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Biomedical subjects

S Baldwin

Publications and source records attributed to S Baldwin.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

The effects of dietary fat and selenium on the development of preneoplastic lesions in rat liver.

In this study, the effects of dietary fat and selenium on the development of putative preneoplastic foci induced by aflatoxin B1 were examined. Rat hepatic gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) activity, selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase activity, glutathione, and total lipid were analyzed 3 and 13 weeks after the start of dietary and carcinogen treatment. Results indicate that high dietary fat has an enhancing effect on the development of preneoplastic foci. A high-fat, selenium-deficient diet resulted in an increase in foci development, but the increase was not significant. An interaction between aflatoxin and the two nutrients was also observed in liver glutathione content and GGT activity at Week 3.

Aflatoxin B1↗

Systems in transition--the first 100 clients: implications of developing specialist units for elderly people.

The progress of the initial group of one hundred clients was monitored following referral to a joint-funded assessment unit for "confused" elderly people. Data were collected on allocation and subsequent usage of a range of services available, and implications for clients are discussed. The establishment of specialist service systems for people who are elderly is reviewed in the context of the probable impact upon both clients and local neighbourhoods. The social policies of integration, segregation and congregation are briefly discussed with regard to data obtained. Implications for planning of future services are identified, together with a discussion of likely consequences of replicating such a service.

Aged↗

Effects of dietary fat level and aflatoxin B1 treatment on rat hepatic lipid composition.

Sprague-Dawley rats were given either ten daily doses of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) or the solvent tricaprylin intragastrically over a 2-wk period and were fed diets containing either 1.6 or 20% corn oil throughout the study. Hepatic lipid composition was analysed in groups of five rats both 3 and 13 wk after the start of treatment, in order to determine short-term and longer-term alterations. Total lipid and cholesterols (total, free and esterified) increased on the high-fat diet at wk 3. At wk 13 only total and esterified cholesterol were increased by 20% corn oil. AFB1 treatment resulted in large intra-group variations in total lipid and cholesterol at wk 3, but these were no longer apparent by wk 13. AFB1 produced various alterations in the fatty acid composition of hepatic phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), apparent at wk 3 but not at wk 13. The unsaturation index decreased but no changes were seen in the saturated fatty acids. Only in animals fed 20% corn oil did AFB1 result in significant changes in 18:2, 20:3 and 22:6 fatty acids, while 20:4 and 22:5 tended to decrease and 18:1 to increase in response to AFB1 treatment with both diets in both phospholipids. The high-corn oil diet was found to increase 18:2, 22:6, and total unsaturation in PC and PE, while the ratio of 20:4 to 18:2 tended to decrease in these phospholipids. gamma-Glutamyltranspeptidase, an indicator of liver damage, was significantly increased in AFB1-treated animals, with the greatest increase over controls in those fed the high-fat diet.

Aflatoxin B1↗

Effects of furniture rearrangement on the atmosphere of wards in a maximum-security hospital.

In a study of the effects of a short-term environmental intervention, alterations were made in furniture arrangements in ward dayrooms in a maximum-security hospital in the United Kingdom. Over two 14-day periods, group seating patterns were introduced each day, in conjunction with leisure-time resources such as cards and games, to promote improvements in the wards' psychosocial atmosphere. The program was implemented through a system of behavioral contracting with ward staff. The findings suggest that the use of such simple low-cost techniques can produce modest positive changes in different kinds of ward environments.

Behavior Therapy↗

Sheep in wolf's clothing: impact of normalisation teaching on human services and service providers.

A historical review of the development of the normalisation concept is undertaken, with an appraisal of the various historical contributions. The underlying assumptions, research foundations and methods of information transmission are examined with respect to implications for the concept. A critically evaluative stance is recommended in order to assess the utility and validity of normalisation beyond a position of moral principle and sloganeering. Some possible consequences of normalisation advocates who maintain an inflexible position in this debate are identified, together with some recommendations for an alternative perspective.

Humans↗

Use of self-recording to maintain staff-resident interaction.

The study was designed to increase levels of staff-resident interaction on a long-stay residential ward for mentally retarded women. Ward nursing staff implemented self-recording techniques to record behavioural training targets with individual residents. Targets included social and self-help skills, with long term goals of improved independent functioning and increased socialisation. Levels of physical contact, verbal interaction and appropriate target activities with residents showed a steady increase over a 3-month period, with no adverse effect upon levels of direct health care activities. The benefits of self-recording methods are discussed with reference to issues of maintenance and generalisation.

Activities of Daily Living↗

Nursing models in special hospital settings.

The use of theories and models in nursing is not merely an armchair activity indulged in by academic nurses in teaching and research institutions, but a means of looking critically at practice to improve the effectiveness of care. Nursing models help to provide descriptions of the contents of teaching and training courses. Models aim to specify: goals of action; descriptive terms for the recipients of services; nurse roles; likely sources of difficulty; the focus for intervention; and the intended consequences of the nursing model in applied practice. Examination reveals three separate dominant models of nursing practice in special hospitals: medico-legal, moral-retributional and educational. Nursing models are both useful and necessary for the provision of coherent teaching curricula and as a framework for the actual process of nursing. The need for consideration of model selection and model choice seems paramount in the current climate of special hospital nursing. A major advantage of educational nursing models seems that they allow the development and growth of nurses, with likely benefits for improved consumer services.

