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Biomedical subjects

A Jones

Publications and source records attributed to A Jones.

At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

Atypical central nervous system lymphoma at the cranial base: report of four cases.

OBJECTIVE AND IMPORTANCE: Primary central nervous system lymphoma is a disease with increasing incidence. Atypical presentations are becoming more frequent. CLINICAL PRESENTATION: Three patients bearing cavernous sinus lesions presented initially with periorbital pain and diplopia. Tolosa-Hunt syndrome was the initial presumptive diagnosis for two patients, and meningioma was the diagnosis for the third patient. A fourth patient presented with left ear pain, and a mass in the left internal auditory canal was thought to represent an acoustic neuroma. INTERVENTION: For all four patients, an operative pathological diagnosis was obtained and was compatible with central nervous system lymphoma. All patients were treated with osmotic blood-brain barrier disruption with intra-arterial chemotherapy using a methotrexate-based regimen. CONCLUSION: All four cases included atypical presentations of lymphoma. These cases again illustrate that a correct diagnosis cannot be obtained based only on imaging and clinical findings.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Immunoglobulin replacement treatment by rapid subcutaneous infusion.

Long term intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) infusion is an effective treatment for children with immunodeficiencies, but can be complicated by poor venous access, systemic adverse reactions, and the need for frequent hospital admission. Rapid subcutaneous immunoglobulin (SCIG) infusion has been found to be effective in adults with primary immunodeficiency. Twenty six children were treated with SCIG for a median period of two years (range six months to 3.5 years). Fifteen children had previously been treated with IVIG. Retrospective analysis showed that trough IgG concentrations while receiving SCIG were comparable with those while receiving IVIG during maintenance treatment. In severe hypogammaglobulinaemia, however, initial loading with SCIG or IVIG is probably indicated. During the treatment period there was no systemic adverse reaction nor severe reaction requiring admission to hospital. The subjective impression of all families was a significant improvement in the quality of life. This preliminary experience with SCIG in children suggests that it is an effective, convenient, and well tolerated alternative to intravenous treatment. Larger prospective studies are required to determine the place of SCIG in the management of immunodeficiencies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Quadriceps weakness in knee osteoarthritis: the effect on pain and disability.

