Biomedical subjects
T Inder
Publications and source records attributed to T Inder.
Early detection of periventricular leukomalacia by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging techniques.
Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), the principal form of brain injury in the premature infant, is characterized by overt focal necrotic lesions in periventricular white matter and less prominent, more diffuse cerebral white matter injury. The early detection of the latter, diffuse component of PVL is not consistently possible with conventional brain imaging techniques. We demonstrate the early detection of the diffuse component of PVL by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI). In a premature infant with no definite cerebral abnormality detectable by cranial ultrasonography or conventional magnetic resonance imaging, DWI showed a striking bilateral decrease in water diffusion in cerebral white matter. The DWI abnormality (ie, decreased apparent diffusion coefficient) was similar to that observed with acute cerebral ischemic lesions in adults. At 10 weeks of age, conventional magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasonography showed striking changes consistent with PVL, including the presence of small cysts. The observations indicate the importance of DWI in the early identification of the diffuse component of PVL and also perhaps the role of ischemia in the pathogenesis of the lesion.
Factors influencing the use of infant car restraints.
Over a six-week period 100 mothers in Dunedin, New Zealand obtained General Motors infant car seats from a rental scheme. In interviews conducted in the maternity hospital, before the seats had been used, the mother's perceptions of the comfort and ease of use of the seat were recorded. All mothers rated the seats as very safe. From details of 2,830 car trips undertaken by these mothers while their infants were 0-3 months old and from a further 687 journeys by 85 of those mothers when their infants were 4-6 months old we found that an infant car seat was used for only 72% of journeys with the younger infant compared to 91% of journeys with the older infant. Those mothers who had rated the seat--before ever using it--as appearing uncomfortable or difficult to use were less likely to make use of it. The seat was least likely to be used when the mother was going out for more than two hours in the evening for some purpose that involved only a short car journey.