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Biomedical subjects

M Baumgarten

Publications and source records attributed to M Baumgarten.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

The psychological and physical health of family members caring for an elderly person with dementia.

Most elderly persons with dementia are cared for at home, usually by the spouse or an adult child. The objective of the present study was to determine whether there is an excess of psychological and physical health problems among family caregivers (CGs) of elderly persons with dementia. Data were obtained by interview from close family members of dementia patients (CGs), and from a comparison group made up of close family members of patients undergoing cataract surgery (non-caregivers, NCGs). CGs had significantly higher levels of depression and physical symptoms than NCGs. The association between caregiving and the health variables was stronger among subjects who were the patient's spouse than among those who were the patient's child. Furthermore, greater behavioral disturbance in the demented patient was associated with higher levels of morbidity in the CG. The results suggest that CGs might benefit from careful monitoring of their health status, and from greater access to specialized support services.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

Mechanism of photoinhibition of photosynthetic water oxidation by Cl- depletion and F- substitution: oxidation of a protein residue.

New evidence on the chloride requirement for photosynthetic O2 evolution has indicated that Cl- facilitates oxidation of the manganese cluster by the photosystem II (PSII) Tyr-Z+ radical. Illumination above 250 K of spinach PSII centers which are inhibited in O2 evolution by either Cl- depletion or F- substitution produces a new EPR signal which has magnetic characteristics similar to one recently discovered in samples inhibited by depletion of Ca2+ only [Boussac et al. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 8984; Sivaraja et al. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 9459]. The physiological roles of Cl- and Ca2+ in water oxidation are thus linked. The characteristics include a nearly isotropic g = 2.00 +/- 0.005, a symmetric line shape with line width = 16 +/- 2 mT, almost stoichiometric spin concentration relative to Try-D+ = 0.6 +/- 0.3 spin/PSII, very rapid spin relaxation at all temperatures measured down to 6 K, and an undetectable change in magnetic susceptibility upon formation (less than 1 mu B2). The signal appears to originate from a spin doublet (radical) in magnetic dipolar contact with a transition-metal ion, most probably a photooxidized protein residue within 10 A of the Mn cluster (Mn-proximal radical). It is distinct from the three other protein-bound radical-type electron donors found in the PSII reaction center: Tyr-D+, Tyr-Z+, and C+. This signal photoaccumulates to a stable level under continuous illumination at 270 K and decays only after illumination stops.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Chlorides↗
PubMed1990

Validity and reliability of the dementia behavior disturbance scale.

Behavioral disturbance is a common and distinctive feature of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Existing instruments designed to quantify behavior disturbance among patients with dementia tend to be quite heterogeneous, including many items that do not refer to behavioral disturbance as such, but rather to cognitive, psychological, or somatic symptoms, or functional impairments. A 28-item Dementia Behavior Disturbance (DBD) scale was developed to avoid some of the problems encountered with the older instruments. In two samples of patients with dementia (n = 50 and n = 46), the most common symptoms were repetitive questions, losing or hiding things, lack of interest in daily activities, nocturnal wakefulness, unwarranted accusations, excessive daytime sleeping, and pacing. The coefficient of internal consistency was greater than .80 in both samples, and the correlation between scores obtained from the same subjects at a two-week interval was moderately high (Pearson's correlation coefficient = .71). There was a relatively high correlation between DBD scores and scores on Greene's Behavior and Mood Disturbance scale, and higher DBD scores were associated with increased duration and severity of disease. These preliminary results indicate that the DBD may be a useful and valid measure of one dimension of the dementia syndrome.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Characterization of a homologue of bithorax-complex genes in the leech Hirudo medicinalis.

