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Biomedical subjects

A Desai

Publications and source records attributed to A Desai.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Humoral concepts of mental illness in India.

Based on interviews with patients at three allopathic psychiatric clinics in Bombay, Bangalore and Varanasi, employing a preliminary version of the Explanatory Model Interview for Classification (EMIC) to elicit indigenous explanations of illness and patterns of prior help seeking, we discuss popular humoral theories of mental disorder. Even though most laypersons are unfamiliar with the content of the classical treatises of Ayurveda, the humoral traditions which they represent influence current perceptions. Case vignettes clarify the nature of the relationship between cultural, familial and personal factors that influence the experience of illness.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Planar and SPECT Tc-99m red blood cell imaging in hepatic cavernous hemangiomas and other hepatic lesions.

The utility of Tc-99m RBC imaging in the diagnosis of hepatic cavernous hemangiomas has been established. Of the 25 patients with various focal hepatic lesions evaluated, 16 were diagnosed as having hemangiomas: eight proven by surgery, two proven by angiography, and six proven by maintaining a stable clinical course ranging from 6 to 12 months with normal follow-up liver function tests. Although fourteen of these were detected by planar imaging, two were detected by SPECT only. Two patients with large hemangiomas had false-negative scans, whereas the remaining seven patients had other liver lesions.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Contact application of Nd:YAG laser through a fiberoptic and a sapphire tip.

We evaluated the effects of Nd:YAG laser energy directly applied to ocular tissue through a fiberoptic and a sapphire tip. All ocular tissue could be easily cut with the maximum 4 watts of energy. The coagulated borders extended 20 to 200 mu into the healthy tissue depending on the speed with which the cutting was performed.

Aluminum Oxide↗
PubMed1987

Spontaneous osteonecrosis of the knee. Scintigraphic findings.

Three cases of spontaneous osteonecrosis (SON) of the knee, comprised of two cases involving the medial tibial plateau and one involving the medial femoral condyle, are reported. Because of the relatively normal x-rays early in the course of the disease, the differential diagnosis of a painful knee is markedly shortened with the typical scintigraphic findings in SON. The scintigraphic findings represent a focal area of increased activity at the affected site on a three-phase bone scan.

Aged↗
PubMed1986

Traditional concepts of mental disorder among Indian psychiatric patients: preliminary report of work in progress.

In a medically pluralistic setting a range of health care providers offer not only different forms of treatment, but different ways of understanding illness. Even within a single tradition, these concepts evolve over time. Chapters in the classical texts of Ayurveda describe varieties of severe mental disorder (unmada) arising from a particular humoral imbalance (dosa) or arising in association with specific demons and deities (bhuta) that produce distinct character changes and symptom patterns. Patients currently presenting for treatment of mental disorder may describe their illness with reference to these concepts, but they also rely on other indigenous traditional concepts such as astrology, karma, the effects of other humoral relationships, such as semen loss and so forth; or they may rely on ideas derived from cosmopolitan medicine or both. Patients presenting to allopathic psychiatric centers in India were studied to determine whether patterns of help seeking could be predicted from the conceptual model by which they understood their illness. We elicited explanatory models from patients and obtained a history of prior consultations to other types of healer. Preliminary findings were notable for the pervasiveness of prior use of folk healers and the prominence of somatic symptoms among patients presenting to these allopathic physicians. Hypotheses regarding the impact of explanatory models on patterns of medical help seeking require further study from a larger and more diverse data base.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1985

A randomized multicenter trial of cyclophosphamide, Novantrone and 5-fluorouracil (CNF) versus cyclophosphamide, Adriamycin and 5-fluorouracil (CAF) in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

