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Biomedical subjects

T A Bell

Publications and source records attributed to T A Bell.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Microbial causes of proven pelvic inflammatory disease and efficacy of clindamycin and tobramycin.

Thirty-six women with suspected pelvic inflammatory disease were examined by laparoscopy and endometrial biopsy. Acute salpingitis was diagnosed by laparoscopy in 22. Among women with evaluable biopsy samples, plasma cell endometritis was present in 14 of 20 with acute salpingitis and in 1 of 13 without acute salpingitis (p less than 0.001). Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, or both were identified in the endometrium or fallopian tubes in 11 of 14 women with both salpingitis and endometritis, in 2 of 9 with salpingitis or endometritis alone, and in 0 of 13 without salpingitis or endometritis (p less than 0.0001). Anaerobic or facultative bacteria or mycoplasmas were isolated from tubes or peritoneum from 9 of 14 women with both salpingitis and endometritis, 2 of 9 with salpingitis or endometritis alone, and 3 of 13 without salpingitis or endometritis. Therapy with clindamycin plus tobramycin produced an adequate short-term clinical response in 16 of 19 patients, although patients with severe salpingitis at laparoscopy responded slowly.

Chlamydia Infections↗
PubMed1986

Centers for Disease Control guidelines for prevention and control of Chlamydia trachomatis infections. Summary and Commentary.

Recent guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control discuss prevention and control of Chlamydia trachomatis infection. Chlamydia trachomatis is the commonest sexually transmitted infection in the United States. The rate of infection has increased in the past 10 years. The guidelines do not discuss control of trachoma and only briefly discuss lymphogranuloma venereum. Education of health care professionals and the public about C. trachomatis is recommended, along with the establishment of a nationwide surveillance system.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

An investigation into the efficacy of probing the nasolacrimal duct as a treatment for epiphora in adults.

An investigation was conducted into the efficacy of probing the nasolacrimal duct as a method for treating epiphora in adults. Probing was performed on patients who had complete obstruction of the nasolacrimal duct. These patients comprised 62 per cent of the total incidence of epiphora observed during the study period. Following a single probing procedure, watering was subjectively improved in 52 per cent of cases. When patients who had a mucocoele or mucous regurgitation were excluded, the improvement rate increased to 75 per cent. A single probing procedure would appear to have been effective in producing some symptomatic improvement when limited in its use to patients who had complete obstruction of the nasolacrimal duct and when watering of the eye was the only symptom. Such patients accounted for 37 per cent of cases of epiphora.

Aged↗
PubMed1985

Genital infections with Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Ghanaian women.

Women who attended the gynaecology clinic or were admitted to the postpartum ward of Korle Bu Hospital, Accra, Ghana were tested for infection with Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Eight (4.9%) of 162 gynaecological patients were infected with C trachomatis and five (3.1%) with N gonorrhoeae, and respective prevalences among 148 postpartum women were 7.7% (3/39) and 3.4% (5/148). Among 40 gynaecological patients who were not pregnant and whose principal complaint was of lower abdominal pain, 4 (10%) were infected with C trachomatis and none with N gonorrhoeae. Antibodies against serovars D, E, F, and G were common, and three typable isolates were serovar G. C trachomatis would appear to be more common than N gonorrhoeae in obstetric and gynaecological patients in Ghana.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1984

Microbial causes of neonatal conjunctivitis.

We assessed the microbial causes of neonatal conjunctivitis by comparing 55 infants with purulent conjunctivitis and 60 healthy control infants. A mean of greater than 5 leukocytes per 1000X microscopic field was seen in Gram-stained smears obtained from the more inflamed eye in 77% of 30 untreated patients but none of 57 controls. Pathogens isolated more often from untreated patients than from controls included Haemophilus spp. (17% vs 2%, P = 0.01), Staphylococcus aureus (17% vs 2%, P = 0.01), Chlamydia trachomatis (14% vs 0%, P = 0.01), enterococci (8% vs 0%, P = 0.05), and Streptococcus pneumoniae (11% vs 2%, P = 0.06). One or more of these pathogens were isolated from the conjunctivae in 58% of patients and 5% of controls (P less than 0.001). Bacterial morphology seen on smear correlated with the pathogens cultured. Isolation of Haemophilus spp. or S. pneumoniae was associated with dacryostenosis. We conclude that several microbial pathogens are implicated in neonatal conjunctivitis. These organisms have differing susceptibilities to antimicrobial agents, so culture and sensitivity testing are required as a guide to therapy.

