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Biomedical subjects

R Schiller

Publications and source records attributed to R Schiller.

16 recordsLinked to original sources

Association between Staphylococcus aureus nasopharyngeal colonization and septicemia in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus.

In an attempt to identify risk factors for Staphylococcus aureus septicemia, 136 consecutive HIV-infected patients were investigated for the presence of nasopharyngeal colonization with Staphylococcus aureus and subsequent Staphylococcus aureus infection. Sixty of 136 (44.1%) HIV-infected patients had staphylococci which were detected in the nasopharynx on initial culture compared to 12 of 39 (30.8%) patients with chronic diseases and 11 of 47 (23.4%) healthy hospital staff. Another 12 HIV-infected subjects proved to be Staphylococcus aureus carriers on follow-up cultures. Patients with full-blown AIDS had a higher carriage rate compared to subjects who were only HIV-positive (p < 0.05), indicating that Staphylococcus aureus colonized patients were more severely ill. Eight patients with Staphylococcus aureus septicemia were observed, all of whom were carriers; no septicemia occurred in the non-colonized patients (p < 0.01). Colonized patients with neutropenia (< 1000/microliters) were significantly more likely to develop septicemia (p < 0.01). Nasopharyngeal colonization with Staphylococcus aureus and the presence of an indwelling catheter were established to be factors that help identify patients at risk of acquiring subsequent Staphylococcus aureus infection.

Adult

Auditing dietetic services.

In this last article of a four-part series on auditing dietetic services, the authors present a detailed description of a quality assurance program for dietetic services.

Diet Therapy

Auditing dietetic services (second of a series).

In this second article of a four-part series on auditing dietetic services, the authors focus on a monodisciplinary nutritional care audit. After defining the purpose of such an audit, a step-by-step description is given of how the audit should be carried out from developing standards and criteria to conducting a review audit to measure improvement.

Diet Therapy

Auditing dietetic services: first of a series.

Dietetic audits may be used to assess quality of care or to evaluate the efficiency of a food service. Problems can be clearly identified through an audit, and solutions can be found to improve service and nutritional care. An audit also provides a basis for dietitian accountability. In this first of a series of four articles on dietetic audits, the authors describe the basic auditing process.

Dietary Services

Hemodynamic studies in long-term peritoneal dialysis patients.

A study was undertaken to evaluate the acute hemodynamic effects in ten patients from this clinic's long-term peritoneal dialysis program. With a Swan-Ganz catheter, the following parameters were measured in each patient during peritoneal dialysis: cardiac index, pulmonary artery pressure, right atrial pressure, inferior vena cava pressure, heart rate and arterial pressure. Mean predialysis cardiac index, stroke volume index and heart rate were normal. Predialysis pulmonary artery pressure and arterial pressure were slightly elevated. Mean weight loss during peritoneal dialysis was 1.6 kg. The most striking post-dialysis changes were a significant 20% decrease of the cardiac index and a 17% decrease of the pulmonary artery pressure. Heart rate and arterial pressure remained constant due to a 25% increase of total peripheral resistance. After filling the abdomen with one, two and three liters of dialysate, intra-abdominal pressure and inferior vena cava pressure increased up to 150 and 100%, respectively, whereas central hemodynamic parameters (pulmonary artery pressure, cardiac index, stroke volume index, heart rate and arterial pressure) were unchanged.

Adult

A model for traveling bands of chemotactic bacteria.

A theoretical model is used to study band formation by chemotactic populations of Escherichia coli. The model includes the bacterial response to attractant gradients, the chemotactic sensitivity of the bacteria to the concentration of the attractant, and population growth. For certain values of the parameters in the model, traveling bands of bacteria form and propagate with or without growth. Under specific growth conditions the band profile is maintained and the band propagates at constant speed. These predictions are in general agreement with the experiment results of J. Adler and earlier theoretical work by L. Segel and his collaborators. However, our theory differs in several important respects from the latter efforts. Suggestions are made for further experiments to test the proposed model and to clarify the nature of the processes which lead to band formation.

Chemotaxis

Model for the chemotactic response of a bacterial population.

We present a mathematical model for the motion of a bacterial population in prescribed attractant or repellent gradients. The model is suggested by the observations of Mesibov et al. (1973, J. Gen. Physiol. 62:203) and Brown and Berg (1974, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 71:1388) who found that the sensitivity of the chemotactic response depends on the concentration of attractant. Predictions of the theory are in general agreement with the experiments of Dahlquist et al. (1972, Nat. New Biol. 236:120) and of Mesibov et al. on populations of motile bacteria in fixed attractant gradients. Additional tests of the model are proposed.

Bacterial Physiological Phenomena