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Biomedical subjects

C McDougall

Publications and source records attributed to C McDougall.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Interventions for drug-using offenders in the courts, secure establishments and the community.

BACKGROUND: Drug strategies internationally recognize link between drug use and crime. This review consider interventions for drug-using offenders under the care of the criminal justice system. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effectiveness of interventions for drug-using offenders in reducing criminal activity and drug use in the courts, secure establishments and community-based settings. SEARCH STRATEGY: Twenty two electronic databases were searched (1980 to 2004). Internet sites and experts in the field were contacted for further information. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised Controlled Trials designed to reduce, eliminate or prevent relapse in drug using offenders DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two authors independently assessed trials for inclusion. Data were extracted by one author and double checked. MAIN RESULTS: Twenty four studies, 8936 participants, met the inclusion criteria. Results show that comparing a court-based community pre-trial release with drugs testing and sanctions versus routine pre-trial, for arrest at 90 days results favoured the comparison group OR 1.33 (95% CI 1.04 to 1.70). Comparing therapeutic community with aftercare with a mental health programme with a waiting list control, considering incarceration at 12 months OR 0.37 (95% CI 0.16 to 0.87), results in favour of the treatment Comparing intensive supervision with routine parole/probation, for recidivism OR 1.98 (95% CI 1.01 to 3.87) results in favour of comparison group, no statistically significant difference between the groups for arrest OR 1.49 (95% CI 0.88 to 2.51), drug arrest OR 1.10 (95% CI 0.50 to 2.39), conviction OR 0.93 (95% CI 0.55 to 1.58 ) and incarceration at one year OR 0.88 (95% CI 0.50, 1.54). Comparing intensive supervision and increased surveillance with intensive supervision alone, no statistically significant difference between the groups for recidivism OR 2.09 (95% CI, 0.86 to 5.07), arrest OR 1.22 (95% CI 0.51 to 2.88]), drug arrest, OR 1.29 (95% CI 0.35 to 4.85), conviction OR0.1.14 (95% CI, 0.22, to 5.91) and incarceration OR 1.30 (95% CI 0.39, to 4.30]) at one year. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Limited conclusions can be drawn about the effectiveness of drug treatment programmes for drug-using offenders in the courts or the community. This is partly due to the broad range of studies and the heterogenity of the different outcome measures presented. Therapeutic communities with aftercare show promising results for the reduction of drug use and criminal activity in drug using offenders. Standardisation of outcome measures and costing methodology would help improve the quality of research conducted in the area.

Aftercare↗
PubMed2001

The epic project: developing national evidence-based guidelines for preventing healthcare associated infections. Phase I: Guidelines for preventing hospital-acquired infections. Department of Health (England).

In 1998, the Department of Health (England) commissioned the first phase of national evidence-based guidelines for preventing healthcare associated infections. These focused on developing a set of standard principles for preventing infections in hospitals together with guidelines for preventing hospital-acquired infections (HAI) associated with the use of short-term indwelling ureteral catheters in acute care and with central venous catheters in acute care. These guidelines are systematically developed broad statements (principles) of good practice that all practitioners can use and which can be incorporated into local protocols. A nurse-led, multi-professional team composed of infection prevention practitioners, clinical microbiologists/retrovirologist, epidemiologists, and researchers developed the guidelines. A rigorous guideline development process was used to inform the systematic reviews, the clinical and critical appraisal of relevant evidence, and linking that evidence to evolving guidelines. Both general and specialist clinical practitioners were involved in all stages of developing these guidelines, as were representatives from relevant Royal Colleges, learned societies, other professional organisations and key stakeholders. The introduction to these guidelines describes a robust and validated guideline development model that can be used by others to develop future guidelines. This model is described in more detail in the associated technical reports that can be found on the project web site http://www.epic.tvu.ac.uk. Locating and appropriately using good quality evidence to inform guideline development in this field is challenging. Evidence from rigorously conducted experimental studies was frequently limited and consequently a range of other types of evidence were systematically retrieved and carefully appraised. The concluding discussion on implementation highlights potential issues for clinical governance and areas for future research and suggests issues that need to be addressed to allow practitioners to successfully incorporate these guidelines into routine clinical practice.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1999

Association of CCR5 delta32 with reduced risk of asthma.

