Biomedical subjects

S M Madigan

Publications and source records attributed to S M Madigan.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

The solution was the problem.

There are increasing numbers of adults living in the community who require enteral tube feeding. While there is significant evidence of the importance of this treatment, there are side effects which can cause difficulties for patients, their carer tabers and health professionals. Gastrointestinal complications are the most common side effects with feed formula being cited as the main culprit, often without investigating other potential causes. Many patients requiring aggressive nutrition support also require concurrent drug therapy to manage underlying disease. Drugs are often given via tubes in liquid form. These elixirs often contain large quantities of sorbitol, which will increase the osmolar concentration. There is a lack of awareness from primary health-care professionals about the difficulties that can arise when giving medications to patients receiving enteral feeding which may affect patient care and the nutritional outcomes.

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PubMed1998

Riboflavin and vitamin B-6 intakes and status and biochemical response to riboflavin supplementation in free-living elderly people.

Free-living elderly people aged > or = 65 y were recruited to assess riboflavin and vitamin B-6 intakes and status and the effect of riboflavin supplementation on biochemical indicators of these 2 vitamins. The status of riboflavin (erythrocyte glutathione reductase activation coefficient; EGRAC) and vitamin B-6 (plasma pyridoxal-5'-phosphate; PLP) were determined in a total sample of 92 subjects, from whom dietary intake data were obtained by using the diet history method (n = 83). Although dietary intakes of both vitamins were considered to be adequate according to current reference values, abnormal EGRAC and plasma PLP values were identified in 49% and 38% of subjects, respectively, with 21% having suboptimal status for both nutrients. A subgroup of subjects from the initial sample (n = 45) was assigned in a double-blind manner to receive either 1.6 or 25 mg riboflavin or placebo daily for 12 wk. In those subjects with a baseline EGRAC or plasma PLP value falling outside the currently accepted threshold value for adequacy, low-dose riboflavin supplementation improved status of the limiting nutrient significantly (P<0.0001 and P = 0.020 for EGRAC and plasma PLP responses, respectively). We conclude that a high proportion of healthy elderly people may have suboptimal status for these nutrients despite apparently adequate dietary intakes. Furthermore, we showed that riboflavin supplementation at physiologic doses corrects biochemical abnormalities of not only EGRAC, but also plasma PLP, confirming the biochemical interdependency of these vitamins and suggesting that riboflavin is the limiting nutrient.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1986

The anechoic crescent in abdominal aortic aneurysms: not a sign of dissection.

In six cases, abdominal aortic aneurysms simulated dissections because an anechoic crescent was seen peripheral to the echogenic intraluminal thrombus. Thrombus can easily be identified by sonography, but the layered echogenic and anechoic appearance has not been described. Three of these cases are presented to illustrate this sonographic pattern of thrombus so that it will not be misinterpreted as a dissection. CT scans were performed on all three patients and an arteriogram and surgery in one, all of which confirmed that these were not dissections but two layers of thrombus with the intima peripheral to the anechoic layer. At surgery, the anechoic layer medial to the intima in one case proved to be serosanguinous fluid and, therefore, likely liquefaction of the clot.

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