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Biomedical subjects

J Fowler

Publications and source records attributed to J Fowler.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

The MEDLINE Retriever.

Baylor College of Medicine has developed the MEDLINE Retriever, a tool to query MEDLINE, the data-base of medical literature at the National Library of Medicine. The MEDLINE Retriever communicates via the Internet to achieve excellent response time for MEDLINE queries. It uses the X Window System and the Motif toolkit, and employs the Knowbot Operating Environment developed by the Corporation for National Research Initiatives. We discuss the architecture of the MEDLINE Retriever, focusing on the graphical user interface that we have developed, as well as our experiences in developing and deploying the MEDLINE Retriever at Baylor. The MEDLINE Retriever is an extension of Baylor's IAIMS design concept that brought forth the Virtual Notebook System, and fits well with Baylor's aims with regard to the High Performance Computing Initiative.

Computer Communication Networks↗
PubMed1992

Radical radiotherapy with salvage surgery for invasive bladder cancer: results following a reduction in radiation dose.

The management of invasive bladder cancer in Edinburgh, as in many other centres in the UK, has been by radical radiotherapy, with cystectomy reserved for local treatment failure or relapse. A review of the results of this policy in 1987 highlighted what was felt to be an unacceptably severe morbidity rate of 15%. The dose of radiation was therefore reduced from 55 Gy in 20 daily fractions to 52.5 Gy. Forty of 80 patients (50%) treated in this way have achieved a complete response at 6 months which is a similar response rate to that in previous reports. In addition, ten of 23 frail or elderly patients (43%) achieved a complete response with a lower dose of 50 Gy given as a split course over 7 weeks. Eighteen patients have had a salvage cystectomy, and 12 of 18 (67%) are alive and disease-free. Although follow-up is short, to date toxicity has been reduced, and our results support our decision to reduce the radiation dose.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Real-time digital contrast enhancement and magnification in the assessment of acute elbow injuries.

The elbow is a common site of injury and missed fractures may lead to disability and litigation. An assessment was made of a commercially available desk-top digital contrast enhancement and magnification unit (DETECT system) in a series of 320 patients with an acute elbow injury. Five radiologists of varying experience independently viewed elbow radiographs on a conventional light-box, and subsequently using the digitizer, indicating the presence or absence of a fracture. The overall results demonstrated no difference in performance when using the unit, though small improvements in the confidence with which a definite diagnosis was made were observed. Assessment of soft tissues with the digitizer was less reliable.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1990

The effect of prolactin on murine in vitro fertilization and embryo development.

Elevated levels of serum and follicular fluid prolactin occur in women undergoing ovulation induction with both clomiphene citrate and gonadotropin therapy. Prolactin's effect on oocyte fertilization and embryo cleavage has not been fully characterized. Using a murine model, we investigated the effect of prolactin on in vitro fertilization and subsequent embryo cleavage in media containing 150, 400, and 600 ng/ml purified mouse prolactin. No difference was found in fertilization rates when compared with control rates. Culture of both in vivo and in vitro fertilized two-cell embryos in murine prolactin at 150, 400, and 600 ng/ml showed no significant difference in blastocyst, morula, or embryo degeneration rates when compared with control rates. An assay for binding of murine prolactin to spermatozoa, oocytes, and the embryo at various cleavage stages revealed no specific murine prolactin binding. These in vitro experimental results fail to show a role for murine prolactin in effecting mature oocyte fertilization or subsequent embryo cleavage. The lack of binding of murine prolactin to the gametes and early developing embryo supports the in vitro findings.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Real-time digital contrast enhancement and magnification in the assessment of scaphoid and other wrist injuries.

