Gender differences in informal caring

Men have hitherto largely been invisible in research on informal care. This paper examines gender differences in informal caring, focusing on gender differences according to the relationship between the carer and care-recipient and the location of caring. The paper uses secondary analysis of the 1990–91 General Household Survey, which identified over 2700 adults as informal carers. Four per cent of men and women provide care for someone living in the same household. More women than men, 13% compared with 10%, provide care for someone living in another household. Men carers are less involved in care provision than women, providing fewer hours of care each week, and are less likely to be the main carer. However, gender differences are most marked among married carers, apart from those caring for their spouse, and least among unmarried carers. Married men can often rely on their wives to perform caring roles rather than performing them personally. Women carers are more likely to provide personal care than men carers, but the gender difference is least among those caring for their spouse or for disabled children. Cross-sex personal care is performed within the marital relationship and by parents caring for disabled children, but seldom by adult children caring for their parents or in more distant caring relationships. Evidence of cross-sex taboos in giving personal care is largely restricted to care provided in another household. Since the majority of elderly people in need of care are women, such cultural taboos may reinforce the pressure on mid-life women to care for mothers and mothers-in-law.     

Effect of diazepam on successive negative contrast in one-way avoidance learning.

The effect of administration of diazepam on successive negative contrast in one-way avoidance learning was examined in rats. Contrast was induced by shifting rats from a large reward, 30 s spent in the safe compartment, to a small reward, 1 s spent in the safe compartment. IP administration of 2 mg/kg diazepam eliminated this negative contrast. Moreover, this effect is dose dependent, with doses of 2 and 2.5 mg/kg, but not 0.5 mg/kg, effective in reliably reducing contrast. These results suggest the existence of similar or common underlying mechanisms in both aversive and appetitive contrast effects; they are discussed in light of the current theories of frustrative nonreward and as a mean of studying the behavioral and biological mechanisms of anxiety.     

Filtration of fentanyl is not the cause of the elevation of arterial blood pressure associated with post-bypass ultrafiltration in children

Modified ultrafiltration after cardiopulmonary bypass in children has been shown to be associated with an increase in arterial blood pressure. As part of a series of studies to investigate the possible causes of this blood pressure elevation, the hypothesis that if filtration was removing a significant amount of fentanyl, then the increase in blood pressure might be due to pain was proposed. Ten children, aged between 0.5 and 9.3 years (median 3.8 years), weighing 5.9 to 25..5 kg (median 15.7 kg), underwent corrective cardiac surgery (incorporating modified ultrafiltration). A standard anesthetic protocol was followed, with up to 78 μg/kg of fentanyl given prebypass for analgesia. After completion of cardiopulmonary bypass, modified ultrafiltration was commenced at 100 mL/min until a hematocrit of 35% was reached. Samples were taken of arterial blood (prefiltration, 3, 10, and 20 minutes postfiltration), the venous reservoir blood (prefiltration) and the filtrate (5 and 10 minutes into filtration). Hemodynamic data were recorded both prefiltration and postfiltration. The hemodynamic data showed the expected rise in both systemic arterial pressure and cardiac index after ultrafiltration. The plasma fentanyl concentrations did not significantly change after ultrafiltration: 1.59 to 12.39 ng/mL (median 6.27 ng/mL) prefiltration and 2.05 to 15.59 ng/mL (6.29 ng/mL) at 3 minutes, 2.22 to 12.64 ng/mL (6.87 ng/mL) at 10 minutes, and 1.83 to 11.52 ng/mL (5.85 ng/mL) at 20 minutes postfiltration. The concentration of fentanyl in the venous reservoir, 2.06 to 11.64 ng/mL (7.04 ng/mL), was not significantly different from the plasma levels. The level of fentanyl in the filtrate was significantly less than the plasma levels, 0.243 to 1.87 ng/mL (0.894 ng/mL) at 5 minutes and 0.385 to 1.688 ng / mL (0.952 ng / mL) at 10 minutes into filtration; (P < 0.02 by the Wilcoxon signed-rank method). The data show that the plasma fentanyl concentration was not significantly reduced by modified ultrafiltration. The fentanyl levels found prefiltration were maintained postfiltration, and the observed changes in systemic arterial pressure were not due to an acute fall in the plasma concentration of analgesic drug.     

Cytokine production, activation marker, and skin homing receptor in children with atopic dermatitis and bronchial asthma

T cells are known to develop a critical role in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD) and bronchial asthma. T cells involved in AD express the skin homing receptor CLA, but no lung homing receptor has been identified in bronchial asthma. We compared different cell markers and the cytokine production in T cells from children with AD or bronchial asthma. We studied the involvement of CLA+ and CLA- T-cell subpopulations in these diseases. We studied 20 children with acute AD lesions, 15 with mild persistent asthma, and 15 non-atopic controls. All patients were sensitized to house dust mite (DP) and evaluated during the acute phase. Total and specific IgE were measured by immunoassay and the expression of different cell markers and the cytokine production was analyzed by flow cytometry in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Total IgE was significantly higher in AD children and IgE to DP in the asthmatic children. There was a significant increase in CD25+ CD4+ cells in asthmatic children and in HLA-DR+ CD4+ and HLA-DR+ CD8+ cells in AD. In the CD4+ subsets, there was an increase in IL-13, IL-5 and TNF-alpha in AD compared to controls, a decrease in IFN-gamma in asthmatic children compared to controls, and an increase in IL-13, IL5, IL2, TNF-alpha, and IFN-gamma in the AD compared to asthmatic children. Changes in cytokine production were mainly detected in CLA+ cells in AD and in CLA- cells in asthma. Differences exist in total and specific IgE, activation markers, and cytokine patterns between AD children and children with asthma, with the former expressing a Th2 pattern whereas in asthmatic children we only detected a decrease in IFN-gamma. Moreover, the subpopulations (CLA+ vs. CLA-) expressing these changes were different, indicating that the underlying mechanisms in the two diseases are not exactly the same.     

Diabetes in female rats; changes in liver microsomal aminopyrine N-demethylase and UDP-glucuronyl transferase activities

Short or long term diabetes in female rats produced remarkable activation of aminopyrine N-demethylation, inhibition of oestrone and p-nitrophenol glucuronidation and no changes in morphine UDP-glucuronyltransferase activity in vitro. Km and Vmax for these reactions were determined. Insulin treatment partially antagonized diabetes activation of aminopyrine N-demethylation: it restored decreased UDP-glucuronyltransferase activities for oestrone and p-nitrophenol only in long term and short term diabetes, respectively. Insulin also markedly inhibited morphine glucuronidation. Triton X-100 also displayed a differential pattern of activation for the glucuronidation reactions in liver microsomes of diabetic rats. Results suggest that diabetes in female rats may increase the actual amount of enzyme protein for aminopyrine metabolism and to decrease that for oestrone and p-nitrophenol.