Biomedical subjects

M C Mackey

Publications and source records attributed to M C Mackey.

59 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Neural ensemble coding and statistical periodicity: speculations on the operation of the mind's eye.

Statistical periodicity is a statistical property of densities which arises in the description of retarded dynamical systems. This property is particularly attractive as a possible mechanism for the ensemble coding of information in the nervous system because it operates rapidly and has high storage capacity. For a population of neurons which exhibits statistical periodicity, information would not be encoded by the periodicity, but rather by the spatio-temporal distributions of neural activity. Statistical periodicity is discussed in relation to the temporal binding hypothesis and to the occurrence of multistability in neural systems.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Women's experiences of preterm labor: a feminist critique.

Using a feminist perspective, women's experiences of preterm labor (PTL) were critiqued and compared with the medical establishment's perspective on PTL as described in the medical literature. Interview data from 29 women who participated in a larger study on the PTL experience were revisited and examined based on principles of feminist theory. The persistent "medicalization" of women's bodies was discussed and used as a framework to explore several issues: (a) the diagnosis of PTL and what it means to be at risk for this phenomenon; and (b) the treatment of PTL including the role of medications, activity, and home monitoring for uterine contractions. Based on the differences that emerged when PTL--was examined from two divergent standpoints--the women's perspective and the physician's perspective--some alternative approaches to PTL management that place women's lives at the center of the treatment process were suggested.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Women's expectations of the labor and delivery nurse.

Sixty-one, Lamaze-prepared, married multigravidae identified their expectations of the labor and delivery nurse in semistructured interviews conducted at 36 to 38 weeks' gestation. Findings indicate variations in the amount of involvement women expected from the nurses during labor and delivery: limited (n = 17), moderate (n = 22), or extensive (n = 22). Women varied in the amount of time they wanted nurses present, who they expected to make caregiving decisions, and whether or not they wanted nurses to assist them in managing labor and delivery.

Decision Making↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Adolescents' description and management of pregnancy and preterm labor.

OBJECTIVE: To describe adolescents' experiences with pregnancy and preterm labor. DESIGN: Naturalistic inquiry, a qualitative study using intensive, open-ended, tape-recorded interviews and constant comparative data analysis. SETTING: Antepartum units of two hospitals in the southeastern section of the United States. PARTICIPANTS: Eight African American and five white adolescents, ages 14-19 years, hospitalized for preterm labor. RESULTS: The findings are broadly conceptualized as (a) describing pregnancy and preterm labor and (b) managing pregnancy and preterm labor. "Responding to Pregnancy" consisted of descriptions of the adolescents' reactions to pregnancy (initial concern and dislike) and pathophysiologic responses that put the adolescents at risk for preterm labor. "Responding to Preterm Labor" included the various ways that adolescents became aware of preterm labor and their various understandings of the causes and consequences of preterm labor. Vignettes illustrate how adolescents managed pregnancy and preterm labor with ease or with difficulty. Adolescents who received support from others, especially their mothers, tended to deliver near or at full-term. CONCLUSIONS: Nurses can use the findings from this study as a guide for assessing and monitoring adolescents throughout pregnancy. Advanced practice nurses may have the educational background and philosophy of care to provide the most appropriate prenatal care to pregnant adolescents. Research is needed to further explore stressful experiences and support in adolescents' lives and how these are related to preterm labor and birth.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Women's evaluation of their childbirth performance.

OBJECTIVE: To describe women's evaluation of their own performance during labor and delivery. METHODS: Participants (N = 60) were Lamaze-prepared, married multigravidae, aged 21-37 years who responded to open-ended questions in tape-recorded interviews during their postpartum hospital stay. Qualitative data analysis was used to identify themes. FINDINGS: Women evaluated their childbirth performance as managing well (45%), having difficulty (35%), and managing poorly (20%). The following helped them to manage well: short, fast labors; minimal pain; Lamaze; husband's encouragement; being informed; feeling strong; medication; and nurses' and physicians' encouragement, help with Lamaze, and information. Women who had managed well before and who were confident about managing well again tended to evaluate their childbirth performance positively. A significant difference was seen in mean labor length: Women who managed well had the shortest labors and women who managed poorly had the longest. CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING: The women confirmed the notion that they had important work to do; they identified their own performance as one of the most important or the most important component of the childbirth experience.

Adaptation, Psychological↗