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Concentrations of visfatin are increased in insulin-resistant conditions, but the relationship between visfatin and insulin and/or insulin resistance indices in pregnancy remains unclear. Insulin resistance in pregnancy is further accentuated in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Thus we assessed serum levels of visfatin in pregnant women with varying degrees of glucose tolerance. Fasting visfatin levels were measured at 28 weeks of gestation in 51 women divided according to their response to a 50-g glucose challenge test (GCT) and a 75-g OGTT: control subjects ( n = 20) had normal responses to both a GCT and an OGTT; the intermediate group (IG; n = 15) had a false-positive GCT, but a normal OGTT; the GDM group ( n = 16) had abnormal GCTs and OGTTs. There were no age or BMI differences between analysed groups. Across the subgroups there was a progressive increase in glucose and insulin at 120 min of the OGTT ( p < 0.01). This was accompanied by an increase in visfatin, from 76.8 ± 14.1 ng/ml in the control subjects, to 84.0 ± 14.7 ng/ml in the IG group and 93.1 ± 12.3 ng/ml in the GDM group ( p < 0.01 for GDM vs control subjects). There was a positive correlation between visfatin and fasting insulin ( r = 0.38, p = 0.007) and insulin at 120 min of the OGTT ( r = 0.39, p = 0.006). An increase in fasting visfatin, the levels of which correlate with both fasting and post-glucose-load insulin concentrations, accompanies worsening glucose tolerance in the third trimester of pregnancy. However, the significance of these findings, and in particular the role of visfatin in the regulation of insulin sensitivity during pregnancy, remains to be elucidated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Behavioral studies in patients with left and right brain damage revealed the specialized function of both hemispheres in motor control. Recently, we investigated anticipatory grip force control in patients with stroke affecting the left or the right hemisphere during object lifting with the ipsilesional non-paretic hand. We found imprecise anticipation of grip force to the weight of everyday objects (like a carton with milk or a package of paper tissues) in patients with left brain damage while patients with right brain damage performed closer to normal. This finding suggests a particular role of the motor-dominant left brain in predicting object properties based on knowledge about the object identity. By contrast, we found no deficit of anticipatory grip force control in stroke patients when the initial weight information was provided by the size of the object. Also the perceptual size-weight-illusion was the same in patients and control subject. In the present study we tested material as the critical variable determining object weight. We hypothesized that the anticipation of material information as well as the so-called material-weight illusion may be reduced in patients with left brain damage, as material information about object characteristics may be a less direct cue to weight compared to size. Twelve patients with left brain damage (LBD), ten patients with right brain damage (RBD) and fourteen control subjects (CTR) lifted two pairs of identically-weighted objects which differed in size in the size-weight-illusion paradigm and in apparent material (polystyrene and aluminum) in the material-weight-illusion paradigm. In an additional control pair, the size and weight of two wooden blocks differed in the natural way. Participants’ grip forces and the lift forces were measured with a sensor (170 g) attached to the objects’ top surfaces. Subjects had to indicate which object in a pair is felt heavier before and after 6 lifts of each cube in a pair. Participants of all three groups experienced the size–weight–illusion. The material–weight–illusion was perceived less clearly without a clear difference between patients and control subjects. During the first lift of each object, the steepness of the grip force increase (quantified as the peak grip force rate) reflected the objects’ apparent weight as indicated by size. However variability was substantial in both patients groups. Different materials induced less clear differences in grip force rate. In particular, patients with left brain damage failed to scale their grip force profile according to the material. Also for the wooden object pair, data of LBD patients revealed a weaker anticipation of object properties than observed in the other groups. Our results confirm the normal processing of object size information for the scaling of grip forces and for the perception of the size-weight illusion in patients with brain damage, indicating that size processing is resistant to a wide range of brain damage. LBD patients in particular showed no consistent scaling of grip forces according to variations in material properties. Performance variability was however large in patients, suggesting that deficits depend on the specific lesion pattern which varied a lot across patients. In conclusion, the motor-dominant left hemisphere seems to play a prominent role in the processing of material information for object manipulation. However the responsibility seems to be less selective than when information is derived from object identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose To determine the frequency of occurence and severity of dysthyroid optic neuropathy (DON), in relation to the degree of inflammatory signs, exophthalmos, asymetrical disease and diplopia, among patients with newly diagnosed inflammatory thyroid related ophthalmopathy (TAO) or suffering from the recurrence of the inflammatory phase of previously inactive/fibrotic stage of the disease. Methods 400 subjects with TAO, 76% women and 24% men aged 29.0 to 88.0 (mean 55.5 +/‐ 9.8) years with Clinical activity scores between 2 and 9 (mean 4.6 +/‐ 2.3) were included into the study. 30 healthy age and sex matched patients served as control. Diagnosis of DON was based on the presence of at least two features related to the optic nerve involvement, different than reduction of visual acuity. Results Two or more clinical features of DON werefound in 27 patients with inflammatory TAO. 20 of whom displayed asymmetrical involvement (> 2mm difference in exophthalmos and > 2 in CAS scale). There was slight statistical association between neuropathy and diplopia with neuropathy patients being more likely to suffer from constant double vision. There was no correlation between CAS and DON. Visual acuity was reduced from 2 to 7 Snellen lines in patients with DON and from 2 to 6 lines in TAO and not DON. Conclusion Clinical features of DON occour in 6.75% of patients with inflammatory TAO. There is no correlation between the degree of inflammatory involvement and DON, therefore it must be carefully excluded in all patients even with apparently mild ophthalmopathy. Thera numerous other, than DON,causes of visual loss related to TAO. Majority of patients present with mild and moderate visual loss only, which is reversible on immunomodulatory treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]