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Objectives: Due to an increase in the percentage of older people in industrialized countries there is an increasing demand for medical care for the elderly. With advancing age, a series of structural, architectural and compositional modifications take place in the vasculature. Therefore, we analyzed the influence of patient age on the reocclusion rate of recanalized peripheral arteries. Patients and Methods: 471 patients (mean age ± SD: 62 ± 12 years, range: 28–90 years) successfully treated by interventional recanalization were followed up (mean ± SD: 18 ± 17 months, range:6–48 months). Reocclusion of the recanalized arterial segment could be proven in 175 patients (37%), whereas octogenarians had the highest patency rate i.e. 68%. Univariate analysis, multivariate logistic regression analysis, and ROC analysis were performed. Results: The univariate analysis showed a significant relation between reocclusion and PAOD stage, hyperlipoproteinemia, and total cholesterol level and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), respectively. Excluding age-related risk factors, the multivariate logistic regression analysis with backward selection reached a significant level for PAOD stage with p = 0.0012 and an odds ratio of 1.63, and for ESR with a p = 0.0013 and an odds ratio of only 1.02. Age did not reach a significant level with a p value of 0.13 and an odds ratio of 0.98. In the ROC analysis, prognostic relevance could be shown for the combination of PAOD stage and ESR adjusted for age and hyperlipidemia, and for PAOD stage and ESR value as a single prognostic factor, but not for patient age. Conclusion: Thus, despite proven and hypothetical differences in the vascular biology of older people compared to younger people, age is not related to middle term patency rates after interventional recanalization of peripheral arterial occlusions. Copyright © 2004 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neoangiogenesis is involved in the development and progression of malignant tumors. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its receptors have been designated a central part in this process. Since the significance of the assessment of angiogenesis in soft tissue tumors is still a matter of debate, we investigated the vascularisation of cardiac myxomas and compared it with pulmonary artery sarcomas (PAS). Angiogenesis in 18 PAS and 20 myxomas was assessed by morphometry. An immunohistochemical analysis of growth factors and their receptors, HIF-1alpha and tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) was performed. Results showed that microvessel density (MVD) in PAS was significantly higher at the border of necrosis versus the areas without necrosis but no difference was observed between PAS and myxomas. Vascular surface area (VSA) and intervascular distances showed a higher vascularisation at the border of necrosis compared to myxomas, which was not significant. VEGF expression was higher in PAS compared to myxomas and was prominent at the sites of necrosis. HIF-1alpha expression was marked at the border of necrosis in PAS but was absent in myxomas. Infiltration of the macrophages was significantly higher in myxomas compared to the sarcomas. VEGFR-2 expression was detected in a subset of tumor cells and in blood vessels mainly at the tumor periphery, whereas VEGFR-1 was weakly expressed in the tumors but prominent in the macrophages in cardiac myxomas. PDGF receptors and their ligands are strongly present in myxomas and to a lesser extent in the sarcomas. In conclusion, benign and malignant cardiovascular tumors with a different pathophysiology develop a comparable vascularisation. Hypoxia appears to be the strongest inducer of neoangiogenesis in the sarcomas. The expression of receptor tyrosine kinases of the VEGF family provides a basis for an adjuvant therapy.

There is a need to precisely measure concentration of proteins in biological substance for early diagnosis of disease or knowledge of fundamental biological processes. Many apparatus have been proposed, and now data processing methods have to be investigated. This paper focuses on data processing of proteomic experiments combining nano liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Experimental fluctuations of this process raise an interest for robust methods. Consequently, we propose a model of this acquisition system and a probabilistic Bayesian method to estimate the proteins' concentrations and system parameters.

This paper presents a full proteomics analysis LC-MS (Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry) chain combining bio, nano and information technologies in order to quantify targeted proteins in blood sample. The objective is to enable an early detection of pancreatic cancer. We focus on the data processing step which estimates the proteins' concentration. First, we pre-process the data in order to correct time shift between the experiments. We propose to use block matching algorithm. Second, quantification of protein is performed using chemometrics approaches and more precisely CLS, PLS, N-PLS and PARAFAC algorithms. Performances of the various methods have been compared on cytochrome c protein LC-MS analyses.

Purpose: To evaluate any correlation of fibrinogen and hematocrit with the early success of balloon angioplasty for peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD) and compare the outcomes of angioplasty in diabetic and nondiabetic patients., Methods: From November 1997 through October 2000, 330 patients (246 men; mean age 63.6+/-10.9 years; 221 nondiabetic, 109 diabetic) with known PAOD were treated with percutaneous procedures. The majority of patients (239, 72.4%) were Fontaine stage IIa or IIb; the remaining (91, 27.6%) had critical limb ischemia (Fontaine stages III and IV). Fibrinogen and hematocrit assays were performed on all patients upon admission, and the results were then correlated with early angioplasty success., Results: With advancing PAOD stage, fibrinogen concentrations increased significantly in both nondiabetic (p<0.006) and diabetic (p<0.02) patients, while angioplasty success rates declined by a factor of 3 in nondiabetics and 2 in diabetics. There was a significantly stronger association between low fibrinogen values and successful interventions relative to unsuccessful interventions (p<0.048). Interestingly, compared with nondiabetics, the angioplasty success rate in diabetics was associated with significantly higher fibrinogen levels (p<0.044) and lower hematocrit (p<0.022)., Conclusions: Our findings appear to indicate that hemorheological factors, such as fibrinogen and hematocrit, can affect early angioplasty success. Moreover, high fibrinogen concentrations appear to be detrimental to early angioplasty success. Interestingly, low hematocrit levels in diabetics may partially offset the negative effects of hyperfibrinogenemia.

Intra-arterial application of dissolved tablets is associated with a high risk of tissue necrosis. An early active vasodilatating and recanalising treatment is necessary. We present the case of 21-year-old female who applied three dissolved Flunitrazepam tablets into the ulnar artery and was successfully treated with prostaglandin E1 and recombinant tissue plasminogen activator.