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Biomedical subjects

J H Fox

Publications and source records attributed to J H Fox.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

Primary memory and secondary memory in dementia of the Alzheimer type.

Free recall of word lists was investigated in a sample of 47 patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) and 31 normal controls of equivalent age and education. Recall was divided into primary memory (PM) and secondary memory (SM) components based on the number of items intervening between presentation and recall. The findings were as follows: (1) the patients showed a greater deficit on the SM than on the PM measure; (2) there was little evidence of proactive interference in the patient group; (3) the PM and SM measures were independent in the controls but not in the patient group; and, (4) the size of patients' PM deficit increased linearly with increasing items between presentation and attempted recall. These results suggest that the memory disorder of DAT is partially the result of defective PM.

Aged↗
PubMed1982

Facial recognition memory in dementia.

Previous investigations of memory in senile dementia of the Alzheimer's type (SDAT) have focused on verbal learning and memory. The aim of the present study was to determine whether the amnesia of SDAT is limited to verbal material. Patients with SDAT (N = 29; mean age = 69.3) and healthy normal controls (N = 41; mean age = 69.3) were given a test of facial perception and two recognition memory tasks, one for words and one for faces. The results indicate that dementia patients show a deficit in the retention of facial information. This deficit cannot be attributed to faculty initial perception or to a response bias. The verbal and facial memory deficits in SDAT appear to differ: performance on tests of verbal and facial memory is relatively independent, and substantial encoding and linguistic defects contribute to the verbal, but not the facial, memory disorder resulting in more severe impairment on tests of verbal memory. The implications of these findings for research on the neuropharmacology and pathophysiology of SDAT are discussed.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

Remote memory in senile dementia.

This study was designed to examine Ribot's hypothesis that the probability of forgetting an event is inversely related to the time since the occurrence of that event. Patients with senile dementia (N = 20; mean age = 67.3) and normal controls (N = 24; mean age = 69.4) were given two tests of memory for persons and events that became famous between 1930 and 1975. The results indicate that patients with senile dementia do have significant (p less than .001) difficulty recalling information from remote memory. The results do not support Ribot's hypothesis, however. The dementia patients show a relatively consistent recall deficit over the time period examined. There appears to be a trend for poorer recall of material from the 1960s and 1970s, possibly reflecting anterograde learning deficits early in the course of senile dementia.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

Cerebellar atrophy: relationship to aging and cerebral atrophy.

We studied the incidence of computed tomography evidence of cerebellar atrophy in 20 elderly patients with dementia, 20 age-matched controls, and 40 younger normal subjects. Cerebellar vermian atrophy was present in 6 of 20 demented patients, 7 of 20 elderly controls, and 1 of 40 younger controls. There was no other atrophy of infratentorial structures except for occasional enlargement of the cisterna magna and cerebellopontine angle cisterns. Vermian atrophy did not correlate with cerebral atrophy (enlargement of either lateral ventricles or cortical sulci). None of these patients had clinical signs of cerebellar dysfunction. Therefore, atrophy of the cerebellar vermis may occur selectively with aging, without atrophy of the cerebral cortex, and without clinical manifestations.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Cerebellar atrophy demonstrated by computed tomography.

We studied 55 cases of cerebellar atrophy identified by computerized tomography. Atrophy was determined by subjective assessment and objective measurements (superior cerebellar cistern, fourth ventricle, and brainstem). Different patterns of cerebellar atrophy were related to clinical diagnoses. A high incidence of vermal atrophy was observed in primary cerebellar degeneration and chronic alcoholism. More than half the patients with alcoholism had hemispheral atrophy. Vermal atrophy and enlargement of superior cerebellar cisterns (but not hemispheral atrophy) were associated with carcinomatous cerebellar degeneration. Atrophy caused by chronic phenytoin usage showed a specific pattern of enlargement of the cisterna magna, cerebellopontine angle, and superior cerebellar cisterns. Supratentorial atrophy was increased significantly only in the alcoholics. In general, limb ataxia, dysarthria, and nystagmus were related to hemispheral but not to vermal atrophy.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

Effect of aging on brain respiration and carbohydrate metabolism of CBF1 mice.

Brain slices of mice (strain CBF1) were used to study the effect of aging on cerebral cortex respiration and metabolism. Young animals (average age 6 months) were compared with old animals (average age 34 months). Metabolism was measured at a normal temperature (37 degrees C) and under hyperthermic stress (40 degrees C). The brain slices were incubated with 14C-glucose under standard conditions with the following parameters being measured: oxygen uptake, 14CO2 production, glucose utilization, and lactate and pyruvate formation. At the normal temperature, there were significant age-associated decreases in oxygen uptake and 14CO2 production but the other parameters were unchanged. At hyperthermic conditions there were significant age-associated decreases in oxygen uptake, 14CO2 production, lactate production, and glucose utilization. Also, in the hyperthermia study, all values were raised from control study values (37 degrees C) with old animals showing smaller increases in glucose utilization and lactate formation. These findings indicate the dysfunction of a number of metabolic pathways in the aged animal.

