Search PubMedSearch

Biomedical subjects

J W Richardson

Publications and source records attributed to J W Richardson.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

Sleep and breathing in patients with the Prader-Willi syndrome.

The Prader-Willi syndrome is characterized by infantile hypotonia, early childhood obesity, mental deficiency, short stature, small hands and feet, and hypogonadism. Many patients also have hypersomnolence, experience daytime hypoventilation, and subsequently die prematurely of cardiorespiratory failure. Hypersomnolence and daytime hypoventilation are also common occurrences in the sleep apnea syndrome. For a better understanding of the relationship of sleep to the features of the Prader-Willi syndrome, we retrospectively reviewed five patients (two adults, one adolescent, and two children) with this syndrome who underwent polysomnography. All patients were obese; they had hypersomnolence and daytime hypoxemia, and they nored. In all patients, the apnea plus hypopnea index was less than 10 episodes per hour of sleep. During rapid eye movement sleep, nonapneic reductions in oxyhemoglobin saturation were detected in one adult and in one child. Despite the presence of morbid obesity and a history of snoring, patients with Prader-Willi syndrome seem to have only mild sleep-disordered breathing.

Academic Medical Centers

Sleep disorders in psychiatric practice.

Sleep disorders medicine and psychiatry interface in numerous ways. Most psychiatric patients have a complaint about sleep, and regardless of the theoretical orientation of a psychiatrist, understanding of a patient's sleep function is an important part of assessment. The success or failure of treatment will be strongly influenced by the effect of that treatment on the patient's sleep disorder. The psychiatrist can provide expertise in treating patients with primary sleep disorders, offering pharmacologic consultations, and recommending psychotherapy or behavioral management. Conversely, a knowledge of primary sleep disorders should make the psychiatrist a more effective practitioner.

Humans

Narcolepsy update.

Narcolepsy, a disorder of excessive daytime sleepiness that affects more than 125,000 people in the United States, is technically defined as a daytime mean sleep latency (time elapsed before falling asleep) of less than 5 minutes in conjunction with verification of rapid eye movement sleep in at least two of five daytime nap periods. Cataplexy, hypnagogic hallucinations, and sleep paralysis are frequently associated with narcolepsy. Currently, overnight polysomnography and multiple sleep latency testing in a sleep disorders laboratory are used to diagnose narcolepsy. Standard pharmacologic therapy consists of the judicious use of stimulants to improve alertness and the administration of tricyclic and other antidepressant drugs to suppress cataplexy. In addition, good sleep hygiene (a regular sleep-wake schedule, an adequate amount of sleep at night, and scheduled daytime naps) is essential for optimal management of this disorder. Patient and family education about narcolepsy and its treatment is also important. Even with use of the best available treatment regimens, many patients with narcolepsy have substantial vocational and social impairments.

Animals

Types of affective response to stroke.

Most studies of depression after stroke have included heterogeneous samples of patients. These studies have generally not qualified patients as to age, absence of neurologic, psychiatric, and substance abuse histories, and other complicating factors. Of 155 inpatient rehabilitation admissions after acute unilateral cerebrovascular accident, only 26 met the following strict criteria for inclusion: age older than 55 years, no history of or concomitant brain disease or injury, and no history of major affective, thought, or substance abuse disorder. Two examiners independently administered the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, a mood adjective checklist, and a modified Mini-Mental State Examination to 20 subjects who agreed to participate. They also rated subjects on research diagnostic criteria for depression and obtained a dexamethasone suppression test for each subject. Eighteen subjects completed neuropsychologic evaluation. All evaluations were completed within six weeks of the patient's stroke. Subjects fell into four distinct clinical groups based on averaged data: (1) no affective symptoms, (2) verbal distress only, (3) vegetative symptoms only, and (4) a combined disorder with both distress and vegetative symptoms. The presence of verbal reports of distress, vegetative signs, or both were associated with longer hospital stays and greater neuropsychologic impairment.

Affective Symptoms

Rest and exercise hemodynamic studies in patients with isolated aortic stenosis.

Hemodynamic data obtained during rest and exercise in 22 patients with aortic stenosis were analyzed. Mean aortic valve gradient for the group did not change significantly during exercise but there was large individual variability. Aortic valve flow increased during exercise in all but 2 patients. There was no correlation between change in gradient and change in flow during exercise. Although the mean calculated aortic valve area for the group did not change significantly during exercise, the calculated area was larger during exercise in most patients. Change in the calculated valve area correlated best with changes in aortic valve flow, left ventricular stroke work index, and the product of left ventricular systolic pressure and stroke volume. This suggests that in some patients there may be a dynamic component to aortic valve obstruction that may vary with changing hemodynamics.

Adult

BASICS.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Emergency Medical Services