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N Adams

Publications and source records attributed to N Adams.

71 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Racial influences on intelligence and personality measures of people who commit murder.

Examined a sample of murderers (N = 137) (91 white and 46 black offenders) for racial differences on intelligence (both verbal and nonverbal) and personality measures. Black offenders scored significantly lower than white offenders on both verbal and nonverbal intelligence as well as on the SI scale of the MMPI. However, they scored higher on the MA scale. Overall, the intelligence measures discriminated better between black and white offenders than personality measures. Implications for future research and efforts to develop new norms for the MMPI are discussed.

Ethnicity↗

Predicting WAIS scores from Quick Test scores for mentally retarded psychiatric patients.

Investigated Quick Test prediction of WAIS Full Scale IQs for a psychiatric population (N = 19) who were also mentally retarded. One- and two-variable regression equations produced nonsignificant results and accounted for only 11% and 15% of the variance. Caution is advised when the Quick Test is used as an estimate of IQ for mentally retarded psychiatric individuals.

Adult↗

Dependence on age at intake of committed dose equivalents from radionuclides.

The dependence of committed dose equivalents on age at intake is needed to assess the significance of exposures of young persons among the general public resulting from inhaled or ingested radionuclides. The committed dose equivalents, which are evaluated using ICRP principles, depend on the body dimensions of the young person at the time of intake of a radionuclide and on subsequent body growth. Representation of growth by a series of exponential segments facilitates the derivation of general expressions for the age dependence of committed dose equivalents if metabolic models do not change with age. The additional assumption that intakes of radionuclides in air or food are proportional to a person's energy expenditure (which implies age-independent dietary composition) enables the demonstration that the age of the most highly exposed 'critical groups' of the general public from these radionuclides is either about 1 year or 17 years. With the above assumptions the exposure of the critical group is less than three times the exposure of adult members of the general public. Approximate values of committed dose equivalents which avoid both underestimation and excessive overestimation are shown to be obtainable by simplified procedures. Modified procedures are suggested for use if metabolic models change with age.

Adolescent↗

NdYAG laser photocoagulation in the dog stomach.

Considerable discussion still centres around the relative merits of the Argon and Neodymium Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (NdYAG) lasers for the endoscopic treatment of gastrointestinal haemorrhage, although both are undoubtedly effect. We have carried out experiments to elucidate which factors determine the safety and efficacy of NdYAG laser photocoagulation. Histological studies on normal gastric mucosa showed that the depth of tissue damage depended mainly on the total incident laser energy, whereas the effectiveness of photocoagulation of induced gastric ulcers in heparinised animals depended on the laser power and the exposure time used. Optimum haemostasis with minimum tissue damage was obtained using pulses of 300 to 500 ms duration with energies of 25 to 40 J. We consider these parameters safe and effective for use in pilot clinical studies.

Animals↗

Sex differences and the effects of tail pinch on ethanol drinking in Maudsley rats.

Voluntary consumption of 10% ethanol (EtOH) vs. water was compared in EtOH-naive, male and female Maudsley Reactive (MR) inbred rats that were exposed to either daily episodes of tail pinch (TP), or no-stress controls for 35 consecutive days. Females drank significantly more EtOH than males as measured by preference for 10% EtOH vs. water, and for intake of pure EtOH. Females exposed to TP had a higher preference for EtOH relative to controls after 21 days, but there was no difference over the entire 35 days. Males exposed to TP tended to drink more EtOH during the last week of testing relative to controls. Experiment 2 compared MR females with Maudsley Nonreactive (MNRA) females for 3 weeks in the conditions described above; TP exposure increased EtOH preference in MR, but not in MNRA, females. MR females also consumed significantly more EtOH than MNRA females. In both experiments female rats drank amounts of EtOH following a 6-week period of EtOH abstinence comparable to their preabstinence levels. The large degree of variability found in inbred MR rats has implications for developing a model for the investigation of environmental influences on the development of EtOH abuse in genetically susceptible individuals.

