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Biomedical subjects

L B Bourque

Publications and source records attributed to L B Bourque.

31 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1984

The UCLA population studies of chronic obstructive respiratory disease. VIII. Effects of smoking cessation on lung function: a prospective study of a free-living population.

We evaluated effects of smoking cessation on lung function and respiratory symptoms of residents 25 to 64 yr of age from 3 communities in the Los Angeles area who completed a detailed respiratory questionnaire and measurements of forced expired volumes and flow rates, closing volume, and closing capacity at 2 times (T1 and T2) 5 yr apart. Results were analyzed in 2,401 participants who fit into 4 smoking categories: never smokers (414 males, 737 females); former smokers (294 males; 172 females); quitters between T1 and T2 (106 males, 62 females); and continuing smokers (278 males, 338 females). Covariance analysis was used to determine differences in lung function across smoking categories at T1 and T2 (adjusted for T1 values) and differences in decline in lung function between T1 and T2. Chi-square analysis was used to compare continuing smokers and quitters with respect to changes in respiratory symptoms. In this population, smoking at T1 was associated with impairment in all indexes of lung function evaluated. Smoking cessation led to significant improvement in symptoms of cough, wheeze, and phlegm production, and to significantly less decline in indexes of small airway function during 5 yr compared with measurements in continuing smokers. However, at T2, lung function still was lower among quitters compared with former and never smokers. Forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) was marginally improved in women who quit compared with those who continued to smoke.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Comparison of male and female suicides in a defined community.

During the past 20 years, suicide rates in the United States have risen consistently. The upward trend has been particularly pronounced for adolescents and males. The availability of a complete data set on all suicides that occurred between 1925 and 1979 in Sacramento County, California, allowed us to compare trends in suicide rates by sex. Our objective is to describe existing differences and similarities between males and females in age-at-death, demographic characteristics, and evidence of presuicide disintegration. We found that female suicide rates in Sacramento County were significantly lower than males and there were significant differences in presuicide characteristics and behaviors between males and females who committed suicide. Except for the youngest age groups, suicide rates for males have remained stable over the last 20 years, while female rates have increased slightly. The fact that this increase coincides with a period of rapid change in the employment and familial roles of women is of particular interest. Male and female suicides differ in important respects, but as female rates rose the characteristics of female suicides increasingly resembled those of male suicides.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Rationale for and design of the National Eye Institute Prospective Evaluation of Radial Keratotomy (PERK) Study.

A five-year, multicenter, collaborative clinical trial of radial keratotomy for myopia is being carried out at nine clinical centers. The study, funded by the National Eye Institute, is recruiting approximately 500 patients aged 21 years or older with -2.00 to -8.00 diopters of physiologic myopia who also meet other clearly defined eligibility criteria. Surgeons use a diamond-bladed micrometer knife to make eight radial incisions in the anterior cornea. The diameter of the central clear zone is determined by the amount of myopia and the depth of the incisions by intraoperative ultrasonic pachymetry. Investigators other than the surgeon gather all pre- and post-operative data. Examinations include measurement of visual acuity with standardized charts, verification of refractions by a second observer, measurement of corneal curvature by keratometry and photokeratoscopy, quantitation of glare with a glare tester, and measurement of the size of individual endothelial cells from specular photomicrographs with a computerized digitizer. A formal psychometric questionnaire is used to evaluate the patients' subjective response. Physician monitors insure adherence to the protocol during site visits and members of the Data and Safety Monitoring Board oversee the progress of the study. Biostatisticians at the Coordinating Center insure complete data collection, process the data, and assist in the interpretation of results.

Academies and Institutes↗
PubMed1983

Attributes of suicide in females.

Long-term trends in suicides among females were investigated using data from Sacramento County, California. Of the 3,741 cases, 3,398 were Caucasian and 952 (25.4 percent) were females. These analyses focus on 837 Caucasian and Hispanic females. Female suicide rates in Sacramento County have increased gradually since 1925 with a corresponding decline in the male/female sex ratio. The suicide data suggest that a minimum of three types of female suicides can be identified and that the incidence of each type varies with the age of the women. Indicators that help in identifying cases and in tentatively describing an etiology include marital status, employment status and occupation, physical ill health, familial loss or disruption, and psychiatric symptoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Comparison of lung function in young nonsmokers and smokers before and after initiation of the smoking habit. A prospective study.

