Slow Progress (slow + progress)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Slow progress in southern Europe

AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY JOURNAL, Issue 10 2002
Article first published online: 10 MAR 200
No abstract is available for this article. [source]


Impact of severe epilepsy on development: Recovery potential after successful early epilepsy surgery

EPILEPSIA, Issue 7 2010
Eliane Roulet-Perez
Summary Purpose:, Epilepsy surgery in young children with focal lesions offers a unique opportunity to study the impact of severe seizures on cognitive development during a period of maximal brain plasticity, if immediate control can be obtained. We studied 11 children with early refractory epilepsy (median onset, 7.5 months) due to focal lesion who were rendered seizure-free after surgery performed before the age of 6 years. Methods:, The children were followed prospectively for a median of 5 years with serial neuropsychological assessments correlated with electroencephalography (EEG) and surgery-related variables. Results:, Short-term follow-up revealed rapid cognitive gains corresponding to cessation of intense and propagated epileptic activity [two with early catastrophic epilepsy; two with regression and continuous spike-waves during sleep (CSWS) or frontal seizures]; unchanged or slowed velocity of progress in six children (five with complex partial seizures and frontal or temporal cortical malformations). Longer-term follow-up showed stabilization of cognitive levels in the impaired range in most children and slow progress up to borderline level in two with initial gains. Discussion:, Cessation of epileptic activity after early surgery can be followed by substantial cognitive gains, but not in all children. In the short term, lack of catch-up may be explained by loss of retained function in the removed epileptogenic area; in the longer term, by decreased intellectual potential of genetic origin, irreversible epileptic damage to neural networks supporting cognitive functions, or reorganization plasticity after early focal lesions. Cognitive recovery has to be considered as a "bonus," which can be predicted in some specific circumstances. [source]


Genetics and genomics of ankylosing spondylitis

IMMUNOLOGICAL REVIEWS, Issue 1 2010
Gethin P. Thomas
Summary:, Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a common, highly heritable arthropathy, the pathogenesis of which is poorly understood. The mechanism by which the main gene for the disease, HLA-B27, leads to AS is unknown. Genetic and genomic studies have demonstrated involvement of the interleukin-23 (IL-23) signaling pathway in AS, a finding which has stimulated much new research into the disease and has led to therapeutic trials. Several other genes and genetic regions, including further major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and non-MHC loci, have been shown to be involved in the disease, but it is not clear yet how they actually induce the condition. These findings have shown that there is a strong genetic overlap between AS and Crohn's disease in particular, although there are also major differences in the genes involved in the two conditions, presumably explaining their different presentations. Genomic and proteomic studies are in an early phase but have potential both as diagnostic/prognostic tools and as a further hypothesis-free tool to investigate AS pathogenesis. Given the slow progress in studying the mechanism of association of HLA-B27 with AS, these may prove to be more fruitful approaches to investigating the pathogenesis of the disease. [source]


Primary mucinous eccrine carcinoma of the skin , a rare clinical tumor with many differential diagnoses

JOURNAL DER DEUTSCHEN DERMATOLOGISCHEN GESELLSCHAFT, Issue 6 2010
Ina M. Scholz
Summary Primary mucinous eccrine carcinoma of the skin is an extremely rare tumor most frequently occurring in the face or capillitium. It is felt to be an eccrine carcinoma, characterized by slow progress and unpredictable locally infiltrative growth. Therefore micrographic surgery is important to avoid local recurrence. It can be difficult to differentiate this carcinoma histologically from cutaneous metastases of breast or gastrointestinal tumors. Because of this, a primary staging in affected patients is essential. [source]


The Millennium Development Goals: the pledge of world leaders to end poverty will not be met with business as usual,

JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 7 2004
Sakiko Fukuda-Parr
This article reviews the prospects for achieving the Millennium Development Goals. It argues that these goals will not be achieved by the target date of 2015 unless new action is taken by both rich and poor countries. It shows that current trends sharply contrast countries on their way to meeting the goals and those in a poverty trap. Crisis proportions have been reached in deterioration of life expectancy and falling incomes, but also in a wide range of other indicators in countries such as Zambia as well as Nepal. The origins of this crisis are not just poor governance or poor macroeconomic policies, but rather the difficulties of competing in global markets. A priority for these countries is to invest in basic education and health, infrastructure, agriculture and manufacturing. Rich countries have fallen seriously behind in living up to their promises to increase aid, debt relief and access to their markets for exports from developing countries,with the welcome but still inadequate increase in aid to reach the 0.7 per cent GDP target, with the collapse of trade talks at Cancun, slow implementation of HIPC, and slow progress in implementation of TRIPS provision for access to technology. Business as usual will not be enough to meet the goals and new action is urgently needed to achieve the goals. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


1,026 Experimental treatments in acute stroke

ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 3 2006
Victoria E. O'Collins B.Sci
Objective Preclinical evaluation of neuroprotectants fostered high expectations of clinical efficacy. When not matched, the question arises whether experiments are poor indicators of clinical outcome or whether the best drugs were not taken forward to clinical trial. Therefore, we endeavored to contrast experimental efficacy and scope of testing of drugs used clinically and those tested only experimentally. Methods We identified neuroprotectants and reports of experimental efficacy via a systematic search. Controlled in vivo and in vitro experiments using functional or histological end points were selected for analysis. Relationships between outcome, drug mechanism, scope of testing, and clinical trial status were assessed statistically. Results There was no evidence that drugs used clinically (114 drugs) were more effective experimentally than those tested only in animal models (912 drugs), for example, improvement in focal models averaged 31.3 ± 16.7% versus 24.4 ± 32.9%, p > 0.05, respectively. Scope of testing using Stroke Therapy Academic Industry Roundtable (STAIR) criteria was highly variable, and no relationship was found between mechanism and efficacy. Interpretation The results question whether the most efficacious drugs are being selected for stroke clinical trials. This may partially explain the slow progress in developing treatments. Greater rigor in the conduct, reporting, and analysis of animal data will improve the transition of scientific advances from bench to bedside. Ann Neurol 2006 [source]


Involving disabled and chronically ill children and young people in health service development

CHILD: CARE, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2003
P. Sloper
Abstract Aim To investigate the extent and nature of involvement of physically disabled or chronically ill children and young people in local health service development. Methods A postal survey of all health authorities (n = 99) and NHS Trusts (n = 410) in England. Results Seventy-six per cent of health authorities and 59% of Trusts responded. Twenty-seven initiatives involving chronically ill or disabled children and young people in consultation regarding service development were identified. Over half of these were carried out in partnership between health services and other agencies, usually local authorities and/or voluntary organizations. A variety of methods was used for consultation, including child-friendly methods such as drawing, drama and making a video. Seventeen initiatives reported that children's involvement had resulted in service changes, but only 11 went beyond consultation to involve children and young people in decision making about service development. Only a third of the organizations had someone with designated responsibility for children's involvement. Discussion The involvement of this group of children and young people in service development in the NHS is at an early stage. The failure of policy documents on user involvement to identify children and young people as a group for whom methods of consultation need to be developed, and the lack of people with designated responsibility for developing children's involvement may be a reason for slow progress in this area. The initiatives identified show that such involvement is possible and can have a positive impact on services. [source]