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Biomedical subjects

W R Weir

Publications and source records attributed to W R Weir.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

Coping and other predictors of outcome in chronic fatigue syndrome: a 1-year follow-up.

In this prospective study, 137 patients with chronic fatigue syndrome were followed-up at a 1-year interval to determine factors relating to outcomes. Nearly two thirds reported an improvement on direct ratings of change. In analyses with fatigue and functional impairment at follow-up as the criteria, and controlling for earlier status, poorer outcomes were predicted by illness duration, subjective cognitive difficulty, and somatic symptoms; there was no influence of anxiety, depression, or general emotional distress. Fatigue was also predicted by information-seeking, and impairment by behavioral disengagement and a low internal locus of control. The belief that one's actions can influence outcomes modified the relationship between illness accommodation and both fatigue and impairment; adverse outcomes were associated with accommodating to illness only in the context of lower levels of perceived control. Thus, it is suggested that interventions that either discourage avoidance of activity or enhance perceived control could benefit the course of the illness.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1996

Liver function tests in adults with Plasmodium falciparum infection.

This study examines the levels of serum bilirubin, aspartate transaminase and alkaline phosphatase in adults with Plasmodium falciparum malaria. One hundred and six sets of liver function tests were obtained, and 63 (59.4%) patients had one of the above indices elevated outside the local reference range. Serum bilirubin and aspartate transaminase were relatively higher than alkaline phosphatase. Neither duration of illness nor severity of infection showed any significant correlation with any of the indices measured.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Coping with chronic fatigue syndrome: illness responses and their relationship with fatigue, functional impairment and emotional status.

The implications of patients' approaches to managing chronic fatigue syndrome were examined in a cross-sectional study. With severity of fatigue controlled, attempting to maintain activity was associated with less functional impairment, while accommodating to the illness was positively related to impairment; behavioural disengagement was related not only to higher levels of impairment but also to greater emotional disturbance. Fatigue itself was positively associated with focusing on symptoms and with behavioural disengagement; it was associated also with illness accommodation, but only for illness of longer duration. The causal direction of relationships between coping and fatigue severity is ambiguous, and a follow-up study will address the effects of coping on changes in the illness over time.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1995

Life-events and the course of chronic fatigue syndrome.

Life-events have been implicated in the onset and course of various illnesses. The present study examined their role in chronic fatigue syndrome, in the context of the ongoing illness. Using the PERI list, events experienced during the past year were elicited in interviews with 130 patients. The analyses were restricted to those events implying moderate or major life change, and separate analyses were carried out for positive and negative events. Positive events were found to be associated with lower scores for fatigue, impairment, anxiety and depression, as assessed at the time of the life-events interview, and these relationships were also significant when prior scores at the beginning of the year were statistically controlled. Negative life-events were associated with higher anxiety, but were unrelated to the other measures. It was concluded that positive life-events and experiences may contribute to the process of recovery in chronic fatigue syndrome, though their occurrence may also be facilitated by a preceding lifting of symptoms.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1994

Cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhoea and Haemophilus influenzae meningitis 37 years after a head injury.

Bacterial meningitis secondary to CSF rhinorrhoea is well recognised. We present a case of meningitis due to Haemophilus influenzae type b associated with a CSF fistula. The patient was 40 years of age at presentation, having sustained a head injury when 3-years-old. He had suffered intermittent rhinorrhoea for 18 months before admission. Delays between head injury and meningitis are well recognised, but our case may represent the longest recorded interval. H. influenzae meningitis in adults is discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Quality of attention in chronic fatigue syndrome: subjective reports of everyday attention and cognitive difficulty, and performance on tasks of focused attention.

Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (also known as post-viral fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalomyelitis) commonly report cognitive difficulties concerning attention, concentration and memory. In this study, patients were compared with matched controls on two questionnaires which assess subjective difficulties with attention and general cognitive functioning, and on two tasks requiring focused attention. Patients reported significantly greater difficulty with attention on the Everyday Attention Questionnaire and more cognitive symptoms on the Profile of Fatigue-Related Symptoms. The objective tests did not clearly indicate a deficit in patients' focused attention; patients tended to perform less well on the Embedded Figures Test and the Stroop Colour-Word Interference Test, but these differences were not significant. There was, however, evidence of psychomotor retardation, with patients having longer response times for word reading and colour naming in the Stroop test. Difficulties in interpreting findings for both subjective and objective cognitive measures are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Illness perception and symptom components in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Two-hundred and eight patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (post-viral fatigue syndrome) completed a questionnaire which dealt both with their illness in general and with the extent to which they experienced specific symptoms. A factor analysis of the symptom data yielded four components: emotional distress; fatigue; somatic symptoms; and cognitive difficulty. Emotional disturbance is a common feature of the disorder and its role has been widely debated. When the symptom components were considered independently, fatigue, somatic symptoms and cognitive difficulty were associated with questionnaire items relating to general illness severity, but emotional distress was not. Thus negative emotions did not contribute directly to patients' perception of illness severity. They were, however, correlated with the other symptom components. It is argued that this correlation reflects a reciprocal influence, with negative emotions exacerbating fatigue and other key symptoms and the debilitating nature of these symptoms enhancing emotional vulnerability.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1990

In vitro analysis of Epstein-Barr virus: host balance in patients with acute Plasmodium falciparum malaria. I. Defective T-cell control.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes from healthy, Epstein-Barr virus (EB-virus)-seropositive donors and from patients with acute Plasmodium falciparum malaria were tested for their cytotoxicity towards autologous EB-virus-infected B-cells using an in vitro regression assay. Of the 18 cultures from control donors, 88.8% showed the normal pattern of regression. Of the 20 malaria patients in the study, 40% failed to exhibit the normal pattern observed in the control group. Analysis of the lymphocyte subsets showed a high incidence of inverted CD4:CD8 ratios in the patient group due to an absolute rise in the CD8 population. This data suggests that the immunosuppressive effects of acute malaria extend to defective control over EB-virus. The relevance of the observations to the aetiology of EB-virus-associated, endemic Burkitt's lymphoma (eBL) is discussed.

Acute Disease↗