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Biomedical subjects

E Schwartz

Publications and source records attributed to E Schwartz.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2001

[Nursing knowledge production in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay].

Research is being pointed out as a path to nursing recognition. The knowledge production concerning the tendencies of research lines in nursing during the 90's, in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay, took part of a study that had the purpose to know the impact of the nursing profession practice on health in Latin America and in the Caribbean Islands. The methodology used was the exploratory quantitative research, and the database used were Lilacs and Medline. The most frequent investigation themes refer to nursing profession (up to 13.2%). Regarding the lines of investigation in nursing, we found out that the nursing professional stood out with 41%, being technique and methodology the main approaches. Chile was the country that produced the largest amount of research, 86.8% of the summaries. Referring to the financing source, no reference is made in 86.8% of the summaries. With reference to the number of authors involved with the published literature, 50.7% of the literature have only one author. The nurses should be aware to invest in the enlargement of this production.

Argentina↗
PubMed2000

Pulmonary manifestations of early schistosome infection among nonimmune travelers.

PURPOSE: The clinical aspects of acute pulmonary schistosomiasis among nonimmune patients have not been well characterized. METHODS: We evaluated 8 patients who presented with pulmonary symptoms and abnormal chest radiographs after recent travel to Africa. Diagnosis was based on the detection of schistosomal eggs or positive serology. RESULTS: Of 60 patients evaluated in our center for schistosomiasis during a 3-year period, 8 (6 with Schistosoma hematobium, 2 with S. mansoni) had pulmonary symptoms. These symptoms appeared 3 to 6 weeks after exposure and consisted of dry cough and shortness of breath without concurrent fever. The mean (+/- SD) eosinophil count was 4020 +/- 1400 per micromL. Chest radiography revealed multiple small nodules in 7 patients; in 1 patient, a diffuse interstitial infiltrate was also seen. Computerized tomographic scans of the chest were obtained in 4 patients; the scans confirmed the nodular pattern and detected a greater number of nodules. A transbronchial biopsy in 1 patient revealed eosinophilic pneumonia without detection of larva or eggs. CONCLUSION: Pulmonary manifestations during the early stage of schistosomal infection may occur with either S. hematobium or S. mansoni infection. These manifestations may represent an immunologic process, as is thought to be responsible for the febrile systemic response (Katayama fever) to acute infection.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Measuring growth of a phenanthrene-degrading bacterial inoculum in soil with a quantitative competitive polymerase chain reaction method.

We measured growth of a phenanthrene-degrading bacterium, Arthrobacter, strain RP17, in Forbes soil, amended with 500 µg g(-1) phenanthrene using a quantitative competitive polymerase chain reaction method. The inoculum, which was not indigenous to Forbes soil, grew from 5.55x10(5) colony forming units (cfu) g(-1) to 1.97x10(7) cfu g(-1) within 100 h after the cells were added to the soil. Maximum population density was reached before the highest degradation rate was observed 150 h after the cells were added to soil. Population density remained stable even after 56% of the phenanthrene had mineralized. This study is one of the few documented examples of growth by a non-indigenous bacterium in a non-sterile soil amended with a pollutant.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2000

Changing epidemiology of dengue fever in travelers to Thailand.

A study was conducted to evaluate the incidence and seasonal pattern of dengue fever occurring among Israeli travelers to Southeast Asia. The illness was diagnosed by Israeli physicians stationed abroad and by serological methods carried out in Israel. Between 1994 and 1998 dengue fever was confirmed in 103 travelers, 80 of whom were diagnosed in Israel. A sharp increase in the incidence was noted in 1998 as compared with the previous 4 years. The attack rate during 1998 in a defined group of travelers was 3.4/1,000 and reached a peak of 5/1,000 during the dry season of 1998.

Dengue↗
PubMed2000

Prolonged oral morphine therapy for severe angina pectoris.

