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Biomedical subjects

M Fall

Publications and source records attributed to M Fall.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Cost effectiveness of minor surgery in general practice: a prospective comparison with hospital practice.

The cost effectiveness of general practitioners undertaking minor surgery in their practices was determined in a prospective comparison of patients having minor surgery undertaken in five general practices over a 12 week period in 1989, and in the departments of dermatology and general surgery in Rotherham District General Hospital over a contemporaneous eight week period. There were no differences between the settings in the reported rates of wound infection or other complications and only one general practice patient was subsequently referred to hospital for specialist treatment. General practitioners sent a smaller proportion of specimens to a histopathology laboratory than hospital doctors (61% versus 90%, P less than 0.001); incorrectly diagnosed a larger proportion of malignant conditions as benign (10% versus 1%, P less than 0.05) and inadequately excised 5% of lesions where this never happened in hospital (difference not significant). General practice patients had shorter waiting times between referral and treatment, spent less time and money attending for treatment and more of them were satisfied with their treatment. The cost of a procedure undertaken in general practice was less than in hospital--pounds 33.53 versus pounds 45.54 for the excision of a lesion and pounds 3.00 versus pounds 3.22 for cryotherapy of a wart (1989-90 prices). Performing minor surgery in general practice would seem cost effective compared with a hospital setting. However, the risk of general practitioners inadequately excising a malignancy and not sending it to a histopathology laboratory must be addressed and the conclusion regarding cost effectiveness only applies where general practice is a substitute for the hospital setting and not an additional activity.

Case-Control Studies

Prevalence of malnutrition and vitamin A deficiency in the Diourbel, Fatick, and Kaolack regions of Senegal: feasibility of the method of impression cytology with transfer.

The evaluation of the prevalence of ophthalmological diseases and vitamin A deficiency in Senegalese preschool-aged children enabled us to confirm the method of impression cytology with transfer (ICT) and to assess the impact of ophthalmological diseases on the cytological appearance of conjunctival cells. A simplification of the ICT method consisted of transferring cells present on a strip of paper to a glass slide by finger pressure. Harris-Schorr staining of the sample papers confirmed the results obtained by the transfer. Inflammatory trachoma influenced the results of the test. This simple method will prove very helpful for detection of vitamin A deficiency in children in underdeveloped areas.

Child

Prevalence of malnutrition and vitamin A deficiency in the Diourbel, Fatick, and Kaolack regions of Senegal: epidemiological study.

The purpose of our study was to determine the prevalence of protein-calorie malnutrition (PCM), ocular diseases, and vitamin A deficiency in preschool children selected at random in a rural zone of the groundnut belt of Senegal. The prevalence of PCM was 37.1% (95% CI 33.8-40.2%) according to the Waterlow classification, with a majority of stunting, and prevalence of hypovitaminosis A was estimated to be 11.4% (95% CI 9.3-13.5%) by using impression cytology. Furthermore, 19.4% (95% CI 15.8-22.0%) of the children might be defined at risk of deficiency. The prevalence of Bitot's spots was equal to 0.2% (95% CI 0.03-0.9%). A problem of PCM associated with a health-endangering vitamin A deficiency existed.

Anthropometry

Prevalence of malnutrition and vitamin A deficiency in the Diourbel, Fatick, and Kaolack regions of Senegal: a controlled study.

Two hundred and six Senegalese preschool children included in an epidemiological study were selected by their results from impression cytology with transfer (ICT) for assessment of their nutritional state by means of biological variables and for assessment of the diagnostic values of the ICT. A problem of protein-calorie malnutrition existed (transthyretin and retinol-binding protein concentrations were low) associated with vitamin A deficiency (retinol concentrations were low). The sensitivity and specificity of the ICT defined with respect to retinol (threshold fixed at 0.35 mumol/L) varied with the classification criteria of ICT and seemed to be fairly insensitive but specific.

C-Reactive Protein

Apolipoprotein A1 as an early index of protein-energy malnutrition.

Protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) is, together with infectious and parasitic diseases, a major cause of childhood illness in Africa. Diagnosis and treatment of PEM requires an accurate, simple and reliable method of assessing nutritional status from a blood sample. Plasma apolipoprotein (apo A1), prealbumin and albumin were measured in a group of Senegalese children suffering from PEM who had been hospitalized for refeeding, and in a group of control children. Statistical analysis of the results indicated that: (1) Plasma apo A1 was significantly correlated with prealbumin in assessing nutritional status (P less than 0.005 on day 8 of refeeding); (2) plasma apo A1 alone was sufficient for diagnosing and monitoring the dietary treatment of PEM; it was capable of detecting subclinical forms; (3) apo A1 could be used for differential diagnosis of forms of PEM; (4) plasma apo A1 concentration began to increase earlier (94% of control values at day 8) than did prealbumin (73% on day 8). We therefore propose apo A1 as an index of nutritional status in children living in areas where infectious and parasitic diseases are endemic.

Apolipoprotein A-I

Interstitial cystitis: bladder mucosa lymphocyte immunophenotyping and peripheral blood flow cytometry analysis.

Interstitial cystitis is a chronic bladder disorder of unknown etiology that primarily afflicts women and is characterized by urgency and pain. Although immune mechanisms have been implicated in the disease process, little is known about the local or peripheral blood immune responses. Cryostat sections of snap-frozen bladder biopsies obtained by transurethral resection from 43 patients (24 with classical and 9 with nonulcerative or early interstitial cystitis, and 10 controls) were analyzed using a panel of monoclonal antibodies with an avidin-biotin immunoperoxidase technique to characterize the local immune response of bladder mucosa. Simultaneously obtained heparinized peripheral blood (10 cc) was analyzed by flow cytometry in 24 patients (9 with classical and 5 with nonulcerative early interstitial cystitis, and 10 controls) using the same panel of antibodies. The control group biopsies (median age 44 years, range 27 to 52 years) had no ulcers, few lymphoid cells (predominately T-helper cells), rare T cell nodules and no B cells. The nonulcer group (median age 39 years, range 29 to 44 years) had rare mucosal ruptures but no ulcers, slightly increased lymphoid cells (predominately T-helper), occasional T cell aggregates, no B cell nodules and rare plasma cells. No statistically significant difference between control and nonulcerative interstitial cystitis patients was identified. In contrast, the classical interstitial cystitis group (median age 68 years, range 47 to 73 years) had ulcers, intense inflammation with focal sheets of plasma cells, aggregates of T cells, B cell nodules including germinal centers, a decreased or normal helper-to-suppressor cell ratio and suppressor cytotoxic cells in germinal centers. Flow cytometry analysis of peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets showed normal patterns in controls, increased numbers of secretory Ig positive B cells and activated lymphocytes in the nonulcerative group, and increased numbers of secretory Ig positive B cells with mildly abnormal kappa-to-lambda ratios and activated lymphocytes in the classical group. We conclude that an immune mechanism has at least a partial role in the pathophysiology of interstitial cystitis. A parallel between interstitial cystitis and inflammatory bowel disease is evident. Further studies are indicated.

Adult

Clinical features and spectrum of light microscopic changes in interstitial cystitis.

Transurethral resection material from a series of 64 patients with classical (ulcer) interstitial cystitis (60 women and 4 men, with a mean age of 64 years), 44 with nonulcer interstitial cystitis (40 women and 4 men, with a mean age of 39 years) and 20 control women (mean age 49 years) were studied by light microscopy. Patients with classical disease had mucosal ulceration and hemorrhage, granulation tissue, intense inflammatory infiltrate, elevated mast cell counts and perineural infiltrates. Patients with nonulcer disease, despite the same severe symptoms, had a relatively unaltered mucosa with a sparse inflammatory response, the main feature being multiple, small, mucosal ruptures and suburothelial hemorrhages that were noted in a high proportion of the patients. It is suggested that these features are characteristic, specific and prevalent enough to allow for morphological differentiation of the 2 clinical subtypes of interstitial cystitis.

