Chapter V. A comparison of CATI and non-CATI questionnaires

It appears likely that a greater proportion of surveys will use the telephone as a medium of sampling and data collection in the future. As software developments proceed and computer hardware costs shrink, many of these will use CATI systems. This experiment can be used as a benchmark for the transition to CATI because it provides documentation on potential problems with changing modes. For most criteria, there are only small differences between CATI and non-CATI interviewing in this project. The criteria include response rates, reactions of the interviewer and respondent, and most health statistics of interest. There are, however, some exceptions to this finding of equivalence between methods. The first exception is the result that the average number of minutes per CATI interview exceeded that for non-CATI interviews. There also is some evidence that the interviewer variability estimates tend to be lower in CATI than non-CATI. Finally, there is evidence of lower skip error problems in the CATI interviews. The first of these results affects survey costs; the second and third, survey error. The first may be a function of software or hardware choice and thus can be addressed in new CATI designs. The second and third will be of benefit to all CATI systems in the future.     

Osteosarcomatosis

A review of the 690 cases of osteosarcoma in the radiographic file of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology revealed 29 cases of "osteosarcomatosis" (multiple skeletal sites of osteosarcoma). Fifteen of these patients were 18 years old and under and manifested rapidly appearing, usually symmetric, sclerotic metaphyseal lesions. The remaining 14 patients were more than 18 years old and had fewer, asymmetric sclerotic lesions. In most patients (28 of 29), a radiographically dominant skeletal tumor was seen. Pulmonary metastases occurred in the majority of patients and were detected at the same time as the bone lesions. These 29 patients were studied with regard to demographic data and skeletal distribution and radiographic appearance of their lesions. As a result of the findings, a metastatic origin from a primary dominant osteosarcoma is favored over a multifocal origin as the basis for osteosarcomatosis. Osteosarcomatosis is more commonly encountered in the mature skeleton than has been previously recognized.     

The effects of sub-anaesthetic doses of ketamine on memory, cognitive performance and subjective experience in healthy volunteers

The cognitive and subjective effects of sub-anaesthetic doses of ketamine on healthy volunteers were examined. Twelve healthy volunteers received 25 mg ketamine, 10 mg ketamine and saline placebo, i.m. in a double-blind, Latin square design. A cognitive, perceptual and self-report test battery was administered over 45 min. The order of tests was rotated to control for timing effects. Ketamine (25 mg) significantly affected verbal learning and memory, parallel visual search, some measures of psychomotor performance, measures of arousal, subjective mood ratings and visual perception. Measures of attention and frontal lobe functioning were relatively unaffected. Thus, low doses of ketamine had selective, dose-related effects on memory, perceptual and psychomotor functions. The disruption of memory and perceptual processes may help to explain the unique subjective state induced by ketamine.     

Production of 5–15 µm Diameter Alginate-Polylysine Microcapsules by an Air-Atomization Technique

A novel method of preparing small-sized microcapsules using a Turbotak air-atomizer is reported. Alginate-polylysine microcapsules containing Bacillus Calmette Guérin vaccine have been prepared by an adaptation of the method of Lim (1) which allows the manufacture of small-sized microcapsules. A Turbotak is used to spray sodium alginate solution into calcium chloride solution to form temporary calcium alginate microgel capsules. These temporary microgel droplets are subsequently cross-linked with polylysine to form permanent membranes. Microcapules in the size range of 5–15 µm have been produced which can be compared to an average diameter of 300 µm obtained by the method reported by Lim. The microcapsule size is dependent on the conditions of operation of the Turbotak and the concentration of the sodium alginate solution. Particles within the size range 5–15 µm can be reproducibly manufactured using the conditions of operation reported here. Other size ranges below the minimum of 300 µm reported by Lim are also feasible using this technique.     

Aortico-pulmonary paraganglioma: report of a case with ultrastructural study and review of the literature.

The light microscopic and ultrastructural features of an aortico-pulmonary paraganglioma (A-PP) are presented. The tumor was characterized by organoid clustering of neoplastic chief cells to form Zellballen. Argyrophilic granules were demonstrated within chief cell cytoplasm using a modified Grimelus technique. Ultrastructurally, three distinct cell types were present within the tumor: endothelial cells, pericytes and neoplastic chief cells. Membrane-bound neurosecretory granules were present and measured 100 to 2000 nm in diameter. "Light" and "dark" chief cells were less distinct than previously reported in other head and neck paragangliomas. Analysis of the 36 documented A-PP reported in the English literature reveals that the tumor has been either incompletely excised or has been considered unresectable in one-third of the cases. The reported surgical mortality is 9%, or approximately equal to the incidence of malignant behavior. The treatment of choice is surgical resection but when this is not possible, radiation may be a useful adjunct in therapy.     

Marrow regeneration after mechanical depletion

The origin of marrow regeneration after mechanical depletion was reinvestigated in mouse chimeras. The results were compatible with the local origin of stem cells from remnants of incompletely removed marrow, but not with their origin from a common precursor of both bone and hemopoietic cell lines. In transplanted femurs depleted by a modified technique of in vivo evacuation of marrow, hemopoietic regeneration failed to occur. The presence of hemopoietic stem cells in the Haversian canals was thus excluded. The demonstration of ample hemopoiesis with minimal bone formation in nondepleted controls in which bone marrow initially became necrotic provided new evidence that osteogenesis was not a prerequisite of hemopoietic regeneration.     

Plasma dopa concentrations after different preparations of levodopa in normal subjects

1 The concurrent administration of levodopa with a decarboxylase inhibitor produced a plasma concentration/time curve comparable with 1/4 to 1/5 of the dose of levodopa given alone.

2 There was no evidence to suggest that the decarboxylase inhibitor slowed the rate of elimination of levodopa from plasma.

3 Metoclopramide (Maxolon) increased the rate of levodopa absorption. Higher plasma concentrations of levodopa during the first 2 h after dosing were followed by lower plasma concentrations during the third and fourth hours. The amount of levodopa absorbed after Larodopa as indicated by the AUC was not altered by adding metoclopramide.

4 None of the current preparations of levodopa produced sustained plasma concentrations.

5 In vitro testing confirmed that Brocadopa Temtabs tablets disintegrate and dissolve slowly. In vivo, Brocadopa Temtabs behaved as a slow release preparation but it did not produce sustained plasma concentrations of levodopa.

     

Evaluation of neurodevelopmental outcome in highrisk infants in Australia

An understanding of the neurodevelopmental outcome of long-term survivors of neonatal intensive care is essential for the informed management of preterm or high risk infants. This annotation looks at the current status of neonatal follow-up services in Australasia and highlights problems in the collection and interpretation of data. It suggests that we should work towards achieving a consensus on standard definitions and test regimes and on national data collection.