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Biomedical subjects

D W Baker

Publications and source records attributed to D W Baker.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Inadequate functional health literacy among patients at two public hospitals.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the ability of patients to complete successfully basic reading and numeracy tasks required to function adequately in the health care setting. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. SETTING: Two urban, public hospitals. PATIENTS: A total of 2659 predominantly indigent and minority patients, 1892 English-speaking and 767 Spanish-speaking, presenting for acute care. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Functional health literacy as measured by the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (TOFHLA), an instrument that measures ability to read and understand medical instructions and health care information presented in prose passages and passages containing numerical information (eg, prescription bottle labels and appointment slips). RESULTS: A high proportion of patients were unable to read and understand written basic medical instructions. Of 2659 patients, 1106 (41.6%) were unable to comprehend directions for taking medication on an empty stomach, 691 (26%) were unable to understand information regarding when a next appointment is scheduled, and 1582 (59.5%) could not understand a standard informed consent document. A total of 665 (35.1%) of 1892 English-speaking patients and 473 (61.7%) of 767 Spanish-speaking patients had inadequate or marginal functional health literacy. The prevalence of inadequate or marginal functional health literacy among the elderly (age > or = 60 years) was 81.3% (187/230) for English-speaking patients and 82.6% (57/69) for Spanish-speaking patients, and was significantly higher (P < .001) than in younger patients. CONCLUSIONS: Many patients at our institutions cannot perform the basic reading tasks required to function in the health care environment. Inadequate health literacy may be an important barrier to patients' understanding of their diagnoses and treatments, and to receiving high-quality care.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Determinants of emergency department use by ambulatory patients at an urban public hospital.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine emergency department patients' perceptions of their illness urgency, their attempts to get care elsewhere, and the proportion of patients referred to the ED. DESIGN: Cross-sectional design with self-administered questionnaires or interviews. SETTING: Public hospital in Los Angeles County, California. PARTICIPANTS: Consecutive ambulatory patients totaling 1,190. RESULTS: Most patients thought that they required immediate medical attention, even if they said that their condition was not serious, painful, or debilitating. Half of all patients sought care elsewhere before coming to the ED, and 38.2% had seen a doctor. Forty-four percent of all patients said they were referred to the ED by a doctor or a nurse. Referred patients had illness acuteness similar to that of patients who came to the ED on their own. CONCLUSION: In addition to their lack of access to other providers, patients' perceived need for immediate care and referrals by health professionals contribute to ED use for nonemergency conditions.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Management of heart failure. III. The role of revascularization in the treatment of patients with moderate or severe left ventricular systolic dysfunction.

OBJECTIVE: This article reviews the benefits and risks of coronary artery bypass grafting and angioplasty for patients with moderate or severe left ventricular systolic dysfunction and summarizes the recommendations of the expert panel for the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Heart Failure Guideline. DATA SOURCES: Data were obtained from studies published in English and referenced in MEDLINE or EMBASE between 1966 and 1993. We used the search terms heart failure, congestive; congestive heart failure; heart failure; cardiac failure; and dilated cardiomyopathy in conjunction with the terms coronary artery bypass grafting and angioplasty. STUDY SELECTION: All cohort studies and case series that provided separate outcomes data on a subgroup of patients with a left ventricular ejection fraction less than 0.40 were reviewed. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Studies were reviewed for inclusion and exclusion criteria, survival, and functional status measures using a standardized form. Cohort studies were assessed on eight aspects of study quality using a defined list of study flaws. CONCLUSION: Coronary artery bypass grafting improves 3-year survival by approximately 30% to 50% and physical functioning by approximately one New York Heart Association class in patients with moderate to severe left ventricular dysfunction and limiting angina. However, the operative mortality ranges from 5% to 30% depending on patients' ejection fractions and comorbidity. It is not clear whether patients whose predominant symptom is heart failure rather than angina benefit from bypass surgery or how much ischemia is required to justify surgical intervention. Clinical outcomes after angioplasty have not been adequately studied to determine the relative risks and benefits compared with bypass grafting.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Management of heart failure. II. Counseling, education, and lifestyle modifications.

OBJECTIVE: This article reviews the role of counseling, education, dietary modifications, and exercise for patients with heart failure due to left ventricular systolic dysfunction. DATA SOURCE: We reviewed studies published in English between 1966 and 1993 and referenced in MEDLINE or EMBASE. We used the search terms heart failure, congestive; congestive heart failure; heart failure; cardiac failure; and dilated cardiomyopathy in conjunction with terms for the specific areas of interest. Where data were lacking, we relied on opinions of panel members and peer reviewers. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA SYNTHESIS: Studies were reviewed to determine whether patients had heart failure due to systolic dysfunction (left ventricular ejection fraction, < 0.35 to 0.40) and whether clinical outcomes were reported. Studies that reported only intermediate outcomes (eg, hemodynamics) were not reviewed. CONCLUSION: Counseling and education can improve patient outcomes and decrease unnecessary hospitalizations. Patients with mild to moderate heart failure should be restricted to 3 g/d of sodium initially. Those who are unresponsive to this dosage or who have more severe disease should be advised to consume 2 g/d or less. Patients should be strongly advised to drink no more than 30 mL/d of alcohol or, preferably, to abstain completely. Exercise training is safe and can improve exercise duration and symptoms. Adherence to the treatment plan should be stressed and monitored at each visit. Clinicians should inform patients of the seriousness of their disease and their prognosis, but they should emphasize that patients can continue to remain active and enjoy a reasonable quality of life.

