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Biomedical subjects

G A Poland

Publications and source records attributed to G A Poland.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Resident research in internal medicine training programs.

OBJECTIVE: To determine how well medical residency programs are prepared to meet the new Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) accreditation guidelines for resident scholarly activity. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study using a mailed survey. PARTICIPANTS: Program directors of all ACGME-accredited internal medicine residency programs. MEASUREMENTS: Program directors were asked to list the scholarly activities and products of their residents and their programs' minimal expectations for resident research; available academic, faculty, technical, and personnel support for resident research; perceived barriers to resident research; and the desired educational and skill outcomes of resident research. The responses of university-based training programs were compared with those of non-university-based programs. RESULTS: 271 program directors returned the survey, yielding a response rate of 65%. Ninety-seven percent of all programs have established scholarly guidelines consistent with accreditation requirements. Although only 37% of programs reported having an organized, comprehensive research curriculum, 70% taught skills important to research. Technical support and resources were generally available for resident research; the most frequently cited barrier to resident research was lack of resident time. University-based and non-university-based training programs differed in important ways. Generally, non-university-based programs had more research activity and structure, and they exceeded university-based programs in the number of oral and poster presentations given at local, state, and national professional meetings. CONCLUSIONS: Most programs have in place the basic elements conducive to resident research. Program directors have identified and teach educational outcomes and skills that are likely to have lifelong benefits for most of their graduates.

Accreditation↗
PubMed1996

Adult immunizations.

New vaccines have been licensed for hepatitis A, varicella, and typhoid. This paper reviews these vaccines and their recommended uses in adults. Special attention is given to a new national policy establishing age 50 years as a time for review of preventive health measures with emphasis on evaluating risk factors that indicate a need for pneumococcal vaccine and the initiation of annual influenza immunization.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Parameters potentially affecting interpretation of immunogenicity and efficacy data in vaccine trials: are they adequately reported?

OBJECTIVE: To describe and analyze the reporting of major factors impacting interpretation of vaccine efficacy and immunogenicity trials in recently published studies. DATA SOURCES: Selected studies (n = 83) published during a two year period in five journals most likely to contain vaccine trials. STUDY SELECTION: Studies designed as prospective efficacy or immunogenicity clinical trials in human subjects, examining an experimental or existing vaccine. DATA EXTRACTION: Primary factors (vaccine dose, number of doses, dosing interval, site of injection, vaccine route), as well as secondary factors (age, race, medical status, handling and manufacturing of the vaccines and concomitant drug use during vaccination). RESULTS: Only 24% of those studies utilizing intramuscularly administered vaccines reported needle length, 59% described the anatomic injection site, and 10% described the injection technique used. Eighty percent reported the actual vaccine dose used and the number of doses administered. Seventy percent reported the interval between doses. CONCLUSION: A high proportion of recently published vaccine trials fail to report potentially important methodological details, which may hamper the interpretation of vaccine efficacy and immunogenicity trial results.

Clinical Trials, Phase I as Topic↗
PubMed1996

Neurofibromatosis with involvement of the prostate gland.

Urologic manifestations of neurofibromatosis type 1 are rare. The most common urologic area of involvement has been the urinary bladder. Prostate involvement in generalized neurofibromatosis has been noted previously in only 10 patients, 3 of whom were adults. Of these 3, 1 had a neurofibroma, 1 had a malignant schwannoma, and 1 patient died before tissue diagnosis could be obtained. The patient discussed in this report is the second known adult patient with biopsy-proven neurofibroma of the prostate gland. In addition, this is the first reported use of endorectal magnetic resonance imaging of the prostate to localize and specify the extent of neurofibromas in these patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Secondary failure rates of measles vaccines: a metaanalysis of published studies.