We report the isolation and characterization of the Hirudo medicinalis homoeobox gene Lox2. Sequence analysis shows that it contains a region that has homology to Drosophila and vertebrate homoeodomains of the Antennapedia class. In addition, Lox2 shares homology with sequences in the bithorax complex Ultra-bithorax (Ubx) and abdominal A (abdA) genes in a region adjacent to the C-terminus of the homoeodomain. Whole mount in situ hybridization of embryos of various ages demonstrates that during early development this gene has temporally and spatially restricted patterns of expression that resemble those of the homoeotic genes of the Drosophila bithorax complex and of many vertebrate homoeobox genes. The largest accumulation of transcripts was seen in the posterior two-thirds of the developing leech central nervous system in 7-14-day-old embryos. Adult leeches also express Lox2. We propose that in Hirudo, Lox2 represents the ancestral gene of the Ubx and abdA genes of the bithorax complex of Drosophila.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

The health of persons giving care to the demented elderly: a critical review of the literature.

The majority of the demented elderly live at home, usually cared for by their spouse or an adult child. Clinical impressions suggest that caring for an older person suffering from a dementing disorder may lead to physical and mental health problems for the caregiver. A critical review of the research literature on this topic was carried out. The review revealed that a multitude of physical and mental health outcomes as well as numerous correlates of health problems have been studied in relation to caregiving. Furthermore, several methodological problems were identified in the studies reviewed: inadequate sample size, unrepresentative study samples, uncontrolled confounding factors, inappropriate study design, multidimensional outcome measures, and absence of comparison groups. The diversity of outcomes studied and the numerous methodological problems make it difficult to make statements about the causal effect of caregiving on health, or to assess the public health impact of caring for a demented elderly person. Nevertheless, the work done to date suggests interesting directions for future research.

Dementia↗
PubMed1989

Low birth weight and household structure.

Data collected during postnatal visits were used to study the risk of low birth weight (LBW) among unmarried women living alone and among unmarried women living with a partner or another adult, using married women living with their husbands as the reference group. Information on 1,627 singleton live births was included in a binomial regression, controlling for seven potential confounding variables: mother's age, education, gestational weight gain, parity, smoking status, and presence of medical problems preceding or during pregnancy. Unmarried women living alone were at greater risk of bearing a LBW infant than married women living with their husbands (RR = 2.0, 95% Cl = 1.2-3.4). Unmarried women living with a partner had a slightly lower risk of LBW than married women (RR = 0.6, 95% Cl = 0.3-1.3) and unmarried women living with another adult had a slightly increased risk (RR = 1.3, 95% Cl = 0.6-3.0), although neither of these results was statistically significant. On the basis of these findings, we suggest that public health interventions should target women according to their household structure rather than their marital status.

Female↗
PubMed1988

Evaluation of a mutual help network for the elderly residents of planned housing.

We set up a mutual help network among the elderly residents of a government-subsidized apartment building and evaluated its impact on their social ties, social support satisfaction, and depression. A quasi-experimental design was used, with the residents of a similar building located in the same neighborhood serving as the control group. A total of 230 individual services were exchanged, and 28 group activities were organized during the study period. There was almost no difference between experimental and control groups with respect to the change over the study period in the number of social ties with other residents of the building. Support satisfaction decreased in both groups, but the decrease was larger in the experimental group. The control group had a slight decrease in the frequency of their depressive symptoms, whereas the experimental group had a moderate increase. More research is needed on the ability of social support interventions to produce beneficial effects on mental health among individuals who are not experiencing a particular life stress.

Aged↗
PubMed1988

A telephone support service to reduce medical care use among the elderly.

A randomized controlled trial was performed to determine whether a telephone support system could reduce the frequency of ambulatory physician encounters. A total of 182 elderly persons were enrolled in the study. The experimental group was regularly called by a public health nurse and could call the nurse every weekday during normal working hours. The control group received no intervention. A year later, the experimental group reported 7.40 ambulatory encounters with a physician (SD = 4.94) and the control group reported 8.61 encounters (SD = 6.85). The difference between the groups, after adjusting for various prognostic factors, was 1.20 (95% confidence interval, -0.84 to 3.24). Although the difference did not achieve statistical significance, the results suggest that telephone support may bring about a substantial decrease in medical care utilization. Further research assessing the cost-advantage ratio for this type of intervention is recommended.

Aged↗
PubMed1988

Subtalar fusion for isolated subtalar disorders. Preliminary report.

