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Biomedical subjects

D Dolan

Publications and source records attributed to D Dolan.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Pseudoepidemic of Aspergillus niger infections traced to specimen contamination in the microbiology laboratory.

We report a pseudo-outbreak of Aspergillus niger that followed building construction in our clinical microbiology laboratory. Because outbreaks of invasive aspergillosis have been linked to hospital construction, strategies to minimize dust in patient care areas are common practice. We illustrate that the impact of false-positive cultures on patient care should compel laboratories to prevent specimen contamination during construction.

Aspergillosis↗
PubMed1997

Folie à deux: three cases in the elderly.

Folie à deux is a rare, interesting disorder involving delusional beliefs shared by two persons. We report three cases of elderly couples referred to our service during an 18-month period with this disorder, and discuss the salient clinical features and the possible risk factors for folie à deux in the elderly.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

The effect of noise trauma following training exposures in the mouse.

The effect of moderate level acoustic stimulation, or 'training', on a subsequent high intensity noise exposure was studied in CBA/Ca mice. Eight groups of mice were exposed to a variety of training paradigms as well as different intensity traumatic exposures. We sought a combination which would result in the maximum protective effect from acoustic trauma as measured by the auditory brainstem responses. Using a narrow band noise centered at 4.5 kHz, we investigated the effects of a 10-day 'interval' training regimen, allowing a rest period between successive training exposures, as well as several continuous training exposures. These training paradigms were followed by a 24 h traumatic noise exposure (also centered at 4.5 kHz) at one of three intensities, 107, 110, or 117 dB SPL which induce a temporary, a moderate, or a severe permanent threshold shift, respectively. In none of these trained groups was a protective effect demonstrated at any time up to one month following a subsequent traumatic noise exposure. Several groups demonstrated higher compound threshold shifts after the traumatic noise exposure compared to controls. After a recovery period of 4 weeks nearly all trained groups demonstrated a tendency toward higher permanent threshold shifts than the control, untrained, animals. While no protective effect was demonstrated, examination of the threshold shifts following the training periods and after the traumatic noise exposures raised interesting questions for future investigation regarding the inherent resistance to noise induced threshold shifts in the mouse.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1994

Adolescent running away behavior: active or passive avoidance?

One hundred seventeen boys and 149 girls participated in a study investigating whether adolescent running away behavior is an expression of passive (internalization) or active (externalization) avoidance. Results of principal component analyses indicate that boys' running away behavior is associated with passive avoidance and internalization, whereas for girls the behavior reflects a mixed pattern simultaneously expressing withdrawal and overt deviancy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Nosocomial Legionnaires' disease: aspiration as a primary mode of disease acquisition.

PURPOSE: Nosocomial Legionnaires' disease remains a significant problem with many unresolved questions regarding transmission of legionella organisms to patients. We performed a case-control and environmental study to identify risk factors and modes of transmission of Legionella infection during an outbreak of nosocomial Legionnaires' disease in a military medical center. PATIENTS AND METHODS: During the calendar year 1989, 14 cases of nosocomial Legionnaires' disease were identified by active surveillance following the discovery of 2 culture-proven cases among organ transplant recipients. Four control patients were matched to each case by age, sex, and date of admission. Cases and controls were compared with respect to past medical history and hospital exposure variables. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated for matched variables. Environmental culturing of air and water supplies in and around the medical center was also performed. RESULTS: The case-control study revealed the following significant risk factors for the acquisition of nosocomial Legionnaires' disease: immunosuppressive therapy (OR = 32.7, CI = 4.5 to 302.6), nasogastric tube use (OR = 18.4, CI = 2.6 to 166.2), bedbathing (OR = 10.7, CI = 2.2 to 59.0), and antibiotic therapy (OR = 14.6, CI = 2.9 to 84.4). Shower use (OR = 0.1, CI = 0 to 0.4) appeared to be a negative risk factor. Water cultures revealed Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1, monoclonal antibody subtype Philadelphia (identical to all patient isolates) in the ground-water supply to the hospital, 1 hot-water tank, and 15% of 85 potable water sites tested. Air sampling of cooling towers, hospital air intakes, and medical air and oxygen supplies were negative for Legionella organisms. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms the importance of potable water in transmitting nosocomial Legionnaires' disease and suggests that the organism gains access to the hospital via external water supplies. The risk factors identified in this case-control study provide evidence that Legionnaires' disease may act as a superinfection in a nosocomial setting and is likely acquired by aspiration, similar to other nosocomial pneumonias.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Masking-level differences for repeated filtered transients.

Masking-level differences (MLDs) for the repeated high-pass (2000-Hz) and low-pass (2000-Hz) 100-microseconds pulses were obtained as a function of the number of transient repetitions and the repetition rate. MLDs compared to the NoSo condition were obtained for the NoSpi and NoSd binaural configurations (Sd refers to the conditions in which there was a 1.1-ms interaural delay for the transient signals). MLDs of 11--14 dB were obtained for the low-pass transients independent of the number of transients, repetition rate, or type of binaural configuration. MLDs of 2--4 dB were obtained for the high-pass transients only if the transients were repeated 12 or more times. The results for the high-pass transients did not depend on the repetition rate or type of binaural configuration. The results suggest that high-frequency binaural auditory channels can process noisy low-frequency temporal envelopes, but not as well as low-frequency temporal and spectral information.

Auditory Threshold↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Near-drowning-associated Aeromonas pneumonia.

Aeromonas is increasingly recognized as a human pathogen that causes a variety of different infections. Aeromonas has rarely been reported as a cause of respiratory infection, and it has been described in near-drowning-associated pneumonia. This article reviews a case of Aeromonas sobria pneumonia associated with a near drowning and considers the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of 10 previously reported cases. Nearly all of the cases involved young healthy men, a rapid development of pneumonia and sepsis after a brief stable period postimmersion, and bilateral infiltrates on chest radiography. A very high rate of positive blood cultures and mortality was also noted. The epidemiological and clinical data in this review may be helpful to the clinician caring for near-drowning victims. Although prophylactic antibiotics are not recommended for near-drowning victims, broad-spectrum antibiotics should be rapidly instituted with any evidence of infection.

Adolescent↗