyroidism (incidence; 1:1400) and in two male siblings transient congenital hypothyroidism (incidence; 1:15400) was proved on follow-up. There was a significantly higher incidence of dyshormonogenesis. Eight (57 per cent) of the 14 infants who were adequately studied thyroid scan revealed ectopic glands with increased 99mTc uptake, while thyroid ectopy and aplasia were present only in three (22 per cent) infants each. Furthermore, goiter was evident clinically in two other patients.

Screening for Hypothyroidism is part of the Austrian Newborn Screening for Inborn Errors and centralized (ca. 85.000 births/year). It began 1976 in 2 provinces and covers the whole country since 7.6.1978. Primary T4 and selective TSH on 3 mm discs is used. Control frequency is 0.14%, the frequency of permanent primary hypothyroidism is 1:4724. Hypothyroidism seems more frequent in Western- then in Eastern- Austria (1:4227 v. 1:5422). Hypothyroid babies are almost double as frequently born in September until November then in other quarters of the year. In 47 cases 28 male compare with 19 female. In 4 cases with low T4 and high TSH in the initial Tests T4 became normal within 13--27 days while TSH remained high.