Sexual dimorphism of the pelvic girdle from 3D images of a living Spanish sample from Castilla-La Mancha.

The aim of our study is to provide data regarding the morphology of the pelvic girdle from a living Spanish sample. The material used comprises radiographic images (CT scans) from 74 adult individuals (39 ♂ and 35 ♀) in DICOM format. The variables recorded were the bi-iliac width and the antero-posterior and transverse diameters of the three anatomical planes of the birth canal, with the exception of the transverse diameter of the outlet. Indices of the inlet and mid-plane were also calculated. Statistical analysis of the data (Student's t-test and principal component analysis) revealed that the variables which display sexual differences are the transverse diameter of the inlet, the antero-posterior and transverse diameters of the mid-plane and the mid-plane index. In particular, Spanish women have significantly higher values in the transverse diameter of the inlet and the antero-posterior and transverse diameter of the mid-plane than men; and Spanish men have significantly higher values in the mid-plane index than women. The results of this study are in accordance with those obtained in previous studies based on dry bone, which suggest considerable populational variability in pelvic and birth canal geometry. This kind of CT-based study of living populations may significantly enhance our understanding of population variation of pelvic morphology. This information can be useful to better understand the birth mechanism in Homo sapiens and the appearance of rotative birth in the Homo lineage through comparison with the other primates, living or fossil.

Facing the future: the effects of the impending financial drought on NHS finances and how UK radiology services can contribute to expected efficiency savings.

The recent turmoil within the banking sector has led to the development of the most significant recession since the "great depression" of the 1930s. Although the coalition government has promised to "guarantee that health spending increases in real terms in each year of Parliament", this may still not be enough to meet future needs over the coming years due to increasing demand and cost pressures. The expected mismatch between actual National Health Service (NHS) funding post-2011 and that required to satisfy increasing demand has been estimated by the Department of Health to require efficiency savings representing up to one-fifth of the overall NHS budget. This paper explains the reasons behind the anticipated slowdown in the growth of real NHS funding, and how, as a discipline, radiology can increase the efficiency of the services it provides in anticipation of future financial austerity within the NHS.

The effects of the TRPV1 receptor antagonist SB-705498 on trigeminovascular sensitisation and neurotransmission.

This report examines the effect of the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 receptor antagonist SB-705498 on neurotransmission and inflammation-induced sensitisation in the trigeminovascular sensory system. A single-neuron electrophysiological animal model for neurovascular head pain was used to evaluate dural and facial noxious inputs and the effects of SB-705498 administered by intravenous (i.v.) injection. Electrical and mechanical stimulation of the dura mater and the facial skin activated second-order neurons in the trigeminal nucleus caudalis of cats, with A-delta latencies. Intravenous injection of SB-705498 (2 mg kg(-1)) produced a slowly developing and long-lasting suppression of responses to dural and skin stimulation. Maximum suppression occurred by 1 h and reached 41% for dura and 24% for skin. Intravenous injection of drug vehicle did not produce significant suppression of responses to stimulation of either dura or skin. Intravenous injection of SB-705498 produced a brief and small rise in blood pressure and dural blood flow, which both returned to normal before suppression of the responses to stimulation became manifest. Application of "inflammatory soup" to the dura mater produced a pronounced increase in dural blood flow and induced a slowly developing increase in the responses of neurons to both electrical and mechanical stimulations of their facial and dural receptive fields. This sensitisation reached a maximum in 60-90 min, at which time responses had risen to approximately twice that of control levels seen before the application of inflammatory soup. Intravenous injection of SB-705498 subsequent to the development of sensitisation produced a slowly developing, prolonged and statistically significant reversal of the sensitisation induced by inflammatory soup. Maximum reversal of sensitisation to electrical stimulation occurred by 150-180 min, when responses had fallen to, or below, control levels. At 70-85 min following injection of SB-705498, the responses of previously sensitised neurons to mechanical stimulation of dura mater and facial receptive field had also returned to near control levels. SB-705498 was also able to prevent the development of sensitisation; application of inflammatory soup to the dura mater induced a slowly developing increase in the responses of neurons to electrical stimulation of the skin and dura mater in cats which had received an i.v. injection of vehicle for SB-705498 but not in cats which had received the active drug. Blood levels of SB-705498 were maximal immediately following i.v. injection and declined over the following 2 h. Significant brain levels of SB-705498 were maintained for up to 9 h. These results suggest that SB-705498 may be an effective suppressant and reversal agent of the sensitisation to sensory input which follows inflammation in the trigeminovascular sensory distribution but may not be particularly useful in blocking primary pain processes such as migraine headache. SB-705498 could thus potentially prevent, modify or reverse the cutaneous trigeminal allodynia seen in certain migraine conditions, especially "transformed" migraine.

