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Biomedical subjects

R A Kane

Publications and source records attributed to R A Kane.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

A phylogeny based on three mitochondrial genes supports the division of Schistosoma intercalatum into two separate species.

Two recognized strains of Schistosoma intercalatum, one from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), formerly Zaire, and the other from Cameroon, have been investigated using DNA sequences from 3 mitochondrial genes, cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (cox1), NADH dehydrogenase subunit 6 (nad6) and the small ribosomal RNA gene (rrnS). In addition, partial DNA sequences from the nuclear large subunit ribosomal RNA gene (lsrDNA) were included within the study. Although partial lsrDNA alone reveals little taxonomic information, phylogenetic analysis of the mitochondrial data demonstrates a clear dichotomy between the 2 purported strains and it is proposed that they should be treated as distinct taxa. The 'original' S. intercalatum now falls relatively basal in the S. haematobium group, while the proposed new species is more derived and sister taxon to S. bovis and S. curassoni.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Application of single strand conformational polymorphism (SSCP) analysis with fluorescent primers for differentiation of Schistosoma haematobium group species.

To assess the utility of single-stranded conformational polymorphism (SSCP) analysis for the differentiation of schistosomes, using methods adapted for a Perkin Elmer ABI Prism 377 automated sequencer, 3 isolates of Schistosoma haematobium, 2 of S. intercalatum and single isolates of S. curassoni and S. bovis were selected for study. Two fluorescently labelled, double-stranded polymerase chain reaction products, amplified from the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (CO1) gene and the nuclear ribosomal second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2), were generated from single male and female worms. Changes in electrophoretic mobility of fragments within an SSCP profile revealed variation at individual, isolate and species levels. The mutational basis between representative SSCP profiles was confirmed by direct sequencing, demonstrating that single point substitutions were detectable. SSCP analysis has considerable potential as an alternative molecular method of identification and characterization of schistosomes. More broadly, fluorescence-based SSCP analysis is applicable to almost any gene target from any species of parasite and is a powerful molecular tool for genetic profiling.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Intraoperative ultrasound.

Intraoperative ultrasound is an exciting arena for real-time depiction and evaluation of relevant anatomy and pathology. The information provided by this technique often is pivotal to the surgeon, and not infrequently impacts the nature and extent of the surgical procedure. As more radiologists develop an interest and become facile with IOUS, and as more surgeons appreciate the benefits of this modality, the numbers and applications for this technique will continue to expand. This, coupled with continued commercial and technical improvements, and increasing demand for minimally invasive surgery, ensures that the future of IOUS will be a bright one.

Equipment Design↗
PubMed2001

Long-term care and a good quality of life: bringing them closer together.

Long-term care policies and programs in the United States suffer from a major flaw: They are balanced toward a model of nursing home care that, regardless of its technical quality, tends to be associated with a poor quality of life for consumers. This article proposes quality-of-life domains-namely, security, comfort, meaningful activity, relationships, enjoyment, dignity, autonomy, privacy, individuality, spiritual well-being, and functional competence. It argues that these kinds of quality-of-life outcomes are minimized in current quality assessment and given credence only after health and safety outcomes are considered. Five trends are reviewed that might lead to a more consumer-centered emphasis on quality of life: the disability rights movement, the emphasis on consumer direction, the growth of assisted living, increasing attention to physical environments, and efforts to bring about culture change in nursing homes. Building on these trends, the article concludes with strategies to move beyond current stalemates and polarized arguments toward forms of long-term care that are more compatible with a good quality of life.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Peroxide-enhanced anal endosonography: technique, image interpretation, and clinical applications.

