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Biomedical subjects

M Brady

Publications and source records attributed to M Brady.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Self-fulfilling effects of stigmatizing information on children's social interactions.

The stigmatizing effects of negative expectancies were examined in observations of interactions between children with and without a behavior problem. Ss were 68 pairs of unacquainted boys in Grades 3-6. In each dyad, a normal boy was either told that his partner had a behavior problem or given no expectancy; this expectancy manipulation was crossed with the partner's actual diagnostic status with respect to hyperactivity. The perceivers' expectancy that their partner had a behavior problem as well as the actual diagnostic status of the target adversely affected the boys' interactions. Behavioral data suggest how the expectancies were communicated to the target. The processes underlying interpersonal expectancy effects and the ways in which a childhood stigma can act as a self-fulfilling prophecy are discussed.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗
PubMed1992

Drug screening of newborns by meconium analysis: a large-scale, prospective, epidemiologic study.

A large-scale, prospective drug screening of newborns by meconium analysis was done to determine more accurately the prevalence and epidemiologic characteristics of drug use in a high-risk urban, obstetric population. Every other neonate delivered in a perinatal center from November 1988 to September 1989 was prospectively enrolled and their meconium was analyzed by radioimmunoassay for the metabolites of three commonly abused drugs--cocaine, morphine (opiates), and cannabinoid. In 3010 subjects studied, 44% were positive for cocaine, morphine, or cannabinoid; 31% were positive for cocaine, 21% for morphine, and 12% for cannabinoid. In contrast, only 335 (11%) mothers admitted to illicit drug use: 52% of their newborns had a positive urine drug screen and 88% had a positive meconium drug screen. Prevalence of drug use among the pregnant women varied per month. A profile of the pregnant addict in the population studied was noted (P less than .001): service patient, single, multigravid (greater than 3), and little or no prenatal care. The major problems associated with drug use during pregnancy were principally noted in the group that was exposed to cocaine and opiates and in the group where the mothers admitted to the use of illicit drugs. On the other hand, a large number of neonates who have been exposed to drugs in utero, particularly those whose mothers denied the use of drugs, appear normal at birth and may not be recognized. Improved detection of these newborns at risk can be achieved with a high index of suspicion and meconium drug analysis.

Cannabis↗
PubMed1988

Asymptomatic Chlamydia trachomatis infections in teenage males.

This study examined the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis infections of the urethra in asymptomatic teenage males in a juvenile detention setting. Gonorrhea cultures, chlamydia smears using the direct immunofluorescent antibody (DFA) technique, and 15-20 ml of a first-catch urine (FCU) sample were obtained. Of the 227 adolescent males screened, 205 had experienced sexual intercourse. Twenty-seven (13.2%) of the sexually active adolescents had positive DFA smears for C. trachomatis. Three (1.5%) had positive Neisseria gonorrhoeae cultures. A urine leukocyte count of greater than 10 per high-power field gave a 91% specificity but only a 26% sensitivity for a positive DFA. The high prevalence of chlamydia in this population and the relative low cost of the DFA screen for chlamydia make this a useful procedure for discovering unsuspected disease, particularly in a high-risk population. The FCU screen for leukocytes was of limited value in identifying asymptomatic infection.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Single, high-dose intravenous dexamethasone as an antiemetic in cancer chemotherapy.

The antiemetic effect of graded, single high-dose intravenous dexamethasone was studied in 27 patients receiving combination chemotherapy with either doxorubicin (50 mg/m2) or cis-platinum (100 mg/m2). A total of 57 cycles were individually evaluated, utilizing a detailed rating system. Nausea and vomiting did not occur in 20 of 57 cycles; in 17, the chemotherapy was doxorubicin-based, and in 3 it was cis-platinum-based. Of the 37 cycles associated with nausea and vomiting, 32 contained cis-platinum and 5 doxorubicin. The average dexamethasone dosages for doxorubicin and platinum-containing combinations were 40 and 95 mg/m2, respectively. Side effects included a dose-dependent sensation of perineal pruritus (11 patients, 17 cycles) lasting for several minutes, and subjective feelings of increased appetite and well-being. Dexamethasone administered intravenously 15 min prior to chemotherapy in a dose of 40 mg/m2 apparently provides highly effective antiemetic protection for patients receiving treatment cycles containing doxorubicin; however, for patients receiving regimens containing cis-platinum, the antiemetic effect of dexamethasone as a single agent is limited.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Immune interferon is a growth factor for human lung fibroblasts.

