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Biomedical subjects

K Douglas

Publications and source records attributed to K Douglas.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Generational differences in psychosocial adaptation and predictors of psychological distress in a population of recent Vietnamese immigrants.

While first-wave Vietnamese immigrants adapted well to life in the United States, subsequent immigrants have had greater adjustment difficulties, including more evidence of psychological distress. This study aimed to analyze psychosocial adaptation differences among three generations of recent Vietnamese immigrants, as well as to examine predictors of mental distress in the sample as a whole. A community sample of 184 recent Vietnamese immigrants, categorized as either elderly, middle-aged, or young adults, was assessed for levels of psychological distress, including depression, anxiety, and PTSD, as well as family conflict, dissatisfaction with life in the U.S., acculturation and biculturalism, social support, coping, and premigratory stressors. Young Vietnamese adults were most acculturated, most bicultural, and reported themselves as healthiest and least depressed. They were most often working, least often on welfare, and had the highest family income. However, they also reported most dissatisfaction with their current lives in the U.S. and most family conflict. Regression analysis explaining approximately one-quarter of the variance in mental distress implicated current dissatisfaction with and lack of adjustment of life in the United States, as well as greater acculturation and increased family conflict. Although young adults scored significantly higher than other generations on most of the risk factors for psychological distress, they appeared to be buffered against poorer mental health outcomes by factors of generation and perceived positive overall well-being. In terms of testing a predictive model of psychological distress, this study found current adjustment factors significantly more important in determining mental health outcomes than premigratory stressors such as war-related traumas.

Acculturation↗
PubMed1999

A relationship between computerisation and quality in general practice.

AIM: To explore whether there is an association between use of computers and compliance with The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Entry Standards for General Practice. METHOD: Participants in the RACGP Field Test of Standards were surveyed to determine their level of computerisation. These data were matched with the participants' compliance with selected standards. These standards were selected on the basis that compliance with them was relatively low and might be improved by appropriate use of information technology. Ordinal regression analyses were conducted of compliance with the selected standard and relevant levels of computerisation. RESULTS: There was a significant relationship between having a practice computer and providing patients with written information about the practice (p < 0.0005) and systematic preventive care (p = 0.037). DISCUSSION: There may be a relationship between quality general practice and computerisation.

Computers↗
PubMed1998

National standards for general practice.

A set of standards for Australian general practices has been developed through a 4 year project conducted by The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. An orderly, iterative process was adopted to ensure comprehensive consultation with general practitioners, other health professionals, consumers and governments. The draft standards were field tested in 199 randomly selected urban and rural practices. Results of this field testing showed that the standards have content validity, that they can be measured reliably and that the practice visit protocol is feasible. The standards are calibrated to define the minimum acceptable features of general practices expected for the mid 1990s. The standards have been adopted by Australian General Practice Accreditation Limited as the basis for a voluntary system of practice accreditation.

Australia↗
PubMed1997

Applications of S-layers.

The wealth of information existing on the general principle of S-layers has revealed a broad application potential. The most relevant features exploited in applied S-layer research are: (i) pores passing through S-layers show identical size and morphology and are in the range of ultrafiltration membranes; (ii) functional groups on the surface and in the pores are aligned in well-defined positions and orientations and accessible for binding functional molecules in very precise fashion; (iii) isolated S-layer subunits from many organisms are capable of recrystallizing as closed monolayers onto solid supports at the air-water interface, on lipid monolayers or onto the surface of liposomes. Particularly their repetitive physicochemical properties down to the subnanometer scale make S-layers unique structures for functionalization of surfaces and interfaces down to the ultimate resolution limit. The following review focuses on selected applications in biotechnology, diagnostics, vaccine development, biomimetic membranes, supramolecular engineering and nanotechnology. Despite progress in the characterization of S-layers and the exploitation of S-layers for the applications described in this chapter, it is clear that the field lags behind others (e.g. enzyme engineering) in applying recent advances in protein engineering. Genetic modification and targeted chemical modification would allow several possibilities including the manipulation of pore permeation properties, the introduction of switches to open and close the pores, and the covalent attachment to surfaces or other macromolecules through defined sites on the S-layer protein. The application of protein engineering to S-layers will require the development of straightforward expression systems, the development of simple assays for assembly and function that are suitable for the rapid screening of numerous mutants and the acquisition of structural information at atomic resolution. Attention should be given to these areas in the coming years.

Bacteria↗
PubMed1997

System design challenges: the integration of controlled vocabulary use into daily practice.

System developers face the challenge of providing tools to improve health care productivity and quality. While progress is being made, clearly defined requirements, standards and development guidelines are not yet complete enough to provide the details needed to build such software. We have moved forward and created a clinical documentation system using a controlled vocabulary. Doctors and nurses use data entry tools such as browsers and templates to access the vocabulary for creating clinical notes. Our library of terms is mapped to SNOMED which is not complete enough to support clinical documentation. Therefore our libraries have been expanded beyond SNOMED. Overall we have found that clinicians will use a controlled vocabulary when it is intuitive, predictable, flexible, complete and fast to use. Other benefits have surfaced such as more complete and consistent documentation. Our experiences to date confirm that there is still much to explore, discover, invent and create.

Attitude to Computers↗
PubMed1996

A homology model of the Id-3 helix-loop-helix domain as a basis for structure-function predictions.