Patients with intractable angina pectoris despite optimal drug therapy, who are not candidates for revascularization procedures, pose a very difficult problem. We evaluated the role of chronic opioid therapy in four such patients. The patients (mean age 79.5 years) were treated by low doses (mean 40 mg/day) of controlled-release oral morphine (CRM) for 1 to 5 years. The treatment was followed by a marked decline in the rate of admissions and hospitalization periods. The number of admissions decreased from a mean of 6 during the year prior to CRM therapy to 1.5 the following year. The duration of hospitalization for angina pectoris during these periods decreased from a mean of 42 +/- 35 days to 6 +/- 10 days (p < 0.05). Side effects were negligible and consisted mainly of lactulose-responsive constipation. We suggest that prolonged oral morphine therapy may be administered with good efficacy and no significant side effects in selected patients with intractable angina pectoris.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed2000

Evaluation of ELISA-based sero-diagnosis of dengue fever in travelers.

Diagnosis of dengue virus infection in travelers is often based on commercially available ELISA-based serological assays and not on the more difficult and costly procedures of Hemagglutination inhibition (HI), virus isolation or RT-PCR. These standard assays are not quantitative and are designed to diagnose primary and secondary dengue virus infections by testing for IgG and IgM antibodies. However, cross reactivity between various flaviviruses and the fact that most travelers today are prevaccinated against Japanese encelphalitis (JE) and yellow fever (YF) create a potential problem in such diagnosis. Our study was aimed at measuring the extent of false positive diagnosis in prevaccinated travelers which we have assessed by testing for dengue IgG and IgM antibodies in a group of prevaccinated healthy travelers using the PanBio indirect IgG ELISA and IgM capture ELISA kits. The IgM test was negative in all healthy vaccinees, thus, being highly specific. However, the kit had a disadvantage, which was recognized in other travelers clinically ill with dengue fever (DF), in which the IgM response was detected only 4-8 days after onset of the clinical symptoms. The IgG test yielded 11-17 and 15-44% positives in healthy travelers vaccinated against JE and YF, respectively. We conclude that the specificity of the IgG-ELISA assay in prevaccinated travelers is much lower than in unvaccinated populations. Thus, an IgG-positive results in a vaccinated traveler and IgM negative result during the 1st week of the illness period, are both inconclusive.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Collagen loss in photoaged human skin is overestimated by histochemistry.

It is well known that photoaged skin is characterized by increases in dermal matrix components that include glycosaminoglycans, proteoglycans and masses of abnormal elastic fibers accompanied by substantial collagen loss. Histochemical staining of such tissue gives the impression of "massive" loss of collagen and its replacement by these other matrix components. Early biochemical studies have lent support to this notion with a reported decrease in total collagen of approximately 45% compared to protected skin. More recent studies report considerably less, but varying, amounts of collagen loss. Rarely have the two approaches, histochemistry and biochemical analysis, been used in the same study to examine the same tissue. In this study, collagen loss was quantified biochemically in paired biopsies from sun-protected and sun-exposed arm skin of moderately photoaged female subjects (age 51-77 years). The values obtained were compared with histochemical and immunochemical findings. Quantitatively, collagen loss on a per mg protein basis was small compared to the histochemical appearance.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Pain-sensitive temperament: does it predict procedural distress and response to psychological treatment among children with cancer?

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between pain sensitivity and children's distress during lumbar punctures (LPs), and whether pain sensitivity functions as a moderator of children's responses to a psychological intervention aimed at reducing LP distress. METHOD: Fifty-five children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ages 3 to 18) and their parents completed a questionnaire measure of pain sensitivity. Self-report, physiological, and observed measures of distress were collected during the study baseline LP. Children were then randomized into a psychological intervention or an attention control group. Postintervention and follow-up LPs were observed. RESULTS: Higher levels of pain sensitivity were associated with greater anxiety and pain, both prior to and during the LP. Preliminary analyses indicated that pain sensitivity moderated the effects of intervention on distress. Children who were more pain-sensitive and who received no intervention showed greater increases in LP distress over time. In contrast, children who were more pain-sensitive and who received intervention showed greater decreases in LP distress over time. CONCLUSIONS: A measurement of pain sensitivity may be useful in pediatric oncology settings for effectively targeting pain-vulnerable children for psychological intervention. Preliminary analyses indicate that an empirically-supported intervention for procedural distress is efficacious for those children who are most pain-sensitive.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2000

A descriptive analysis of 290 liver transplant patient visits to an emergency department.