Adult

A bladder-to-bladder cooling reflex in the cat.

1. Reflex effects of cold stimulation of the lower urinary tract were studied in cats anaesthetized with alpha-chloralose. The bladder and the urethra were catheterized for separate fluid instillations and the bladder pressure was monitored together with the evoked efferent nerve responses in pelvic nerve filaments. 2. A bladder cooling reflex could be evoked from both the bladder and the urethra. The response was an efferent discharge in preganglionic pelvic motor fibres to the bladder. 3. Bladder mechanoreceptors that drive the normal micturition reflex were not directly involved in the cooling reflex. Their tension sensitivity was decreased by cooling and the efferent reflex response typically occurred before any activation of these receptors. The efferent activity of the cooling reflex also survived an intentional unloading of the mechanoreceptors, a manipulation that abolishes the normal micturition reflex. 4. The dynamic threshold temperature of the cooling reflex was about 30-32 degrees C, which was at the thermal neutral point of the bladder in our experimental situation. 5. The bladder-evoked component of the reflex was greatly reduced or abolished by an intravesical infusion of the local anaesthetic Xylocaine. It was also abolished by total bladder denervation. 6. The vesical component of the reflex was unchanged by bilateral transections of the hypogastric nerves but abolished by pelvic nerve transection. The cooling reflex from the distal urethra was abolished by transection of the pudendal nerves. 7. It was proposed that the cooling reflex originates from cold receptors in the bladder and urethral walls and that the responsible afferent fibres are unmyelinated C fibres. The function of the reflex may be to rid the body of a thermal ballast when under cooling stress.

Action Potentials

[Causes of infectious gastro-enteritis in children in Dakar].

Between February 1983 and May 1988, 1,157 stools from children aged under 15 years presenting with diarrhoea and admitted to a paediatric hospital in Dakar, Senegal, were examined for the presence of bacterial and parasitic agents. We looked for Campylobacter and rotavirus in only 245 and 111 samples respectively. Enterobacteria were detected most frequently (162/264; 61.3 per cent). Among these, we found 92 (34.8 per cent) strains of enteropathogenic E. coli; 40 strains (15.1 per cent) of Salmonella spp. and 30 strains (11.3 per cent) of Shigella spp. V. cholerae was present in only 2 faecal specimens (0,7 per cent). Eighty-one (30.6 per cent) parasitic agents were isolated, including a high proportion (13.6 per cent) of flagellae. Campylobacter jejuni and retroviruses were found in 2 (0.8 percent) and 15 (13.5 percent) stool respectively. The frequency with which these enteropathogenic agents were isolated remains in keeping with the global situation usually observed in Dakar for several years.

Adolescent

Histamine and mucosal mast cells in interstitial cystitis.

Interstitial cystitis (IC) is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the urinary bladder of unknown aetiology and pathogenesis. The classic form (Hunner's ulcer) is characterized by high mast cell numbers in the detrusor muscle and an expansion of mucosal mast cells in the lamina propria and also in the epithelium. Such cells can be recovered in bladder washings and in the urine in single cell suspensions. We have counted the mast cells and measured the histamine in bladder washings from 16 patients with classic IC and from a control group of 15 patients with so-called early, non-ulcerative IC. The bladder washings from all patients with classic IC contained well preserved mast cells (median 2.16, range 0.5-8.6 x 10(3) cells/I) and histamine (median 14.3, range 6-66 ng/l), while only occasional mast cells and traces of histamine were found in washings from patients with non-ulcerative IC. The histamine content was strongly correlated to the number of mast cells (r = 0.87). The mean histamine content per mast cell was estimated at 7.6 +/- 0.65 (SEM) pg/cell. The high histamine content per mast cell in relation to previously published data (2.8-4.6 pg/cell) can be attributed to the mild and rapid handling of the specimens.

