Modeling protected species habitat and assigning risk to inform regulatory decisions.

In the United States, environmental regulatory agencies are required to use "best available" scientific information when making decisions on a variety of issues. However, agencies are often hindered by coarse or incomplete data, particularly as it pertains to threatened and endangered species protection. Stakeholders often agree that more resolute and integrated processes for decision-making are desirable. We demonstrate a process that uses species occurrence data for a federally endangered insect (Karner blue butterfly), a readily available habitat modeling tool, and spatially explicit information about an important Michigan commodity (tart cherries). This case study has characteristics of many protected species regulatory decisions in that species occurrence data were sparse and unequally distributed; regulatory decisions (on pesticide use) were required with potentially significant impacts on a viable agricultural industry; and stakeholder relations were diverse, misinformed, and, in some situations, unjustly contentious. Results from our process include a large-scale, empirically derived habitat suitability map for the focal species and a risk ranking of tart cherry orchards with risk based on the likelihood that pesticide applications will influence the focal protected species. Although the majority (77%) of pesticide-influence zones overlapped Karner blue butterfly habitat, risk scores associated with each orchard were low. Through our process we demonstrated that spatially explicit models can help stakeholders visualize and quantify potential protected species effects. In addition, model outputs can serve to guide field activities (e.g., species surveys and implementation of pesticide buffer zones) that help minimize future effects.

Community and ecosystem responses to a pulsed pesticide disturbance in freshwater ecosystems.

Pesticides have been shown to be detrimental to key groups of freshwater organisms including cladocerans, odonates, and amphibians. However, less is known about the response of freshwater communities and ecosystems to pesticide disturbances as they occur in nature. Using outdoor aquatic mesocosms, we assembled identical and diverse replicate freshwater plankton food webs obtained from an adjacent pond. We established three pesticide treatments consisting of pulses of a common pesticide Sevin with the active ingredient carbaryl, at concentrations of 0.1, 1 and 20 microg carbaryl/ml, and a pesticide-free control treatment. We monitored the response of microbial, phytoplankton, and zooplankton communities in addition to oxygen concentrations. Carbaryl concentrations peaked shortly after Sevin application and degraded quickly and treatment differences were undetectable after 30 days. Zooplankton richness, diversity, abundance, and oxygen concentrations all decreased in pulsed treatments, while phytoplankton and microbial abundance increased. Zooplankton composition in the high pesticide treatment consisted primarily of rotifers as compared to dominance by copepods in the other three treatments. While many of the community and ecosystem properties showed signs of recovery within 40 days after the pulsed pesticide disturbance, important and significant differences remained in the microbial, phytoplankton and zooplankton communities after the pesticide degraded.

[Detection of disease of the anterior interventricular artery by 2-dimensional echocardiography in acute inferior infarction. Comparison with the electrocardiographic data]. / Détection de l'atteinte de l'artère interventriculaire antérieure par l'échographie bidimensionnelle dans les infarctus inférieurs au stade aigu. Comparaison avec les données électrocardiographiques.

The authors report their experience of 2D echocardiography in the acute stage of myocardial infarction. One hundred patients, 60 men and 40 women, aged 60 +/- 4.5 years (range 32 to 69 years) were admitted to hospital with an uncomplicated inferior myocardial infarction and underwent 2D echocardiography on admission and coronary angiography 15 days later. Ten patients were excluded because unsatisfactory quality of the echocardiographic images. Forty-seven patients had initial ST depression of at least 1 mm in leads V1 to V4 (Group I) and 43 patients did not show these electrical changes (Group II). There were no significant differences in the clinical findings or in the cardiovascular risk factors between the 2 groups. On the other hand, inaugural necrosis was commoner in Group II (p less than 0.03) and cardiomegaly and CPK elevation greater in Group I (p less than 0.02). 2D echocardiography demonstrated the same degree of posterior wall hypokinesia or akinesia in the 2 groups. Septal hypokinesia was observed twice as commonly in Group I (p less than 0.03) both at echocardiography and ventriculography. Haemodynamic and angiographic data showed that double and triple vessel disease was commoner (p less than 0.05), that left anterior descending disease was more severe (p less than 0.03), left ventricular end diastolic pressure was higher (p less than 0.02) and the ejection fraction lower (p less than 0.02) in Group I, compared with Group II.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[Value of calcium inhibitors in stable effort angina. Diltiazem versus nifedipine]. / Intérêt des inhibiteurs calciques dans l'angor d'effort stable. Diltiazem versus nifédipine.

Few studies have been devoted to the role of calcium blockers in stable angina of effort. For this reason, we undertook, a double-blind, randomized study with placebo, to compare the effects of diltiazem (D) and nifedipine (N) on the ergometric parameters of 20 patients with angina of effort and with mono- or multivessel disease. The study protocol extended over 3 weeks and included a reference stress test, 8 days of placebo followed by a repeat yesy, an then 15 days during which each patient received 180 mg of D and/or 30 mg of N in cross-over. A stress test was performed at the end of each week. The calcium blockers appeared to improve the effort tolerance, the duration of the ergometric test and the amplitude of the maximal ST segment depression. Diltiazem showed itself to be superior to nifedipine by the absence of side effects and by an improved cardiac performance on effort.

