The effects of nutrients and secondary compounds of Coffea arabica on the behavior and development of Coccus viridis.

Phytochemicals may modify the food quality, reduce a plant's palatability to insects, or defend against pests. This work aimed to study 1) relationships between the nitrogen and potassium levels given to plants in nutritive solutions and the foliar phytochemical concentrations, 2) the effect of nutrients and secondary compounds of Coffea arabica on the behavior of Coccus viridis, and 3) tolerance of C. arabica to losses. Deficient, normal, and excessive nitrogen and potassium fertilization treatments were used. Each treatment had two plants (one infested and one noninfested plant). The contents of phytochemicals in the infested plants' leaves and their dry matter of roots, stems, and leaves as well as the total contents in noninfested plants, were determined. The adults and nymphs of C. viridis were counted for 60 d in all treatments. It was verified that elevated nitrogen and potassium levels in the nutritional solutions led to increased of nymphs and adults of C. viridis to the coffee plants over time. Potassium and nitrogen had both direct and indirect effects on C. viridis. The direct effect was because of the increase of the nitrogen content in the leaves. The indirect effect instead was because of reductions in the caffeine and chlorogenic acid contents in the leaves. This is the first study to show relationship nutrient levels of coffee phytochemicals in response to herbivory by scale insects. Caffeine and chlorogenic acid applied on coffee leaves stimulated the locomotory activity of the green scale, thus reducing their feeding compared with untreated leaves. The elevation of caffeine and chlorogenic acid levels in coffee leaves affect this generalist insect by stimulating the locomotion of crawlers.

Excessive strut wear allowing ball-poppet embolization in a DeBakey-Surgitool aortic valve prosthesis.

Excessive cage strut wear allowing ball-poppet embolization caused the sudden death of a 47 year old lady in whom a DeBakey-Surgitool aortic prosthesis had been implanted nine years earlier. Patients with this type of prosthesis should have periodic valvular cine fluoroscopy with image intensification to allow visualization of significant strut wear or fracture, and appropriate prosthetic valve replacement.

A rapid, secure method of sternal closure.

In 1977 Robicsek(1) described a method of sternal closure that involved a double wire on each side of the sternum, with appropriate circumferential wires. Shortly thereafter, we modified that procedure, as shown in Figure 1. Only one wire is used on each side of the sternum, and fewer circumferential wires are needed. This type of sternal closure can be performed as rapidly as the usual closure of simple circumferential wire sutures and is much more secure, because the circumferential wires cannot cut through the parasternal wire. After using this method in about 100 patients with either poor sternal bone or chronic lung disease, we have encountered no subsequent sternal separation.

Coronary arterial bypass operations without antibiotic coverage.

In this study, six of 693 consecutive patients in 29 months who underwent only myocardial revascularization, without prophylactic systemic therapy with antibiotics, experienced infection of a clean wound. This incidence of infection (0.86 percent) in such patients is the lowest reported in the literature. Prevention of infection of clean mediastinal wounds in patients undergoing only myocardial revascularization is related to preoperative preparation of the skin and local antibiotic irrigation of the wound, rather than to prophylactic systemic therapy with antibiotics.

Postoperative chest wound infections in patients requiring coronary bypass. A controlled study evaluating prophylactic antibiotics.

A controlled study investigating clean chest wound infections in 904 patients undergoing myocardial revascularization was performed. Four hundred fifty-one patients received systemic antibiotics before and after the operation, and 453 patients received no prophylactic systemic antibiotics. The infection rate was 1.10 per cent and 1.76 per cent, respectively, indicating no statistical difference between the two groups. Preoperative skin preparation and subsequent local antibiotic wound irrigation may be the most important factors in preventing clean wound infection.

Bilateral renal vein and inferior vena cava thrombosis with nephrotic syndrome treated by thrombectomy: case report with 3-year followup.

A previously healthy 19-year-old woman taking anovulatory medication presented with symptoms of the nephrotic syndrome and lupus erythematosus. Diagnosis of inferior vena cava and bilateral renal vein thrombosis was made angiographically. The patient was treated successfully by thrombectomy and anticoagulation, and remains well 3 years later. Laboratory data indicate normal renal function and only mild proteinuria. This is the longest followup of a patient with this entity reported in the literature.

Complete obstruction of the left main coronary artery associated with congenital pulmonary valvular stenosis.

The surgical treatment of the completely obstructed left main coronary artery is aortocoronary saphenous-vein bypass to the left coronary artery system. Without surgical intervention, this lesion has an exceedingly poor prognosis. This report describes a patient with atherosclerotic obstruction of the left main coronary artery and congenital pulmonary valvular stenosis, an unusual combination of lesions not previously documented together. The patient remains asymptomatic 22 months after aortocoronary saphenous-vein bypass and pulmonary valvotomy.

Traumatic fistula between left anterior descending coronary artery and right ventricle. Case report with successful surgical repair.

Twelve traumatic coronary artery-cameral fistulas have been reported in the world's literature. Ten have been secondary to penetrating injuries and two have resulted from blunt chest trauma. This case report involves the successful diagnosis and surgical treatment of a patient with a left anterior descending coronary artery-right ventricular fistula. We also discuss similar arteriocameral fistulas previously reported.