Social-Emotional Predictors of Preschoolers'' Responses to Adult Negative Emotion

The study examined predictors of children's prosocial responses to adult negative emotions. An adult displayed anger, sadness and pain during play sessions with 39 preschoolers (mean age = 43 months). Older children responded more prosocially to all three emotions, whereas children with greater emotion knowledge responded more prosocially to the adult's sadness. Children who behaved prosocially in response to peers' negative emotions also were prosocial after the adult's negative emotions, even with effects of age and emotion knowledge held constant. Assertive children responded more prosocially to the adult's anger, even with effects of other variables held constant. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

TLV-1-associated myelopathy in China

This case report documents the first patient from main land China with an HTLV-1-associated myelopathy. The available epidemiological data suggest a low rate of HTLV 1 infection in China, although the surveys are comparatively small. Possible transmission routes and the risk of encountering the disease outside endemic areas are discussed.     

U.K. Limited – eine Rechtsform für Ärzte?

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Very old people’s use of the pedestrian environment: functional limitations, frequency of activity and environmental demands

Due to decreased functional capacity as well as high environmental demands there is a risk of diminishing activity outside home in very old age (age 80+). In order to explore differences according to functional limitations (FL) among very old people with respect to frequency of activity, perceived health, overall perception of neighbourhood environment, and perceived problems in the pedestrian environment, data derived from a postal questionnaire survey to very old people living in an urban area in Sweden were used. This explorative study is based on the sub-sample of people aged 80+ who reported outdoor activities (n = 97). Four groups of respondents with different types of FL were identified: with no FL (n = 23), with only movement-related FL (n = 26), with only perception/cognition-related FL (n = 16), and with both movement- and perception/ cognition-related FL (n = 32). The majority of the respondents reported rather high frequency of activity outside home. When examining differences between the four groups, the analysis indicated how the complexity of FL and perceived problems in the pedestrian environment impacted on their activity performance. Persons with both movement- and perception/cognition-related FL were less satisfied with their frequency of activity, experienced their health more negatively and experienced more problems in the pedestrian environment than in the other groups. The findings from this study indicate the importance of considering combinations of FL in creating supportive environments for activity and health.     

Clonidine and Dexmedetomidine Potently Inhibit Peristalsis in the Guinea Pig Ileum In Vitro

Background: Inhibition of intestinal peristalsis is a major side effect of drugs used for anesthesia or for analgesia and sedation of patients in the intensive care unit. This in vitro study examined the effect of clonidine and dexmedetomidine on intestinal peristalsis and analyzed some of their mechanisms of action.

Methods: In isolated segments of the guinea pig small intestine, peristalsis was triggered by a perfusion-induced rise of the intraluminal pressure. The peristaltic pressure threshold to elicit a peristaltic wave was used to quantify drug effects on peristalsis. Vehicle (Tyrode's solution), clonidine (10 nm-100 [mu]m), or dexmedetomidine (0.1-100 nm) were added extraserosally to the organ bath. In other series of experiments, clonidine or dexmedetomidine was administered after pretreatment with yohimbine, prazosin, apamin, naloxone, or vehicle. Clonidine was also tested after blockade of NO synthase with l-NAME and in the presence of the inactive enantiomer d-NAME.

Results: Clonidine and dexmedetomidine concentration-dependently increased peristaltic pressure threshold and inhibited peristalsis (clonidine: EC50 = 19.6 [mu]m; dexmedetomidine: EC50 = 12.0 nm). The inhibition caused by clonidine could be prevented by pretreatment with yohimbine, naloxone, and apamin, but not by prazosin, l-NAME, or d-NAME. Inhibition caused by dexmedetomidine was prevented by yohimbine only.     

Gastric and duodenal obstruction in patients with cholangiocarcinoma in the porta hepatis: increased prevalence after radiation therapy.

OBJECTIVE. Our objective was to study the imaging findings in patients who had gastric and duodenal obstruction as a long-term complication of cholangiocarcinoma and to determine if the obstruction was associated with radiation therapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Between 1973 and 1989, 96 patients had either curative resection or palliative stenting for cholangiocarcinoma involving the hepatic duct bifurcation. Sixty-three (66%) also received adjuvant radiation therapy ranging from 4960 to 7220 rad (cGy). Gastric outlet or duodenal obstruction or both developed subsequently in seven of the 63 patients treated with radiation therapy. Radiographic studies, including upper gastrointestinal series and CT, and medical and surgical records for these seven patients were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS. Upper gastrointestinal series in the seven patients with obstruction showed narrowing of the lumen, deformity and enlargement of gastric and duodenal mucosal folds, and delayed gastric emptying. CT performed in five of the seven patients showed thickening of the wall of the gastric antrum and small bowel and retained food and fluid within the stomach. All seven patients required gastrojejunostomy; at surgery, dense adhesions and fibrosis were found, and it was not evident whether the obstruction was due to the tumor or to radiation fibrosis. However, because this complication was seen only after radiotherapy, it was presumed to be radiation fibrosis. CONCLUSION. Our experience suggests that radiation therapy increases the risk of postoperative gastric and duodenal obstruction in patients undergoing surgery for cholangiocarcinoma.     

Fat absorption in premature infants: medium-chain triglycerides and long-chain triglycerides are absorbed from formula at similar rates

Fat absorption from two different premature infant formulas and one full-term formula containing three different fat blends was investigated in two groups of premature infants. The first group of nine infants (gestational age, 29.1 +/- 0.88 weeks; postnatal age, 3.13 +/- 0.71 weeks) was fed alternately for 1 week each SMA preterm formula containing either high levels (50%) of medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) (6:0, 8:0, and 10:0) or high levels (86%) of long-chain triglycerides (LCT) (greater than or equal to C12). Except for fat blends, the formulas were otherwise identical. The second group of 11 infants (gestational age, 30.5 +/- 0.77 weeks, studied at a postnatal age of 4.33 +/- 0.91 weeks) was fed for 1 week a full-term infant formula, S-26, containing 98% LCT. Fat absorption (studied during a 3-day fat balance period) was similar irrespective of fat blend: 89.08 +/- 2.37% during feeding of preterm SMA, 50% MCT; 87.0 +/- 3.81% during feeding of preterm SMA, 86% LCT; and 83.00 +/- 2.89% during feeding of S-26, 98% LCT. Weight gain (grams per day) and increase in length (centimeters per day) were 23.2 +/- 1.7, 21.20 +/- 1.7, and 14.28 +/- 2.9, and 0.17 +/- 0.06, 0.16 +/- 0.04, and 0.22 +/- 0.07 during feeding of the three fat blends, respectively. Lipase activity levels in fasting gastric aspirates were higher during feeding of the LCT than the MCT formula. The possible stimulation of gastric lipase secretion secondary to long-chain fatty acid stimulation of cholecystokinin secretion might be related to the efficient digestion of formula fat, irrespective of triglyceride-fatty acid chain length.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)