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Biomedical subjects

K Willis

Publications and source records attributed to K Willis.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2002

Self-release of ski-binding.

We investigated whether twenty-five male and female downhill skiers of different ages (11 - 63 years) and skiing skills were able to self-release their ski binding by an inward twist of the foot and leg. We also studied possible correlations between thigh muscle torques and the ability to release the binding. All subjects used the same ski and binding, Marker Titanum M48, individually set according to weight, height, skiing skill, age, and boot sole length. Prior to the test we used a special torque wrench, the Vermont Release Calibrator, to verify that the settings of the binding corresponded to the appropriate torque (Nm) to produce a release. Isokinetic concentric and eccentric quadriceps and hamstring torques were measured. EMG was used to study which muscles are engaged in this self-test. Nineteen skiers were able to release the binding, while four children and the two muscularly weakest skiers were not. The medial hamstrings produced the highest degree of muscle activity during the inward twist release of the binding. There was a highly significant correlation between thigh muscle torques and the ability to release the binding.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Periodic limb movement disorder and restless legs syndrome in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Sleep disruption can lead to symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children. Since periodic limb movement disorder and/or restless legs syndrome can cause sleep disruption, we assessed whether these two specific sleep disorders are likely to occur in children with ADHD. We asked a series of 69 consecutive parents of children with ADHD questions about the symptoms of periodic limb movement disorder. Based on a positive response to these periodic limb movement disorder queries, 27 children underwent all-night polysomnography. Eighteen children (aged 2 to 15 years) of the 27 (26% of the 69 children with ADHD) had 5 or more periodic leg movements in sleep per hour of sleep and had complaints of sleep disruption, thus fulfilling the criteria for periodic limb movement disorder. A comparably age- and sex-matched group of children referred to a sleep laboratory for sleep complaints but without ADHD showed only a 5% prevalence (2 of 38 subjects) of periodic leg movements in sleep (P=.017). Eight of the 18 children with ADHD and periodic limb movement disorder and one of the two control patients with periodic limb movement disorder had both a personal and parental history of restless legs syndrome symptomatology. This study further documents the occurrence of periodic limb movement disorder and restless legs syndrome in children and is the first large-scale study establishing a possible comorbidity between ADHD and periodic limb movement disorder. We propose that the sleep disruption associated with periodic limb movement disorder and restless legs syndrome and the motor restlessness of restless legs syndrome while awake could contribute to the inattention and hyperactivity seen in a subgroup of ADHD-diagnosed children.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Building community networks: a road trauma education and training program for rural areas.

The work of the Road Trauma Support Team highlights the ongoing impact of road trauma on rural communities. Small population size and close social networks mean that road trauma can have a negative effect on social relations across the whole community. Much of the 'flow-on' effect of road trauma, in the form of community distress, can be alleviated by increased skills, information about responding to road trauma, and the establishment of supportive community networks. This paper reports on the implementation and evaluation of a project that addressed knowledge, skills and awareness of road trauma in rural communities. Funded by the Rural Health Support Education and Training (RHSET) program and conducted by the Road Trauma Support Team, the project focused on the impact of traumatic events in small communities and strategies to maximise effective participation of community members and health workers in response to trauma. Piloted in six rural communities in northern Tasmania, the project has developed an educational resource package.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1995

Education for change in a post-modern world: redefining revolution.

Social and behavioural sciences are established components in the curriculum of undergraduate nursing degrees. The purpose is to introduce future and practising nurses to the social and political influences which inform their workplaces and practices. Inevitably an awareness of the structural barriers and the powerful political interests involved in health can lead to feelings of powerlessness and despair of achieving change. Yet the skills of critical analysis and political awareness developed in study such as this are essential for health workers in the increasingly complex and politically charged domain in which they work. This paper will explore problems and barriers encountered in development of curriculum and teaching social and behavioural sciences in health. It will propose an alternative conceptual model, based on post-structuralism, as one way of addressing these barriers. This approach shifts the focus from meta-theoretical sociological concepts such as class, gender and culture, to one of examining subject positions, discourse, contestation and local action, thus enabling the exploration and development of possibilities for change. The paper will also provide a case study to illustrate this alternative approach.

Behavioral Sciences↗
PubMed1994

Continuous infusion bleomycin in AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma.

PURPOSE: To determine the toxicity, response, and survival rate of 72-hour continuous infusion bleomycin administered to patients with AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Seventeen patients with biopsy-proven and measurable-disease AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma were treated with a continuous infusion of bleomycin at a dose of 20 mg/m2/d for 3 days every 3 weeks. All patients were evaluated for toxicity, response, and survival using the National Cancer Institute common toxicity criteria, and both the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) and AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) response criteria. Fourteen of 17 patients (82%) enrolled had at least two on-study poor-risk factors by ACTG staging criteria. RESULTS: A total of 59 cycles of therapy were administered. Only one cycle (2%) was complicated by an absolute neutrophil count less than 500, and there were no episodes of febrile neutropenia. Fifty-four percent of cycles were associated with fever during the infusion, and five cycles (8%) were complicated by grade 3 rash. There were no other clinically significant (> or = grade 3) toxicities. There were seven partial remissions (41%) by ECOG criteria (95% confidence interval, 18% to 64%) and 11 partial remissions (65%) by ACTG criteria (95% confidence interval, 42% to 88%). Three of five (60%) previously treated patients had a partial remission with this schedule of bleomycin. The median survival duration was 7 months, with a range of 2.5 to 25 months. CONCLUSION: This continuous infusion schedule of bleomycin is active in patients with advanced-stage AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma and has acceptable toxicity. This regimen should be further evaluated in patients with earlier stage Kaposi's sarcoma and as salvage therapy.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1991

Hearing-impaired children's rhythm perception and speech.

The role of rhythm in the speech intelligibility of 18 hearing-impaired children, aged 15 years with hearing losses from 40 to 108 db, was investigated. Their perceptual judgement of visual rhythm sequences was superior to that of the hearing controls, but their scores were not correlated with their speech intelligibility.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

Absence of parasympathetic denervation of the iris in alcoholics.

Forty patients with a history of alcohol abuse were treated with a 2% solution of methacholine to determine the prevalence of iridic parasympathetic denervation. Three (8%) of the alcoholics showed iris constriction of 1.0 mm or more, compared with three (8%) control subjects. In contrast, damage to the iridic parasympathetic nerve supply occurs in approximately 80% of patients with diabetes mellitus as determined by the same pharmacological technique.

Alcoholism↗