PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

J Hobson

Publications and source records attributed to J Hobson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2002

Sulfate disinfection, stabilisation and heavy metal removal from sewage sludge--process description and preliminary results.

A new, closed loop process for the disinfection, stabilisation and removal of heavy metal from sewage sludge (consisting of a sludge/sulfuric acid reactor, hybrid H2S generator and H2S bioscrubber) is described. Preliminary results for total solids (TS), volatile suspended solids (VSS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), acetate and propionate destruction in the hybrid H2S generator have shown that digestion efficiency is not compromised in a hybrid reactor generating H2S compared to a methanogenic reactor. 70% of the electron flow in the hybrid H2S generator was diverted to methane at a COD:SO4 ratio of 5.45:1. Enough H2SO4 could be generated from the H2S emitted at this ratio to effect sufficient metal solubilisation and pathogen removal from primary sludge.

Agriculture↗
PubMed2001

Stories about breast cancer in Australian women's magazines: information sources for risk, early detection and treatment.

Sixty articles in five Australian women's magazines were analyzed for journalistic qualities, metaphors, narrative features and accuracy of clinical facts related to risk, early detection and treatment of breast cancer. The stories were features, news features or soft news stories. The stories reflected the 'good news' editorial style of women's magazines. A dominant theme in the stories was that early detection of breast cancer is crucial and equals survival. While there were few inaccuracies in the stories, there was little detail of treatment modalities, an emphasis on lifestyle as a risk factor and a prevailing message that a genetic history of breast cancer means you will get it. A major implication of the findings is that nurses, who provide information to women, must be aware of the goals of journalists and the educational power of narrative logic of stories in women's magazines.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2001

Upgrading the service mix in primary care practices may increase revenue.

Hospitals and health systems that own primary care physician networks want to optimize revenues when possible while still providing high-quality patient care. One way to accomplish this objective is to enhance the service mix for patients seen by the primary care practices. An analysis of the diagnosis and service mix of three primary care networks showed that the primary care practices mainly are involved with common acute and chronic conditions, which are associated with office visits that are paid at low- and mid-level rates. A comparison of the primary care networks' diagnosis and service mix with Medicare data on the mix of office visits for family practitioners, internists, and cardiologists showed, for example, that primary care physicians have more level 2 office visits and fewer level 4 office visits than cardiologists. By upgrading the patient office visits from the routine acute and chronic conditions associated with lower-level visits to more serious conditions associated with higher-level visits, primary care practices may increase total practice revenue.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Graphic analysis of actively managed labor: prospective computation of labor progress in 500 consecutive nulliparous women in spontaneous labor at term.

OBJECTIVE: Active management has been shown to shorten the length of labor and reduce the incidence of prolonged labor. We examined the influence of this protocol on the rate of cervical dilatation by calculating a mean partogram to explain how this acceleration is achieved. STUDY DESIGN: We retrospectively analyzed partograms of cervical dilation in 500 consecutive nulliparous women in spontaneous labor at term with a singleton fetus in a cephalic presentation; cesarean deliveries were not excluded. Mean cervical dilations at admission and mean time intervals to reach 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 10 cm of dilatation and delivery were calculated, with 95% confidence intervals, both for the whole cohort and specifically in women with cervical dilatations <3 cm at admission. These data were used to construct mean partograms. RESULTS: The mean duration of labor was 6.1 hours. The mean cervical dilatation at admission was 1. 7 cm; all but 2.8% were delivered within 12 hours. The cesarean rate was 5.4%. The mean partogram, with narrow 95% confidence intervals, shows a rapid active phase after a much shorter latent phase than reported in other analyses of labor. CONCLUSION: Active management reduces the duration of first labor mainly by shortening the latent phase in association with amniotomy at very early cervical dilatations and does not delay the diagnosis of labor until the active phase has begun.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

An investigation of the relationship between psychological health and workload among managers.