OBJECTIVES: (1) To determine the importance of quadriceps strength, structural change, and psychological status in terms of knee pain in the community. (2) To determine the relative importance of quadriceps function, structural change, and psychological status with respect to disability in subjects with knee pain. METHODS: 300 men and women with pain and 300 controls without pain (aged 40-79) were seen. Isometric quadriceps strength (MVC) was measured and muscle activation was assessed by twitch superimposition. Disability (Western Ontario McMaster Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC)) and anxiety and depression were assessed (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Index (HAD)). Radiographs were obtained of the tibiofemoral and patellofemoral joints and total score for osteophyte, narrowing, and sclerosis calculated for each knee. RESULTS: Subjects with knee pain had lower voluntary quadriceps strength than those without pain (p < 0.005). Quadriceps activation was also lower (p < 0.005), but did not fully explain the reduction in strength. When analysed by multiple logistic regression: quadriceps strength (odds ratio 18.8, CI 4.8, 74.1 for MVC < or = 10 kgF); depression (odds ratio 2.4, CI 1.0, 5.5 for HAD score > or = 8); and radiographic change (odds ratio 4.1, CI 1.9, 8.6 for radiographic score > or = 4) were independently associated with pain. In those with knee pain, disability was independently associated with quadriceps strength (odds ratio 8.2, CI 1.5, 44.4 for MVC < or = 10 kgF) and depression (odds ratio 6.2, CI 2.1, 18.0 for HAD score > or = 8); but not with radiographic score. CONCLUSIONS: Quadriceps strength is strongly associated with knee pain and disability in the community, even when activation and psychological factors are taken into account. This has important therapeutic implications.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Radiographic assessment of symptomatic knee osteoarthritis in the community: definitions and normal joint space.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate radiographic features of osteoarthritis (OA) to determine which is more closely associated with knee pain and hence might be used as a radiographic definition of OA in the community. To evaluate joint space width in normal subjects. METHODS: 452 subjects from a case-control community study of knee pain (294 women, 158 men, mean age 62 years, range 40-80) underwent AP standing and midflexion skyline radiographs. Joint space width, measured by metered calliper to 0.1 mm, and graded individual features of OA (osteophyte 0-3, narrowing 0-3, sclerosis 0-1, cysts 0-1) were assessed in all three compartments independently by two observers who were blind to clinical status. Subjects were categorised as having knee pain by a positive response to both parts of the question "Have you ever had pain in or around the knee on most days for at least a month? If so, have you experienced any pain during the last year?" RESULTS: Intraobserver reproducibility for joint space width measurements was to within +/- 0.4 mm (95% CI for limits of agreement); kappa values for grading were > 0.7. One hundred and twenty five subjects were without knee pain or osteophyte. In these radiographically normal knees, mean joint space width varied according to sex but did not decrease with age. A definition based on the presence of osteophyte > or = grade 1 in any compartment was more efficient at predicting pain than definitions based on either measurement or grading of joint space; there was no clear threshold of joint space loss at which the likelihood of pain substantially increased. The presence of osteophyte at the patellofemoral joint (PFJ) was more sensitive but less specific than at the tibiofemoral joint (TFJ); the addition of PFJ assessment improved sensitivity from 38.1% to 62.3% with a reduction in specificity from 82.7% to 58.7% for the presence of knee pain. CONCLUSION: Among men and women in the community, osteophyte is the radiographic feature that associates best with knee pain. Radiographic assessment of both TFJ and PFJ should be included in all community studies. Joint space loss is not a feature of asymptomatic aging, and there is not a biological cut off for joint space width below which the likelihood of knee pain markedly increases.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Positioning of stroke patients: evaluation of a teaching intervention with nurses.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: There is agreement, although little evidence, that consistently positioning stroke patients in allegedly reflex-inhibiting positions is therapeutic and will enhance functional recovery. The nursing staff, therefore, needs to know and implement these postures and understand their potential underlying value. We examined nurses' knowledge of and practice in positioning stroke patients before and after a formal teaching intervention. METHODS: In a quasi-experimental study, 38 stroke patients and 59 nursing staff members (44 trained nurses and 15 healthcare assistants) from 6 wards were studied. The wards were randomly allocated to experimental or control status. Patients were assessed on entry into the study by use of a range of measures to establish group equivalence. Nineteen aspects of their position were documented at intervals throughout their stay with a previously developed observational tool. One thousand sets of observations of patient position were made. Using 2 questionnaires, the nurses' knowledge of the terminology used to denote posture and of issues relating to the moving and positioning of stroke patients was assessed before, immediately after, and 3 months after a package of formal teaching was implemented on the experimental wards. Nurse knowledge and patient position were used as the main outcome measures. RESULTS: Immediately after teaching, nurses in the experimental group scored significantly higher than those in the control group on the terminology questionnaire (P < 0.05) and the moving and positioning questionnaire (P < 0.001). Three months later, the experimental group scored higher on the latter questionnaire only (P < 0.005). The positioning of patients in the experimental group was improved overall after the teaching (P < 0.0005), and improvements to specific parts of the body were noted. CONCLUSIONS: It was possible to effect a degree of change in the nurses' knowledge of and practice in the positioning of stroke patients. However, the quality of patient positioning remained variable. More effective ways of improving positioning need to be developed. Only then can the effects of recommended positioning be evaluated.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Reducing antibiotics for respiratory tract symptoms in primary care: consolidating 'why' and considering 'how'.

