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Biomedical subjects

J Hernandez

Publications and source records attributed to J Hernandez.

At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources
PubMed1978

Polygraphic evaluation of ethchlorvynol (14 days).

Ethchlorvynol 500 mg was administered to four young insomniacs for 14 days as part of a standard 22-day sleep laboratory protocol. Subjects slept more while receiving drug, but these benefits were not statistically significant. Ethchlorvynol impaired mood during both drug and withdrawal periods as compared to baseline, and serious side effects were reported. Stage REM and stage 1 were suppressed by ethchlorvynol, and stage 1 (but not stage REM) showed withdrawal rebound.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Urethro-balanitis xerotica obliterans.

A clinical report of 5 cases of balanitis xerotica obliterans (BXO) with urethral involvement is presented. Involvement of the urethra in the BXO is emphasized and the fact that this process is often unnoticed, is stressed. The clinical and histological characteristics of this disease are described in its different localizations. Investigations are suggested to diagnose urethral involvement and the suitable therapy is outlined.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

The 1972 Cuban national child growth study as an example of population health monitoring: design and methods.

A stratified 3-stage random sample of 50 360 children ages 0-19 drawn from the whole population of Cuba was measured in a large-scale growth study during 1972-73. Fifteen anthropometric measurements were taken and puberty stages and menarche status were assessed. Hand-wrist radiographs were done on 10% of the sample. Information regarding the social and education status of the parents was obtained and parental heights were measured. One year later, 30% of the sample were re-measured and 10% re-X-rayed. The overall response rate was 96% at pre-school and primary school age, and a lettle less later. Quality control sessions were held at which the nine measuring teams compared results. No significant differences were found between teams working different parts of the island. Differences between duplicate measurements of stature by individual measurers had standard deviations approximating 0.20 cm. Individual measurers' means differed from the grand means of all measurers by up to +/- 0.2 cm for stature, +/- 0.4 cm for sitting height and +/- 0.5 mm (7% of mean) for triceps skinfold. One or more measurements lay outside the 3rd-97th centile limits in 21% of individuals. Scrutiny of these individuals' records resulted in elimination of measurements in amounts ranging from 0.1% (triceps skinfold) to 1.1% (crown-rump length). Problems of planning and execution of growth surveys designed to set national standards are described, and solutions given or suggested.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1975

Quality of spinal extradural anaesthesia: the influence of spinal nerve root diameter.

Profiles on the progress of spinal extradural anaesthesia were made in 246 patients using various concentrations of lignocaine, bupivacaine and etidocaine. The advance of analgesia through the different dermatomes showed a consistent and orderly spread on the upper lumbar and thoracic segments. This spread was irregular through the lower lumbar and upper sacral segments. The first sacral segment was especially difficult to block with an overall failure rate of 17.53% with presently available concentrations of various local anaesthetics. This failure was abolished with the use of etidocaine 1.5%. The presence of a delay or failure at the level of L5-S2 is probably related to the larger diameter of these nerve roots as ascertained from measurements in 11 cadavers.

Acetanilides↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Combination of interferon and dexamethasone in refractory multiple myeloma.

The present pilot study was designed to analyse the efficacy and toxicity of the association of interferon (IFN) and dexamethasone (Dx) in 32 resistant and relapsed myeloma patients. Among the evaluable cases, 15 (68 per cent) responded to treatment (32 per cent achieved an objective response--OR--and 36 per cent a partial response--PR--), the 'remission' status lasting for more than one year in six of them. Moreover, four out of the seven OR patients showed a reduction in B.M. plasma cells to less than 5 per cent. Five out of 11 patients that were previously refractory to VBAD, that includes high dose dexamethasone (Dx), responded to IFN-Dx. The protocol was generally well tolerated with only four patients discontinuing therapy due to adverse effects. The present results show that the combination IFN + Dx is a promising therapeutic approach for patients with refractory myeloma.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗
PubMedDate not supplied

