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Biomedical subjects

D Cramer

Publications and source records attributed to D Cramer.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

Perceived and desired facilitativeness of one's closest friend, need for approval and self-esteem.

The hypothesis that the positive association between self-esteem and the perceived facilitativeness of one's closest friend can be explained by the presumed greater desire of low self-esteem individuals for a facilitative relationship was not confirmed in 262 16-17-year-old females, who completed the Rosenberg (1965) Self-Esteem Scale and a shortened version of the Barrett-Lennard (1964) Relationship Inventory. Although desired facilitativeness correlated significantly positively with self-esteem, the correlation between perceived facilitativeness and self-esteem remained significantly positive when desired facilitativeness was partialled out. The further prediction that the correlation between perceived facilitativeness and self-esteem would be more positive for those scoring higher on the Jones' (1969) Need for Approval Scale was also not confirmed. The opposite result was obtained in that this correlation was significantly positive for those with low need for approval but not for those with a high need.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Lung function in white children aged 4 to 19 years: I--Spirometry.

OBJECTIVE: A study was performed to produce reference standards for spirometric lung function in white children and to calculate standard deviation scores adjusted for gender and pubertal stage. METHODS: A cross sectional study was made of 772 white children aged 4.6 to 18.8 years (455 male) tested on an OHIO 840 spirometer and assessed anthropometrically and pubertally. RESULTS: Before puberty there was a linear increase in all lung function measurements with height. During puberty a sudden increase occurred, but subsequently the relationship was again linear. No simple single equation described this pattern. Advanced puberty in younger children conferred a respiratory advantage, whilst delayed puberty resulted in the converse. Girls had poorer volumes per unit height, but young girls had superior airflow/unit lung volume. In both sexes lung volumes and flows bore a constant relationship to external thoracic dimensions. CONCLUSIONS: Puberty has a dramatic effect on lung function. Regression equations for predicted values of lung function measurements and for calculation of standard deviation scores are given (with pubertal correction factors) for each gender.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Lung function in white children aged 4 to 19 years: II--Single breath analysis and plethysmography.

OBJECTIVE: A study was performed to determine reference ranges for whole body plethysmographic gas volumes and single breath gas transfer in healthy prepubertal and pubertal schoolchildren. METHODS: The study was performed in 772 white London schoolchildren (455 male) who were clinically examined, assessed auxologically and, in 63% of cases, pubertally staged. Regression equations for the calculation of standard deviation scores were derived. RESULTS: Male lung function variables showed a discontinuous pattern of increase with standing height. Linear increases until puberty were followed by a sudden pubertal rise and a further increase with height which was more marked than before puberty. Correction for varying thoracic dimensions eliminated these changes. In females a smoother curvilinear relationship was observed with no correction possible for thoracic size. CONCLUSIONS: Male puberty leads to profound changes in pulmonary function mostly related to thoracic size, an effect not observed in females.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Nature of romantic love in female adolescents.

In the present study, I intended to determine the similarity between Rubin's (1970) Love Scale components and five of Lee's (1976) six lovestyles in a relatively homogenous sample of 301 16- and 17-year-old British females. Items describing loving behaviors toward a particular individual were formulated to measure these lovestyles together with that of Ludus. The six orthogonal factors extracted from the correlation matrix of these and Rubin's items were called Love, Mutual Love, Respect, Similarity, Physical Attraction and Hostility. The results suggested that Rubin's Love Scale contained elements of Mania and Agape but none of Ludus, which could not be further differentiated. Rubin's (1970) Liking Scale, however, could be further subdivided into Respect (Pragma) and Similarity (Storge).

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

The fetal thyroid: normal and abnormal sonographic measurements.

The thyroid of 31 fetuses at low risk for perinatal thyroid disease were evaluated sonographically. The transverse width and circumference of the fetal thyroid was measured prospectively to provide normative values for each gestational age. In addition, the thyroid of 23 fetuses at risk for thyroid disease were examined sonographically and compared to the control group. At birth, 18 of the neonates had no evidence of thyroid dysfunction, whereas 5 newborns had goiters and abnormal thyroid function. The fetal thyroid measurements for these 5 neonates were above the upper limit of the 95% confidence interval compared to the control group. The other 18 fetuses in the group at risk for thyroid disease but without evidence of thyroid dysfunction at birth had fetal thyroid measurement within the normal range.

Female↗
PubMed1992

Short-term use of fluoxetine in asymptomatic obese subjects with sleep-related hypoventilation.

