Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J D Beck.
A 5-year-old boy with a metastatic Triton tumor was treated with resection, local irradiation and an additional combination chemotherapy including Ifosfamide. One year after completion of the treatment the boy is now without a tumor and in excellent condition.
Hexosaminidase isoenzymes P from serum of pregnant women and I2 from serum of leukemic children were compared using various biochemical methods, namely, ion exchange chromatography, isoelectric focusing, and molecular weight determination by gel filtration. Isoenzyme I2 is activated by calcium, magnesium, and manganese. The molecular weight of isoenzyme I2 was 110,000 compared to 130,000 of isoenzyme P. The widely differing molecular weights exclude the so far suggested identity of both enzymes. Both isoenzyme P and isoenzyme I2 possess beta-chains, however, they differ in chain structure and glycosylation. This different structure of isoenzyme P may be one of the reasons for its increase during pregnancy due to the resulting impaired clearance by liver sinusoidal cells.
An aneuploid DNA stem line has been detected by flow cytometric measurements in 17 (29%) out of 59 children entered in the BFM 83 pilot study for ALL relapse. Of 17 DNA aneuploidies, 15 were hyperdiploid. Euploidy was observed in 28 of 34 patients with an early relapse, whereas 11 of 25 children suffering a late recurrence of disease showed aneuploid DNA stem lines. In contradistinction to ALL relapse, a significantly higher frequency (38%) of pretreatment DNA aneuploidy was measured in 376 newly diagnosed patients of the BFM trials. Our findings may reflect the impact of therapy on leukemic cell clones and their relapse pattern.
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This study presents the results of a survey of university employees to determine the factors that were important in the choice between two health insurance plans (CHIP vs traditional). The major differences between the plans were their coverage of hospital services, physician office visits, and routine dental services. Separate analyses were conducted for employees of departments associated with the health professions and employees of other departments. The majority of employees selected the CHIP plan, which included coverage of routine dental services. Employees who chose the traditional plan were more likely to have other medical or dental insurance coverage than those who chose CHIP. Multiple regression analyses and discriminant function analyses indicated that the ranking of the importance of coverage of routine dental services and physician office visits were the most important factors in the choice of health insurance plan. These findings indicate that employees may be willing to trade the coverage of other health benefits to secure coverage of routine dental services and physician office visits.
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The influence of therapeutic dosages of factor VIII, factor IX and immunoglobulin preparations on the proliferative capacity of mitogen-activated lymphocytes from patients with hemophilia or idiopathic thrombocytopenia was investigated. Addition of protein preparations in vitro led to inhibition of lymphocyte proliferation, predominantly with the mitogen staphylococcus enterotoxin B. After intravenous application of proteins also stimulatory effects were seen. Since long-term treatment with protein preparations might impair immune functions, their application should be considered carefully.
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When data from a 1984 survey of U.S. dental schools were compared with data from a similar survey of the same schools completed in 1979, an increase in the teaching of geriatric dentistry to dental students was observed. While more topics are being taught in more schools, the depth and coverage are variable. Multivariate analyses revealed that more topics were likely to be taught if a course in geriatrics existed, if the course had existed since 1979, and if the course director was a dentist. Factors associated with the establishment of a course between 1979 and 1984 were that the school was located in a state with a large geriatric population and that financial assistance for patients through state or local government was available.
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The different therapy modalities and course of disease of 42 patients with a malignant peripheral neuroepithelial tumor are retrospectively analyzed. Therapy was completed in 31 children, 25 of whom had a primary localized tumor and 6 a disseminated neuroepithelioma. 17 of the children with a localized illness survive disease free in contrast to no survivor in the group with a disseminated tumor. The effective chemotherapy combining vincristine, adriamycin, ifosfamide and actinomycin D must be complemented by an efficacious local control because malignant peripheral neuroepithelioma tend to recur locally. The prospective analysis of newly diagnosed patients and a standardized therapy regimen will show if malignant peripheral neuroepithelioma represents a distinct tumor entity, different from a Ewings-Sarcoma.
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After pretreatment with anthracyclines, a boy entered a second complete remission of an acute myeloid leukemia lasting already for 16 months following chemotherapy with Aclacinomycin A combined with Etoposide, Cytosine Arabinoside and Thioguanine. The newly developed Aclacinomycin A was well tolerated. Presumably there is no cross resistance between Aclacinomycin A and the anthracyclines, the latter being in use for the therapy of leukemias since some time.
The proportion of the US population that is age 65 or over is increasing and edentulism rates are declining. The community's elderly population is becoming an increasingly important constituency for dental public health. Little is known, however, about the actual oral health status of these people. An assessment of oral health in the elderly presents many considerations not found in an assessment of oral health among children. The selection of subjects to represent all the elderly in the community is difficult. Caries assessment is complicated by the need to distinguish between coronal caries and root caries and by the inability to determine accurately the reason for prior tooth loss. Periodontal assessment is more difficult than in younger populations because the conditions tend to be advanced. The recruitment of participants is difficult because each potential subject must be contacted individually. These assessments are needed so the oral status of adult populations can be determined.
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This paper describes the prevalence of coronal caries and root caries in a sample of 520 people representative of the noninstitutionalized, dentate population older than age 65 in two rural Iowa counties. The subjects were examined in their homes by trained dental examiners. All prevalence rates were age- and gender-adjusted. Both types of caries were prevalent in the population age 65 and older. If projections of increased numbers of older people and increased retention of teeth are reasonably accurate, caries in older populations may become a significantly greater dental problem, and increased prevention and treatment of caries will be needed for these people.
A household health interview survey of 3,673 noninstitutionalized people aged 65 and over in two rural Iowa counties included questions about loss of teeth, use of dentures, and presence of oral health problems. Edentulism rates were 10-15 per cent lower than those found a decade earlier in national health surveys. A log-linear analysis found that the best demographic predictors of edentulism were education, age, and marital status. Spouses tended to be of similar dentition status, i.e., both edentulous or both dentate. No association was found between the loss of teeth and prevalence of digestive problems. Only 7 per cent of the edentulous people felt they needed to visit a dentist, even though 70 per cent had not seen one for over five years. About 40 per cent had dentures that were over 20 years old, with half of these being over 30 years old. Many dentures were loose and causing soreness in the mouth or difficulty in eating. These elderly people appeared to expect some problems with dentures and oral pain and accepted them without feeling a need to seek treatment.