Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

F Johnson

Publications and source records attributed to F Johnson.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

Standardised trunk asymmetry scores. A study of back contour in healthy school children.

This paper reports a new method for expressing numerically asymmetry of the contour of the back in a forward-bending position. Information is given at three spinal levels (T8, T12 and L3) for 636 schoolchildren aged 8 to 15 years. Rib-hump and lumbar-hump scores were standardised to create trunk asymmetry scores (TASs) making comparison possible between children of different age, size and sex. Two groups of children were defined: those with clinically straight spines (585 children); and those with clinical evidence of lateral spinal curves (51 children). In the children with clinically straight spines the main findings were: about 1:4 had objectively detectable rib and lumbar humps; female-to-male ratios were 1.2:1 for the thoracic region and 1.4:1 for the lumbar region; right humps were about 10 times more common than left; TASs in the boys and girls at each spinal level had normal distributions about means to the right of zero (where zero represents perfect symmetry); at T8 and T12, a wider scatter of TASs in girls than in boys; at L3, larger TASs in girls than in boys; a relation between shortening of one lower limb and a contralateral hump on the back; and no relation to age (except at L3), stature (corrected for age) or handedness. The findings are discussed in relation to possible causes of back contour asymmetry, early diagnosis of scoliosis by screening, sexual dimorphism and significance for the pathogenesis of idiopathic scoliosis. Ten children with clinically straight spines and larger TASs, and 42 out of 51 children with clinical evidence of lateral spinal curves in the forward-bending position attended for radiographic examination. Twelve children had "scoliosis curves" of 11 degrees or more as defined by the Scoliosis Research Society. The results are reported in relation to TASs, spinal curve angle (Cobb) and vertebral rotation.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Continuous assessment of knee function and patient mobility.

A technique is described for measuring and analysing the load profile of the knees during daily routine. The method has been used on patients with chronic arthritis of the knee, both before and after joint replacement. Results are presented, and the logistics of carrying out such work are discussed. The method is applicable to joints other than the knee, diseases other than arthritis, and treatments other joint replacement.

Aged↗
PubMed1982

What is maternal-infant intervention? The role of infant psychotherapy.

Therapeutic prevention and intervention programs for infants, their families, and their communities are now quite numerous across the country (Tjossem 1978). These programs differ in respect to size, target populations, and integration of services, but they all have one underlying premise; if intervention can be carried out while the child is still very young, the probability is considerably increased that the child can reach his or her potential. What these programs have in common is a new and concentrated interest in the psychosocial development of the infant in a context of reciprocal behavior with the primary caretaker. There are, of course, many differences, according to the specialized interests of the starting teams, the populations to be served, the therapeutic services already available, and the level of funding; yet all are bound together by the assumptions of infant psychiatry. In this paper, a context for a discussion of parent-infant intervention will be established. We will first address the assumptions of infant psychiatry and then will review the technique of infant psychotherapy. This technique, which we described in a previous paper (Johnson, Dowling, and Wesner 1980), has been found to be extremely useful in helping mothers and infants to increase mutual adjustment. Finally we describe a community-oriented parent-infant intervention program which used this technique.

Child Development↗
PubMed1982

The knee.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

Codifications of anaesthetic information for computer processing.

In order for any decision-making process to be computer-assisted it is necessary for the information to be encodable in some way so that the computer can manipulate the data using logical operations. In this paper the information used to generate an anaesthetic regiment is examined. A method is presented for obtaining a suitable set of statements to describe the patient's history and surgical requirements. These statements are then sorted by an algorithm which uses standard Boolean operators to produce a protocol for six phases of anaesthetic procedure. An example is given of the system in operation. The system incorporate knowledge at the level of a consultant anaesthetist. The program used 428 statements to encode patient data, and drew upon a list of 163 possible prescriptions. The program ran on an LSI-11/2 computer using one disc drive. The scheme has direct application in training of junior anaesthetist, as well as producing guidelines to application in other areas of medicine where the possibility of a similar codification may exist.

Anesthesia↗
PubMed1981

The assessment of drug treatment of spastic gait.

The technique of polarised light goniometry was used to quantify objectively parameters of the spastic gait during a double-blind cross-over trial comparing the spasmolytic effects of DS103-282, baclofen and placebo. Only minimal objective and subjective changes in gait were found when the results of treatment with DS103-282 or baclofen were compared with those of treatment with placebo.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

Measurement of work of breathing in infancy.

Assessment of lung function in young children is extremely difficult unless sedation is given. If tidal exchange and intrathoracic pressure swings can be recorded, the severity of the respiratory problem can be measured by construction pressure-volume loops and calculating the work of breathing. The system we have used to measure tidal thoracic volumes is that of a soft, rubber, inflatable jacket with pressure-volume characteristics linear from inflation pressure of 2.5 to 7 cm H2O. Oesophageal (intrathoracic) pressures are measured using water-filled nasogastric tubes (FG6). Frequency responses showed that 63% rise times for the jacket and water-filled nasogastric tube assessed together to be 10.5 msec. Recordings were traced onto a computer digitizing tablet and print-outs were obtained with the following information: respiratory rate, tidal thoracic volume, minute thoracic volume, oesophageal pressure, resistive work per min, elastic work per min, and total work per min. Comparisons were made between volumes measured using the respiratory jacket (VJ) and by pneumotachograph and integrator (VInt) in six infants. Hysteresis arising from the jacket produces some change in resistive work of breathing, but the total work of breathing is only increased by a maximum of 10.5%. Studies on healthy newborn babies showed that the jacket system tends to underrecord the resistive work of breathing, but that total work of breathing values are very similar. Reproducibility of analysis showed the following coefficients of variation from the mean: tidal thoracic volume, 1.6%; minute thoracic volume, 1.7%; resistive work, 5%; elastic work, 2%; and total work, 2.5%. The extent of breath-to-breath variation is much larger. This system makes it possible to obtain serial measurements of work of breathing without the need for sedation in infants who may be acutely ill and in respiratory failure.

Humans↗
PubMed1980

Extrarenal and urothelial Wilms tumor.

Two patients with Wilms tumor are presented. One patient had a bilateral Wilms tumor with invasion of the right renal pelvis and proximal ureter. A second patient presented with a large Wilms tumor originating separate from and inferior to the left kidney. The histologic, therapeutic, and prognostic implications of these radiographic presentations are explored.

Female↗
PubMed1980

Demonstration of unsuspected malignant disease of the pericardium by computed tomography.

Massive pericardial effusion associated with mediastinal neoplasm was first diagnosed by findings at computed tomography (CT) in two patients. In each case the CT findings prompted urgent pericardiocentesis for relief of pericardial tamponade. One of the patients was subsequently found to have a widely disseminated renal papillary adenocarcinoma, and the other had fibrosarcomatous mesothelioma of the pericardium. The role of CT in the diagnosis of pericardial disease is discussed.

Adenocarcinoma, Papillary↗