Disordered nocturnal breathing with significant arterial oxygen desaturation and sleep apnoea is a feature of extreme obesity which is often difficult to manage in the short term. We have evaluated the effect of fluoxetine, a centrally acting 5-HT re-uptake inhibitor, on sleep-breathing patterns in asymptomatic extremely obese subjects. A double-blind cross-over study was used to compare fluoxetine (60 mg for three days) to placebo. Eleven obese subjects (ten males, one female, mean weight +/- s.d. 131 +/- 2 kg) slept overnight in a sleep laboratory with the polysomnographic study recorded after an initial acclimatization night. The obese subjects had normal respiratory function and normal fully awake arterial oxygen saturation (%SaO2 97 +/- 1). Marked O2 desaturation was seen in all the subjects during sleep but the average asleep %SaO2 did not differ between the two treatment phases (placebo 90 +/- 5; fluoxetine 92 + 2%). However, fluoxetine significantly increased the minimum %SaO2 recorded during the study night either by abolishing or reducing REM sleep (placebo 73 +/- 2%; fluoxetine 81 +/- 8%; P < 0.05, 95% CI -12.3 to -2.03). Frequent hypopnoea was observed in all subjects in both REM and non-REM sleep whereas apnoea was uncommon. The total apnoea/hypopnoea index fell in six subjects during the fluoxetine night, the largest reduction being seen in the most severely affected. In five of the six the improvement was associated with the abolition of REM sleep. Total sleep time did not differ between the placebo and fluoxetine nights nor did a qualitative assessment of sleep using a visual analogue score.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Type A behaviour pattern, extraversion, neuroticism and psychological distress.

The factorial structure of a nine-item Framingham Type A Scale, the 30-item General Health Questionnaire, the 57-item Eysenck Personality Inventory and a 20-item checklist of predominantly physical symptoms was examined in a nationally representative sample of 3065 women and 2520 men. For both women and men, the six principal components extracted from the 116 items and orthogonally rotated clearly corresponded to the six variables of psychological distress, neuroticism, symptoms, extraversion, the Lie scale and the Type A behaviour pattern. While Type A was positively correlated with neuroticism, psychological distress, extraversion and symptoms, there was no support for the idea that it could be more parsimoniously subsumed under these variables. Type A also showed a significant but very small positive association with self-reported coronary heart disease in men, although the correlations between heart disease and psychological distress, neuroticism and symptoms were more positive.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Social support and psychological distress in women and men.

The relationship between psychological distress and social support was investigated, along with various other health-relevant variables, in a nationally representative sample of some 2050 women and 1873 men, who also returned the self-completion questionnaire in the 1984-85 British Health and Lifestyle Survey. Psychological distress was measured with the 30-item General Health Questionnaire. Stepwise regression analyses indicated that the quality of family support accounted for a significant increase of 0.2-1.0 per cent of the variance in the GHQ for women and 0.8-1.9 per cent for men. The correlation between family support and distress was reduced from -.13 to -.04 for women and from -.15 to -.10 for men when all other variables were partialled out. It was highest (-.33) for the better qualified women and men in the youngest (18-24) age group.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1990

The effects of submaximal endurance exercise upon LH pulsatility.

The acute effects of submaximal endurance exercise (three consecutive 20-min runs on a treadmill at 50, 60 and 70% of the subjects' maximum oxygen uptake) upon the pulsatile release of LH were compared with those accompanying leisurely strolling for a similar period in seven normally menstruating young women. All trials were conducted during the early to mid-luteal phase, as determined by body temperature patterns, ultrasonic scans of the ovaries, detection of the LH surge in first morning urine specimens, and serial measurements of plasma progesterone. Blood was sampled every 10 min via an indwelling cannula for 8 h before and 12 h after exercise and serum LH measured by radioimmunoassay. LH pulsations were analysed by a time series method. Following cannulation, mean LH levels declined but then rose to reach a maximum 2 h before the beginning of the exercise bout. LH concentrations remained virtually unchanged during exercise itself, and exhibited a declining trend throughout the post-exercise period. The findings in the two groups were similar in all respects, except that in the control study the rate of LH pulsatility was significantly diminished (P less than 0.05) during the first 2 h of sampling as compared with the subsequent 2-h period. The approximate half-life of LH varied from 27 to 57 min, with a mean of 41 min.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Psychological adjustment, close relationships and personality: a comment on McLennan & Omodei.

McLennan & Omodei (1988) suggested that Cramer's (1985) of an association between psychological adjustment and the facilitativeness of a close relationship is primarily due to a general affective outlook in females. Their main measures of this outlook were extraversion and neuroticism, the latter of which is itself closely related to psychological adjustment. When their data were reanalyzed excluding neuroticism, facilitativeness was found to be substantially correlated with psychological wellbeing in both men and women, indicating that this association cannot be wholly explained in terms of a global evaluative orientation. A reanalysis of similar data from Henderson, Byrne & Duncan-Jones (1981) showed that psychiatric illness was still associated with the perceived adequacy of close attachments when extraversion was controlled.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1985

Psychological adjustment and the facilitative nature of close personal relationships.

