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Biomedical subjects

W H Mason

Publications and source records attributed to W H Mason.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

Meningococcal infections in children: a review of 100 cases.

One hundred children with meningococcal infection diagnosed from January 1, 1985, to February 29, 1988, were reviewed. Clinical manifestations ranged from fever alone to fulminant septic shock with purpura fulminans. Twenty-nine percent of the children presented without skin lesions. Of the 55 patients with meningitis, 6 lacked cerebrospinal fluid abnormalities on initial lumbar puncture but cerebrospinal fluid cultures were positive. An overall case fatality rate of 10% was noted with the following poor prognostic indicators identified: hypothermia; seizures or shock on presentation; a total peripheral white blood cell count less than 5000/mm3; a platelet count less than 100,000/mm3; and the development of purpura fulminans. Meningococcal infections remain an important cause of morbidity and mortality in children. Infections caused by Neisseria meningitidis (including meningitis) should be considered even in the absence of skin lesions or cerebrospinal fluid abnormalities.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Prevalence of Sarcocystis odocoileocanis from white-tailed deer in Alabama and its attempted transmission to goats.

Sarcocysts of Sarcocystis odocoileocanis were found in tissue sections of hearts and tongues examined by light microscopy from 30 (88%) of 34 white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Hearts were infected less often (13 of 34, 38%) than were tongues (30 of 34, 88%). Sarcocysts of Sarcocystis odoi were not observed in the white-tailed deer examined. A gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) excreted sporocysts after consuming tongues of white-tailed deer infected with S. odocoileocanis. Two goats inoculated with either 50,000 or 500,000 sporocysts of S. odocoileocanis isolated from the gray fox did not have sarcocysts in tissue sections of the heart, tongue, diaphragm, or esophagus when examined 122 days postinoculation. Dogs fed these tissues from control or inoculated goats did not pass sporocysts in their feces. The present study demonstrates: (1) a high prevalence of S. odocoileocanis infection in white-tailed deer in Alabama, and (2) that goats are not suitable intermediate hosts for S. odocoileocanis.

Alabama↗
PubMed1986

The treatment of Kawasaki syndrome with intravenous gamma globulin.

We compared the efficacy of intravenous gamma globulin plus aspirin with that of aspirin alone in reducing the frequency of coronary-artery abnormalities in children with acute Kawasaki syndrome in a multicenter, randomized trial. Children randomly assigned to the gamma globulin group received intravenous gamma globulin, 400 mg per kilogram of body weight per day, for four consecutive days; both treatment groups received aspirin, 100 mg per kilogram per day, through the 14th day of illness, then 3 to 5 mg per kilogram per day. Two-dimensional echocardiograms were interpreted blindly and independently by two or more readers. Two weeks after enrollment, coronary-artery abnormalities were present in 18 of 78 children (23 percent) in the aspirin group, as compared with 6 of 75 (8 percent) in the gamma globulin group (P = 0.01). Seven weeks after enrollment, abnormalities were present in 14 of 79 children (18 percent) in the aspirin group and in 3 of 79 (4 percent) in the gamma globulin group (P = 0.005). No child had serious adverse effects from receiving gamma globulin. We conclude that high-dose intravenous gamma globulin is safe and effective in reducing the prevalence of coronary-artery abnormalities when administered early in the course of Kawasaki syndrome.

Aneurysm↗
PubMed1985

Primary central nervous system lymphoma without intracranial mass in a child. Diagnosis by documentation of monoclonality.

Primary central nervous system lymphoma is a rare presentation of lymphoma and is usually seen in adults, often in association with immunodeficiency. Evaluation of these patients classically shows discrete intracranial lesions, and long-term prognosis despite treatment is poor. The case of a child is presented who had no identifiable predisposing factors, no radiologic evidence of intracranial mass, no evidence of systemic disease, and in whom the diagnosis of primary CNS lymphoma was made based on documentation of a monoclonal population of malignant B-cells in the cerebrospinal fluid. The patient, in whom irreversible blindness developed, was treated with a combination of cranial radiation, and intrathecal and systemic chemotherapy, and is currently alive and disease-free 15 months after diagnosis.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗
PubMed1982

Diagnostic open lung biopsy for diffuse pulmonary disease in immunocompromised pediatric patients.

Diagnostic open lung biopsy was performed in 40 pediatric patients with diffuse pulmonary disease and underlying malignancy or immunosuppression. Specific diagnoses on which therapy could be based were made in 32 patients and there was only one false-negative result. Pneumocystis carinii was diagnosed antemortem in 28 patients. Complications of surgery occurred in six patients (15%), but no patients died as a result of the procedure. Open lung biopsy appears to be a safe and effective diagnostic procedure in immunocompromised pediatric patients with diffuse pulmonary disease of uncertain etiology.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1977

Ultrastructural abnormalities of liver cells in Reye's syndrome.

Electon microscopic observations were made on liver biopsy specimens from nine infants and children diagnosed as having Reye's syndrome by clinical, laboratory, and light microscopic criteria. In addition to excessive fat content, mitochondrial abnormalities were the most frequent abnormal finding in the liver. However, no correlation could be established between the severity of mitochondrial changes and clinical or biochemical data, and two patients with low levels of the first two urea cycle enzymes showed only mild mitochondrial abnormalities. Nonspecific or artifactual factors have been suggested to explain the mitochondrial changes. However, the data of this study suggest that most of the reported mitochondrial abnormalities are not artifacts, and that they can be helpful in the ultrastructural diagnosis of Reye's syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Circulating immune complexes in Kawasaki syndrome.

Sera of 42 patients with Kawasaki syndrome were evaluated for the presence of circulating immune complexes (CICs) by Raji cell radioimmune and C1q solid phase assays. Overall 69% of sera tested were positive by one or both assays, 52% by Raji cell radioimmune and 48% by C1q solid phase assay. CICs were detected most frequently 2 to 4 weeks after the onset of illness, but their presence did not correlate with the clinical severity of the illness or incidence of coronary artery aneurysms. Antibody to mite antigen was found in only 2 of 30 patients tested, and only one of these had CICs. CICs are frequently associated with Kawasaki syndrome, but their role in its pathogenesis remains to be determined.

Aneurysm↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Solution-focused therapy: an alternative approach to addictions nursing.

TOPIC: The application of solution-focused therapy as an alternative approach to addictions nursing. PURPOSE: To acquaint nurses with solution-focused therapy as a treatment modality that uses specific techniques to focus on clients' strengths and resources, rather than on pathology. SOURCE: Traditional method of addictions treatment as a way of confronting a client's denial are contrasted with solution-focused therapy approaches, which provides a positive framework that uses clients' competencies to create necessary solutions. CONCLUSIONS: Solution-focused therapy represents a caring and humanistic approach to the practice of addictions nursing.

Denial, Psychological↗