ABSTRACT
Neurostimulation of the upper airway muscles (accessory muscles of respiration) was accomplished in anesthetized dogs and sleeping humans by electrical stimulation of the hypoglossal nerves. Such stimulations relieved partial airway obstructions in dogs. They also aborted (shortened) obstructive sleep apnea events in humans who suffer with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. In one subject, stimulations delivered in advance of apneic events (by automatic cycling) prevented apneas. Neurostimulation for obstructive sleep apnea may be an important concept for future research and development.
Subject(s)
Electric Stimulation Therapy , Sleep Apnea Syndromes/therapy , Animals , Dogs , Female , Humans , Hypoglossal Nerve , Male , Pilot Projects , Polysomnography , Sleep Apnea Syndromes/physiopathologyABSTRACT
Reconstruction of the burned penile urethra has received scant attention in the surgical literature. Techniques used in repairing congenital hypospadias may not be applicable in this situation. We describe a dartos musculocutaneous island flap used to reconstruct the distal burned penile urethra in a 13-year-old boy who sustained burns to 85% of his total body surface area. Reconstruction was completed in one surgical procedure, and at two-year follow-up good results were demonstrated.
Subject(s)
Burns/surgery , Penis/surgery , Surgical Flaps , Urethra/surgery , Adolescent , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Male , Penis/injuries , Surgical Flaps/methods , Urethra/injuriesABSTRACT
This study reports the ontogeny of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) receptor binding sites in rat brain, using both membrane binding assays and in vitro receptor autoradiography. CRF binding sites are evident by prenatal day 17, increase to 312% of their adult density by postnatal day 8, then decrease to reach adult values by day 21. Not only the density, but the distribution of CRF binding undergoes major modifications in development. CRF binding sites are most numerous in striatum prenatally, but postnatally, binding is more dense in the cortex, reaching the adult laminar distribution by postnatal day 14. Brain CRF receptors are linked to adenylate cyclase early in postnatal life. This contrasts with the later appearance of most of the guanine nucleotide stimulatory protein and catalytic subunit sites in the rat brain and suggests that CRF receptors may become functional earlier than several other brain receptors that are linked to adenylate cyclase.
