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Biomedical subjects

S Allison

Publications and source records attributed to S Allison.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

Undernutrition and function: another piece in the jigsaw [commet].

The stomach, small intestine and pancreas share in the progressive bodily dysfunction associated with undernutrition and weight loss. All these changes are reversed by nutritional support whether given enterally or parenterally, emphasizing that parenteral and enteral nutrition are the treatment of gastrointestinal failure as dialysis is of renal failure or ventilation is of respiratory failure. The observations described by Winter and colleagues have important implications for our understanding of the relationship between nutrition and physiology. They also have important implications for the care of patients with gastrointestinal disease.

Cachexia↗
PubMed1998

Prediction of 10 repetition maximum for short-arc quadriceps exercise from hand-held dynamometer and anthropometric measurements.

Short-arc quadriceps exercise are commonly prescribed in physical therapy for strengthening knee extensor musculature. Determining the appropriate starting resistance has traditionally been a trial-and-error procedure. Therefore, developing an expedient method of estimating the correct starting resistance may lead to a more accurate exercise prescription. The primary purpose of this study was to establish a technique for predicting an individual's 10 repetition maximum (10 RM) based on hand-held dynamometer (HHD) strength recording and additional anthropometric predictor variables. Fifty healthy subjects (31 males and 19 females), aged 22-53 years, participated in the study. A prediction equation for determining 10 RM using HHD strength recording, weight, gender, and age was developed. By implementing this equation, clinicians can predict a normal, healthy, young to middle-aged adult's 10 RM within +/- 4.17 kg with a 95% confidence level (SEE = 2.13 kg).

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Adolescent suicide, depression and family dysfunction.

This study investigated associations between adolescents' perceptions of their family dynamics (McMaster Family Assessment Device, FAD) and depression, suicide thoughts and attempts. High school students (mean age 15.2 years) completed self-report questionnaires including the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the FAD, questions about suicidal thoughts, plans and attempts, deliberate self harm, and selected life experiences. Univariate analysis showed that family dysfunction measured on the FAD is associated with thinking and planning suicide, deliberate self harm, suicide attempts, as well as severe depression (BDI > or = 22). Despite this, stepwise regression indicated that family dysfunction influences suicide behaviors indirectly through other variables such as depression. The FAD is recommended as a useful addition to questionnaires seeking to identify vulnerability to both depression and adolescent attempted suicide in early detection studies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Continuing medical education in marital and family therapy: a survey of South Australian psychiatrists.

OBJECTIVE: South Australian psychiatrists were surveyed to determine their impressions of the usefulness of marital and family therapy (MFT) in the management of serious psychiatric conditions and to ascertain their previous experience with Continuing Medical Education (CME) about family therapy. It was expected that psychiatrists' preferences regarding CME would be related to their clinical experience of the usefulness of MFT. METHOD: One hundred and twenty psychiatrists returned a questionnaire about their training, clinical and research interests, with ratings of the usefulness of MFT and CME preferences. This represented 65% of those eligible for the CME programme. RESULTS: Thirteen percent of the respondents found MFT to be extremely useful and a further 47% found it moderately useful in their current practice. There was evidence of a possible training effect: respondents who had previous CME rated MFT as more useful, especially for mood disorders. Furthermore, the treatment of mood disorders seemed to have a particular relevance in family psychiatry, making a statistically unique contribution to ratings of MFT usefulness in the respondents' total practice. Sixty-nine percent of the respondents requested further CME in family therapy. This represented 45% of all South Australian psychiatrists. Respondents who rated MFT as more useful in practice were significantly more likely to be interested in CME. CONCLUSIONS: There seems to be sufficient interest and clinical experience among psychiatrists for MFT to be included in CME courses. It is recommended that further training focus on major mental disorders, especially mood disorders and schizophrenia.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Effects of surface texture on weight perception when lifting objects with a precision grip.

