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Biomedical subjects

S B Lansky

Publications and source records attributed to S B Lansky.

32 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Anorexia nervosa.

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Adolescent↗

Childhood cancer: nonmedical costs of the illness.

The financial burden of cancer treatment is a major source of anxiety for the families of pediatric cancer patients. Parents of these patients report that nonmedical, out-of-pocket expenditures are the most troublesome because, unlike medical bills, nonmedical costs must be paid immediately and are rarely reimbursed. Data on nonmedical expenditures (transportation, food, lodging, clothing, family care, and miscellaneous) were collected from 70 patients' families for one-week periods at three-month intervals. Multiple regression analysis was carried out to ascertain the factors influencing costs. Factors contributing to nonmedical costs included level of care, the patient's Performance Status, distance from the treatment center, and family size. Thirty-two families reported loss of pay when one or both parents accompanied the child to the hospital. When this loss was combined with the nonmedical costs, the results indicated a serious strain on the family budget. For half the families surveyed, the total expenses plus loss of pay amounted to more than 25% of the weekly family income.

Adolescent↗

Adaptation of siblings to childhood malignancy.

To explore the impact of childhood cancer, school-aged patients and their healthy siblings from 71 families were given one or more of the following psychologic tests: the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale, the Bene-Anthony Family Relations Test, and the Thematic Apperception Test. The siblings showed even more distress than the patients in the areas of perceived social isolation, perception of their parents as overindulgent and overprotective of the sick child, fear of confronting family members with negative feelings, and concern with failure (older siblings only). In other areas, such as anxiety and vulnerability to illness and injury, the patients' and siblings' experience appeared very similar. These results indicate that siblings, like patients, experience severe stress when confronted with a chronic, life-threatening illness such as cancer. In recognizing and attending to their needs, one can practice primary prevention in pediatrics by facilitating their healthy adaptation to a very difficult situation.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Refusal of treatment: a new dilemma for oncologists.

Thirteen cases of childhood malignancy are described in which treatment was refused. Four groups are presented: 1) the parents refused treatment for a child with a good prognosis, 2) parents refused treatment for a child with a poor prognosis, 2) the patients refused treatment, and 4) child abuse or neglect occurred in conjunction with refusal of treatment. Parents refused treatment on the basis of religious grounds, seeking unproven methods of treatment, a conviction that treatment was worthless, or a feeling that treatment of the child interfered with the parents' life-style. Children refused treatment because they did not like the therapy side effects, did not like painful procedures, or felt the disease was hopeless. Some families refused treatment at one point, then later asked to resume treatment. Management of these cases depends, to a great extent, on prognosis. Those children having a good prognosis can be called to the attention of the juvenile court on the basis of medical neglect. In children with a poor prognosis, recourse to the juvenile court is not indicated. In all cases, frequent communication with the families is extremely important even when treatment has been refused.

Adolescent↗

Childhood cancer: Parental discord and divorce.

Parents of 191 children who were treated for cancer over a seven-year period completed and returned a questionnaire concerning marital status. Contrary to the prediction of a high divorce rate among these families, the study found a person-year divorce rate of 1.19%. This is slightly lower than the 2.03% person-year divorce rate among married couples with children in the states of Kansas and Missouri. The Arnold sign indicator analysis of the Minnesota multiphasic personality inventory was used to measure marital stress in 38 intact couples whose children were treated for cancer. The study sample experienced more stress than a comparison group of 23 couples who had hemophilic children. Both of these populations had more stress than a normal standardization group but less than a standardization group of marriage counselees.

Adult↗

Postnatal somatic growth in infants with atypical fetal growth patterns.

We differentiate patterns of postnatal physical growth in 61 fullterm newborns with either normal or atypical somatic fetal growth. At birth, 14 normal babies had average ponderal indices, 14 were overweight for length (high ponderal index), 18 were underweight for length (low ponderal index), and 15 had short crown-heel lengths for dates and normal ponderal indices. Appropriate statistical analyses determined attained and velocity growth of the four groups during the first postnatal year. Statistically significant and marked differences in postnatal growth were noted between short babies and babies with low ponderal indices. The slow postnatal growth of the short infants appeared to be a continuum of their fetal growth pattern. On the other hand, infants born with low ponderal indices accelerated their weight gains and reversed the malnourished state in which they were born. These findings suggest that there are two distinct types of fetal growth retardation.

Appetite↗

School phobia in children with malignant neoplasms.

With the advent of improved therapy, many of the childhood malignant diseases have become chronic. This group of patients and their families demonstrate many problems usually not associated with the primary disease, but which can become incapacitating. School phobia was selected as one such problem for this study. The 11 cases reported here demonstrate the insidious and subtle nature of the onset of the disease. With aggressive management, some long-standing cases of school phobia could be reversed, but not all. In a group subjected to a prophylactic regime at the onset of their malignant neoplasm, there have been no new cases of school phobia. It is important for pediatricians caring for these children to search actively for the signs of school phobia and intervene as soon as possible.

Activities of Daily Living↗