A study on the value of a commercially available desk-top digital magnifier-contrast enhancer (DETECT System) was made in a series of 550 patients presenting with an acute wrist injury. Four radiologists, of varying experience, independently reviewed the radiographs on a conventional lightbox and later with the digitizer. In the scaphoid series (350 cases), the performance of the two more experienced radiologists was marginally better with the digitizer, whereas the less experienced radiologists performed slightly worse. Overall the digitizer improved the confidence of the radiologists in diagnosing correctly the presence of a scaphoid fracture but, for the less experienced radiologists, this was at the expense of identifying normality. In the wrist series (200 cases), the use of the digitizer resulted in a minor increase in the true positive and decrease in the false negative observations, but this was offset by a concomitant minor increase in the false positive and decrease in the true negative categories. Evaluation of the soft-tissue planes around the wrist joint showed a limited value in the identification of a scaphoid fracture with an overall positive predictive value of 0.26. Correlation of soft-tissue changes and the presence or absence of a scaphoid fracture was slightly worse with the digitizer. Possible causes for the apparently poorer performance of the digitizer are discussed, as well as the relative merits and potential value of the unit.

Diagnostic Errors↗
PubMed1989

Localization of monoamine oxidase B in human brain by autoradiographical use of 11C-labelled L-deprenyl.

11C-labelled L-deprenyl in vitro autoradiography was used to study the regional distribution of MAO-B in human brain. 80 microns thick cryosections from two human brains, a 67 years old female and a 58 years old male, were taken on tape/paper and transferred on to a gelatinized glass plate. The sections were then incubated with 34 and 54 nM 11C-L-deprenyl for 15 min and exposed to a film sensitive to high energy radiation for 2 hours. The autoradiograms obtained were analyzed by computerized densiotometry. High 11C-deprenyl binding was found in the caudate nucleus, putamen, thalamus, substantia nigra, medial and lateral geniculate bodies, hippocampus and periaqueductal gray. Moderate to low binding was observed in cerebral cortex. Cerebral cortex and white matter showed the lowest binding. The autoradiographic technique described proved to be a fast and reliable method to investigate the topographic localization of MAO-B in large cryosections of human brain.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Incidence of Toxoplasma infection in a population of European starlings Sturnus vulgaris from central England.

A sample of European starlings, Sturnus vulgaris, culled from a communal roost in a city in Central England, was examined for infection with Toxoplasma. Eleven (8%) of 133 birds were confirmed as infected after horizontal passage of brain homogenate through mice. Serological examination, using the indirect and direct agglutination tests, proved unsatisfactory for screening starlings for Toxoplasma infection. If the proportion of starlings infected with Toxoplasma in this sample is representative of the population as a whole, then this bird could play an important role in the maintenance of the infection in urban environments.

Agglutination Tests↗
PubMed1989

Metabolic response to low- and very-low-calorie diets.

We compared the metabolic effects of 8-wk caloric restrictions with 330 or 780 kcal/d in two groups of eight obese hospitalized subjects; six control subjects were also studied. Loss of weight but not of adipose tissue was significantly greater on the 330-kcal/d diet. It is likely that dehydration rather than protein catabolism was responsible for additional loss of fat-free mass in the 330-kcal/d group because the nitrogen deficit was not excessive. The thermic response to food was blunted only in the 330-kcal/d group whereas resting oxygen uptake decreased by equal amounts in both groups. There was a decrease in 24-h urinary noradrenaline in the 330-kcal/d group but plasma fT4 was sustained when compared with the 780-kcal/d group; fT3 decreased significantly more quickly in the 330-kcal/d group. There was no correlation between plasma hormone levels and changes in oxygen uptake. Hunger scores were greater on the 780-kcal/d diet.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Effect of the gastric balloon versus sham procedure on weight loss in obese subjects.

