Kaedah Diagnostik Semasa dan Penggunaan Ujian Titik Penjagaan Pantas (POC) Bagi Mendiagnos Hiperkolesterolemia Famili (FH) (Current Diagnostic Techniques and the Use of Rapid Point-of-Care (POC) Testing to Diagnose Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH)) / Jurnal Sains Kesihatan Malaysia

@#Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is an autosomal dominant inherited genetic disease characterized by increased concentrations of low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) cholesterol in the blood. The risk of premature coronary heart disease in FH patients may increase without early treatment. Advancement in molecular biology techniques has enable early detection and diagnosis of FH. These techniques are cost-effective and have a shorter turnaround time. The current diagnostic tools available for FH diagnosis involving algorithm-based scoring criteria and various molecular diagnosis methods including next-generation sequencing (NGS), Sanger sequencing, Multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) and DNA hybridisation assay are discussed in this review. However, molecular genetic testing is not widely available due to time-consuming procedures, high cost and requires trained personnel. Thus, this 36 review highlights the use of point of care (POC) testing as an approach to diagnose FH, particularly in countries lacking infrastructure and expertise in this field. Lateral flow testing (LFA) has gained attention as a POC diagnostic tool due to its simplicity, low cost and involved simple procedure and settings. The advantages of LFA made this technique a potential tool in addressing challenges in diagnosing FH, particularly for early diagnosis of family members.

Advances in the study of examination methods for dry eye / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

Dry eye is a multifactorial disease of the ocular surface characterized by a loss of homeostasis of the tear film, and accompanied by ocular symptoms. In recent years, the incidence of dry eye has been increasing year by year, and the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye are constantly evolving and innovating. However, due to the corresponding drawbacks of traditional examination methods and the lack of a large number of clinical trial studies on new examination methods, there is still no unified standard for the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye. In this review, we have performed a broad search for articles discussing different examination methods for dry eye, including promising diagnostic tools and technique, the latest advances, and contradictions, in order to provide a review of dry eye examination methods including the tear volume, the tear film, the eyelid and meibomian gland, and the degree of damage to the epithelial cells of the ocular surface, and provide a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of dry eye.

Application of Healthcare Information Technology in surveillance, prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases- A Short Communication

Digital health services in recent times furnish health education, awareness, monitoring of vitalsigns, disease prediction and also can be used as diagnostic tools, primarily through machinelearning and deep learning applications. These big datasets acquired through digital health lay outthe disease trends, patient health insights and act as a better predictor of future health outcomes.Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) outcomes have been seen to have decreased significantly withapplication of digital health outcomes in Western countries. The deaths from CVD in India have risen from 2.26 million in 1990 to 4.77 million in 2020.Using digital technologies to promote healthy lifestyle changes embracing healthy behaviors cansupport early diagnosis, effective management and appropriate clinical decisions. This focus ifadopted in India can bring dynamic changes in the CVD health scenario essentially tackling theburden of cardiovascular diseases.

Prevention of Micronutrient Deficiencies in Young Children: Consensus Statement from Infant and Young Child Feeding Chapter of Indian Academy of Pediatrics

Justification: Micronutrient deficiencies have significant impact on the overall health and well-being of society and potential targets forsupplementations. It is important to formulate a consensus statement in view of current evidence, and put in place strategies to meettargets. Objectives: To formulate by endorsement or adoption and disseminate a consensus statement for prevention of micronutrientsdeficiencies in young children for office practices from an Indian perspective. Process: A National Consultative Meeting was convenedby Infant and Young Child Feeding Chapter (IYCF) of Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) on 17 December, 2016 at Mumbai. IYCF chapter,IAP, United Nations Children Fund, National Institute of Nutrition and Government of India were the participating agencies; and participantsrepresenting different parts of India were included. Conclusions: Micronutrient deficiencies are widespread. For its prevention propermaternal and infant-young child feeding strategies need to be practiced. Encourage delayed cord clamping, dietary diversification,germinated foods, soaking and fermentation processes. Existing Iron, Vitamin A, Zinc supplementation and universal salt iodizationprograms need to be scaled up, especially in high risk groups. Universal vitamin D supplementation need to be in place; though, the doseneeds more research. Vitamin B12 deficiency screening and supplementation should be practiced only in high-risk groups. Availability ofappropriately fortified foods needs to be addressed urgently.

