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Biomedical subjects

M Rufo

Publications and source records attributed to M Rufo.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Compulsive respiratory stereotypies in children with autistic features: polygraphic recording and treatment with fenfluramine.

Syncopes due to compulsive respiratory stereotypies were studied in eight patients with autistic features. Most had been referred for episodes thought to be intractable epileptic seizures. Polygraphic recording showed two types of syncope, one induced by prolonged apnea and the other by a prolonged Valsalva maneuver. Fenfluramine, 1.5-3 mg/kg per day, was given in an open trial. In four of five cases with frequent Valsalva maneuvers, respiratory stereotypies and syncopes were suppressed for 2-18 months. Patients with periodic apneas were more severely retarded and had less clear benefit. Side effects consisted of dose-dependent sedation and mild weight loss which stabilized without interrupting treatment. We suggest that these syncopes are volitional and may be associated with pleasant sensations. A double-blind placebo-controlled trial of fenfluramine seems warranted in such patients.

Apnea↗
PubMed1981

Failure of rifampin to induce the metabolism of clonidine in normal volunteers.

Patients receiving rifampin and methadone often incur withdrawal symptoms related to an increased rate of metabolism of methadone induced by rifampin. In order to test the hypothesis that clonidine metabolism is similarly altered by rifampin, six normal volunteers received clonidine 0.2 mg bid for four days and clonidine concentration was assayed by a RIA procedure. Beginning on day 5, rifampin 600 mg q12h was added to the clonidine regimen. Both drugs were taken for a total of seven days. On the last day of the study, blood was again sampled for clonidine. On days 4 and 12, urine was collected for d-glucaric acid. The results demonstrate that there is no change in the elimination kinetics of clonidine before and during rifampin administration. However, there was an increase in UDGA following the rifampin dosing. It is concluded that patients receiving rifampin can also receive clonidine for treatment of narcotic withdrawal.

Clonidine↗
PubMed1976

[Grandmothers in child psychiatry].

Presenting three case-histories, the author stresses on the importance of grand mother psychopathology-- There upon he discusses some special aspect relevant in child psychiatry.

Child↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Role of the implicit theories of intelligence in learning situations].

