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Biomedical subjects

L Harrison

Publications and source records attributed to L Harrison.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Correlates of occasional cigarette and marijuana use: are teens harm reducing?

This paper examines characteristics that distinguish heavy and occasional cigarette and marijuana use among U.S. high school seniors. High school seniors who completed the 1994 Monitoring the Future survey (N = 15,929) were classified as nonusers, occasional users, and heavy users of cigarettes and marijuana. Level of use was examined with regard to degree of perceived risk of regular use, perceived risk of occasional use as well as several psychosocial factors previously shown to be associated with use (e.g., peer use, close friends' approval of use, and self-esteem). Involvement with other drugs and high-risk behaviors across levels of use was also examined. Heavy users of cigarettes or marijuana reported significantly lower perceived risk of regular use of each substance compared to occasional users. Heavy and occasional users did not generally differ with regard to perceived risk of occasional use. Compared to heavy users, occasional cigarette or marijuana users reported significantly lower rates of illicit drug use, heavy alcohol use, and high-risk driving behaviors as well as fewer problem behaviors and higher grades. Some adolescents may moderate their cigarette and marijuana use to minimize harmful effects they associate with heavier use (i.e., they may be practicing harm reduction). Additional research is needed to better understand controlled substance use, and incorporate this information into prevention and cessation programs.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Evaluation of a comprehensive advisement program designed to enhance student retention.

Nursing schools are experiencing an increase in enrollment. However, students are done a disservice when there are no strategies to retain them. A primary strategy for enhancing student retention is the implementation of an effective advisement program. The authors describe the implementation and evaluation of a comprehensive advisement system that was a major component of a special project grant from the division of nursing designed to enhance student retention.

Counseling↗
PubMedDate not supplied

All-porcelain labial margin for ceramometal crowns.

The elimination of the labiogingival metal collar of a porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM) restoration is an attempt to achieve an improved esthetic result. In their expectation of a more cosmetic tooth restoration, patients may influence dentists to use the all-porcelain labial margin to avoid metal showing in the final restoration. Success of this type of restoration depends upon proper tooth preparation. The all-porcelain margin requires a 1.2-mm wide labiogingival shoulder of approximately 70 or 90 degrees wrapping into the interproximal area. Much of the effectiveness of the restoration depends upon the design of the metal substructure. The following change is made in the design of this substructure for this modified PFM crown: the labiogingival portion of the metal is finished back to the gingival-pulpal line angle with the metal against the axial wall being from 0.3 mm to 0.5 mm thick. This allows for 0.2 to 0.3 mm of opaque and 0.7 to 1.0 mm of shoulder porcelain. The direct lift-off technique is a useful method of achieving clinically acceptable all-porcelain margins. Such restorations may give excellent results.

Crowns↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Factors influencing the frequency of ventilator circuit changes.

Nosocomial infections and their subsequent treatment are costly in terms of pain and suffering and the financial burden on the health service. Critically ill patients are subjected to invasive therapy and monitoring and increased handling and therefore the likelihood of contamination and cross-infection is increased. Ventilator circuitry has been implicated in the development of respiratory infections. Intensive care personnel must be vigilant with infection control procedures, most importantly hand washing and disinfection. In intensive care units the changing of ventilator circuits every 24 hours is based upon tradition rather than analysis of research and reflective practice. Research indicates that a bacterial filter has a significant influence in reducing the contamination of ventilator circuitry. Research shows that there is no significant increase in bacterial colonization of respiratory gas or tubing after 48 hours as opposed to 24 hours. It is possible to be cost-effective without sacrificing quality of care.

Equipment Safety↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Health begins at home: the housing-health interface for older people.

Housing issues are of fundamental importance to the health and independence of older people in Britain, but this concept is not reflected in planning for health, housing, or community care. An analysis of community care plans and public health reports reflects how little attention the majority give either to the importance of housing or to the potential of primary care as a means of information exchange between older people and planning processes. Interviews with practitioners and policy makers in four cities, combined with a review of the considerable literature on planning and joint planning in the health and social services, helped to identify the problems in achieving more integrated systems. Structural blockages as fundamental as the definitions of 'health' and 'housing', the attitude of society to manual work, the hidden nature of the problems of older people, and the failure of planning to categorize according to the level of need are identified and summarized in a chart showing how these factors are linked and self-reinforcing. The article concludes with a vision of how things might work more effectively without requiring unrealistic changes. The authors offer a challenge to planners and joint commissioners to gather different kinds of information on need; to have long-term, as well as short-term, strategies; to think broadly across categories of issue; and to be prepared to invest money in new ways. Most significantly, by redefining the role of the Director of Public Health, we identify a focal point at which the responsibility and authority for coordinating, championing, and review could lie.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Risk of prediction...?

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Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Active bacterial core surveillance of the emerging infections program network.

Active Bacterial Core surveillance (ABCs) is a collaboration between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and several state health departments and universities participating in the Emerging Infections Program Network. ABCs conducts population-based active surveillance, collects isolates, and performs studies of invasive disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, group A and group B Streptococcus, Neisseria meningitidis, and Haemophilus influenzae for a population of 17 to 30 million. These pathogens caused an estimated 97,000 invasive cases, resulting in 10,000 deaths in the United States in 1998. Incidence rates of these pathogens are described. During 1998, 25% of invasive pneumococcal infections in ABCs areas were not susceptible to penicillin, and 13.3% were not susceptible to three classes of antibiotics. In 1998, early-onset group B streptococcal disease had declined by 65% over the previous 6 years. More information on ABCs is available at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/abcs. ABCs specimens will soon be available to researchers through an archive.

Bacterial Infections↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Physical activity patterns and body mass index scores among military service members.

Questionnaires on exercise practices, reasons for exercising, factors that would increase exercise, and demographics were mailed to a stratified random sample of 19,510 active duty personnel in all of the United States military services who were stationed at 38 large military installations and a number of remote locations. Responses were returned by 8,572 (55%). Approximately 63% exercised three times a week for 15-20 minutes, and 15% did not exercise at all. Mean BMI was 25.2. The top five reasons for exercising were to improve physical conditioning, have fun, manage weight, improve appearance and manage stress.

Body Mass Index↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Dual-parameter model for prediction of type I diabetes mellitus.

The recent cloning and recombinant expression of novel islet autoantigens [glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) 65 and islet-cell autoantibody 512 (ICA512)] has made possible the determination of whether the quantitative expression of autoantibodies to these molecules is correlated with age of diabetes onset and rate of progression to diabetes, similar to insulin autoantibodies (IAAs). We measured autoantibodies reacting with GAD65 (GAD65AA), ICA512 (ICA512AA), and insulin in patients who recently had received a diagnosis of diabetes and in first-degree relatives prospectively identified and then followed because of the expression of high titers of ICA. Levels of IAAs (but not GAD65AA or ICA512AA) correlated inversely with age at diagnosis of diabetes and directly with time to diabetes onset among the ICA-positive relatives. In multiple linear regression models, the level of IAAs remained a significant predictor of the time to diabetes after allowing for first-phase insulin secretion. The unique and dramatic association of IAAs with progression to diabetes suggests that IAAs contribute directly to disease pathogenesis or that levels of IAAs are influenced uniquely by the process, leading--at different rates in different prediabetic individuals--to type I diabetes. In addition, the linear regression model described (involving two variables, first-phase insulin secretion and levels of IAAs) aids in the prediction of time to diabetes among ICA-positive relatives.

Adolescent↗