The effect of sensory stimulation on apnea of prematurity.

Objectives: The study aims to assess the effect of sensory stimulation on apnoea among premature newborns. Methods: Thirty preterm newborns that were diagnosed with apnoea of prematurity, had a gestational age between 32 and 34 weeks, had low birth weight, and were appropriate for gestational age from 1200 to 2000 g were included in this prospective randomized study. Subjects were divided into two equivalent groups: a control group that received the standard care including nasal oxygen (one litre per minute) and caffeine citrate, and a study group that received the same care plus sensory stimulation (tactile, proprioceptive, and kinaesthetic). Participants' heart rate, oxygen saturation, and apnoea frequency were measured by the neonatal intensive care unit team using a pulse-oximeter. The sensory stimulation sessions were 10 min, 3 times per day, totalling 30 min over a 7 day period. Results: There was a significant decrease in heart rate within both groups after receiving treatment from before treatment (p < 0.05), with no significant differences between the two groups. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in oxygen saturation within the groups after treatment compared with the levels before treatment, with no significant differences between the two groups (p > 0.05). Before treatment, there was a non-significant difference in the apnoea rate between both groups (p = 0.464), whereas there was a significant decrease in the apnoea rate of the study group after treatment compared with the control group (p = 0.031). Conclusion: Sensory stimulation applied with standard respiratory care can decrease the frequency of apnoea of prematurity.

Enlarged parietal foramina presenting as scalp swelling in an infant.

"Enlarged parietal foramina" is a congenital malformation with autosomal dominant inheritance. The condition is usually self-limiting and doesn't require any treatment. However, it may also be associated with encephalocele, vascular anomalies or may be a part of syndrome. We present a case of enlarged parietal foramina in a child and discuss its imaging findings and the associated intracranial vascular malformations.

Severe childhood autosomal recessive muscular dystrophy with the deficiency of the 50 kDa dystrophin-associated glycoprotein maps to chromosome 13q12.

We have recently demonstrated the specific deficiency for the 50 kDa dystrophin-associated glycoprotein (50DAG) in Algerian patients afflicted with severe childhood autosomal recessive muscular dystrophy with DMD-like phenotype (SCARMD). A similar disease affecting Tunisian patients was linked to chromosome 13q but the status of the 50DAG was not investigated. Here we show by linkage analysis of Algerian families that the genetic defect which leads, either directly or indirectly, to the deficiency of the 50DAG in skeletal muscle is localized to the proximal part of chromosome 13q. We have not found any evidence of genetic heterogeneity among the thirteen families studied. It remains to be demonstrated whether the 50DAG gene maps at 13q12, and to determine if it is mutated in this disease.

Vehicle fingertip reach controls--human factors recommendations.

Interviews were conducted with 405 drivers of cars equipped with fingertip reach controls. A high percentage of finding problems was reported when the horn was mounted on a stalk and also when the turn signal was on a right stalk. Drivers of configurations with two left stalks had a large percentage of inadvertent operation problems for the turn signal and for the headlight beam selector. A laboratory experiment was conducted to evaluate modes of operation for the wiper on/off, wiper speed and washer on/off functions. Subjects performed best when the wiper on/off and speed control were actuated by a rotating had switch. Subjects' reactions to stalk mounted controls were much faster than their reactions to dash mounted controls. Recommendations to eliminate finding and inadvertent operation problems associated with fingertip reach controls are given.