PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

H Allison

Publications and source records attributed to H Allison.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

State laws on tobacco control--United States, 1998.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: State laws addressing tobacco use, the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, are summarized. Laws address smoke-free indoor air, minors' access to tobacco products, advertising of tobacco products, and excise taxes on tobacco products. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: Legislation effective through December 31, 1998. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: CDC identified laws addressing tobacco control by using an on-line legal research database. CDC's findings were verified with the National Cancer Institute's State Cancer Legislative Database. RESULTS: Since a previous surveillance summary on state tobacco-control laws published in November 1995 (covering legislation effective through June 30, 1995), several states have enacted new restrictions or strengthened existing legislation that addresses smoke-free indoor air, minors' access to tobacco, tobacco advertising, and tobacco taxes. Five states strengthened their smoke-free indoor air legislation. All states and Washington, D.C., continued to prohibit the sale and distribution of tobacco products to minors; however, 21 states expanded minors' access laws by designating enforcement authorities, adding license suspension or revocation for sale to minors, or requiring signage. Since the 1995 report, eight additional states (a total of 19 states and Washington, D.C.) now ban vending machines from areas accessible to minors. Thirteen states restrict advertising of tobacco products, an increase of four states since the 1995 report. Although the number of states that tax cigarettes and smokeless tobacco did not change, 13 states increased excise taxes on cigarettes, and five states increased excise taxes on smokeless tobacco products. The average state excise tax on cigarettes is 38.9 cents per pack, an increase of 7.4 cents compared with the average tax in the 1995 report. INTERPRETATION: State laws addressing tobacco control vary in relation to restrictiveness, enforcement and penalties, preemptions, and exceptions. ACTIONS TAKEN: The data summarizing state tobacco-control laws are available through CDC's State Tobacco Activities Tracking and Evaluation (STATE) System; the laws are collected and updated every quarter. The STATE System also contains state-specific data on the prevalence of tobacco use, tobacco-related deaths, and the costs of tobacco use. Information from the STATE System is available for use by policy makers at the state and local levels to plan and implement initiatives to prevent and reduce tobacco use. In addition, CDC is using this information to assess the ongoing impact of tobacco-control programs and policies on tobacco use.

Advertising↗
PubMed1995

Simultaneous measurement of extracellular fluid distribution and renal function with a single injection of 99mTc DTPA.

BACKGROUND: The initial rate of renal uptake of 99mTc DTPA is equal to the product of injected dose and the glomerular filtration rate (GFR):plasma volume (PV) ratio, whilst later the plasma clearance rate constant is equal to the GFR:extracellular fluid volume (ECF) ratio. Expressing GFR in terms of body fluid volumes has several attractions, and techniques for measuring it in this form may be useful. METHODS: GFR/PV was determined from a Patlak plot in 82 studies in 47 patients undergoing routine gamma-camera 99mTc DTPA renography and compared with GFR/ECV, determined from the terminal slope of the plasma clearance curve. RESULTS: GFR/PV (y) correlated significantly with GFR/ECV (x): y = 3.2.x + 5.3 ml/min/l (r = 0.82, n = 82, P < 0.001). The ratio, GFR/PV:GFR/ECV is ECV/PV, which (x) correlated significantly with a regional estimate (y) of ECV/PV (rECV/rPV) derived from a Patlak plot applied to a subrenal ROI: y = 0.47x + 1.14 (r = 0.61, n = 52, P < 0.001). The initial rate constant of disappearance of 99mTc DTPA from the blood, determined from a ROI over the left ventricle, reflects tracer clearance from plasma to interstitial fluid plus GFR/PV: Subtraction of GFR/PV yields a rate constant which reflects extrarenal 99mTc DTPA clearance, Z, as a fraction of PV. A regional estimate of 99mTc DTPA clearance from plasma to interstitial fluid, rZ, was derived from the Patlak plot applied to the subrenal ROI and expressed in relation to rPV. Z/PV (y) correlated significantly with rZ/rPV (x): y = 2.2x + 0.02 min-1 (r = 0.56, n = 52, P < 0.001). The distribution of ECF between plasma and interstitial fluid was related to extrarenal 99mTc DTPA clearance. Thus rZ/rPV correlated significantly with ECV/PV (r = 0.55, n = 52, P < 0.001) and Z/PV correlated significantly with rECV/rPV (r = 0.6, n = 52, P < 0.001). There was no correlation between renal function and extrarenal 99mTc DTPA clearance or distribution of ECF. CONCLUSIONS: GFR can be measured in terms of PV and ECF volume from a single injection of 99mTc DTPA. ECV/PV, rECV/rPV, and variables representing the clearance of 99mTc DTPA across the microvasculature can be measured at the same time.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Measurement of the ratio of glomerular filtration rate to plasma volume from the technetium-99m diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid renogram: comparison with glomerular filtration rate in relation to extracellular fluid volume.

Individual kidney glomerular filtration rate (IKGFR) can be measured from the renogram from the rate of uptake of technetium-99m diethylene triamine penta-acetic acid (99mTc-DTPA). A blood sample is required to derive IKGFR in millilitres per minute, which is then usually normalised to body surface area. We describe a technique which does not require a blood sample, is already normalised for plasma volume and uses the robust Patlak plot for measuring renal uptake. The rate of kidney uptake, dR(t)/dt, at time = 0, as a fraction of the injected dose, is equal to the fraction of the plasma volume (PV) filtered per minute, i.e. IKGFR/PV. The gradient dR(0)/dt cannot be accurately measured directly but is equal to [alpha .LV(0)], where alpha is the renal uptake constant (proportional to IKGFR) and LV is the count rate over a left ventricular ROI. LV(0) was obtained by extrapolation of LV(t), while alpha is the slope of the Patlak plot up to 3 min. GFR/PV (i.e. right plus left kidneys) in patients with normal renal function was about 0.04 min-1, as would be expected from normal values of GFR (120 ml/min) and plasma volume (3 l). GFR/PV correlated significantly with the ratio of GFR to extracellular fluid volume (ECV), measured from the terminal exponential of the plasma clearance curve (GFR/PV = 3.2.GFR/ECV + 5.3 ml/min/l [r = 0.82, n = 82]). GFR/PV (r = 0.74) and GFR/ECV (r = 0.82) both correlated inversely and non-linearly with plasma creatinine in 43 studies where the measurement was made within 1 week of the 99mTe-DTPA study.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Acute acalculous cholecystitis complicating systemic lupus erythematosus: case report and review.

A case of acalculous cholecystitis presented as an acute abdominal emergency in a 22 year old woman with severe systemic lupus erythematosus. At the time of presentation the patient was receiving high doses of prednisone and cyclophosphamide to control her underlying disease. Histological examination of the biopsy specimen from the gall bladder showed lupus vasculitis. This complication of systemic lupus erythematosus has not been reported before. Laboratory studies and changes in lupus activity may fail to predict the onset of cholecystitis.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1983

Social work services as a component of palliative care with terminal cancer patients.

This paper describes a social work service to critically ill non-hospitalized cancer patients based upon Heimler's theory and method of Human Social Functioning. Despite severe constraints arising from the physical deterioration and emotional distress of the patients and certain aspects of the treatment setting, efforts were made to validate the effectiveness of the service through pre- and post-intervention measures of patients' moods and single system experiments. The findings indicate that the Heimler method was effective in helping patients overcome their sense of helplessness and distressing emotional reactions to terminal illness. A quality assurance program and a multidisciplinary health care team are proposed as the means of establishing palliative care for terminally ill patients that incorporates social work services.

Adaptation, Psychological↗