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Biomedical subjects

P Davidson

Publications and source records attributed to P Davidson.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

A patient education program to improve adherence rates with antituberculosis drug regimens.

The design, logic, and results of a two-year health education study directed at improving rates of patient adherence to antituberculosis medical regimens are presented. An incentive scheme to reward positive health behaviors plus targeted educational counseling sessions was implemented in a randomized clinical controlled trial. The 205 subjects who participated in the study are categorized according to patients with active tuberculosis (n = 88) or preventive patients with no evidence of active disease (n = 117). Patients in each of these groups were randomly assigned to a special intervention (SI) group or a usual care (UC) control group and were followed monthly throughout their treatment program. While SI patients with active tuberculosis demonstrated higher levels of appointment-keeping behavior and mean percent of medication taken compared to UC patients, no statistically significant differences between the two groups were found. Preventive therapy patients assigned to the SI group, however, were significantly more likely than UC patients to remain in care during their 12-month regimen (64% vs 47%; p = .003). Furthermore, SI patients had significantly higher levels of adherence to their medical regimen compared to UC patients (68% vs 38%; p less than .001). These results demonstrate the positive effects of a structured health education program on the improvement of continuity of care and adherence behavior among patients with tuberculosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Survival of the vestibular nerve after labyrinthectomy in the cat.

Temporal bone studies in cat, monkey, and man demonstrate that the cell bodies of the primary vestibular neurons located in Scarpa's ganglion persist after labyrinthectomy. However, it is not known whether the centrally directed axon process of deafferented vestibular neurons survive or degenerate after labyrinthectomy. If the central axon were to persist, then the primary vestibular neuron could influence vestibular compensation or produce symptoms of vestibular dysfunction. In the present study the temporal bones and brain stem of four cats were prepared for light microscopic examination with hematoxylin-eosin, silver, and trichrome connective tissue stains. Cell counts within Scarpa's ganglion were performed. After labyrinthectomy, many intact axons were demonstrated in the brain stem, a finding that correlated with survival of neurons in Scarpa's ganglion. This study provides anatomic evidence that primary vestibular neurons that survive labyrinthectomy may retain their central axon processes. The persistence of this neural pathway and data from behavioral studies in the cat suggest that vestibular neurons may affect vestibular compensation after labyrinthectomy. Deafferented vestibular neurons may play a role in human vestibular compensation and dysfunction.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

The nurse as a survivor: delayed post-traumatic stress reaction and cumulative trauma in nursing.

As opposed to studies on the immediate psychological impact of traumatic nursing experiences, little attention has been directed to the persistence of certain long-standing hidden symptoms of trauma in some nurses. Since psychological reactions to trauma are claimed to be similar, irrespective of the source of trauma, it is postulated that findings from recent studies on delayed post-traumatic stress reaction in Vietnam veterans, victims of natural disaster, and survivors of the holocaust, delineate symptoms which are also found in stress-prone nurses utilizing maladaptive coping strategies in response to hospital-related traumatic episodes. While some observations are conjectural and speculative, an integrated review is presented of areas of research hitherto unrelated, which serves to deepen our understanding of trauma and its impact upon the mental health of nurses.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1981

Changes in alcohol consumption after childbirth.

The early post-partum period is one of the few times of life stress for which health care professionals recommend alcohol consumption. In this study, a group of nursing mothers who had delivered normal full-term, first-born infants were examined during the 1-month period following childbirth. Data were collected on alcohol consumption patterns prior to and during pregnancy and following childbirth. Most women reported abstaining or decreasing consumption during pregnancy. Those who continued to drink during pregnancy reported drinking on social occasions, rather than when depressed or bored. During the post-partum period, a number of women began drinking. By far the most common post-partum drinking situation was during or prior to breast feeding. Reportedly, many women were advised to drink by nurses and doctors in order to relax and to aid the letdown reflex. Several factors seem worth noting. First, professional advice may be based on misinformation. Animal studies have suggested that alcohol inhibits the letdown reflex and may interfere with nursing. Secondly, because alcohol has been shown to enter the milkstream, attention should be given to possible harmful effects of alcohol (on the newborn) during nursing. Nurses could easily incorporate up-to-date information into their nursing practice.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

Faecal occult blood testing in patients with colonic symptoms.

