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Biomedical subjects

D B Larson

Publications and source records attributed to D B Larson.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Quality of life in patients with gynecologic cancer.

Benefits of cancer treatment must assess quality as well as quantity of survival. Recently, researchers have attempted to define and measure quality of life (QL). Reliable QL measures are useful for rating the QL costs of cancer itself, for rating existing cancer treatments and therapies under clinical investigation, and for evaluating the effectiveness of interventions to improve or prevent deterioration in QL status. Collaborative decision making by patients with their oncologists about anticipated therapy is enhanced by consideration of QL risks. Measures have broadened from assessing only performance status to include the domains of physical status (activity level, cognition, sexuality, fertility, and symptoms of pain, nausea, vomiting), psychological status (sense of well-being, depression, anxiety), social interaction (with sexual partner, family, friends, and co-workers), and economic status. Studies applying these concepts to patients who are survivors, in curative treatment, in palliative treatment, and terminally ill will be discussed.

Female↗
PubMed1987

Serum cholesterol and cancer in the NHANES I epidemiologic followup study. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

The relation between total serum cholesterol and cancer incidence and mortality was studied in a cohort based on a probability sample of the United States population. 5125 men (yielding 459 incident cancers and 258 cancer deaths) and 7363 women (398 cases, 186 deaths) were initially examined in 1971-75 and followed up for a median of 10 years. Men in the lowest cholesterol quintile had nearly double the risk of those in the highest quintile for both incidence and mortality. Among women a similar relation was seen for cancer mortality, but cancer incidence in the lowest quintile was only 1.2 times that of women in the highest quintile. The inverse cholesterol-cancer relation in men was present for cholesterol determinations made 6 or more years before diagnosis of cancer. It may be premature to dismiss the inverse relation between serum cholesterol and cancer simply as a preclinical marker of disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Contractile and EMG studies of murine myotonia (mto) and muscular dystrophy (dy/dy).

This report focuses on the myotonic (mto) mouse, an autosomal recessive neuromuscular mutant first described in 1982. Studies in vivo confirmed the presence of hindlimb rigidity during walking and typical myotonic electromyographic (EMG) discharges that persisted after nerve transection and complete neuromuscular blockade. Studies of the contractility of mto muscles in vitro revealed reduced peak isometric tetanic tension and greatly prolonged relaxation times. Tubocurarine did not affect tension parameters, but did antagonize the delayed relaxation in vitro. On the basis of EMG studies alone this mutant can accurately be described as myotonic. Reduction of the contractile abnormalities by tubocurarine in vitro, however, poses further questions regarding the nature of the disorder. Although the more familiar dystrophic mouse (dy/dy) has been termed "myotonic" by some, the new mto mutant differs from it in all aspects examined.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Mental health services use by elderly adults in a primary care setting.

This study examined the use of general health, mental health, and other medical specialty services by elderly persons 65 and older with mental disorders and compares them with adults 45 to 64 and 18 to 44. Data were collected at the Bunker Hill Health Center (BHHC), a Boston neighborhood health center providing a broad range of ambulatory medical and specialty mental health services. Results show that the 5-year rate of mental disorder diagnoses for elderly individuals is not significantly different from persons 45 to 64, although it is higher than the rate for young adults 18 to 44. Not only were elderly adults less likely to see a mental health specialist, but when they did, their use of mental health specialty services was usually lower.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Religious life of individuals with affective disorders.

We inquired into aspects of the family history, the marital status, and the religious practices of groups of normal subjects and patients with affective disorders. Consistent with past findings in the literature, individuals with affective disorders came from homes where one parent was frequently missing. The affective disorders group did not differ significantly from control subjects in their adult religious behavior, but had shown significantly diminished religious interest during adolescence. We suggest that this sample of patients with affective disorders returned to religious commitment after adolescence. A possibly related finding is a higher rate of intact marriage and lower rates of separation and divorce among these patients, as well as upward social mobility.

Educational Status↗
PubMed1987

The use of mental health measures in nursing home research.

To examine the quality of mental health research in nursing homes, 130 articles published in six geriatric specialty and health care delivery journals were reviewed. Thirty-nine (30%) articles used a mental health measure. Measures of cognitive function were most common, being used in 32 (25%) of the articles reviewed. Twenty-three (18%) studies measured abnormal mental experiences and 17 (13%) articles measured behavioral disorder. Many articles used measures or determinations with no established reliability. Twenty-six of the articles which used a mental health measure also used a measure of activities of daily living or physical function. Retrospective and prospective studies were similar in number. A minority of articles used control groups, random samples, or prepost measures while a majority (64%) identified an outcome measure. We conclude that nursing home research can be improved by the increased use of reliable measures of cognition and abnormal mental experiences and by the development of reliable measures of behavioral disorder. Study design can be improved by identifying a priori hypotheses and by the increased use of random sampling and control/comparison groups.

Aged↗
PubMed1987

A research development workshop to stimulate outcome research in consultation-liaison psychiatry.

