The effect of plasma solutes on total-body-water measurements via NMR.

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy has been reported as an alternative method for quantitating deuterium oxide concentrations in the evaluation of total-body-water in humans. However, the presence of dissolved plasma proteins results in an underestimation of deuterium NMR (2H-NMR) intensity ratios, thereby causing an overestimation (5-6%) of total-body-water (TBW) values determined from nonsublimed patient plasma samples. We demonstrate that plasma samples must be corrected for the volume percentage of water in plasma. Correction of initial 2H-NMR intensity ratios with a factor of 0.93 results in intensity ratios comparable to those determined from plasma samples subjected to vacuum sublimation to remove all plasma solutes.     

OVERHEATING IN BED AS AN IMPORTANT FACTOR IN MANY COMMON DERMATOSES

Background. Extensive questioning of patients with a wide variety of skin disorders led to the impression that nocturnal overheating was probably an important factor in the initiation and the perpetuation of many skin disorders. Methods. In order to test the hypothesis, 12 “clean-skinned” subjects (6M/6F) aged 18 to 45 years were monitored electronically every 30 seconds during an 8 hour sleep period (2300 to 0700 hours), sleeping under a standard 10 tog duvet. Results. All the subjects were too hot by 3 to 4°C. All showed changes in their EEG patterns with reduced REM sleep, increased awakenings, and all showed changes in their sleep stage patterns. In addition, they all showed evidence of increased sweating in the “heat-sink” area. Conclusions. The mechanisms where by such changes could be implicated in the precipitation and perpetuation of skin disease are discussed. “Lifestyle” modification as a very effective, noninvasive, therapeutic regime is recommended. Further research along these lines would probably be very valuable and instructive.     

Spatial summation in human thermal pain perception: comparison within and between dermatomes.

Spatial summation of thermal pain has recently been reported when stimulus presentations were restricted within a single dermatome. The present study examined whether the magnitude of spatial summation of human thermal pain perception would vary when stimuli were presented within vs. between adjacent dermatomes. Noxious contact heat stimuli from 43 degrees C to 51 degrees C (5 sec duration) were applied to the forearm using areas of 0.21-2.10 cm2. Subjects rated the intensity and unpleasantness of pain using visual analog scales. For stimuli from 45 degrees C to 51 degrees C, there was a significant increase in ratings with increasing stimulus area for both intensity and unpleasantness. When two thermodes were used simultaneously in adjacent dermatomes, the ratings did not differ significantly from those for the same stimulus area in a single dermatome. We conclude that spatial summation both within and between dermatomes plays a significant role in thermal pain perception across the range from threshold to tolerance.     

The role of the psychiatrist in the team treatment of the adult patient with burns.

Improved survival rates for patients with major burn injuries and the consistent finding of significant long-term psychologic disability among survivors of burn trauma call for a redefinition of the role of the psychiatric consultant in the care of patients with burns. In addition to the traditional functions of diagnosis and treatment of discrete psychiatric disorders in patients with burns, this expanded role includes assisting the patient's normal process of psychologic adaptation after injury, assessing and managing burn pain, and facilitating communication among all members of the burn team. The functions of the psychiatrist are most effectively carried out when the psychiatrist is able to participate on a regular basis in the care of every patient as a member of the burn team.     

Glomus jugulare tumours: A review of 61 cases

Summary A retrospective study of 61 patients with glomus jugulare tumours treated at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, and at the Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital, London. The average age at presentation was 41.7 years. The patients were mainly treated by a posterolateral combined otoneurosurgical approach. 42/61 of the patients had total or subtotal excision of their tumours, 7/61 had partial removal and the remaining 11/61 had no operation. Only one case required a 2-staged procedure. There were two deaths in the postoperative period, one from intracerebral haemorrhage and the other from the left hemisphere infarction.Postoperative radiotherapy was given to 5/7 of the patients who had partial removal. 3/40 of the patients with total removal had postoperative radiotherapy, and a further 3/40 had received radiotherapy pre-operatively.Of the 11 patients who did not undergo surgery, 7/11 were treated with radiotherapy and 4/11 had embolisation only.     

Motor-vehicle crash fatalities among American Indians and non-Indians in Arizona, 1979 through 1988.

OBJECTIVES: This study evaluated the contributions of rural residence, alcohol use, and pedestrian fatalities to the high American Indian motor-vehicle crash mortality rate in Arizona. METHODS: Records from the Fatal Accident Reporting System were used to examine mortality rates between 1979 and 1988. RESULTS: American Indians had increased relative risks in all motor-vehicle crash categories in all residence-gender groups. The percentage of excess mortality associated with alcohol varied from 36.8% to 66.7%, and the percentage associated with pedestrian deaths ranged from 27.2% to 55.4%. CONCLUSIONS: Efforts to reduce excess motor-vehicle crash mortality among American Indians should concentrate on preventing pedestrian and alcohol-related fatalities.     

The diagnosis of blocked cerebrospinal fluid shunts: a prospective study of referral to a paediatric neurosurgical unit

A prospective study was undertaken of all children referred to the Hospital for Sick Children with a provisional diagnosis of shunt blockage over a 5-month period. Fifty-two admissions were recorded, relating to 45 children, 5 of whom had multiple admissions. Only 19 of the 52 admissions led to a final diagnosis of shunt malfunction. No source of referral, whether by the child's general practitioner or from another hospital, was found to be more accurate than direct referral by the parents to the neurosurgical ward. Headache, vomiting and irritability were not significant indicators as to whether the child's shunt was actually blocked, and nor was the duration of the symptoms. Drowsiness was a significant, but not definite, indicator of shunt blockage, while pyrexia made it more likely that the patient had an alternative diagnosis. In 35 of the admissions a computed tomographic scan was performed: a normal scan, unchanged from previous scans, did not reliably exclude the diagnosis of shunt blockage. Percutaneous manometry via the reservoir of the shunt system was performed during 26 admissions: this investigation produced no false positives nor false negatives, but was equivocal in 5 cases, all of which were found at surgery to have a definite shunt blockage. The accuracy of the diagnosis of shunt blockage made prior to referral to a neurosurgical unit is discussed, together with the implications for resource use.