Alcohol and self-disclosure: analyses of interpersonal behavior in male and female social drinkers

We examined the effects of alcohol and expectations about drinking on self-disclosure in male and female social drinkers. Consistent with cognitive social learning theory, these effects were shown to vary as a function of dose, expectations about alcohol consumption and gender-related social learning history. In men, alcohol increases self-disclosure, but only at a moderate blood alcohol level. Expectations emerged as a powerful influence on self-disclosure. Men who believed that they and their female partner were both intoxicated showed increased self-disclosure although no alcohol was consumed. Women who believed that they were intoxicated showed the opposite pattern of a decrease in self-disclosure. Another gender difference was that moderate alcohol had no effect on women's self-disclosure. The self-awareness model of alcohol use failed to receive support.     

Intravenous vitamins for very-low-birth-weight infants.

Term infants and children appear to adapt to large variations in vitamin intakes. This is supported by the finding of similar blood levels of vitamins despite several-fold differences in intake on a body weight basis. By contrast, the finding of marked elevation of some vitamins and low levels of others seen in very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants (less than 1500 g) suggest that this group has less adaptive capacity to high- or low-dose intakes. This indicates that their vitamin intakes need to be more closely aligned with actual needs. This paper reviews previously published data on vitamins A, E, B2, and B6 from VLBW infants receiving total parenteral nutrition (TPN). Vitamin A. VLBW infants are relatively deficient in retinol (R) at birth. During TPN large losses of R onto the delivery sets result in a further decline in stores of R as reflected in a progressive decline in plasma R during TPN. Because of the reported lower incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia associated with intramuscular vitamin A treatment, alternative methods of vitamin A delivery during TPN have been suggested. First, the vitamins were mixed with Intralipid (IL) and, second, retinyl palmitate (RP) rather than R was used. There was little in vitro loss of R when mixed with IL, and in vivo treatment resulted in higher blood levels after 1 month of retinol administration in IL than seen previously (21.4 +/? 4.2 vs 14.1 +/? 3.7 micrograms/dl).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Parathyroid adenomas evaluated by Tl-201/Tc-99m pertechnetate subtraction scintigraphy and high-resolution ultrasonography

Thallium-201/technetium-99m pertechnetate subtraction scintigraphy of the parathyroid glands was performed in a prospective study of 33 patients who had undergone bilateral neck exploration for elevated serum calcium and serum parathyroid hormone levels. In 31 cases, the Tl-201/Tc-99m subtraction technique yielded an overall sensitivity of 81%, specificity of 99%, and accuracy of 94% for identifying solitary parathyroid adenomas. Tl-201/Tc-99m subtraction scintigraphy correctly identified 73% of parathyroid adenomas weighing less than 499 mg, 79% of those weighing 500-1,499 mg, and 100% of adenomas weighing more than 1,500 mg. In a subgroup of 24 patients with solitary parathyroid adenomas who underwent both scintigraphy and high-resolution sonography, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of both procedures were similar.     

Urinary creatinine concentrations in the U.S. population: implications for urinary biologic monitoring measurements

Biologic monitoring (i.e., biomonitoring) is used to assess human exposures to environmental and workplace chemicals. Urinary biomonitoring data typically are adjusted to a constant creatinine concentration to correct for variable dilutions among spot samples. Traditionally, this approach has been used in population groups without much diversity. The inclusion of multiple demographic groups in studies using biomonitoring for exposure assessment has increased the variability in the urinary creatinine levels in these study populations. Our objectives were to document the normal range of urinary creatinine concentrations among various demographic groups, evaluate the impact that variations in creatinine concentrations can have on classifying exposure status of individuals in epidemiologic studies, and recommend an approach using multiple regression to adjust for variations in creatinine in multivariate analyses. We performed a weighted multivariate analysis of urinary creatinine concentrations in 22,245 participants of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1994) and established reference ranges (10th-90th percentiles) for each demographic and age category. Significant predictors of urinary creatinine concentration included age group, sex, race/ethnicity, body mass index, and fat-free mass. Time of day that urine samples were collected made a small but statistically significant difference in creatinine concentrations. For an individual, the creatinine-adjusted concentration of an analyte should be compared with a "reference" range derived from persons in a similar demographic group (e.g., children with children, adults with adults). For multiple regression analysis of population groups, we recommend that the analyte concentration (unadjusted for creatinine) should be included in the analysis with urinary creatinine added as a separate independent variable. This approach allows the urinary analyte concentration to be appropriately adjusted for urinary creatinine and the statistical significance of other variables in the model to be independent of effects of creatinine concentration.     

Are continuity clinic patients less satisfied when residents have a heavy inpatient workload?

The purpose of this study was to assess the influence of resident non-clinic workload on the satisfaction of continuity clinic patients. Over a 2-month period in 2002, residents and patients were surveyed at the University of Kentucky internal medicine continuity clinic. Residents provided a self-report of their non-clinic workload as light or medium versus heavy or extremely heavy. Patient satisfaction was assessed with a 7-item, 10-point scale with items derived from commonly used patient satisfaction instruments. In 168 patient encounters, patients were significantly less satisfied with their clinic visit if they were seen by a resident who had a heavier workload. In addition, these patients gave significantly lower ratings with regard to the amount of time spent with the patient during the visit, and how well the resident listened and paid attention. Although alternative explanations exist, we propose that heavy hospital workload is associated with decreased patient satisfaction in resident continuity clinic.     

Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis: Mass Drug Administration in Endemic Areas of (Bidar District) Karnataka-2008

Background:

Lymphatic Filariasis is a mosquito transmitted disease, caused by parasitic worm Wuchereria bancrofti. Global Programme for Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis was established in early 2000. The strategy recommended by the World Health Organization is annual Mass Drug Administration (MDA) of single-dose of Diethylcarbamazine 6 mg/kg (DEC), distributed to inhabitants of Filariasis endemic areas, excluding children below 2 years of age, pregnant women, and seriously ill persons, and Morbidity Management. The health system distributes the drugs by a door-to-door strategy.

Objective:

To assess the coverage and compliance of MDA in Bidar district during the campaign in November 2008.

Materials and Methods:

Cross-sectional population-based house-to-house visit. Outcome is assessed as actual coverage and compliance, in Percentage and proportions.

Results:

Eight clusters, total eligible population of 1 131 individuals were interviewed. The coverage rate was 78% with variation across different areas. The compliance with drug ingestion was 68%.

Conclusion:

The effective coverage was below the target (85%). Side effects of DEC were minimum, the overall coverage was better in rural areas compared with urban areas.