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Biomedical subjects

A Stein

Publications and source records attributed to A Stein.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Serum free/total prostatic-specific antigen in prostate cancer patients treated with LH-RH agonists.

OBJECTIVE: This study is based on promising results using the ratio of free/ total (F/T) prostatic-specific antigen (PSA) for discrimination between benign prostatic hypertrophy and prostate cancer. We tried to determine the value of F/T PSA in different clinical situations at a certain time point during follow-up of luteinizing-hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) agonist treatment and to correlate it to T-PSA. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 182 patients followed-up for different periods in the last 3 years were routinely monitored for serum T-PSA. During the last 11 months, F-PSA was also measured together with T-PSA, and the ratio of F/T PSA was calculated. In 26 patients, the ratio of F/T PSA was monitored sequentially in several samples. RESULTS: Although 5 patterns of clinical response to LH-RH agonists were identified according to previous T-PSA, the F/T ratio could significantly (p < 0.05) discriminate between patients responding to treatment in contrast to patients escaping, fluctuating or not responding to hormonal ablation. Those patients responding to hormones showed a higher F/T PSA ratio (36.5 +/- 33.1%) compared to the nonresponding group (12.0 +/- 10.1%). CONCLUSIONS: During individual follow-ups, the pattern of response to LH-RH treatment is reflected by the F/T PSA ratio: while successful treatment causes an F/T PSA increase, relapse is accompanied by a decrease in this ratio. However, the changes in the F/T PSA ratio did not precede the indicative changes in T-PSA. It seems that increased values of F/T PSA ratios are intrinsic features of 'benign' prostatic disease, and the molecular events resulting in different PSA molecules in various clinical situations have to be elucidated.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

[Radiologic appearance of primary anomalies of the lymphatic vessel system of the lung. Review and personal results].

Congenital disorders of the lymphatics of the lung are rare. On the basis of a literature review and our own experiences the disorders are divided into four groups and their radiographic findings are described. Pulmonary lymphangiectasia shows not typical signs. As an expression of the underlying pathophysiologic processes CT shows thickening of interlobular septs, interstitial edema and pleural effusions. Neither architectural distraction nor thickening of intralobular septs was seen. Lymphangioleiomyomatosis shows rather typical findings with multiple thin-walled bullae. In contrast to the opinion that architectural distraction is not seen in LAM we sometimes found signs of fibrosis. Disseminated pulmonary lymphangioma is characterised by proliferation of lymph vessels. CT-findings of this disorder have not been described before. CT shows multiple disseminated nodules of up to 2.5 cm accompanied by multiple bullae of similar distribution and size.

Humans↗
PubMed1997

Auditory context and memory retrieval in young infants.

Three-month-old infants were trained to move an overhead crib mobile while 1 of 2 musical selections was played. Retention was assessed 1 or 7 days later in the presence of either the same music or a different musical selection. In Experiment 1, the musical selections were very different (classical versus jazz); in Experiment 2, they were much more similar (two classical pieces). Infants in both experiments displayed 1 day retention regardless of which music was played during the retention test. At 7 days, retention was seen only when the music played during the retention test matched the training music. These data are consistent with similar findings showing that 3-month-old infants' memory is disrupted at long retention intervals when the context present during retention testing does not match the learning context. As the infant's memory wanes, context appears to function as a necessary cue for the retrieval of acquired expectancies.

Association Learning↗
PubMed1997

[Hamman-Rich syndrome in a goldsmith].

We report the case of a 54-year old goldsmith admitted because of dyspnea on exertion, persistent cough, and weakness under the suspicion of exogenous allergic alveolitis. He rapidly developed progressive lung fibrosis with exitus letalis 7 weeks after admission. Radiological examination (chest X-ray and HRCT) first showed ground glass opacties, and later rapid development of severe interstitial pattern with architectural distraction. The findings were similar to idiopathic lung fibrosis; however, the rare Hamman-Rich syndrome was confirmed by progressive course of the disease. Correlations between Hamman-Rich syndrome and idiopathic lung fibrosis are discussed.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMed1996

Single-dose intramuscular ketorolac versus diclofenac for pain management in renal colic.

A double-blind controlled study was designed to compare the effective- ness of a single intramuscular dose of 60 mg ketorolac with that of 75 mg diclofenac in the treatment of renal colic and to monitor side effects. Fifty-seven patients completed the study, 27 in the ketorolac group and 30 in the diclofenac group. Effectiveness of treatment was monitored by pain relief reported on a 4-point verbal scale at different time points. At 60 minutes 77.8% and 86.6% (P = 0.4) of patients, and at 120 minutes 81.5% and 96.6% (P = .1 5) of patients, reported significant pain relief following ketorolac and diclofenac doses, respectively. Both groups had an equal 92% significant pain relief at discharge from the emergency department. Both drugs were well tolerated by the patients. Ketorolac therefore, seems as effective as diclofenac in the treatment of renal colic.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Infant growth in the context of maternal eating disorders and maternal depression: a comparative study.