Faecal occult blood testing with Hemoccult is becoming popular as a means of detecting colorectal carcinoma or adenoma. In determining its diagnostic place, such testing must be evaluated in patients with colonic symptoms as well as in asymptomatic populations. False negative test results may be determined either by full colonic investigation of screened patients or by their long-term follow-up. One hundred patients with colonic symptoms were screened with Hemoccult testing, sigmoidoscopy, and a barium-enema X-ray examination. Eight of 10 patients with proven colorectal carcinoma showed a positive Hemoccult test result, as did two of seven patients with proven colorectal adenomatous polyps. A negative Hemoccult test result in patients with colorectal symptoms does not exclude either colorectal carcinoma or adenoma; however, a positive result does usually indicate the presence of organic gastrointestinal disease.

Adenoma↗
PubMed1979

Retention of plasma somatomedin activity in the foetal rabbit following decapitation in utero.

One rabbit foetus within each litter was decapitated in utero on day 24 of gestation. Plasma somatomedin activity and costal cartilage metabolism were studied 5 days later in the experimental foetuses and control litter-mates. Somatomedin was assayed by the uptake of [35S]sulphate in vitro into costal cartilage from intact foetuses. Uptake was proportional to logarithmic increases in the concentration of both foetal and maternal rabbit plasma. The mean (+/- 1 S.D.) somatomedin activity of four plasma pools, each pool being derived from the intact foetuses within each of four litters, was 1.3 +/- 0.3 compared with a potency of unity for the reference pool of maternal plasma. The plasma somatomedin activity of decapitated foetuses did not differ significantly from that of control litter-mates when analysed by rank test, but the costal cartilage of decapitated foetuses took up less [35S]-sulphate in basal medium when compared with that of intact litter-mates. The headless body weight of the decapitated foetueses did not rank in a position significantly different from the one expected. The concentration of plasma growth hormone in the decapitated foetuses was less than 5 ng/ml and that of the intact foetuses was more than 157 ng/ml. It is concluded that plasma somatomedin in the rabbit foetus is not dependent on foetal growth hormone.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

A method for the immunoassay of insulin in the presence of insulin therapy-induced antibody.

Antibodies produced by exogenous insulin therapy interfere with the measurement of immunoreactive insulin (IRI) by conventional methods. A modified acid-alcohol extraction method is described which allows for accurate measurement of total IRI in the plasma of insulin-treated patients. Total extractable IRI includes both IRI bound to antibody and free IRI. Free IRI can be separated from antibody-bound IRI by Sephadex G-50 chromatography. The amount of insulin bound to antibody is calculated as the difference between total extractable IRI and the free IRI. The accuracy of these methods is demonstrated by recovery experiments. Suggested applications of these techniques to clinical states are offered.

Chromatography, Gel↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Perforation of the sigmoid colon by hydrostatic pressure of a public water fountain.

A 39-year-old woman presented to the emergency department complaining of rectal bleeding and abdominal pain 7 h after sitting on a water display fountain. On examination, the abdomen was rigid, and the patient had a prolapsed rectum with rectal bleeding. A chest radiograph demonstrated free air. On emergent exploratory laparotomy, the patient had a perforated sigmoid colon at the rectosigmoid junction with gross abdominal soilage. The patient survived to hospital discharge. This case provides a review of the literature regarding hydrostatic injury to the colon and other self-induced colorectal perforations.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The process of loneliness for female adolescents: a feminist perspective.

Although it has not been established that females are lonelier than males, adolescents are particularly vulnerable to loneliness. A feminist, grounded-theory study was conducted to explore the everyday loneliness experiences of 10 white, middle-class females living in an urban/suburban area in New Brunswick, Canada. Creating Connections, the core variable, emerged as the social process involved as the young women learned to deal with loneliness. The complexity of the phenomenon is evident in the fact that various combinations of disconnecting factors and intervening factors were found to influence the dimensions of loneliness (i.e., intensity and duration). The interaction of these factors and various strategies used to manage loneliness--creating connections, emoting, and creating actions--completed the nonlinear process. A significant, yet paradoxical, finding was that the relationships that were helpful in the resolution of loneliness could also be responsible for its creation and maintenance.

Adaptation, Psychological↗