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Biomedical subjects

B J Anderson

Publications and source records attributed to B J Anderson.

162 records · Page 9Linked to original sources

Personality traits and behaviors of alcohol-impaired drivers: a comparison of first and multiple offenders.

Using an interview and questionnaire format, 358 driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) first offenders and 141 DUI multiple offenders were compared on measures of personality traits, drinking behavior and problems, and driving behavior and history. In addition, official driving records for the two groups were compared. Results indicated that multiple offenders were significantly higher in hostility, sensation seeking, psychopathic deviance, mania, and depression than first offenders. Multiple offenders were significantly lower in emotional adjustment and assertiveness. Multiple offenders had significantly more nontraffic arrests, accidents, and traffic tickets than first offenders. They also consumed significantly more alcohol, evidenced more alcohol problems, and had higher BACs at the time of arrest than first offenders. Results are discussed in terms of general problem behavior and implications for intervention and treatment.

Accidents, Traffic↗

Alcohol, personality traits, and high risk driving: a comparison of young, drinking driver groups.

Four types of drinking driver groups were compared with each other and also with two nondrinking driver groups on sensation seeking, social responsibility, and hostility. Groups were also compared on traffic violations, accidents, alcohol consumption, frequency of driving after drinking, frequency of driving impaired, and perception of driving risk taking after drinking. Drivers under the influence apprehended in conjunction with an accident or moving violation had significantly greater alcohol consumption, frequency of driving after drinking, frequency of driving impaired, traffic violations, accidents, and self rating of risk taking after drinking in comparison with other groups.

Adolescent↗

Fine needle aspiration biopsy findings in lymphoepithelial carcinoma of salivary gland.

OBJECTIVE: To study the fine needle aspiration cytology of lymphoepithelial carcinoma of salivary gland (LECSG). STUDY DESIGN: Needle aspirates from five primary and two metastatic LECSGs were reviewed. RESULTS: Three aspirates showed very scant cellularity with rare tumor cells originally misinterpreted as lymphohistiocytic cells. Six fine needle aspiration biopsies (FNABs) contained medium to large polygonal and spindled cells with one or more prominent nucleoli. Five aspirates also displayed a heterogeneous population of lymphoid cells, while a sixth had much necrotic debris and only a few lymphocytes admixed with tumor cells. CONCLUSION: In the clinical setting of an Inuit or Chinese patient with a salivary gland mass, an FNAB with these features should suggest the possibility of LECSG.

Adult↗

Cerebellar and brainstem circuits involved in classical eyeblink conditioning.

Model systems are one useful strategy for the investigation of the mechanisms of learning. Whereas mammalian model systems generally do not offer the ease of identifying circuitry and exploring cellular mechanisms of learning that is realized with invertebrate preparations /37,97/, research involving the rabbit classical eyeblink conditioning paradigm has now reached the state at which much of the basic conditioning neural circuit appears to have been identified /9,65,66,85,89,91/. Despite a dispute as to precisely where in the circuitry convergence of the associated stimuli may occur, there is substantial evidence identifying the stimulus input pathways and motor output pathway. The present summary of this research details these paths. In addition, the proposed sites of convergence of the conditioning stimuli are discussed. Finally, a hypothesized neural circuit responsible for classical eyeblink conditioning is presented along with some suggestions for future research directions.

Animals↗

Common errors of drug administration in infants: causes and avoidance.

Drug administration errors are common in infants. Although the infant population has a high exposure to drugs, there are few data concerning pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics, or the influence of paediatric diseases on these processes. Children remain therapeutic orphans. Formulations are often suitable only for adults; in addition, the lack of maturation of drug elimination processes, alteration of body composition and influence of size render the calculation of drug doses complex in infants. The commonest drug administration error in infants is one of dose, and the commonest hospital site for this error is the intensive care unit. Drug errors are a consequence of system error, and preventive strategies are possible through system analysis. The goal of a zero drug error rate should be aggressively sought, with systems in place that aim to eliminate the effects of inevitable human error. This involves review of the entire system from drug manufacture to drug administration. The nuclear industry, telecommunications and air traffic control services all practise error reduction policies with zero error as a clear goal, not by finding fault in the individual, but by identifying faults in the system and building into that system mechanisms for picking up faults before they occur. Such policies could be adapted to medicine using interventions both specific (the production of formulations which are for children only and clearly labelled, regular audit by pharmacists, legible prescriptions, standardised dose tables) and general (paediatric drug trials, education programmes, nonpunitive error reporting) to reduce the number of errors made in giving medication to infants.

Humans↗

Research on diabetes management and the family: a critique.

