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Biomedical subjects

K John

Publications and source records attributed to K John.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Depressed parents and their children. General health, social, and psychiatric problems.

Two hundred twenty children (aged 6 to 23 years) from families with either depressed or normal (nonpsychiatrically ill) parents of comparable sociodemographic backgrounds were studied. The children from families in which at least one parent had experienced a major depression were reported to have had more adverse perinatal events; were later in achieving some developmental landmarks; had more convulsions, head injuries, operations, and psychiatric disorders (particularly major depression); and made more suicide attempts. Overall, there were no significant differences in IQ between children in both groups. Mothers in families with a depressed parent reported more medical problems during pregnancy and labor, and the children were reported to have experienced more distress at birth. Since major depression is a highly prevalent disorder in women of childbearing ages, these findings have direct clinical implications for pediatricians. Their specificity for major depression, as contrasted with other psychiatric disorders or chronic illnesses in the parents, requires further study.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Family-genetic studies of psychiatric disorders. Developing technologies.

During the past decade new concepts and technologies have improved the conduct of family-genetic studies in psychiatry. We compiled and critically evaluated these advances, including study design, pedigree collection, diagnostic procedures in adults and children, and epidemiologic and genetic approaches to data analysis. These approaches have improved the collection of accurate information on the nature and patterns of psychiatric illness in families. The data generated from well-designed and well-conducted family studies are useful for the identification of homogeneous subgroups of psychiatric disorders, for understanding the spectrum of psychiatric disorders, for examining the associations between psychiatric disorders, and for studying the continuity between adult and childhood manifestations of psychiatric disorders. Findings from these studies also may enhance our capacity to identify the mode of transmission of the psychiatric disorders and to select potentially informative families for future genetic linkage studies using the new recombinant DNA techniques. The adaptation of these methods to routine clinical practice and new directions in the application of family-genetic studies employing more refined assessments and analytic methods are also discussed.

Data Collection↗
PubMed1986

Late onset of myoclonic epilepsy of Janz.

Myoclonic epilepsy of Janz is an essentially benign disorder with excellent response to valproic acid. The onset of myoclonic seizures in a patient at the age of 47 years, with normal mental status and a normal neurological examination, is reported. The electroencephalogram showed typical 3- to 5-Hz polyspike and wave complexes, some associated with myoclonic jerks but without loss of consciousness. The patient responded well to divalproex sodium, which controlled her seizures. A discussion of the condition and a review of the literature are included.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1985

Electroencephalographic abnormalities in children with congenital heart disease.

Ninety-eight consecutive patients with clinically suspected congenital heart disease were prospectively studied with electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings before cardiac catheterization. Twenty-five patients had abnormal EEGs. Fifty-five patients had acyanotic heart disease and normal neurologic examination results, of whom 15 had abnormal EEGs. Thirteen had spikes or spike and wave discharges and two had mildly abnormal EEGs. Twenty-seven patients had cyanotic heart disease and normal neurologic examination results, of whom four had abnormal EEGs. Seven patients (8%) had abnormal neurologic examination results, of whom four had abnormal EEGs. There was a higher incidence of seizures with increasing age. Based on their medical history two children with acyanotic heart disease had had seizures without EEG abnormalities. Five children with normal catheterization findings and four children with Down's syndrome (two with abnormal EEGs) were excluded from the total of 98. These findings suggest that subclinical nervous system involvement may occur in congenital heart disease.

Brain↗
PubMed1985

Acute cerebellar syndrome in infectious mononucleosis: documentation of two cases with Epstein-Barr virus infection.

Acute cerebellar ataxia has been described occasionally with infectious mononucleosis. Two additional cases are reported with serologic identification of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection in blood and cerebrospinal fluid. As with previously described cases, the outcome was benign, and examination and laboratory studies did not indicate diffuse neurologic involvement. Visual and brainstem auditory-evoked responses were normal. Electroencephalograms (EEG) demonstrated 14 and 6 per second positive spikes in both patients. This pattern is considered a normal variant and has been recorded from depth electrodes and reported with deep midline lesions. These cases support the prognosis of benign cerebellar involvement in infectious mononucleosis and suggest that evidence of EBV infection be sought in patients with acute ataxia. The significance of 14/sec and 6/sec positive EEG spikes is uncertain.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

Posterior cerebral artery occlusion without hemianopia.

A 42-year-old man had ischemic infarction from an occlusion of the left posterior cerebral artery (PCA), but had no visual field defect by examination or Goldmann perimetry. Arteriograms showed distal filling of the occluded PCA, but no collateral blood flow from the carotid circulation, suggesting collateral flow from leptomeningeal anastomoses. Visual field sparing may occur in surgical occlusion of the PCA, but rarely occurs in stroke. An infarction from PCA occlusion is not excluded by complete visual field sparing, and studies looking for other causes of the neurologic deficit may not be necessary.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Use of a structured diagnostic interview to identify bipolar disorder in adolescent inpatients: frequency and manifestations of the disorder.

The authors interviewed 17 adolescent inpatients and their mothers with the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Aged Children and Adolescents, Epidemiological Version (K-SADS-E), a semistructured interview that generates RDC and DSM-III diagnoses for major affective disorders and nonaffective psychoses and DSM-III diagnoses for dysthymic, cyclothymic, and other selected disorders. Five of the patients (29%) satisfied DSM-III criteria for bipolar disorder or atypical bipolar (bipolar II) disorder, although these diagnoses had not been identified in the hospital charts. These data support previous findings that bipolar disorder occurs moderately frequently in adolescent inpatients, although it is often unrecognized. Moreover, the disorder can be readily identified with structured diagnostic methods.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

The epidemiology of Tourette's syndrome: a pilot study.

A new, precoded, self-report questionnaire was used to collect information on 75 patient members of the Tourette Syndrome Association. This diverse group of Tourette's syndrome (TS) patients supplied by mail detailed medical, symptom, developmental, family, and personal history information. Analysis of these data supported the usefulness and validity of the questionnaire, and also indicated that the diagnosis of TS is being made earlier; attentional difficulties may be basic to the disorder; haloperidol is an effective treatment for many patients, but alternative treatments are needed because unpleasant side effects of haloperidol often lead to discontinued use, and TS is disabling for many with most patients reporting serious problems in one or more areas of functioning.

Adolescent↗