Ethics, Nursing↗

Childhood disablement and family incomes.

Data on the incomes of families with a severely disabled child were obtained by replicating the Family Expenditure Survey. These data were compared with income data from a control group of families with children, drawn from the FES for the same period. The participation rates, hours, and earnings of the women with a disabled child were all found to be substantially lower than those of women in the control group, differences between the samples increasing with the age of the youngest child. The earnings of men with a disabled child were also lower than those of men in the control group, though differences were more pronounced among non-manual workers. Loss of parental earnings was not made good by social security benefits paid on account of disablement. In general the incomes of the families with a disabled child were lower than those of the control families, the magnitude of the differences increasing with family income and the age of the youngest child. Nevertheless, one group of families with a disabled child--manual workers whose youngest child was under 5--had slightly higher incomes than similar families in the control group.

Adolescent↗

Regulation of oxytocin receptor concentration in rat uterine explants by estrogen and progesterone.

Incubation of uterine explants from immature rats with 0.01-100 ng of 17 beta-estradiol/mL resulted in approximately a fivefold increase in the number of oxytocin receptors per milligram of protein in 48 h. This increase was maintained for at least an additional 48 h in the presence of estrogen. When the explants were incubated with 1 microgram progesterone/mL from the outset, the concentration of oxytocin receptors was the same as initial (0 time) levels. The estrogen-induced increase in oxytocin receptor concentration was blocked by incubation with cycloheximide, an inhibitor of protein synthesis. Once increased, however, the concentration of oxytocin receptors exhibited no turnover for at least a 48-h period in the presence of estrogen. The addition of progesterone and estrogen to explants with elevated receptor levels resulted in almost a 60% reduction in oxytocin receptor concentration by 24 h, with no change in affinity of the receptor for oxytocin. The reduction in receptor concentration by progesterone was not prevented by cycloheximide. The progesterone effect may involve inactivation or degradation of oxytocin receptors or activation of substances that are inhibitory to oxytocin binding. The effects of estradiol and progesterone on oxytocin receptor concentration in uterine explants are similar to those seen when the steroids are administered in vivo. The explant system, therefore, should prove useful in clarifying factors and processes that are involved in regulation of oxytocin receptor concentration in the uterus and in the initiation of parturition in the rat.

Animals↗

The effect of parenteral alimentation fluid, undiluted with saline or fresh sera, on the growth of Candida albicans in vitro at 37 degrees C.

Parenteral alimentation is often complicated by Candida albicans infection which may be fatal. This study investigated the effect of alimentation fluid (Aminosol) on C. albicans' growth in vitro. It was found that concentrated Aminosol (1400 millisomoles) maintained C. albicans in a viable state but inhibited replication. Dilution of alimentation fluid to physiological concentrations (300 milliosmoles) with either saline or aged pooled normal sera promoted in vitro growth of C. albicans which was equivalent to that obtained in BHI broth and was slightly less than that obtained in Sabouraud's broth. The effects of fresh sera with full complement activity were also investigated. In fresh sera appropriately diluted with physiological saline, some clumping of the yeasts was observed and all formed germ tubes. Growth as defined by budding or the formation of hyphae was inhibited. When Aminosol was diluted to 300 milliosomoles with fresh sera, all yeasts were noted to be in clumps with germ tubes as well as continually growing hyphae. Growth was approximately equal to that seen in Aminosol similarly diluted with saline.

Blood Proteins↗

Continuous positive airway pressure: patients' and caregivers' learning needs and barriers to use.

OBJECTIVE: To identify learning needs and factors related to postdischarge use of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) ventilation. DESIGN: Exploratory descriptive correlational. SETTING: Metropolitan and rural clinics. SUBJECTS: Adult patients (N = 21) and family caregivers, one half 60 years or older. INSTRUMENTS: Family interviews, life satisfaction and quality, family function and relationship, depression and learning preparedness. RESULTS: There were numerous learning needs related to CPAP machine management, monitoring illness severity, and recognizing depressive symptomology, oxygen deficits, and cardiovascular sequelae. Family members are involved in overcoming barriers interfering with nightly CPAP use. Interview and questionnaire data clearly indicate life satisfaction improves after CPAP treatment. CONCLUSION: Predischarge and teaching programs coordinated by expert nurses are needed to address families' learning needs and support habitual long-term CPAP use. Family problem solving and depression interventions, instruction on recognizing symptoms of cardiovascular complications, and long-term follow-up programs are currently being studied.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Urban-rural comparisons of drink-driving behaviour among late teens: a preliminary investigation.

A preliminary study was conducted to examine the nature and extent of urban-rural differences in self-reported drinking and driving among youths in Western Australia. A total of 102 youths aged 17, 18 and 19 years were surveyed via a random street sampling technique about their alcohol consumption and drink-driving behaviour. Analyses indicated that urban youths had a significantly higher level of self-reported drink-driving behaviour than their rural counterparts. Males indicated a higher level of self-reported drink-driving behaviour than females. This article also provides a review and summary of youth drink-driving literature with special focus on urban-rural comparisons.

Adolescent↗

The nurse's role in caring for people with learning disabilities.

Nurses caring for people with learning disabilities are facing role confusion and virtual extinction as a consequence of changes in care provision. This article draws from the results of a working party established to clarify their role and offers a model which can provide comprehensive and quality health care.

Clinical Competence↗

Yesterday and today.

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Education, Nursing, Continuing↗