Effect of high up front charges on access to surgery for poor patients at a public hospital in New Mexico

Background  

A public hospital in New Mexico required collection of 50% of estimated costs prior to elective surgeries for self-pay patients. This study assesses the impact of this policy on access to elective surgical procedures.     

Sentinel health events surveillance in diabetes. Deaths among persons under age 45 with diabetes

The pilot study for a sentinel health events surveillance system for deaths among persons under age 45 with diabetes was conducted in six states in 1984 and 1985. Two hundred and thirty-three events were identified. Information from death certificates, physicians, and families revealed that 22% died from acute complications of diabetes and 53% from chronic complications. Blood pressure measurement and urinalysis testing had been performed in the last year for almost all of the decedents, but other preventive practices were reported less frequently. Hypertension was present in 57% and of those, was not controlled in 73%. Forty-four percent were cigarette smokers at the time of death. Agreement between physicians and families was generally higher for clinical conditions than for care practices. This surveillance system appears to yield information about the health care of persons with diabetes not readily available from other sources, although modifications may be necessary before implementation.     

The clinical features and prognosis of pseudoseizures diagnosed using video-EEG telemetry

A total of 110 patients underwent diagnostic evaluation for attacks of uncertain origin by means of video-EEG telemetry and had a diagnosis of pseudoseizures confirmed. Eighty-six patients (78%) were female, mean age of onset 25 years, and mean duration of attacks was 3 years. Many of the patients had erroneously been thought to be suffering from epilepsy. The attacks could be divided into two broad categories: attacks of collapse (one-third) and attacks with prominent motor activity (two-thirds). In some patients, the attacks were associated with incontinence and injury. The differential diagnosis and clinical features of the attacks are described. Additional psychiatric features were present in 52 (47%) patients. Follow-up (for a median 5 years; range, 1 to 14 years) showed that 40% of these patients stopped having pseudoseizures. This favorable outcome was associated with being female, leading an independent life, a formal psychological approach to therapy and counseling, and the absence of coexisting epilepsy, but not with the duration of pseudoepilepsy, prior episodes of pseudostatus, the coexistence of overt psychiatric disease, or the clinical features of the attacks.     

Bilateral Ulnar Agenesis: Case Report and Review of the Literature

Bilateral ulnar agenesis is a rare abnormality. A total of 36 cases are analyzed: 35 of these are documented in the literature and 1 stillborn male is presented in this study. Most patients had one of the three conditions: Al-Awadi/Raas-Rothschild syndrome, syndrome of ulnar aplasia with split hand/split foot deformity, or the Brachmann—de Lange syndrome. Fifty percent of all cases with bilateral ulnar agenesis were associated with lower limb defects and these cases, for the most part, also belonged to the aforementioned syndromes. Nonskeletal, internal organ malformations were identified in 34% of all patients. Nine patients presented with isolated bilateral ulnar agenesis. The Al-Awadi/Raas-Rothschild syndrome and the split hand/split foot deformity are heritable disorders. There was no evidence for genetic etiology in most of the other cases. Bilateral ulnar agenesis in our fetus was part of the Brachmann—de Lange syndrome with associated cardiac defect, diaphragmatic hernia, and umbilical artery agenesis.     

Necrosis observed on CT enhancement is of prognostic value in soft tissue sarcoma.

Fifty-one patients with deep-seated soft tissue sarcoma of the extremities and trunk wall were examined with contrast-enhanced CT for presence of nonenhanced tumor areas (CT necrosis). After a median follow-up time of 3 years, 19 of the 41 patients with CT necrosis had developed metastases, compared to none of the 10 patients who had tumors without CT necrosis. Tumors with CT necrosis were larger than tumors without, but in tumors of similar size, absence of CT necrosis was a favorable prognostic sign.     

Pneumothorax and other lung diseases: effect of altered resolution and edge enhancement on diagnosis with digitized radiographs

Prior studies have shown that pneumothorax is one of the more difficult entities to diagnose with digitized radiography. This study was designed to test whether increasing resolution from 1.25 to 2.5 line pairs per millimeter (lp/mm) and image processing (edge enhancement from unsharp masking) would increase accuracy and confidence in the diagnosis of pneumothorax, as well as normal cases and other forms of lung disease. Conventional radiographs were digitized with use of a laser reader and then reformatted as film hard copy. Eleven observers read 35 cases reformatted in three different ways (1.25 lp/mm, 2.5 lp/mm, 1.25 lp/mm unsharp mask). The images with finer resolution (2.5 lp/mm) and unsharp mask images were superior to those with coarser resolution (1.25 lp/mm) for the diagnosis of pneumothorax. There was no difference in diagnostic accuracy for normal patients. For abnormalities other than pneumothorax, the unsharp mask images were significantly worse. Confidence in the diagnosis of pneumothorax and other abnormalities was highest with the finest resolution (2.5 lp/mm).     

Study of morbidity of personnel with potential exposure to vinclozolin.

OBJECTIVES--To examine internal exposure and targeted health outcomes of employees exposed to 3-(3,5-dichlorophenyl)-5-methyl-5-vinyl-1,3-oxazolidine-2,4-dione; chemical abstracts service (CAS) number: 50471-44-8 (vinclozolin). METHODS--A cross sectional study of 67 men exposed to vinclozolin for one to 13 years during synthesis and formulation operations and 52 controls. Biomonitoring was based on determination of urinary metabolites that contained a 3,5-dichloroaniline (3,5-DCA) moiety. Targeted health endpoints were the same as in previous subchronic and chronic animal studies--namely, reversible changes in the concentrations of hormones of the adrenocorticotrophic and gonadotrophic feedback systems, signs of liver injury, haemolytic anaemia, cataract formation (uniquely in rats), and hormonally induced hyperplasia and tumours at high doses. The clinical investigation consisted of a medical and occupational history questionnaire, physical examination, laboratory determinations (including testosterone, LH, and FSH measurements), ultrasonography of the liver and prostate, a detailed eye examination, and routine spirometry. RESULTS--The mean 3,5-DCA concentration for two thirds of the study group exceeded an equivalent of the vinclozolin acceptable daily intake (ADI) used for consumer regulatory purposes. Even the highest concentrations were, however, at least 10 times below the no observable adverse effect level (NOAEL) based on animal studies. Analysis of physical examination and laboratory data provided no evidence of hormonal responses induced by vinclozolin. Furthermore, no evidence of liver injury, prostate changes, cataract formation, or haemolytic anaemia was found. CONCLUSION--There was no evidence of any health effects induced by vinclozolin among employees with potential long term exposure. In particular, no antiandrogenic effects were found.