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Biomedical subjects

J J Gérvas

Publications and source records attributed to J J Gérvas.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Do ultrasound measurements reflect bone microarchitecture rather than bone mass?: An in vitro study of the rat femur with the use of ultrasound, densitometry, and histomorphometry.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: In an experimental study in 40 rat femurs, the authors correlated the amplitude-dependent speed of bone ultrasound (Ad-SOS) with the bone mineral content and density and with the bone trabecular connectivity: trabecular bone volume, trabecular number, trabecular thickness, and trabecular separation to evaluate and compare the usefulness of the Ad-SOS to determine bone quantity and/or quality. METHODS: Bone mineral content and density were determined with dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Trabecular connectivity was determined with histomorphometric techniques. RESULTS: There was a strong correlation between the Ad-SOS and the other parameters studied, with a particularly high positive correlation with trabecular bone volume and trabecular thickness, and an inverse correlation with trabecular separation. The correlation was weaker with the bone mineral content and bone mineral density and with the trabecular number. For the trabecular separation, the correlation was significant in all cases, but it was negative. CONCLUSIONS: Bone ultrasound, in this case Ad-SOS, defines the quality of the bone in terms of trabecular architecture rather than bone density; however, this conclusion is valid only for the rat femur model that the authors used.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed2000

Effect of silicon supplement on osteopenia induced by ovariectomy in rats.

The effect of silicon (Si) supplement on preventing bone mass loss induced by ovariectomy (OVX) in rats was investigated. Three groups of 15, 100-day-old female Wistar rats each, with a mean initial weight of approximately 260 g per animal, were selected for the present study. One of the experimental group consisting of 15 OVX rats was fed a diet supplemented with 500 mg of Si per kg of feed (Si + OVX). The other two groups consisting of 15 OVX and 15 sham-OVX rats did not receive these supplements. Morphometric (weight and length) and densitometric studies with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry were performed on the whole femur and 5th lumbar vertebra of each animal 30 days after the experiment. The Si + OVX rats did not show a loss of bone mass induced by OVX at axial level (5th lumbar vertebra) or periphery (femur). Nonetheless, a significant increase (ANOVA with Bonferroni/Dunn post hocs test) of longitudinal development of the femur (P < 0.0001) was patent. These results, obtained through the measurements of axial and peripheral bones, warrant closer scrutiny in connection with the Si inhibitory effect on bone mass loss as well as the stimulatory effect on bone formation. Both actions, namely, inhibition of resorption and stimulation of formation, infer that Si may have a potential therapeutic application in the treatment of involutive osteoporosis.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed1992

[Chronic patients confined to home and their impact on the family: a qualitative study].

OBJECTIVE: To describe and assess the social and psychic overload which falls on those who care for chronically ill patients confined to their homes. DESIGN: Qualitative study, with semi-structured interviews. SITE: Primary care in the public sector, in an urban context. PATIENTS OR OTHERS PARTICIPANTS: Those caring for the chronically ill, confined to their homes, and who are included in the home care programme of a General Medicine office. INTERVENTION: Semi-structured interview and analysis of the clinical history. Data were obtained concerning: 1. The general characteristics of the patient; 2. General characteristics of the carer; and 3. Social activities, family relationships and both physical and psychological health of the carers. MAIN RESULTS: 12 patients were studied. Two of these had no carer. In the remaining ten cases, the carer was a member of the immediate family. Only one carer was male. In 60% of cases the carer showed dysfunction in relation to the family. There were social repercussions in 70% of the cases and psychiatric morbidity in 50%. CONCLUSION: Care of the chronically ill patient confined to the home carries with it a serious social and psychological burden, which falls essentially on the wife or daughter.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

[The authors and the bibliographic references of the original articles published in the journal Atención Primaria (1984-1990)].

OBJECTIVE: The main aim of the study is to assess the developing situation of the articles published in the journal Atención Primaria in relation to the original articles included in the same journal. There are secondary aims of describing the amount of self-quotation, the profession of the authors, their geographical distribution and their use of bibliographic references. DESIGN: A descriptive analysis of the authors and bibliographic references in the original articles. SITE. Publications and research in Primary Care. MAIN MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: All the original articles published in the journal Atención Primaria during its first seven years (1984-1990). Gathering of data from the original articles (the number of authors, province of their place of work, titles, total number of references, references from Atención Primaria, the number of self-quotations, etc.) In the seven years studied, 295 original articles have been published by 1467 authors, 44% of whom are family doctors. The average number of authors per article was 5. There are twelve Spanish provinces from which no-one has published. Altogether 4,908 bibliographic references, an average of 16.6 per article, have been used. The number of references from the journal itself rose steadily from 1% in 1984 to 11.7% in 1988, but went down to 10.3% in 1990. 52% of the bibliographic references were in Castilian and 42.6% in English. CONCLUSION: The journal Atención Primaria is often quoted in original articles published in the same journal. The number of authors and references per original article is high but stable.

Authorship↗
PubMed1991

[Physician-patient communication and health education].

The aim of the present study was to analyze the content in health education of the patient-physician interview. The study was observational and descriptive. The target population were the patients attending the general practices of the Social Security clinics. With permission of patients and physicians, 53 visits of two general practitioners were recorded on tape. 48 interviews were analyzed with definition of activities (asking, answering, discussing, etc.) and contents (health problems, treatment, health education, etc.). Health education was 10% of the contents, and it was associated with the physician's activity of commenting/instructing and with the patient's activity of commenting/asking.

Interviews as Topic↗
PubMed1990

[The basic minimum set of data in primary care. A Delphi study].

The term basic minimal unit of data in primary care is used for those essential data required so that all primary care professionals may carry out their work. The results of a study performed with the Delphi technique about the basic unit of data by 35 Spanish physician are reported. The results are distributed in three areas: clinical interview (12 basic data were considered), clinical history (27 essential data) and health care performance (19 minimal data).

Data Collection↗
PubMed1990

[Utilization of health services: patients and visits].

The use of the outpatient medical services belongs to the health care system as part of the interaction between the services and the population. The aim of the study was to define the use of services separating visits (repetitive elements) from patients (non-repetitive elements). The visits and the patients were evaluated for a two-month period in an urban general practice. The results were compared between themselves and for those from samples recording seven days. There were no differences regarding use between groups of visits during seven-day and forty-day periods (0.9 and 0.89 visits per month, respectively). The patients from the seven-day groups used more commonly the practice than those from the general forty-day group (0.8 and 0, 65 visits per month, respectively). Thus, if short recording periods are taken, a group of patients with a high rate of use is selected.

Adolescent↗