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Biomedical subjects

K G Mehrotra

Publications and source records attributed to K G Mehrotra.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

Maximum likelihood estimation for longitudinal data with truncated observations.

We obtain maximum likelihood estimates of the parameters when the observations on the response variable in a repeated measures design are truncated above a cutpoint. The maximum likelihood equations are solved iteratively using an EM-like procedure. It is observed that these estimates have smaller mean squared error than recently proposed iterative weighted least-squares estimates. The results are applied to data arising from a study of dioxin elimination in Air Force veterans. Published in 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Aerospace Medicine↗

Hormonal response to orthostasis in elderly people with systemic systolic hypertension.

BACKGROUND: Orthostatic hypotension is a common phenomenon in the elderly. Hormonal changes during orthostatic stress have been described in elderly normotensive people and in those with essential hypertension. However, the hormonal response in elderly people who have systolic hypertension during orthostasis has not yet been quantified. METHODS: In this study we investigated 14 non-diabetic men, aged 60 to 75 years, with untreated systolic hypertension who were subjected to 45 degrees passive head-up incline on a tilt table for 15 min. Their hormonal profile and hemodynamic changes were analyzed before and after the stress. RESULTS: In the supine position, plasma levels of norepinephrine, atrial natriuretic peptide and aldosterone were in the normal range, while the plasma renin activity was low. Immediately upon tilt the systolic blood pressure fell but it reverted to baseline values after 15 min of orthostasis. At that time the cardiac output decreased while the systemic vascular resistance and the plasma norepinephrine concentration rose. The atrial natriuretic peptide appeared to fall, and the renin-aldosterone level did not change. CONCLUSION: The physiologic response to orthostatic stress in elderly people with systolic hypertension is comparable to that of elderly normotensive people and those with essential hypertension, i.e. a decrease in cardiac output and an increase in plasma norepinephrine levels. The atrial natriuretic peptide appeared to fall appropriately. The response of the renin-aldosterone system mimicked that in elderly patients with low renin essential isolated hypertension. These observations may have a bearing on the management of elderly people with systolic hypertension who also have orthostatic symptoms; they may not require a different approach from that needed for others of the same age group.

Aged↗

Baroreflex function during 45-degree passive head-up tilt before and after long-term thiazide therapy in the elderly with systolic systemic hypertension.

The ratio of the 30th to the 15th cardiac cycle duration on an electrocardiogram (30:15 ratio) immediately after active standing from the supine position has been used as one of the markers of baroreflex function. A ratio of < or = 1.0 has been suggested to indicate baroreflex dysfunction. Blood pressure (BP) changes were measured and the 30:15 ratio was calculated after standing and during 45-degree passive head-up tilt from the supine position in 10 nondiabetic men (mean age +/- SE 70.1 +/- 1.05 years, and BP < 150/90 mm Hg). After tilt the decrease in systolic BP (from 132 +/- 4.8 to 117 +/- 6.3 mm Hg; p < 0.001) appeared to be larger than that after standing (from 132 +/- 4.6 to 123 +/- 5.8 mm Hg; p < 0.01), whereas the 30:15 ratios were 0.965 +/- 0.006 and 0.970 +/- 0.014, respectively, which suggested baroreflex dysfunction. Although the mean of the 2 ratios did not differ, the variance appeared to be less during tilting than after standing. Thus, the 45-degree passive head-up tilt appeared to be a better and more uniform inducer of orthostatic stress than active standing. Therefore, 45-degree head-up tilt was used in a group of 10 nondiabetic male patients (aged 70 +/- 1.46 years) with isolated systolic hypertension (systolic BP > 160 mm Hg, diastolic BP of < 90 mm Hg) to assess their baroreflex function. Upon tilting, their systolic BP decreased from 190 +/- 5.5 to 179 +/- 5.8 mm Hg (p < 0.05) and their 30:15 ratio was 0.985 +/- 0.011.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aged↗

Hemodynamic response to orthostatic stress in the elderly with systolic systemic hypertension before and after long-term thiazide therapy.

The hemodynamic effects of orthostatic stress in elderly subjects with systolic hypertension were studied before and after long-term hydrochlorothiazide therapy (50 mg daily). Sixteen nondiabetic men aged 70 +/- 1 (SE) years participated in the study initially, and 12 completed 1 year of therapy. Patients underwent 45 degrees head-up incline on a tilt table before, after 1 month and after 1 year of therapy. Hemodynamic variables were measured in the following situations: (1) the supine position, (2) immediately after completion of passive 45 degrees head-up position at 0 minute, (3) at 15 minutes in the tilted state while patients performed intermittent foot movements to minimize gravitational pooling and simulate the standing position outside the laboratory, and (4) after returning to the supine position. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP) decreased significantly after 1 month of therapy, and this reduction was maintained up to 1 year in all aforementioned body positions, with the exception of diastolic BP at 0 minute of tilt, which was significant at 1 year only. Before therapy was begun, there was a significant reduction in systolic BP immediately after completion of tilting; however, this was statistically insignificant both at 1 month and 1 year of therapy. Thus, the data may help dispel the concern of exacerbating the hypotensive response to orthostatic stress in patients with systolic hypertension after long-term thiazide diuretic therapy.

Aged↗

Factors encouraging research productivity in a division of general internal medicine.

The authors investigated two of the causes of and possible remedies for low research activity (as measured by rate of publication) of faculty members in a division of general internal medicine at a university hospital and its affiliated Veterans Administration medical center. They did this by analyzing information about the faculty in the health center's records spanning a 16-year period. This 1989 study suggests that the general medicine faculty members who are also involved in subspecialties and who have protected research time can improve their research productivity.

Academic Medical Centers↗

Efficacy and reduced metabolic side effects of a 15-mg chlorthalidone formulation in the treatment of mild hypertension. A multicenter study.

We compared a new low-dose chlorthalidone formulation consisting of 15 mg of this compound and a biocompatible polymer in a double-blind placebo-controlled trial with the standard 25-mg dose of chlorthalidone in the management of mild essential hypertension. Two hundred twenty-two patients, ranging in age from 21 to 69 years, with an average standing diastolic blood pressure between 91 and 104 mm Hg participated in this trial. At the end of 12 weeks, the percentage of patients who had a decrease in their standing diastolic blood pressure of 5 mm Hg or more was statistically similar in both of the active-treatment groups and significantly different from the placebo group. With the lower-dose compound, the metabolic side effect of hypokalemia was less of a problem and there was no evidence of glucose intolerance. Thus, this new 15-mg formulation of chlorthalidone appears to be an effective antihypertensive agent with fewer metabolic side effects compared with the standard 25-mg dose in the management of mild essential hypertension.

Adult↗