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Biomedical subjects

J Sargent

Publications and source records attributed to J Sargent.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Diagnosis and classification of the acute leukemias: recent advances and controversial issues.

Although morphology and cytochemistry continue to be the mainstay of the diagnosis of acute leukemia (AL), new developments in immunophenotyping, cytogenetics, molecular biology, and in vitro assays have dramatically improved our understanding of this disease and enabled the identification of entities with distinct clinico-biologic features. Immunophenotyping is essential for diagnosing and subclassifying acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and is also very helpful in certain types of acute myeloid leukemias (AML), such as AML with minimal differentiation or acute megakaryoblastic leukemia. Cytogenetic findings are clinically relevant for diagnosis and prognosis. Nonrandom chromosomal abnormalities such as t(15;17)(q22;q12) or t(1;19)(q23;p13) have been so closely associated with distinct types of acute leukemias that their recognition can allow diagnosis independent of the other criteria. Molecular analysis is a powerful method in the assessment of the malignant potential, clonality, and classification of the ALs. It has become clear that in some leukemias a proportion of patients exhibit the biologically relevant molecular defect in the absence of a karyotypic equivalent. On the other hand apparently uniform chromosomal abnormalities such as the t(1;19), t(9;22), t(8;14), or t(15;17) may differ at the molecular level. In vitro assays can evaluate the growth pattern and cell-cycle kinetics of leukemic cells, as well as their sensitivity to therapeutic agents. All these data are relevant to the management of AL. Because the French-American-British (FAB) classification does not fully correlate with much of this new information, alternative classifications have been proposed. In this review we concentrate on recent diagnostic contributions resulting from advances in biotechnology and discuss some of the points that arouse controversy in the single classifications.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1995

Oral sumatriptan is effective and well tolerated for the acute treatment of migraine: results of a multicenter study.

The efficacy and tolerability of oral sumatriptan (Imitrex tablets) were assessed in 187 migraineurs enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, placebo-controlled study. In the clinic, patients received oral sumatriptan 25 mg, 50 mg, or 100 mg, or placebo, for the treatment of a migraine attack. The results demonstrate that by 2 hours postdose, 52 to 57% of patients treated with sumatriptan 25 mg, 50 mg, 100 mg compared with 17% of patients treated with placebo achieved relief of headache (p < 0.05 for each sumatriptan group vs placebo). By 4 hours postdose, 65 to 78% of sumatriptan-treated patients compared with 19% of placebo-treated patients achieved relief of headache (p < 0.05 for each sumatriptan group vs placebo). Oral sumatriptan also effectively relieved nausea and photophobia and improved clinical disability. No serious or unusual adverse events were reported, and the pattern and incidence of adverse events did not vary among the sumatriptan doses. Each dose--25 mg, 50 mg, or 100 mg--of sumatriptan was effective and generally well tolerated.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1992

Breakfast, blood glucose and memory.

The hypothesis that blood glucose levels influence memory was re-examined. The performance on two memory tests was quicker when breakfast had been taken, suggesting that the ability to retrieve memories had been facilitated. Performance on a spatial memory test correlated significantly with blood glucose levels.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Knowing your market.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1991

Unsuspected cocaine exposure in young children.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of cocaine exposure among preschool children with clinically unsuspected signs and/or symptoms. DESIGN: Prevalence study. SETTING: Pediatric emergency department in an inner-city hospital. PARTICIPANTS: 250 children aged 2 weeks to 5 years who underwent urine assays for cocaine prior to discharge from the emergency department. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS/MAIN RESULTS: Six (2.4%) of the 250 urine assays (95% confidence interval, 0.5% to 4.3%) were positive for benzoylecgonine, the major urinary cocaine metabolite. Four of the positive urine assays were from children younger than 1 year and all children with positive urine assays were younger than 24 months. None of these children presented with a complaint or was identified as having clinical problems currently associated with childhood exposure to cocaine. Possible exposure routes include breastfeeding, intentional administration, accidental ingestion of cocaine or cocaine-contaminated household dust via normal hand-to-mouth activity, and passive inhalation of "crack" vapors. CONCLUSION: Among the inner-city children served by this hospital, significant numbers of infants and young children are being exposed to cocaine, and this exposure occurs in a clinically unsuspected population.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1990

Eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome associated with L-tryptophan ingestion. Analysis of four patients and implications for differential diagnosis and pathogenesis.

