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Biomedical subjects

L Goodwin

Publications and source records attributed to L Goodwin.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

What is normal vaginal flora?

OBJECTIVE: To observe the composition of the vaginal flora of healthy women over time, and in relation to hormonal changes, sexual activity, and hygiene habits. DESIGN: A longitudinal surveillance of the vaginal flora over an eight week period. SUBJECTS: 26 female health care workers in local genitourinary medicine clinics. METHODS: The participants were anonymised. They filled in diary cards daily. Blind vaginal swabs were self-taken two-seven times weekly. A smear was air-dried for later Gram staining. The swabs were also cultured for Candida spp, Gardnerella vaginalis, anaerobes, Mycoplasma hominis and Ureaplasma urealyticum. RESULTS: Of 26 subjects, only four had normal vaginal microbiology throughout. One woman, who was not sexually active, had bacterial vaginosis (BV) throughout and nine (35%) had intermittent BV. Candidiasis was found intermittently in eight women (31%), and eight had normal microscopy. U urealyticum was isolated intermittently in 40% of women with BV, 25% with candida, and 50% with normal microscopy. Many women were symptomatic, but symptoms correlated poorly with microbiological findings. All but two women were sexually active; however, more women with BV were exposed to semen. BV seemed to be related to frequent use of scented soap, and there appeared to be an additive effect of clothing and hygiene factors. CONCLUSIONS: Our study raises doubts about what should be regarded as normal vaginal flora. It calls into question the significance of finding BV or U urealyticum on a single occasion in asymptomatic women, or of finding normal flora in symptomatic women. The effect of external factors on the vaginal flora deserve further study.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Performance support concepts for Web-based informatics instruction.

Duke University first offered World Wide Web (WWW) based courses in Nursing Informatics in January of 1997. The first class enrolled 18 nurses who were completing either a Post-Master's Certificate Program or were near completion of their Master's degree. Courses were designed around principles of advanced nursing practice, performance support, mastery learning, and virtual learning communities. Extensive learning assessment included traditional papers, real-world application projects, and a variety of pre and post-test measurements.

Computer Communication Networks↗
PubMed1997

Data mining issues for improved birth outcomes.

Issues obstructing progress in data mining for improved health outcomes include data quality problems, data redundancy, data inconsistency, repeated measures, temporal (time-contextual) measures, and data volume. Related issues involve theoretical and technical problems involving uncertainty management, missing data and missing values, and matching appropriate data mining techniques to patient data sets. Results of data mining research in progress are reported for Duke University's perinatal database that contains nearly a decade of clinical patient data, 71,753 database (patient) records and 4-5000 variables per patient.

Artificial Intelligence↗
PubMed1995

Effects of surgical treatment on the microbial flora in residual periodontal pockets.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of modified Widman flap surgery on the microbial flora in deep residual periodontal pockets remaining after non-surgical treatment. Micro-organisms from samples of subgingival plaque obtained from adult periodontitis sites in six patients were cultured aerobically and anaerobically, on a variety of media and identified. Non-surgical treatment produced little clinical improvement and had little effect on the total microbial count. Subsequent modified Widman flap surgery resulted in significant clinical improvements which were accompanied by an overall reduction in microbial counts. Regular reviews for scaling and oral hygiene maintained the clinical improvements and balance in favour of beneficial microbial species during the 1 year of the study.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Interactions of the cytoplasmic domain of the desmosomal cadherin Dsg1 with plakoglobin.

Dsg1 is a 165-kDa glycoprotein component of suprabasal epidermal desmosomes and the prototype of a subset of the cadherin superfamily of cell-cell adhesion proteins known as desmogleins. The adhesive function of classical cadherins is known to be dependent upon their association with cytoplasmic components called catenins. In the case of desmogleins, a single interaction has been described with a protein called plakoglobin that is found in desmosomal plaques, adherens junctions, and the cytosol. Several proteins with homology to plakoglobin have been described that regulate junction assembly and implement morphoregulatory signals. To address the functional significance of plakoglobin-desmoglein interaction, we have mapped the sequences of Dsg1 that are crucial for this association by using blot overlay techniques. By examining the binding of plakoglobin to a deletion series of the Dsg1 cytoplasmic domain expressed as fusion proteins, we have defined a 19-amino acid sequence that is important for association. This region of Dsg1 sequence shows significant similarity to the catenin-binding domain of classical cadherins, suggesting a common mechanism for the association of plakoglobin with desmosomes and adherens junctions.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Essential program components for perinatal home care.

