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Biomedical subjects

T Kushner

Publications and source records attributed to T Kushner.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

What do I do now?

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1998

Searching for the meaning of the Category Test and the Wisconsin Card Sort Test: a comparative analysis.

The Category Test (CT) and the Wisconsin Card Sort Test (WCST) have long been the major instruments used for the assessment of "frontal lobe" brain damage. These tests have often been used interchangeably by clinicians. However, research to date has disagreed on the extent to which these tests can be interpreted in a similar manner. The current paper examined the interrelationships between the tests in 112 mixed brain injured clients. The results showed relatively small correlations between the tests in the range of .4 to .6 which were eliminated when age, education, premorbid IQ (Vocabulary) and spatial skills (Block Design) were used as covariates. Regression analyses showed clear differences in which WAIS-R tests predicted each test, while factor analysis revealed little overlap between the tests except for a small relationship between the number of WCST categories completed and CT errors. The CT appeared to reflect spatial and spatial analysis skills while the WCST reflected verbal analysis and sequential skills. The results clearly indicate that the tests are not interchangeable and do not reflect the same underlying cognitive skills nor can they be interpreted in the same manner for neuropsychological purposes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Toward a methodology for moral decision making in medicine.

The failure of medical codes to provide adequate guidance for physicians' moral dilemmas points to the fact that some rules of analysis, informed by moral theory, are needed to assist in resolving perplexing ethical problems occurring with increasing frequency as medical technology advances. Initially, deontological and teleological theories appear more helpful, but criticisms can be lodged against both, and neither proves to be sufficient in itself. This paper suggests that to elude the limitations of previous approaches, a method of moral decision making must be developed incorporating both coherence methodology and some independently supported theoretical foundations. Wide Reflective Equilibrium is offered, and its process described along with a theory of the person which is used to animate the process. Steps are outlined to be used in the process, leading to the application of the method to an actual case.

Bioethical Issues↗
PubMed1990

How effective is cushioned therapeutic footwear in protecting diabetic feet? A clinical study.

Therapeutic footwear with cushioned insoles was supplied to 50 diabetic patients with severe peripheral neuropathy and/or peripheral vascular disease (age 59(SD 12) years, known duration of diabetes 17(7) years), 36 of whom had a history of foot ulceration. A follow-up examination was carried out 25(14) months later, except in 8 patients who died from conditions unrelated to their foot lesions, and 1 patient who died from sepsis due to upper limb amputation. Among the surviving 41 patients, intercurrent foot lesions during follow-up occurred in significantly fewer (42%) of the 26 who had worn the shoes regularly than of the 15 who had worn the shoes irregularly (87%, p less than 0.01). At follow-up, only 15% of the 41 patients were being treated for foot-lesions, compared with 78% of these 41 patients before cushioned shoes were provided. It is concluded that the availability of therapeutic shoes with cushioned insoles for diabetic patients at risk of foot lesions decreases the morbidity due to the diabetic foot syndrome.

Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1↗
PubMed1985

Baby Fae: a beastly business.

The Baby Fae experiment has highlighted the growing trend in medicine of using animal parts in the treatment of humans. This paper raises the question of the logical and moral justification for these current practices and their proposed expansion. We argue that the Cognitive Capacity Principle establishes morally justified necessary and sufficient conditions for the use of non-human animals in medical treatments and research. Some alternative sources for medical uses are explored as well as some possible programmes for their implementation.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Having a life versus being alive.

In an attempt to provide some clarification in the abortion issue it has recently been proposed that since 'brain death' is used to define the end of life, 'brain life' would be a logical demarcation for life's beginning. This paper argues in support of this position, not on empirical grounds, but because of what it reflects of what is valuable about the term 'life'. It is pointed out that 'life' is an ambiguous concept as it is used in English, obscuring the differences between being alive and having a life, a crucial distinction for bioethical questions. The implications of this distinction for the moral debate about abortion are discussed.

Abortion, Legal↗
PubMed1981

Doctor-patient relationships in general practice--a different model.

Philosophical concerns cannot be excluded from even a cursory examination of the physician-patient relationship. Two possible alternatives for determining what this relationship entails are the teleological (outcome) approach vs the deontological (process) one. Traditionally, this relationship has been structured around the 'clinical model' which views the physician-patient relationship in teleological terms. Data on the actual content of general medical practice indicate the advisability of reassessing this relationship, and suggest that the 'clinical model' may be too limiting, and that a more appropriate basis for the physician-patient relationship is one described in this paper as the 'relational model'.

Ethical Theory↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Calcium-activated ATPase of the human placenta: identification, characterization, and functional involvement in calcium transport.

A specific, membrane-bound, Ca2+-activated and Mg2+-dependent adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activity is present in the human term placenta. The enzyme activity is fractionated electrophoretically into two distinct forms which correspond to molecular weights of 120,000 and 145,000. Cytohistochemistry localized the Ca2+-ATPase to the chorionic villi of the placental labyrinth, and specific staining was primarily associated with the syncytio- and cytotrophoblast layers as well as the perivascular cells. The enzyme activity is inhibited by phenothiazin and erythrosin B which also significantly inhibit active calcium in vitro by placental microsomal membrane vesicles.

Ca(2+) Mg(2+)-ATPase↗