BACKGROUND: Anecdotally, many workers complain of stress at work. However, the relationship between work and stress needs clarification to allow risk assessment and risk management of this hazard in the workplace. OBJECTIVES: To examine relationships between working hours, perceived work stressors, and psychological health in a group of managers. METHODS: Managers at two factories were invited to participate in an anonymous cross-sectional survey. All were asked to complete a work diary for a period of 1 week and a questionnaire comprising the 30-item General Health Questionnaire, an anxiety and depression scale, and questions identifying perceived workplace stressors. RESULTS: Over 60% of managers were above the threshold of caseness on at least one measure of psychological health. No statistically significant relationship was demonstrated between actual hours of work and psychological health. A relationship was demonstrated between some perceived workplace stressors and actual hours worked, and between some perceived workplace stressors and psychological health. CONCLUSIONS: A large proportion of managers in a typical production environment appeared at risk of developing psychological illness. Hours of work were not directly related to psychological health, but were significantly associated with individual perception of some work stressors which, in turn, were associated with measures of psychological health. Perceived workload appeared more important in determining psychological health than actual workload.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2000

Institutional behaviour and time in treatment among psychopaths admitted to a prison-based therapeutic community.

Previous research has indicated that psychopathy is associated with high levels of institutional misconduct and high attrition rates in therapeutic communities. However, most of this work has been conducted with North American populations. In the present study, data is presented on institutional behaviour and time in therapy for 104 inmates admitted to Grendon Therapeutic Prison. The results indicated that high scores on the Hare Psychopathy Checklist Revised were significantly associated with failure to progress from the assessment unit onto a therapy wing and the number of adjudications and security information reports. A trend was found for psychopathy to be associated with shorter periods in therapy, but this just failed to reach significance. The results confirm previous research on the association between psychopathy and institutional misconduct and provide some support for the association between psychopathy and early termination of treatment in therapeutic communities. A number of methodological issues are discussed.

Antisocial Personality Disorder↗
PubMed1997

Venous insufficiency at work.

Chronic venous disease of the lower limbs is one of the most common conditions affecting humankind. It has been postulated that certain workplace conditions may be risk factors for venous insufficiency and varicose veins in particular. This paper examines the evidence for a link between occupation and the prevalence of venous disease. It also reviews recent French research carried out to estimate the prevalence of chronic venous insufficiency in a working population; work and nonwork risk factor and the cost to industry from this condition are also examined.

France↗
PubMed1996

Poetry on rounds.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Humanities↗
PubMed1996

Reported benefits and problems experienced with bone-anchored hearing aids.

Within this study we have examined the self-reported benefits and shortcomings experienced by patients fitted with bone-anchored hearing aids using an open-ended approach developed for hearing aid users. Reports were obtained from 39 patients who, between them, listed 165 benefits and 105 shortcomings. Benefits and shortcomings could be sub-divided into four main groups: practical, acoustical, psychological and medical, in that order of frequency. The most commonly reported benefits included hearing better and clearer, ease of use, inconspicuousness, and the fact that it made the individual more confident. The main shortcomings were difficulties with the telephone, wind noise and hearing speech in noise.

Acoustics↗
PubMed1994

Organ blood flow following cardiac arrest in a swine low-flow cardiopulmonary bypass model.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To determine organ blood flow changes, relative to baseline, following cardiac arrest and resuscitation in a closed-chest cardiac arrest swine model using cardiopulmonary bypass to achieve reproducible return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC). INTERVENTIONS: Following 10 min of ventricular fibrillation (VF), animals (n = 10) received low-flow cardiopulmonary bypass at 10 ml/kg/min from 10-15 min. At 15 min of VF, norepinephrine (0.12 mg/kg) was given and bypass flow increased to 50 ml/kg/min, followed by countershocks at 16 min. Following ROSC, cardiopulmonary bypass was immediately weaned off with norepinephrine support. Organ blood flows were determined during normal sinus rhythm, during reperfusion of VF and during the early post-ROSC period while off cardiopulmonary bypass support. Organ blood flows during the early ROSC period were compared with organ blood flow at baseline and during VF. RESULTS: During early reperfusion of VF prior to any drug therapy, myocardial, cerebral and abdominal organ blood flows were all low. All animals achieved ROSC at 16.9 +/- 0.7 min and were weaned from bypass in < 5 min following ROSC. During the early post-ROSC period, blood flow to the myocardial, cerebral and adrenal vascular beds was significantly elevated relative to baseline. Simultaneously, blood flow to the kidneys, liver, spleen and lungs was reduced relative to baseline. CONCLUSIONS: This low-flow bypass model produces reproducible high resuscitation rates and ROSC times. Early post-resuscitation organ blood flow is characterized by a selective hyperemia involving the cerebral, myocardial and adrenal vascular beds, in contrast to hypoperfusion of the pulmonary and mesenteric vascular beds.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