As of August 1984, 115 women with advanced breast cancer have been randomized to receive a combination of either cyclophosphamide, Novantrone (mitoxantrone) and 5-fluorouracil (CNF) or cyclophosphamide, Adriamycin (doxorubicin) and 5-fluorouracil (CAF). Seventy-one percent of all patients were post-menopausal and 44% of CNF patients and 57% of CAF patients were estrogen receptor (ER) negative. Slightly over 30% of all patients had received hormonal therapy or chemotherapy in an adjuvant setting. Hematologic toxicity was similar in regard to platelet counts but slightly lower nadirs were experienced with CNF therapy than with CAF. However, there were fewer dosage decreases with CNF. Significantly less nausea and vomiting were observed with the CNF regimen compared to CAF. Moreover, alopecia was reduced appreciably in patients who received CNF. The response rate to CNF for the first 38 eligible and evaluable patients was 42%, and for 53 eligible and evaluable patients who received CAF the response rate was 45%, a non-significant difference. Median response durations were similar also, 140 days for CNF and 168 days for the CAF regimen. Time to treatment failure was similar for both regimens. CNF is an effective regimen for patients with advanced breast cancer, with less toxicity than CAF.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Genetic evidence for glucitol-specific enzyme III, an essential phosphocarrier protein of the Salmonella typhimurium glucitol phosphotransferase system.

Positive selection procedures were developed for the isolation of mutants defective in components of the glucitol-specific catabolic enzyme system in Salmonella typhimurium. gutA (enzyme IIgut-negative), gutB (enzyme IIIgut-negative), and gutC (constitutive for the glucitol operon) mutants were isolated and characterized biochemically and genetically. The gene order was shown to be gutCAB.

Biological Transport↗
PubMed1982

Activities of catabolic pathways and alkaloid biogenesis during submerged cultivation of Claviceps sp. SD-58.

Alkaloid biogenesis in Claviceps sp. SD-58 was found to be associated with low growth and reduced consumption of sucrose and mannitol. The activities of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and aldolase increased up to 9 d of the fermentation cycle and then declined. A close parallel between the operation of pentose phosphate and glycolytic pathways and tryptophan content was demonstrated. An inverse relation between the operation of citric acid and glyoxylate cycles and the ability of the cells to synthesize alkaloids was noted. The role of carbon metabolic pathways during fermentative production of alkaloids is discussed.

Citric Acid Cycle↗
PubMed1980

99mTc-MDP uptake in nonosseous lesions.

A strikingly similar, massive, soft-tissue localization of 99mTc-MDP is described in three patients who had tumoral calcinosis, mild-alkali syndrome, and chronic renal failure, respectively. Although the basic mechanism for this phenomenon is unknown, some derangement of calcium and phosphate metabolism was present in all three cases.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

Role of bone scintigraphy in the evaluation and treatment of nonunited fractures: concise communication.

Seventy-seven patients with nonunited fractures underwent percutaneous low-grade, direct-current stimulation; the response was correlated with the scintigraphic findings obtained before the treatment. Two distinct patterns of osseous activity were noted: those with intense activity at the fracture site (Group 1) and those with a line of decreased activity surrounded by increased uptake on both sides (Group 2). The scintigrams that did not fit into either of the two patterns were considered as indeterminate (Group 3). Whereas 95% of the patients in Group 1 showed an excellent response to electric stimulation, none of the patients in Group 2 had evidence of healing. The response rate in the third group was 50%. On the basis of these preliminary data, bone scintigraphy is recommended as an important initial examination for the proper selection of patients for percutaneous electric stimulation.

Bone and Bones↗
PubMed1975

Side-to-side right renal artery-vena caval fistula. A new model for experimental hypertension.

A model for the investigation of blood pressure changes resulting from a renal arteriovenous (A-V) fistula is presented. After base line blood pressures were established in five adult mongrel dogs by carotid loop puncture, an A-V fistula was constructed between the right renal artery and vena cava. Weekly blood pressure determination showed a rise in systolic and diastolic pressure over control values. Split renal vein renins and split function studies were obtained at 3 months postfistula. Right nephrectomy at 6 months postfistula resulted in return of blood pressure readings to control values. Although no consistent pattern in the split renal vein renins and split function studies was seen, the data suggest that renin production may be responsible for the rise in systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

Animals↗