There is evidence of growth faltering in infants of mothers with eating disorders. The aim of the current study was to examine whether this is a specific relationship. Thus, the infants of mothers with eating disorders were compared with infants of mothers with post-natal depression and a large comparison group. This study also aimed to explore possible mechanisms whereby growth disturbance comes about. It was found that the infants of mothers with eating disorders were smaller, both in terms of weight for length and weight for age, than either comparison group infants or infants of mothers with post-natal depression. There was little evidence, however, that mothers with eating disorders preferred smaller children or were dissatisfied with their children's shape or that they misperceived their children's size. On the contrary these mothers seemed highly sensitive to their children's shape and, compared with the other two groups, were more likely to judge their children's size accurately. None of these maternal measures significantly predicted the child's growth. The mechanism whereby growth disturbance arises in the context of eating disorders does not appear to be by means of a direct extension of the maternal psychopathology to the infant.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Route of infection determines the clinical manifestations of acute Q fever.

In Nova Scotia the main manifestation of acute Q fever is pneumonia, while in France it is granulomatous hepatitis. To test the hypothesis that the route of infection is the major determinant of the manifestations of acute Q fever, 10 groups of 10- to 12-g female BALB/c mice (4 animals/group) were used. Five groups were inoculated intraperitoneally (ip) and 5 intranasally (inl) with Coxiella burnetii. Both routes of infection resulted in pneumonia. However, the inl route resulted in greater airway changes (on a numeric scale with 0 being no changes): 2.05 +/- 2.20 versus 0.60 +/- 0.83 (P < .002). The ip route resulted only in hepatosplenomegaly. It was concluded that the route of infection is one determinant of the manifestations of acute Q fever.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

The cognitive development of 5-year-old children of postnatally depressed mothers.

As part of a longitudinal study of the influence of postnatal depression on child development, the cognitive functioning of index and control children was assessed at age 5 years. There was no evidence of an adverse effect of postnatal depression, even amongst sub-groups of children suggested to be vulnerable (boys and children from low SES families). However, early experience of insensitive maternal interactions predicted the persistence of poorer cognitive functioning. A number of factors in the child's current environment, including stimulation at home, social class and, for boys, the experience of schooling, contributed to cognitive performance. The findings are considered in relation to the ongoing debate on sensitive periods.

Child of Impaired Parents↗
PubMed1996

An exploration of feeding difficulties in children with Down syndrome.

Detailed examination of several aspects of feeding was carried out on a representative sample of a defined geographical population of children with Down syndrome. The examination included standardised assessments both of oral-motor function and of parent-child interaction. The findings suggest that the development of oral-motor function in children with Down syndrome not only lags behind intellectual development, but also follows an aberrant pathway. In particular, specific aspects of tongue and jaw function were impaired together with problems initiating and maintaining a smooth sequence of feeding actions. Also, parent-child interactions, as in studies on play, tended to be more controlling. Parents of children with Down syndrome do not spontaneously report the extent of their child's feeding problems unless specific enquiry is made, preferably accompanied by observation of feeding.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1996

Upregulation of tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-1 beta in Q fever endocarditis.

The occurrence of Q fever endocarditis likely involves some alterations in the responses of monocytes, the in vivo targets of Coxiella burnetii. To test this hypothesis, the production of the inflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin-1 beta, and interleukin-6 was assessed in monocytes from patients with Q fever endocarditis. Spontaneous transcription and secretion of tumor necrosis factor and interleukin-1 were significantly higher in patient monocytes than in healthy controls. The interleukin-6 transcripts were also upregulated in patient cells. Moreover, in patients with recent endocarditis exhibiting high titers of immunoglobulin G directed to C. burnetii in phase I, monocytes released significantly higher levels of tumor necrosis factor and interleukin-1 than in patients with stabilized endocarditis. Immunoglobulin G titers and the overproduction of tumor necrosis factor and interleukin-1 were significantly correlated. Hence, the overproduction of inflammatory cytokines might be a marker of disease activity.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Knowledge acquisition for temporal abstraction.

Temporal abstraction is the task of detecting relevant patterns in data over time. The knowledge-based temporal-abstraction method uses knowledge about a clinical domain's contexts, external events, and parameters to create meaningful interval-based abstractions from raw time-stamped clinical data. In this paper, we describe the acquisition and maintenance of domain-specific temporal-abstraction knowledge. Using the PROTEGE-II framework, we have designed a graphical tool for acquiring temporal knowledge directly from expert physicians, maintaining the knowledge in a sharable form, and converting the knowledge into a suitable format for use by an appropriate problem-solving method. In initial tests, the tool offered significant gains in our ability to rapidly acquire temporal knowledge and to use that knowledge to perform automated temporal reasoning.

Artificial Intelligence↗
PubMed1996

Perivesical fat closure during suprapubic prostatectomy: does it prevent urinary leakage? A prospective randomized study.

Urinary leakage from the operative wound may be a troublesome complication after suprapubic prostatectomy. In an attempt to prevent this complication, an additional closure layer with perivesical fat was performed. Eighty-nine patients who underwent suprapubic prostatectomy were prospectively randomized into two groups: 45 patients without fat closure and 44 with perivesical fat closure. Patients in both groups were comparable with respect to their preoperative risk factors (urinary tract infection, cystolithiasis, incidental malignancy of bladder or prostate) for bladder healing. Six patients from the first group (13.3%) and one patient from the second group (2.2%) had postoperative urinary leakage (p = 0.06). Perivescical fat closure seems to have a protective effect against urinary leakage from bladder after suprapubic prostatectomy.

Adipose Tissue↗