Bacterial Infections↗
PubMed1984

Penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection in adolescent prostitutes in detention.

In the first quarter of 1983, four (17%) of 24 cases of Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection diagnosed in female adolescent detainees in King County, Washington were caused by penicillinase-producing (PPNG) strains. Twelve (3%) of 397 reported cases of female gonorrhea in the rest of King County during this time were caused by PPNG strains (p less than 0.01). All the detainees with PPNG infection were prostitutes. Their case histories are presented here. Three had signs and symptoms suggestive of pelvic inflammatory disease. In areas with endemic PPNG, all isolates of N. gonorrhoeae from female adolescent detainees should be tested for pencillinase production, and all prostitutes with genitourinary symptoms suggestive of gonorrhea should be treated with an antimicrobial resistant to pencillinase.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Epidemiology of sexually transmitted diseases.

In the past decade, the recognized spectrum of sexually transmitted diseases has widened to a complex array of agents and syndromes. The authors correlate diseases with responsible pathogens and discuss the numerous and interrelated changes in industrialized societies that have contributed to the epidemics of sexually transmitted diseases.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Direct fluorescent monoclonal antibody stain for rapid detection of infant Chlamydia trachomatis infections.

A method of direct fluorescent antibody staining for rapid diagnosis of Chlamydia trachomatis infections in infants is described. This method utilized a fluorescein-conjugated species-specific monoclonal antibody to C trachomatis for detecting chlamydial elementary bodies in smears of the conjunctiva, nasopharynx, oropharynx, anus, and vagina. The sensitivity of direct fluorescent antibody staining was compared with isolation of the organisms in McCoy cells. Thirty-nine infants with purulent conjunctivitis were studied. Diagnosis of C trachomatis conjunctivitis was correctly made by smear in all 16 infants when inflamed eyes were sampled. Positive smears were obtained from 12/14 culture-positive and 4/16 culture-negative nasopharyngeal specimens from infants with chlamydial conjunctivitis. All nasopharyngeal cultures and smears from infants with nonchlamydial conjunctivitis were negative. These results indicate that the direct smear test is a sensitive and specific test for diagnosing C trachomatis infection of the eye and nasopharynx in infants, and this test can be completed within one hour of specimen collection.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗
PubMed1982

A placebo-controlled blind trial of cyclosporin-A in prevention of corneal graft rejection in rabbits.

Cyclosporin-A (CyA) administered to rabbits intramuscularly in a dose of 25 mg/kg/day for 14 days following interlamellar corneal grafting had a significant effect in preventing rejection of the corneal graft (p less than 0.05), and the benefit was maintained. Rejection was attended by an initial mild inflammatory reaction and followed by a protracted intense response involving a variety of cell types, with subsequent loss of epithelium. endothelium and keratocytes, and the development of areas of stromal necrosis. CyA suppressed this rejection response.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

Computer-assisted analysis of the therapy of acute salpingitis.

Isolation rates of microorganisms recovered by culdocentesis and/or laparoscopy in nine studies of salpingitis were multiplied by the proportions of each species which would be inhibited in vitro at peak and 1/2 peak serum levels of 13 antimicrobial drugs to yield a prediction of efficacy for the drugs. Efficacies of several hundred combinations of two and three of these drugs were estimated also. Some pairs of oral drugs were predicted to be as efficacious as some parenteral regimens of two or three drugs now in use. The predictions with this model parallel the results of some recently reported studies of therapy for salpingitis, and the model may prove to be a useful tool for future trials and therapy.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1973

Influence of temperature and humidity on microbial, enzymatic, and physical changes of stored, pickling cucumbers.

Pickling cucumbers stored at five temperatures and four relative humidities were examined for growth of eight microbial groups, the activities of two enzyme systems (pectinolytic and cellulolytic), and weight loss. Twenty-four storage tests for 6 days each were conducted during the 2-year study. In general, microbial populations of the eight groups increased rapidly at the higher temperature (>21 C) and humidity (>70%) treatments. Moisture loss of the cucumbers was rapid with combinations of high temperatures and low humidities. The results suggest that the best environmental conditions for storage or transport of cucumbers would be a combination of low temperature (10 C) with high relative humidity (about 95%). These conditions minimized undesirable microbial, enzymatic, and physical changes of stored, pickling cucumbers.

Bacteria↗