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Biomedical subjects

J M Leibowitz

Publications and source records attributed to J M Leibowitz.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

The effects of the presence of a companion animal on physiological arousal and behavioral distress in children during a physical examination.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the presence of a companion animal on physiological arousal and behavioral distress exhibited by preschool children during a routine physical examination. A within-subject, time-series design was used to study 23 healthy children ages 3 years to 6 years during two physical examinations, with and without a dog. Statistically significant differences were found with greater reductions in subjects' systolic and mean arterial pressure, heart rate, and behavioral distress when the dog was present. Findings support the use of a companion animal in reducing stress experienced by children during a physical examination.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1995

Age and gender effects on postural control measures.

OBJECTIVE: Identifying age-related changes in the postural control system is an important first step towards understanding the risk for falls in older adults. The purpose of this study was to determine whether age or gender had any effects on six relatively new postural control measures. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, 2 x 2 factorial design, representing two ages (younger [20 to 35 years], and older [60 to 75 years]) and both sexes. SETTING: University campus. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-four community dwelling healthy adults (12 women, 12 men) participated in each of the younger and older groups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Outcome measures included five force platform measures and functional reach (cm). The force platform measures, obtained using the Balance Master system, included movement time and path length to targets, and sway area under conditions of eyes open, eyes closed, and with visual feedback. RESULTS: Although gender was not significant for any outcome measure, age was significant in all six outcome measures. Older adults demonstrated larger areas of sway regardless of condition (eyes open, eyes closed or with visual feedback). Older adults had longer movement times, longer path lengths, and shorter distances of functional reach when compared with younger adults. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the measures studied are sensitive to age-related changes in healthy elderly.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

An effective and acceptable treatment alternative for chronic thumb- and finger-sucking.

Evaluated treatment for thumb-sucking in a randomized trial. Study included 22 children, ages 4-11, who displayed chronic thumb-sucking. Treatment included aversive taste and a reward system. Significant results were obtained at posttest, with 12 cessations at 3-month follow-up and 20 at 1 year. Participating parents, pediatricians, and pediatric psychologists validated treatment acceptability. Results support the treatment as an alternative to common medical and dental advice about thumb-sucking. Directions for future research are discussed.

Aversive Therapy↗
PubMed1989

Years of potential life lost: evaluating premature cancer death in men.

Cancer is one of the most serious health concerns facing the nation. Health care policy makers who determine cancer research and treatment priorities must analyze death rates as an indicator of public health priorities. Two additional indexes that account for premature death include years of potential life lost (YPLL) and potential years of life lost per death (YPLL/D). Data for ten leading causes of cancer death in men from 1974-1983 were analyzed and the YPLL and YPLL/D corresponding to these cancers was calculated. Each cancer was then ranked from most to least significant according to each index. The analyses show that using YPLL and YPLL/D to evaluate cancer death in men results in rankings that differ from those obtained when using death rates alone. The premature death indexes, when used in combination with traditional mortality indexes, would enhance the data base used by funding agencies who select and evaluate cancer treatment and prevention programs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Improvement in grasp skill in children with hemiplegia with the MacKinnon splint.

This study evaluated the use of the MacKinnon splint upon grasp skills in three children, ages 2 1/2 to 7 1/2, with spastic hemiplegia. The MacKinnon splint was sequentially introduced in a multiple baseline design across subjects. The results indicated improvement in each child's grasp of eight different, randomly presented objects, after a MacKinnon splint was provided for daily wear.

Cerebral Palsy↗
PubMed1988

Do encopretic children have clinically significant behavior problems?

Pediatricians are increasingly recognized as the providers of choice for children with functional encopresis. The presence of clinically significant behavior problems could interfere with pediatric regimens for encopresis, however. To study the extent to which encopretic children exhibit behavior problems, we compared the scores on a standardized behavioral checklist for three randomly selected samples: a sample group of children with encopresis, a sample group of children with behavior problems, and a sample group of children without encopresis or behavior problems. All three samples were matched for age and gender. An analysis of variance showed that the scores of children with encopresis did not differ from the normative sample but were significantly lower than the scores from the behavior problem sample (P less than .00001). The results support the appropriateness of the trend toward expanding the primary pediatrician's role in the treatment of encopresis.

Child↗