The mechanism by which intragastric balloons induce weight loss is not known, although they may act simply by reducing the amount of food needed to induce satiety. The knowledge that a balloon is present may influence the patients' eating patterns and reduce caloric intake and weight. In order to test whether the balloon or the secondary psychological effect caused weight loss, a double blind balloon versus sham procedure was devised with both groups receiving identical outpatient dietary advice (800 kcal/day). Twenty four obese women with body mass index greater than 30 kg/m2 from an obesity clinic were studied. Twelve had the balloon and 12 the sham procedure. The balloon was removed after three months and the patients were followed for a further three months. There was significantly greater weight loss in the balloon group, mean weight loss (SD) of 7.33 (6.12) kg compared with the sham group, mean weight loss (SD) of 3.33 (3.9) kg (p less than 0.05). Weight loss was not maintained in all patients after balloon removal. Side effects were more common in the balloon group (abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting) but resolved by the second week. We conclude that the intragastric balloon is a safe and effective method of inducing weight loss in well motivated obese patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

IgE-challenged human lung mast cells excite vagal sensory neurons in vitro.

Substances released from immunoglobin (Ig) E-stimulated mast cells are likely to be among the chemical mediators responsible for changes in the vagal component of airway reactivity. We have attempted to identify a direct role for mast cell mediators in the control of visceral afferent excitability by examining intracellular electrophysiological changes in vagal neurons after application of extracts prepared from purified and IgE-stimulated human lung mast cells (HLMC). HLMC's, applied by superfusion or by focal pressure ejection from micropipettes, reversibly enhanced the excitability of a subpopulation of rabbit visceral sensory C-fiber neurons by 1) abolishing the slow Ca2+-dependent post-spike after hyperpolarization that uniquely resides in these neurons and controls their spike frequency, 2) depolarizing the cell membrane potential, and 3) increasing membrane input resistance. Control HLMC prepared by subjecting purified human lung mast cells to normal goat serum had no measurable affects on neuronal excitability. The immunologically released constituents responsible for these excitability changes are likely to be lipid mediators, because essentially all biological activity is extractable into an organic phase after methanol-chloroform solvent extraction of the HLMC preparations. These results provide the first unambiguous evidence that products released from immunologically challenged HLMC's directly affect visceral afferent nerve cell function.

Humans↗
PubMed1987

Orbital cyst formation associated with Gelfilm use.

Two patients developed cystic lesions in the anterior orbit 21 and 26 months after repair of blow-out fracture with orbital floor Gelfilm implants. Both patients had associated motility disturbances. Both lesions were surgically excised and found to be cystic in nature and filled with glistening gelatinous material consistent with partially absorbed, encysted gelatin film (Gelfilm). Histologically, a fibrous capsule was present; the contents of the cyst were not pathologically identifiable since they dissolved during fixation. Postoperatively, the motility disturbances improved in each patient.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Sustained hyperexcitability elicited by repetitive electric stimulation of organotypic hippocampal explants.

Sustained or complex evoked extracellular slow-wave field potentials were recorded in the CA3/2 areas of organotypic hippocampal explants following stimulation of the dentate area. After repetitive electric stimulation, these discharges became more complex and/or self-sustaining. Self-sustaining discharges continued to occur for the duration of the experiment (15 min-10 h). These slow-wave discharges were evoked (or occurred spontaneously) over a wide range of extracellular K+ concentrations (3-9 mM) without addition of pharmacologic inhibitory antagonists, whereas in some explants raising extracellular K+ from 5.9 to 8-9 mM resulted in spontaneous discharges. The observation that epileptiform discharges in hippocampal explants often occurred spontaneously, were elicited by repetitive electric stimulation, and were recorded at K+ levels which are generally ineffective in acute adult hippocampal slices, indicates that excitability of these CNS explants may be significantly increased following altered neuronal and synaptic development (and/or reorganization) under isolated conditions in culture.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Dendritic patterns of granule cells in organotypic explants of fetal and neonatal mouse hippocampal formation.

Granule and granule-like neurons were labeled by Golgi and HRP techniques in the dentate area of fetal and neonatal organotypic hippocampal explants after 1 day-8 weeks in vitro. These cells resembled granule cells labeled in situ with similar techniques, although the dendritic pattern and spine development were not as elaborate as observed on granule cells from adult rodents. Many of these neurons retained basilar or multiple dendrites after 8 weeks in culture, a characteristic often associated with immature granule cells, granule cells in the reeler mutant mouse and tissues removed from human epileptic foci.

Animals↗