Standardization Of Neikuri (oil Drop Test Of Urine)– A Siddha Diagnostic Method

Neikuri is an antique method of urine examination, based on distribution of oil drop in urine which is a remarkable diagnostic and prognostic tool in Siddha system of medicine. Even though these diagnostic method not commonly used in clinical practice and elaborate scientific studies of Neikuri are lacking. Aim: The aim of the study was to test the protocols of the examination of Neikuri for the standardization. Materials and methods: 100 patients were selected and studied with twelve parameters to test the Neikuri. Correlation was considered between the reading of Neikuri and Naadi. Results: Based on the observation, the urine needs to place in a circular glass utensil (3.5 inch petri dish preferable) and a drop (0.25 – 0.5?L) of sesame oil derived from black sesame seeds need to placed less than 2mm height from the surface of the urine, in day time to test the Neikuri. Further the test needs to perform within one and a half an hour from the collection of urine. Conclusion: In conclusion we suggest the methods could be used as a standard protocol for testing Neikuri.

Validity of premature ejaculation diagnostic tool and its association with International Index of Erectile Function-15 in Chinese men with evidence-based-defined premature ejaculation / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

The premature ejaculation diagnostic tool (PEDT) is a brief diagnostic measure to assess premature ejaculation (PE). However, there is insufficient evidence regarding its validity in the new evidence-based-defined PE. This study was performed to evaluate the validity of PEDT and its association with IIEF-15 in different types of evidence-based-defined PE. From June 2015 to January 2016, a total of 260 men complaining of PE and defined as lifelong PE (LPE)/acquired PE (APE) according to the evidence-based definition from Andrology Clinic of the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, along with 104 male healthy controls without PE from a medical examination center, were enrolled in this study. All individuals completed questionnaires including demographics, medical and sexual history, as well as PEDT and IIEF-15. After statistical analysis, it was found that men with PE reported higher PEDT scores (14.28 ± 3.05) and lower IIEF-15 (41.26 ± 8.20) than men without PE (PEDT: 5.32 ± 3.42, IIEF-15: 52.66 ± 6.86, P < 0.001 for both). It was suggested that a score of ≥9 indicated PE in both LPE and APE by sensitivity and specificity analyses (sensitivity: 0.875, 0.913; specificity: 0.865, 0.865, respectively). In addition, IIEF-15 were higher in men with LPE (42.64 ± 8.11) than APE (39.43 ± 7.84, P < 0.001). After adjusting for age, IIEF-15 was negatively related to PEDT in men with LPE (adjust r =-0.225, P < 0.001) and APE (adjust r =-0.378, P < 0.001). In this study, we concluded that PEDT was valid in the diagnosis of evidenced-based-defined PE. Furthermore, IIEF-15 was negatively related to PEDT in men with different types of PE.

Pelvic muscle floor rehabilitation as a therapeutic option in lifelong premature ejaculation: Long-term outcomes / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

The aim of the study was to evaluate the long-term outcomes of pelvic floor muscle (PFM) rehabilitation in males with lifelong premature ejaculation (PE), using intravaginal ejaculatory latency time (IELT) and the self-report Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT) as primary outcomes. A total of 154 participants were retrospectively reviewed in this study, with 122 completing the training protocol. At baseline, all participants had an IELT ≤60 s and PEDT score >11. Participants completed a 12-week program of PFM rehabilitation, including physio-kinesiotherapy treatment, electrostimulation, and biofeedback, with three sessions per week, with 20 min for each component completed at each session. The effectiveness of intervention was evaluated by comparing the change in the geometric mean of IELT and PEDT values, from baseline, at 3, 6, and 12 months during the intervention, and at 24 and 36 months postintervention, using a paired sample 2-tailed t-test, including the associated 95% confidence intervals. Of the 122 participants who completed PFM rehabilitation, 111 gained control of their ejaculation reflex, with a mean IELT of 161.6 s and PEDT score of 2.3 at the 12-week endpoint of the intervention, representing an increase from baseline of 40.4 s and 17.0 scores, respectively, for IELT and PEDT (P < 0.0001). Of the 95 participants who completed the 36-month follow-up, 64% and 56% maintained satisfactory ejaculation control at 24 and 36 months postintervention, respectively.