A number of immunologically mediated lung disorders are characterized by the presence of fibrosis. In these studies, we demonstrate that immune (gamma) interferon, as well as interleukin-1 (IL-1), can function as a growth factor for human lung fibroblasts. Interleukin-2 has no effect on the proliferation of these cells. Interferon increases the proliferation of lung fibroblasts in a dose-dependent manner and functions as a progression factor by complementing the growth-promoting effects of a characterized competence factor such as fibroblast growth factor. These observations suggest that interferon, as well as IL-1, may play an important role in the fibrotic response as well as the immune response in the lung.

Cell Division↗
PubMed1984

Broviac catheter-related Malassezia furfur sepsis in five infants receiving intravenous fat emulsions.

Malassezia furfur, a lipophilic fungus commonly found on the skin of healthy adult, was isolated from Broviac catheter blood cultures in five sick infants who were receiving fat emulsions intravenously. The most common manifestations of sepsis included apnea and bradycardia, low-grade fever, interstitial pneumonia, elevated neutrophil band counts, and thrombocytopenia. All infants recovered without antifungal therapy after removal of the Broviac catheters. Early onset of fungemia after catheter placement in these five infants and the recovery of M. furfur from the skin of nearly 33% of hospitalized premature neonates indicate that contamination of the Broviac catheter at time of placement may be the most likely origin of infection.

Catheters, Indwelling↗
PubMed1984

Lung parenchymal injury induced by bleomycin.

Bleomycin, a chemotherapeutic agent used to treat various malignancies, is thought to directly injure lung tissue. Granulocytes, which can also injure lung tissue, are found in large numbers in the initial stages of bleomycin-induced lung injury. An in vitro method, using 3H-uridine-labeled rat lung explants as the target tissue, was used to determine whether bleomycin could directly injure lung tissue. Bleomycin itself injured the explants in a dose-dependent manner. Supernatants of explants exposed to bleomycin exhibited chemotactic activity for granulocytes. The bleomycin-exposed tissues, but not their supernatants, induced granulocytes to produce superoxide anion. These studies demonstrated that bleomycin can directly injure lung tissue at doses approaching peak serum levels in humans, and that granulocytes may be attracted to the lung by a chemotactic factor released by lung tissue injured by bleomycin. These studies suggested that granulocytes may play a significant role in bleomycin-induced lung injury.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Role of interleukin-2 release by lung T-cells in active pulmonary sarcoidosis.

Using a human T-cell line sensitive to interleukin-2 (IL-2), we evaluated supernatants of unstimulated, purified lung T-lymphocytes from patients with sarcoidosis and high-intensity alveolitis (active disease), patients with sarcoidosis and low-intensity alveolitis (inactive disease), patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and normal volunteers for the presence of IL-2. After 24 h in culture, supernatants of lung T-cells from patients with sarcoidosis and high-intensity alveolitis contained significantly greater amounts of IL-2 than did supernatants of lung T-cells from the other 3 groups, which we used as controls (p less than 0.001 for each comparison). The IL-2 present in supernatants of lung T-cells had a molecular weight of approximately 15,000 daltons and the supernatants that contained IL-2 significantly (p less than 0.01) increased in vitro immunoglobulin production by T-cell-depleted normal mononuclear cell suspensions stimulated with pokeweed mitogen. These studies suggest that the release of IL-2 by lung T-cells may explain in part the local proliferation of T-cells and hypergammaglobulinemia that are characteristic of pulmonary sarcoidosis.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

T-lymphocyte subpopulation abnormalities in apparently healthy patients with hemophilia.

T-lymphocyte populations in 12 apparently healthy heterosexual adult patients with hemophilia have been examined to ascertain if these patients have abnormalities in their lymphocyte subpopulations similar to those in homosexual men, Haitian refugees, and narcotic addicts. A striking reduction in the helper to suppressor cell ratio ([0.86 +/- 0.14]:1) was found in 9 of the 12 patients. These abnormalities were similar to those previously described in two patients with hemophilia critically ill with Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, and in homosexual men. The abnormality in the ratio of helper to suppressor T cells may be related to the continual exposure of patients with hemophilia to commercial clotting factor concentrates. However, these patients with abnormal T-lymphocyte subpopulations remain healthy. At present there is insufficient evidence to advocate a change in therapeutic practices in patients with hemophilia.

Adolescent↗