Retrospective observations on subtalar fusions performed for isolated subtalar disorders in 11 feet were performed to determine whether a satisfactory result could be obtained without significant changes to the talonavicular and calcaneocuboid joints. Preoperative diagnoses included five feet with degenerative arthritis secondary to a calcaneal fracture, four feet with a talocalcaneal bar, one foot with a degenerative subtalar arthropathy of unknown cause, and one foot with an unstable subtalar joint secondary to a peroneal tendon rupture. The average follow-up period was 41.5 months (range, 23-103 months). The hindfoot was fused in a average of 6 degrees of valgus. The feet maintained approximately 50% of their transverse tarsal motion, compared with the contralateral side. No foot developed hypermobility of any tarsal joint. Three feet fused for degenerative joint disease developed very mild talar beaking, and two feet fused for a tarsal coalition developed a mild progression or increase in talar beaking. Three feet demonstrated very minimal osteophyte formation at the calcaneocuboid joint. Functional and pain ratings for patients who had fusions for talocalcaneal bars or degenerative joint disease were good to excellent. Minimal radiographic changes at the talonavicular and calcaneocuboid joints secondary to increased stress brought about by the fusion did not seem to be clinically significant. Isolated subtalar fusion for lesions limited to the subtalar joint, which includes talocalcaneal bars, is a satisfactory method of treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Synovial fluid osmolality in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

The osmolality of synovial fluid aspirated from the knees of 15 rheumatoid and 15 osteoarthritic patients was observed concurrently with the same measurement on blood serum. The group averages were compared to a group of 13 with identical apparati. Synovial fluid osmolality in rheumatoid arthritics (280 +/- 7.7 mmol/kg) was significantly different from that in osteoarthritics (297 +/- 16.9 mmol/kg), and both group averages were significantly different from normal (404 +/- 57 mmol/kg). Blood serum osmolality also differed between the normal and the two arthritic groups. The potential application of vapor pressure osmometry techniques in the diagnosis and management of joint disease is discussed.

Aged↗
PubMed1987

The changing frequency of childhood asthma.

Hospital admission rates for childhood asthma have increased markedly in many countries since the beginning of the 1970s. Prevalence of asthma, as reported by parents or children in occasional surveys, has also increased during this period. In Montreal, 7.2 per 1000 3-year-old children were admitted to the hospital with a diagnosis of asthma in 1980-1981, whereas the rate was 11.9 per 1000 in 1984-1985. For 7-year-old children, these rates were 3.2 per 1000 and 4.8 per 1000, respectively. On the other hand, the length of hospital stay decreased steadily during this period, and the mean number of admissions per child did not show a tendency to increase. For 3- and 7-year-old children together, the prevalence of asthma, determined from health insurance data, increased by 71%, from 3.76% in 1980 to 6.45% in 1983. Prevalence of other medical conditions also increased in this community, but much less than for asthma. An increase in the incidence of the disease cannot be excluded as the cause for the changing prevalence of asthma.

Asthma↗
PubMed1985

Computed axial tomography in C1-C2 trauma.

Twenty patients with C1-C2 vertebral trauma underwent computed tomographic (CT) scans to evaluate prospectively its efficiency for diagnosis and treatment. It is suggested that if standard roentgenograms are inconclusive, CT scan is recommended for further evaluation of C1 fractures and C1-C2 rotatory subluxation in preference to tomography and cineradiography. CT scans do not assess dynamic stability and may miss minimally displaced odontoid fractures. It was also concluded that they add little in the treatment of hangman's fractures, although scanning did show that the pathology was often more complex than anticipated. The clinician must be aware of the capabilities and the limitations of the specific scanner in use and work closely with the radiologist to maximize the yield of information. The CT scan is very helpful as an adjunct to standard x-ray studies, but is not recommended as a screening procedure.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Normal human synovial fluid: osmolality and exercise-induced changes.

