Results from contemporary retrospective trials augment the data when level I or II LB-100 evidence is absent.

Results: Phase III clinical trial results substantiate the long-held tenet that partial nephrectomy is equivalent to radical nephrectomy with respect to safety and oncologic efficacy. Further, minimally invasive techniques

using laparoscopy and robotic assistance to achieve partial nephrectomy appear equally effective to traditional open techniques. Although no prospective randomized studies are available, large retrospective studies support the notion that active surveillance and thermal ablative techniques are viable options for carefully selected patients.

Conclusions: The management of small renal masses encompasses a host of therapeutic options, all of which must be considered and discussed

with the individual patient.”
“Study Design. A new technique for the management of traumatic cervical fracture in patients with chin-on-chest deformity HDAC inhibitor in ankylosing spondylitis is presented.

Objective. To present a new surgical technique for acute deformity correction through cervical fractures in the setting of kyphotic deformities.

Summary of Background Data. Cervicothoracic kyphotic deformity in ankylosing spondylitis is currently treated with extension osteotomy in an elective setting. click here In elective extension osteotomies, the surgeon manipulates the head to generate osteoclasis,

temporarily producing an unstable cervical fracture. Cervical fractures in ankylosing spondylitis are highly unstable and frequently associated with neurologic compromise. Most reports describe either no reduction and fixation in situ or reduction in preoperative traction followed by fixation.

Methods. A 60-year-old man with chronic ankylosing spondylitis and profound kyphotic deformity suffered a traumatic lower cervical spine fracture. He was treated with an acute cervical spine extension osteotomy through the fracture site using an anterior lengthening bar modification to a halo vest. The anterior lengthening bar allows controlled extension of the neck without manual manipulation by the surgeon.

Results. This patient presented with a chin-brow angle of approximately 90 and was corrected to approximately 5 to 8. No immediate or delayed complications were seen. After halo vest treatment for 3 months, an excellent postural correction was obtained.

Conclusion. Surgical extension osteotomy in the lower cervical spine through the fracture site using the anterior lengthening bar-halo extension brace seems to be a safe method for correcting spine flexion deformity in ankylosing spondylitis after traumatic fracture.”
“Congenital depression of the fatal skull unassociated with trauma is a rare event.

Because of this property, OCChB was applied as a solubility enhancer for triamcinolone (TC), a poorly water-soluble drug. The polymer solutions at 1.0 mg/mL increased the TC solubility up to 3.5 times for OCChB1 and 5.0 times for OCChB2 compared with its solubility in water. (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012″
“Thermoelectric properties were investigated on the chlorine doped In4Se2.7Clx (0.0 <= x <= 0.05) polycrystalline materials. The chlorine doping has an effect of increasing chemical potential by electron doping, resulting in the increase of electrical conductivity. While the thermal conductivity kappa(T) of click here chlorine doped

compounds are increased at mid-temperature range, the kappa(T)s of Cl-doped compounds are comparably small or decreased at high temperature range (T >= 275 degrees C). By virtue of decrease of the electrical resistivity and high Seebeck coefficient, power factors S-2 sigma of chlorine doped compounds are increased at high temperature range (T >= 275 degrees C). The maximum ZT of In4Se2.7Cl0.03 reaches about 0.67 at 400 degrees C, which is 59% improved result comparing with the undoped compound. The control of the Se-deficiency and chlorine doping concentration PXD101 price with optimized materials process routes can increase the ZT on the order of unity or more on those compounds. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3652889]“
“There is increasing evidence

that there is a strong relationship between brain oscillations and neurocognitive function. We used EEG power spectral analysis to determine if frequency and power provide an independent measure of developmental impairment learn more in infants. We examined the spectral power of EEGs in 200 infants between 6 and 24 months of age who were evaluated for seizures. Infants were stratified into three age groups 6-12, 12-18, and 18-24 months, and development assessments were coded as normal, moderately delayed, and severely delayed. Compared with the normal infants, children with developmental delay had lower mean frequencies and greater delta and less theta

and alpha power. Delta/theta and theta/alpha ratios were highly significant indicators of developmental status. This study demonstrates that frequency and power of brain oscillations during wakefulness is a strong predictor of development in infants. The findings support the concept that normal oscillatory activity is critical for normal cognitive function during development. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.”
“Mature Angus and Angus x Hereford cows were used to determine the effects of confinement area and number of cows in estrus on estrous behavior. During each of 2 replicates, 32 nonpregnant, nonlactating cows were maintained in a drylot (60 x 100 m) or in a pasture (12 ha). Estrous cycles were synchronized with 2 injections of PGF(2 alpha) 10 to 14 d apart at the initiation of the experiment.

