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Biomedical subjects

C Wright

Publications and source records attributed to C Wright.

At least 397 records · Page 22Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Gender differences in the outcomes of participants in home programs compared to those in structured cardiac rehabilitation programs.

This study compared gender differences in outcomes of patients who had had coronary bypass surgery and either attended structured cardiac rehabilitation programs or participated in home programs. The principal advantages related to patients' attending a structured hospital-based outpatient rehabilitation program, compared to a home program, included increased exercise adherence for males and females, increased knowledge about the condition for males, and increased stress control for females. Return to work, self-efficacy, and aspects of self-care such as adherence to a medication regimen and smoking cessation were not significantly different, regardless of type of program, for either sex. In general, females at home fared the worst regarding lifestyle changes, showing decreased exercise adherence, decreased ability to control stress, and no significant increase in knowledge about their medical condition.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mechanical restraints, rehabilitation therapies, and staffing adequacy as risk factors for falls in an elderly hospitalized population.

This case-control study of fall-related risk factors for elderly hospitalized patients hypothesized that the use of mechanical restraints, participation in a rehabilitation program, and staffing inadequacy increase the risk of falls. The study included 252 patients, also known as "cases," aged 60 to 85 years, who fell during the period between March 1 and December 31, 1993, in a large metropolitan hospital; and 250 "controls," randomly selected patients aged 60 to 85 years, who were matched with the cases in terms of length of stay to the day of the fall. Analysis using conditional logistic regression revealed that individuals who had been placed in a mechanical restraint at any point during their hospital stay prior to the fall (for the cases) or the selected day (for the controls) had approximately twice the risk of falling as did patients who had not been placed in restraints. Cases and controls showed no significant differences in terms of their participation in occupational therapy, physical therapy, or cardiac rehabilitation, and staffing adequacy was similar for both groups. While the finding of 2 to 4.7 times the risk for falls for those placed in a mechanical restraint only approached statistical significance, the results indicate that the risk of falling is highest soon after a patient has had to be placed in a mechanical restraint.

Accidental Falls↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Effect of dopamine on regional myocardial function and oxygen consumption in experimental left ventricular hypertrophy.

We investigated the hypothesis that the capacity of left ventricular myocardium to respond to an inotropic challenge by dopamine would be diminished in left ventricular hypertrophy induced by plication of the aortic valve. Seven mongrel dogs (LVH group) aged 6-8 weeks and weighing 4-6 kg, were subjected to preliminary surgery in which the noncoronary sinus of Valsalva was plicated. Six months later these animals, as well as a control group of dogs, were subjected to acute experiments in which the effect of dopamine (7.5 and 15 micrograms/kg/min) on regional and global myocardial function and oxygen consumption was studied. Myocardial segment length was measured with ultrasonic dimension transducers, and left ventricular and aortic blood pressures were recorded from catheter-tip transducers. Regional coronary blood flow was determined with radioactive microspheres, and regional oxygen saturation in small arteries and veins was measured using microspectrophotometry. Regional myocardial O2 consumption was calculated from these parameters. Heart weights were significantly elevated in the LVH group, and a pressure gradient of about 25 mm Hg was observed across the aortic valve. In both groups, dopamine infusion produced a dose-dependent increase in heart rate, left ventricular pressure, and LV dP/dtmax. Prior to dopamine infusion, percent shortening per beat was greater in the LVH group (13.97 +/- 1.2%) than in the control group (9.49 +/- 1.07%). Although the maximum speed of segment shortening was elevated by dopamine in both groups, percent shortening was not elevated in the LVH group. Stimulation by the high dose of dopamine produced a threefold elevation in regional coronary blood flow in both groups. Oxygen extraction was unchanged; the proportion of small veins with low O2 saturation was not elevated in LVH hearts, even during dopamine stimulation. Regional myocardial O2 consumption was elevated by dopamine (15 micrograms/kg/min) to about the same extent in both the control and LVH groups (19.1 +/- 2.3 and 17.5 +/- 2.3 ml O2/min/100 g) respectively. It is concluded that, in dogs with six months of aortic stenosis, dopamine does not exhaust functional reserve and the relationship between O2 supply and consumption is not significantly impaired.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Composition of the pulmonary interstitium during normal development of the human fetus.

Normal lung development is dependent on epithelial-mesenchymal interactions. This study was undertaken to examine the structure of the interstitium of the developing human fetal lung, concentrating particularly on the first and second trimesters. Lung tissue was obtained at autopsy from nonmalformed, nonmacerated cases of spontaneous abortion (n = 15), stillbirth (n = 9), and very early neonatal death (n = 5) (range of gestations, 10-42 weeks). Paraffin-embedded tissue sections were examined using immunohistochemical methods to determine expression of collagens I, III, IV, V, and VI; the glycoproteins fibronectin and laminin; and the intermediate filaments vimentin, alpha-smooth muscle actin (alphaSMA), and desmin. Collagens III and VI and cells expressing alphaSMA were present consistently at points of airway branching and secondary crest formation, indicating a role for these components in the initiation and stabilization of airway branches in the developing lung. Desmin expression by stromal cells succeeded alphaSMA temporally, and may represent a marker of terminal smooth muscle differentiation within the airway; it was not detected in the vascular tree. Other components were widely expressed throughout the extracellular matrix, including basement membranes, at all gestations. The spatial and temporal patterns of expression of components of the lung interstitium provide clues to the mechanisms underlying normal human lung development and possible insights into the pathogenesis of fetal and neonatal lung disease.

Collagen↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Dioxins in U.S. food and estimated daily intake.

