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Presents the proposal on education and training systems in Europe, White Paper of the European Commission presented to an European Union council on education. Impact of the proposal on education in European Union; Types of proposals given in the White Paper; Criticism of the proposals presented in the White Paper.

Bisphosphonates have long been used with success in the treatment of Paget's disease of bone (PDB). The aim of this study was to evaluate the early (up to 3 months) and late (at 12 months) scintigraphic, biochemical, and clinical response to a single intravenous infusion of zoledronic acid (ZOL) in patients with PDB serially assessed for 1 year. Nine patients with 30 bone lesions caused by PDB were prospectively evaluated. Total serum alkaline phosphatase (SAP) was serially measured. Scintigraphy was performed before and at 3 and 12 months after ZOL administration, and bone lesions were assessed quantitatively. After treatment, pain was alleviated in five of six patients starting from the first month. At 3 months, a significant decrease of SAP levels compared to baseline values was found (322 +/- 211 IU/l before vs. 101 +/- 36 IU/l 3 months after; P < 0.05), with normal values attained in all except one patient. The scintigraphic index of involvement (SII), a marker for the per-patient activity of the disease, was reduced from 14.4 +/- 7.6 to 7.2 +/- 1.8 (P = 0.01). The scintigraphic ratio (SR), a marker for the per-lesion activity of the disease, was reduced from 12.8 +/- 7.7 to 7.0 +/- 2.9 (P < 0.001). The values of markers of disease activity remained unchanged up to 12 months. A single intravenous administration of ZOL leads to a favorable clinical, biochemical, and scintigraphic response in patients with PDB starting as early as 3 months after treatment and lasting no less than 12 months (i.e., considerably longer than the other existing therapies).

Aim: The aim of this study is the presentation of the imaging findings in patients with pulmonary embolism, the diagnosis of which was made with the use of helical computed tomography., Material and Methods: The lung CT scans of 14 patients were retrospectively studied. The presence of hypoattenuating thrombus within the lumen of one or more pulmonary arterial branches was considered as the imaging criterion for the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism., Results: Emboli within the lumen of 1st order branches were found in 2 patients, within the lumen of 2nd order branches in 8 patients, into the lumen of 3rd order branches (lobar) in 10 patients and into the lumen of 4th order branches (segmental) in 6 patients. No emboli were detected in subsegmental or more peripheral branches. Concomitant, secondary findings were the presence of unilateral pleural effusion, areas of pulmonary oligaemia and the presence of a wedge-shaped, pleural-based opacity, indicative of a pulmonary infarct., Conclusion: In conclusion, we were able to make the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism through the direct visualization of intraluminal emboli up until the segmental level, as well as of concomitant, accessory findings of pulmonary embolism.

Brucellosis is a zoonosis of worldwide distribution presenting with a wide clinical spectrum. Brucellosis can involve any organ or system. The axial skeleton is the most common site of involvement with a frequency ranging from 2% to 53%. Multiple-level spinal involvements are rare. This report describes the first case of noncontiguous synchronous multifocal involvement of all cervical, thoracic, and lumbar regions in a patient with brucellar spondylodiscitis.

Adrenal myelolipomas are rare benign tumors, usually discovered by chance in patients with hypertension, obesity or various endocrine disorders. Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) can occur as a primary disease or in a variety of secondary settings. So far, no association between the two conditions has been described. We report a case of a woman admitted for nephrotic syndrome, in which a coexistence of FSGS and bilateral large adrenal myelolipomas was revealed.