Blood alcohol level among emergency room patients: a multivariate analysis

This article examines the distribution of positive blood alcohol levels (BALs) among emergency room patients and the relationship between intoxication and other variables. Approximately one-quarter of the 640 subjects had positive blood alcohol levels and 16.3% had BAL readings above 0.10%, the legal limit for operating a motor vehicle in most states. Chi-square tests and logistic regression analysis indicated a significant relationship between employment status, gender, educational attainment, age and BAL. There were no significant racial differences. Analysis of the role of the presenting problem with BAL revealed that being involved in an accident was significantly predictive of a high BAL in a multivariate context. However, patients presenting with psychiatric problems had overall higher levels of intoxication than other patients. These findings have major implications for public policy formulation vis-à-vis public health delivery.     

Morphological findings during retinal development and maturation in hereditary rod-cone degeneration in Abyssinian cats

The sequence of structural changes involved in postnatal photoreceptor differentiation, maturation and early degeneration was studied in young Abyssinian cats and kittens with hereditary rod-cone degeneration and compared to maturation in normal controls. In affected cats the earliest change seen was disorientation of outer segment discs in the majority of the rods, while other rods appeared to develop and mature normally. Such disorientation of discs (at oblique angles or parallel to the longitudinal axis of the outer segment, or whorls of discs) is considered as 'immaturity', since controls also showed a substantial number of disoriented rod outer segment discs at this young age. At postnatal day 35 the difference between affected animals and controls was marked with a high frequency of immature appearing rod outer segment discs in affected animals, while all rod outer segment discs were adult-like and arranged in an orderly manner in controls. Cones seemed unaffected at this age. More severe changes in affected rod outer segments in the form of disintegration of discs (vacuolization and clumping of disc material, or formation of debris), which we consider to represent degeneration, were first observed at the time when retinal maturation normally occurs in the cat, i.e. 150 days postnatally. Subsequently a drop-out of rods was seen, primarily of rods with disoriented and disintegrated outer segment discs, followed by a slow, progressive degeneration of rods that had developed and matured normally. Cones appeared normal during the time of retinal development and maturation and it was not until the age of 2-3 years (Narfstr?m and Nilsson, 1986, Incest. Ophthalmol, Vis. Sci. 27, 1569-76) that degenerative changes were seen also in cones.     

Outflow of aqueous humor following cyclodialysis or ciliochoroidal detachment in rabbit

Cyclodialysis and ciliochoroidal detachment were performed in three eyes of three rabbits and in three eyes of another three rabbits, respectively. After aspiration of the aqueous humor, 0.1 ml of 10% sodium fluorescein was injected intracamerally, and the eyeball was enucleated between 30 minutes and one hour after injection and prepared for fluorescence microscopy. Sodium fluorescein concentrations in the supraciliary space were much greater in the group with cyclodialysis or ciliochoroidal detachment than in the normal control group. These results suggest that (1) in the eye with cyclodialysis, the aqueous humor may freely gain access to the supraciliary space through the cleft between the anterior chamber and the supraciliary space and then be removed rapidly and (2) in the eye with ciliochoroidal detachment, the aqueous humor may pass through the uveoscleral outflow pathway.     

New antihepatotoxic naphtho-pyrone glycosides from the seeds of Cassia tora

Two new naphtho-pyrone glycosides, 9-[(beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1----6)-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)oxy]-10- hydroxy-7-methoxy-3-methyl-1H-naphtho[2,3-c]pyran-1 -one (5) and 6-[(alpha-apiofuranosyl-(1----6)-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)oxy]- rubrofusarin (6), together with cassiaside (3) and rubrofusarin-6-beta-gentiobioside (4) were isolated from the seeds of Cassia tora L. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of chemical and spectral data. The naphtho-gamma-pyrone glycosides (3, 4, and 6) were found to have significant hepato-protective effects against galactosamine damage, which were higher than that of silybin from Silybum marianum.     

Effect of diltiazem on coronary blood flow distribution in dog heart under ischemia

Effect of intracoronary infusion of diltiazem (1 microgram/min) on regional myocardial blood flow (RMBF) was studied using 15-microns radioactive microspheres in 11 excised cross-circulated canine left ventricles. With total coronary blood flow (CBF) and heart rate (HR) held constant, regional ischemia was induced by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD). Diltiazem at the dose used had no effects on ventricular Emax before and after LAD ligation. RMBF expressed by the counts divided by the counts averaged in all segments in each layer significantly (p less than 0.05) increased under diltiazem only in the low-flow region that had less than 50% RMBF before diltiazem; from 21% (+/- 12%) to 35% (+/- 18%) in the epicardial, from 22% (+/- 12%) to 32% (+/- 18%) in the midwall, and from 24% (+/- 10%) to 31% (+/- 12%) in the endocardial layers. We conclude that the beneficial effect of diltiazem on the ischemic heart involves a direct action on the coronary vascular system and does not necessarily depend on the concomitant changes in hemodynamics.     

HEALTH STATUS AND HEALTH CARE IN RURAL AUSTRALIA: A CASE STUDY

Knowledge of the health status of, and patterns of health care service utilization by rural Australian communities, is scant. This deficiency limits attempts to formulate policies designed to bring about efficient, effective and equitable delivery of health care services. This article reports the results of a health interview survey conducted in the Wimmera region of Victoria during spring 1984. The results demonstrate not only that patterns of morbidity in rural areas differ from the Australian average, but also that the health status of rural dwellers is worse than that of most Australians. Evidence suggests that while accessibility is not the most significant determinant of utilization of health care services, distance from services does affect propensity to use them.     

Pemphigus erythematosus--detection of anti-DNA antibodies

In an 80-year-old woman with pemphigus erythematosus, we demonstrated ANA as well as anti-DNA antibodies in the serum. This finding supports the argument that this skin disorder represents a combination of a disease of the pemphigus group with systemic lupus erythematosus.     

Functional characteristics of intraepithelial lymphocytes from mouse small intestine. III. Inability of intraepithelial lymphocytes to induce a systemic graft-versus-host reaction is because of failure to migrate in vivo.

In this study we have investigated whether addition of bone marrow accessory cells or concurrent administration of recombinant IL-2 would allow intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL) to induce a systemic, lethal GvHR in irradiated hosts. In addition we have studied the ability of IEL to migrate into lymphoid tissues after intravenous injection and compared this with their locomotor capacity in vitro.