The function of the dominant negative Id (inhibitor of differentiation) helix-loop-helix (HLH) proteins is to dimerize with, and prevent the DNA binding of basic HLH (bHLH) transcription factors. A three-dimensional homology model was constructed for the HLH domain of human Id3 based on the X-ray crystal structures of the E47, MyoD, and Max bHLH proteins. The model showed that, in contrast to bHLH proteins, Id proteins appear able to dimerize without DNA stabilization because of better packing of the hydrophobic core, and the absence of destabilizing polar loop residues and of repulsive positive charges in the monomer interface at the base of the four alpha-helix bundle. This prediction was tested by in vitro protein-binding experiments, which showed that Id3 did indeed self-associate. It also showed that the inability of Id proteins to bind DNA arises from the non-basic, poorly defined, random coil structure of the region corresponding to that responsible for bHLH DNA-binding. A model of the Id1 protein was constructed and revealed a potential site of charge-charge repulsion in the hypothetical homodimer interface that may explain its observed inability to form homodimers.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

The projection of the lateral sacral mass on the outer table of the posterior ilium.

STUDY DESIGN: This study was designed to construct the projection of the lateral sacral mass on the posterior ilium using cadaveric pelves and to measure the dimensions of the projection. OBJECTIVES: The present study was undertaken to determine quantitatively the location of the lateral sacral mass on the outer table of the ilium. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Anatomic studies relative to instrumentation of the posterior iliosacral region are few. No previous anatomic studies with regard to the projection of the lateral sacral mass have been reported. METHODS: Twelve cadaveric pelves were used for this study. To determine the projection of the lateral sacral mass on the outer table of the posterior ilium, several Kirschner wires were drilled along the outermost peripheral edge of the lateral sacral mass from the inner table of the ilium through the outer table. A triangle projection on the outer table of the posterior ilium was then constructed according to the placed Kirschner wires. The widths and height of the projection, and the distances from the axis of the projection to posterior superior iliac spine and posterior inferior iliac spine were measured bilaterally. RESULTS: The average height of the projection of the lateral sacral mass was 61.4 mm. The average base width of the projection was 56.8 mm. The average distances from posterior superior iliac spine and posterior interior iliac spine to the longitudinal axis of the projection of the lateral mass were 30 mm and 27.4 mm, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study reported the average location of the lateral sacral mass on the outer table of the ilium. The superior area of the projection may be an ideal zone for transiliosacral screw placement.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Evaluating the impact of structured text and templates in ambulatory nursing.

This evaluation looks at the use of templates for entering structured text nursing notes that generate both a legal text note that is the chart record and an underlying coded form of the note to support analysis and research. This study reflects the first phase of a prototype project of an integrated, computerized health record. Templates are notes that have been prewritten using a standard clinical vocabulary. Templates can be used as the basis of a new clinical note and can be either signed unchanged or modified to represent variations in clinical presentation. The prototype setting is a Primary Care clinic where both physicians and nurses are using the computer to enter clinical notes. In the prototype clinic team, nursing utilized the CPR for 100% of all documentation from day one. Use of templates was found to be the most frequent method of initiating a note.

Documentation↗
PubMed1993

Invasive sinusitis with intracranial extension caused by Curvularia lunata.

Curvularia lunata has previously been linked to localized sinus infection in immunocompetent hosts. We treated a case of pansinusitis with extensive bone destruction and intracranial extension caused by C lunata. Curvularia lunata was identified when typical fungal macroconidia appeared on culture. Numerous surgical procedures, in addition to a 12-month course of antifungal therapy consisting of 4 g of intravenous amphotericin B and an 8-month course of 400 mg of oral ketoconazole daily, were required to control the infection. This unusual case of invasive sinusitis caused by C lunata alerts the treating physician to the presence of this mold and gives an overview of diagnostic method as well as the management.

Combined Modality Therapy↗
PubMed1992

Direct observation of defect structure in protein crystals by atomic force and transmission electron microscopy.

We have examined the structure of S-layers isolated from Sulfolobus acidocaldarius using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). From the AFM images, we were able to directly observe individual dimers of the crystal, defects in the crystal structure, and twin boundaries. We have identified two types of boundaries, one defined by a mirror plane and the other by a glide plane. This work shows that twin boundaries are highly structured regions that are directly related to the organization of units within each crystal domain. Projection maps from TEM images have shown that there are significant differences in the final average maps has allowed us to relate high magnification views obtained by AFM to the relatively high resolution information obtained by electron microscopy and image processing.

Bacterial Proteins↗
PubMed1987

A novel muramyl peptide derivative stimulates tumoricidal activity of macrophages and antibody production by B cells.

A novel analog of MDP, the 3'-iodo-4'-azido-L-phenylalanine methyl ester derivative of N-acetyl-L-alanyl-D-isoglutamine, has been prepared. This compound is capable of activating macrophages to the tumoricidal state and increasing the specific immune response of B cells. It thus appears to exhibit similar biological activities to MDP. Moreover, this compound is of potential interest for receptor photolabelling studies.

Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine↗
PubMed1978

Age changes, cohort differences, and cultural change on the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey.

The relation between adult age and temperament was investigated using the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. Between the years 1958 and 1974, the GZTS was administered to 915 men from 17 to 98 years of age in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study. Repeated measures were obtained for 336 men approximately 7 years after initial testing. Each GZTS scale was analyzed cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Sequential analyses of independent samples were also carried out in an attempt to separate the effects of maturation from those of generational and cultural change. Results showed that Masculinity declined at all ages, but General Activity declined only after age 50. Thoughtfulness and Personal Relations showed cultural declines during the time period studied, whereas Friendliness showed a long-term cultural decline. Later-born cohorts were lower in Restraint and higher in Ascendance than early-born cohorts.

Adolescent↗