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Biomedical subjects

R Meyers

Publications and source records attributed to R Meyers.

49 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1984

Value of consensual ratings in differentiating organic and functional low back pain.

Evaluated 40 low back pain patients by a multidisciplinary team (orthopedic surgeons, nursing staff and a medical psychologist) to identify the behavioral characteristics associated with functional and organic determinants of pain. Significant relationships were found between orthopedists' clinical judgments and higher scores on MMPI scales F, HS, and MA, between nurses' ratings and higher scores on MMPI scales D, PA, PT, and SI, and on the Zung Depression Scale and STAI Trait-Anxiety scale. Physicians and nurses consensually agreed on 27 cases. Behavioral observations of the orthopedists and the nursing staff revealed contrasting patterns of behavior for those patients classified as organic or functional. The power of the consensual rating method and its usefulness in clinical appraisals were discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

The utility of an improved readability short form of the MMPI with elderly male patients.

Compared an improved readability short form of the MMPI (IRF) with the FAM and the MMPI-168 in a sample of 100 male veterans, aged 60 and over. The three forms were found to perform acceptably well in terms of measures commonly used to evaluate the statistical validity of MMPI short forms. Median correlations of short form estimates with the MMPI standard scales were .91, .90, and .89 for the FAM, MMPI-168, and the IRF, respectively. In comparison with the other two forms, the IRF was intermediate in the frequency of codetype matches, but was highest in rate of correct validity decisions. The IRF also showed the fewest significant differences between the means of the estimated MMPI scale scores and those that actually were obtained. It was concluded that although the results demonstrated no strong statistical advantage for any short form, the IRF, because of increased comprehensibility, might have a wider applicability, particularly among patients with whom short forms would be used most often.

Aged↗
PubMed1982

The psychometric properties of the Health Locus of Control Scale with medical and surgical patients.

Examined the psychometric properties of the Health Locus of Control (HLC) Scale with inpatients from medical and surgical wards (N = 111) at a Veterans Administration Medical Center. Factor analyses suggested that the two-factor solution met important criteria that involved simple structure, parsimony, and psychological meaningfulness. Factor I was comprised entirely of salient items that were internally worded, and Factor II was comprised of salient externally worded items. Item remainder correlation coefficients were calculated; the lowest value was .18 for item 5, and the highest value was .45 for items 1 and 10. Cronbach's alpha was .63 for the internally worded items and .56 for the externally worded items. The psychometric properties were considered adequate, although results were somewhat lower than those reported in the original HLC article. Clinical application of the scale with medical and surgical inpatients is discussed with particular emphasis on outcome studies.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1982

Alcoholism treatment by disulfiram and community reinforcement therapy.

Traditional disulfiram treatment has often been ineffective because of a failure to maintain usage. The present study with 43 alcoholics compared: (1) a traditional disulfiram treatment, (2) a socially motivated Disulfiram Assurance program and (3) a Disulfiram Assurance program combined with reinforcement therapy. About five sessions were given for each program. At the 6-month follow-up, the traditional treatment clients were drinking on most days and no longer taking the medication. The Disulfiram Assurance treatment resulted in almost total sobriety for married or (cohabitating) clients but had little benefit for the single ones. The combined program produced near-total sobriety for the single and married clients. These results indicate a promising integration of chemical, psychological and social treatment of alcoholism.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Rapid detection of experimental E. coli endophthalmitis by the Limulus lysate test.

Experimental E. coli endophthalmitis was produced in rabbits. The Limulus lysate test was applied to aqueous and vitreous samples at various intervals after the intravitreal injection of E. coli organisms. Results indicated that this test is feasible using vitreous and aqueous samples. The Limulus test was positive for E. coli endotoxin within hours after infection, requiring only 1 hr to determine the presence of endotoxin after sampling. This test may have some value in the rapid diagnosis of gram-negative endophthalmitis.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Neutrophil recruitment after remote scald injury.

Thermal injury is one trigger for pulmonary neutrophil recruitment. This article describes the time course of neutrophil recruitment after scald injury. Mice aged 8 to 10 weeks were anesthetized and subjected to 15% topical scald injury. Animals were put to death at 6 hours, 24 hours, 3 days, and 7 days after injury, and the pulmonary tissue harvested for staining with hematoxylin and eosin and neutrophil esterase. Cell counts for neutrophil accumulation were obtained. Control animals were handled in a comparable manner apart from the scald injury. Animals killed at 6 hours demonstrated significant neutrophil recruitment relative to the control. This difference had resolved at 24 hours. Animals killed at 3 and 7 days again demonstrated neutrophil accumulation despite normal behavior and absence of weight change from the control. Quantitative cultures of burn wounds failed to disclose infection. Scald injury was associated with significant pulmonary neutrophil recruitment that resolved at 24 hours. The presence of an untreated wound was associated with neutrophil recruitment beyond 24 hours despite outward normal behavior.

Analysis of Variance↗