Because current techniques for examination and imaging of perianal fistulas tend to underestimate the extent, location, and course of perianal fistulas--information essential for decisions about surgical management--the use of hydrogen peroxide was investigated as an image-enhancing contrast agent for confirmation of the presence of and improvement in the depiction of fistulas during endoanal ultrasonography (US). After conventional endoanal US was performed with a side-fire 7.5- or 10.0-MHz rotating endoprobe, external perianal openings were cannulated and approximately 1 mL of peroxide was administered. After reinsertion of the endoprobe, the entire course of the echogenic fistula, including its relation to the internal and external sphincters and the levator ani muscle, was depicted in real time in three dimensions. This depiction of fistulas permits accurate classification, which facilitates surgical planning. In experience with more than 60 patients, peroxide-enhanced endoanal US was found to be a useful technique for documentation of the presence, number, and internal course of perianal fistulas and for characterization of abnormalities seen at endosonography performed without use of contrast enhancement. In addition, the technique permitted surgeons to stratify patients into treatment groups and has been especially useful for planning surgical treatments.

Anal Canal↗
PubMed2001

State-of-the-art ultrasonography is as accurate as helical computed tomography and computed tomographic angiography for detecting unresectable periampullary cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the ability of state-of-the-art ultrasonography with that of helical computed tomography and computed tomographic angiography in detecting unresectable periampullary cancer. In most patients periampullary cancer is unresectable because of either distant metastasis or local vascular involvement. The advent of gray scale and color Doppler ultrasonography has improved the ability of ultrasonography to detect vascular involvement. METHODS: Twenty-three consecutive patients with periampullary cancer were enrolled for prospective staging of their disease by comparing helical computed tomography and computed tomographic angiography with gray scale and color Doppler ultrasonography of the abdomen. Portal vein, superior mesenteric vein, splenic vein, and superior mesenteric artery involvement was graded 0 to 4, grade 0 being no vascular involvement and grade 4 being total occlusion of the vessel. Agreement between ultrasonography and computed tomographic angiography for determining vascular involvement was measured by chi2 analysis. RESULTS: Two patients (9%) were excluded because excessive overlying bowel gas hampered the ability of ultrasonography to visualize the pancreas. For the remaining 21 patients, there was significant agreement between ultrasonography and computed tomographic angiography for detecting vascular involvement in all vessels (P < .001; portal vein, kappa = 0.67; superior mesenteric vein, kappa = 0.67; splenic vein, kappa = 0.85; and superior mesenteric artery, kappa = 0.59). Ultrasonography was in agreement with computed tomographic angiography in all cases of unresectability. Both modalities were equally poor in preoperatively showing lymphadenopathy and metastases. CONCLUSIONS: Provided that there is adequate visualization on ultrasonography of the head of the pancreas in the periampullary region, then state-of-the-art gray scale and color Doppler ultrasonography are as accurate as helical computed tomography and computed tomographic angiography for detecting the unresectability of periampullary cancer. If performed as the initial investigation and the region of the pancreatic head is clearly shown, and if vascular encasement or occlusion or distant metastasis is identified, further investigations are unnecessary.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Outcome trajectories for assisted living and nursing facility residents in Oregon.

OBJECTIVE: To compare assisted living residents and nursing home residents on outcome trajectories for three outcomes: ability to perform activities of daily living (ADLs), psychological well-being, and pain and discomfort. DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING: A representative sample of one-third of the census from 38 participating assisted living facilities (N = 605) and two-fifths of the census from 31 participating nursing facilities (N = 610). STUDY DESIGN: A longitudinal design using hierarchical linear models to examine how setting (being in an assisted living setting or in a nursing home) affected growth trajectories for each outcome studied when adjusting for other resident characteristics. DATA COLLECTION: Residents or their proxies were interviewed and chart reviews done at baseline, six months, and one year. All baseline data were collected between August 1995 and May 1996. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We found differences in case mix between assisted living and nursing facility residents but no differences in outcome trajectories for ADLs, psychological well-being, and pain and discomfort. For ADLs and pain and discomfort on average, residents in both settings experienced change over the study period. For psychological well-being, residents experienced no change on average. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of difference in growth trajectories for ADLs, pain and discomfort, and psychological well-being between the two settings was noteworthy.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2000

Assessment in long-term care.

