Thermal imaging has been applied to detect possible temperature variations in various rheumatic disorders. This study sought to determine whether rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients without active synovitis in their hands exhibit different baseline thermographic patterns of the fingers and palms when compared to healthy individuals. Data from 31 RA patients were compared to that of 51 healthy controls. The RA patients were recruited upon confirmed absence of synovitis by clinical examination and musculoskeletal ultrasound. Participants underwent medical infrared imaging of the regions of interest (ROIs). Significant differences were found between the mean temperatures of the palm regions (29.37 °C (SD2.2); n = 306) and fingers (27.16 °C (SD3.2); n = 510) of the healthy participants when compared to the palm regions (31.4(SD1.84)°C; n = 186) and fingers (30.22 °C (SD2.4); n = 299) of their RA counterparts (p = 0.001), with the latter group exhibiting higher temperatures in all ROIs. Logistic regression models confirm that both palm and finger temperature increase significantly in RA without active inflammation. These innovative findings provide evidence that baseline thermal data in RA differs significantly from healthy individuals. Thermal imaging may have the potential to become an adjunct assessment method of disease activity in patients with RA.

Environmental exposures are known to play a role in the development of cancer, including breast cancer. There are known associations of breast cancer with

Objective. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is known to be associated with increased cardiovascular risk. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the independent effects of hyperglycaemia, hypoglycaemia, and glucose variability on microvascular and macrovascular disease in T2DM. Methods. Subjects with T2DM of <10 years duration and on stable antiglycaemic treatment underwent carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), ankle-brachial index (ABI), albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR), and HbA_1c measurement, as well as 72-hour continuous glucose monitoring. Macrovascular disease was defined as one or more of the following: history of ischaemic heart disease (IHD), cerebrovascular accident (CVA), ABI < 0.9, or abnormal CIMT. Results. The study population comprised 121 subjects with T2DM (89 males : 32 females). The mean age was 62.6 years, and the mean DM duration was 3.7 years. Macrovascular disease was present in 71 patients (58.7%). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, body surface area (BSA) (OR 18.88 (95% CI 2.20–156.69), p=0.006) and duration of blood glucose (BG) < 3.9 mmol/L (OR 1.12 (95% CI 1.014–1.228), p=0.024) were independent predictors of macrovascular disease. BSA (OR 12.6 (95% CI 1.70–93.54), p=0.013) and duration of BG < 3.9 mmol/L (OR 1.09 (95% CI 1.003–1.187), p=0.041) were independent predictors of abnormal CIMT. Area under the curve for BG > 7.8 mmol/L (β = 15.83, p=0.005) was the sole independent predictor of albuminuria in generalised linear regression. Conclusions. This study demonstrates that hypoglycaemia is associated with the occurrence of atherosclerotic disease while hyperglycaemia is associated with microvascular disease in a Caucasian population with T2DM of recent duration.

To examine the illness perceptions of informal carers of persons with depression, using the theoretical framework of Leventhal’s Common-Sense Model (CSM) and to determine whether these illness perceptions are predictors of anxiety and depression, as measures of psychological well-being.

The status of Apis mellifera ruttneri, an endemic honey bee of the Maltese islands, was uncertain after a series of devastating Varroa mite infestations followed by ill-conceived replacement programs. Morphometric analysis, which was the method originally used to identify this honey bee subspecies, was carried out using 33 different parameters. Thirty-two colonies exhibiting morphometric data that corresponded to those in the original description of A. m. ruttneri were identified (p > 0.99). In addition, the mitochondrial DNA region spanning the tRNA^leu-Cox2 region from colonies bearing the morphometric data associated with A. m. ruttneri was amplified (77% showed the P₀QQ structure). The data presented confirm morphometric similarity with A. m. siciliana and A. m. intermissa. We report the presence of A4, A8 and A9 haplotypes in A. m. ruttneri (83%; frequency 0.189, 0.081 and 0.486 respectively). European haplotypes belonging to the C1, C2 and M7 haplotypes were also recorded (17%; 0.135, 0.081, 0027). Recommendations for the conservation of this honey bee are proposed.

Iron-based biodegradable metal bone graft substitutes are in their infancy but promise to fill bone defects that arise after incidents such as trauma and revision arthroplasty surgery. Before clinical use however, a better understanding of their in vivo biodegradability, potential cytotoxicity and biocompatibility is required. In addition, these implants must ideally be able to resist infection, a complication of any implant surgery. In this study there was significant in vitro cytotoxicity caused by pure Fe, FeMn, FeMn1Ag and FeMn5Ag on both human foetal osteoblast (hFOB) and mouse pre-osteoblast (MC3T3-E1) cell lines. In vivo experiments on the other hand showed no signs of ill-effect on GAERS rats with the implanted FeMn, FeMn1Ag and FeMn5Ag pins being removed largely uncorroded. All Fe-alloys showed anti-bacterial performance but most markedly so in the Ag-containing alloys, there is significant bacterial resistance in vitro.