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Biomedical subjects

C Patterson

Publications and source records attributed to C Patterson.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Iatrogenic disease in late life.

Iatrogenic diseases are common in the elderly, particularly in the hospitalized patient. Adverse outcomes may be induced by poor communication with patients, inadequate history and examination, and inappropriate use of diagnostic resources. However, even when resources are used appropriately, adverse outcomes do occur, hence the price paid for sophisticated medical and surgical techniques. Medications offer a great potential for adverse reactions, and careful prescribing and knowledge of the pharmacokinetic changes that occur with aging, particularly impaired renal excretion of drugs, together with the use of the minimum number of drugs and maneuvers to improve compliance, can reduce this risk. Complications of surgery should be anticipated and promptly recognized and managed.

Aged↗
PubMed1985

Left ventricular diastolic function in a population of healthy elderly subjects. An echocardiographic study.

Diastolic left ventricular function was comparatively assessed in 19 healthy elderly individuals (mean age 71 years) and in 20 young normal subjects (mean age 26 years), using digitized echocardiograms. Peak and average filling rates were slower in the group of elderly subjects than in the younger population (128 +/- 26 and 75 +/- 11 v 182 +/- 37 and 92 +/- 17 mm per second, respectively, P less than .001). The duration of the rapid filling phase and the time to peak filling rate were significantly longer in the older than in the younger population (207 +/- 39 and 125 +/- 21 v 174 +/- 38 and 90 +/- 26 ms, respectively, P less than .01). The atrial contribution to total ventricular filling was 18 +/- 6% in the elderly and 10 +/- 3% in the young (P less than .001). The group differences of most of these measurements of diastolic function retained statistical significance after correction for heart rate. Measurements of left ventricular systolic function were similar in both age groups. The authors conclude that aging is associated with a decline of left ventricular compliance, unrelated to heart rate or systolic performance. The contribution of atrial contraction to ventricular filling is quantitatively larger in elderly individuals.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Assessment of iron stores in anemic geriatric patients.

Of patients referred to a geriatric service, 66 were identified who were clearly anemic (hemoglobin less than 12 g in men, less than 11 g in women) but whose cause of anemia was not readily identifiable by noninvasive measures. The difficulty in distinguishing iron deficiency from chronic disease as a cause of anemia by noninvasive means (serum iron, total iron binding capacity, transferrin saturation ratio, and serum ferritin), is highlighted by the poor power of these investigations when compared with bone marrow iron stores. A transferrin saturation ratio of less than 11% and a serum ferritin of less than 45 pg/L serve better than currently accepted values to identify iron deficiency in this population.

Aged↗
PubMed1984

Hospital use by the extremely elderly (nonagenarians): a two-year study.

Eighty-seven community-dwelling nonagenarians provided with extensive medical and social services as needed were followed for two years. Fifty-one subjects were admitted to an acute care hospital at least once. Total durations of hospitalization for those who required it averaged 44 days per individual over the two years. This represents about 13 hospital days per year per nonagenarian . Since it is likely that few, if any, hospitalizations would have been preventable by additional services, these data suggest that at a minimum one hospital bed would be continuously occupied for every 28 persons of this age and of this degree of infirmity . In these times of fiscal restraint it is especially important that the government and third-party payers determine the level of funding for expensive services such as acute hospitalization by assessing the needs of those who use them.

Aged↗
PubMed1982

Multiple sclerosis and dog ownership. A case-control investigation.

In 1977 and 1978 Cook and his associates demonstrated a positive association between ownership of small dogs and both familial and sporadic cases of multiple sclerosis in New Jersey. Because of the far reaching implications of this work, a similar study was carried out and 72 patients with clinically definite multiple sclerosis (MS) who were resident in the area covered by the Oxford Regional Health Authority, were interviewed to ascertain their past exposure to housepets and other animals. Two hospital controls were chosen for each patient matched for age and sex and area of residence, and these were interviewed in the same manner as the MS cases by the same interviewer, usually in the patients' homes. Similar proportions of cases and controls had resided in a household with a dog at some time prior to the onset of their disease and there was no evidence that cases had lived with more dogs or had lived with them for longer periods than had controls. There was no indication that cases had greater exposure than controls to dogs or any other housepet in the early years of their life or in the period immediately prior to disease onset. Our data suggest that exposure to housepets and other domestic animals is unlikely to be an aetiological factor in MS.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Quinidine therapy and digitalis toxicity.

In a 90-year-old man undergoing prolonged digitalis therapy, digitalis toxicity was precipitated by the administration of quinidine. The electrocardiogram revealed supraventricular bidirectional tachycardia, a rare but characteristic arrhythmia associated with digitalis toxicity. Upon withdrawal of digoxin, the clinical and ECG signs disappeared. A diagnosis of digitalis toxicity rather than quinidine intolerance led to appropriate treatment.

Aged↗
PubMed1980

Studies on the hydrolysis and absorption of monofluorophosphate ions.

Monofluorophosphate (MFP), usually sodium-MFP, Na2PO3F, has become widely used in dentifrices and has been suggested for the treatment of osteoporosis. Its PO3F-- ions are hydrolyzed to F ions and orthophosphate by phosphatases. Experiments on rats showed no such splitting in the stomach, very rapid hydrolysis in the small intestine and the liver, and slower hydrolysis in the blood. In both rats and humans, no evidence of direct absorption of PO3F-- ions into the blood was found. The findings explain the low acute toxicity and the absence of gastric irritation of MFP.

Absorption↗
PubMed1975

A new dwarfing syndrome with extreme shortening of humeri and severe coxa vara.

A previously undescribed form of short-limbed dwarfism is reported in an 86-year-old man. All the long bones were shorter than normal, with extreme shortening of the humeri. Other features included dysplastic humeral heads, coxa vara with dysplasia of the femoral heads and acetabula, platybasia, and small vertebral bodies. In all other respects, including intelligence, the patient was normal for his age.

Aged↗