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Biomedical subjects

James Allen

Publications and source records attributed to James Allen.

24 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2003

The role of microvascular injury in the evolution of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Interstitial lung disease compatible with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) developed in 19 previously healthy patients. Although interstitial and/or honeycomb parenchymal fibrosis was present in all, there were patchy areas of paucicellular septal capillary injury along with corroborative direct immunofluorescent evidence of a humorally mediated microvascular injury syndrome. Significantly elevated factor VIII levels were seen in 17 of 18 patients tested. Antiphospholipids were present in all 18 patients tested, comprising antibodies of phosphatidylethanolamine, beta-2 glycoprotein, phosphatidylcholine, and/or phosphatidylserine. Anti-Ro and/or anti-ribonucleoprotein (RNP) antibodies were seen in 4 patients. Serologic evidence of infection with cytomegalovirus (CMV) was found in 9 patients and parvovirus B19 (B19) in 9 patients; 1 patient was not tested. Molecular studies revealed B19 DNA in 6 of 6 B19-seropositive patients. In situ hybridization studies revealed CMV RNA in pulmonary cells in patients with serologic evidence of active CMV infection despite the absence of cytopathic changes typical of CMV infection. Antiphospholipid antibodies, antiendothelial cell antibodies, and/or endotheliotropic viral infections related to B19 and CMV may be of pathogenetic importance to the evolution of IPF. This report underscores the potential importance of microvascular injury in the evolution of IPF.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Growth outside the core.

Growth in an adjacent market is tougher than it looks; three-quarters of the time, the effort fails. But companies can change those odds dramatically. Results from a five-year study of corporate growth conducted by Bain & Company reveal that adjacency expansion succeeds only when built around strong core businesses that have the potential to become market leaders. And the best place to look for adjacency opportunities is inside a company's strongest customers. The study also found that the most successful companies were able to consistently, profitably outgrow their rivals by developing a formula for pushing out the boundaries of their core businesses in predictable, repeatable ways. Companies use their repeatability formulas to expand into any number of adjacencies. Some companies make repeated geographic moves, as Vodafone has done in expanding from one geographic market to another over the past 13 years, building revenues from $1 billion in 1990 to $48 billion in 2003. Others apply a superior business model to new segments. Dell, for example, has repeatedly adapted its direct-to-customer model to new customer segments and new product categories. In other cases, companies develop hybrid approaches. Nike executed a series of different types of adjacency moves: it expanded into adjacent customer segments, introduced new products, developed new distribution channels, and then moved into adjacent geographic markets. The successful repeaters in the study had two common characteristics. First, they were extraordinarily disciplined, applying rigorous screens before they made an adjacency move. This discipline paid off in the form of learning curve benefits, increased speed, and lower complexity. And second, in almost all cases, they developed their repeatable formulas by studying their customers and their customers' economics very, very carefully.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMed2002

Seasonal photoperiod, gender, and P300.

The photoperiod model of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) suggests that SAD is caused by abnormal responses to seasonal changes in day length. Clarifying the utility of event-related brain potentials (ERPs) as diagnostic aids or measures of therapeutic efficacy in SAD requires understanding the range of naturally occurring seasonal patterns of variation in human responses. This investigation studied ERPs from non-patients (402 from men, 415 from women) during the pronounced photoperiod variation of the Alaskan subarctic where light availability ranges from 3.20 h in winter to 21.98 h in summer. ANOVA showed significant (P=0.03) main effect of photoperiod in the amplitude and latency of P300 responses, as well as a main effect of sensory modality (P=0.002). There was neither a main effect of gender, nor any significant gender-interactive effect in ERP responses. In clients with SAD, the ERP variability attributed to seasonal photoperiod remains to be clarified.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Assessment training for practice in American Indian and Alaska Native settings.

The collaborative assessment model is extended as a training model. The experience of psychological assessment in American Indian and Alaska Native communities is often negative due to culturally inappropriate services and test interpretation. It is productive to address this negative experience, using it as a catalyst for learning. Training in measurement and construct validation provides initial basis for critique of negative experience. Training in collaborative assessment procedures then focuses on culturally appropriate assessment service practices, cultural orientation's affect on test interpretation, and multicultural assessment ethics. Writing skills are emphasized, including procedures in report writing for description of local adaptations, norms, and interpretative rules, and integration of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (4th ed., text revision; American Psychiatric Association, 2000) cultural formulation. Development of local norms and emic tests are emphasized.

Alaska↗
PubMed2002

Disseminated Paecilomyces lilacinus infection in a patient with AIDS.

We describe a case of disseminated Paecilomyces lilacinus infection occurring in a patient with advanced HIV infection. P lilacinus is a ubiquitous environmental fungus that has been associated with infection in various immunocompromised hosts, in patients with invasive medical devices, and in contact-lens wearers. The clinical features, morphologic characteristics, and response to antifungal therapy in our patient are similar to findings reported in disseminated infection due to Penicillium marneffei, another opportunistic fungal infection in HIV-infected patients. We believe this to be the first report of infection with P lilacinus in a patient with AIDS.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