The role of temperature and larval crowding in morph determination in a tropical beetle, Callosobruchus subinnotatus.

Many insect species can produce individuals of more than one form or morph. Different morphs of the same species may differ in their physiology, morphology and in behaviour. Understanding the factors and mechanisms involved in determining the production of different morphs of insect species is of major importance in understanding the evolution of specific life-history strategies. In this paper, we studied the importance of temperature as an environmental factor involved in morph determination of the tropical beetle, Callosobruchus subinnotatus. Adults occur as relatively sedentary, highly fecund, 'normal' morphs or as an 'active' morph adapted to dispersal. Larval crowding, seed density and external temperature were independently manipulated in a series of controlled experiments and the proportions of 'active' and 'normal' adult morphs among the emergent adult populations were quantified and compared. Development in crowded conditions was found to be associated with the production of a significantly higher proportion of 'active' adults than development in isolation, and was also responsible for a predictable rise in the localised temperature of infested heaps of seeds of between 4 and 8 degrees C above ambient (27 degrees C). This rise in temperature is subsequently shown to be directly and quantitatively associated with the proportion of 'active' adults among emerging adults, both in the presence of larval crowding and independently from it. Thus, it is suggested that in the crowded environment representative of an infested seed store, it is rising temperature, occurring at a specific point in insect development which is the proximate cue for 'active' morph induction in C. subinnotatus. The results are compared to the strategies used by other polymorphic insects to survive in heterogeneous environments.

Variation in responses to susceptible and resistant cowpeas among West African populations of Callosobruchus maculatus (Coleoptera: Bruchidae).

The cowpea seed beetle, sometimes also known as the cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus (F.), is a major pest of stored cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata Walpers) in West Africa. Control methods have included development of 'resistant' varieties as an environmentally benign alternative to insecticides, but there is concern over their effectiveness because of population variation among the insects and the possibility of adaptation overcoming seed resistance. Populations of C. maculatus from Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, and Niger, were used to examine variation in response to resistant and susceptible cowpea varieties at two geographical scales. Among seven Nigerian populations, there were significant differences in development times, the pattern of adult emergence, adult weights, and female fecundity when reared under identical conditions. Development in the resistant variety was retarded, produced higher mortality and lower adult weights. Significant interactions between variety and population were evident in terms of their effects on adult weight and development time; development times in the resistant variety were longer and emergences occurred over a longer period in some populations than in others. Population responses to resistant seeds were therefore unpredictable, but there was no evidence to suggest adaptation to overcome seed resistance within three generations. On a larger geographical scale, variation in performance was much greater and therefore, even less predictable. Mortality in resistant seeds was also higher among populations collected from outside Nigeria and may be explained by significant adaptation among Nigerian populations to previous release of resistant varieties. The findings are discussed in relation to understanding the extent of intraspecific variation in C. maculatus and its implications for future pest management.

Health system goals: life, death and ... football.