DNA amplification fingerprinting for subtyping Neisseria gonorrhoeae strains.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: DNA amplification fingerprinting is used in most epidemiologic studies as a substitute for conventional typing methods. DNA amplification fingerprinting and conventional typing methods were compared in this epidemiologic study of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. GOAL OF THIS STUDY: To differentiate 70 Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates from untreated patients with urogenital gonococcal infection. STUDY DESIGN: Gonococcal strains were characterized by auxotyping, serotyping, plasmid profile, antibiotic sensitivity, and DNA amplification fingerprinting. The method of unweighted pair-group average linkage was used for cluster analysis. Discriminatory power was calculated applying Simpson's index. RESULTS: Amplification of Neisseria gonorrhoeae DNA with primers OPA-03 and OPA-13 produced well-resolved patterns of 15 and 22 DNA fragments, respectively, with a discriminatory power (0.978 with OPA-13 and 0.967 with OPA-03) comparable to that obtained with auxotyping/serotyping combination (D:0.968) or with auxotype/serotype/plasmid profile combination (D:0.983). Correlation between DNA amplification fingerprinting pattern and auxotype/serotype class was not always uniform. Some strains with the same auxotype/serotype/plasmid profile were subdivided by DNA amplification fingerprinting, and vice versa. CONCLUSION: Although auxotype/serotype class and DNA amplification fingerprinting can be used in the epidemiologic characterization of strains, DNA amplification fingerprinting offers a better discriminatory index than the separate serotyping. It is especially useful for differentiating serologically identical strains and nontypable strains. A combination of serotyping and DNA amplification fingerprinting seems to be the best way to differentiate Neisseria gonorrhoeae strains in epidemiologic studies, bringing together the most simple techniques and the best discriminatory power among isolates.

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Fracture of the distal radial physis complicated by compartment syndrome and premature physeal closure.

Complications after injury to the epiphyseal growth plate of the distal radius are uncommon. An 11-year-8-month-old boy developed two complications--compartment syndrome of the forearm and premature closure of the physis--after a Salter-Harris Type I injury. Treatment included closed reduction, decompression, skin grafting, excision of the physeal bar, and epiphysiodesis of the distal ulna and the remaining open physis of the distal radius.

Child↗
PubMedDate not supplied

High encapsulation efficiencies in sized liposomes produced by extrusion of dehydration-rehydration vesicles.

In an attempt to produce sized liposomes with high encapsulation efficiency by a gentle procedure, we compared the encapsulation efficiency in liposomes of three different molecules: carboxyfluorescein (mol.wt 376 Da), protein A (mol. wt 40,000 Da), and a DNA-plasmid pN2 alpha 1AT (9.3 kb). Sized liposomes were obtained by extrusion of multilamellar vesicles through polycarbonate filters of defined pore size (0.2 micron). Multilamellar vesicles were formed by mechanical dispersion of dried egg phosphatidylcholine (PC) and cholesterol (CH) at molar ratio 1:1 in an aqueous buffer (MLVs) or by dehydration-rehydration procedure (DRVs) where small unilamellar vesicles (SUVs) obtained by probe sonication of PC:CH (1:1) in water were dried in the presence of the desired agent by lyophilization and then rehydrated in one tenth of the original volume. Our results show that, in all cases, the higher encapsulation efficiencies were obtained by dehydration-rehydration vesicles (DRVs) and that the ratio material/lipid in sized DRVs (S-DRVs) increased three- to four-fold with respect to sized liposomes (S-MLV) obtained by extrusion of MLVs. In addition, plasmid electrophoresis on agarose gels (0.8 per cent) showed that no detectable DNA fracture was produced in the encapsulation process. In summary, we showed that extrusion through polycarbonate filters of preformed DRVs is a gentle procedure which enhances the encapsulation efficiencies in sized liposomes of molecules with clearly different molecular weight and structure.

Capsules↗