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Biomedical subjects

S Sofer

Publications and source records attributed to S Sofer.

96 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
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The need for intubation in serious upper respiratory tract infection in pediatric patients (a retrospective study).

Serious bacterial infections occurred in ten children (1.4%) of 710 patients with croup admitted to the Soroka Medical Center during the years 1983-1989. Sixty-four patients (9% of all croup patients) were admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), and 13 of them (20%) required intubation. Bacterial infections were noted in nine of the 13 intubated patients, in none of the other 51 PICU patients who did not require intubation and in one of the 646 patients (0.2%) who were not admitted to the PICU (p less than 0.0001). There was no difference in age, ethnic origin, or body temperature on arrival between the two PICU groups. Causative microorganisms were isolated from blood samples (three cases) and tracheal pus (eight cases). All intubated PICU patients were seriously ill: eight had bacterial tracheitis and one supraglottitis. Patients with bacterial tracheitis required frequent suctioning of the trachea for copious purulent secretions. The single patient with bacterial infection who was not admitted to the PICU had transient bacteremia. We conclude that the need for intubation in croup patients was an indicator for the presence of a serious bacterial infection.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Visual testing for readiness to drive after stroke: a multicenter study.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the ability of a visual-perception assessment tool, the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test, to predict on-road driving outcome in subjects with stroke. DESIGN: This was a retrospective study of 269 individuals with stroke who completed visual-perception testing and an on-road driving evaluation. Driving evaluators from six evaluation sites in Canada and the United States participated. Visual-perception was assessed using the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test. Scores range from 0 to 36, with a higher score indicating better visual perception. A structured on-road driving evaluation was performed to determine fitness to drive. Based on driving behaviors, a pass or fail outcome was determined by the examiner. RESULTS: The results indicated that, using a score on the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test of < or =30 to indicate poor visual-perception and >30 to indicate good visual perception, the positive predictive value of the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test in identifying those who would fail the on-road test was 60.9% (n = 67/110). The corresponding negative predictive value was 64.2% (n = 102/159). Univariate logistic regression analyses revealed that older age, low Motor-Free Visual Perception Test scores and a right hemisphere lesion contributed significantly to identifying those who failed the on-road test. CONCLUSIONS: The predictive validity of the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test is not sufficiently high to warrant its use as the sole screening tool in identifying those who are unfit to undergo an on-road evaluation.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Use of the UFOV to evaluate and retrain visual attention skills in clients with stroke: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this pilot study was to examine the use of a visual attention analyzer in the evaluation and retraining of useful field of view in clients with stroke. METHOD: Fifty-two clients with stroke referred to a driving evaluation service were evaluated with a visual attention analyzer referred to as the UFOV. The UFOV assesses three aspects of visual attention: processing speed, divided attention, and selective attention. Seven participants were retested to determine the test-retest reliability of the UFOV. Six participated in the development of a training protocol and in a 20-session visual attention retraining program. RESULTS: UFOV scores indicated substantial reduction in visual attention in clients after stroke, with older participants performing the most poorly. Test-retest reliability was moderate (ICC = .70). Mean UFOV scores improved significantly after retraining. CONCLUSION: Although UFOV scores indicated poor visual attention skills in clients with stroke, preliminary information suggests that UFOV scores significantly improve with training.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Early severe dehydration in young breast-fed newborn infants.

Six breast-fed infants living in a dry desert climate area presented at ages 4-11 days with severe dehydration. In all cases, dehydration was associated with inadequate breast milk production by the mothers. In contrast to earlier reports on dehydration in breast-fed infants, five of the mothers were from a low socioeconomic background and three were multiparas, including two mothers who had previous experience with breast-feeding. In two infants severe bacterial infections were documented. Two mothers had small retracted nipples. As in earlier reported instances, sodium concentration in breast milk was elevated in all five mothers in whom it was measured, and three babies had severe hypernatremia. Successful relactation was achieved in three cases with a decrease in the milk sodium concentration. These data demonstrate that severe dehydration in breast-fed infants may occur as early as the first week of life and may affect even infants of experienced multiparous mothers who are well motivated for breast-feeding. It seems that hypernatremia in these infants is secondary to poor fluid intake and increased insensible water loss rather than to elevated milk sodium, since there was no direct correlation between milk sodium concentration and serum sodium levels. Following fluid resuscitation, relactation can be achieved in motivated mothers.

Breast Feeding↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Clitoral and penile sizes of full term newborns in two different ethnic groups.

Standards of penile and clitoral sizes are useful for diagnosis of genital abnormalities. In order to verify whether ethnicity has an effect on the size of external genitalia in newborns, 570 full term infants, Jews (221) and Bedouins (349), at the neonatal department of the Soroka Medical Center were examined. Clitoral length, the distance between the center of the anus to the fourchette (AF) and the distance between the center of the anus and the base of the clitoris (AC) were measured, and the AF/AC ratio was calculated for the females. Penile length was measured in the males. Significant differences in clitoral length (12.6%) between the Jewish group (5.87 +/- 1.48 mm) and the Bedouin group (6.61 +/- 1.72 mm) (p < 0.01) and in the ratio of AF to AC between the two ethnic groups (p < 0.01) were found. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to report ethnic differences in genital sizes of newborns.

Arabs↗