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Biomedical subjects

S W Davis

Publications and source records attributed to S W Davis.

72 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Should-hand syndrome: importance of early diagnosis and treatment.

If the shoulder-hand syndrome is left without special care, it may lead to severe painful disabilities of the upper extremity. Early recognition of the clinical signs and symptoms and aggressive total care are essential for successful treatment and for the prevention of severe flexion contractures of the hand and shoulder, especially in patients whose symptoms have developed after a cerebrovascular accident. An outline is given of the treatment modalities (corticosteroids, physiotherapy and mechanical devices) used at the Institute for Rehabilitation Medicine (NYU) for obtaining maximum function of the involved upper extremity.

Diagnosis, Differential↗

Two major DNA variants present in serially propagated stocks of the WR strain of vaccinia virus.

Two major DNA variants have been isolated from serially propagated stocks of the WR strain of vaccinia virus. Restriction enzyme mapping of the two variants with HindIII, AvaI, XhoI, SstII, and SmaI revealed a 6.3-megadalton deletion in the smaller DNA variant. The deletion was mapped at ca. 6.8 megadaltons in from the left terminus, just beyond the inverted terminal repeat. The additional DNA present in the larger variant was found to represent unique viral sequences that were transcribed both in vitro and in vivo. One-step growth curves in HeLa cells revealed no difference in rat of replication or burst size when progeny was scored on CV-1 monolayers.

Base Sequence↗

Autonomic hyperreflexia and its differentiation from pheochromocytoma.

Conceivably pheochromocytoma may have to be differentiated from autonomic hyperreflexia as the cause of paroxysmal hypertension. Elevated urinary catecholamine metabolites may occur in both conditions. However, marked elevations of serum dopamine-beta-hydroxylase (DBH) accompanied by relatively slight elevations of plasma catecholamines are observed during hypertensive paroxysms in patients with autonomic hyperreflexia, while marked elevations of plasma catecholamines with little if any change in serum DBH concentration are characteristic of hypertensive paroxysms caused by pheochromocytoma.

Adrenal Gland Neoplasms↗

Fink-Heimer/Nauta demonstration of regenerating axons in the rat spinal cord.

Six months after complete spinal cord transection, regenerated descending motor axons can be found by electrophysiologic testing and can also be demonstrated anatomically using the Fink-Heimer/Nauta technique. Regeneration was found in all animals, treated or control, but statistically significant increased regeneration as measured by the Fink-Heimer/Nauta technique was found in animals treated with a single injection of 75 mg/kg of cyclophosphamide 24 hours after the original spinal cord transection. This result is similar to those of another study using the orthograde axonal transport of tritiated proline as a measure of axonal regeneration. The mode of action of cyclophosphamide may be by its immunosuppressive properties because this drug is most effective when administered 24 hours after cord transection, a time when its effects as an immunosuppressant would be maximal.

Animals↗

Development of sex-trait stereotypes among young children in the United Staes, England, and Ireland.

The Sex Stereotype Measure II (SSM II), a 32-item revision of the Williams, Bennett, and Best Sex Stereotype Measure, was developed to assess children's knowledge of conventional, sex-trait stereotypes defined by American university students. The procedure employed brief stories and human figure silhouettes which were individually administered to 5- and 8-year-old children in the United States, England, and Ireland and group administered to 11-year-olds in the United States. In the United States, knowledge of sex-trait stereotypes was found to develop in a linear fashion between the ages of 5 and 11, with more male traits than female traits being known at each age level. Cross-nationally, there was a high degree of similarity in the nature of the sex stereotypes being learned by the children in the 3 countries, although the rate of learning appeared slower among the Irish children. In all countries there was a clear progression in sex-stereotype learning from age 5 to age 8. English boys had greater knowledge of stereotypes than English girls, but this was not true in Ireland and the United States. Generally, knowledge of male stereotype traits appeared to develop earlier while knowledge of the female traits increased more rapidly between ages 5 and 8. The similarity in sex-stereotype learning in the 3 countries is discussed, and studies in progress in other countries of greater cultural diversity are noted.

Behavior↗

Shoulder-hand syndrome in a hemiplegic population: a 5-year retrospective study.

