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Biomedical subjects

M R Stegman

Publications and source records attributed to M R Stegman.

30 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

Calcium absorption in women: relationships to calcium intake, estrogen status, and age.

A total of 526 absorption studies, using both the double-isotope and balance-based methods, were performed in 189 middle-aged women in good general health. The study extended over 17 years of observation, with most subjects studied from two to four times at 5 year intervals. Each study was done on the woman's own self-selected calcium intake and was carried out under inpatient, metabolic balance controls. There was a highly significant inverse correlation between calcium intake and absorption fraction, with the best fit provided by an hyperbola in which absorption fraction is approximately inversely proportional to the square root of intake. The range of absorptive performance was very broad at all intake levels. Mean absorption fraction declined from a value of 0.45 at very low intakes (approximately 200 mg Ca per day) to approximately 0.15 at intakes above 2000 mg/day. There was a highly significant fall in absorption efficiency with age, amounting to approximately 0.0021 per year and a one-time decrease, amounting to approximately 0.022 at the time of menopausal estrogen loss.

Absorption↗
PubMed1988

Nutritional assessment of surgical patients.

In order to test the sensitivity and specificity of the East Orange Nutritional Screening Form (EONSF), nutritional assessments were performed on a random sample of 10% of general medical/surgical admissions at a large midwestern veteran's administration hospital. Patients were followed until discharge to determine if they met the standard criteria of additional nutritional support. The tool correctly identified patients at nutritional risk (sensitivity) 95% of the time and patients not at nutritional risk (specificity) 89% of the time. It proved to be an effective, low-cost tool for identifying patients at risk and for planning appropriate nutritional strategies.

Female↗
PubMed1983

Falls among elderly hypertensives--are they iatrogenic?

A cohort of 1,002 elderly ambulatory hypertensive patients were studied for nearly 4 years by this historical prospective design to determine the morbidity and mortality of the cohort and whether the level of blood pressure and antihypertensive medications increase the risk of falling in this group. During this time 148 reported falls; there were no resultant deaths in this cohort. Relative risk analysis derived from the logistic regression model demonstrated that neither blood pressure level nor type of antihypertensive medication was associated with falling after adjustment for confounding variables. Women, those who resided in nursing homes, although still considered to be ambulatory, and those with complaints of weakness, dizziness and/or orthostatic hypotensive symptoms were at higher risk of falling. These latter do not appear to be related to hypertension treatment. To discontinue this treatment, without further investigation of the symptoms, will not reduce the risk of falling but will increase the risk of a morbid or fatal event.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMed1983

The elderly hypertensive: a neglected patient?

A cohort of 1,002 elderly hypertensive patients who received care at six family practice residency program clinics in Iowa was followed for nearly four years in a historical prospective design study. Demographic and clinical data were abstracted and the end points of the study were the occurrence of a cerebrovascular accident (n = 37), myocardial infarction (n = 27), or death (n = 102). Survival regression analysis showed that the risk of cerebrovascular accident is greater than any other major morbid event and that risk is proportional to increasing levels of both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The findings are in agreement with published studies of hypertension and its treatment in other age groups.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Myocardial infarction survival: how important are patients' attitudes and adherence behaviors?

Positive attitudes toward and adherence to prescribed medical regimens among patients recovering from initial episodes of myocardial infarction (MI) intuitively have been viewed as beneficial. A cohort of 157 post-MI patients who participated in a cardiac rehabilitation program was tested for compliance with the Health Adherence Scale and Miller Attitude Scale during hospitalization and again six months later. This study reports on follow-up conducted two to five years after initial MI to determine whether patients' attitudes and adherence behaviors had a significant effect on subsequent cardiovascular morbidity and overall mortality after controlling for known risk factors. The data were analyzed using the Cox proportional hazard regression model. Neither positive patient attitudes nor adherence behaviors were associated with a reduced risk of a morbid or fatal event. However, this study found, as have many others, that the known risk factors of alcoholism, widowhood, cigarette smoking, and diabetes were significantly associated with repeat episodes of MI, while the only risk factor associated with mortality was repeat MI. The study suggests that the benefits of positive attitudes and adherence behaviors are outweighed by the influence of existing cardiovascular risk factors. Thus, the prevention of these risk factors remains the primary determinant in the reduction of MI.

Attitude to Health↗