08; 95% CI 1.77, 5.46).

Conclusion: There are disparities in referral with respect to gender, age, and Immunology & Inflamm inhibitor type of HF. These disparities in referral need to be addressed.”
“This study aimed to examine whether coding single-nucleotide polymorphisms (cSNPs) of the interleukin-1 gene cluster [interleukin-1-alpha (IL1 alpha), IL1 beta, IL-1-receptor antagonist (IL1RN)] are genetic markers of susceptibility to Kawasaki disease (KD) in the Korean population. The study enrolled 109 KD

patients and 287 healthy control subjects. Four cSNPs [rs17561 (Ala114Ser) of IL1 alpha, rs1143634 (Phe105Phe) of IL1 beta, and rs419598 (Ala23Ala) and rs315952 (Ser96Ser) of IL1RN] were genotyped using the restriction fragment-length polymorphism (RFLP) and direct sequencing. The KD patients

were divided into two groups according to the presence of coronary artery lesions (CALs). For genetic analysis, SNPStats, HapAnalyzer, Helixtree, and SNPAnalyzer were used. The allele and genotype frequencies of the IL1 gene cluster polymorphisms find more in the KD patients had a pattern similar to that in the control subjects. Furthermore, no association was observed between four cSNPs of the IL1 gene cluster and the development of CALs in KD. These results suggest that the IL1 gene cluster may not be associated with susceptibility to KD and the development of CALs in the Korean population.”
“Objective: To evaluate the prevalence and potential associations of hearing impairment in patients 30 to 50 years old with diabetes diagnosed before age 40 years – early-onset type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: The study cohorts consisted of 46 consecutive

patients with early-onset T2DM and 47 age-matched control subjects with rheumatoid arthritis. All study subjects completed clinical, serologic, and auditory assessments.

Results: The patients with T2DM had a mean age of 42 6 years and a mean disease duration of 11 6 years. Microalbuminuria was present in 26.1%, proliferative retinopathy in 26.1%, and symptomatic peripheral neuropathy in 23.9%. The prevalence of unilateral or bilateral hearing loss was significantly higher in the patients with T2DM than in the patients with rheumatoid arthritis (21.7% versus 6.4%, respectively; P = .01). Most cases of hearing loss were mild and involved high or acute tones. After multivariate analysis with adjustment for age, there was a significant association Crenigacestat mouse between hearing loss and hemoglobin Ale (odds ratio, 1.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.02 to 1.81; P = .035). In the patients with T2DM, the lengthening of the brainstem response was not significantly increased; however, the wave morphologic features were abnormal and the reproducibility was poor in both ears in 11 patients (24%).

Conclusion: Patients with early-onset T2DM and poor glycemic control have an increased prevalence of subclinical hearing loss and impaired auditory brainstem responses. Hearing impairment may be an underrecognized complication of diabetes.

“
“The use of intravenous verapamil for tachyarrhythmia in infants is widely considered contraindicated due to the perceived risk of hemodynamic collapse after administration. This article reviews the relatively limited evidence that

led to this well-known contraindication and highlights the interesting process by which medical practice may evolve in the absence of persuasive science.”
“Fibrin is a natural biopolymer involved in the coagulation cascade. It acts as a reservoir for growth factors, cells, and enzymes during wound healing and provides a scaffold for the synthesis of extracellular matrix. Thus, the use of fibrin has expanded in recent years from traditional use as a sealant for surgical applications, to a tissue engineering scaffold capable of providing nature’s cues for tissue regeneration. This paper reviews the advantageous biological aspects of fibrin, the history of the scaffold material, and its present GSK1120212 nmr role in the delivery of drugs, growth factors, cells, and gene vectors. Examples are given of studies where the structure and form of the scaffold have been manipulated

for optimal release of the therapeutic agent, optimal cellular activity, QNZ molecular weight and investigation into stem cell differentiation. It is evident from the body of literature presented that the benefits of fibrin are being exploited for a vast range of tissue engineering applications and that fibrin remains a key scaffold material for the delivery of drugs and biomolecules.”
“BACKGROUND: Patients with tuberculosis (TB) often suffer from profound malnutrition.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the patterns and predictors of change in nutritional and hemoglobin status during and after TB treatment.