BACKGROUND: Recent measles outbreaks in highly vaccinated populations have highlighted the role of vaccine failure as a barrier to the elimination of measles. We sought to estimate the rate of secondary failure (clinical measles after vaccine-induced seroconversion) of measles vaccines using metaanalysis. METHODS: We identified 1411 studies of which 125 were relevant. From these we found 10 original studies of healthy subjects with sufficient details to calculate a pooled secondary failure rate. We performed a test for homogeneity before any pooling. RESULTS: Although significant heterogeneity prevented their pooling as a single group, the studies fell into three homogeneous groups suitable for pooling. Group A studies used killed vaccine whereas the other two groups (Groups B and C) of studies used live vaccine. These latter groups differ in that the studies in Group B share higher failure rates and are difficult to interpret with respect to the lack of verification of vaccination, immunization before 12 months of age and a non-North American study site and vaccine manufacturer. Those studies in Group C, in which US subjects were older than 12 months at vaccination and received a live US-manufactured vaccine that was documented in a medical record, had a failure rate of 0 of 2031 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.0 to 0.147%. CONCLUSIONS: Although reports of measles related to secondary failure exist, studies that permit the calculation of the rate of secondary failure demonstrate that the rate appears to be < 0.2%.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1996

The influence of the HLA-DRB1*13 allele on measles vaccine response.

BACKGROUND: Measles remains a public health threat in the United States with over 50,000 cases being reported from 1989 through 1991 with continued smaller outbreaks. Measles vaccine failure is in part to blame for these large-scale outbreaks. The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes are important determinants of immune response to measles virus and vaccine. To examine the influence that HLA polymorphisms may have on measles vaccine antibody response, we compared the distribution of HLA-DRB1 alleles between measles vaccine nonresponders and hyper-responders. METHODS: We determined the seroprevalence of measles antibody in 881 school children immunized with measles-mumps-rubella-II at age 15 months using a whole virus IgG EIA. We performed class II HLA-DR typing by PCR with sequence specific primers (PCR-SSP) on 81 nonresponders (IgG seronegative) and 65 hyper-responders (from the upper 10th percentile of IgG levels of all subjects). We then compared the distribution of alleles between nonresponders and hyper-responders. RESULTS: The distribution of HLA-DRB1 alleles among nonresponders compared to hyper-responders was significantly different (p = 0.014). Nonresponders were significantly less likely to carry the HLA-DRB1*13 alleles than were hyper-responders (7.4% vs 16.2%;p = 0.02). Nonresponders also had an excess of HLA-DRB1*07 alleles (15.4% vs 6.2%; p = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: The absence of HLA-DRB1*13 alleles is associated with measles vaccine nonresponse. The absence of this allele has also been associated with susceptibility to other infectious diseases. The role of this gene in the immunogenetic response to infectious diseases requires further study.

Alleles↗
PubMed1995

Utility of a "swish and spit" technique for the collection of buccal cells for TAP haplotype determination.

OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the utility of a "swish and spit" technique as a nucleated cell source for transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) haplotype determination by molecular methods in large-scale clinical trials. DESIGN: Twenty normal volunteers were recruited for this prospective feasibility study. From each subject, buccal or blood cells (or both) were collected for use in TAP haplotype assignment by molecular methods and subjected to various storage conditions. MATERIAL AND METHODS: As an alternative to use of lymphocytes obtained by venipuncture, we developed a swish and spit technique for collecting buccal cells for assigning TAP haplotype. For this technique, the subject vigorously swishes isotonic saline in the mouth and expectorates it into a collection container. DNA is extracted from the buccal cells by proteinase K digestion, phenol-chloroform extraction, and ethanol precipitation. In addition, we compared DNA extracted from mouthwash specimens stored under various conditions to which a specimen might be exposed if mailed. RESULTS: DNA extracted from buccal cells obtained by the swish and spit technique provided excellent templates for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and subject acceptance of this method was universal. In all cases, assigning TAP haplotype by PCR amplification of specific alleles with use of buccal or blood-derived specimens was successful. The integrity of the specimens was unaffected by storage at -20 degrees C, 4 degrees C, 25 degrees C, or 37 degrees C, and we were able to use the DNA from cells stored under any of these conditions for TAP haplotying. CONCLUSION: We conclude that DNA from buccal cells collected by the swish and spit technique for TAP haplotype assignment is an excellent substitute for DNA obtained from nucleated blood cells, and the technique is useful for large-scale clinical studies that require DNA from subjects geographically distant from the research site.