It has been suggested that young persons who smoke have better lung function initially than those who remain nonsmokers. To examine this possibility prospectively, we analyzed respiratory questionnaire responses and lung function results in residents of Burbank and Lancaster, California, who had completed field screening studies of respiratory status at 2 times 5 yr apart. At Time 1 and Time 2, we calculated the age- and height-adjusted values for forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV) of all white residents who at Time 1 were 13 to 23 yr of age and did not smoke tobacco. Dividing these into 2 groups, "starters" and "nonsmokers," we used analysis of covariance for males and females with height and age as covariates and compared lung function values at Times 1 and 2 and changes in lung function between these times. Among males at Time 1, FVC, FEV, peak expiratory flow, and maximal flow after exhalation of 25% of FVC were significantly larger for starters than for nonsmokers. At Time 2, values for these same indexes (except for FVC) were no longer significantly different between starters and nonsmokers. Our findings suggest that (1) relatively poor lung function may discourage young males (but not young females) from becoming regular tobacco smokers; (2) prediction equations based on so-called normal populations of nonsmokers might underestimate normal lung function, and (3) the adverse effect of smoking on lung function may be even greater than that estimated from cross-sectional studies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Suicide among adolescents in Sacramento County, California 1950-1979.

Suicide is one of the three leading causes of death among adolescents. More importantly, the rate of suicide is on the increase among both male and female adolescents (Tischler, McKenry, & Morgan, 1981). Data from the United States show that approximately 25,000 persons commit suicide each year (Coleman, 1976), and almost one-fifth of these are in the 15 to 24 year age group (Hendin, 1975). More disturbing is that a large number of adolescent suicides go unreported and that up to 50% of all these unreported suicides are categorized as "accidents" (Toolan, 1964). Utilizing suicide data collected in Sacramento County, California between 1925 and 1979, we analyzed suicides among persons aged 10 to 24 to determine if there are sociodemographic factors or presuicide behaviors which discriminate between male and female suicides, suicides of different ages, or explain the increase in suicide rates, and to compare adolescent suicide rates in Sacramento County with national findings.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

Life graphs and life events.

The present study investigates changes in personal satisfaction over the whole life course by means of life graphs and their determinants. The life graphs were administered within a 4-year interval to 371 individuals (age 45-70). A modified version of the Holmes and Rahe life events scale, administered in the second interview, was used to ascertain the occurrence of four kinds of events: (1) children leaving home, (2) ill health, (3) death of family or friends, and (4) changes in work. Differences in height between the peak of the graph and the height at the current age is the measurement technique used with the life graphs. Events are found to play a different role at different stages of life and seem to be measured against an implicit schedule according to which the events are seen as traumatic or acceptable. Thus, the same event has different effects on perception of emotional state according to age.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Prevalence of assault and perception of risk of assault in urban public service employment settings.

This study describes the prevalence and correlates of physical assaults, threats of assault, and workers' perceptions of safety in selected urban employment settings. Questionnaires were mailed to a random sample of 1,763 persons working at various jobs and sites throughout Los Angeles County. Workers were asked to describe their work environments, their perceptions of personal safety at work, and physical assaults and threats they had experienced. Three percent of the respondents reported being assaulted within the previous year and 14% reported being threatened within the previous 30 days. Younger workers, more educated workers, and those who worked with clients or patients were more likely to report assaults. Approximately one third of those who reported threats or assaults described the perpetrator(s) as clients, patients, or persons in legal custody, and one third described the perpetrator(s) as co-workers or supervisors. Fifty-two percent of the workers reported being concerned about their safety at work.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Examining self-perceived first-aid abilities after the Northridge earthquake.

INTRODUCTION: This study examines those factors predictive of self-perceived first-aid abilities among a community-based sample after the 1994 Northridge earthquake. METHODS: A probabilities-proportionate-to-size (pps) sample of residents of Los Angeles Country and 11 pre-selected zip codes from southeastern Ventura County was selected using computer-generated random digit-dialing (rdd) procedures 7-11 months after the earthquake. Data were collected from 506 individuals in 45 minute interviews. A unidimensional scale of self-perceived first-aid ability was created and represents the dependent variable in a causal path model. RESULTS: In a causal path model, standardized path coefficients suggested that while reports of taking first-aid courses were the most influential factors in predicting higher self-perceived first-aid abilities, other factors including being white, younger, speaking English in the home, and lower income also predicted higher self-perceived first-aid abilities that were independent from taking formal first-aid courses. CONCLUSIONS: First-aid training should be directed towards target segments of the population that are not likely to have had instruction in these basic skills. Those individuals who self-report high first-aid proficiency, independent of formal first-aid training, should be evaluated to assess their abilities to perform these skills.

Adult↗