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Biomedical subjects

F Clark

Publications and source records attributed to F Clark.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Studies of thyroglobulin autoantibody synthesis using a micro-ELISA assay.

Thyroglobulin autoantibody synthesis by Hashimoto lymphocyte cultures has been studied using an ELISA, a plaque assay and tanned red cell haemagglutination. The ELISA system was found to be the most suitable and using this method IgG-class thyroglobulin antibody synthesis was detectable in cultures of mitogen-stimulated lymphocytes from all 10 Hashimoto patients studied, but not in cultures of lymphocytes from 4 normal donors. The ELISA was also sufficiently sensitive to detect thyroglobulin antibody synthesis in mitogen-free lymphocyte cultures from 4 out of the 10 Hashimoto patients and consequently it should be possible to use this system to study the effect of various pathophysiological factors on autoantibody synthesis which would otherwise be masked by mitogenic stimulation.

Adult↗

A guide for instrument development and validation.

As occupational therapists become increasingly concerned with accountability, the paucity of adequate instrumentation available for documenting therapeutic effectiveness surfaces as a major problem. Therapists will need to construct new or refine existing instruments to satisfy the requirements of third-party payment. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how a new instrument is planned, developed, and validated. A sequential step-by-step process is illustrated with a flowchart and applied in the hypothetical construction of an attitude scale to assess school administrators' valuing of the role of occupational therapists in the schools. This example is provided to show how general psychometric principles are applied within an occupational therapy context.

Attitude↗

Thyrotoxicosis.

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Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗

Natural history of autoimmune thyroiditis.

One hundred and sixty-three asymptomatic people with thyroid antibodies or raised serum thyrotrophin (TSH) concentrations, or both, and 209 age-matched and sex-matched controls without either marker of thyroid disorder were followed up for four years to determine the natural history of autoimmune thyroiditis. Mildly raised TSH concentrations alone and the presence of thyroid antibodies alone did not significantly increase the risk of developing overt hypothyroidism during the four years compared with the controls. Overt hypothyroidism developed at the rate of 5% a year in women who initially had both raised TSH concentrations and thyroid antibodies. Prophylactic treatment with thyroxine may be justified in women found to have both markers of impending thyroid failure. The cost effectiveness of screening the adult population remains to be evaluated.

Adult↗

Diurnal hormone-metabolite profiles in hypothyroidism.

To investigate the influence of thyroid hormones on intermediary metabolism in man, hormone and metabolite profiles were obtained over a 12-h period of normal meals and activity in eight hypothyroid subjects before and during thyroxine replacement therapy, and in sixteen matched controls. The fasting blood glucose concentration and the mean 12-h blood glucose concentration were normal in hypothyroid subjects but the blood glucose response to breakfast was exaggerated. Fasting blood lactate and pyruvate levels were normal but post-prandial hyperlactataemia and hyperpyruvicaemia were found and mean 12 h values for lactate (hypothyroid 1.80 +/- 0.06 v. control 0.77 +/- 0.03 mmol/l, P less than 0.01) and pyruvate (0.10 +/- 0.01 v. 0.08 +/- 0.003 mmol/l, P less than 0.01) were elevated. Blood alanine concentrations were elevated only in the evening. Although plasma non-esterified fatty acid levels were normal, fasting blood glycerol levels were decreased (0.06 +/- 0.01 v 0.08 +/- 0.01 mmol/l, P less than 0.001) and this decrease persisted throughout the 12-h period. Blood total ketone body concentrations did not differ from controls, but, as for plasma NEFA and blood glycerol, the normal preprandial rise in concentration was absent. Serum insulin, glucagon and growth hormone concentrations did not differ from control values at any time. Six months of thyroxine (T4) treatment produced a rise in blood glycerol concentration (mean 12 h value during T4 therapy, 0.06 +/- 0.01; before T4 therapy, 0.04 +/- 0.005 mmol/l; P less than 0.01) but not to control values (0.08 +/- 0.01 mmol/l). Concentrations of glucose and other gluconeogenic precursors were unaltered by therapy but the insulin response to meals and the mean 12 h serum insulin concentration were increased.

Acetoacetates↗

Survival associated with hepatorenal syndrome.

We have described an advanced case of type A2 hepatorenal syndrome with subsequent recovery. The renal failure in this syndrome is secondary to the hepatic failure. In this patient, renal support was afforded by peritoneal dialysis, while hepatic recovery was facilitated by takedown of a jejunoileal shunt and by intravenous hyperalimentation. As liver function returned toward the normal range, renal function improved. Reversal of hepatic dysfunction is critical for reversal of hepatorenal syndrome of the type A2 variety.

Acute Kidney Injury↗

Thyroglobulin and microsomal autoantibody production by cultures of Hashimoto peripheral blood lymphocytes.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes from patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis have been cultured for 2--3 weeks in Marbrook flasks. During this period, readily detectable amounts of thyroglobulin and microsomal antibodies were synthesized by the cells and secreted into the culture medium. Gel filtration studies indicated that the autoantibodies produced in culture were of a similar molceular weight to the serum antibodies and this provided evidence that autoantibody synthesis in vitro was representative of autoantibody synthesis in vivo. Our data suggest that this culture technique may be used to make a detailed investigation of the human autoimmune disease process.

Adult↗

Thyroid hormone concentrations in a large scale community survey. Effect of age, sex, illness and medication.

Total thyroid hormone concentrations have been measured in the course of a large scale community survey to determine the distribution of these variables in the normal population and to assess the effect of age, sex, previously undectected thyroid disease and medication upon these parameters. 2779 subjects were studied. Serum T4 concentrations were normally distributed. A progressive increase in T4 levels with age was noted in the males, and a smaller increase in females which was concealed by the raised T4 values secondary to oral contraceptive therapy in females under the age of 45. Serum T3 levels were also normally distributed. There was a small reduction in T3 with age in the males but this fall was not seen in the females. T3 values were relatively higher in females under the age of 45 but this increase was not noted after exclusion of subjects taking an oral contraceptive. The changes in thyroid hormone concentrations with age are relatively minor (particularly with respect to T3) in a randomly selected sample from an English town. It is suggested that the changes reported by other authors reflect the process of selection used, and the high frequency of undetected thyroid disease, other illness and medication in hospital-based communities.

Adolescent↗

Value of thyroid-stimulating-antibody determinations in predicting short-term thyrotoxic relapse in Graves' disease.

Thirty consecutive patients with hyperthyroid Graves' disease received a 6-month course of antithyroid drugs. Sixteen patients relapsed within 6 months of the withdrawal of antithyroid therapy. All patients with high levels of thyroid-stimulating antibodies (TSAb) at the time of drug withdrawal relapsed within 2 months of discontinuing the antithyroid treatment while all patients with low or undetectable TSAb activity at the time of drug withdrawal remained in remission. It was not possible to predict the disease course in patients who had intermediate levels of TSAb when antithyroid therapy was stopped.

Adult↗

Immunoreactive beta-melanocyte-stimulating hormone in cerebrospinal fluid and plasma in hypopituitarism: evidence for an extrapituitary origin.

Immunoreactive beta-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (beta-MSH) was measured in the plasma of 19 patients with hypopituitarism and in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of five of these patients. In neither plasma nor CSF were the beta-MSH concentrations significantly different from those in normal controls. These observations raise the possibility that beta-MSH may be produced by and secreted from neural tissue; this is supported by the findings of beta-MSH in high concentrations in many parts of the brain.

Brain Chemistry↗