Biomedical subjects

S Warne

Publications and source records attributed to S Warne.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Testosterone effects on avian basal metabolic rate and aerobic performance: facts and artefacts.

We examined the effects of cage size and testosterone (T) levels on basal and peak metabolic rates (BMR and PMR, respectively) and on pectoral and leg muscle masses of male house sparrows (Passer domesticus). Birds were housed either in small birdcages or in flight aviaries for at least 2 weeks prior to the initial metabolic evaluations. They were then implanted with either empty or T-filled silastic capsules and remeasured 5-6 weeks later. Birds treated with single T implants achieved breeding levels (4-6 ng/mL) and one group given double implants reached 10 ng/mL. There was no effect of T on BMR or PMR in any group studied, but there was an effect of caging. Caged birds showed significant reductions in PMR over the course of captivity, whereas PMR in aviary-housed birds were indistinguishable from their free-living counterparts. Testosterone treatment significantly increased leg muscle mass in caged birds, but had no effect on muscle mass in aviary-housed sparrows. We conclude that testosterone has no direct effect on sparrow metabolic rate or muscle mass, but may interact with cage conditions to produce indirect changes to these variables.

Animals↗

PubMed2002

Risk adjusted mortality of critical illness in a defined geographical region.

AIMS: To evaluate the performance of the Paediatric Risk of Mortality (PRISM) score in a population of UK children and to use this score to examine severity of illness adjusted mortality of critically ill children <16 years old in a defined geographical region. METHODS: Observational study of a defined population of critically ill children (<16 years old) admitted to hospitals in the South West Region between 1 December 1996 and 30 November 1998. RESULTS: Data were collected from 1148 eligible admissions. PRISM was found to perform acceptably in this population. There was no significant difference between the overall number of observed deaths and those predicted by PRISM. Admissions with mortality risk 30% or greater had significantly greater odds ratio for death in general intensive care units compared with the tertiary paediatric intensive care unit. CONCLUSIONS: Children with a high initial risk of mortality based on PRISM score were significantly more likely to survive in a tertiary paediatric intensive care unit than in general intensive care units in this region. However, there was no evidence from this study that admissions with lower mortality risk than 30% had significantly worse mortality in non-tertiary general units than in tertiary paediatric intensive care units.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Prenatal diagnosis of cloacal anomalies.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate prenatal diagnosis in facilitating prenatal counselling and planning optimal perinatal care for persistent cloaca, a complex malformation with variable presentation and a difficult reconstructive challenge for the paediatric urologist and surgeon. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The prenatal records of six patients with a suspected prenatal diagnosis of cloacal anomaly, subsequently confirmed on delivery, were reviewed. All had serial prenatal ultrasonograms. Fetal medicine and paediatric surgical specialists were present for the scans and counselled the parents jointly. RESULTS: The diagnosis was made at 19-33 weeks of gestation; all fetuses had a cystic structure arising from the pelvis and bilateral hydronephrosis, with a poorly visualized fetal bladder in most. Other prenatal features included transient fetal ascites, oligohydramnios, ambiguous genitalia and growth retardation. Female karyotype was confirmed in all cases by amniocentesis. Diagnosis was aided in two patients by fetoscopy and in another by magnetic resonance imaging. CONCLUSIONS: Cloacal anomalies can be diagnosed prenatally and should be considered in any female fetus presenting with bilateral hydronephrosis, a poorly visualized bladder and a cystic lesion arising from the pelvis. Prenatal diagnosis allows time for parental counselling and planning of the delivery at a centre equipped with neonatal intensive-care and paediatric surgical facilities.

Cloaca↗

PubMed2001

Building community capacity in public health: the role of action-oriented partnerships.

Public health practice increasingly is concerned with the capacity and performance of communities to identify, implement, strengthen, and sustain collective efforts to improve health. The authors developed ways to assist local Turning Point partnerships to improve their community public health system as a secondary outcome of their work on the expressed needs of the community. Using focus groups, meeting minutes, attendance records, and meeting observation, the authors fed information back to the partnerships on systems change. A public health systems improvement plan supportive of local partnerships' work on specific health issues was funded and the collaborative research agenda was further refined.

Arizona↗

PubMed1996

Study hours: satisfying PREP requirements.

From 1998 practitioners must provide evidence of five days' study over three years to maintain their registration. The Study Hours system breaks down activities such as Accredited Learning Scheme modules and Professional Nurse study days into manageable units of time.

Clinical Competence↗