We report that individuals carrying the CCR5 delta32 mutation, a naturally occurring variant of the C-C chemokine receptor 5 (CCR5), are at reduced risk of developing asthma. These data suggest a possible explanation for the high prevalence of this mutation in the general population.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

A comparative study of one-year weight gain among users of medroxyprogesterone acetate, levonorgestrel implants, and oral contraceptives.

With the recent introduction and growing popularity of Depo-Provera Contraceptive Injection, concern about the potential for weight gain during treatment has been raised. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether or not Depo-Provera Contraceptive Injection is associated with greater weight gain, and incidence thereof, than Norplant implants or oral contraceptives. A retrospective chart review of patients seen at a state- and federally-funded clinic was conducted. Fifty women in each treatment group who met the study criteria were identified and included in the study evaluation. Mean one-year weight gain for subjects in each group was as follows: -2.0 pounds in the oral contraceptive group, -1.8 pounds in the Norplant implants group, and +0.1 pounds in the Depo-Provera Contraceptive Injection group. While results among treatment groups differed slightly, no significant weight change occurred in any of the treatment groups.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Causes and clinical management of vertebral osteomyelitis in Saskatchewan.

A retrospective review of all patients with vertebral osteomyelitis admitted to all Saskatchewan referral hospitals from 1973 to 1986 was undertaken to determine the incidence and clinical characteristics of the disease. There were 73 patients, an incidence of 5.3 cases/million per year. Erroneous initial diagnoses were common (41%). There was a significantly increased risk in patients older than 60 years. Staphylococcus aureus was the most frequent organism. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was present in 29.5% and was more common in native Indian patients. Surgery was performed in 31% of all patients, and in 50% of those with tuberculous infections. The outcome was excellent in 92% of patients. Diabetes and transurethral resection of the prostate were risk factors for vertebral osteomyelitis.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Conjunctivitis in clean room workers. Nursing evaluation and intervention.

Conjunctivitis, in the industrial setting, can be attributed to eye contact with contaminated microscope oculars. Establishing a simple, convenient process for cleaning microscope oculars as well as educating employees and their management is important to reduce risk of contamination. Early identification and treatment of an isolated infection by the occupational health nurse and temporary exclusion from microscope work is essential in controlling the spread of infection and preventing a potential epidemic. The occupational health nurse plays a pivotal role in the recognition of and response to workplace health concerns and development of targeted strategies to promote and maintain health in the workplace.

Conjunctivitis, Bacterial↗
PubMed1989

Characterization of surface polypeptides on different life-cycle stages of Theileria annulata.

We describe the characterisation of polypeptides located on the surface of Theileria annulata sporozoites, macroschizonts, piroplasms and infected lymphoblastoid cells using surface iodination techniques. The sporozoite stage exhibited a complex profile of surface polypeptides. However, using data from experiments with defined monoclonal antibodies, the sporozoite surface appeared to be composed of several distinct groups of related polypeptides. Analysis of the macroschizont detected seven surface polypeptides, while eight polypeptides were identified for the piroplasm stage. On the basis of molecular weight comparisons, one of the surface polypeptides appeared to be common to the sporozoite, macroschizont and piroplasm. Stage cross-reactive monoclonals failed to immunoprecipitate a surface-radiolabelled polypeptide, and this prohibited the characterisation of a stage common surface antigen. From the surface labelling studies of Theileria-infected and uninfected lymphoblastoid cell lines, we concluded that infection results in major changes at the surface of the host cell, including both the appearance and loss of specific polypeptides. By employing monoclonal antibodies which detect infection-associated determinants, and a polyclonal antiserum raised against a glycoprotein fraction of an infected cell lysate, surface-labelled polypeptides were specifically immunoprecipitated from extracts of infected cells. The polypeptide detected by monoclonal antibody 4H5 was characterised as an infection-associated glycoprotein which varies in molecular mass when immunoprecipitated from different infected cell lines. The identification of infection-associated glycoproteins on the surface of the lymphoblastoid cell suggests that these molecules may be recognised by the cytotoxic T cells of immune animals.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Antigenic diversity of Theileria annulata macroschizonts.

