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Biomedical subjects

J R Davidson

Publications and source records attributed to J R Davidson.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

The shadow of life: psychosocial explanations for placenta rituals.

Culturally determined patterns of behavior associated with placenta disposal are characteristic of many modern and ancient societies. This paper defines this type of placenta disposal as a ritual event that delimits a "portion of reality"; explanations are provided leading to the conclusion that placenta rituals operate as anxiety releasing mechanisms that provide a means of control over the future health and welfare of mother, child, and community. The question of why the placenta figures so prominently in folk beliefs and practices has previously been attributed to its morphological and physiological properties; this paper argues that attributes associated with it from a psychosocial model are equally important. The data for this study were drawn from a compilation of ethnographic reports of post-partum practices in African, Asian, European, and Latin American societies. Additional information on placenta disposal was derived from interviews with 1,859 Peruvian informants. Analysis of the data obtained from the Peruvian studies show a significant difference between rural and semi-urban patterns of placenta disposal.

Ceremonial Behavior↗
PubMed1985

What does the dexamethasone suppression test identify?

The authors studied the Dexamethasone Suppression Test (DST) in chronic pain patients with and without major depression, using items from a modified version of the Hamilton Depression Scale, the Hamilton Anxiety Scale, and the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale. The purpose of the study was to identify the factor or factors which discriminated DST suppressors from nonsuppressors. The data suggest that depression and its profile are efficient discriminators of suppressors and nonsuppressors. Anxiety-related items were not as good as discriminators. The items that identified nonsuppression were the items that are often seen in combination in endogenous depression.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Campylobacter enteritis in the acute surgical ward.

Campylobacter jejuni now represents an important cause of acute infectious diarrhoeal illness. This paper examines the clinical course and management of eight patients, with campylobacter enteritis, presenting as acute surgical admissions. The severity of their symptoms and signs provided difficulty in distinguishing this diagnosis from acute surgical emergencies, in particular acute appendicitis. One patient underwent a laparotomy--a normal appendicectomy.

Abdomen, Acute↗
PubMed1984

Tracheo-oesophageal fistula in Christchurch: a review.

The management of tracheo-oesophageal fistulae at Christchurch from 1968-1982 has been reviewed. Thirty-one cases have been diagnosed with 26 undergoing surgery. There has been an overall mortality of 48% but there was a trend towards improved survival figures. Other congenital anomalies were present in 56%. Oesophageal stenosis occurred in four of the operative cases and led to major problems in management.

Esophageal Stenosis↗
PubMed1984

Urinary excretion of biopterin and neopterin in psychiatric disorders.

Levels of urinary neopterin and biopterin were determined in patients having a diagnosis of schizophrenia, unipolar depression, or bipolar depression. Both neopterin and biopterin levels were significantly higher in the urine of patients with unipolar depression than in the urine of the control group. Subclassification of patients into primary and secondary depression demonstrated a significant elevation of urinary biopterin in both groups, whereas urinary neopterin was elevated only in those patients with primary depression. In patients with bipolar depression, neopterin excretion was elevated, but biopterin excretion did not differ from controls. No significant differences were found in schizophrenic patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

The antibacterial properties of an Aztec wound remedy.

Wound treatment practices of the Aztecs are discussed. The use of concentrated maguey sap (Agave ssp.) was widely dispersed and has persisted in folk medicine. A possible reason may be that it is effective. Laboratory analysis of maguey syrup indicates that its utilization as a remedy by ancient and modern Mesoamericans could contribute to the healing process of aerobic wound infections. Both pyogenic and enteric bacteria appear to be susceptible to maguey syrup. The traditional addition of salt to the remedy seems to enhance the effectiveness of the material in inhibiting the growth of one of the major causes of pus-forming or pyogenic infective processes, Staphylococcus aureus. This finding is additional proof of the effectiveness of pre-Hispanic medicine, and of the skills of pre-Hispanic physicians.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1982

Atypical depression.

The term atypical depression generally indicates either depression accompanied by severe anxiety (type A) or by atypical vegetative symptoms, ie, increased appetite, weight, sleep, or libido (type V). Early age at onset, predominance in women, outpatient status, mild intensity, rarity of attempted suicide, nonbipolarity, nonendogenicity, and minimal psychomotor change are common to both types. Some types of bipolar depression may be considered as atypical if accompanied by reversed vegetative change. Monoamine oxidase inhibitors are more effective than placebo in treating atypical depression, but their reported superiority to tricyclic antidepressants awaits confirmation, for which the development of appropriate operational criteria would be helpful. Atypical depression is a term that covers several types of depressive disorder and can, for the most part, be better defined using the standard nomenclature.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Cardiovascular collapse associated with nitrous oxide anaesthetic: a case report.

This is a case report of a one year old infant weighing 6.7 kilograms with a preoperative diagnosis of partial anomalous pulmonary venous drainage whose anaesthetic was complicated by cardiovascular collapse following addition of nitrous oxide to oxygen administered to the patient using a T-piece breathing circuit. The cardiovascular pathopharmacology of all the drugs administered to the patient before the event as well as that of nitrous oxide is discussed in detail. The drugs discussed are atropine 0.1 mg (0.01 mg . kg-1), glycopyrrolate 0.07 mg (0.01 mg . kg-1), morphine 0.9 mg (0.14 mg . kg-1) methylprednisone sodium succinate 165 mg (23.5 mg . kg-1) sodium thiopentone 40 mg (5.7 mg . kg-1), metocurine 3.4 mg (0.4 mg . kg-1).

Anesthesia↗
PubMed1981

A comparison of phenelzine and imipramine in depressed inpatients.

Phenelzine and imipramine were compared double-blind, in 43 depressed inpatients. A placebo week preceded drug treatment; this allowed early identification of placebo responders who did not therefore enter the study. After three weeks treatment, the two drugs were equally effective on Hamilton, Beck and SCL-90 measures of depression and anxiety. On the the SCL-90 scales of hostility and paranoia imipramine was more effective; in some patients phenelzine was associated with increased hostility. Measurement of MAO inhibition and plasma tricyclic levels indicated that adequate doses were generally used - (mean 81 mg/day phenelzine and 144 mg/day imipramine).

Adult↗
PubMed1980

Platelet monoamine oxidase activity and the classification of depression.

An attempt was made to compare platelet monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity in descriptively based types of nonbipolar depression. Platelet MAO activity was significantly higher in depression secondary to chronic anxiety, compared with primary unipolar depression and depression secondary to borderline personality, and in women compared with men. No significant differences were observed between endogenous-nonendogenous, delusional-nondelusional, psychomotor states, or different age groups.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

An intracavitary fungus ball composed of syncephalastrum.

A case of a pulmonary intracavitary fungus ball composed of Syncephalastrum sp., a member of the class Zygomycetes not previously reported in association with human disease, is presented. The fungus was cultured preoperatively from bronchial secretions as well as from the fungal mass from the resected lung. This fungus appeared to behave in a saprophytic manner similar to that of the more common Aspergillus fungus ball.

Fungi↗