Home care will continue to be a rapidly expanding area of health care. This growth will be evident in the perinatal nursing specialty. There are multiple models for delivery of perinatal home services. In each case, consideration needs to be given to licensing and other standards; to operational areas such as staffing, supplies, equipment, and reimbursement; and to quality issues, such as staff development, internal and external customer service, and a continuous quality improvement program. Successful marketing of the services requires recognition that the product is nursing care.

Community Health Nursing↗
PubMed1993

New findings on the microbial flora associated with adult periodontitis.

The predominant microbial flora associated with adult periodontitis was investigated in 21 patients aged 20-40 years. Microorganisms from samples of subgingival plaque were cultured on selective and non-selective media under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Ten species or groups out of a total of 31 were found to comprise the predominant cultivable flora: diphtheroids, Porphyromonas asaccharolytica, coagulase-negative staphylococci, 'Streptococcus milleri'-group, Bacteroides ureolyticus, Capnocytophaga ochracea, the Prevotella veroralis/buccalis complex, P. intermedia, P. oralis and unidentified Prevotella spp. Two species previously reported at periodontitis sites, namely P. gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum, were not isolated, whereas Prevotella species accounted for the majority of isolates in this investigation. The large proportion of non-pigmented Prevotella species, P. asaccharolytica and B. ureolyticus that were found have not generally been reported previously. The role of these microorganisms and also coagulase-negative staphylococci, diphtheroids and the 'Streptococcus milleri'-group requires further investigation in adult periodontitis.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Levobunolol compared to dipivefrin in African American patients with open angle glaucoma.

The prevalence of open angle glaucoma is disproportionately high in the African American population. Information about the effectiveness of anti-glaucoma medications in an exclusively African American population is lacking. We treated both eyes of 38 African American patients who have stable open angle glaucoma with either levobunolol b.i.d. or dipivefrin b.i.d. to evaluate the effectiveness of each drug in lowering intraocular pressure. Patients were treated for six weeks following a two week washout period. We measured intraocular pressure levels after one, three, and six weeks. Each medication produced a statistically significant decrease in intraocular pressure by week one. The mean pre-treatment pressure of 24.4 mmHg in the levobunolol was reduced to 17.0 mmHg by week six. The mean pre-treatment pressure of 25.4 mmHg in the dipivefrin treated group was reduced to 18.2 mmHg by week six. There was not a statistically significant difference in the pre-treatment or the final pressure between the two groups. Both levobunolol and dipivefrin produce a statistically significant decrease in intraocular pressure in African American patients with open angle glaucoma.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Classification of black-pigmented anaerobes by pyrolysis mass spectrometry (PMS) and conventional tests (CTs).

Clinical (66: dental 53; vaginal 4; wound 9) and reference (5*) strains of pigmented Gram-negative anaerobic bacilli were examined in pyrolysis mass spectrometry (PMS) and conventional tests (CTs). The strains were identified in CTs as: Prevotella intermedia (48*); Pr. melaninogenica (1); Pr. corporis (7); Porphyromonas asaccharolytica (12*); P. endodontalis (1*) and P. gingivalis (2*). Numerical classification based on CTs resolved five clusters comprising strains identified as (I) Pr. corporis, (II) Pr. melaninogenica, (III) Pr. intermedia, (IV) P. gingivalis and (V) P. asaccharolytica and P. endodontalis. Numerical classification based on PMS showed a similar division, with decreasing homogeneity in the order Pr. intermedia, Pr. corporis, P. asaccharolytica, in agreement with the ordering of homogeneity for these species in CTs. PMS clusters corresponding the Porphyromonas spp. were clearly distinct from those of Prevotella spp. PMS and CT classifications disagreed on cluster membership for only six of the strains. PMS identification from blind challenge sets agreed with conventional identification for 64 of 67 strains.

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗
PubMed1993

Effects of root planing on the distribution of microorganisms adult periodontitis sites.

The aims of this study were to identify the microbial species present in subgingival plaque in patients with adult periodontitis, and to investigate the effects of root planing upon the microbial flora for 12 months following root planing. Microorganisms from samples of subgingival plaque obtained from adult periodontitis sites in 15 patients were cultured, both aerobically and anaerobically, on a variety of media and identified. Prevotella intermedia and Porphyromonas asaccharolytica were the most frequently identified species before treatment. Bacteroides ureolyticus, the Prevotella veroralis/buccalis complex and other microorganisms including Capnocytophaga ochracea, species of streptococci, staphylococci and diphtheroids were also frequently isolated. Root planing improved periodontal health, and was accompanied by reductions in the frequencies with which P. intermedia, P. asaccharolytica, the P. veroralis/buccalis complex and C. ochracea were isolated. Regular scaling and oral hygiene reviews maintained the clinical improvements and balance in favour of beneficial microbial species during the study.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Classification of oral pigmented anaerobic bacilli by pyrolysis mass spectrometry and biochemical tests.