METHODS: A total of 471 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive and 416 HIV-negative adults with pulmonary TB were prospectively followed in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. All patients received 8 months’ TB treatment following enrollment.

RESULTS: selleck chemicals llc About 40% of HIV-positive and 47% of HIV-negative TB patients had body mass index (BMI) < 18.5 kg/m(2) at baseline,

while about 94% of HIV-positive and 84% of HIV-negative participants were anemic at baseline. Both HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients experienced increases in BMI and hemoglobin concentrations over the course of TB treatment. Among HIV-positive patients, older age, low CD4 cell counts, and high viral load were independently associated with a smaller increase in BMI from baseline to 8 months. Female sex, older age, low CD4 cell counts, previous TB infection and less money spent on food were independently associated with a smaller improvement in hemoglobin levels among HIV-positive patients during treatment.

CONCLUSION: HIV-positive TB patients, especially those with low CD4 cell counts, showed poor nutritional recovery during TB treatment. Adequate nutritional support should be considered during TB treatment.

The defects in both types of nanostructures were studied by photoluminescence spectroscopy. It was found that nanoparticles

possessed higher defect density than nanowires. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3569744]“
“We assessed the association of socioeconomic (SE) position with graft loss in a multicenter cohort of pediatric heart transplant (HT) recipients. We extracted six SE variables from the US Census 2000 database for the neighborhood of residence of 490 children who underwent their primary HT at participating transplant centers. A composite SE score was derived for each child and four groups (quartiles) compared for graft loss (death or retransplant). Graft loss occurred in 152 children (122 deaths, 30 retransplant). In adjusted analysis, graft loss during the first posttransplant year had a borderline buy BLZ945 association with the highest SE quartile Sapanisertib research buy (HR 1.94, p = 0.05) but not with race. Among 1-year survivors, both black race (HR 1.81, p = 0.02) and the lowest SE quartile (HR 1.77, p = 0.01) predicted subsequent graft loss in adjusted analysis. Among subgroups, the lowest SE quartile was associated with graft loss in white but not in black children. Thus, we found a complex relationship between SE position and graft loss in pediatric HT recipients. The finding of

increased risk in the highest SE quartile children during the first year requires further confirmation. Black children and low SE position white children are at increased risk of graft loss after the first year.”
“Lanthanum and yttrium MK-2206 solubility dmso compounds with composition RE2M2O7 (RE – Y, La; M – Ti, Zr, Hf) have high density and high Z and can be doped with Ce onto the La and Y sites. This makes these compounds good candidates for Ce-activated scintillator gamma-ray detectors particularly for the hafnate systems which have a very high density. There is disagreement in the literature concerning La2Hf2O7:Ce as it has been reported to show both bright

as well as no Ce-activated luminescence by different experimental groups. We have performed first-principles electronic structure calculations of these compounds doped with Ce using the pseudopotential method based on the generalized gradient approximation in density functional theory. The positions of the Ce 4f states relative to the valence band maximum and the position of the Ce 5d states relative to the conduction band minimum (CBM) of the host material are determined. We find, unlike Ce-activated La and Y compounds where the CBM is typically of La 5d or Y 4d character, that in these systems the CBM is predominately of d character on the Ti, Zr, Hf atoms. For all these compounds, we also find that the Ce 5d state lies above the CBM which would prevent any luminescence from the Ce site. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.