In this paper, we show that, when lifting an object using a precision grip with the distal pads of the thumb and index finger at its sides, the perceived weight depends on the object's surface texture. The smoother the surface texture, the greater the perceived weight. We suggest that a smoother object is judged to be heavier because the grip force, normal to the surface, required to prevent it from slipping is greater. The possibility of there being an influence of surface texture per se is excluded by a second experiment that employed a variant of the precision grip in which the thumb supports the weight of the object from underneath. With the grip oriented in this way, there is no need to match grip force to surface texture and, under these conditions, there is no effect of surface texture on weight perception. In the first two experiments, the test and comparison weights were lifted successively by the same hand. In a third experiment, the effect of surface texture was replicated for sequential lifts made with separate hands. Thus, the effect is not restricted to comparisons made with the same hand.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Influences on control in diabetes mellitus: patient, doctor, practice, or delivery of care?

OBJECTIVE: To assess patient, doctor, practice, and process of care variables for their effect on glycaemic control in diabetes mellitus, and to quantify their relative effects. DESIGN: Search of general practice medical records, patient questionnaires and examination, doctor questionnaire, videotaping and analysis of consultations, and practice questionnaire. SETTING: 12 practices with 32 participating general practitioners in Nottinghamshire. SUBJECTS: 318 patients randomly selected from those with diabetes in each practice, 10 for each participating doctor. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Glycaemic control as measured by random glycated haemoglobin A1c estimation (random haemoglobin A1 measurement). RESULTS: Glycaemic control was significantly related to the disease process as measured by years since diagnosis, treatment group, and number of diabetes related clinical events. Females had significantly worse control than males. Other patient factors, such as age, social class, lifestyle, attitudes, satisfaction, and knowledge, had no association with glycaemic control. Of all the doctor factors examined, only doctors who professed a special interest in diabetes achieved significantly better glycaemic control. Bigger and better equipped practices and those with a diabetic miniclinic had patients with significantly better glycaemic control, as did those with access to dietetic advice. Patients attending hospital clinics had worse glycaemic control, but this seemed to be attributable to the case mix and practice characteristics. Shared care did not contribute to the multiple linear regression model. CONCLUSION: Glycaemic control among diabetic patients in the community is related to such factors as treatment group, sex, and years since diagnosis; it is also related to the organisation and process of care. The findings support concentrating diabetic care on partners with special interests in diabetes in well equipped practices with adequate dietetic support.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1990

Bovine dopamine beta-hydroxylase cDNA. Complete coding sequence and expression in mammalian cells with vaccinia virus vector.

We have isolated cDNA clones for bovine dopamine beta-hydroxylase from an adrenal medulla cDNA library and have determined the complete coding sequence. The largest cDNA clone isolated from the library is 2.4 kilobase pairs (kb) and contains an open reading frame of 1788 bases, coding for a protein of 597 amino acids and Mr = 66,803. The predicted amino acid sequence of the bovine cDNA contains 85% identity with human dopamine beta-hydroxylase (Lamouroux, A., Vingny, A., Faucon Biquet, N., Darmon, M. C., Franck, R., Henry, J.P., and Mallet, J. (1987) EMBO J. 6, 3931-3937; Kobayashi, K., Kurosawa, Y., Fujita, K., and Nagatsu, T. (1989) Nucleic Acids Res. 17, 1089-1102). Northern blot analysis reveals that the cDNA hybridizes to an mRNA of 2.4 kb present in bovine adrenal medulla, but not in kidney, heart, or liver. In addition, the cDNA hybridizes to a second RNA species of 5.5 kb, which is 4-fold less abundant than the 2.4-kb RNA. In vitro translation of a synthetic RNA transcribed from the 2.4-kb cDNA produces a 68-kDa protein, which is specifically immunoprecipitated by antiserum to bovine dopamine beta-hydroxylase. The 2.4-kb cDNA was cloned into a vaccinia virus vector, and the recombinant virus was used to infect the rat pheochromocytoma PC12 and monkey BSC-40 fibroblast cell lines. In both cell lines, infection with recombinant virus produces a protein of Mr = 75,000, which reacts with antiserum to bovine dopamine beta-hydroxylase. These results indicate that the 2.4-kb cDNA contains the genetic information necessary to code for the bovine dopamine beta-hydroxylase subunit.

Amino Acid Sequence↗