Counseling↗
PubMed1994

Management of heart failure. I. Pharmacologic treatment.

OBJECTIVE: This review of the pharmacologic treatment of heart failure due to left ventricular systolic dysfunction summarizes the recommendations of the expert panel for the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Heart Failure Guideline. It provides specific advice to help guide practitioners through clinical decision making. DATA SOURCES: Data were obtained from English-language studies and referenced in MEDLINE or EMBASE between 1966 and 1993. We used the search terms heart failure, congestive; congestive heart failure; heart failure; cardiac failure; and dilated cardiomyopathy in conjunction with terms for the specific treatments. Where data were lacking, we relied on opinions of panel members and peer reviewers. STUDY SELECTION: Only large prospective trials were used to estimate treatment efficacy. Smaller trials, case series, and case reports were reviewed for the incidence of adverse effects. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Randomized clinical trials were reviewed for inclusion and exclusion criteria, patient outcomes, adverse effects, and eight categories of study quality using a defined list of study flaws. CONCLUSION: Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors should be given to all patients unless specific contraindications exist. Diuretics should be used judiciously early in treatment to prevent excessive diuresis that could prevent titration of ACE inhibitors to target doses. Digoxin has not been shown to affect the natural history of heart failure and should be reserved for patients who remain symptomatic after treatment with ACE inhibitors and diuretics. Isosorbide dinitrate and hydralazine hydrochloride should be tried in patients who cannot tolerate ACE inhibitors or who have refractory symptoms.

Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors↗
PubMed1991

Patients who leave a public hospital emergency department without being seen by a physician. Causes and consequences.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether patients who sought care at a public hospital emergency department and left without being seen by a physician needed immediate medical attention and whether they obtained care after leaving. DESIGN: Follow-up study of patients who left without being seen and of patients who waited to be seen by a physician. SETTING: A public hospital's emergency department in Torrance, Calif. PATIENTS: All patients who registered for care and left without being seen (n = 186) and a 20% random sample of patients who waited until they were seen (n = 211) in a 2-week period during spring 1990. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: At time of presentation: triage nurse urgency assessment, clinical acuity rating, and self-reported health status. At follow-up: hospitalization rates. RESULTS: Patients who left reported that they had waited 6.4 hours before leaving; those who stayed reported a 6.2-hour wait before being seen. There were no differences between those who left and those who stayed in chief complaint, triage nurse assessment, acuity ratings, or self-reported health status. Forty-six percent of those who left were judged to need immediate medical attention, and 29% needed care within 24 to 48 hours. Eleven percent of those who left were hospitalized within the next week, and three patients required emergency surgery. Nine percent of those who waited to be seen were hospitalized. Forty-nine percent of patients who left did not see a physician during the 1-week follow-up period. CONCLUSION: Overcrowding in this public hospital's emergency department restricts access to needed ambulatory medical care for the poor and uninsured.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

Hydrocephalus with cerebral aqueductal dysgenesis and craniofacial anomalies.

A pre-term infant was born with multiple limb and craniofacial anomalies, including craniosynostosis and a nasopharyngeal adenohypophysis. Severe hydrocephalus of the lateral and third ventricles was attributed to cerebral aqueductal dysgenesis. Scattered aqueductules and ependymal rosettes were found throughout the midbrain and pontine tegmentum. An hypothesis to explain the unique constellation of craniocerebral findings is discussed.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗
PubMed1980

Doppler echocardiography: applications, limitations and future directions.

On the basis of principles that are similar to (but differ slightly from) those that underlie M mode and two dimensional techniques, pulsed Doppler echocardiography permits evaluation of intracardiac blood flow noninvasively. This technique is helpful in the diagnosis and management of patients with valvular and congenital heart disease, and in some circumstances provides information not available from M mode or two dimensional imaging. Despite several notable limitations, pulsed Doppler echocardiography is a useful diagnostic technique whose clinical application is likely to increase as future technologic improvements occur.

Aortic Valve Insufficiency↗
PubMed1977

Detection of aortic insufficiency by pulse Doppler echocardiography.

Sixty-five patients were studied for the presence of aortic insufficiency by auscultation, conventional M mode echocardiography (echo), range-gated pulse Doppler flowmeter (Doppler), and supravalvular aortic angiography. Aortic insufficiency was demonstrated angiographically in 49 patients, of which eight (16%) were missed by auscultation. Echo missed 20 (41%), and Doppler missed seven (14%). Only two (4%) were missed by auscultation and Doppler combined. All methods were highly specific, but the combination of auscultation and Doppler was the most sensitive noninvasive method for detecting aortic insufficiency.

Aortic Valve Insufficiency↗
PubMed1977

Pulsed Doppler echocardiography: principles and applications.

A new recording and display system is described for use with pulsed Doppler blood flow velocity detectors in the diagnosis of valvular and septal defects. The principles of the pulsed Doppler device are described along with the methods used to analyze and display the Doppler shifted signal from flow jets resulting from various valve defects. An M-mode display is combined with blood flow display to provide a convenient record of the clinical procedure. Examples of aortic stenosis, aortic insufficiency, mitral stenosis and regurgitation are presented along with signals from other valves.

Aortic Valve Insufficiency↗