PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M B Moran

Publications and source records attributed to M B Moran.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Patterns of syphilis testing in the elderly.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the frequency of inconsistencies in the use of laboratory tests for syphilis among the elderly in an acute care setting. DESIGN: Retrospective medical record review. SETTING: Academic medical center. PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS: All patients 60 years of age and older who had: 1) positive tests for syphilis and no lumbar puncture performed (n = 71), 2) lumbar punctures performed and no positive test for syphilis (n = 68), and 3) positive tests for syphilis and lumbar punctures performed (n = 8). INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The chronology and results of syphilis tests were abstracted from the medical records. Documentation of signs and symptoms of neurosyphilis, including dementia and depression, were abstracted from the medical records by a second reviewer. Most patients had inadequate evaluations; 51 had no follow-up of positive syphilis tests and 43 had cerebrospinal fluid syphilis tests in the absence of positive blood tests for syphilis or signs and symptoms of neurosyphilis. CONCLUSIONS: The inconsistent pattern of serologic testing in this study suggests that the testing was done as a routine procedure and not for a specific purpose. For a majority of the tested individuals, the results did not provide a public health benefit or contribute to the individual's well-being.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Screening elderly veterans for alcoholism.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the sensitivity and specificity of an alcoholism screening test not previously tested in the elderly. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study, face-to-face interviews. SETTING: Veterans Administration (VA) outpatient facility. PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS: Men greater than or equal to 70 years old seeking care in a newly established VA outpatient facility were invited to participate in a health assessment program. Of 109 participants who enrolled, 96 completed both interviews. INTERVENTIONS: The screening test was administered by an internist as part of a medical history. The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST), used as the "gold standard," was administered by a trained interviewer as part of a longer structured interview. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The screening test had a sensitivity of 0.52 and a specificity of 0.76 in this sample. CONCLUSIONS: The sensitivity and specificity of the screening test were lower in this sample in comparison with previously reported results in a younger population. Differences in the test performance may be related to differences in attitudes and drinking behaviors of elderly veterans when compared with those of younger men and women.

Age Factors↗