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Biomedical subjects

S Brill

Publications and source records attributed to S Brill.

84 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1980

Quick assessment of preferential looking acuity in infants.

A simple and rapid method for assessing the visual acuity of infants can be a valuable tool for eye care specialists as well as for researchers in vision. We have developed a preferential looking (PL) procedure that uses simple equipment to obtain measures of PL acuity in a few minutes. Infants ranging in age from 2 weeks to 1 year can be tested. Sessions on infants without any visual problems are completed in less than 5 min. Computer simulations of the technique show that the fast procedure attains almost 80% accuracy in assessing infants' PL acuity thresholds. When PL acuity thresholds obtained by the 60-trial method of constant stimuli were compared to those obtained by the fast method on the same infants, they were identical on 70% of the sessions and only off by one-half octave in an additional 20% of the sessions. Interobserver reliability was also high. The ease and rapidity of the procedure make it appropriate for use in the clinic.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1980

Preferential looking acuity in infants from two to fifty-eight weeks of age.

The fast preferential looking procedure was used to obtain measures of acuity in a group of infants without visual problems whose ages spanned the 1st year of life. The results show an increase in acuity on horizontal and vertical square wave gratings from about 6/360 Snellen at 4 weeks of age to about 6/18 at 1 year. Acuity on obliquely oriented gratings (045) increases more slowly so that by 1 year of age it is only 6/36.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1975

Orientational anisotropy in infant vision.

Infants prefer to look at horizontal and vertical gratings rather than at oblique gratings only when they are at or near threshold spatial frequencies, as would be expected if acuity for oblique edges is lower than that for horizontal and vertical edges. That such a bias exists as early as 6 weeks of age suggests that the orientational asymmetry of the visual system depends on endogenous maturation rathat than exposure to a carpentered world.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Treatment of human ulcers by application of macrophages prepared from a blood unit.

Decubital ulcers contribute to morbidity and mortality in elderly patients. Macrophages play a major role in the process of wound healing. We compared the efficacy of local treatment of decubital ulcers in elderly patients using macrophages prepared from a blood unit, vs. conventional treatments. Patients with decubital ulcers (n = 199) hospitalized during one year in a Geriatric Hospital in Israel, were included in the study. The ulcers of 72 patients (average age 82), who provided informed consent, by themselves or by family, were treated by local injection of macrophages prepared from a blood unit in a closed sterile system. The remaining 127 patients (average age 79) were treated conventionally and served as controls. No exclusion criteria were applied. Only a completely healed ulcer was considered a positive outcome of treatment. In the macrophage-treated group 27% (36 out of 131 ulcers) were healed compared to 6% (15 out of 248) in the control group (p < 0.001). There was also a significantly faster healing in the experimental group (p < 0.02). No side effects were noted. We conclude that Macrophages prepared from a blood unit, in cost-effective, closed, sterile system, are significantly more effective than conventional methods for the treatment of ulcers in elderly patients.

Administration, Topical↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hepatocyte-derived soluble factors regulate proliferation and autocrine growth factor expression in colon cancer cell lines of varying liver-colonizing capability.

We investigated the role of hepatocyte-derived soluble growth factors on cell proliferation and expression of growth factors and their receptors in four colon cancer cell lines of varying liver-colonizing ability. Cocultures of hepatocytes and colon cells and cultures of colon cells with hepatocyte-conditioned medium resulted in growth inhibition of both weakly and strongly metastatic cell lines. Growth inhibition was accompanied by a reduced expression of erb-B2 in the colon cells after 4 days in the presence of hepatocytes. In LS174T and LiM6 cells, there was a dramatic reduction in heregulin-alpha levels in the presence of hepatocytes. Interestingly, after 2 days in culture, hepatocyte-derived soluble factors increased the mRNA levels for the EGF family members amphiregulin and cripto. These studies show an inhibitory effect of hepatocyte-derived soluble factors on the proliferation of colon cell lines, mediated in part by changes in the expression of autocrine growth factors and receptors of the EGF and heregulin family.

Amphiregulin↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The impact of brain injury on family functioning: implications for subacute rehabilitation programmes.

An attempt was made to institute a monthly family treatment programme at a medium-to-long-term subacute care rehabilitation facility. Patients were generally between the ages of 20 and 70, and time since onset of injury ranged from approximately 1 to 15 years. In addition, these patients were markedly impaired and often exhibited periods of severe behavioural dyscontrol. Family involvement was idiopathic and unstructured at the beginning of the project. In contrast, the literature is replete with both empirically based studies and theoretical papers that attest to the critical importance of working with brain injury survivors' families throughout the acute and subacute phases of recovery [1, 2]. Clearly, sequelae of moderate to severe brain injury can be as pervasive and severe for families as for patients themselves [3, 12]. Therefore, the department of psychology introduced a structured family treatment programme in the hope of facilitating effective communication between family members, decreasing displaced incidences of behavioural dyscontrol, and allowing patients to concentrate on and successfully achieve their treatment goals.

Activities of Daily Living↗