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Biomedical subjects

W V Slack

Publications and source records attributed to W V Slack.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Dietary sodium reduction among students: feasibility and acceptance.

Modifications in the preparation of food served in a boarding high school during a 5-week period were successful in decreasing the sodium content of a variety of food products by an average of 51%. Such food was, in general, well accepted. The ratings of specific reduced-sodium food products equaled those of similar products containing "usual" amounts of sodium. Food diaries kept by students gave estimates of total sodium intake comparable with those measured by laboratory analysis of 24-hour food collections. Food diaries collected from an average of 70 volunteers per week indicated that during the reduced-sodium period, the total sodium intake of students, including that from dining hall food, snack food, and food consumed outside the school, decreased from 136 mEq (3 gm sodium, 8 gm salt) to 88 mEq (2 gm sodium, 5 gm salt), a reduction of 35% (p less than .0001). The impact of salt added at the table was very small; the choice and the quantity of foods consumed were the main determinants of sodium intake. The results indicate that foods can be prepared with appreciably less sodium and still be highly acceptable to young people.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Age-related headache characteristics.

A computerized headache interview was completed by 255 children, adolescents, and adults. Children did not differ from adults in the frequency of auras or prodromes. Young children were more likely than older patients to have brief headaches and headaches that tended to occur on weekdays, and to feel "great" after a headache. They were less likely than older patients to acknowledge multiple kinds of headaches, headaches located on one side of the head or posteriorly, and such concomitant occurrences as blurring, photophobia, irritability, frustration-anger, light-headedness, trouble with concentration, numbness-tingling, and lack of appetite. We do not know how much these differences can be attributed to age-related differences in language, physiology, or medical care selection factors.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Profile of women practicing breast self-examination.

The monthly practice of breast self-examination (BSE) can result in the early diagnosis of breast cancer. To explore factors that influence women's habits in the practice of BSE, we interviewed 616 women using an interactive computer program. We found that these women were more likely to practice BSE on a frequent basis if they were living with their sexual partner, had been shown how to perform BSE, and were confident in their examination technique. Women with a maternal history of breast disease were also more likely to practice monthly BSE. Unlike past reports that women with formal education beyond high school practice BSE more frequently than less-educated women, our study showed no association between monthly BSE practice and formal education. Contrary to our hypothesis that BSE practice was associated with the practice of other preventive health activities, our study did not demonstrate such a relationship. These findings suggest that demonstrating BSE at the periodic health examination may help increase the number of women practicing BSE on a frequent basis.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1977

Collection of a clean voided urine specimen: a comparison among spoken, written, and computer-based instructions.

In an effort to compare different methods of instructing patients, 99 women 18-25 years of age were given computer, spoken, weitten, or no instructions for the collection of a clean voided urine specimen. The group who received computer instructions was the most uniform in its performance (P less than 0.002, F-test) and reported the fewest procedural problems (P less than 0.02, Fisher test). In addition, this group had fewer contaminating bacteria than the group who received written instructions (P less than 0.03 , Mann-Whitney test). The group who received no instructions had more bacteria (P less than 0.0001, Mann-Whitney test) than any of the other groups. The effectiveness of the computer instruction was probably related to numerous attributes, including the individualized quality of the dialogue, self-pacing, self-testing, and privacy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

Computer interviewing of patients with epilepsy.

Epilepsy histories obtained by the computer interview were similar in substance and detail to histories recorded by house staff and attending physicians. In general, more information was obtained by the computer, and negative findings were consistently recorded by the computer. For potentially embarrassing questions, the computer may obtain more accurate information (Slack and Van Cura, 1968b). This might explain the contradictions concerning incontinence and medication. This preliminary study suggests that computer interviewing can provide a reliable method for obtaining epilepsy histories. The study also pointed out where changes in question wording and branching logic would improve the computer interview. These changes are being incorporated into the second version of the epilepsy interview. We hope computer-based interviewing will prove useful to patients and physicians in the diagnosis, treatment, and study of epilepsy.

Computers↗