A series of monoclonal antibodies has been produced which reacts with the intracellular macroschizont of Theileria annulata, and this series has been used to examine the level of antigenic diversity between and within stocks of the parasite in addition to species specificity within the genus. The majority of the monoclonal antibodies (six of eight) reacted with all stocks tested and four were species-specific. Two monoclonal antibodies detected variation between stocks and within stocks. The variation within a stock was manifest as only a proportion of the macroschizonts reacting with the monoclonal antibody. This was demonstrated as being due to the strain containing more than one antigenic type of parasite by cloning the infected lymphocyte cell line and showing that the resulting cloned cell lines were antigenically homogeneous. The variation between stocks allowed them to be divided into three groups on the basis of antigenic profile.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Ultrastructural and biochemical changes in human jejunal mucosa associated with enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (0111) infection.

A case of prolonged diarrhoea following Escherichia coli 0111 gastroenteritis is reported. Electron microscopy of the jejunal biopsy revealed effacement of the brush border and attachment of bacteria by pedestal formation. Specific activities of brush border enzymes showed marked depression of disaccharidases, zinc-resistant alpha-glucosidase, and alkaline phosphatase. In contrast, marker enzymes for basolateral membranes and endoplasmic reticulum were unaffected. The biochemical changes support the pathogenic mechanism suggested by ultrastructural studies previously reported.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1986

Identification of infection-associated antigens in Theileria annulata transformed cells.

The protozoan parasite Theileria annulata causes a severe disease of cattle in tropical countries; one stage in the parasite life cycle involves the transformation of bovine lymphocytes leading to rapid lymphoproliferation. Immunity to this disease is largely cell mediated and directed against the infected lymphocyte. In this paper we report the identification of three classes of infection specific antigen (using monoclonal antibodies) one of which is found on the surface of the lymphocyte. Such antigens can be used in parasite strain typing, in providing an understanding of the molecules involved in immunity and in providing the basis for a vaccine.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Specific lysis of Theileria annulata-infected lymphoblastoid cells by a monoclonal antibody recognizing an infection-associated antigen.

A monoclonal antibody (4H5) recognizing a Theileria annulata infection-associated antigen was assayed to see if it could either suppress the proliferation of T. annulata-infected lymphoblastoid cells, as monitored by the incorporation of tritiated thymidine by proliferating host cells, or lyse T. annulata-infected lymphoblastoid cells, as assessed by counts of target cell numbers and examination of Giemsa stained smears. These assays showed that binding of the monoclonal antibody, in the presence of complement, both lysed and suppressed the proliferation of the T. annulata Hissar-infected cell line against which this monoclonal antibody was raised. This effect extended both to other (allogeneic) T. annulata Hissar-infected cell lines and to lymphoblastoid cell lines infected with other geographical stocks of T. annulata. An uninfected bovine lymphoid cell line was not affected by the antibody. The results obtained in these in vitro experiments are taken to mean that binding of the monoclonal antibody 4H5 to a T. annulata infection-associated antigen, in the presence of complement, will lyse and suppress specifically the proliferation of T. annulata-infected lymphoblastoid cells. These observations raise the possibility that immunization of cattle with the purified T. annulata infection-associated antigen recognized by this monoclonal antibody may provoke immune responses which are capable of suppressing the proliferation of T. annulata-infected lymphoblastoid cells in vivo and thus provide an effective method of immunoprophylaxis against tropical theileriosis.

Animals↗
PubMed1977

Influence of antigenic competition on the development of antibody-forming cell clones.

Isoelectric focusing in polyacrylamide gels was used to investigate the anti-sheep red blood cell antibody responses of mice subjected to antigenic competition. A reduction in the number and intensity of antibody bands was found, even in situations where the suppression of IgG antibody titres was minimal, while with large reductions in titre, antibody bands were rarely seen. It thus appeared that the output of individual B-cell clones was severely depressed during competition. It was concluded that inhibition of clonal expansion is an important feature of competition, and that this may reflect a normal regulatory activity which acts to limit cellular proliferation during immune responses. This conclusion was supported by observations on the level of DNA synthesis, following immunization with sheep red cells, in the spleens of normal and suppressed mice.

Animals↗