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Biomedical subjects

S Berg

Publications and source records attributed to S Berg.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

The oldest old and their children: how strong are the relationships?

Eighty-five-year-old parents (N = 99) and their middle-aged children (N = 58) participated in a study on solidarity in intergenerational relationships in Sweden. The research model utilized evaluated six dimensions of family solidarity: family structures and associational, affectional, consensual, functional and normative solidarity. The finding of close family bonds in most of these areas may be attributed to the fact that the extensive Swedish public home-help system facilitated relationships on more equal terms. While the children were relieved from much responsibility for their parents' needs, most parents did not experience feelings of dependency on their children. It was in fact evident that even very old parents can be a source for help to their children. Children were, however, the main providers for emotional support and this role could not be substituted by formal caregivers.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Anterior mandibular subapical osteotomy: a useful treatment for patients with severely worn mandibular anterior teeth.

Rehabilitation of patients with severe dental wear is a complex diagnostic and restorative problem. As wear occurs, space for restorative materials is lost, and unique treatment techniques are needed to provide good esthetics and function. Use of orthognathic surgery to reposition mandibular anterior teeth and supporting alveolar bone can create a more ideal environment for restorative procedures.

Alveolectomy↗
PubMed1992

Teeth in the fracture line.

The department of maxillo-facial surgery in Cologne University has, for some 15 years, routinely treated patients with mandibular fractures, in which a tooth lies in the fracture line, by means of Champy miniplates. A review of such cases was conducted to determine the viability of such teeth not electively extracted at the time of fracture reduction. It was found that only rarely did the "salvaged" tooth subsequently require extraction and we believe our results should encourage the clinician to attempt to retain "fracture line" teeth unless there is an absolute contraindication.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Binding and internalization of hyaluronate by human cutaneous fibroblasts.

Hyaluronate is a ubiquitous component of mammalian extracellular matrix. It influences numerous cellular processes and accumulates in fibrotic connective tissue disorders. Recently, hyaluronate catabolism has assumed additional importance because of the introduction into clinical practice of therapeutic procedures which deposit high concentrations of hyaluronate directly into tissues. Relatively little is known about the local metabolism, fate, or long-term effects of either endogenous or exogenous hyaluronate at deposition sites. A capacity for degrading hyaluronate within connective tissues, presumably by fibroblasts, has been inferred but remains controversial because direct proof that human fibroblasts endocytose and degrade hyaluronate has been lacking. In the present study, fibroblasts from normal and fibrotic skin were incubated with [3H]-hyaluronate. Binding and internalization of radiolabeled substrate were then measured: Binding assays revealed a saturable, dose-dependent increase in cell surface-associated [3H]-hyaluronate which was enhanced by pretreatment with hyaluronidase. Similar binding curves were obtained for all cells tested. All the cell lines internalized hyaluronate; however, fibroblasts in confluent cultures internalized 3.5- to 4.2-fold more radioactivity per cell than did fibroblasts from corresponding subconfluent cultures (p less than or equal to 0.002). Normal scar fibroblasts showed greater capacity for generating hyaluronate-derived partial degradation products. This work provides clear evidence that human cutaneous fibroblasts are capable of both binding and internalizing hyaluronate, possibly as a prerequisite for degradation.

Cells, Cultured↗
PubMed1992

Changes in cognitive functioning of the oldest old.

Cognitive changes during a 2-year interval in a representative sample of the oldest old were investigated. Respondents were 324 people aged 84 to 90 at baseline who were selected from census records in the Jönköping region of Sweden. Following a 2-year interval, it was possible to reinterview 213 people, or 94% of individuals, still alive. Performance on a battery of five cognitive tests showed a small decline in mean scores, and a 10% increase in the number of people meeting criteria for significant cognitive impairment. Respondents with better functioning at baseline tended to have stable performance over this period.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Pulmonary granulocyte accumulation is reduced by nebulized corticosteroid in septic pigs.