Congener-specific analyses for polychlorinated dioxins and dibenzofurans were performed on eighteen dairy, meat, and fish samples obtained from a supermarket in upstate New York. Dioxin toxic equivalents (TEqs) on a whole or wet weight basis for these food samples ranged from 0.02 to 1.5 parts per trillion (ppt). Data on American food consumption rates were used to estimate a U.S. range of dioxin intake from food. Based on these first congener-specific dioxin analyses of U.S. food, U.S. average daily intake of "International" dioxin toxic equivalents for an adult weighing 65 kilograms (kg) was estimated to be between 18 to 192 picograms TEq or 0.3 to 3.0 picograms per kilogram of body weight. Our previous results for cow's milk, human breast milk, and soy-based infant formula were used to calculate intake for infants. The relatively high level of dioxins commonly reported in human breast milk from America contributes from 35 to 53 picograms of dioxin toxic equivalents per kilogram of body weight to the nursing infant per day in its first year of life. This value greatly exceeds the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated dose which would lead to one excess cancer per one million people of 0.006 pg of TCDD per kg of body weight per day over a seventy year lifetime or similar reference doses used by some other countries of up to 10/pg/kg/day over a 70 year lifetime.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Time trends in human dietary exposure to PCDDs, PCDFs and PCBs in the UK.

Total Diet Study samples collected in 1982 and 1992 were analysed. Estimated dietary intakes of PCDDs, PCDFs and PCBs by UK consumers were found to have fallen substantially during this period and are now considerably below the Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI). Composite samples of human milk were also analysed for PCDDs, PCDFs and PCBs. Estimated combined dietary intakes of PCDDs, PCDFs and PCBs by breast fed infants in 1993-94 via breast milk fell from 170 pg TEQ/kg bodyweight/day at 2 months to 39 pg TEQ/kg bodyweight/day at 10 months.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Synthesis and characterization of gentiobiose heptaacetate conjugate vaccines that produce endotoxin-neutralizing antibodies.

We have prepared aminoethyl (AE), aminopropyl (AP), and aminopentyl (APT) derivatives of gentiobiose heptaacetate (GH). These spacer compounds (AEGH, APGH, APTGH) have been coupled to succinylated diphtheria toxoid (Suc.DT) to produce conjugate vaccines. These conjugates all bind to the anti-lipid A human monoclonal antibody A6(H4C5) in an ELISA binding assay. Rabbits immunized with the APGH conjugate vaccine in either Freund's complete adjuvant or aluminum hydroxide gel produced antibody levels of 5120 and 3600 ELISA units, respectively, compared to an antibody level of less than 20 ELISA units for the prebleed sera. Sera from mice immunized with either the aminopropyl or the aminopentyl conjugate had antibody levels of 5120 and 2560 ELISA antibody units, respectively. These antibodies neutralized endotoxin in a Limulus lysate neutralization assay. Protection against the local Shwartzman reaction was demonstrated (p less than 0.05) in eight out of nine rabbits immunized with the Suc-DT-APGH conjugate vaccine compared to three out of 10 rabbits immunized with the carrier protein Suc-DT. Passive transfer experiments demonstrated that four out of five rabbits receiving immune serum were protected from Shwartzman reaction compared to one out of five rabbits receiving normal serum (p less than 0.1). These results indicated that epitopes contained in gentiobiose heptaacetate when properly presented as conjugate vaccines were capable of inducing neutralizing antibodies against endotoxin.

Amines↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Robotic analysis of aflatoxin M1 in milk.

An automated aflatoxin M1 assay system capable of performing multiple unattended extractions and chromatographic analyses has been developed. A six-axis anthropomorphic laboratory robot and a flexible computer system are combined to operate a sample turntable, a multisolvent dispensing facility, a solid-phase extraction station, a vacuum manifold, an automatic HPLC sample preconcentration unit, an HPLC, a fluorescence detector and a computing integrator. The system is capable of handling bulk milk samples and can determine aflatoxins at the sub-micrograms/kg level with an accuracy and precision comparable to those of the manual methods of analysis. Time of analysis is reduced. The system can be run in an unattended mode of operation.

Aflatoxin M1↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Lead in feed incident--multi-element analysis of cattle feed and tissues by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry and co-operative quality assurance scheme for lead analysis of milk.

Contaminated cattle feed was imported into the UK in 1989 and resulted in lead toxicity in some animals. Rapid analyses for lead and several other possible contaminating elements were required for feed and cattle tissues. Microwave dissolution of samples with measurement by ICP-MS was used for multi-element determinations. Lead was found to be the major contaminant. Lead levels in milk samples were measured by several laboratories during the crisis and an analytical quality assurance scheme was devised to monitor the quality of the data. The scheme allowed any poorly performing laboratories to be rapidly identified and excluded from the survey.

Animal Feed↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Familial extrahepatic biliary atresia.

Only a small number of cases with familial extrahepatic biliary atresia, suggesting a recessive autosomal inheritance, have been reported. However, the cases reported in twins are consistent with an acquired disease. Here the case of two brothers with familial atresia of the extrahepatic biliary system is studied. Diagnosis was confirmed by laparotomy and histologic study of biliary fibrous remnants. In the present cases parental consanguinity might suggest a recessive autosomal inheritance. However, clustering of cases in a family might also suggest a common exposure to responsible factors not so far identified.

Biliary Atresia↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Prolonged neuromuscular blockade associated with trimethaphan: a case report.

A case of prolonged neuromuscular blockade associated with the administration of trimethaphan to a neurosurgical patient aged 29 is believed to be the possible result of interaction between trimethaphan, a ganglionic-blocking drug, and muscle relaxant. This possibility should be kept in mind when the administration of trimethaphan is being considered.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Opening the door.

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Community Health Nursing↗