The Rogerian hypothesis that psychological adjustment is positively related to having a relationship which is perceived as being characterized by understanding, congruence and unconditional acceptance was tested in the context of a current, close relationship, using the original Relationship Inventory in two studies which used different measures of assessing psychological adjustment. In the first study 26 females and 19 males completed Phillips' questionnaire which assesses acceptance of self and of others, while in the second study, 98 females and 23 males completed Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale and a 30-item symptom checklist. The hypothesis was strongly confirmed for the females but not for the males in both studies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

The relationship between curative factors perceived by patients in their psychotherapy and treatment outcome: an exploratory study.

Researchers are becoming increasingly interested in those aspects of the curative process that are not specific to any treatment approach. Two hypotheses were tested in this study: (1) that patients would, among those factors they suggest as helpful in their treatment, develop a list of consistently suggested curative factors; (2) that some of the consistently suggested factors will have a direct positive relationship to outcome. Twenty-four out-patients were interviewed. Both hypotheses were supported. Two factors emerged as having a significant influence on outcome: they were advice and the understanding of the therapist.

Humans↗
PubMed1984

Temperature corrections in routine spirometry.

Forced expiratory volume (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) were measured in nine normal subjects with three Vitalograph and three rolling seal spirometers at three different ambient temperatures (4 degrees C, 22 degrees C, 32 degrees C). When the results obtained with the rolling seal spirometer were converted to BTPS the agreement between measurements in the three environments improved, but when the Vitalograph measurements obtained in the hot and cold rooms were converted an error of up to 13% was introduced. The error was similar whether ambient or spirometer temperatures were used to make the conversion. In an attempt to explain the behaviour of the Vitalograph spirometers the compliance of their bellows was measured at the three temperatures. It was higher at the higher temperature (32 degrees C) and lower at the lower temperature (4 degrees C) than at the normal room temperature. These changes in instrument compliance could account for the differences in measured values between the two types of spirometer. It is concluded that the ATPS-BTPS conversion is valid and necessary for measurements made with rolling seal spirometers, but can cause substantial error if it is used for Vitalograph measurements made under conditions other than normal room temperature.

Forced Expiratory Volume↗
PubMed1983

Cigarette smoking, relative weight, and menopause.

To examine the interrelationships of cigarette smoking, relative weight, and the occurrence of natural menopause, the authors prospectively evaluated the experience of 66,663 female US registered nurses who were premenopausal in 1976. Over a two-year period, 5004 women became post-menopausal. Current smokers were more likely than past or never smokers to develop menopause, although the effects of smoking diminished with age. The rate ratios of menopause for current smokers vs. never smokers (with 95% confidence limits) for women aged 30-39, 40-44, 45-49, and 50-55 years were 1.90 (1.10-3.28), 2.16 (1.73-2.69), 1.53 (1.41-1.67), and 1.20 (1.12-1.28). These rate ratios were not appreciably affected by adjustment for relative weight. Median ages at menopause were 52.4 for never smokers and 51.9, 51.0, 50.7, and 50.4 years for women who currently smoked 1-14, 15-24, 25-34, and 35 or more cigarettes per day. A crude linear relationship between relative weight and occurrence of menopause was observed. Comparing the leanest and heaviest quintiles, rate ratios for menopause among women aged 30-39, 40-44, 45-49, and 50-55 years were 1.42 (0.74-2.75), 1.26 (0.95-1.69), 1.25 (1.13-1.41) and 1.08 (0.99-1.19). The effect of relative weight was in part explained by the tendency of current smokers to weigh less than nonsmokers. After adjustment for current cigarette consumption a weak linear relationship between relative weight and menopause remained among women who smoked, although no such association was seen among nonsmokers.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Fossil mammals and artefacts from the Middle Awash Valley, Ethiopia.

A review of fossil mammalian faunas from the Middle Awash indicates they span most of the later Neogene and document evolutionary change in several mammalian groups, especially Primates, Proboscidea and Artiodactyla. Oldowan artefacts first appear in the late Pliocene, while Acheulian and later industries and apparent occupation sites occur in Pleistocene beds.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Endometrial hyperplasia in women on cyclic or continuous estrogen regimens.

Twenty-five symptomatic postmenopausal women with an intact uterus were assigned in random double-blind fashion to receive 0.625 mg of conjugated estrogens on either a cyclic (3 weeks on, 1 week off) or continuous (daily) basis. The incidence of endometrial hyperplasia as demonstrated by screening biopsies at 6 and 12 months of therapy was 4.5 per 100 woman-months in the cyclic group and 3.7 per 100 woman-months in the continuous group (a difference not statistically significant). Thus, in this study, cyclic therapy was found to offer no advantage over continuous therapy. In our opinion, the rate of hyperplasia development in both groups unacceptably high, and efforts must be directed at reducing its incidence primarily.

Biopsy↗