Left Ventricular Mass Estimation by Echocardiography

Echocardiographic determination of left ventricular mass provides prognostic information that is independent of blood pressure. This prognostic information has a graded and continuous relationship with outcome, and is independent of traditional risk factors. This article addresses the prognostic and clinical utility of echocardiography for detection of left ventricular mass. Recommendations will be offered regarding the use of echocardiography for screening in select individuals.     

论医疗事故赔偿纠纷的法律适用

由于我国医疗事故赔偿纠纷处理的有关法律、行政法规及司法解释之间存在着不统一、不配套的矛盾。因此,在审理医疗事故赔偿纠纷案件中的分歧颇大 这既不利于正确地维护医患双方的合法权益,也不利于医疗纠纷的顺利解决及社会秩序的稳定。因此,正确地认识与解决医疗事故赔偿纠纷法律适用中的矛盾,具有十分重要的意义。     

FY—120型小型制氧机的研究

FY－120型小型制氧机的氧产量为2L／min、氧浓度≥90％,整个程序控制系统用自行研制的一个双向模拟移动功能阀实现,结构独特,流程先进。整机体积小,重量轻;工作性能可靠,全自动运行;开机即产氧,噪音低。是医院病房和家庭医疗保健的理想装置。     

Bakhtin's Philosophy and Medical Practice — Toward a Semiotic Theory of Doctor — patient Interaction

Doctor-patient interaction has gained increasing attention among sociologists and linguists during the last few decades. The problem with the studies performed so far, however, has been a lack of a theoretical framework which could bring together the various phenomena observed within medical consultations. Mikhail Bakhtin's philosophy of language offers us tools for studying medical practice as socio-cultural semiotic phenomenon. Applying Bakhtin's ideas of polyphonic, context-dependent and open-ended nature of human communication opens the possibilities to develop prevailing theoretical and empirical approaches to the study of medical consultations. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Single-handed practices – their contribution to an undergraduate teaching network in the first year of the new curriculum

OBJECTIVES: The new curriculum at King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry, which commenced in September 1996, requires all medical undergraduates to have a general practice placement throughout the 5 years of their medical education. DESIGN: This paper discusses recruitment, training and support of teaching practices for the new curriculum, reviews the distribution of single-handed general practices in the network and, via a selection of monitoring and evaluation procedures, discusses the implications of a policy which is inclusive of single-handed practices. The findings relate to the experience of the first semester of the first year of the new curriculum. It also examines the contributions that single-handed practices have made to the teaching network and the kind of support needed, if single-handed practices are to continue to contribute to the King's teaching network. SETTING: King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry. SUBJECTS: Medical undergraduates. RESULTS: The findings of this paper revealed that over a third of general practice provision is via single-handed practices in South-east London. Within the undergraduate teaching network, 10% of practices are single-handed. Students are welcomed and receive a learning experience comparable to those students in larger practices. Attendance at training events has proved difficult for some of these tutors, but the extra input from the department, in order to address this deficit, has not been onerous. Indeed, single-handed practices have not been unique with regard to difficulties in attendance at training events. CONCLUSIONS: The study concludes that single-handed practices can make satisfactory provision for undergraduates in the new curriculum and there is no evidence from this study to suggest otherwise.     

Interactive technology applications for behavioral counseling: issues and opportunities for health care settings

CONTENT: This article discusses the rationale for, and the potential benefits and limitations of, computer-based interactive health communication (IHC) programs for health behavior counseling. We describe common barriers to health behavior counseling in medical settings and show how IHCs can address these issues. Following an overview of current and likely near-future IHCs, the potential impact of IHCs on the patient-provider relationship is considered. Results from evaluations of IHCs are summarized and important and unique issues in evaluating IHCs are discussed. We conclude with recommendations for clinical applications, including recommendations for consumers considering purchase or adoption of IHCs and recommendations for future research.     

Risk factors for mental disorder hospitalization after the Persian Gulf War: U.S. Armed Forces, June 1, 1991-September 30, 1993

Effects of Persian Gulf War (August 2, 1990–July 31, 1991) and Gulf War occupation on post-War hospitalization risk were evaluated through Cox proportional hazards modeling. Active-duty men (n = 1,775,236) and women (n = 209,760) in the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps had 30,539 initial postwar hospitalizations for mental disorders between June 1, 1991 and September 30, 1993. Principal diagnoses in the Defense Manpower Data Center hospitalization database were grouped into 10 categories of ICD-9-CM codes. Gulf War service was associated with significantly greater risk for acute reactions to stress and lower risk for personality disorders and adjustment reactions among men. Personnel who served in ground war support occupations (men and women) were at greater risk for postwar drug-related disorders. Men who served in ground war combat occupations were at higher risk for alcohol-related disorders. Longitudinal studies of health, hospitalization, and exposure beginning at recruitment, are needed to better understand how exposure to combat affects the mental health of military personnel.     

我国农村地区实施大病统筹合作医疗或医疗保险方案的技术缺陷

在我国中等发达及上农村地区,大病统筹合作医疗或医疗保险以其可缓解农村居民的就医经济风险而受到欢迎,但是在方案的拟订过程中尚存在一些明显的技术缺陷,比如,“大病”的技术定义、农村居民就医经济风险分析、风险临界线界定、保险经付比测算和保险费率厘定等,这些技术的缺乏,已严重影响农村合作医疗或医疗保险的推广和实施效果。