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Biomedical subjects

M Gordon

Publications and source records attributed to M Gordon.

At least 523 records · Page 29Linked to original sources
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A beta peptide vaccination prevents memory loss in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease.

Vaccinations with amyloid-beta peptide (A beta) can dramatically reduce amyloid deposition in a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. To determine if the vaccinations had deleterious or beneficial functional consequences, we tested eight months of A beta vaccination in a different transgenic model for Alzheimer's disease in which mice develop learning deficits as amyloid accumulates. Here we show that vaccination with A beta protects transgenic mice from the learning and age-related memory deficits that normally occur in this mouse model for Alzheimer's disease. During testing for potential deleterious effects of the vaccine, all mice performed superbly on the radial-arm water-maze test of working memory. Later, at an age when untreated transgenic mice show memory deficits, the A beta-vaccinated transgenic mice showed cognitive performance superior to that of the control transgenic mice and, ultimately, performed as well as nontransgenic mice. The A beta-vaccinated mice also had a partial reduction in amyloid burden at the end of the study. This therapeutic approach may thus prevent and, possibly, treat Alzheimer's dementia.

Aging↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Use of pain assessment tools: is there a preference?

The burn nursing Delphi study identified pain management as the most important area of burn nursing research. The question, "What is the best method to measure the pain of the patient with burns?" ranked in the top 10% of the nursing research priorities and is the research question of this study. The most commonly used pain assessment tools were determined in a 1994 survey of burn centers. Of those that responded, 67% used the Visual Analog Scale and 43% used an adjective scale. Forty patients were enrolled in this prospective, multicenter study. Visual analog and color scales were used during a 3-day cycle and word and faces scales were used during another 3-day cycle. Pain levels were assessed twice each day, once during a quiet time and then again immediately after a painful activity. At the end of each 3-day cycle the patient was asked which tool he or she preferred. At the completion of the study period the patient was asked to select the overall most preferred tool for pain assessment. Although this study indicates that patients prefer the faces and color scales to the most commonly used visual analog and adjective scales, further research is needed to determine the potential impact of preferred tools on pain intervention. The results may also lead burn centers to re-evaluate current selection of pain assessment tools.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The relationship of burnout, stress, and hardiness in nurses in a military medical center: a replicated descriptive study.

The purpose of this descriptive study was to determine whether the personality trait of hardiness is a predictor of burnout and whether it can buffer the effect of stress on burnout. Forty-nine registered nurses working in 7 special care units completed the Tedium Burnout Scale, the Nursing Stress Scale, and the Hardiness Test. Results indicate that burnout, stress, and hardiness had a significant relationship (P < .001). Hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that hardiness alone accounted for 35% of burnout variance (P < .05) and that the addition of stress had no effect. A previous study reported that burn unit nurses had the least burnout and greatest hardiness. However, in this study, nurses from the Burn Intensive Care Unit had the highest burnout and stress scores and the lowest hardiness scores of nurses from the 7 units. This study confirms findings by a previous study that hardiness is a predictor of burnout but is not a buffer in the stress-burnout relationship. To further understand burnout and hardiness, longitudinal and multisite studies that include burn units are recommended.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Toward theory-based diagnostic categories.

As a social institution, nursing has a responsibility to society for the development of knowledge in the areas described by nursing diagnoses. This article focuses on the need for developing the theoretical basis of each diagnostic category. Diagnoses are viewed as summarizations of underlying conceptual models for interpreting observations, and as such, they provide a perspective for understanding and thinking about a set of clinical observations. At present many diagnostic concepts do not meet this standard and suggest primitive, pretheoretical ideas with a minimal knowledge base. The importance of having valid and reliable diagnostic categories for use in making clinical judgements and as a focus for care planning is discussed. A cycle of development is outlined in three phases: diagnostic concept identification, concept analysis-model development, and construction/reconstruction of diagnostic categories. It is suggested that a useful category captures the conceptual understanding and state of knowledge development about a phenomena in its (a) name, (b) definition, and (c) cluster of defining characteristics.