[Echocardiography in the diagnosis of pericardial effusion and tamponade]. / Contribution de l'échocardiographie au diagnostic des épanchements péricardiques et des tamponnades.

Fifty-seven patients who had presented pericardial effusions, compressive in ten cases, were subjected to M. mode echocardiography in order to identify specific signs of cardiac tamponade during major effusions. Certain criteria were of no diagnostic value: right and left ventricular diameter, mitral valve opening amplitude, and aortic diameter (p greater than 0.1). Apart from known hemodynamic and clinical signs, one must bear in mind two echographic signs that are specific for tamponade and disappear after drainage: protosystolic notching on the anterior wall of the right ventricle appearing 0.04 s after QRS, and a slope EF less than 50 mm/s.

[Predictive value of the exercise test after primary infarction]. / Valeur prédictive de l'épreuve d'effort après un primo-infarctus.

The predictive value of exercise stress testing was assessed by correlating the results with coronary angiography in a group of 100 patients 50 with inferior and 50 with anterior wall infarction. The following observations were made: --The exercise ECG was positive in 57 p. 100 of cases, more commonly in the inferior infarction group (74 p. 100), ST depression representing over 3/4 of the responses to exercise. On the other hand, the test was only positive in 40 p. 100 of anterior wall infarctions, ST depression again being the most commonly recorded response (65 p. 100). --The overall incidence of post-infarction angina was 45 p. 100; it was more common after inferior (70 p. 100) than anterior infarction (22 p. 100). --Multivessel disease was also more severe in the inferior infarction group (86 p. 100) than in anterior infarction (46 p. 100). However, ventricular aneurysms were twice as common in the anterior infarction group. --Exercise testing detected 80 p. 100 of cases with multivessel disease, especially when the LAD artery was involved, in the inferior infarction group. In the anterior infarction group, almost 50 p. 100 of patients with multivessel disease were not diagnosed. Despite an overall sensitivity of 73 p. 100 the predictive value of exercise stress testing was excellent (84 p. 100). In conclusion, in the presence of persisting angina after myocardial infarction coronary angiography should be performed to determine the severity of the multivessel disease. Exercise stress testing is a useful but imperfect method of detecting this high risk group. Its predictive value is however better in inferior (94 p. 100) than in anterior wall infarction (65 p. 100). Persisting angina was found to be a parameter of very high specificity (100 p. 100) for the presence of multivessel disease.

[Chylopericardium, chylothorax and cystic lymphangioma. Review of the literature apropos of a case]. / Chylopéricarde, chylothorax et lymphangiome kystique. Revue de la littérature à propos d'un cas.

One case of chylopericardium associated with chylopneumothorax is reported. Published data make it clear that the pathogenesis of effusions of chyle is imperfectly known and still highly hypothetical. With the exception of tamponade, there are few pathognomonic and dramatic signs. TM and cross-sectional echography is of paramount importance, since it provides a qualitative and quantitative diagnosis of effusion, the nature of which is determined by chemical analysis. Effusions of chyle may be idiopathic or may developed after oesophago-cardio-pulmonary surgery, or even after blockade of lymphatic vessels or as a result of increased lymphatic flow rate or pressure. Although the course of the disease is usually favourable, infectious or haemodynamic complications (e.g. tamponade or constriction) may aggravate the prognosis. Treatment is exclusively surgical and consists of partial pericardectomy, which is unquestioned. There is no consensus of opinion about simultaneous ligature of the thoracic duct.

[Takayashu's disease and double coronary artery involvement treated by bypass]. / Maladie de Takayashu et atteinte coronarienne bitronculaire pontée.

The author reviews the reported clinical, angiographic and pathological features of Takayashu's disease with coronary lesions with respect to one personal case. Coronary extension of this inflammatory panaortitis presents with effort or resting angina or complications which worsen the prognosis (infarction, arrhythmias, cardiac failure). Histologically, the ostial or truncal lesions correspond to hyperplasia of the three arterial layers, infiltrated with inflammatory cells, oedema, disorganisation of connective tissue, fibrinoid necrosis and fibrosis. The main coronary lesions are best visualised by selective coronary angiography which demonstrates the proximal position of the stenotic or aneurysmal lesions, always associated with a good distal coronary tree. The treatment is essentially surgical by aorto coronary bypass either with a saphenous vein graft or the internal mammary artery. The five reported cases, including the present one, have not been followed up for a long enough period to assess the value of this technically difficult surgery. The results seem to be good in 3 out of the 5 cases. However, the follow up is too short to speak of significant experience in this field, the longest postoperative period being only 3 years.