Assessment of alcohol and other drug use behaviors in health professions students.

Alcohol and other drug (AOD) use behaviors of health professions students (HPS) were assessed by surveying both university-based HPS and other nursing programs in a Midwestern state in 1999. Response was 2,646 (56.4%) of surveyed students. Family history of alcohol-related and drug-related problems were reported by 39.8% and 13.9%, respectively, with 42.6% of respondents reporting one or both. Among nursing respondents, 48.1%, 19.2% and 51.1%, respectively, reported family problems with alcohol, drugs, or one or both. Past-year alcohol use was comparable to undergraduate college students (UCS) nationally (83%); heavy drinking, tobacco and recreational drug use by HPS were lower. Past year drug use was highest among medical students. Marijuana was the predominant illicit drug; medical students and males most often reported use. Health professions educational systems should proactively address student AOD prevention, education and assistance needs.     

Radiation therapy of benign diseases. What's new eight years after?]

The authors present an update version of the indications for radiotherapy in the management of benign diseases. This is based on available randomized trials and recent international meetings. Validated indications remain the prevention of resected heterotopic bone ossifications, kelo?ds scars and pterygium and also treatment of arteriovenous malformations; the place of radiotherapy for malignant exophtalmia is more and more restricted. Randomized trials have demonstrated the efficacy of endobrachytherapy in the prevention of restenosis after angioplasty but the use of embedded stent has replaced this indication. Macular degeneration is no more an indication of radiotherapy. Quality requirements for radiotherapy are identical for benign or malignant indications.     

Human immunodeficiency virus-related connective tissue diseases: a Zimbabwean perspective

Our clinical experience with patients in Zimbabwe suggests that an arthropathy may be a feature of HIV disease. This takes two forms: the first is a reactive arthropathy usually affecting the large, lower limb joints with no other clinical features of a connective tissue disease. The second form is seen in association with features of complete or incomplete Reiter's syndrome with involvement of large and small peripheral joints (having an asymmetric distribution). Although this arthropathy may been seen in association with HIV positive asymptomatic disease and often is the reason for first presentation at hospital, the majority of our patients have clinical features of persistent generalized lymphadenopathy, plus or minus features of constitutional illness (such as fever, weight loss, and diarrhea). A small percentage of our patients have arthropathy in association with secondary systemic infection. Other locomotor conditions have been observed, although their numbers are too small to determine whether or not they truly are related to HIV disease. In Zimbabwe there is no association between the development of HIV-associated arthropathy and the presence of HLA-B27.     

The psychometric properties of the Behaviour Assessment Record (the BAR schedule)

ABSTRACT. Two hundred and forty-seven completed Behaviour Assessment Records (BAR) for people with learning difficulties living in hospital, community residential facilities or the family home were subjected to item analysis and factor analysis. The instrument as a whole proved to be highly internally consistent, although the corrected item-total correlation coefficients suggest the redundancy of some items on individual sub-scales. Factor analysis produced a two-factor solution accounting for 32–9 and 10–8% of the variance. These factors were named Personal self-care and Use of public amenities. Summative scales based upon these factors were highly internally consistent. Comparisons are made between the internal consistency and factor structure of the BAR and those of similar measures of adaptive behaviour, such as the Social Training Achievement Record (Sturmey et al. , 1988), the Pathways to Independence Checklist (Walsh & McConkey, 1989), and the Adaptive Behavior Scale (Nihira, 1969a, b, 1976).     

Analysis of an experimental cortical network: II). Connections of visual areas 17 and 18 after neonatal injections of ibotenic acid.

Lesions of cortical areas 17 and 18 were produced in newborn kittens by local injections of the excitotoxin ibotenic acid. In the adult this results in a microcortex which consists of superficial layers I, II and III, in the absence of granular and infragranular layers. Horseradish peroxidase, alone or wheat germ agglutinin conjugated, was injected in the microcortex or in the contralateral, intact areas 17 and 18. The microcortex maintains several connections characteristic of normal areas 17 and 18 of the cat. It receives afferents from the dLGN, and several visual areas of the ipsilateral and contralateral hemisphere. However, it has lost its projections to dLGN, superior colliculus, and, at least in part, those to contralateral visual areas. Thus some parts of the microcortex receive from, but do not project into, the corpus callosum. In addition, the microcortex maintains afferents from ipsilateral and contralateral auditory areas AI and AII which are normally eliminated in development.     

Poisoning with oxybutynin.

A case of poisoning with 100 mg of oxybutynin in a 34-year-old female is reported. The main features were anticholinergic effects, including stupor, followed by disorientation and agitation on awakening, dilated pupils, dry skin and retention of urine. She had a sinus tachycardia which resolved 3 h after admission, and in addition ventricular ectopics and bigeminy which continued for a further 30 h. She recovered fully on symptomatic treatment alone.