Four patients fulfilling the case definition for eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome are described, including one whose disease began in 1986. Each displayed a variety of symptoms: one suffered principally from myalgia and recovered spontaneously on discontinuation of L-tryptophan therapy; one exhibited progressive sclerodermiform skin changes, neuropathy, and myopathy; a third had prominent neuromuscular disease and sclerodermiform skin changes; and the fourth experienced profound weight loss, an axonal polyneuropathy, and perivascular lymphoid infiltrates simulating a lymphoma. Evidence of T-cell activation was present in peripheral blood and affected tissues during the clinically active progressive phase of disease. Among other manifestations pleural effusion, cutaneous vasculitis, joint contractures, and bloody diarrhea were observed. A history of L-tryptophan ingestion should be sought in patients with myalgia, fatigue, or the above outlined symptoms.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

How to take the NHS to market.

If the health service is to function as an efficient marketplace, the development of relevant information is crucial.

Marketing of Health Services↗
PubMed1989

Barriers to bicycle helmet use among children. Results of focus groups with fourth, fifth, and sixth graders.

As a preliminary step in the development of a school-based educational intervention to promote bicycle helmet use among children, focus group encounters were conducted with fourth, fifth, and sixth graders at three elementary schools in the Boston, Mass, area. Analysis of transcripts of encounter tape recordings indicated that (1) the prevalence of helmet ownership and use was low, (2) children were concerned that helmet use would invite derision from their peers, and (3) children tended to respect other children who wore helmets. We concluded that focus groups can be useful in conceptualizing health education interventions and suggest that school-based peer-led bicycle helmet programs may be effective in developing normative change toward helmet use among elementary schoolchildren.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

An analysis of home practice patterns for non-drug headache treatments.

Regular home practice of non-drug training techniques is assumed essential for improved headache control. In numerous research studies on non-drug treatment efficacy, subjects have been routinely required to practice daily self-regulation techniques. This paper examines the relationship between amount of home practice and treatment outcome, and the extent to which subjects adhere to training requirements. A total of 42 subjects completed daily home practice records for 32 weeks. Fourteen subjects had randomly been assigned to an autogenic phases group, 17 to an electromyographic biofeedback group, and 11 to a thermal training group. All subjects charted frequency of practice, change of feeling in the target area, time required to bring about the change, and general body relaxation. Relationships between subject compliance and 11 selected variables including demographics, headache activity components, treatment group, and treatment outcome were evaluated. Results support home practice, but place greater emphasis on its quality rather than its quantity.

Headache↗
PubMed1986

Results of a controlled, experimental, outcome study of nondrug treatments for the control of migraine headaches.

Headache variables were examined for 136 subjects who participated for 36 weeks in one of four groups--No Treatment, Autogenic Phrases, Electromyographic (EMG) Biofeedback, and Thermal Biofeedback. All subjects kept daily records of headache activity and medication usage and participated in 22 laboratory sessions during which frontalis electromyographic and hand-temperature measurements were taken; those in the three treatment groups practiced at home. There was a substantial reduction in headache variables in all groups. The No-Treatment Group differed significantly from the treatment groups combined, with the least reduction in headache variables. The Thermal Biofeedback Group vs. EMG Biofeedback and Autogenic Phrases Groups showed a suggestive trend toward improvement in the frequency and intensity of total headache.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Slow resolution of multifocal weakness and fasciculation: a reversible motor neuron syndrome.

A 25-year-old man with multifocal weakness and fasciculation was thought to have motor neuron disease. Signs progressed for 1 year, plateaued, and 3 years later resolved almost completely. There was no evidence of paraproteinemia, lymphoproliferative disorder, or vasculitis, and myelography was normal. Electrodiagnostic study disclosed multifocal, acute and chronic denervation that evolved into a picture consistent with residuals of old multifocal radiculopathy without active denervation. Prolongation of F response, absence of H-reflex, and conduction block in a proximal nerve segment suggested multifocal demyelination. A proximal motor neuropathy, perhaps demyelinating, may cause some of the benign motor neuron syndromes that simulate motor neuron disease.

Adult↗