Familial Steatorrhoea with Calcification of the Basal Ganglia and Mental Retardation

Four children, two boys and fraternal twin girls, of a sibshipof 16 suffered from malabsorption, mental retardation with calcificationof the basal ganglia, and episodes of pseudo-obstruction. Thesimilarity of clinical features and investigations suggesteda congenital disorder and its frequency indicated an autosomalrecessive mode of inheritance. Histological studies of the wholealimentary canal removed at necropsy showed degenerate changesin the argyrophobe cells. These cells produce the transmittersubstance acetyl choline which initiates the smooth-muscle contraction.Their loss could explain the dilated bowel with attacks of pseudo-obstruction.Similar changes in brain-cells might explain this associationof malabsorption and mental retardation.     

Comparison of admission criteria and medical school progress: preliminary results from a simple computer system

The MFSEL system is designed to collect the data on entrants to the Glasgow medical course that was available to the Admissions Committee at the time of selection, and compare it with performance in medical school (and possibly later). The data collection has been made by the Admission Committee's secretary and the programming by a medical member with little previous experience and a minimum of professional help. Computing and data preparation costs have been low. Preliminary analyses indicate that selection has not been biased by the sex, class, or medical parenthood of entrants, and that the Scottish Sixth Year Studies examinations are a reliable predictor for student performance.     

Effects of Information about Fat Content on Food Preferences in Pre-adolescent Children

The acceptance and sensory characteristics of standard and reduced-fat cookies were evaluated either with or without fat-content information by pre-adolescent children. Results indicate that acceptance ratings were not affected by the fat content or information about fat content when evaluated on nine-point scales. However, when asked to choose which cookie they liked better and to predict how many cookies they would eat (in forced-choice questions), fat content and information about fat content had a significant effect on cookie preference and prospective intake. When no information was available, subjects preferred the cookie with the higher fat content; when information was presented, subjects' preference shifted to the reduced-fat cookie. When asked which cookie they would choose to eat for dessert with hypothetical lunches, a similar shift in choice was observed following a low-fat lunch. The low-fat label was also associated with an increase in perceived healthiness relative to the high-fat label, as indicated on “good for me” scales. The effects of fat content information on cookie preference and prospective consumption were seen in pre-adolescents who indicated a “high concern” for the health consequences of dietary fat. Cookie preference and prospective intake of subjects who indicated a “low concern” were not affected by fat content labeling. Results suggest that fat content and information about fat content may affect food preference and intake in pre-adolescent children.     

A Guide to the Statistical Analysis of Long-Term Carcinogenicity Assays

A Guide to the Statistical Analysis of Long-Term CarcinogenicityAssays. MCKNIGHT, B. (1988). Fundam. Appl. Toxicol. 10, 355–364.Statistical methods for analyzing data from chronic carcinogenicitybioassays are reviewed. When treatment groups do not show markeddifferences in tumor-free death rates, methods that comparethe crude proportions of animals that develop tumors can berecommended as valid and powerful comparisons of age-specifictumor incidence rates. When the age at tumor onset can be observed,techniques of survival analysis such as the logrank test canadjust for differing tumor-free mortality rates. If tumors arestrictly nonlethal, the age-adjusted comparison of tumor prevalenceamong dying animals compares age-specific tumor incidence rates.When tumors are occult or of intermediate lethality and whentumor-free death rates differ substantially, a variety of techniquesare available, but most are computationally intensive and relyeither on the collection of additional data or on additionalassumptions that may not be met.     

The value of bacteriology and serology in the diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis

Fourteen patients with necrotizing fasciitis are described. In thirteen the cause was Streptococcus pyogenes [Group A beta haemolytic streptococcus (BHS)]; in the fourteenth, Staphylococcus aureus was responsible. In the acute fulminating form of the disease, BHS can be cultured from the affected tissues. In the less acute form, particularly when the patient has been previously treated with antibiotics, other bacteria colonize the tissues and the BHS cannot be isolated. Serological evidence of infection with Streptococcus pyogenes can be ascertained in all such patients by finding high levels of anti-desoxyribonuclease B and anti-hyaluronidase. Measurement of the anti-streptolysin O titre is not helpful. Once the diagnosis is made, surgical removal of all necrotic tissue is still the treatment of choice.