Nebulized beclomethasone dipropionate was administered to 14 anesthetized and artificially ventilated pigs at 6-hourly intervals after infusion of live S. aureus (BDP group). Changes in pulmonary activity from autologous granulocytes labeled with In-111 was detected externally for 12 (n = 8) to 44 h (n = 6). The changes were compared with those in ten pigs (12 h n = 7, 44 h n = 3) subjected to the same insults but given no corticosteroid (placebo group). Serial measurements of blood radioactivity, and cardiac output were performed in animals observed for 12 h. Corticosteroid-treated pigs showed a gradual decline in decay-corrected pulmonary In-111 activity. The placebo group displayed a more varied reaction, but most animals had an increased activity compared to the corticosteroid group. The difference between the groups was significant at 8 h (BDP-group 92% (88-98), placebo-group 107% (97-121), median (lower-upper quartiles), baseline = 100%. P < 0.01, U-test). Blood radioactivity and cardiac output did not differ significantly between the two groups. Nebulized corticosteroid thus diminished pulmonary granulocyte accumulation, which may be of value in the treatment of septic respiratory distress.

Aerosols↗
PubMed1992

Incidence, serogroups and case-fatality rate of invasive meningococcal infections in a Swedish region 1975-1989.

In a retrospective study of invasive meningococcal infections in Greater Gothenburg, Sweden, 213 cases of culture-verified meningitis or septicaemia were identified during the 15-year period 1975-1989. The annual incidence was 2.0/100,000. Cases were seen in all age-groups with the highest rates in the 0-4 and 15-19 year-old groups, 9.5 and 6.2/100,000 respectively. 20% of the patients were less than 2 years. 91% of the patients had no known risk factors. In only 10 cases (5%) was contact with another case of meningococcal infection known. The main clinical manifestations were meningitis (57%), septicaemia with no sign of focal infection (25%) and septic shock (17%). The case-fatality rate for all the patients was 6.6% and did not change during the 15-year period. One-third of the patients who presented with septic shock died. The serogroup was known for strains from 192 patients. 51% of the strains belonged to serogroup B, 10% to group A and 23% to group C. In conclusion, the incidence of meningococcal infection was low but the relatively high case-fatality rate warrants a search for effective prophylaxis. About 30% of the cases were potentially preventable by the currently available tetravalent (A, C, Y and W135) polysaccharide vaccine, which is immunogenic in children greater than 2 years. Widespread use of antibiotic prophylaxis to close contacts of known cases would not lower the incidence markedly.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Hyaluronan: relationship to hemodynamics and survival in porcine injury and sepsis.

BACKGROUND AND METHODS: Hyaluronan is a polysaccharide normally present in low concentrations in the blood, and is rapidly cleared from the blood by the liver. Increased plasma hyaluronan concentrations have been found in patients with sepsis. We studied changes in serum hyaluronan concentrations and their relationship to hemodynamics and survival in a 48-hr porcine model of injury and sepsis. RESULTS: Circulating hyaluronan concentrations increased to high values after induction of experimental sepsis (from mean baseline values of 242 +/- 26 [SEM] to mean maximum concentrations of 964 +/- 255 micrograms/L [p less than .01]) compared with controls (199 +/- 38 to 303 +/- 32 micrograms/L). A weak negative correlation between mean arterial pressure (MAP) and serum hyaluronan values was found (r2 = .47; p less than .01). Nonsurvivors had higher mean serum hyaluronan concentrations than survivors (603 +/- 147 vs. 285 +/- 43 micrograms/L [p less than .05]). CONCLUSIONS: Experimental sepsis is associated with an increase in serum hyaluronan values. The relationship between decreased MAP and increased serum hyaluronan concentrations could point to reduced liver perfusion as a cause. An association between high hyaluronan values and nonsurvival in sepsis is possible.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1992

[The venous aneurysm].

Venous aneurysms are rare: only 311 cases of venous aneurysms and 56 cases of aneurysms in vein transplants have been reported since 1939 to date. 62% of the patients suffering from venous aneurysms were less than 40 years of age. The most frequently involved vessels were the internal jugular vein (n = 56), the portal vein (n = 28), the v. saphena magna (n = 30) the popliteal vein (n = 23), the azygos vein (n = 22) and the vena cava superior (n = 20). The diameters of the aneurysms were between 1 and 16 cm. Symptoms, if at all noticeable, depend on the localisation of the aneurysm, but they are unspecific in the majority of cases. The most frequent finding was the space- occupying growth seen in 190 patients (52%). Pulmonary embolisms originating from venous aneurysms were seen in 19/311 (6.1%), a rupture of an aneurysm in 4/311 (1.2%) of the venous aneurysms and 5/56 (8.9%) of the aneurysms in transplant veins, respectively. and were fatal in 1 (0.3%) and 2 (3.6%) of the cases, respectively. Of the 205 patients who were operated on, 3 (1.5%) died from intraoperative complications.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1991

Biochemical and behavioural effects of isamoltane, a beta-adrenoceptor antagonist with affinity for the 5-HT1B receptor of rat brain.