The effect of intravenous magnesium administration on aortic, right atrial and coronary perfusion pressures during CPR in swine.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of magnesium administration on aortic, right atrial and coronary perfusion pressure (CPP) during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). DESIGN: Twelve swine weighing 23.2 +/- 3.1 kg were instrumented for CPP, aortic systolic (AOSP) and aortic diastolic (AODP) pressures. INTERVENTION: Ventricular fibrillation was induced and after 20 min of CPR the animals were allocated to receive epinephrine 0.2 mg/kg, or epinephrine 0.2 mg/kg plus magnesium 0.14 g/kg. Epinephrine was repeated every 5 min. Arterial blood gases were determined during normal sinus rhythm and prior to drug administration. RESULTS: Pressures were recorded and averaged over four consecutive 5-min intervals following initial drug administration. AOSP, AODP and CPP were compared using an analysis of covariance. AOSP was statistically lower in the group receiving magnesium. There was a trend toward lower AODP and CPP in the group receiving magnesium as well. These statistical differences and trends were absent after adjusting for pressures during normal sinus rhythm and serum bicarbonate prior to drug administration. CONCLUSIONS: In this model of prolonged cardiac arrest, the administration of magnesium with epinephrine appeared to have a negative effect on aortic pressures during CPR. Further study is needed to determine the confounding effect of serum bicarbonate on the response to epinephrine and magnesium during CPR.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Changes in myocardial blood flow rates during hyperdynamic sepsis with induced changes in arterial perfusing pressures and metabolic need.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether hyperdynamic sepsis is associated with dysregulation in the control of myocardial blood flow rates unrelated to hypotension or the use of anesthetic agents. DESIGN: Prospective, nonrandomized, controlled trial. SETTING: Experimental laboratory. SUBJECTS: Fifteen mature male sheep (34 to 61 kg). INTERVENTIONS: Data were recorded in study subjects before and after the induction of sepsis following cecal ligation and perforation. Data were then recorded during: a) an infusion of prostaglandin E1 (PGE1), which decreased mean arterial perfusing pressure; and b) an infusion of zymosan-activated plasma, which increased mean pulmonary arterial pressures. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Myocardial blood flow rates were measured by the radiolabeled microsphere technique and cardiac index was measured by the thermodilution technique. Cardiac index (change delta) postcecal ligation and perforation minus baseline (+2.3 +/- 1.0 L/min/m2; p < .01) was increased in the septic study. Blood flow rate to the left ventricle was simultaneously increased, and was not further affected when the PGE1 infusion decreased the mean arterial perfusing pressures (-19 +/- 4%). During the infusion of zymosan-activated plasma, mean pulmonary arterial pressures increased (50 +/- 30%) and right ventricular blood flow was increased (zymosan minus postcecal ligation and perforation study: delta 17.8 +/- 50 mL/100 g/min; p < .01). CONCLUSIONS: In this model of hyperdynamic sepsis, increases in blood flow to both the left and right ventricles were positively coupled to changes in respective ventricular work. From the interventional PGE1 and zymosan-activated plasma infusion studies, we found no evidence to support previous suggestions that the regulation of myocardial blood flow rates according to changes in perfusing pressure and/or metabolic oxygen need is significantly altered during hyperdynamic sepsis.

Alprostadil↗