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November 25, 2004  Vol. 351 No. 22

Perspective
2255-2257

Umbilical-cord blood is increasingly used in the treatment of life-threatening diseases. Dr. Robert Steinbrook investigates the continuing debate about how to organize cord-blood banks and the role of public and private facilities.

2257-2259

After its surprising detection in New York City in 1999, West Nile virus became a major clinical and public health concern in North America. Drs. Lyle R. Petersen and Edward B. Hayes write about the dramatic westward spread of West Nile virus.

2259-2262

The World Health Organization recently ranked the French health care system the best in the world.1 Although the methods and data on which this assessment was based have been criticized, there are good grounds for being impressed by the French system. Yet ...

2262-2264

The benefits of coronary bypass surgery last only as long as the grafts continue to function, notes Dr. Bruce W. Lytle. He discusses the important differences among coronary bypass grafts.

Original Articles
2265-2275

Outcomes were compared in adults with leukemia who had received hematopoietic stem-cell transplants from unrelated donors. Patients received HLA-matched bone marrow, bone marrow with one HLA mismatch, or cord blood with one or two mismatches. The outcomes were most favorable in recipients of HLA-matched marrow but similar in those who had received mismatched marrow or cord blood.

2276-2285

This report compares major outcomes after treatment of acute leukemia in adults with either bone marrow or umbilical-cord blood from an unrelated donor. Except for delayed recovery of neutrophils and a reduced risk of graft-versus-host disease in recipients of cord blood, the results with cord blood and bone marrow were similar.

2286-2294

In a randomized trial, 238 healthy adults received either the full dose of a candidate influenza vaccine administered intramuscularly or 40 percent of the dose administered intradermally. The antibody responses among those who were 18 to 60 years of age were similar in the intradermal and intramuscular groups, but the responses were somewhat less vigorous in those over the age of 60 years.

2295-2301
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In this trial, 50 healthy adults 18 to 40 years of age received an intradermal injection of one fifth the standard dose of an influenza vaccine. The resulting increases in hemagglutination-inhibition titers were at least similar to those elicited by the standard dose of vaccine administered intramuscularly to 50 control subjects.

2302-2309
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The radial artery was first used as a coronary bypass graft in 1971, but there have been conflicting reports about its patency as compared with that of saphenous-vein grafts. In this study, radial-artery grafts had a higher patency rate at one year than control saphenous-vein grafts. The advantage was particularly evident when the radial artery was grafted to coronary vessels with high-grade lesions. This study supports the use of the radial artery as a coronary bypass conduit in vessels with high-grade stenosis.

Review Article
2310-2317

This review explains the pathophysiological changes that elevated blood pressure produces in the retinal circulation. Recent studies show that some specific retinal signs are strong predictors of stroke, independent of elevated blood pressure. Identifying the degree of retinopathy can help clinicians to deliver optimal treatment and prevent cardiovascular disease and death.

Images in Clinical Medicine
2318
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A previously healthy 34-year-old woman who had back pain was referred for radiography of the lumbar spine. The patient's laboratory data were normal. The radiograph showed multiple faceted stones outlining the contours of the gallbladder. Ultrasonography ...

e20
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A six-month-old boy had recurrent respiratory difficulties, then respiratory failure. Magnetic resonance imaging shows aorta, esophagus, and trachea.

Case Records of the Massachusetts General Hospital
2319-2326

A male infant was noted to have severe hypospadias and ambiguous genitalia at birth. By one week of age, he began vomiting after even small feedings. An evaluation disclosed no evidence of maternal or fetal infection or prenatal exposure to toxins. On examination, he had slightly dysmorphic facies and axial and appendicular hypotonia. A diagnostic test was performed.

Editorials
2328-2330

A steady stream of advances in allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation has not only improved the clinical outcome in a variety of malignant and nonmalignant diseases but also widened the indications for such transplants. One important advance ...

2330-2332
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The current shortfall in anticipated doses of vaccine for the upcoming influenza season1 makes the reports by Belshe et al.2 and Kenney et al.3 in this issue of the Journal particularly timely. These studies raise the possibility of using alternative ...

Sounding Board
2333-2336

    Although the family history is part of the basic workup that has been taught in medical schools for generations, it often does not get the attention it should. In this article, the authors make the case for taking a good family history in the era of genomic medicine and provide a computer tool that can be downloaded and used by patients to help record this history.

    Clinical Implications of Basic Research
    2337-2338

    A new study uncovers a mechanism by which trastuzumab (Herceptin) counters the progression of cancer. The findings point to a subgroup of patients who are likely to have a response to treatment.

    Correspondence
    2339-2340

    To the Editor: As a result of the recent problems in the production of influenza vaccine, there is concern about whether the demand for vaccine will outstrip the supply for the upcoming influenza season.1 An ample vaccine supply is an ever-present ...

    2340-2342

    To the Editor: Torriani and colleagues' report of the AIDS Pegasys Ribavirin International Coinfection Trial (APRICOT) and Chung and colleagues' report of the Adult AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) A5071 trial of treatment for hepatitis C virus (HCV) ...

    2343

    To the Editor: Perturbations in nutritional status disrupt the complex interplay of gonadotropins and gonadal hormones that are critical for ovulation and fertility. At a teleologic level, anovulation in extremely lean women would be an appropriate ...

    2344-2345

    To the Editor: With respect to the report by Strupp et al. (July 22 issue),1 we wonder about the possible effect of the exclusion of 20 percent of the participants because of the lack of primary efficacy data. In addition, the rationale for the reported ...

    2345-2346

    To the Editor: In his scholarly review of the treatment of von Willebrand's disease, Mannucci (Aug. 12 issue)1 omits a discussion of hypothyroidism as a cause of acquired von Willebrand's disease. Hypothyroid patients may have bleeding symptoms such as ...

    2347-2349

    To the Editor: We are concerned that Schrier and Wang's review of septic acute renal failure (July 8 issue)1 overlooks some important data. Norepinephrine does not result in afferent arteriolar vasoconstriction when given by continuous intravenous ...

    2349-2350

    To the Editor: The medical mystery in the October 7 issue1 involved a 16-year-old white boy who presented with generalized argyria after ingesting a silver-containing dietary supplement for approximately two years. The supplement was packaged so that it ...

    Book Review
    2351-2353

    Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative.

    — Oscar Wilde

    Astonishing progress has been made over the past few years in our understanding of the pathogenesis and biology of non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, and many new and effective treatments for these ...

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