OBJECTIVE: To provide a descriptive analysis of emergency department (ED) presentations and management of orthotopic liver transplant (OLT) patients. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed of OLT patients presenting to the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) ED during 1995. The sole inclusion criterion was receiving an OLT within three years prior to the ED visit. Data describing chief complaint(s), history of present illness, physical findings, laboratory results, imaging studies, and final diagnoses were collected. RESULTS: One hundred forty-three patients accounted for a total of 290 ED visits. The patients had a mean age of 37 years (range 3 months to 74 years) and presented at mean post-OLT duration of 9 months (range 2 weeks to 34 months). There were 660 presenting complaints, of which abdominal (39%), fever (17%), respiratory (13%), and neurologic (11%) symptoms were the most common. There were 478 final diagnoses, of which abdominal (27%), infectious (24%), and metabolic (11%) disorders were the most common. Eighty-four percent of ED visits resulted in extensive diagnostic testing and 69% resulted in hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: Serious illnesses with nonspecific presentations were frequently encountered in this study population. These factors resulted in a majority of the patients' undergoing extensive diagnostic evaluations and being hospitalized.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Short report: a consideration of primaquine dose adjustment for radical cure of Plasmodium vivax malaria.

Relapse of Plasmodium vivax malaria following standard primaquine dosing has been reported from many areas, and more recently from sub-Saharan Africa. In this report we describe eight episodes (in five patients) of treatment failure in non-immune Israeli travelers returning from Ethiopia. Retrospective calculation of the primaquine dose per kilogram of body weight for 23 treatment courses showed a lower total dose per kilogram in heavier patients. The mean calculated dose (95% CI) in the eight failed treatments was 2.5 +/- 0.3 mg/kg compared with 4.4 +/- 0.5 mg/kg in the 15 successful treatment courses. Weight-adjusted dosing regimens may prevent inadvertent subtherapeutic drug failure, and thus apparent primaquine failure. In these cases, no relapses were observed in those who received > 3.5 mg/kg. Consideration should be given to adjusting the dose of primaquine according to body weight. For those infected by strains from Ethiopia a dose > 3.5 mg/kg is preferable.

Antimalarials↗
PubMed1999

[Severe psychiatric disorders during trips to the Far East].

8 cases of acute mental disorders among Israelis travelling in the Far East are presented. The most common symptoms were hallucinations, paranoid delusions, agitation and depression. The important precipitating factors were drug abuse, reaction to the foreign environment and malarial prophylaxis. Treatment included creating a nonhostile environment, the presence of a Hebrew-speaking physician, psychopharmacotherapy and prompt evacuation to Israel. Most patients improved markedly and returned to normal functioning.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

The role of the human Fc receptor Fc gamma RIIA in the immune clearance of platelets: a transgenic mouse model.

In humans, the Fc receptor for IgG, FcgammaRIIA, is expressed on macrophages and platelets and may play an important role in the pathophysiology of immune-mediated thrombocytopenia. Mice lack the genetic equivalent of human FcgammaRIIA. To better understand the role of FcgammaRIIA in vivo, FcgammaRIIA transgenic mice were generated and characterized. One transgenic mouse line expressed FcgammaRIIA on platelets and macrophages at levels equivalent to human cells, and cross-linking FcgammaRIIA on these platelets induced platelet aggregation. Immune-mediated thrombocytopenia in this transgenic line was studied using i.v. and i.p. administration of anti-mouse platelet Ab. In comparison with matched wild-type littermates that are negative for the FcgammaRIIA transgene, Ab-mediated thrombocytopenia was significantly more severe in the FcgammaRIIA transgenic mice. In contrast, FcR gamma-chain knockout mice that lack functional expression of the Fc receptors FcgammaRI and FcgammaRIII on splenic macrophages did not demonstrate Ab-mediated thrombocytopenia. We generated FcgammaRIIA transgenic x FcR gamma-chain knockout mice to examine the role of FcgammaRIIA in immune clearance in the absence of functional FcgammaRI and FcgammaRIII. In FcgammaRIIA transgenic x FcR gamma-chain knockout mice, severe immune thrombocytopenia mediated by FcgammaRIIA was observed. These results demonstrate that FcgammaRIIA does not require the FcR gamma-chain for expression or function in vivo. Furthermore, taken together, the data suggest that the human Fc receptor FcgammaRIIA plays a significant role in the immune clearance of platelets in vivo.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Continuous loss of bone during chronic immobilization: a monozygotic twin study.

