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Biomedical subjects

P Wright

Publications and source records attributed to P Wright.

At least 325 records · Page 18Linked to original sources
PubMed1970

Presenting information in tables.

In spite of the variety of circumstances in which tabulated information is used, little has been known about the relative effectiveness of different formats. But it has recently been found that some types of table are incomprehensible to many people, and that aspects of presentation which were intended to help the user can in fact turn out to be a handicap. This paper surveys our present knowledge about the optimal design of tabulated information.

Journal Article↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Efficacy of fibrinolysis in the emergency department for acute myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND: Patients with an acute myocardial infarction require a rapid response to their symptoms and the earlier fibrinolysis is given (where indicated), the better the outcome. AIMS: The aim of this study is to compare 'door to needle times' for fibrinolysis in Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI) in three phases of one year each, at Letterkenny General Hospital. METHODS: In the PREINTERVENTION year all fibrinolysis was performed in the Coronary Care Unit (CCU). In the INTERVENTION year Emergency Department (ED) fast track fibrinolysis was introduced and in the POST INTERVENTION year most fibrinolysis was performed on fast track in the ED. RESULTS: The time saved by the introduction of ED fibrinolysis was significant, 41 minutes on average per patient. Elderly, female patients were more likely to bypass ED fast track fibrinolysis and to be brought to CCU for fibrinolysis, with attendant delays. This has educational implications in relation to the variation in clinical presentation of AMI with age and sex. CONCLUSION: The ED fast track fibrinolysis system is recommended as an effective, safe, achievable and worthwhile intervention towards improving 'door to needle times' for fibrinolysis in AMI.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Ethanol, errors, and the speed-accuracy trade-off.

Ethanol has been shown to have a relatively greater effect on error rates in speeded tasks than temazepam, and this may be due to a differential effect on the speed-accuracy trade-off (SATO). This study used different instruction sets to influence the SATO. Forty-nine healthy volunteers (24 males, aged 18-41 years) were allocated at random to one of three instruction conditions--emphasising accuracy, neutral, and emphasising speed. After familiarisation, they took part in two sessions spaced at least 4 days apart in which they received either ethanol (0.8 g/kg, max 60 g males, 50 g females) or placebo in randomised order. Tests were administered starting at 30 and 75 min postdrug. Instructions significantly affected performance. In two maze tasks, one on paper, the other on a pen computer, the pattern of instruction effects was as expected. A significant increase in errors with ethanol was seen for both maze tasks, and there was a tendency to speed up with ethanol (significant only for the pen computer task). Responses to fixed stimulus sequences on the Four-Choice Reaction Test also showed a tendency to speed up and an increase in errors with ethanol, while all other tests showed both slowing and increases in errors with ethanol compared to placebo. Error scores are consistently increased by ethanol in all test situations, while the effects of ethanol on speed are variable across tests.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of fatty (fa) allele and high-fat diet on adipose tissue leptin and lipid metabolism.

Leptin is an adipocyte-secreted hormone that binds hypothalamic receptors and potently decreases food intake. Leptin receptor defects in homozygous mutant Zucker fatty ( fa/fa) rats lead to massive obesity, hyperphagia, decreased energy expenditure, and insulin resistance, while the phenotype of heterozygous ( Fa/fa) lean rats lies between lean ( Fa/Fa) and obese ( fa/fa) rats. Whether heterezygotes exhibit specific changes in lipid metabolism in a diet-responsive manner is not clear. Thus, the specific aim of this study was to test whether the presence of one fa allele modulates lipid metabolism and leptin, and whether these effects are exacerbated by high-fat diet. We demonstrate that the presence of one fa allele significantly increases lipogenesis in adipose tissue assessed by glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) and fatty acid synthase (FAS) activities. FAS is more responsive to high-fat diets than GPDH in Fa/fa rats. Adipose tissue leptin levels are significantly higher in fat pads of Fa/fa compared to Fa/Fa rats. Moreover, Fa/fa rats fed high-fat diet show an additional two-fold increase in leptin levels compared to wild type rats on the same diet. Collectively, these results indicate that the presence of one fa allele increase adipocyte lipogenic enzyme activities, which results in hyperleptinemia concurrent with increased adiposity.

Adipocytes↗
PubMedDate not supplied

An examination of factors influencing black fertility decline in the Mississippi Delta, 1880-1930.

Although the fertility decline in the black population in the Mississippi Delta between the late 1870's and early 1930's closely paralleled that of the national black population, it rose much more dramatically in the 1940's and 1950's to almost 1880 levels. Given the especially rural and oppressed conditions of blacks there, the initial decline seems puzzling. Low fertility rates in the 1930's reflected a large proportion of childless females. Investigations of changing contraceptive usage and mate exposure suggest both were minor components at most. Several physiological impairments were investigated including dietary deficiences, malaria, tuberculosis, and sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Evidence suggests STD played the major role, facilitated by nutritional and other health problems. Models relying heavily on those developed by McFalls and McFalls (1984) suggest 50-80 percent of the decline could have been due to the spread of STD. Age-specific birth rates for different periods and post-World-War-II fertility increases seem consistent with this finding.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Waking at night: the effect of early feeding experience.

The mothers of 180 preschool children were interviewed in their homes in a survey of feeding preferences and sleeping behaviour. We report here on the differences in current sleeping patterns and the age at which night feeds were dropped. There are clear differences in these two behaviours according to whether the baby was breast or bottle fed, and this result is not explicable in terms of social class. Night feeds disappear more slowly in the breast fed infant, and the problem of night waking both in the first year of life and when at nursery school appears to be associated with earlier breast feeding. The importance of such a finding is discussed in relation to the advice offered to mothers by health professionals.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Association between leprosy and immunoglobulin allotypes: Gm-A2m and Km frequencies in Vietnamese.

The relationship between immunoglobulin allotypes and leprosy was studied in 91 unrelated patients and 100 healthy controls from Vietnam. Twenty Vietnamese patients with tuberculosis were also typed for the Gm, A2m and Km allotypes. The results were compared with those from the healthy controls. No significant association was found for the allotypes G1m(z,a,x,f) G2m(n), G3m(g,b), A2m(1,2) and Km(1,3) between the two groups of patients and the controls. Heterogeneity in the distribution of G2m(n), G3m(b), A2m(2) and Km(3) was found when 60 polar-lepromatous (LL) patients and 27 borderline-tuberculoid (BT) patients were separated out of the 91 leprosy patients. In the LL patients there appeared to be a significantly higher frequency of G2m(n), G3m(b) and A2m(2) in comparison with the BT patients (P less than 0.05). A significantly lower frequency of Km(3) was found in the LL patients in comparison with the healthy control group (P less than 0.05). The frequencies of the Gm-A2m haplotypes and of the occurrence of the Km(1) and Km(3) in the Vietnamese population were calculated on the basis of the results in the 100 samples of healthy controls. The main haplotype is Gmaf;n;b (frequency 0.676), occurring with A2m1 (0.200), as well as with A2m2 (0.476).

Gene Frequency↗