Long-term care has begun to rely heavily on assessment as a basis for determining eligibility and payment for services, as well as for planning needed care. Mandated assessments have been introduced into nursing homes and will soon be required for home health care and rehabilitation. Many states use a formal structured assessment process to establish clients' eligibility for institutional or community-based care. The common feature of such assessment is attention to physical functioning, but other domains are also relevant, including affect, social function, cognition, pain and discomfort, and satisfaction. Taken together, this cluster is often referred to as quality of life. While some measures attempt to infer this information from clients' behavior, it is best obtained directly from clients' responses whenever possible. The other major component of a long term care assessment relates to obtaining information on clients' preferences and values. These data are important both for weighting the individual components of an assessment and for directly addressing preferences about the care and lifestyle available.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2000

Hepatic colon cancer metastases in mice: dynamic in vivo correlation with hypoechoic rims visible at US.

PURPOSE: To use videomicroscopy of tumor-bearing livers of live mice to depict tumors directly to determine the exact nature of rims seen on corresponding ultrasonographic (US) scans. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy-six hepatic colorectal cancer metastases were studied in exteriorized livers of 18 mice by using intravital microscopy, US, and histologic examination of the same tumors. RESULTS: Hypoechoic rims correlated with distended sinusoidal spaces in vivo. These spaces surrounded only locally invasive tumors (mean diameter, 0.85 mm) that had obstructed the supplying terminal portal venules. These spaces, containing adherent leukocytes and tumor cells, gave rise to new tumor vasculature. Results of histologic examination of rims (portal inflammation, congested or compressed sinusoids, cell atrophy) correlated with leukocyte endothelial adherence, occluded sinusoids, and new vessel formation in vivo. CONCLUSION: Unlike results from previous studies, dynamic in vivo observations of peritumoral rims demonstrated distended sinusoidal spaces giving rise to new tumor-penetrating vessels. These sinusoids arose around locally invasive tumors and were associated with more advanced intrahepatic disease. These dynamic observations provide a pathophysiologic explanation for previous histologic correlates of peritumoral rims.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2000

Radiologic features of complications arising from dropped gallstones in laparoscopic cholecystectomy patients.

OBJECTIVE: Because laparoscopic cholecystectomy has become the accepted treatment for symptomatic cholelithiasis, radiologists frequently encounter patients who have had this surgery. Although the radiologic features of postoperative bile duct injury are well documented, the imaging features of less well-known complications remain poorly described. One such unusual complication is abscess formation caused by dropped gallstones. CONCLUSION: Although the incidence of dropped gallstones is an uncommon complication of laparoscopic cholecystectomy, it should be recognized as a potential source of both intraabdominal and intrathoracic abscess formation in any patient presenting months to years after undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy. These abscesses are not necessarily confined to the right upper quadrant.

Abdominal Abscess↗
PubMed1999

Adding values: an experiment in systematic attention to values and preferences of community long-term care clients.

OBJECTIVES: We tested the effects of providing case managers with tools to assess and respond to client values and preferences on their subsequent knowledge of clients' values and their practices in arranging long-term care. METHOD: Using a quasi-experimental design with newly enrolled, cognitively intact clients, we compared case managers, clients, and care plans at the experimental and control agency. RESULTS: Three weeks after enrollment, experimental clients were significantly more likely to report that case managers had asked them about their own preferences and offered them choices about services. Actual client values reported at the 3-month follow-up were similar for the two groups, with experimental case managers only slightly more accurate judges of their clients' responses to values questions. At follow-up, experimental case managers reported more case activity tailoring plans to client preferences, a finding confirmed by record reviews. Client acuity, measured by ADL functioning and prior hospital use, was associated with less perceived discussion of client preferences during the initial care planning process, but more case activity related to client preferences during the first three months. DISCUSSION: The study suggests it is possible to sensitize case managers to the importance of assessing and acting on client values. Getting them to do so consistently, however, may require changes in the practice environment.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1999

Choosing an adult foster home or a nursing home: residents' perceptions about decision making and control.