Acute immobilization is associated with rapid loss of bone. Prevailing opinion, based on population cross-sectional data, assumes that bone mass stabilizes thereafter. In order to address whole-body and regional skeletal mass in long-term immobilization, monozygotic twins were studied, one of each twin pair having chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) of a duration ranging from 3 to 26 years. The research design consisted of the co-twin control method using 8 pairs of identical male twins (mean +/- SD age, 40 +/- 10 years; range 25-58 years), one of each set with SCI. The twins were compared by paired t-tests for total and regional bone mineral content (BMC) and bone mineral density (BMD) measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Linear regression analyses were performed to determine the associations of age or duration of injury with the differences between twin pairs for total and regional skeletal bone values. In the SCI twins, total-body BMC was significantly reduced (22% +/- 9%, p<0.001), with the predominant sites of reduction for BMC and BMD being the legs (42% +/- 14% 35% +/- 10%, p<0.0001), and pelvis (50% +/- 10% and 29% +/- 9%, p<0.0001). Duration of SCI, not age, was found to be linearly related to the degree of leg bone loss in SCI twins (BMC: r(2) = 0.60, p<0.05; BMD: r(2) = 0.70, p<0.01). Our findings suggest that pelvic and leg bone mass continues to decline throughout the chronic phase of immobilization in the individual with SCI, and this bone loss appears to be independent of age.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed1999

The role of superoxide dismutation in malaria parasites.

Oxidant stress is associated with the generation of reactive oxygen species that are responsible for the damage of a variety of cellular components. The prevention of such biological damage can be achieved by dismutation of superoxide to H2O2 which in turn is removed by catalase and GSH peroxidase. However, redox-active iron released during the development of plasmodia in the erythrocyte can mediate the conversion of H2O2 to hydroxyl radical which is more reactive. The roles of SOD and the nitroxide SOD mimic 4-OH,2,2,6,6,tetramethyl piperidine-N-oxyl (Tempol) were examined in P. falciparum grown in vitro. Both compounds did not prevent the interference with growth inflicted by various inducers of oxidant stress. Moreover, Tempol inhibited parasite growth, in agreement with previous experiments depicting accelerated mortality in SOD overexpressing mouse model of malaria. Probably, effective defense against ROS requires balanced increments in antioxidant enzymes and is not necessarily improved by an increase in the activity of one enzyme.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1999

Can mirrors alleviate visual hemineglect?

Following right hemisphere stroke, many patients display an indifference to objects and events in the left side of the world ('neglect'). Here, we describe a new technique that might help accelerate recovery from neglect. The patient sits at a table and a mirror is propped vertically on the patient's right side in the parasagittal plane, so that when the patient rotates his head rightward and looks into the mirror, he sees the neglected side of the world reflected in the mirror. Our question was: since the sensory information was now coming from the non-neglected left side, would this somehow make him overcome the neglect? In pilot experiments, two types of responses were seen: (a) In one subset of patients the presence of the mirror seemed to enhance the patients' awareness of the neglected field, so that they reached correctly for an object that was shown in the neglected field. Will repeated practice with this task accelerate recovery from neglect? (b) The second group of patients kept reaching into the mirror to grasp the reflection or kept groping behind the mirror ('mirror agnosia'). If the mirror was placed in the coronal position and the object placed behind their head, then some of these patients (from group B) reached correctly for the object. Quite apart from its obvious theoretical implications, we believe this technique might provide a new approach for the treatment of visual hemineglect.

Brain↗