The Validation Of The Malay Preschool Language Assessment Tool (Mplat): The Screening And Diagnostic Versions

@#The paper describes the validation of the Malay Preschool Language Assessment Tool (MPLAT), a standardized normed referenced language assessment tool for Malay preschoolers within the ages of 4;0-6;11 and whose native language is Malay. The MPLAT (A Razak et al. 2010) is an assessment tool which is designed to assess the areas of receptive language, expressive language and early literacy skills. The MPLAT contains six subtests i.e. picture vocabulary, grammatical understanding, sentence repetition, referential meaning, relational meaning and early literacy skills. This paper is divided into 2 studies. Study 1 tested the psychometric properties and normative data of the diagnostic version of MPLAT on 300 participants recruited from preschools in the rural area of Gua Musang and the urban area of Kota Bahru located in the East Coast state of Kelantan. The construct validity is high with a strong correlation (r = 0.942) between test scores and age, validating the developmental nature of the test. There was also moderate to strong positive correlation between each subtest and the test total, as well as between subtests. It also has high test-retest reliability (r = 0.998 (p < 0.01) and inter-rater reliability (rho = 1.000). The second study looked at the psychometrics properties of the MPLAT short version (screening) compared to the full version diagnostic. The short version of MPLAT is about a quarter of the full (diagnostic) version. About 108 subjects in the urban area of the the Klang Valley, consisting of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, were administered both versions of the MPLAT. The Pearson correlation revealed a strong positive correlation between the total scores and age (r = 0.718, p<.01), and strong positive correlation for the test-retest reliability (r = 0.881, n=12) for the short MPLAT version. For the full version, the Spearman correlation revealed a strong positive correlation between total scores and age (r = 0.791, p<.01) and a very strong positive Pearson correlation for test-retest reliability (r = 0.943). Cronbach's Alpha values demonstrated the internal consistency of the full version (0.972) and short version (0.929). In summary, both versions of the MPLAT were found to be valid tools to screen and diagnose language problems among Malay preschool children in Malaysia. MPLAT also has the potential to be a useful research tool to delineate language development of the preschool Malay children.

Pelvic muscle floor rehabilitation as a therapeutic option in lifelong premature ejaculation: long-term outcomes / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

The aim of the study was to evaluate the long-term outcomes of pelvic floor muscle (PFM) rehabilitation in males with lifelong premature ejaculation (PE), using intravaginal ejaculatory latency time (IELT) and the self-report Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT) as primary outcomes. A total of 154 participants were retrospectively reviewed in this study, with 122 completing the training protocol. At baseline, all participants had an IELT ≤60 s and PEDT score >11. Participants completed a 12-week program of PFM rehabilitation, including physio-kinesiotherapy treatment, electrostimulation, and biofeedback, with three sessions per week, with 20 min for each component completed at each session. The effectiveness of intervention was evaluated by comparing the change in the geometric mean of IELT and PEDT values, from baseline, at 3, 6, and 12 months during the intervention, and at 24 and 36 months postintervention, using a paired sample 2-tailed t-test, including the associated 95% confidence intervals. Of the 122 participants who completed PFM rehabilitation, 111 gained control of their ejaculation reflex, with a mean IELT of 161.6 s and PEDT score of 2.3 at the 12-week endpoint of the intervention, representing an increase from baseline of 40.4 s and 17.0 scores, respectively, for IELT and PEDT (P < 0.0001). Of the 95 participants who completed the 36-month follow-up, 64% and 56% maintained satisfactory ejaculation control at 24 and 36 months postintervention, respectively.

