Biomedical subjects

M Pavlou

Publications and source records attributed to M Pavlou.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

The impact of childhood chronic neurological diseases on Greek families.

BACKGROUND: Although the impact of childhood chronic neurological diseases (CND) on patients' psychological well-being has been increasingly addressed, little attention has been given to the influence of these conditions on family members and family functioning. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the family characteristics of Greek children suffering from CND. METHODS: A total of 52 parents of children with CND were studied by using the Family Environmental Scale (FES), the Family Burden Scale, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) and a questionnaire on the knowledge of their children's illness, their coping strategies and their satisfaction with our services. During the same period, 30 parents of hospitalized children for common paediatric illnesses completed the FES. In both groups social and demographic features were registered. Appropriate statistical processes were applied to compare the above-mentioned family groups and to study the differences between the families of children with epilepsy (n=37) and the families of children with other CND (n=15). RESULTS: Parents of children with CND discuss their problems less freely, talk less openly around home, score highly on FES subscale of Conflict and, pay more attention to ethical and religious issues and values. Furthermore, the families of children with other CND were more burdened regarding the financial state and the health status of other family members in comparison with families of children with epilepsy. In addition, families of children with epilepsy were more involved in social and recreational activities, appeared to be more knowledgeable on the availability of help in critical conditions and were more satisfied with rendered medical services, in comparison with families of children with other CND. CONCLUSION: These preliminary findings provide important information concerning the special characteristics of Greek families of children suffering from CND, which may prove especially helpful in organizing specific support services.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

High intensity focused ultrasound ablation of kidney guided by MRI.

The effectiveness of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to monitor therapeutic protocols of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU), in freshly excised pig kidney cortex is investigated. For high quality imaging, the pulse sequence fast spin echo (FSE) T1- and T2-weighted, and proton density were evaluated. For fast imaging, the pulse sequence T1-weighted fast spoiled gradient (FSPGR) was used. The main goal was to evaluate the MRI detection of large lesions (bigger than 1 cm x 1 cm x 1 cm) that is achieved by moving the transducer in a predetermined pattern. The contrast between lesion and kidney tissue is excellent with either T1-weighted or T2-weighted FSE. With T1-weighted FSE, the best contrast is observed for recovery time (TR) between 200 ms and 400 ms. With T2-weighted FSE best contrast can be achieved for echo time (TE) between 16 and 32 ms. T2-weighted FSE was proven as the best pulse sequence to detect cavitational activity. This advantage is attributed to the significant difference in signal intensity between air spaces and necrotic tissue. Air spaces appear brighter than thermal lesions. Therefore, for therapeutic protocols created using cavitational mode, T2-weighted FSE may be the optimum pulse sequence to use. The proton density pulse sequence does not provide any advantage over the T1- and T2-weighted pulse sequences. Using T1-weighted FSPGR, acquisition time as low as 5 s could be achieved. Good contrast and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) are achieved with TR = 100 ms and flip angle between 75 to 90 degrees. The above techniques were very successful in detecting large lesion volumes.

Animals↗

PubMed2002

Congenital mesoblastic nephroma associated with polyhydramnios and hypercalcemia.

Congenital mesoblastic nephroma (CMN) can present with atypical clinical and imaging findings. A premature male neonate was born to an 18-year-old woman after 33 weeks' gestation, which was complicated by polyhydramnios and placenta abruptio. A right abdominal mass was diagnosed antenatally. From the 1st day of life, the newborn had hypercalcemia with initially normal parathormone levels and polyuria for the first hours of life and normal urine output afterwards. Ultrasonographic study and magnetic resonance imaging of the abdomen showed at the upper pole of the right kidney a heterogeneous, solid, poorly defined mass, partially surrounded by a subcapsular fluid collection mimicking malignant rhabdoid tumor of the kidney. Surgical resection revealed a CMN of mixed, classic, and in areas, cellular type. One year after the resection, the patient is asymptomatic and normocalcemic. In conclusion, CMN may present with atypical clinical and imaging findings, necessitating an extensive work-up in order to exclude highly malignant renal tumors of the neonatal period.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

A study of the growth-promoting and metabolic effects of growth hormone (GH) in a patient with the "growth without GH" syndrome.