We measured the osmolality of human synovial fluid in the knees of healthy young adults following minimum activity and exercise. These results were compared with each subject's blood-serum osmolality. The synovial fluid was hyperosmolal with minimum activity, decreasing to blood-serum levels after exercise.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

The accumulation of prominent tadpole mRNAs occurs at the beginning of neurulation in Xenopus laevis embryos.

Cloned cDNA probes have been used to measure the sizes and titers of transcripts in total RNA preparations during early development in Xenopus laevis. Of more than 20 different sequences derived from abundant and moderately abundant RNA which were present in full-grown oocytes and persisted during early development, the transcript sizes of all but 3 of these sequences were invariant. Two transcripts were of a higher molecular weight in oocytes than in embryos, but their titers in oocytes were less than 5% their titers in embryos and thus these larger maternal transcripts do not significantly contribute to embryonic, polysomal mRNA. The oocyte transcripts and the embryonic transcripts of one of these sequences are transcribed from different though cross-hybridizing genes. Cellular titers of a number of RNA sequences have also been studied and show that increases in the cellular titers of several poly(A)+RNA species are the result of de novo transcription and not simply polyadenylation. A number of sequences abundant in tadpole RNA but absent or very rare in eggs have also been examined. All of these sequences first appear in development in substantial titers in the late gastrula or early neurula, 12-15 hr after fertilization. Many other sequences already present in eggs which persist during development show an increase in titer 12-15 hr after fertilization. These data suggest that this late gastrula transcriptional event may be a major transition of gene expression that accompanies the cellular differentiation and morphogenesis that begin at this developmental time.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Catecholamine-induced insulin resistance of glucose transport in isolated rat adipocytes.

The effects of pre-incubation with isoprenaline and noradrenaline on insulin binding and insulin stimulation of D-glucose transport in isolated rat adipocytes are reported. (1) Pre-incubation of the cells with isoprenaline (0.1-10 microM) in Krebs-Ringer-Hepes [4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperazine-ethanesulphonic acid] buffer (30 min, 37 degrees C) at D-glucose concentrations of 16 mM, in which normal ATP levels were maintained, caused a rightward-shift in sensitivity of D-glucose transport to insulin stimulation by 50% and a decrease in maximal responsiveness by 30% (2) [A14-125I]insulin binding was reduced significantly by 35% at insulin concentrations less than 100 mu-units/ml and Scatchard analysis showed that this consisted mainly of a decrease in high-affinity binding. (3) Pre-incubation with catecholamines under the same conditions but at low glucose concentrations (0-5 mM) caused a fall in intracellular ATP levels of 65 and 45% respectively. (4) The fall in ATP additionally lowered insulin binding by 50% at all insulin concentrations and a parallel shift of the binding curves in the Scatchard plot showed that this was due to a decrease in the number of receptors. (5) At low and high ATP concentrations the insulin stimulation of D-glucose transport was inhibited to a similar extent. (6) Pre-incubation with catecholamines thus inhibited insulin stimulation of D-glucose transport in rat adipocytes mainly by a decrease in high-affinity binding of insulin, which was not mediated by low ATP levels. This mechanism may play a role in the pathogenesis of catecholamine-induced insulin resistance in vivo.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1983

Validity of work histories obtained by interview for epidemiologic purposes.

Many epidemiologic studies of the relationship between occupation and disease depend on job histories obtained by interview from study subjects. A validation study was undertaken to determine the accuracy of job histories obtained by interview, and to examine whether certain characteristics of respondents and of the study design influence reporting accuracy. For 297 subjects interviewed in Montreal between 1979 and 1981 in the context of a case-control study on occupational factors in cancer, it was possible to compare the names of reported employers with those recorded in the data bank of the government-run quasi-universal Pension Plan. The comparison was carried out year by year for the 13-year period 1966-1978. For the 13 X 297 person-years studied, 82.0% of reports agreed with the records. The extent of concordance did not differ substantially between subgroups defined by age, education level, or social class, nor was there a measurable difference in the degree of concordance between the first half of the 13-year period and the second half. There was some evidence that the three interviewers obtained job histories of varying quality.

Adult↗