The role of heparin-binding protein in the diagnosis and prognosis of sepsis syndrome in pediatric patients at the Philippine Children's Medical Center

@#<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong> The burden of sepsis is global despite measures to improve its prompt recognition. However, there is no single reliable parameter for its early detection. Heparin-binding protein (HBP) is a new and promising biomarker for sepsis. Presently, there are no published reports in children apart from a limited study on UTI.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>OBJECTIVE:</strong> To evaluate the role of HBP as a diagnostic tool and prognostic marker of sepsis syndrome among pediatric patients.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>METHODS:</strong> This prospective cohort study enrolled pediatric patients who were categorized as SIRS or sepsis syndrome. HBP assay was determined on Day1. Likewise, blood culture was taken. A 7-day observation period using PELOD scoring was done. Final category as SIRS or sepsis syndrome was done on Day7. Statistical analysis was done to know relationship of HBP level to SIRS and sepsis.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>RESULTS:</strong> 106 patients were included in this study. There was statistical significance in the correlation of HBP assay with presence of growth in blood culture and toxic granulations, length of ventilator support, and development of complications including mortality. The cutoff point was >125ng/mL. Sensitivity and specificity for HBP in sepsis syndrome were 98.31% and 97.87% respectively. Positive predictive value was 98.3%. Negative predictive value was 97.9%. Positive likelihood ratio was 46.2. Negative likelihood ratio was 0.017. Risk ratio was 47.6. Subjects with HBP level of >125 ng/mL had 47.6 times the risk of having sepsis syndrome as compared to those with level</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS</strong>: Elevated HBP level is a useful diagnostic and prognostic marker for childhood sepsis syndrome. Determination of HBP levels at different time intervals within a longer observation period may give a more accurate description of subject's clinical improvement or progression to MODS or mortality.</p>

Correlation between premature ejaculation diagnostic tool and International Index of Erectile Function-15 in different types of premature ejaculation / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>Objective</b>To investigate the correlation between the premature ejaculation diagnostic tool (PEDT) and International Index of Erectile Function-15 (IIEF-15) in different types of premature ejaculation (PE).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We performed a cross-section survey among 352 PE patients received in the andrology clinic from December 2014 to December 2015 and 104 healthy men from the health examination center using basic demographic information (as on age, height, weight, education status, occupation, income, etc.), PEDT results, and IIEF-15 scores of the subjects.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The PE patients had remarkably higher PEDT and lower IIEF-15 scores than the healthy men (P<0.01). The PEDT score of the PE patients was negatively correlated with their total IIEF-15 score as well as with the scores in the domains of erectile function, sexual intercourse satisfaction, and overall satisfaction after adjusted for age (P<0.01). The patients with acquired PE (APE) showed a lower IIEF-15 score than those with lifelong PE (LPE) (P<0.01). The PEDT score of the APE patients was correlated negatively with the total IIEF-15 score (r=－0.391, P<0.01) and the scores in the domains of erectile function (r=－0.362, P<0.01) and overall satisfaction (r=－0.621, P<0.01), but not correlated with intercourse satisfaction, sexual orgasm, or sexual desire. The PEDT score of the LPE group was correlated negatively with intercourse satisfaction (r=－0.286, P<0.05) but not correlated with either the total IIEF-15 score or the scores in the domains of erectile function, overall satisfaction, sexual orgasm, or sexual desire.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>PE patients have a higher PEDT score and a lower IIEF-15 score than normal males. The PEDT score of APE patients is significantly correlated with the total IIEF-15 score, while that of LPE patients is correlated not with the total IIEF-15 score but with intercourse satisfaction.</p>

Efficacy and safety of Qiaoshao Formula () on patients with lifelong premature ejaculation of Gan (Liver) depression and Shen (Kidney) deficiency syndrome: A randomized controlled trial / 中国结合医学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effificacy and safety of Qiaoshao Formula (, QSF) on patients with lifelong premature ejaculation (LPE) of Gan (Liver) depression and Shen (Kidney) defificiency syndrome.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 60 LPE patients were randomly divided into treatment (QSF) and control (dapoxetine) groups. The treatment group received QSF twice a day and the control group received dapoxetine 1 to 2 h prior to planned sexual intercourse for 4 weeks. The outcomes included intra-vaginal ejaculation latency time (IELT), premature ejaculation diagnostic tool (PEDT), clinical global impression of change (CGIC), scores of Chinese medicine symptoms (CMSS), sex life satisfaction (SLS) and adverse events (AEs).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>In the treated group, the median IELT was 3 min vs. 1.5 min before and after treatment (P<0.05). PEDT in the treated group was reduced to 11.76±1.68 from 15.83±2.30 after treatment (P<0.05). Besides, patient's SLS was improved from 1.30±0.05 to 6.30±0.04 (P<0.05), and spouse's SLS was increased from 1.30±0.to 6.10±0.06 (P<0.05); CMSS was decrease from 14.86±3.02 to 9.62±2.87 (P<0.05). In addition, no significant AE was observed in both groups.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>QSF may be effective and safe on LPE patients with Gan depression and Shen defificiency syndrome.</p>

