Comparison and item analysis of the MESSY for autistic and normal children

Seventeen autistic children were matched for age, race, and sex with 17 nonautistic children, and group differences in social skills were assessed. Appropriate social skills and levels of inappropriate assertiveness/impulsiveness were assessed and evaluated using the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY). Significant differences in both the appropriate and inappropriate social behaviors displayed by the two groups were found. The implications of these results are discussed.     

Delay in obstetrical care in newly diagnosed teenage pregnancy.

A retrospective study of 42 adolescent patients diagnosed as being pregnant between June 1987 and February 1990 at the Downtown Health Center (DHC), an inner city pediatric primary care clinic, was conducted to determine whether patients referred to a hospital-based Teen Pregnancy Clinic (TPC) were seen within a reasonable period of time. The frequency of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) was also determined when these women were initially seen at TPC. Only 5 of the 42 patients seen at DHC had a pelvic exam prior to referral. Of the 40 patients seen at TPC, 20% were not seen until four weeks or more after initial diagnosis. Fifty percent had a STD. Pediatricians should recognize that pregnant teenagers may have a significant delay between diagnosis of pregnancy and entry into obstetrical care. Pelvic exam including cultures for STDs is recommended prior to referral.     

Low sodium haemodialysis reduces interdialytic fluid consumption but paradoxically increases post-dialysis thirst.

BACKGROUND: Interdialytic weight gain (IDWG) can be reduced by lowering the dialysate sodium concentration ([Na]) in haemodialysis patients. It has been assumed that this is because thirst is reduced, although this has been difficult to prove. We compared thirst patterns in stable haemodialysis patients with high and low IDWG using a novel technique and compared the effect of low sodium dialysis (LSD) with normal sodium dialysis (NSD). METHODS: Eight patients with initial high IDWG and seven with low IDWG completed hourly visual analogue ratings of thirst using a modified palmtop computer during the dialysis day and the interdialytic day. The dialysate [Na] was progressively reduced by up to 5 mmol/l over five treatments. Dialysis continued at the lowest attained [Na] for 2 weeks and the measurements were repeated. The dialysate [Na] then returned to baseline and the process was repeated. RESULTS: Baseline interdialytic day mean thirst was higher than the dialysis day mean for the high IDWG group (49.9+/-14.0 vs 36.2+/-16.6) and higher than the low weight gain group (49.9+/-14.0 vs 34.1+/-14.6). This trend persisted on LSD, but there was a pronounced increase in post-dialysis thirst scores for both groups (high IDWG: 46+/-13 vs 30+/-21; low IDWG: 48+/-24 vs 33+/-18). The high IDWG group demonstrated lower IDWG during LSD than NSD (2.23+/-0.98 vs 2.86+/-0.38 kg; P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that patients with high IDWG experience more intense feelings of thirst on the interdialytic day. LSD reduces their IDWG, but paradoxically increases thirst in the immediate post-dialysis period.     

Decreased phosphorus metabolite concentrations and alkalosis in chronic cerebral infarction.

A study was performed to determine quantitatively the alterations in phosphorus metabolite concentrations and pH in regions of the human brain damaged by chronic stroke. Image-guided phosphorus-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy was performed on the brains of eight healthy subjects and six patients with cerebral infarction of more than 3 months duration. Phosphorus metabolite concentrations in infarcted regions were reduced 8%-67%. Significant decreases occurred in phosphomonoester (PME), phosphodiester (PDE), and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) concentrations, while inorganic phosphate (Pi) and phosphocreatine (PCr) concentrations showed smaller, nonsignificant decreases. The PCr/ATP ratio was significantly increased, while the ATP/Pi ratio was somewhat lower. The phospholipid ratio PDE/PME was also significantly increased, while the ratios of phospholipid (PME, PDE) to phosphate (PCR, Pi) metabolites were significantly decreased. The pH of the infarcted region indicated significantly more alkalinity than in the normal brain. The results suggest that chronic stroke is associated with significant changes in brain metabolite concentrations and pH that are different from those reported for other brain diseases.     

A guide to upwardly mobile spermatozoa

Morphological comparison of sperm in raw ejaculates and swim-ups showed that the swim-up process does not simply increase the proportion of 'normal' sperm. Rather, sperm of specific morphologies have characteristic grades of upward motility.     

Characterization of serum antibody responses to natural rotavirus infections in children by VP7-specific epitope-blocking assays.

Knowledge of the immune response to rotavirus is crucial for vaccine development. We compared an epitope-blocking assay (EBA) that uses VP7-specific monoclonal antibodies with neutralization assays (NAs) with polyclonal antisera for detecting serum antibody responses after natural rotavirus infection in children. Twenty-six serum pairs from children living in an orphanage with and without symptoms during two rotavirus outbreaks were evaluated for VP7 type 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-specific antibody responses. In the first outbreak, which was caused by a VP7 type 3 strain, homotypic antibody responses were detected in 11 of 11 symptomatic children by NA and in 10 of 11 symptomatic children by EBA. Heterotypic antibody responses were detected more frequently (12 of 15 children) by NA than by EBA, and the heterotypic epitope-blocking antibody responses occurred in children older than 14 months of age. Antibody responses in asymptomatic children were more commonly detected by EBA than by NA. EBA results from the sera of children in the second outbreak indicated that it was caused by VP7 type 4, whereas NA results suggested it was caused by VP7 type 3. Our results confirm that EBA is a sensitive and specific method for determining VP7 type-specific immune responses after natural rotavirus infections.     

Complete nucleotide sequence and genomic organization of a primate calicivirus, Pan-1

Summary.  The primate calicivirus, Pan-1, was originally isolated from several primate species. It displayed typical calicivirus morphology by electron micro-scopy. We determined the genomic sequence of Pan-1 by cDNA cloning and direct RNA sequencing. Pan-1 shares a similar genomic organization and a high degree of sequence identity with feline caliciviruses. The Pan-1 genome contains 8 304 nucleotides, plus a poly-A tail, and is longer than any other calicivirus strains with a completely known sequence. The extra sequences of Pan-1 include a unique 424-nucleotide sequence at the 5′ end of ORF1, additional amino acids at the N-terminus of the capsid, and a longer 3′ UTR. Received March 20, 1998 Accepted July 22