Clinical (66) and reference (5) strains of pigmented gram-negative anaerobic bacilli, identified as Prevotella intermedia (47), Pr. melaninogenica (1), Pr. corpora (8), Porphyromonas asaccharolyticus (12), P. endodontalis (1) and P. gingivalis (2), were examined by pyrolysis mass spectrometry (PMS) and in conventional tests. Numerical classification based on conventional test reaction patterns (CTRPs) resolved five clusters, four comprising strains identified as Pr. intermedia, Pr. corpora, Pr. melaninogenica, and P. gingivalis respectively, and one comprising strains identified as P. asaccharolyticus and P. endodontalis. Numerical classification based on PMS showed a similar division, with decreasing homogeneity of chemical composition in the order Pr. intermedia, Pr. corpora, P. asaccharolyticus, which agreed with the order of homogeneity in CTRPs. PMS clusters corresponding to the genus Porphyromonas were clearly distinct from those of the genus Prevotella. PMS and CTRP classification disagreed on cluster membership for six strains. PMS identification from blind challenge sets was in agreement with conventional identification for 64 of 67 strains.

Cluster Analysis↗
PubMed1990

Desmoglein shows extensive homology to the cadherin family of cell adhesion molecules.

Desmoglein is a major adhesive component of the desmosome. It is also at least one of the antigenic targets of pathogenic antibodies circulating in the sera of patients with the blistering disease Pemphigus foliaceus. To examine the molecular basis of desmosomal adhesion and to further our understanding of its disruption in various bullous disorders we have cloned cDNAs encoding four of the extracellular domains of desmoglein. The predicted amino acid sequence of these clones shows extensive homology with the cadherin class of calcium-dependent cell adhesion molecules. Desmoglein represents a novel subtype of this family.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

A comparison of Bacteroides ureolyticus isolates from different clinical sources.

Clinical isolates of corroding, gram-negative, anaerobic bacilli (provisionally identified as Bacteroides ureolyticus) from superficial ulcers and soft tissue infections (15), non-gonococcal, non-chlamydial urethritis (12) and adult periodontal disease (14) were compared with reference strains of B. ureolyticus, B. gracilis and Wolinella recta in a series of conventional tests of morphology, biochemical activity, tolerance of dyes and bile salts, and antibiotic sensitivity, gas-liquid chromatographic analysis of metabolic products, and in whole-cell analysis by pyrolysis-mass spectrometry (Py-MS). A numerical taxonomic approach was used with the results of conventional tests and the grouping obtained was compared with that obtained by Py-MS. All the ulcer and soft-tissue isolates and the urethritis isolates were oxidase- and urease-positive and formed a homogeneous set consistent with the reference strain of B. ureolyticus. The dental isolates differed from B. ureolyticus strains and were heterogeneous amongst themselves. None corresponded with the reference strains of B. gracilis or W. recta. The conventional and Py-MS approaches to characterisation produced similar groupings and each distinguished between a single cluster of ulcer-urethritis strains and several clusters of dental strains, although the dendrograms derived from the two approaches differed in the order of the clusters; in the Py-MS dendrogram one subcluster of four dental strains came within the main ulcer-urethritis cluster and a cluster of five ulcer strains was separated as a distinct group.

Bacteroides↗
PubMed1987

Identification of Bacteroides species from adult periodontal disease.

Samples from deep (4-7 mm) periodontal pockets were collected from 17 patients with adult-type periodontal disease and one with the juvenile form of the disease. They were streaked immediately on selective and non-selective media and incubated anaerobically for 96 h. There was a heavy growth of Bacteroides spp. from most samples and 10 representative colonies from each sample were sub-cultured for identification. In a total of 149 isolates from patients with adult-type disease, the commonest species were B. oralis (40), B. asaccharolyticus (35), B. intermedius (31), B. fragilis (12) and B. ureolyticus (10); B. gingivalis was not detected. The distribution of species was not distorted by multiple identical isolates from individual patients. There was a heavy growth of a single species, B. ureolyticus, from the patient with juvenile-type disease.

Adolescent↗