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Biomedical subjects

M Gracey

Publications and source records attributed to M Gracey.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

Hospital admissions for infections of aboriginal and non-aboriginal infants and children in Western Australia, 1981-86.

Rates of hospital admissions and bed usage for infections by Aborigines up to 15 years of age were much higher in Western Australia during 1981-86 than they were for the rest of the population. These rates for Aboriginal infants for gastroenteritis, for example, were 20-25 times and 40-50 times those for other infants. The rates mostly declined over the 6 years except for gastrointestinal and respiratory infections in Aboriginal infants and young children in rural and remote areas. Hospitalization rates reflect many factors which include disease incidence and severity but also distance, climate and access to medical and nursing care and their utilization. Preventative health programmes must be maintained to help improve the health of young Aborigines.

Australia↗
PubMed1989

Low birthweight and impaired growth to 5 years in Australian aborigines.

Twelve per cent of Aboriginal infants born in the Kimberley region of Western Australia in 1980 were of low birthweight; this is more than twice the incidence in the non-Aboriginal population of Western Australia. There was widespread faltering of growth (weight and height) after 6 months of age in Aboriginal children whether they were of normal or low birthweight. Growth retardation was more marked in low birthweight babies who showed little evidence of 'catch-up' growth in the first 5 years of life.

Australia↗
PubMed1989

Maternal health, breast-feeding and infant nutrition in Australian aborigines.

Undernutrition is widespread in Australian Aboriginal infants and children and is associated with high rates of infections, particularly of the respiratory and gastrointestinal systems. Maternal ill-health and undernutrition seem to be neglected factors which contribute to the high incidence of low birthweight in Aboriginal babies and to their poor growth in the first five years of life. More effective preventive programmes are needed to help overcome these problems.

Australia↗
PubMed1988

Growth and morbidity in children in a remote aboriginal community in north-west Australia.

As part of a wider social and environmental impact study, we have investigated the current state of health and nutrition in children who were living in a remote Aboriginal community in far north-west Australia. There was evidence of widespread mild-to-moderate malnutrition and a high prevalence of infections, particularly of the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts, and trachoma. Low birth weight was significantly associated with the presence of undernutrition at five years of age. Our results suggest that malnutrition in utero during infancy and in early childhood and the factors which cause it may impair the growth of young Australian Aborigines permanently.

Anthropometry↗
PubMed1988

An antibacterial and antiviral powdered soft-drink base.

Soft-drink powdered mixtures have been developed which are bactericidal against a range of enteric bacteria and Staphylococcus aureus and which kill some enteric viruses in vitro. These mixtures could be used to help reduce risks of water-borne diarrhoeal illnesses, and as the basis for oral rehydration solutions, which would resist bacterial contamination after their preparation, to treat patients with diarrhoeal dehydration.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1988

Gastro-enteritis in Australian children: studies on the aetiology of acute diarrhoea.

A prospective, year-long study of the microbiology of childhood gastro-enteritis in Perth showed that (i) Aeromonas-associated diarrhoea was the commonest recognized bacterial cause for acute diarrhoea, especially in summer, (ii) Campylobacter infections were the next most common bacterial cause, (iii) rotavirus and parasites were not significant causes of sporadic acute childhood diarrhoea, and (iv) enteric bacterial pathogens and intestinal parasites were often isolated from Aboriginal children, whether they had diarrhoea or not. Infections with enterotoxigenic bacteria, including enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) and enterotoxigenic Aeromonas spp., were important causes of acute diarrhoea in Aboriginal children. This is probably due to faecal pollution of their living environment and inadequate personal and community hygiene. Infections with enterotoxigenic bacteria, especially ETEC, are major causes of acute diarrhoea where living conditions are unsatisfactory, as in many developing countries. Simple and cheap methods are needed to identify these infections. A biotyping method was used to screen for ETEC which could improve the efficiency of recognizing these bacteria and help to reduce the number of tests needed to identify ETEC.

Aeromonas↗
PubMed1987

Food costs and nutrition of aborigines in remote areas of northern Australia.

A locally-relevant "market basket" has been devised to help to assess the cost of usual food purchases for Aborigines who live in the Kimberley region. The range of foods in the market basket is relatively restricted, especially for fresh vegetables. In some communities, basic food items cost over 40% more than they would in the Perth metropolitan area. Price differentials and other difficulties encourage unsatisfactory dietary patterns for Aborigines in the region. A food-voucher system is proposed as one possible way to help to overcome serious nutritional imbalances for pregnant women and their infants and young children who are especially vulnerable to nutritional deficiencies. This proposal is likely to be politically unpopular, so other ways should be sought to help to improve the health of Aboriginal mothers and their children.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗
PubMed1987

Physical size of 1887 aboriginal schoolchildren in the Kimberley region.

This study has documented the weights and heights of 1887 Aboriginal schoolchildren from communities throughout the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The data have been analysed in relation to age and sex. Median weights and heights of the Aboriginal children approximated the 10th percentile for weight, and the 25th percentile for height of non-Aboriginal WA children. The data show that Aboriginal children who live in the more remote communities of the Kimberley region were smaller in weight and height than were those who lived in the towns. Retrospective data indicate that these differences between children from remote and town communities were present at their birth and through childhood. Median body mass indices (BMIs) approximated the 10th percentile values for BMI of non-Aboriginal children in the earlier years. The expected increase in BMI with age occurred later in Aboriginal children (at 11-12 years) than in non-Aboriginal children (eight years); in the older Aboriginal children (older than 11-12 years) median values approximated 25th percentile values of non-Aboriginal boys and 50th percentile values of non-Aboriginal girls of the same age.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Prevention of contamination of oral rehydration fluids.

A treated city water supply and most waters tested from several tourist hotels in a popular international resort were found to be microbiologically safe for drinking, but untreated domestic water supplies and locally prepared soft drinks frequently had high levels of bacterial contamination and faecal pollution. A novel oral rehydration mixture, based on fruit juice cordial which kills intestinal bacteria in vitro, was effective for treating young children with diarrhoea and mild to moderate dehydration in the same environment.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1987

Purification of cytotoxic enterotoxin of Aeromonas sobria by use of monoclonal antibodies.

Cytotoxic enterotoxin of Aeromonas sobria was purified by affinity chromatography with monoclonal antibodies. The purified enterotoxin gave a single protein band in polyacrylamide gradient gel electrophoresis and its mol. wt estimated by this technique was 63,000; it had a pI of 6.2. The purified enterotoxin caused fluid accumulation in rat ileal loops and in infant mice, was cytotoxic to cultured cells, was haemolytic to human erythrocytes, and was lethal to mice after intravenous injection. The relative concentrations of enterotoxic, cytotoxic and haemolytic activities were approximately the same in a culture filtrate and in purified, electrophoretically homogeneous enterotoxin. The three activities were also inactivated to the same extent after incubation for 10 min at 56 degrees C. There was no immunological cross-reactivity with cholera toxin (CT) nor did antiserum to CT neutralise the biological effects of the toxin.

Aeromonas↗
PubMed1987

Pyloric stenosis in Western Australia, 1971-84.

Analyses of hospital records and census data for 1971-84 showed no significant increase in incidence of infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis in Western Australia. No link was found between breast feeding and incidence of disease. Low birth weight, short gestation pregnancies, and paternal family history of the disease were significant features.

Australia↗