In conclusion, our data provide experimental support for the model that SCFTIR1-dependent poly-ubiquitination of Aux/IAA proteins marks these proteins for degradation by the 26S proteasome, leading to activation of auxin-responsive gene expression.”
“Cellulose acetate (CA) is widely used in membrane processes. In this study, CA (weight-average molecular weight = 52,000) was mixed with poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP; weight-average molecular

weight = 15,000) as all additive in 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidone MLN4924 chemical structure as a solvent. The phase-inversion method was used for the preparation of flat-sheet membranes. The effects of PVP concentration and coagulation bath temperature (CBT) on the morphology, pure water permeation flux, and thermal stability of the prepared membranes were studied and are discussed in this article. The solute rejection of the developed CA membranes was quantified with an insulin protein solution. The results showed that an increase in the CBT levels from 0 to 23 degrees C along with all increase in the PVP concentration in the cast film from 0 to 1.5 wt % resulted in all increase in the macrovoid formation in the membrane sublayer, In increase in the pure water flux (PWF), and a decrease in insulin

rejection. Further increases in the PVP concentration from 1.5 to 3, 6, and 9 wt % resulted in gradual Suppression of the macrovoid formation, a decrease in PWF, and all increase in insulin rejection. Higher PVP concentrations and lower CBT levels also appeared to result in STI571 higher glass-transition temperatures. (c) 2008 see more Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 111: 2537-2544, 2009″
“Background: Loosening of the glenoid component continues to be the foremost cause of medium and long-term failure of shoulder replacements. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical and radiographic results of a minimally cemented all-polyethylene

pegged glenoid component designed for biologic fixation.

Methods: Forty-four shoulders in forty-one patients with a mean age of sixty-six years underwent total shoulder arthroplasty with a pegged bone-ingrowth glenoid component. Outcome data included the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons questionnaire, the Simple Shoulder Test, and visual analog scales. A detailed radiographic analysis was performed by two board-certified musculoskeletal radiologists who were blinded to clinical and patient-reported outcomes. The radiographs were evaluated with regard to the presence of radiolucent lines at the bone-cement interface, implant seating, and the radiodensity between the flanges of the central peg.

Results: The mean duration of clinical follow-up was four years and the mean duration of radiographic follow-up was three years. Twenty shoulders had perfect seating and radiolucency grades, thirty had increased radiodensity between the flanges of the central peg, and three demonstrated osteolysis.

In 36 out of 100 patients, no additional antihypertensive therapy was needed because the blood pressure was either well-controlled on treatment (28), over-treated (4), or normotensive with a white coat effect (4). Despite this, antihypertensive agents were either stopped (10), and or reduced (5) because of ADRs in half the patients (14) from the well-controlled group. In conclusion, 40% patients had documented ADRs overall which limited further intervention, suggesting that implementation of the HYVET recommendations in

clinical practice may be difficult.”
“Ion irradiation effects on the magnetic properties of FeO+Fe3N (iron oxide/iron nitride) granular films are investigated in this study. The FeO+Fe3N granular films were prepared using a nanocluster deposition system. The www.selleckchem.com/products/torin-2.html x-ray diffraction data confirm the presence of FeO and Fe3N

compounds in the prepared granular films. The saturation magnetization (30 emu/g), coercivity (87.9 Oe), and remanence (3.2 emu/g) of these granular films remain unaltered after irradiation with 2 MeV He+ ions to a fluence of 3 x 10(15) ions/cm(2) at room temperature, indicating that the magnetic properties of these granular films are not affected in a highly radioactive environment. This unique property of the magnetic stability may provide promising applications for advanced data storage. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3560119]“
“Background and aim: given that obesity is an independent risk factor

for the development of cardiovascular diseases RG-7388 we decided to investigate the mechanisms involved in microvascular dysfunction using a monosodium glutamate (MSG)-induced model of obesity, which allows us to work on both normotensive and normoglycemic conditions.