Gold Nanoparticles synthesis, properties, and forthcoming applications – A review .

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have several biomedical applications in diagnosis and treating of disease such as targeted chemotherapy and in pharmaceutical drug delivery due to their multifunctionality and unique characteristics. AuNPs can be conjugated with ligands, imaging labels, therapeutic drugs and other functional moieties for site specific drug delivery application. In this present review we are discussing the synthesis, properties, and forthcoming applications of gold nanoparticle (AuNPs) which is the most studied among all other metallic-nanoparticles. Here our main focus is to explain the AuNPs application in cancer treatment. AuNPs provides non-toxic carrier system for pharmaceutical drug and gene delivery applications. Currently various anticancer drugs are available but these are cause the necrosis of cancerous cell as well as normal cells. AuNPs cause the necrosis of only cancer cells therefore we can utilize it as a delivery vehicle as well as anticancer agent.

Diabetes epidemic in the Asia Pacific region: has hemoglobin A1C finally earned its place as a diagnostic tool?

Two-third of the world's population lives in the Asia Pacific region where prevalence of diabetes has reached epidemic proportion. With China and India being the most populous nations on the globe, it is believed that over 150 million diabetes reside in the region with more than 95% being of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Furthermore, other Pacific islands in the region have high rates of T2DM including Tonga, Fiji, French Polynesia, and Nauru. The latter has the highest prevalence of T2DM per population in the world. Over the past two decades, in Australia and New Zealand, the prevalence of T2DM has more than doubled, mainly amongst the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and Maori peoples respectively. With the increasing prevalence of diabetes in the Asia Pacific region coupled with the limited number of resources, use of a reliable and effective mode of diagnosis for T2DM is warranted. Yet to date, only New Zealand has adopted the American Diabetes Association recommendation of using hemoglobin A1C in the diagnosis of the disease. The aim of this review is to discuss the clinical usefulness of hemoglobin A1C and highlight its diagnostic role in the Asia Pacific region where T2DM is increasingly encountered.

Evaluation of Creatine Kinase as a Diagnostic Tool for Thyroid Function.

Thyroid disorders are very commonly affecting the general population, even the persons residing in non goitrous areas are no exception. Currently used tests for the assessment of thyroid functions (throid-stimulating hormone [TSH], tri-iodothyronine [T3] and throxine [T4]) are not sometimes sufficient to clearly make out the diagnosis as T3 and T4 levels are affected by so many other nonspecific conditions. The present study was done to evaluate the role of alternative biochemical parameter creatine kinase (CK) in diagnosing thyroid disorders. Sixty hypothyroid and 40 hyperthyroid patients were compared with 50 age, sex and sociocoeconomic status matched healthy controls. FT3, FT4 and TSH levels were measured by ELISA method and CK levels were measured by modified IFCC method. In hypothyroid patients, significant increase in CK levels was found as compared to control group (190 ± 40 IU/l in hypothyroid patients and 100 ± 70 IU/l in control group). A negative correlation was also found between FT3 and CK (r = –0.51; p < 0.005). In patients of hyperthyroidism, the levels of CK were found to be on the lower side. It was concluded that CK measurements may be useful as alternative diagnostic tool for the diagnosis of thyroid function disorders, which may be not only because of prevalence of muscular dystrophies in thyroid disorders but also due to role of FT3 in gene expression.

Saliva as a potential diagnostic tool.