Alcohol Drinking↗

Environmental influences on the failure to drink in inbred rats with an ethanol preference.

To investigate the environmental influences on the initiation of voluntary consumption of 10% ethanol (EtOH) in rats with differing genetic susceptibility to excessive EtOH consumption, Maudsley reactive (MR/Har) and nonreactive (MNRA/Har) inbred rats were observed in different types of caging environments. Singly housed male and female rats of both strains living in Observational (O) cages drank markedly less EtOH during 3 weeks of two-bottle choice than did rats living in standard-control (C) individual cages. When male rats had a preexisting moderate or heavy pattern of EtOH intake (manipulated through prior EtOH experience), moving to the O cage did not reduce EtOH intake. To investigate the nature of the above cage effect (the reduced initiation of EtOH consumption), we compared the manner in which food had been distributed (traditional food hopper in C cages versus loose distribution in O cages) independently of cage type. The results showed that MR/Har male rats that obtained food through a hopper in both O or C cages drank significantly more EtOH than rats that had food loosely distributed in the O or C cages. The results suggest that differences in the mode of food procurement and caging can play a large role in whether the phenotype for excessive EtOH intake is expressed in the acquisition of an EtOH preference in genetically vulnerable rats.

Alcohol Drinking↗

Pain management 1: psychological and social aspects of pain.

This two-part article presents psychological and social factors which affect pain perception and response and the implications of these for nursing practice. In this article, the complex interactions between neurophysiological and psychological factors are outlined and theories of pain perception and ways in which the pain experience can be modulated are presented. The role of psychological factors, attitudes, beliefs and expectations of both patient and practitioner, pain behaviours and ability to cope are discussed. In the second part, these are further elaborated with particular reference to the nurse-patient interaction. The use of psychological approaches to augment clinical practice, such as education, reduction of anxiety and improving coping ability, are suggested. Finally, the importance of communication skills in pain management is addressed.

Acupuncture Therapy↗

Pain management 2: the use of pyschological approaches to pain.

This article is the second of a two-part series looking at the psychological and social factors which affect pain perception. The first article (Vol 10(14): 903-11) examined neurophysiological and psychological factors of pain perception. This article considers the importance of the nurse-patient interaction in the management of patients' pain. It outlines the adoption of several psychological approaches which could be utilized by nurses when dealing with patients in pain. The need to encourage a feeling of control over pain is discussed in relation to the use of patient-controlled analgesia and the development of positive coping skills. The value of good communication skills is emphasized as being essential in encouraging patients in pain to utilize these psychological approaches.

Humans↗

Effect of subcutaneous granulocyte colony-stimulating factor injectate volume on drug efficacy, site complications, and client comfort.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To determine the effect of administering 1.6 ml (480 mcg) of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) in one subcutaneous injection or two injections of 0.8 ml each. DESIGN: Experimental. SETTING: 27-bed bone marrow transplant intensive care unit of a metropolitan, university medical center in the southwestern United States. SAMPLE: Nonprobability; 76 women who received high-dose chemotherapy for breast cancer followed by hemopoietic rescue. METHODS: Subjects were randomized into an experimental group that received one injection per 480 mcg dose and a control group that received two injections per 480 mcg dose administered by research associates using a standardized injection technique. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES: Injectate volume. The number of days post-transplant until the absolute neutrophil count (ANC) returned to 1,000/mm3, the incidence and surface area in mm2 of site complications, and scores on Tursky's Quantified Pain Descriptor immediately following the injection(s). FINDINGS: No significant difference existed between the two groups in ANC recovery time, frequency or size of site complications, or intensity, reaction, or sensation of discomfort reported. CONCLUSIONS: Administering 1.6 ml doses of G-CSF in one injection instead of two does not result in slower ANC recovery, induration, more frequent or larger bruises or areas of erythema, or greater client discomfort. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: Administering one injection instead of two may decrease patients' anxiety, the nursing time needed for preparation and administration of injections, patient instruction for self-administration, the potential for contamination of vials or loss of dose, and the cost of supplies.

Adult↗