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Biomedical subjects

R W Porter

Publications and source records attributed to R W Porter.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Congenital talipes equinovarus: II. A staged method of surgical management.

A staged method of surgical management for congenital talipes equinovarus is described. The hindfoot was corrected and rebalanced early in 125 feet, and in 66 feet a second-stage medial forefoot correction was performed in the second, third or fourth year. The hindfoot relapsed in 19% and the forefoot in 9%; these feet were treated by further soft-tissue surgery. No bony operation was necessary. Assessment before and after operation allows comparison with other series.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1987

The vertebral canal: I. Nutrition and development, an archaeological study.

The lumbar vertebral canal was measured in adult spines from two archaeological populations, and was compared with four physiological stress indicators, (cribra orbitalia, porotic hyperostosis, dental hypoplasia and Harris lines). The stature of 38 juvenile skeletons and their canal size were compared with those of the adults. By 4 years of age the midsagittal diameter and the area of the vertebral canal was fully mature and the mean interpedicular diameter 87% of adult size. There was a differential pattern of growth, with the proximal spine maturing first. The trefoil shape was not seen at L5 before puberty. Dental hypoplasia correlated with a small interpedicular diameter at L1, L2 and L3, and Harris lines with a small midsagittal diameter at L1, L3 and L5, a small area at L5 and a more trefoil canal at L4 and L5. There is evidence that adverse environmental factors are associated with the development of spinal stenosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

The vertebral canal: II. Health and academic status, a clinical study.

This study was designed to test the concept that a shallow vertebral canal in the adult may act as a marker of impaired development in early life. If that same impaired development also affected the immune and central nervous systems, there could be a relationship between the vertebral canal size, health, and academic status. A retrospective analysis was made of the general practitioner records of 94 patients, some with very narrow canals and some with wide canals. There were significantly more episodes and total attendances with infections, more episodes of low-back pain, and more attendances with trauma in those with small canals. A prospective study compared the GCE examination results of 331 children whose canals had been measured by ultrasound 3 years previously. The children in the highest three deciles for canal size performed significantly better than those in the lowest decile (P less than 0.01). There is evidence that a relation may exist between the sagittal diameter of the lumbar vertebral canal and health and academic status.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Value of ultrasonic measurement of spinal canal diameter in general practice.

The diameter of the spinal canal was measured by ultrasonic scanning in 193 patients with back pain and 193 matched controls. The spinal canal was found to be significantly narrower in the patients compared with all 193 controls (p less than 0.01) and compared with 132 of the controls with no history of back pain (p less than 0.001), but measurement of canal size was found not to have any value in the prognosis or management of back pain in general practice.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Symptoms associated with lysis of the pars interarticularis.

Comparisons were made between the symptoms of 131 patients with lysis of the pars interarticularis and 2229 patients without lysis, attending a first referral back pain clinic. The canal diameter measured by ultrasound was compared in the two groups, and the slip ratio measured for those with olisthesis. There were significantly fewer patients who had symptoms associated with disc prolapse and lysis of the pars. It is suggested that an enlarged central spinal canal may protect the patient with a pars defect from disabling root problems in the presence of a disc lesion. The most common symptom in those attending with lytic defects was pain in the back and/or referred pain, occurring with nearly twice the frequency for other attenders at the clinic. The incidence of lysis (5.6%) in patients attending the clinic was probably no greater than its incidence in the general population.

Back Pain↗
PubMed1983

Calcitonin treatment for neurogenic claudication.

Forty-one patients with a possible diagnosis of neurogenic claudication were treated with Calcitonin for four weeks. Eleven responded with considerable improvement in their walking distance. Ten agreed to enter a randomized double-blind cross-over trial, and eight made a correct assessment. It is concluded that Calcitonin is effective in relieving symptoms of neurogenic claudication for some patients. Five patients have received the drug for over one year with no serious side effects, and two have not relapsed after discontinuing the drug. Patients likely to respond will probably have symptoms affecting both legs equally pain extending below the upper calf, limiting walking to under a mile; an abnormal myelogram; and no more than one inappropriate sign. They are more likely to be men in late middle age who have been engaged in manual work. The beneficial effect of Calcitonin is probably the result of an arterial shunt mechanism, whereby a reduction in skeletal blood flow provides for a deprived cauda equina.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Unilateral spondylolysis.

Five vertebrae with unilateral spondylolysis are presented. The associated asymmetry of the posterior elements supports the concept of a localised form of growth deficiency. The defect is difficult to demonstrate radiologically, and is perhaps present more frequently than is recognised. It should be suspected clinically from asymmetry of the neural arch and from unilateral wedging of the vertebral body, and may be demonstrated by further radiographic examination. The clinical significance is uncertain, but one patient is presented in whom unilateral spondylolysis was associated with intermittent sciatic pain.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

Somatosensory-evoked potentials and slow oscillations in patients with cerebral lesions.

Somatosensory-evoked potentials induced by electrical stimulation of the median nerve were recorded in patients with intracerebral lesions and in normal controls and were studied by means of spectral analysis. The results shown that (1) there is a statistically-significant difference between spectral distributions obtained from normal subjects and those obtained from patients; (2) whereas in normal subjects, specific frequency components of the spectrum are enhanced (are "driven") at specific frequencies of stimulation, in patients with cerebral pathology, such driving is completely or partially abolished; and (3) these differences between normal subjects and patients become more evident at frequencies of stimulation that may vary from one patient to another; for this reason it is suggested that the use of a fairly wide range of frequencies of stimulation may be of great importance when such methods are employed in the evaluation of the functional state of the brain.

Adult↗