Methods and results: Male offspring of Wistar rats received MSG from the second to the sixth day after birth. Sixteen-week-old MSG rats displayed higher Lee index, fat accumulation, dyslipidemia and insulin resistance, with no alteration in glycemia and blood pressure. The effect of norepinephrine (NE), which was increased in MSG rats, was potentiated by L-nitro arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) or tetraethylammonium (TEA) and was reversed by indomethacin and NS-398. Sensitivity to acetylcholine (ACh), which was reduced learn more in MSG rats, was further impaired by L-NAME or TEA, and was corrected by indomethacin, NS-398 and tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4). MSG rats displayed increased endothelium-independent relaxation to sodium nitroprusside. A reduced prostacyclin/tromboxane ratio was found in the mesenteric beds of MSG rats. Mesenteric arterioles of MSG rats also displayed reduced nitric oxide (NO) production along with increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation; these were corrected by BH4 and either L-NAME or superoxide dismutase, respectively. The protein expression of eNOS and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 was increased in mesenteric arterioles from MSG rats.

The Raman spectrum showing the in-plane compressive stress of the GaN epitaxial structures grown on vicinal sapphire selleck kinase inhibitor substrates revealed the relation between the dislocation density and the carrier localization degree in MQWs. From transmission electron microscopy images, the threading dislocation density (TDD) of In0.2Ga0.8N/GaN MQWs grown on 0.2 vicinal sapphire substrate at the bottom of n-GaN layer was about 9.4 X 10(8) cm(-2) and reduced to 3.0 X 10(8) cm(-2) at the top of n-GaN layer. We also obtained the TDD of 5.6 X 10(7) cm(-2) in the MQW region and only 1.0 X 10(7) cm(-2) in the p-GaN region. Based on the results

mentioned above, 0.2 degrees-off substrate can offer In0.2Ga0.8N/GaN MQW blue light-emitting diode structures with benefits, such as high crystal quality, low defects, and small carrier localization degree. (C) 2009 American Institute of Physics. (DOI: 10.1063/1.3055264)”
“Background: A growing, but conflicting body of literature suggests altered empathic abilities in subjects with anorexia nervosa-restricting type (AN-R). This study aims to characterize the cognitive and affective empathic profiles of adolescents with purely AN-R.

Methods: As part of a standardized clinical and research protocol, the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), a valid and reliable self-reported instrument to measure empathy, was administered to 32 female

adolescents with AN-R and in 41 healthy controls (HC) comparisons, matched for age and gender. Correlational analyses were performed to evaluate the links between empathy scores and psychopathological AZD5153 measures.

Results: Patients scored significantly lower than HC on cognitive empathy (CE), while they did not differ from controls on affective empathy (AE). The deficit in CE was not related to either disease severity nor was it related to associated psychopathology.

Conclusion: These results, albeit preliminary, suggest that a dysfunctional pattern of CE capacity may be a stable trait of AN-R that should be taken into account

not only for the clinical management, but also in preventive and therapeutic intervention.”
“Objective: Coping strategies mediate the GSK923295 supplier relationship between challenging situations and their impact on psychosocial outcomes. Many long-term cancer survivors continue to face a range of challenges in their daily lives, yet little is known about how this population copes. The study explored the prevalence and predictors of cancer-specific coping strategies among a heterogeneous sample of long-term cancer survivors.

Methods: A population-based cross-sectional sample of 863 adult cancer survivors 5-6 years post-diagnosis completed a pen-and-paper survey. Cancer-specific coping was assessed via the Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer (mini-MAC) Scale. Potential predictor variables included patient, disease and treatment characteristics and social support.

Each treatment group was then divided into three survival time points: ten days, twenty-one days, and forty-two days. The second and fifth flexor digitorum profundus tendons from each dog were fully lacerated at the zone-II area and then were repaired. Passive motion therapy started at day 5 postoperatively and continued until the dogs were killed. The repaired tendons were evaluated for normalized work of flexion, gliding resistance, repair strength, gene expression for type I and type-III collagen and transforming growth factor-beta 1, and histological appearance.

Results: The normalized work of flexion of the repaired

tendons treated with 5-fluorouracil was significantly lower than that of the repaired tendons without 5-fluorouracil treatment at ten days. However, there was no significant LY-374973 difference between treated and untreated tendons at twenty-one and Z-VAD-FMK datasheet forty-two days. There was also no significant difference in gliding resistance, repair failure strength, or stiffness between treated and untreated tendons at any time point, or in the gross or histological appearance of adhesions at the time of killing. The expression of types-I and III collagen and transforming growth factor-beta 1 of the repaired tendon with 5-fluorouracil treatment was significantly lower than that of the tendons without treatment at ten days postoperatively, but not at twenty-one or

forty-two days.

