Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

B Black

Publications and source records attributed to B Black.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

A new scale for the assessment of functional status in Alzheimer's disease and related disorders.

Assessment of the functional competencies of patients with dementia is typically conducted in an indirect manner. Psychological tests of cognition or descriptions by relatives or other caregivers are often used to make judgments as to the patient's ability to adapt to the demands of the environment. However, these methods have built-in biases. The need for direct assessment of functional status was addressed by developing a standardized operational procedure to examine areas of functional competence which may become impaired in Alzheimer's disease and other related memory disorders. The resulting instrument has high interrater and test-retest reliabilities. Convergent validity is evidenced by significant correlations between the scale and established measures of functional status. Patients with Alzheimer's disease exhibited deficits in functional capacities relative to age-equivalent normal controls and to elderly patients with a primary major depression.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1989

Preschool peer communication skills: the role of social status and interaction context.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation between social status and discourse skills in preschool children. Using peer nominations, 48 acquainted preschool children were classified as liked, disliked, or low impact. Children were videotaped in freeplay interactions in which one child entered the play of a pair of same-sex peers. Social status differences were found primarily in skills contributing to coherent discourse. Specifically, liked children were more inclined to direct their initiations clearly, to speak to both interaction partners rather than just one, to respond contingently to others, to acknowledge others, and to reinitiate when rejecting. Liked children were also better able to adapt to the differing social demands of entry versus nonentry contexts in that they were more likely to give information and less likely to express their feelings when entering a group. Deficits in communication skill were greater for disliked children than for low-impact children. Results indicate that communication skills that contribute to coherent discourse are fundamental to social interaction and may influence young children's peer acceptance.

Child Behavior↗
PubMed1989

[The margin of safety and depth of excision in surgical treatment of basalioma. Use of 3-dimensional histologic study of 2,016 tumors].

During the treatment of 2016 basal cell carcinomas (BCC), 1757 of which were primary tumours and 259, recurrences, every operation was followed by a check on radicality by means of histological evaluation of the margins of the excised tissue (three-dimensional histology). The average safe margin at first excision was 3.8 mm, and excision normally extended to the lower subcuticular border in depth. After first excisions, tumour tissue was found in 31.6% of histological sections prepared from the marginal sections at the circumference and/or on the underside of the excised material. Tumour material was far more frequent in the marginal area (28.3%) than on the underside (7%). With a 2-mm safe margin around the primary BCC there were still 46.7% tumour-positive marginal sections; with 4 mm, 20.3%; and with 6-8 mm, 14.7%. Fibrosing BCC and tumours with diameters over 20 mm, and recurrent BCC in particular had a significantly larger share of tumour-positive marginal sections and considerably more frequently required two or more reoperations until the final radical excision than did the solid and superficial types of BCC. An average safe margin of 4.5 mm plus standard deviation to give 7 mm (standard deviation 2.5 mm) was necessary for radical excision of primary BCC, but often even larger margins, up to a maximum of 3.2 mm were necessary. Hence, when surgical treatment of BCC does not include three-dimensional histological evaluation generous safe margins are necessary. Surgery with histological monitoring is the only justifiable method of treating tumours of the fibrosing type, recurrent BCC and BCC over 10 mm in diameter.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Basal Cell Carcinoma↗
PubMed1989

Complications of chronic glue ears.

Glue ears if left untreated progress to many of the major middle ear disorders. The process of destruction of the drum, ossicles and mucosa may halt spontaneously leaving varying stages of damage, or proceed to the sometimes life-threatening complications of some of the conditions described.

Cholesteatoma↗
PubMed1988

Evolving legal standards for the admissibility of scientific evidence.

Ensuring the scientific validity of scientific evidence has always posed problems for judges and lawyers largely untrained in science. As recent cases involving the health effects of chemicals and drugs make clear, however, irrational and inconsistent decisions result when courts do not hold expert witnesses to the standards and criteria of their own disciplines. A trend toward more thorough judicial review of scientific claims has developed, and it should be encouraged.

Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions↗
PubMed1987

Concurrent radiation and chemotherapy for carcinoma of the cervix recurrent after radical surgery.

Results of salvage therapy in patients with carcinoma of the cervix, recurrent after primary surgery, have been dismal even when disease was apparently confined to the pelvis. Further surgery or radiation therapy cured only some with central pelvic disease alone who had recurred at intervals longer than 6 months after primary therapy. To try to improve the results of salvage therapy, we used a combination of concurrent chemotherapy, 5-Fluorouracil with or without Mitomycin-C, and radiation therapy. Seventeen patients were treated. Recurrent disease was present in the pelvis or pelvis and paraaortic nodes after radical surgery for Stage IB carcinoma of the cervix. Eight of seventeen (47%) are alive, disease-free, 21 to 58 months after therapy. Seven of the eight had biopsy proven recurrence. Five of eight had recurred within 9 months of primary surgery and 7/8 had a component of pelvic side wall disease. Thus the survivors had unfavorable prognostic features. Nevertheless, the use of concurrent radiation and chemotherapy produced an exceptionally high proportion of sustained complete remissions and possible cures.

Combined Modality Therapy↗
PubMed1987

Otalgia.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Earache↗
PubMed1987

Acute myringotomy.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1986

Cleaning the ear.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Ear Diseases↗
PubMed1983

Accumulation of cyclic GMP in filaments of Escherichia coli BUG6.

Experiments with Escherichia coli BUG6, a temperature-sensitive cell division mutant, have shown that at the restrictive temperature (42 degrees C) the loss of cell division potential (filamentation) was accompanied by an unusual increase in intracellular cyclic GMP (cGMP). At the permissive temperature (30 degrees C), cell division proceeded normally, and cGMP did not accumulate. Increasing the osmotic strength of the medium with NaCl suppressed filamentation in BUG6 at 42 degrees C and also suppressed the temperature-sensitive accumulation of cGMP. The addition of nalidixic acid to BUG6 at 30 degrees C induced filamentation but failed to cause cGMP accumulation. A similar accumulation of cGMP has not been observed in other E. coli strains.

Cell Division↗