PubMed HealthSearch

Biomedical subjects

B Portnoy

Publications and source records attributed to B Portnoy.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

Neutron activation analysis of trace elements in skin. VIII. Selenium in normal skin.

Selenium(Se) has been determined in skin by neutron activation analysis applying selective irradiation and cooling time, followed by measurement of the activity on a high resolution germanium lithium (Ge(Li)) detector. The levels and distribution of Se in normal abdominal and plantar skin, together with other available evidence, lead us to believe that it is an essential trace element in man. It is suggested that Se has an essential role in skin keratinization.

Abdomen

Systemic lupus erythematosus in pregnancy treated with plasmapheresis.

A young woman developed severe systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) at the beginning of her second pregnancy: her disease was extremely difficult to control and the baby died unexpectedly when 8 weeks old. She became very ill at the same time in her third pregnancy; plasmapheresis appeared to make her management easier, and the 7-month-old baby is doing well.

Adult

Respiratory tract illness in meat wrappers.

A questionnaire survey was done in 152 Houston supermarkets to assess the prevalence of respiratory tract symptoms in meat wrappers exposed to the thermal decomposition fumes of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film wrap and in two supermarket control groups (checkers and meat cutters). Meat wrappers had increased respiratory tract symptoms; 12% of meat wrappers who smoked (vs 6% and 2% of controls) and 5% of meat wrappers who did not smoke (vs 0% and 0% of controls) had multiple respiratory tract symptoms. It is probable that a large number of meat wrappers have mild symptoms with some progressing to more severe respiratory impairment or clinical asthma.

Adult

A controlled evaluation of intravenous adrenocorticotropic hormone and hydrocortisone in the treatment of acute colitis.

This study compares the efficacy of intravenous adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) with intravenous hydrocortisone in the treatment of patients with symptomatic inflammatory bowel disease. Drug doses were pharmacologically equivalent on the basis of achieved plasma cortisol levels and continuously monitored urinary corticoid excretion rates. Drug selection and patient evaluation were accomplished with a random double blind technique. Evaluation of 22 consecutive hospital patients indicates that ACTH and hydrocortisone, when administered intravenously in pharmacologically equivalent dosage, are therapeutically equivalent, that response to ACTH is rapid, with no therapeutic lag, and that differences in therapeutic responses cannont be corrrelated with differences in systemic steroid levels.

17-Hydroxycorticosteroids

A study of the quality of prescriptions issued in a busy pediatric emergency room.

An analysis of 2,213 prescriptions written by physicians in a busy, urban pediatric emergency room revealed that only 110 or 5 percent had no errors or omissions of specifications. The quality of the prescriptions was evaluated according to the standards of acceptable prescribing for the following specifications: quantity, dosage, time interval between doses or specific hours to be given, and specific instructions. The hospital pharmacists, also under pressure, generally failed to monitor the prescriptions adequately--either they did not rectify the physicians' errors or at times they made incorrect changes. To improve the quality of prescriptions issued under pressure in an emergency room, several courses of action are recommended: Pharmacology departments of medical schools should place more emphasis on teaching students the art of writing explicit, comprehensible prescriptions. The physician and pharmacist should work as a team in the interest of providing patients with accurate and detailed prescriptions; or both the physician and the pharmacist should delegate the composition of prescriptions to an automated computer system, thereby reducing human error in writing and monitoring prescriptions and allowing both professionals more time for direct contact with patients.

Child