With shrinking federal resources, innovative approaches involving both professional organizations and federal program staff are needed to stimulate research in new or undeveloped clinical areas. National Institute of Mental Health staff and members of the American Psychiatric Association's task force on cost-effectiveness in consultation-liaison psychiatry applied a collaborative model, the research development workshop, to stimulate outcome research in consultation-liaison psychiatry, a field with little previous such research. As a result 12 grant proposals have been submitted to NIMH for review in the last three years, and six are now funded. In contrast, in the previous ten fiscal years none of the nearly 700 services research proposals focused on the consultation-liaison area. The model could be applied to other mental health fields in which research should be stimulated.

Follow-Up Studies↗
PubMed1986

Systematic analysis of research on religious variables in four major psychiatric journals, 1978-1982.

The authors conducted a systematic analysis of quantitative research on religious variables found in four psychiatric journals between 1978 and 1982. Of the 2,348 psychiatric articles reviewed, 59 included a quantified religious variable. In this research, the religious variable chosen was most often a single static measure of religion rather than multiple dynamic measures. In addition, other available religious research was seldom cited. Comparison with systematic analyses of religious research in psychology and sociology suggests that psychiatric research lacks conceptual and methodological sophistication. The data suggest that the academic knowledge and skills needed to evaluate religion have not been absorbed into the psychiatric domain.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1985

Avian muscular dystrophy: serum thyroid defect and limited improvement with methimazole and propylthiouracil.

Serum concentrations of triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) were determined by radioimmunoassay in normal and genetically related muscular dystrophic chicks at 2 through 42 days ex ovo. There were no significant differences in T4 concentrations, but T3 concentrations were reduced about 35% below normal values in dystrophic birds at 14 to 42 days. The situation was reversed, however, on day 2, with T3 concentrations about 50% greater in dystrophic than in normal serum. Administration of T3 beginning on day 2 ex ovo did not alter phenotypic expression of dystrophic signs. Administration of the thyroid "antagonists," methimazole and propylthiouracil, however, significantly increased righting ability and reduced serum creatine kinase activity in dystrophic chicks. None of the administered substances improved the histopathology of dystrophic pectoralis major muscles. The data indicate that serum T3 concentrations may provide an early "marker" for avian dystrophy, and suggest that lowered serum T3 concentrations in older chicks may represent a compensatory response to the elevated serum T3 in newly hatched dystrophic chicks.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

A fast-twitch oxidative-glycolytic muscle with a robust inward calcium current.

This report describes the histochemical and physiological properties of a rat skeletal muscle with a robust activity-dependent slow inward Ca2+ current. The muscle, the flexor digitorum brevis (FDB), is a small plantar flexor from the hindfoot. It is a homogeneous muscle consisting of approximately 90% fast-twitch oxidative-glycolytic (type IIA) fibers. Stimulation of the FDB with repetitive stimulus trains (30 or 50 Hz for 330 ms, 1 train/s for 2-5 min) produced a slow increase in the base-line or resting tension of the muscle between trains. This progressive increase in resting tension appears to be due to the activation of voltage-dependent slow Ca2+ channels, since it could be eliminated (i) by stimulating the muscle in a medium containing 2 mM EGTA and without Ca2+, and (ii) by the addition of either Co2+ or verapamil. The presence of a slow current may be associated with an increase in K+ efflux as stimulation continues, and with a prolongation of relaxation time. We also propose that the slow Ca2+ current may contribute to the allosteric activation of phosphorylase kinase during muscle activity. The FDB provides an excellent preparation to investigate the regulation of muscle metabolism by intra- and extra-cellular Ca2+ during exercise.

Action Potentials↗
PubMed1983

Religious life of schizophrenics.

We inquired into the religious beliefs and practices of groups of schizophrenic and normal subjects. In addition, we evaluated their parents' methods of rearing the subjects. We found that, in the schizophrenic's home, the religious emphasis was limited and based on obligation and threat, and that the father had less of a religious commitment than the mother. Concerning personal development, the schizophrenic's mother was seen as more domineering than the emotionally and geographically absent father. The schizophrenic saw his religious and developmental upbringing as lacking in nurture and paternal participation. The schizophrenic himself seldom indulged in personal religious practices.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Religious life of narcotic addicts.

Because of the unstructured life-style of most narcotic addicts, we have inquired into the religious and social backgrounds and experiences of a group of narcotic addicts. It was observed that the subjects' parents were far less involved in religious practices than were a group of parents of nonaddicts. The addicts' fathers were found to be frequently absent from the home and uninvolved in the addicts' early religious training. The addicts came from broken homes and often their marriages also ended in divorce. The addicts, as compared to both their parents and the control subjects, were underachievers in both social and religious accomplishments.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1980

Evaluating a clinical psychiatry course using process and outcome measures.

An empirical approach was taken in evaluating training in experiences and outcomes in a second-year psychiatry clerkship. A biweekly activity summary provided a detailed record of actual training experiences, didactic and clinical, and is presented as a model for use in other program evaluations. Statistically significant preclerkship changes occurred on most attitude and all perceived skill measures. Scores on the examination of the National Board of Medical Examiners were well above average. Satisfaction measures were favorable and correlated significantly with the overall attitudinal and perceived skill changes. Comparisons among outcome measures showed that attitudinal and skill dimensions correlated with each other and with satisfaction ratings, but they did not correlate with scores on an objective examination.

Attitude↗