Representative samples of 260 Oregon foster care residents and 179 cognitively intact nursing home residents were queried retrospectively about the nature and circumstances surrounding their decision to move to a foster care or nursing home, including the alternatives they considered, the circumstances leading to the move, their perception of the decision-making process and who influenced it, the characteristics important to them in choosing the care environment, and their perception of their own control over the move. Statistically significant differences were identified in the characteristics of the setting that each group deemed important, the circumstances surrounding the decision, the people influencing it, and the perceived control over the decision.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Staging of rectal cancer after polypectomy: usefulness of endorectal US.

PURPOSE: To determine the usefulness of endorectal ultrasonography (US) in staging rectal cancer discovered at polypectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Before surgical resection, endorectal US was performed in 18 consecutive patients with adenocarcinoma discovered in polypectomy specimens. A rotating 7-10-MHz endoprobe with an inflatable balloon was used in all cases. The precise depth of penetration (T stage) was determined with endorectal US and correlated with the histopathologic findings. RESULTS: For detection of residual tumor after polypectomy, endorectal US had a sensitivity of 100%, specificity of 44%, positive predictive value of 64%, and negative predictive value of 100%. Although the precise T stage was correctly predicted with endorectal US in only eight patients (44%), endorectal US was able to demonstrate whether the tumor was limited to the bowel wall in 16 patients (89%). CONCLUSION: Endorectal US is an accurate technique for localizing tumors to or beyond the rectal wall in patients who have undergone diagnostic polypectomy. Although inaccuracies in determining the specific T stage may occur, endorectal US facilitates surgical planning in the vast majority of patients and should therefore remain the local staging technique of choice in this specific patient population.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1999

Goals of home care: therapeutic, compensatory, either, or both?

This article classifies home care goals into two broad categories: therapeutic goals, in which home care providers strive for measurable improvement on parameters of physical, psychological, or social functioning and compensatory (or empowering) goals, in which home care providers strive to provide services to compensate for functional impairment, thus enabling consumers to pursue their own goals. Therapeutic goals are loosely associated with "medical models" of care and compensatory goals with "social models." From a consumer perspective therapeutic and compensatory goals are important, and artificial distinctions between the two should be eliminated. However, this merger should be effected in such a way that therapeutic approaches can be incorporated into programs with relatively low unit costs.

Community Participation↗
PubMed1999

Chronic inflammatory pseudotumor arising in the hepatobiliary-pancreatic system: progressive multisystemic organ involvement in four patients.

OBJECTIVE: Inflammatory pseudotumor is a benign process that can involve most organ systems. The purpose of this report was to evaluate the imaging features of multifocal chronic inflammatory pseudotumor in four patients who presented with clinical, radiographic, and biopsy evidence of pancreatic or biliary malignancy. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this is the first report in the radiology literature describing the imaging features of progressive multifocal inflammatory pseudotumor originating from a primary pancreatic or biliary focus. Even on retrospective review, no distinguishing imaging features were identified that could discriminate benign from malignant disease. These findings emphasize the importance of histopathologic analysis in the diagnosis of malignancy, particularly in patients with previously diagnosed inflammatory pseudotumor.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Intraoperative ultrasound of the biliary system: techniques and clinical applications.

Intraoperative ultrasonography (IOUS) of the intra- and extrabepatic biliary system is being used with increased frequency in many medical centers. The value of IOUS in facilitating surgery in patients with complicated diseases of the gallbladder or with stones in the bile ducts is well recognized. However, a variety of less common diseases affect the intrahepatic ducts, many of which require sophisticated surgical techniques when resection is being undertaken. In many situations, these operations can be facilitated by the use of IOUS, both for depicting segmental and ductal anatomy, and in guiding resections and anastomoses. This report summarizes the techniques currently used for performing IOUS of the biliary system, and illustrates the spectrum of clinical applications that may require IOUS guidance.

Journal Article↗