Aging↗
PubMed1979

Cerebral atrophy, EEG slowing age, education, and cognitive functioning in suspected dementia.

Seventy-eight hospital patients, 50 years of age or older, were selected for suspected changes in mentation and for the absence of focal or other organic brain disease. They were studied in relation to education, age, cerebral atrophy (by computerized tomography), electroencephalographic (EEG) slowing, and performance in several neuropsychologic tests. Adequate test-retest reliability of the cognitive measures and interjudge reliability of the cerebral atrophy and EEG measures were demonstrated. Stepwise multiple regression analyses suggested the following: (1) EEG slowing is the strongest and most general pathologic influence on cognition in elderly persons without overt brain disease. (2) Cerebral atrophy independently affects primarily the verbal recall of recent and remote information. (3) Age independently affects primarily recent memory for both verbal and nonverbal material. (4) Formal education is a powerful influence that must be accounted for in all studies of the effects of age on cognition.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1978

Reversible mental symptoms in temporal arteritis.

Mental symptoms are common in temporal arteritis. Reported here is a case in which a deficit in nonverbal memory documented with psychological testing resolved after a course of steroids. Besides the global confusional states commonly seen in temporal arteritis, focal intellectual impairment may be seen. It seems possible that some patients presenting with dementia as well as focal mental signs may have temporal arteritis. The diagnosis can easily be made by performing an erythrocyte sedimentation rate and temporal artery biopsy.

Aged↗
PubMed1976

Cerebral ventricular enlargement. Chronic alcoholics examined by computerized tomography.

Computerized tomography was used to measure cerebral ventricular size in hospitalized alcoholic patients, all of whom had evidence of liver disease. Twelve alcoholic patients with neurologic symptoms such as withdrawal seizures, neuropathy, and drug overdose were included. All these patients had normal results from the mental status examinations by the time of discharge. Alcoholic patients had a much higher mean ventricular size compared to 60 control patients. One third of the alcoholics had markedly enlarged ventricles as opposed to only one of the 60 controls.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Sympathomimetic drugs: evaluation for acute central hypotensive activity in alpha-chloralose-anesthetized dogs and cats intravertebral artery administration,.

dl-Amphetamine, phentermine and their para-chloro derivatives were tested for acute central hypotensive activity after intra-vertebral artery (iva) infusions in alpha-chloralose-anesthetized cats and intact and carotid sinus denervated dogs. Iva clonidine (reference standard) caused immediate reductions in blood pressure and heart rate and carotid sinus denervation (CSD) enhanced the clonidine response. dl-Amphetamine and phentermine did not cause acute hypotensive responses in the dog or cat whereas their para-chloro derivatives did. The vasodepressor response to para-chloramphetamine was inconsistent and transient and not modified by CSD. The magnitude and duration of the chlorphentermine vasodepressor response was minimal in the intact and CSD dog compared to clonidine. In contrast, chlorphentermine in the cat (140-300 mug/kg) caused an acute hypotensive response comparable in magnitude to clonidine (0.6-1.0 mug/kg). The bradycardias observed after iva chlorphentermine were much less pronounced than those associated with iva clonidine at comparable vasodepressor doses. By the i.v. route, each drug caused only pressor responses in the dog and cat. Suppression of the pressor response (resulting from "spill-over" of these alpha-stimulants into the systemic circulation after iva dosing) in the dog with small doses of i.v. phenoxybenzamine did not unmask or enhance the vasodepressor or bradycardic actions to iva administration of drugs. Methysergide prevented the hypotensive response to chlorphentermine in the cat and partially suppressed the response to clonidine; the reverse was true after piperoxan. Lilly 110140 and para-chlorophenylalanine reduced or abolished the effects of iva chlorphentermine. In summary, (1) iva chlorphentermine and clonidine were the only alpha-sympathomimetics tested which were effective as hypotensive substances; (2) the cat was considerably more responsive to iva chlorphentermine than the intact or CSD dog; (3) iva clonidine was more bradycardic than iva chlorphentermine; and (4) both adrenergic and serotonergic components appear to be among the mechanisms involved in the acute iva hypotensive response to chlorphentermine in the cat.

Anesthesia↗