Adult

Terodiline: a dose titrated, multicenter study of the treatment of idiopathic detrusor instability in women.

Idiopathic detrusor instability is a common cause of lower urinary tract symptoms at all ages and in both sexes. Treatment initially is conservative and often includes drug therapy. Terodiline has the theoretical advantage of being a drug with anticholinergic and calcium channel blocking effects. Theoretically, by using a drug with dual action the beneficial effect of reduced detrusor overactivity might occur at a dosage below that likely to lead to the troublesome side effects experienced by patients who take pure anticholinergic agents. A total of 70 female patients completed a study characterized by extremely strict inclusion criteria and a tight protocol. Other novel elements to the study were the extensive use of urinary diaries for symptom evaluation, standardized urodynamic studies agreed upon by the participating centers and the dose titration design of the trial. Terodiline has been demonstrated to be a safe, well tolerated and effective drug in the treatment of idiopathic detrusor instability. Drug treatment led to significant decreases in urinary frequency and incontinence episodes. Pre-micturition symptoms, such as urgency, were markedly reduced and the voided volume was significantly increased. Although there were consistent trends towards greater improvement in the urodynamic measurements, when the terodiline and placebo groups were compared these did not reach statistical significance, partly due to a large improvement in the placebo group. Nevertheless, terodiline has been shown to be a useful drug for conservative management of patients with detrusor instability.

Adult

Scanning electron microscopic findings in interstitial cystitis.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was performed on transurethral resection biopsies from 13 patients with classic interstitial cystitis. Biopsies from 9 patients with stress incontinence served as controls. The SEM appearance of the bladder surface in interstitial cystitis varied considerably, exhibiting small round and large polygonal cells. The proportion of cells displaying round uniform and pleomorphic microvilli was high and sometimes dominated the area examined. SEM characteristics earlier assigned to bladder tumours were detected in patients with interstitial cystitis and, at a lower frequency, also in control patients. The mucin layer covering the urothelial cells seemed reduced in interstitial cystitis compared with control specimens. Surface characteristics specific for interstitial cystitis were, however, not detected by SEM.

Adult

The neurogenic overactive bladder. Classification based on urodynamics.

The aetiology and pathogenesis of bladder overactivity are very variable and the classification is rather crude. By careful interpretation of clinical findings and urodynamic assessments, refinement of the diagnosis is possible. From a therapeutic and prognostic stand-point, it is of interest to distinguish between "idiopathic detrusor instability" and the "uninhibited overactive bladder". Based on neurological investigation and cystometric recordings, including the ice water test, characteristics of the 2 entities are described.

Adult

Effects of external and direct pudendal nerve maximal electrical stimulation in the treatment of the uninhibited overactive bladder.

Maximal electrical stimulation (MES) administered from a laboratory device designed to deliver stimulation pulses of relatively high voltages and currents was performed in 29 patients. All had suffered from bladder overactivity for several years, either idiopathic detrusor instability or an uninhibited overactive bladder, and all had failed to respond to conservative treatment. MES was performed in female patients by means of intravaginal and intra-anal electrode carriers and in males by anal electrodes only. In some cases additional stimulation was administered by means of a single needle bipolar electrode inserted directly into the pudendal nerve. Maximal amplitude was attained after gradual increases in amplitude and the patient's adaptation to this. Stimulation was administered by the therapist but the amplitudes were determined by the patient and limited by his/her pain threshold. Alternating rectangular constant voltage pulses at a repetition rate of 10 Hz were used. Treatment consisted of 4 sessions of stimulation with intervals of 1 week between each application. All patients showed a significant increase in functional bladder capacity and 11 reported a 30% decrease in the frequency of micturition. Two patients were unaffected by stimulation with external electrodes but responded well to direct pudendal nerve stimulation. MES seems to be an effective first-line treatment for the uninhibited overactive bladder.

Adolescent