The paradox of normal or even excessive growth despite a proven lack of GH is a well-known but still unexplained phenomenon that has been described in some patients following resection of a craniopharyngioma or other suprasellar tumours. However, the consequences of GH deficiency on other metabolic aspects of GH action in this syndrome have not been adequately investigated. The aim of this study was to examine whether a dissociation might exist between the growth-promoting and metabolic effects of GH. We studied a 7.1 year old boy who, after removal of a suprasellar craniopharyngioma, developed panhypopituitarism with mild hyperprolactinaemia. Despite the presence of severe GH deficiency associated with persistently low IGF-I and IGFBP-3 levels, the patient grew spontaneously at an accelerated rate for a prepubertal boy, achieving a height velocity of 9.0 cm during the first and 8.5 cm during the second post-operative year. However, other metabolic parameters of GH activity were adversely affected by the lack of GH. The maximum tubular reabsorption rate for phosphate over glomerular filtration rate ratio (2.8) was persistently low and normalized during a 4 day course of hGH administration (4.2) together with the normalization of IGF-I (from 34 microg/l to 294 microg/l), suggesting that GH-dependent renal phosphate handling is impaired in this syndrome. In addition, bone age was delayed by 1.7 years consistently with delayed skeletal maturation, whereas skinfold thickness and the waist to hip ratio were increased in comparison with normative data, suggesting increased adipose tissue mass with central fat distribution, a phenotype characteristic of GH deficiency. In conclusion, our case study suggests that, in the "growth without GH" syndrome, the excessive growth is independent of GH and dissociated from other GH-dependent metabolic effects, which are decreased.

Body Height↗

PubMed1988

Physical and psychosocial functioning in multiple sclerosis: descriptions, correlations, and a tentative typology.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease of great variety and ambiguity. It outcome is both multidimensional and uncertain. As part of an ongoing effort to describe and differentiate the various courses that MS can follow, 81 out-patients diagnosed with MS completed the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) and the Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) administered as a structured interview. Descriptive statistics for the SIP and the CPI are provided and examined as a function of age and sex. Correlations between health status and personality scales are reported. Increasing physical dysfunction is associated with lowered performance on a broad array of psychosocial dimensions but only among women. A cluster analysis of CPI factor scores is described and a very tentative typology of persons with MS is offered for further investigation.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1984

Physical disability, life stress, and psychosocial adjustment in multiple sclerosis.

Eighty-one outpatients with diagnosed multiple sclerosis were studied in an effort to examine the relative contributions of physical health status, life stress, duration of illness, age, sex, marital status, and social class on various aspects of personal and interpersonal functioning. Stepwise multiple regression analyses were performed to identify the most significant discriminators of the seven psychosocial measures. Physical health status exerted the broadest influence, affecting personal efficiency and well-being, capacity for independent thought and action, self-confidence, self-reliance, and number of meaningful social contacts. Life stress was associated with lowered personal efficiency and sense of well-being. Duration of illness and the demographic variables had few or no effects on psychosocial adjustment. Discussion contrasts the present findings with others in the rehabilitation literature and specifies certain limitations of the study's design.

Adult↗

PubMed1983

Development of somatizing responses in multiple sclerosis.

Chronic medical illness may produce emotional stress of a variety which encourages the development of patterns of somatization. Discussed here are patterns of somatization in multiple sclerosis. The long-term uncertainty and changing nature and severity of symptoms raises the likelihood that people will become absorbed in their bodies, will demonstrate heightened responses to minor physical change, and may come to experience psychic conflict through the language of physical symptomatology. Case examples are discussed as well as recommendations for treatment.

Adult↗

PubMed1983

Stress and personal attitudes in chronic illness.

The possible relation of two stressor types (life events and illness experience) to three sets of attitudes (personal life satisfaction, self-assessed coping, and satisfaction with treatment personnel/facilities) was examined within a sample of 97 outpatients having multiple sclerosis. In addition, potential moderators of hypothesized relationships were examined (trait anxiety, age, social class, and knowledge of the disease). When attitudes were regressed on stressors and moderators, both sets of stressors exerted significant influence, though their impacts were mitigated by the moderators. This study's findings support the position that the association of attitudes with stressor exposure in chronic disease populations is contingent on demographic and psychological moderating factors.

Adult↗

PubMed1978

Discussion groups for medical patients. A vehicle for improved coping.

Describing 14 professionally run discussion groups for multiple sclerosis patients, this paper delineates appropriate functions and goals of the medical discussion group. Such groups address coping activities related to affiliation with a social reference group, information seeking and, in a more limited way, consolidation of intrapsychic resources. The discussion describes the dynamic issues which arise in the groups and explores ways in which group dynamics interact with the medical format.

Humans↗