The biochemical and behavioural effects of isamoltane, a beta-adrenoceptor and 5-HT1B receptor antagonist that has higher affinity for 5-HT1B receptors than for 5-HT1A receptors, on 5-HT neurotransmission in the rat brain were examined. In binding experiments isamoltane was found to be about five times more potent as a ligand for the 5-HT1B receptor than for the 5-HT1A receptor (Ki values 21 and 112 nmol/l, respectively). Isamoltane increased the K(+)-evoked overflow of 3H from 3H-5-HT loaded slices of rat occipital cortex at 0.1 mumol/l, consistent with inhibition of the terminal 5-HT autoreceptor. In vivo, isamoltane significantly increased the concentration of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in hypothalamus and hippocampus indicating an increased 5-HT turnover with a maximal effect at 3 mg/kg s.c. A higher dose produced a less pronounced effect. This effect did not seem to be due to the beta-adrenoceptor blocking action of isamoltane since the beta-adrenoceptor antagonists. (-)-alprenolol, betaxolol or ICI 118.551 had no significant effects on 5-HT turnover at 5 mg/kg s.c. Isamoltane at 3 mg/kg s.c. induced the wet-dog shake response which was blocked by the tryptophan hydroxylase inhibitor p-chlorophenylalanine. In contrast, the same response induced by the 5-HT2 receptor agonist quipazine was not blocked by pretreatment with p-chlorophenylalanine. The wet-dog shakes evoked by isamoltane and quipazine were blocked by ritanserin, which indicates that 5-HT2 receptors are involved in their expression. These observations indicate that isamoltane, by inhibiting the terminal 5-HT autoreceptors, increased the synaptic concentration of 5-HT to a level that induced a behavioural response.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗
PubMed1991

The Swedish Adoption Twin Study of Aging: an update.

The Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging (SATSA) is a longitudinal program of research in gerontological genetics which is currently in its fifth year. The base population is comprised of 351 pairs of twins reared apart and 407 matched control pairs of twins reared together who responded to a questionnaire (Q1) in 1984. Two additional stages of SATSA have recently been completed: a longitudinal follow-up questionnaire mailed out in 1987 (Q2) and extensive in-person testing (IPT1) which included a health examination and cognitive battery. A second wave of IPT was started in January 1989. A summary of some of the major findings from Q1 and a description of IPT1 are reported.

Adoption↗
PubMed1991

The oldest old: patterns of adjustment and dependence.

The aim of the present study was to investigate how dependence was experienced by 129 non-institutionalized 85-year-old persons, who previously had been categorized into seven different patterns of adjustment. The participants' subjective experiences of dependence were expressed in in-depth interviews and additionally, mobility, self-maintenance and need of help in daily living was conventionally assessed. When the results from these two methods were compared, it was found that subjectively experienced dependence did not generally correspond with the scorings on dependence. The in-depth interviews revealed that subjects with poorer adjustment could be most affected by minor impairments, while physical impairments were of a subordinate importance to those who were better adjusted. For appropriate caring interventions, it is therefore suggested that conventionally assessed dependence needs to be supplemented with documented subjective experiences of dependence.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1991

The oldest old: patterns of adjustment and life experiences.

A qualitative method was used to study the life experiences and the adjustment to very old age of a non-institutionalized population of 129 85-year-olds living in Gothenburg, Sweden. In-depth interviews were analyzed and categorized and seven patterns of adjustment emerged: Self-Realizing, Mature Aging, Adapting, Dependent, Resignedly Accepting, Despairing and Withdrawing. Additionally, a coping strategy--ritualization of time and occupations--was revealed in the interviews. These results reflect the heterogeneity among this age group and indicate that the subjective reality should be seriously considered both in further research and in the care of the elderly.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1991

Cognitive functioning and survival in psychogeriatric patients.

The relationship between cognitive functioning and survival was studied among 92 people referred to a psychogeriatric assessment unit. A follow-up 4-5 years later showed that the nonsurvivors initially had lower scores on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) than the survivors. The differences were greatest among individuals with nondementia diagnosis. Survival curves showed that about 50% of those who scored less than or equal to 19 on MMSE had died within 2 years but more than 60% of those who scored greater than or equal to 20 were still alive 4-5 years after the initial assessment.

Aged↗