Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

B O'Shea

Publications and source records attributed to B O'Shea.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1990

Urinary tract infection in general practice: direct antibiotic sensitivity testing as a potential diagnostic method.

Direct Antibiotic Sensitivity Testing (DST) is a rapid means of diagnosing urinary tract infection (UTI) and obtaining antibiotic sensitivity patterns of the infecting organisms. In this study 227 urine samples from general practice were analysed using this technique with those obtained using the standard laboratory method. DST was shown to be 94.6% sensitive, and 80.7% specific. Escherichia coli was the commonest infecting organism. Augmentin was the most effective antibiotic tested, all organisms tested in vitro, being susceptible. Direct Sensitivity Testing is rapid, inexpensive, easy to perform, highly sensitive and specific. It should be considered by general practitioners as an alternative to the problems and delays involved in sending urine samples to the laboratory and in awaiting the results.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Criteria mapping: a method of quality assurance.

Criteria mapping is a flexible and responsive method of chart audit that allows the simultaneous assessment of both the process and the outcome of care by means of health record abstraction. This method of audit is particularly suited to occupational therapy because it includes branching to reflect the sequential judgments of therapists and does not penalize the clinician for omitting unnecessary procedures. The purpose of this study was to determine the utility and reliability of the criteria mapping process in evaluating the quality of care for a self-care disability in an acute care setting. Three occupational therapists and one independent abstractor evaluated 12 charts twice. Intraobserver reliability calculated with intraclass correlation coefficients was .77 for the therapists and .65 for all observers. Interobserver reliability was .73 for the therapists and .72 for all observers. The criteria map provided comprehensive and relevant information about each chart. This paper discusses the implications of these findings for the ongoing monitoring of the quality of care in occupational therapy.

Disability Evaluation↗
PubMed1989

Screening for dementia and delirium using an adapted Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination.

An adapted Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination was applied to 244 consecutive admissions to an acute geriatric medical unit to determine the prevalence of cognitive impairment. At a cut-off point of 23/30, 109 (44%) were rated as normal and 44 (19%) were unable to perform the test. Of the 85 (36%) who scored less than 23, 63 were suffering from dementia, nine were delirious, and 12 had normal cognitive function, a false positive rate of 14%. The most common dementia was senile dementia of the Alzheimer type. Cognitive impairment was not noted by the admitting doctor in 57% of affected cases. The need for increased awareness of cognitive impairment in the elderly is emphasized, and the more widespread use of formal mental test scores is recommended.

Cognition Disorders↗
PubMed1987

No fixed abode.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Health↗
PubMed1986

A case-control study of dietary intake of renal stone patients. I. Preliminary analysis.

The average daily dietary intake of 88 idiopathic renal stone cases and 88 age and sex matched controls was assessed by history using a standardised questionnaire. Statistical analysis was undertaken on the whole group and on male and female subgroups, to establish if there were any significant differences between cases and controls. There were statistically significant differences in dietary intake between the whole group, the female cases and the control group. Male cases showed only a significantly lower intake of thiamine compared to controls. There was little difference between cases and controls intake of iron or multivitamin supplements but vitamin C supplements (greater than 1 g/day) were taken more than twice as frequently by cases than controls. These results suggest that control dietary studies of renal stone patients without regard to their sex may conceal many differences in dietary intake between cases and controls.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

A case-control study of dietary intake of renal stone patients. II. Urine biochemistry and stone analysis.

The dietary intakes of 88 renal stone cases and 88 age and sex matched controls were assessed by dietary history using a standardised questionnaire. The stone cases were divided into six subgroups established on the basis of urine biochemistry (calcium, oxalate and uric acid) and stone composition. The average intake of each group was then compared with that of their controls using standard statistical procedures. Cases with idiopathic calcium oxalate stones had significantly lower intakes of dietary fibre, non-cellulose polysaccharide, phytate, magnesium, phosphate and thiamine than controls. No significant difference in dietary intake was found between cases with high urinary calcium and uric acid and their respective controls. All cases with a high urinary oxalate had a significantly higher intake of vitamin C than controls. Our results support the belief that dietary intake is an important pre-urinary risk factor of idiopathic renal stone disease.

Calcium↗
PubMed1986

Aspects of deliberate self-harm.

Research into suicide and attempted suicide (parasuicide, non-fatal deliberate self-harm) has led to a vast accumulation of literature at a rate too fast to permit the generalist easily to keep himself informed of the latest thinking in these emotive and tragic areas. What are the latest facts in this often overpowering mass of data and speculative thinking? This article offers a guide to modern suicidology.

Adolescent↗