From 1969 through 1973, 68 (12.5%) of 540 rehabilitation inpatients with hemiplegia were diagnosed as having shoulder-hand syndrome. Care was used to distinguish these patients from those with other shoulder pathologic conditions and pain syndromes. Patients were evaluated with respect to side of hemiplegia, dates of onset of hemiplegia and of pain, age, sex, handedness, sensory losses, associated medical diseases and treatment response. All patients became pain-free within three weeks with a therapeutic regimen of low doses of steroids orally, passive range of motion to pain tolerance, use of a hemiplegia sling and the application of physical modalities for symptomatic relief. Losses of range of motion in the affected extremity responded less well to treatment. No complications or side effects attributable to steroids were observed. The full syndrome recurred in six patients, all of whom responded to a second course of treatment.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗

Amitriptyline in severely depressed spinal cord-injured patients: rapidity of response.

Nine severely depressed spinal cord-injured patients, six quadriplegic and three paraplegis, required psychiatric consultations and were treated with amitriptyline, with particular attention to the speed of response. The degree of depression was rated by using an Emergency Depression Rating Scale for Plegic Patients designed by one of the authors. All the study patients were initially rated as severely depressed, and within 72 hours their rating scores rose to the upper level of mild depression. These findings contrast with the accepted and widely reported phenomenon that in physically intact depressed patients, a positive response to tricyclic antidepressants is seen only after a 14- to 21-day interval. Several possible explanations of these findings are given, yet further in-depth explorations into the effects of tricyclic antidepressant medication on neurologically damaged patients are needed.

Adjustment Disorders↗

Lower-limb amputation for occlusive vascular disease.

A small series of 58 patients who required amputation because of gangrene of the lower limb with nonreconstructable arteries at New York University Medical Center illustrates the manner in which application of some of these principles achieved primary healing of 78% in below-knee amputation and rehabilitation rate of as high as 90% using simple nonrigid dressings.

Adult↗

Detecting symptoms of alcohol abuse in primary care settings.

BACKGROUND: Studies on alcohol abuse are frequently based on patients who meet minimum diagnostic criteria, thus ignoring patients with individual symptoms of harmful or hazardous use. Consequently, we are unable to characterize alcohol-abusing patients with sufficient clarity to effectively focus screening for primary prevention. OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of harmful and hazardous use of alcohol, assess screening instruments for detecting alcohol abuse or dependence, and assess the impact of alcohol use on other diagnoses treated in outpatient settings. DESIGN: Survey (cross-sectional study). SETTING: Hospital-based outpatient clinic. PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred randomly selected adults (aged 18 years and older). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Diagnosis of alcohol abuse or dependence based on the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS). RESULTS: About 18% met DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition) criteria of abuse or dependence while almost 50% had at least one symptom of harmful or hazardous use. The T-ACE questionnaire, a modified version of the CAGE questionnaire, was the most effective screening instrument for both men and women. Selected diagnoses, personal characteristics such as family history of alcohol abuse, and self-reported patterns of alcohol use could identify patients likely to meet diagnostic criteria. CONCLUSIONS: Many symptoms of substance use disorders are not adequately addressed in outpatient practice. Little is known about how alcohol use in varying quantities affects health care utilization and treatment of conditions commonly seen in outpatient medicine. Consequently, we lack a full appreciation of the burden of disease borne by alcohol use and have yet to achieve a universally accepted method of approaching primary and secondary prevention of alcohol-related problems.

Adult↗

Diazinon toxicity in broilers.

Ten 3-day-old chicks were submitted from a flock experiencing high mortality. Necropsy revealed lacrimation, diarrhea, pleural effusion, hemorrhage and ulceration of the proventriculus, and swollen, hemorrhagic livers. Numerous yellow granules were present in the crop. Assayed crop contents contained 39 ppm diazinon [O,O-diethyl O-(2-isopropyl-4-methyl-6-pyrimidyl)phosphorothioate]. The insecticide had been applied to the litter to control fire ants. The high mortality abated after new litter was added on top of the old litter. Diazinon toxicosis was traced to ingestion of diazinon-impregnated granules and was reproduced experimentally.

Aging↗