OBJECTIVES: Both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) have developed sophisticated ways of defining and aggregating performance to produce overall, single-number indices. These are used to illustrate some of the problems of measuring, comparing and improving health system performance. METHODS: Possible associations between FIFA football rankings for international 'A' sides for 176 countries and rankings on the WHO overall health system performance index were explored using econometric techniques. RESULTS: There is a significant relationship between a country's FIFA ranking and its ranking by the WHO. Taken at face value, the statistical analysis suggests that, if the national football team does well, the WHO score improves. CONCLUSIONS: The relationship between FIFA and WHO ranks is entirely spurious. However, comparison of the two indices illustrates problems with the WHO exercise, including measurement difficulties, how policy-makers may use the information to improve health system performance, what the public are to make of the data and how different dimensions of overall performance may be subject to trade-offs.

Health spending. Extra time.

The government is committed to raise spending on healthcare in the UK up to the European average by 2006. There is debate about the exact target figure, but agreement that the key consideration is how the extra money will be spent. If the UK is to achieve the EU average, it will probably have to increase private as well as public spending. To match German levels of staffing, the UK would need an extra 100,000 doctors and 300,000 nurses. There has been little analysis of how the extra expenditure will improve outcomes.

Bionomics and polymorphism in Callosobruchus subinnotatus (Coleoptera: Bruchidae).

Callosobruchus subinnotatus (Pic) is the major insect pest of stored bambara groundnuts, Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdcourt, in sub-Saharan West Africa, but little is currently known about its biology or how it may be controlled. A series of laboratory studies was performed to investigate the bionomics of and differences between two apparently different morphs of adult of each sex of this species, here termed 'active' and 'normal'. Major differences in their morphology, physiology and behaviour were identified and are described in detail for the first time. They provide clear evidence of the existence of an adult polymorphism among populations of this species, which is comparable in certain respects to that previously described for C. maculatus (Fabricius) and C. chinensis Linnaeus. Adults can be separated into the correct morph based on characteristic differences in elytral and pygidial colour and pattern. 'Normal' adults are characterized by having high fecundity, short adult life and are relatively sedentary while 'active' adults exhibit reproductive diapause (suspension of reproductive activity), are long lived, and show (at least in females) increased dispersal tendencies. These characteristics suggest adaptation of the 'active' and 'normal' morphs respectively to the different environments of field and seed stores, and the significance of the polymorphism in the life history of C. subinnotatus is discussed in this context. The design of any effective control regime for this bruchid needs to take account of and could potentially be based upon the existence of polymorphism in C. subinnotatus.

Management costs. Cut and run.

Government claims that the NHS will have saved 1 bn Pounds on management costs by the end of this financial year are exaggerated. Published figures on savings since 1997-98 vary considerably. The question of what level of management costs the NHS should be expected to bear to run efficiently needs to be addressed.

Intraoperative mannitol does not prevent renal failure in orthotopic liver transplantation.

OBJECTIVE: To undertake a prospective randomised controlled study to investigate whether there is any beneficial renal effect in the perioperative administration of mannitol in patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation. METHODS: Patients presenting in end-stage liver failure for orthotopic liver transplantation had their preoperative renal function assessed by 24 hour urinary creatinine clearance. In a randomised double-blind study they were allocated to receive either mannitol 0.5 g/kg intravenously, or an equivalent volume of 0.9% saline, after induction. All patients had central venous, peripheral and pulmonary artery catheters inserted and received intravenous fluids, blood and blood products based on central pressure measurements, thromboelastographic monitoring, and blood biochemistry. All patients also received intravenous dopamine 2.5-3.0 microg/kg/min. Intravenous fluids and urine production were recorded intraoperatively and for the first 24 hours in intensive care. RESULTS: Twenty five patients were enrolled, 13 in the control group and 12 in the mannitol group. There was no significant difference in the preoperative creatinine clearances (control group 72.1 +/- 24.5 mL/min; mannitol group 65.1 +/- 33 mL/min, p = 0.45), total intraoperative fluid requirements (control group 10,741 +/- 4517 mL; mannitol group 13,852 +/- 11,827 mL, p = 0.38) or intraoperative urine production (control group 1323 +/- 1419 mL; mannitol group 912 +/- 493 mL, p = 0.35). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that intraoperative mannitol does not help preserve renal function in the patient undergoing liver transplantation.