Research on diabetes management and the family has been traditionally viewed within a linear model, in which parental attitudes toward diabetes are seen as the principal influence on the child's adjustment and metabolic control. Recently the focus of research has shifted to the broader family milieu, with an emphasis on patterns of cooperation and conflict among all family members in implementing the treatment regimen. As investigators have begun to study the entire family, the linear model of parental influences has been overshadowed by a systems model of family interaction, based on the concept of mutual influences among all individuals in the family. Several methodological problems have characterized research in this area, such as inadequate assessments of family functioning, unreliable indices of metabolic control, and insensitivity to differences in age and disease variables. Future studies of diabetes management will have much to gain from consideration of the role of the father and siblings in treatment, attention to the diabetic child's impact on family functioning, and recognition of sources of support and stress outside the family that affect adaptation to diabetes.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Family characteristics of diabetic adolescents: relationship to metabolic control.

This research compares the family environments of diabetic adolescents in good (HbA1c less than 10), fair (10 greater than or equal to HbA1c less than or equal to 14), and poor (HbA1c greater than 14) control. Fifty-eight adolescents diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and their parents (mothers) were independently assessed with structured interviews, the Moos Family Environment Scale, and adolescents also completed the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale. As compared with adolescents in poor control, those in good control reported fewer diabetes-related symptoms and had less anxiety and a more positive self-concept. Well-controlled youths also reported more cohesion and less conflict among family members. More parents of well-controlled youths stated that family members were encouraged to behave independently. In addition, more parents of poorly controlled adolescents believed that diabetes had negatively affected the child's personality, physical well-being, schooling, and participation in activities away from home. These findings suggest a complex interplay between the diabetic adolescent's psychological and physical functioning, metabolic control, and the family environment.

Adolescent↗

A group approach to the management of diabetes in adolescents and young adults.

An interdisciplinary team of health professionals developed a model treatment program to improve adherence, self-management, and metabolic control for five inner city, black, young adult, diabetic women. Following an initial in-hospital evaluation, the staff met with the patients as a group once a month for 18 mo. The professional approach was suppurative and nonjudgmental to assist the group members in developing confidence and assuming responsibility for the successful management of their diabetes. Discussions covered the group's educational needs, insulin requirements, and psychosocial problems of adjusting to living with chronic disease. Analysis of clinical findings showed a significant improvement in plasma glucose, hemoglobin A1c, and cholesterol levels.

Adolescent↗

Restructuring of laboratory services at the Detroit Medical Center. Process and outcomes.

Following an era of "do more, earn more," the health-care industry, including physicians and hospitals, has been faced with cost-containment measures. With this in mind, the Detroit Medical Center (DMC) embarked on a laboratory consolidation initiative to achieve this objective in 1985. The DMC entered into a partnership with Damon Clinical Laboratories, forming Damon Clinical Laboratories at the Detroit Medical Center. This partnership resulted in the consolidation of laboratory services within the DMC and the establishment of an outreach activity. In December 1992, it was decided that the partnership would be dissolved, with the DMC assuming full ownership and responsibility for the management of laboratory services. Thus, DMC University Laboratories was created and is currently in its third year of operation. This article presents how the decision to consolidate laboratory services within the DMC was made, along with the process and outcomes of consolidating the operations of seven hospital laboratories.

Communication↗

Effects of paired and unpaired eye-blink conditioning on Purkinje cell morphology.

This experiment addressed (1) the importance of conjunctive stimulus presentation for morphological plasticity of cerebellar Purkinje cells and inhibitory interneurons and (2) whether plasticity is restricted to the spiny branches of Purkinje cells, which receive parallel fiber input. These issues were investigated in naive rabbits and in rabbits that received paired or unpaired presentations of the conditioned stimulus (CS) and unconditioned stimulus (US). To direct CS input to the cerebellar cortex, pontine stimulation served as the CS. Air puffs to the cornea served as the US. Paired condition rabbits received pontine stimulation for 350 msec paired with a coterminating 100-msec air puff. Unpaired condition rabbits received the same stimuli in a pseudorandom order at 1- to 32-sec intervals. Rabbits were trained for a mean of 12 days. Naive rabbits received no treatment. In Golgi-stained Purkinje neurons in lobule HVI, total dendritic length, main branch length, total spiny branch length, and number of spiny branch arbors were all greater in the naive group than in the paired and unpaired groups, which did not differ. No differences were found between the hemispheres ipsilateral and contralateral to the trained eye. The dendritic length and number of branches for inhibitory interneurons did not differ across groups. The Purkinje cell morphological changes detected with these methods do not appear to be uniquely related to the conjunctive activation of the CS and US in the paired condition.

Animals↗