ABSTRACT
We have described and measured aortic and arterial atherosclerosis in adult female Vervet monkeys (n = 61) after application of dietary treatments for 47 months. The diets were compounded entirely of normal food items for westernized people, with no extra cholesterol added. A 'Western' diet (WD), known to induce hypercholesterolaemia, was found to be atherogenic in aortas and some arteries. A more 'prudent' diet (PD) induced much less lipid infiltration into aortic intimas and was not associated with serious atherosclerotic changes. However, when this PD was used as a treatment for 27 months, following 20 months of nutrition by the WD, minimal regression of cholesterol crystals and non-lipid components of atherosclerotic plaque was detected. There was no significant coronary artery or myocardial disease in these adult females after 47 months of feeding on the WD whereas males do develop coronary atherosclerosis and myocardial fibrosis. For this model the PD would be more effective in preventing atherosclerosis than treating advanced lesions. We believe this is the first time that the pathology of atherosclerosis promoted by realistic diets has been modelled in adult females of this species.
Subject(s)
Arteriosclerosis/etiology , Cercopithecus/metabolism , Chlorocebus aethiops/metabolism , Diet, Atherogenic , Hypercholesterolemia/etiology , Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena , Animals , Aorta/pathology , Arteriosclerosis/pathology , Female , Time FactorsABSTRACT
Inconsistencies in individual student scores from one year to the next prompted attempts to produce a more accurate objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) test in neurology. A study of factors affecting the reliability of this test revealed that in spite of efforts to control patient and examiner variability, residual inaccuracies due to these effects remained. Also, the use of a uniform test structure may have led to student cueing. Student performance did not appear to be affected by the OSCE format per se. Innovations that might improve test reliability in subsequent OSCEs were identified.
Subject(s)
Clinical Competence , Education, Medical, Undergraduate/standards , Educational Measurement/methods , Neurology , Evaluation Studies as Topic , South AfricaABSTRACT
Rats fed maize-based diets approximating to that eaten by blacks at risk of Mseleni joint disease developed fibrous osteodystrophy and nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism, thought to be due to dietary calcium deficiency. This suggests that a dietary cause for this disease needs to be investigated further.