DNA↗
PubMed1995

The surprisingly high acceptability of low-efficacy vaccines for otitis media: a survey of parents using hypothetical scenarios.

OBJECTIVE: To determine parental thresholds for accepting vaccines for otitis media prevention given tradeoffs of efficacy, adverse effects, and administration mode. METHOD: We interviewed 601 randomly selected parents with children 0 through 6 years of age presenting to our community pediatric clinic. For each of five hypothetical vaccines, which varied administration mode from nasal spray to two injections and adverse effects from mild to severe, parents indicated the lowest number of otitis media episodes that the vaccine had to prevent in the next 6 months for them to accept the vaccine. RESULTS: About half the parents would accept any one of the vaccines if it would prevent three or more infections in the next 6 months. When the vaccine would prevent one episode of otitis media over the next 6 months, 33% of parents would accept the medial vaccine (one injection in the thigh, with some children getting a red, sore injection site and a few having a fever of < or = 102 degrees F for one day). Seventeen percent accepted a vaccine requiring two injections (influenza vaccine-like) or having increased adverse effects (pneumococcal vaccine-like) despite the vaccine only preventing one episode of otitis media over the next 6 months. No substantial differences in these proportions were found when compared among groups by reason-for-visit, recent occurrence of otitis media, or a history of recurrent otitis media in a sibling. CONCLUSION: Many parents will accept low efficacy vaccines for otitis media prevention. Parental acceptance does not vary with the child's otitis media experience but does vary with severity of adverse effects and administration mode of the vaccine.

Child↗
PubMed1994

Failure to reach the goal of measles elimination. Apparent paradox of measles infections in immunized persons.

BACKGROUND: Measles is the most transmissible disease known to man. During the 1980s, the number of measles cases in the United States rose dramatically. Surprisingly, 20% to 40% of these cases occurred in persons who had been appropriately immunized against measles. In response, the United States adopted a two-dose universal measles immunization program. We critically examine the effect of vaccine failure in measles occurring in immunized persons. METHODS: We performed a computerized bibliographic literature search (National Library of Medicine) for all English-language articles dealing with measles outbreaks. We limited our search to reports of US and Canadian school-based outbreaks of measles, and we spoke with experts to get estimates of vaccine failure rates. In addition, we devised a hypothetical model of a school where measles immunization rates could be varied, vaccine failure rates could be calculated, and the percentage of measles cases occurring in immunized students could be determined. RESULTS: We found 18 reports of measles outbreaks in very highly immunized school populations where 71% to 99.8% of students were immunized against measles. Despite these high rates of immunization, 30% to 100% (mean, 77%) of all measles cases in these outbreaks occurred in previously immunized students. In our hypothetical school model, after more than 95% of schoolchildren are immunized against measles, the majority of measles cases occur in appropriately immunized children. CONCLUSIONS: The apparent paradox is that as measles immunization rates rise to high levels in a population, measles becomes a disease of immunized persons. Because of the failure rate of the vaccine and the unique transmissibility of the measles virus, the currently available measles vaccine, used in a single-dose strategy, is unlikely to completely eliminate measles. The long-term success of a two-dose strategy to eliminate measles remains to be determined.

Canada↗
PubMed1994

Chylothorax in Gorham's syndrome. A common complication of a rare disease.

One hundred forty-six cases of Gorham's syndrome are documented in the literature. Twenty-five (17 percent) patients have been reported to have chylothorax as a complication. To our knowledge, this high incidence of chylothorax has not been reported previously. We describe two such patients treated by thoracic duct ligation and compared our results with others to support early surgical intervention via a low right-sided thoracotomy in these cases.

Adolescent↗