Saliva is a complex fluid consisting of secretions from the major and minor salivary glands. Gland-specific saliva can be used to diagnose any pathology from the specific major salivary gland. Whole saliva has serum constituents that are derived from the local vasculature of the salivary glands and gingival crevicular fluid. Saliva, as a diagnostic fluid, has distinctive advantages over serum as whole saliva can be collected non-invasively by individuals with limited training using simple equipments. This review aimed to explore the diagnostic applications of saliva in systemic and oral diseases. Analysis of saliva can offer a cost-effective approach to screen for a larger population. Salivary analysis may be useful for diagnosing systemic oral disorders, as well as for monitoring hormone and therapeutic levels of drug.

The Selective Spinal Nerve Root Block as Predictors of Outcome of Operative Treatment in the Lumbar Spine / 대한척추외과학회지

PURPOSE: The selective spinal nerve root block is one of the preoperative diagnostic tool to identify and confirm the lesion site of primary cause of pain. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the correlation between diagnostic selective spinal nerve root blocks and outcome following surgical treatment of selected levels of both lumbar herniated intervertebral disc (HIVD) and spinal stenosis. MATERIAL AND METHOD: In a total 341 selective nerve root blocks in 169 patients who were diagnosed as lumbar HIVD and spinal stenosis from Jan. 1993 to Jun. 1997 with performed in a retrospective study, two groups of patients were chosen for this study. The result of pain change of selective nerve root block were judged by Denis' pain scale, the end-result selective spinal nerve root and operative treatment used by Kim's criteria. RESULT : 1. The end-results of selective spinal nerve root block, excellent and good results were 64 cases (67.3%) in lumbar HIVD group and 50 cases (67.5%) in spinal stenosis group. The end-results of selective spine surgery, at last follow up, excellent and good results were 82 cases (86.2%) in lumbar HIVD group and 56 cases (75.7%) in spinal stenosis group. RESULT: 2. The predictive value of selective spinal nerve root block was 68.4% in lumbar HIVD group and 74.3% in spinal stenosis group. In addition, statistical analysis with regression analysis, to show any significant correlation between the selective spinal nerve root block results and the outcome of operative treatment, especially in spinal stenosis group. CONCLUSION: The selective spinal nerve root block is one of the valuable procedure that helpful and predictors of outcome selective operative treatment of lumbar spinal stenosis.

Management of Complicated Diverticular Disease of the Colon

BACKGROUND: Colon diverticular disease is known to be prevalent in the western population and rare in the oriental population. Nowadays, the incidence in Korea is steadily increasing, so appropriate management has become clinically important. We must decide whether the patient needs surgical management and bowel preparation, or not. We must decide when and how to do it. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 53 patients who were admitted with colon diverticular disease to Ewha Womans University Hospital from September 1993 to January 1999. RESULTS: They were 35 men and 18 women. The mean age was 47 years. The patients were divide into two groups: the conservatively managed group (Group C, n=28) and the operatively managed group (Group O, n=25). The lesions were located in the right colon in 23 cases of Group C (82%) and 17 cases of Group O (62%). The barium enema was the most commonly used diagnostic tool (Group C: 78.8%; Group O: 56%). However, an abdomino-pelvic CT was a more effective diagnostic tool in emergency cases (66.7%). Recurrence (n=12) was the most common indication for an operation. Bowels were not prepared in some elective (n=5) and all emergency cases (n=6). One-stage operations were performed in 19 cases of elective operations and in three cases of emergency operations. Two-stage operations were performed in the other three cases of emergency operations. Postoperative complications were noted in six cases of elective operation, four with bowel preparation (28.5%) and two without preparation (40.0%) and in five cases of emergency operations (83%). Also we had one mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The barium enema was the most accurate and commonly used diagnostic tool. However, in emergency cases, an abdomino-pelvic CT was effective for deciding on the treatment. It seems better to do an elective operation with bowel preparation than to do an emergency operation without bowel preparation for colon diverticulitis, provided the patient's condition permits.

Mycobacterium leprae—The outer lipoidal surface.

There is now a considerable body of evidence to suggest that the phthiocerolcontaining lipids, including the phenolic glycolipids, comprise the so-called "peribacillary substance", "spherical droplets", "foamy structures" and "capsular materials" of Mycobacterium leprae. Thus, the phthiocerol-containing lipid capsule may be directly responsible for the intracellular survival of Mycobacterium leprae.