Conclusions: Although 5-fluorouracil treatment can reduce adhesions in in vivo models of tenolysis, this treatment had only a transient effect in an in vivo model of Fluoro-Sorafenib tendon

repair that included passive motion.”
“The hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) pathway is associated with tumor growth, angiogenesis and metastasis in various carcinomas. Little is known regarding the role of the HIF-1 signaling pathway in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). We investigated the expression of HIF-1, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and the HIF negative regulator, prolyl hydroxylase domain protein 2 (PHD2), in cutaneous SCC, Bowen’s disease, seborrheic keratosis (SK) and normal skin by immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization. Additionally, we explored the relationships between these factors and the clinical and histological characteristics of each disease. Our study indicated that the expression of HIF-1 and VEGF was significantly higher (P<0.05) in cutaneous SCC than in Bowen’s disease, SK or normal skin. In contrast, PHD2 showed significantly higher expression in normal skin compared with SK, Bowen’s disease and cutaneous SCC (P<0.05). Grade II-IV cutaneous SCC had higher expression levels of nuclear HIF-1 and cytoplasm VEGF protein but less nuclear PHD2 protein than grade cutaneous SCC (P<0.05). Overexpression of HIF-1 and VEGF, as well as the decreased expression of PHD2, may play important roles in the development of cutaneous SCC.

“
“Liver transplantation (LT) is the treatment of choice for end-stage liver disease, but is controversial in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Using a prospective cohort of HIV-hepatitis B virus (HBV) coinfected patients transplanted between 2001-2007; outcomes including survival and HBV clinical recurrence were determined. Twenty-two coinfected patients underwent LT; 45% had detectable HBV DNA pre-LT and 72% were receiving anti-HBV drugs with efficacy against lamivudine-resistant

HBV. Post-LT, all patients received hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG) plus nucleos(t)ide analogues and remained HBsAg negative without clinical evidence of HBV recurrence, with a median follow-up 3.5 years. Low-level HBV viremia (median 108 IU/mL, range 9-789) was intermittently detected

Epigenetics inhibitor in 7/13 but not associated with HBsAg detection or ALT elevation. Compared with 20 HBV monoinfected patients on similar HBV prophylaxis and median follow-up of 4.0 years, patient and graft survival were similar: 100% versus 85% in HBV mono- versus coinfected patients (p = 0.08, log rank test). LT is effective for HIV-HBV coinfected patients with complications of cirrhosis, including those who are HBV DNA positive at the time of LT. Combination HBIG and antivirals is effective as prophylaxis with no clinical evidence of HBV Nirogacestat in vivo recurrence but low-level HBV DNA is detectable in similar to 50% of recipients.”
“This paper reports effects of inter-film interactions on static and dynamic magnetization behavior at film edges in magnetic trilayer stripe arrays under transverse applied fields. The trilayers consist of two magnetic

films of Ni(80)Fe(20), 10 nm and 20 nm thick that interact via dipolar fields across thin, nonmagnetic spacers from 1 nm to 20 nm thick. These trilayer films are patterned into stripe arrays by optical interference lithography. Ferromagnetic resonance spectra exhibit separate edge modes that are identified as excitation of edge modes primarily in one magnetic film or the other. When interlayer exchange is negligible, we observe several effects of dipolar edge-edge coupling including shifts of the edge saturation fields and changes in the mode intensity ratio relative to single-film edges. These interaction SB203580 effects are reproduced by micromagnetic modeling and explained by simple models. (c) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3553388]“
“The purpose of this study is to assess the validity of patient goal achievement in overactive bladder (OAB).

Data were taken from a placebo-controlled randomised trial of transdermal oxybutynin and open label extension study. Face validity was assessed using qualitative analysis. Convergent validity was assessed by comparison with objective symptom improvement. Responsiveness was assessed at 4 s, using the standardised effect size. Reliability was assessed between 4 and 12 weeks of treatment.