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Biomedical subjects

G M Downing

Publications and source records attributed to G M Downing.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Dicoumarol toxicity in neonatal calves associated with the feeding of sweet vernal (Anthoxanthum odoratum) hay.

Neonatal calves from a seasonal dairy herd in North Western Tasmania were presented for veterinary care due to mortalities and bleeding from multiple orifices. Necropsy examination revealed free blood throughout the parenchymatous organs, body cavities and connective tissues. There was no history of anticoagulant exposure, however, high quantities of dicoumarol were found in samples from hay fed to recently calved cows. No Australian cases of dicoumarol toxicity in neonatal calves have been previously documented, and dicoumarol toxicity in adult cattle would appear to be less common than in colder farming regions of the Northern Hemisphere.

Animal Feed↗

Monensin toxicity in preruminant dairy heifers.

Four-to six-week-old calves from a seasonal dairy herd in North Western Tasmania were presented for veterinary attention due to the occurrence of sudden deaths. Necropsy examination of one of the calves revealed several small pale foci of 1 cm diameter on the epicardium. Mortalities were found to be caused by monensin that was added to the milk diet as part of a vitamin/mineral commercial premix that also controlled coccidiosis. No cases of monensin toxicity in preruminant calves have been previously documented, although there have been numerous reports in older cattle and other species.

Animal Feed↗

Palliative performance scale (PPS): a new tool.

The Palliative Performance Scale (PPS), a modification of the Karnofsky Performance Scale, is presented as a new tool for measurement of physical status in palliative care. Its initial uses in Victoria include communication, analysis of home nursing care workload, profiling admissions and discharges to the hospice unit, and, possibly, prognostication. We assessed 119 patients at home, of whom 87 (73%) had a PPS rating between 40% and 70%. Of 213 patients admitted to the hospice unit, 175 (83%) were PPS 20%-50% on admission. The average period until death for 129 patients who died on the unit was 1.88 days at 10% PPS upon admission, 2.62 days at 20%, 6.70 days at 30%, 10.30 days at 40%, 13.87 days at 50%. Only two patients at 60% or higher died in the unit. The PPS may become a basis for comparing drug costs at home and for studying the effects of treatments (e.g. hypodermoclysis) at various levels of physical performance. Validity and reliability testing are currently being undertaken.

British Columbia↗

Victoria BGY palliative care model--a new model for the 1990s.

If, as palliative care practitioners, we ensure that distressing symptoms such as pain, vomiting, dyspnea, confusion, and pre-death restlessness are fully controlled (note "fully"), then most people are deeply appreciative and continue to live until they die, confident that whatever happens, their worth, desires, and comfort are secure. Credibility (Latin, fides dignus) is remaining true and reliable to what was agreed. Patients registering with palliative care generally desire comfort, which can only occur when palliative care physicians and programs are capable and willing to apply all three types of palliation discussed here--the BGY model.

Acute Disease↗