Most studies have tried to explain the school difficulties by analysing the intellectual factors that lead to school failure. However in addition to the instrumental capacities, authors also recognize the role played by other factors such as motivation. More specifically, the theory of achievement motivation aims to determine motivational factors involved in achievement situations when the students have to demonstrate their competencies. This paradigm attributes a central place to beliefs in order to explain children's behavior in academic situations. According to Dweck, it seems that beliefs about the nature of intelligence have a very powerful impact on behavior. These implicit theories of intelligence create a meaning system or conceptual framework that influences the individual interpretation of school situations. Thus, an entity theory of intelligence is the belief that intelligence is a fixed trait, a personal quality that cannot be changed. Students who subscribe to this theory believe that although people can learn new things, their underlying intelligence remains the same. In contrast, an incremental theory of intelligence is the belief that intelligence is a malleable quality that can increase through efforts. The identification of these two theories allows us to understand the cognition and behavior of individuals in achievement situations. Many studies carried out in the academic area show that students who hold an entity theory of intelligence (ie they consider intelligence like a stable quality) have a strong tendency to attribute their failures to a fixed trait. They are more likely to blame their intelligence for ne-gative outcomes and to attribute failures to their bad intellectual ability. In contrast, students who hold an incremental theory of intelligence (ie they consider intelligence as a malleable quality) are more likely to understand the same ne-gative outcomes in terms of specific factors: they attribute them to a lack of effort. This differential emphasis on traits versus specific mediators in turn fosters different reactions to negative events. Several studies have shown that entity theorists of intelligence are more likely than incremental theorists to react helplessly in the face of failure. They are not only more likely to make negative judgments about their intelligence from the failures, but also more likely to show negative affect and behaviors. This helpless response pattern is cha-racterized by a lack of persistence, and performance decrements. In contrast, incremental theorists, who focus more on behavioral factors (eg effort, problem-solving strategies) as causes of negative achievement outcomes, tend to act on these mediators. They try harder and develop better strategies and continue to work. Some authors have tendency to consider implicit theories of intelligence as a disposition or a stable dimension. But in the last few years, several studies showed that people's theories are not fixed traits; they are beliefs that may be influenced. These studies also suggested that students use the two types of beliefs and that the context determines the choice between the two types of theories. According to these authors, the psychological state of the student depends on dispositional factors but also on situational factors. Thus, several studies have tried to demonstrate that it is possible to modify experimentally implicit theories of intelligence and subsequent cognitions and behaviors by modifying situational factors. Several studies have demonstrated that it was possible to induce students to adopt one of the two theories of intelligence by presenting them a scientific article that compelling argued for either an entity or an incremental view of intelligence. The results showed that participants who had received the entity theory induction exhibited more evidence of a helpless reaction to failure. These studies show that some of the judgments and reactions associated with implicit theories can be experimentally induced by manipulating participant theories. However in the context of school difficulties, only few works have been conducted. We think that the model of the motivation of achievement would allow us to better understand maladjusted behaviors that engender failure and scholastic exclusion. In one study, reseachers have demonstrated that children with mental disorders are less likely than other children to hold an incremental theory of their intellectual abilities. Other studies have demonstrated that entity theorists interpret their bad results according to their global intelligence level by negatively judging their global abilities ("I think I am stupid"). It is interesting to note that these students make the same attributions as depressive students. These results reveal the need to determine systems of beliefs within populations with anxiety or depressive symptoms in order to characterise their motivational profiles. Indeed, we think that these symptoms contribute to modify implicit theories of intelligence and the nature of the subsequent scholastic achievement. Finally, we think that it is inte-resting to demonstrate the positive motivational effects of the experimental induction of the incremental theory. A series of studies showed that children's theories of intelligence expe-rimentally induced will influence their tendency to persevere in the face of failure. Like normally developing children, children with mental disorders were more likely to prefer challenging activities and report high levels of interest-enjoyment when the task was presented as one which is improvable. It suggests that although children with difficulties are pessimistic about improving their intellectual capacities, if a new task is introduced in a way that highlights the possibility of self-improvement (incremental theory), then they will pursue the challenge in an adaptive manner (strong perseverance, enjoy, and important interest). These results are very inte-resting. Indeed, highlighting an incremental theory had a po-sitive motivational effect on behavior in achievement situations. In addition, all these results also may open up several interesting perspectives for the treatment of learning disabi-lities. The results should lead to plan programmes of cognitive therapy in order to modify beliefs that underlie maladjusted achievement behaviors of children and adolescents in scholastic failure.

Achievement↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[About protocols, regulations and guidelines in clinical practice. Spanish Society of Pediatric Neurology].

OBJECTIVE: In order to increase the awareness and perception of guidelines as a helpful tool in clinical practice, a description of its main features, foundations and social context is provided. DEVELOPMENT: Protocols, algorithms and guidelines are defined as instruments to improve patient care without interfering with the clinician's criteria regarding a particular patient. They are supported by the Evidence Based Medicine, and its development follows precise rules. Guidelines are the product of high quality research, made public through Medline, research that is previously evaluated in a specified manner. The level of evidence determines the strength of the recommendation. The effects of guidelines on the health status of patients are one of the subjects of the outcomes assessment methodology. They have some limitations but they contribute to avoid arbitrary practice and to reduce practice variability among professionals. Their contribution to the present health system management and to optimized resources utilization is decisive. CONCLUSIONS: At present, clinical, scientific and management practices are closely related. Guidelines have a role in the three aspects of the Health System.

Clinical Protocols↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Semiologic value of tonic-axial crises in children (author's transl)].

The tonic-axial crises described clinically and by electroencephalo-grams by Ouachi, Roger and Gastaut in 1961, are encountered with relative frequency in specific forms of infantile epilepsy and they establish the principal nucleus of the appearing manifestations in some cases of childhood epileptic encephalopathy. We have studied 43 epileptic children who have displayed tonic-axial crises, taking into consideration the absence or existence of concrete antecedents of cerebral attack, the moment of appearance of the tonix-axial crises in relation to the commencement of the critical manifestations, the type or types of epileptic crises, the circumstances of appearance of tonic-axial crises and its influence upon the further development of the child. Its physiopathology is questioned and the tonic-axial crises is considered as a semiologic crossroad in the evolution in the secondary generalized epilepsy.

Brain↗