Concept Formation↗
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High frequency: treatment priority nursing diagnoses in critical care.

The purpose of this study was to identify high frequency-treatment priority nursing diagnoses in critical care nursing using survey research methods. Through a mailed survey the prevalence of 135 nursing diagnoses from the NANDA Diagnostic Taxonomy and other diagnoses was rated by a national, random sample of 678 critical care nurses. Six important diagnostic areas were: sleep-rest, activity, nutritional-metabolic, cognitive-perceptual, self-perception (mood state), and health management (risk) patterns. Twenty diagnoses were rated as nearly always or frequently present in their practice by 70% or more of the nurses. Findings can be used to focus clinical studies of the highly prevalent diagnoses.

Critical Care↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Stem cell factor is a potent synergistic factor in hematopoiesis.

Stem cell factor (SCF), a ligand for c-kit, has a broad range of activities including effects on cells at or near the level of the multipotential stem cell as well as on committed cells. Preclinical studies show that SCF can protect against lethal irradiation, elicit multilineage responses in peripheral blood and bone marrow cellularity, and increase circulating peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) in a dose-dependent manner. Recombinant human SCF has major clinical potential through its synergy with other factors, especially recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, to enhance mobilization of PBPC.

Animals↗
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Compare and contrast.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The LD label for relatively well-functioning students: a critical analysis.

The number of students identified since the mid-1970s as having learning disabilities has produced a corresponding increase in the population of such individuals in postsecondary programs. The Americans with Disabilities Act, along with Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, provide the basis for civil rights for students in higher education. These laws protect individuals who have a substantial limitation in a major life activity when compared with the general population. A disparity between the legal definition and the clinical definition of learning disabilities, which can encompass those identified on the basis of academic underachievement relative to intellectual potential, has stimulated debate about the fairest, most appropriate standard for declaring a student functionally impaired. Extending services to individuals without significant academic impairment may tax or even deplete scarce resources for others in greater needs, distort the normal processes by which individuals select careers, and diminish the credibility of the diagnosis itself.

Achievement↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A clinical path for adult diabetes.

The use of clinical paths for patient care management was explored by this development team as a mechanism to provide consistent, high-quality care to hospitalized patients in high-volume, high-risk diagnostic categories. Reviewing the historical aspects and importance of clinical paths helped expand the team's perspective to incorporate pre- and posthospitalization phases of patient care into the clinical path being developed. A multidisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, health educators, and dietitians from both inpatient and outpatient departments of Kaiser-Santa Teresa Medical Center in San Jose, California, devised and implemented an Adult Diabetes Mellitus care path. Staff education preceded the implementation of the care paths. Measurements of quality indicators showed improvements in patient satisfaction, patient education, patient knowledge, and nutrition assessments.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hazards associated with aerial spraying of organophosphate insecticides in Israel.

Aerial application of organophosphates can result in exposure to drift and leaf residues for pilots, ground crews, field workers, and residents near sprayed fields. Exposure can be by either the airborne or dermal route, and can produce illness (headaches, fatigue, diarrhea, cramps, respiratory problems) even with low-grade depressions in cholinesterase. Alkyl phosphate metabolites have been shown to be "gold standard" measures of such exposures. Experience in Israel indicates that reduction of health hazards from exposure to drift and leaf residues may be attained by the use of a comprehensive "mix" of preventive measures. These measures include, first and foremost, reduction in total amount of organophosphates used, followed by substitution of less for more toxic organophosphates, reduction in length of spray season, banning the use of flaggers, and greater reliance on tractor spraying. Cotton yield per hectare cultivated has increased despite a reduction in use of pesticides of all kinds and organophosphates in particular. Enclosure and air-conditioning (to prevent heat stress) of cockpits, protective clothing, training and licensing of pilots have been implemented. Education and communication of information, in keeping with the right-to know principle on hazards and how they should be controlled and monitored, is a part of a comprehensive strategy. Aerial or ground spraying should produce no drift in adjacent residential communities. The criterion for achieving this goal is the absence of urine alkyl phosphate metabolites above the threshold of detection.

Air Pollutants↗