Differences between mentally retarded and nonretarded persons' efficiency of auditory sentence processing

Mentally retarded adolescents and MA-matched nonretarded children participated in three experiments designed to examine differences in language-processing efficiency. A compressed speech technique was used in Experiments 1 and 2. Experiment 3 relied on a sentence-picture verification procedure. Our results suggest that retarded and nonretarded individuals differ in the speed with which they are able to execute the semantic-analytic processes but not necessarily the phonological encoding processes that are involved in auditory language comprehension. In addition, the data suggest a possible group difference in the quality of the semantic representation encoded during sentence processing.     

Correlation of fetal posture and congenital dislocation of the hip

A statistical study was carried out on the incidence of CDH associated with mechanical factors in the uterus, including congenital genu recurvatum. There were 72 cases of CDH among 6559 infants (1.1 per cent). The incidence of CDH was 0.7 per cent in cephalic presentation, 2 per cent in footling presentation and 20 per cent in single-breech presentation. In another series, CDH was found in six of seven infants with congenital genu recurvatum. These findings suggest that a fetal posture with the hip flexed and the knee extended predisposes to the development of CDH.     

The effects of caffeine on various body systems: a review

Caffeine is the most widely consumed drug in Western society. The intake of caffeine-containing beverages in many adults and children often reaches levels that can induce pharmacological effects. Ninety-nine percent of ingested caffeine is absorbed and distributed to all tissues and organs. The effects of caffeine intake differ greatly according to acute or chronic intake, level of intake, and the development of tolerance. Caffeine administered acutely to non-users or recent abstainers can induce hypertension, arrhythmias, altered myocardial function, increased plasma catecholamine levels, plasma renin activity, serum cholesterol levels, increased production of urine, gastric acid secretion, and alterations in mood and sleep patterns. Tolerance to chronic caffeine intake develops in most individuals, with the cessation of its effects on the renal system, the cardiovascular system, the gastrointestinal system and, to some extent, the central nervous system. Moderate caffeine consumers probably need to have little concern for the effect of caffeine intake on their health if their other life-style habits are also moderate.     

Diagnoses of the relatives of schizotypal outpatients

Relatives of 22 schizotypal probands were evaluated for lifetime psychiatric diagnoses. Forty-four (N = 44) of the 97 available relatives were interviewed directly using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. The rates of psychiatric diagnoses were compared with those of sixty-six (N = 66) of 140 relatives of 30 depressed patients. Family history of mental illness was ascertained by the informant method on the remainder of relatives of both proband groups. The rate of depression found in the relatives of schizotypal patients was 52% in those directly interviewed and 25.7% when informants' reports on unavailable relatives are pooled with direct interview data. These rates were not significantly higher than those found for the relatives of depressed probands (34.8% by direct interview and 21% including reports from informants). The high rates of depression in the relatives of schizotypal probands may indicate that schizotypal personality is associated with affective disorder and not only with schizophrenia. However, the high rates may be due to the presence of depressive character traits in relatives, which inflate the rates of dysthymic disorder and other chronic depressive disorders in the relatives of borderline patients.     

Temporal arteritis-like presentation of carotid atherosclerosis

A 68 year-old woman presented with a two-week history of amaurosis fugax, ipsilateral fronto-temporal headache and jaw claudication suggesting carotid giant cell arteritis. However, this syndrome proved to be due to atherosclerosis causing complete occlusion of the external carotid artery at its origin and narrowing of the internal carotid artery. Combined external and internal carotid endarterectomy relieved the symptoms. The symptom complex of temporal arteritis may be rarely mimicked by carotid atherosclerotic occlusive disease.     

Intra-urban variations of neonatal and post-neonatal mortality in a developing city

Numerous surveys at the national and regional level have demonstrated that large inequalities in infant health status exist in Southern Africa. Few studies have assessed infant mortality at the intra-urban scale of geographic analysis. Comparisons between infant mortality rates from different areas are made even more meaningful if the data are divided into two primary categories based on period-of-death; these being the neonatal and post-neonatal components. This study presents the results of a survey undertaken in Metropolitan Cape Town (population 1.6 million) during 1982. The aim was to determine the spatial variation of neonatal and post-neonatal mortality at the suburb (or community) level within the city. Overall, a total of 36,789 live births and 928 infant deaths were recorded; 53.4% in the neonatal period and 46.6% in the post-neonatal period. The mean infant mortality rate was 25.2 per 1000 live births; the neonatal mortality rate and post-neonatal mortality rate being 13.5/1000 and 11.7/1000, respectively. A marked range in death rates was evident for both components. For the neonatal category it was 0.0-49.9/1000 and 0.0-40.0/1000 for the post-neonatal period. The generally low post-neonatal mortality rate among the 69 suburbs studied has made the neonatal component the dominant contributor to the infant mortality rate. However, in the lowest socio-economic areas the post-neonatal mortality rate was responsible for over 60% of infant deaths.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of Entamoeba histolytica antigens in faecal material

This paper describes a method for the detection of Entamoeba histolytica antigens in stool samples using a multi-layer ELISA. The method is sensitive and specific, showing no interference with other intestinal parasites, e.g. E. coli, E. hartmanni, Endolimax nana, Iodamoeba buetschlii, Hymenolepis nana, Giardia lamblia, Trichomonas and Ascaris. The method provides a rapid and simple screening assay for E. histolytica infections and should assist in diagnosis and epidemiological studies of the disease.