PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

B Morrison

Publications and source records attributed to B Morrison.

48 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1979

Intra-individual variation in commonly analyzed serum constituents.

Concentrations of 27 commonly estimated serum constituents were measured in blood sampled from 20 apparently healthy volunteers at 0830, 1230, and 1630 hours on each of four days, at weekly intervals. Time-dependent statistically significant (p less than or equal to 0.01) variation was observed in 12 of the constituents. The 15 constituents that showed no statistically significant diurnal variation included the immunoglobulins, other specific proteins, enzymes, cholesterol, calcium, copper, and magnesium. On the different days of the study consistent temporal patterns were observed in urea, creatinine, phosphate, zinc, bilirubin, triglyceride, total protein, and albumin. The magnitude of variation was particularly great in potassium, iron, zinc, and bilirubin. In general, day-to-day changes in concentration exceeded within-day changes, except for potassium, phosphate, and zinc, for which greater changes could be observed within-day than from one day to another at the same time.

Alanine Transaminase↗
PubMed1977

Artificial sweeteners and human bladder cancer.

A positive association between the use of artificial sweetners, particularly saccharin, and risk of bladder cancer in males has been observed in a case-control study of 480 men and 152 women in three Provinces in Canada. The risk ratio for ever versus never used is 1-6 for males (P=0-009, one-tailed test), and a significant dose-response relationship was obtained for both duration and frequency of use. The population attributable risk for males is estimated at 7%, though for diabetics, who have a similar risk ratio for artificial sweetner use as non-diabetics, the attributable risk is 33%.

British Columbia↗
PubMed1977

Some problems in the correction for intrinsic light-scattering of samples in specific protein analysis by automated immunoprecipitation.

Heparinised plasma samples have falsely high blank values in the automated immunoprecipitation system when blanks are measured by omitting antiserum from the assay. This is probably due to an interaction of heparin and serum proteins, together with either fibrinogen or polyethylene glycol. A more accurate estimate of the blank of heparinised plasma samples is obtained by measuring it with a solution of nonimmune serum substituted for the antiserum.

Blood↗
PubMed1975

The treatment of severe anxiety with chronically implanted intracerebral electrodes.

A procedure is described which allowed discrete lesions to be placed in the frontal lobes and paracingulate white matter through chronically implanted intracerebral electrodes for the treatment of a severe and intractable anxiety state. This procedure enabled progressive treatment on an outpatient basis over a period of weeks so that the amount of treatment was geared carefully to the patient's response. This psychosurgical technique minimizes the risks of untoward side effects. The case history is presented of the first patient treated with chronically implanted intracerebral electrodes at the Neuropsychiatric Institute, Sydney.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

No need for pain.

In an attempt to promote as pain free an experience as possible for patients and to improve how pain is managed in all settings, this 500-bed teaching hospital embarked on a hospital-wide quality improvement (QI) initiative. Initial measurement of clinicians' knowledge and attitudes related to pain and surveys on patient satisfaction identified improvement opportunities. Highlights of these findings and the major interventions taken are described. Education of all clinical staff on the major principles of pain management became the primary focus. Major outcomes realized to date have been: (a) a significant increase (p = .01) in physicians and nurses discussing with their patients the importance of managing their pain, (b) development of processes for documenting pain as the fifth vital sign, and (c) a 26% decrease in the use of meperidine. The next steps will be comprehensive monitoring of the effectiveness of pain management by clinical service, increased patient and family education on pain, and development of a formalized pain management competency program for clinical staff.

Benchmarking↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mechanical characterization of an in vitro device designed to quantitatively injure living brain tissue.

Due to the nonlinear, viscoelastic material properties of brain, its mechanical response is dependent upon its total strain history. Therefore, a low strain rate, large strain will likely produce a tissue injury unique from that due to a high strain rate, moderate strain. Due to a lack of current understanding of specific in vivo physiological injury mechanisms, a priori assumptions cannot be made that a low strain rate injury induced by currently employed in vitro injury devices is representative of clinical, nonimpact, inertial head injuries. In the present study, an in vitro system capable of mechanically injuring cultured tissue at high strain rates was designed and characterized. The design of the device was based upon existing systems in which a clamped membrane, on which cells have been cultured, is deformed. However, the present system incorporates three substantial improvements: (1) noncontact measurement of the membrane deflection during injury; (2) precise and independent control over several characteristics of the deflection; and (3) generation of mechanical insults over a wide range of strains (up to 0.65) and strain rates (up to 15 s[-1]). Such a system will be valuable in the elucidation of the mechanisms of mechanical trauma and determination of injury tolerance criteria on a cellular level utilizing appropriate mechanical injury parameters.

Brain Injuries↗