We summarize recently published evidence showing that antibiotic treatment offers little or no benefit to most patients presenting with sore throats, acute otitis media, maxillary sinusitis, and acute bronchitis. Despite this research, the prescription of antibiotics for respiratory tract conditions is rising in Britain. This wastes money, encourages people to consult for self-limiting conditions, and causes bacteria to become resistant to antimicrobials. Ways of changing present practice are underresearched. Enhanced consulting skills, guidelines and monitoring strategies, patient education, and anti-inflammatory drugs for recurrent and chronic sufferers all hold promise.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1998

A general review of the p53 gene and oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Oral cancer has increased recently in Australia, and overall survival rates have not improved in the past 30 years. Dentists are uniquely well placed to screen their patients at regular recall examinations and detect cancers or pre-cancerous lesions at an early curable stage. Although the major risk factors--tobacco smoking and alcohol abuse--have been identified, only a minority of patients at-risk will develop oral cancer. Molecular analysis has now detected an accumulation of genetic lesions in oral cancer, but the earliest molecular changes in the oral epithelium in the progression to malignancy in at-risk patients has not yet been determined. These changes could if known be exploited for screening purposes. How long human oral carcinogenesis takes to progress from the initiated cell to an invasive tumour, and whether molecular biology can be used to identify the minority of patients who will develop cancer from the large population exposed to the risk factors, are other important unanswered questions. p53 tumour suppressor gene mutations are the most frequently found genetic errors in oral cancer and the p53 gene is a likely target for tobacco and alcohol.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed1998

Primary squamous carcinoma of liver: presentation as liver abscess.

Primary keratinizing squamous carcinoma of the liver has been reported as arising in a hepatic cyst, in association with prolonged cholestasis or chronic biliary sepsis. We describe the occurrence of such a tumor without predisposing factors, with presentation similar to that of hepatic abscess.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Placement of screws in the sustentaculum tali. A calcaneal fracture model.

Current methods of treating calcaneus fractures vary greatly, and many techniques of internal fixation have been described. The study of these fractures has been limited in part by the lack of a suitable laboratory model. In this study, a new cadaveric model of calcaneus fractures was developed, using a combination of osteotomies and impaction. The model allows a pattern of intraarticular injury to be reproduced consistently. The model was used to examine one aspect of internal fixation. It was hypothesized that fixation would be more stable if the screws supporting the posterior facet were incorporated into the lateral plate, as opposed to being separate from the plate. Six pairs of anatomic specimen legs were used, and each pair was divided randomly between two experimental groups. In Group A (screws out), the posterior facet screws were outside the plate, and in Group B (screws in), the screws were incorporated into the plate. The strength of the reconstructed calcanei were evaluated by axial loading of the limb through the tibia. Stiffness and energy to failure were significantly greater and Bohler's angle significantly less compromised in Group B. It was concluded that the position of the articular fragment of comminuted calcaneal fractures will be maintained at higher loads when the screws in the posterior facet are incorporated into the lateral plate. The model of calcaneal fractures described in this study may be suitable for examining other aspects of fixation.

Bone Plates↗
PubMed1998

A profile of family planning audit in England 1994-1997.

Audit has been entered into enthusiastically by most of the multidisciplinary teams giving family planning services but the nature of the subject makes audit particularly difficult in this field. In many cases it has been used as a tool for determining standards rather than a tool for determining compliance to them. If family planning audit and evaluation is to substantially improve in quality, a great deal of work needs to be done, particularly in the formation of appropriate guidelines and in the increased utilisation of audit/research specialists to advise on methodology. It is hoped that the new clinical effectiveness committee of the faculty will take a lead in this; if so it will undoubtedly gain support from faculty members.

England↗
PubMed1998

Tripartite involvement in health care clinical education.

This paper discusses the importance of an appropriate student-clinical educator-university lecturer (tripartite) relationship in clinical education and substantiates this importance with the experiences of the dynamics of such relationship in a physiotherapy course.

Faculty↗