Assessing Consequences of Substance Use: Psychometric Properties of the Inventory of Drug Use Consequences.

Negative consequences are an important component of the substance use change process, yet no standardized measure exists to assess consequences of use. This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Inventory of Drug Use Consequences, a self-report measure assessing drinking and drug use consequences. Participants (N=252) were assessed at entry into outpatient substance abuse treatment. Items loaded strongly on 1 factor, and internal consistency of the total scale was high. Fifteen items with the highest correlations with the total scale were chosen to represent the construct. The shortened measure exhibited good internal consistency, convergent and discriminant validity, and detected change over time and may be the measure of substance use consequences that is lacking in the field. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Central poststroke pain and Wallenberg''s lateral medullary infarction: frequency, character, and determinants in 63 patients

BACKGROUND: Questionnaire-based surveys from several countries have consistently detected adverse health associated with home dampness and mould growth. METHODS: To test the validity of questions commonly used to indicate the presence of indoor mould, questionnaires were administered in 403 homes where dust samples were taken for viable fungi and air samples for ergosterol. RESULTS: Geometric mean concentrations of the total viable fungi were 255 (SE 116) x 10(3) CFU/g when mouldy odours were reported and 155 (SE 55) when odours were not reported (P = 0.01). Similarly, reported water damage was associated with a 50% increase (P = 0.06). Geometric mean concentrations of the predominantly indoor-source fungi, Aspergillus plus Penicillium, were twice as high when mould or mildew was reported than when not mentioned (P = 0.01). The presence of reported mould or water damage was unrelated to the presence of detectable levels of ergosterol. There was evidence for reporting bias: in the presence of low concentrations of viable fungi in dust, respondents reporting allergies were more likely to report visible mould growth (odds ratio [OR] = 1.8, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.9-3.5, P = 0.10. In the presence of elevated concentrations of dust fungi, respondents who smoked were less likely to report visible mould growth, (OR = 0.4, 95% CI: 0.2-0.7, P = 0.005). CONCLUSIONS: Reported mould, water damage, and mouldy odours were associated with elevated levels of indoor fungi. However, inaccuracy was high and there was evidence of a systematic reporting bias. Future research should concentrate on developing accurate objective measures of exposure to fungi, and then use this information to develop valid questionnaires. Currently, objective measures not questionnaires, are recommended to clarify the health effects of indoor fungi.     

Deep brain stimulation for essential tremor

We examined the effects and safety of deep brain stimulation (DBS) as a treatment for essential tremor (ET). Ten ET patients with disabling medication-refractory tremor underwent stereotactic implantation of a DBS lead in the left Vim thalamic nucleus and completed a 6-month follow-up. The Clinical Tremor Rating Scale and disability assessments were performed at baseline, 1-, 3-, and 6-month follow-up. There were significant improvements in dressing, drinking, eating, bathing, and handwriting as reported by the subjects. Tremor severity, writing, pouring, and spiral and line drawing were significantly improved as rated by the examiner. Improvements persisted through the 6-month follow-up period. Although global disability significantly lessened in the group as a whole, one subject with hand-finger tremor accentuated by writing had no change in disability status. In this 6-month open-label study, DBS was effective and safe in reducing tremor and functional disability in ET.     

Electro-optical characteristics of indium tin oxide (ITO) films: effect of thermal annealing

The effect of thermal annealing on the electrical and optical characteristics of ITO films prepared by reactive sputtering and thermal evaporation have been studied. The effect of the thermal annealing is to improve the conductivity and the optical transmission in the shorter wavelength region. The conductivity of the films increases with annealing temperature, this behaviour is associated with grain growth in the film.     

Eigenmode analysis of dielectric loaded top-hat monopole antennas

Eigenmode expansions are used for computing the currents on a dielectric loaded top-hat monopole radiating above an infinite conducting ground plane. The approach is facilitated by adding a parallel ground plane above the antenna, thus allowing use of cylindrical harmonic field expansions in each of three regions. Expansion coefficients are found by enforcing boundary and continuity conditions at conducting surfaces and regional interfaces. Convergence and accuracy are assessed using comparisons with three other methodologies, namely an integral equation solution, a quasi-static analysis, and multi-octave experimental measurements     

Visual association encoding activates the medial temporal lobe: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study

The involvement of structures in the medial temporal lobe during the encoding of visual associations was studied with functional magnetic resonance imaging. In 11 out of 12 normal healthy volunteers this task resulted in activation in posterior portions of the parahippocampal region, close to the collateral sulcus. In seven subjects activation was encountered in the hippocampal formation. The visual association task as adapted for this study may provide a sensitive measure to study anterograde amnesia prevalent in Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, the present paradigm enables the study of individual changes in learning and memory capacities over time.     

The effects of an outpatient practice guideline at a teaching hospital: a prospective pilot study

BACKGROUND: Platelet-activating factor (PAF) is a bioactive phospholipid which is a potent hypotensive agent. To investigate the role of PAF in renovascular hypertension, we determined the PAF concentration and its production level assessed by the activity of cholinephosphotransferase (CPT) in renal tissue and examined the effect of a PAF antagonist on the mean arterial pressure (MAP) in control and two-kidney with one clipped (2K1C) hypertensive rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The concentration of PAF and CPT in the renal medulla and cortex were determined by radioassay. Also, the effect of a PAF antagonist, CV-6209, on MAP was also examined in both 2K1C hypertensive and normal control rats. RESULTS: The PAF concentration and CPT activity were significantly higher in the medulla than in the cortex in both 2K1C hypertensive and normal control rats, and both values in the medulla were also significantly higher in the clipped kidney than in the contralateral unclipped kidney or in control rat kidneys. We also observed a significant negative correlation between the PAF concentration in the medulla, and the medulla weight in the clipped kidney of 2K1C hypertensive rats. Infusion of the PAF antagonist, CV-6209, did not affect MAP in 2K1C hypertensive rats, but was significantly increased (P < 0.05) in control rats. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that PAF, whose production is induced by renal ischemia due to renal artery stenosis, plays an important role in the renomedullary vasodepressor system, but the effect of PAF as a vasodilator in the peripheral vessels is limited in 2K1C hypertension.     

Potentially avoidable hospitalizations: inequalities in rates between US socioeconomic groups

OBJECTIVES: The National Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS) was used to evaluate potentially avoidable hospital conditions as an indicator of equity and efficiency in the US health care system. METHODS: With the use of 1990 data from the NHDS, the National Health Interview Survey, and the census, national rates of hospitalization were calculated for avoidable conditions by age, race, median income of zip code, and insurance status. RESULTS: An estimated 3.1 million hospitalizations were for potentially avoidable conditions. This was 12% of all hospitalizations in 1990 (excluding psychiatric admissions, women with deliveries, and newborns). Rates of potentially avoidable hospitalizations were higher for persons living in middle- and low-income areas than for persons living in high-income areas, and were higher among Blacks than among Whites. These class and racial differences were also found among the privately insured. Differences among income and racial groups for persons aged 65 and over were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Inequalities in potentially avoidable hospitalizations suggest inequity and inefficiency in the health care delivery system. Avoidable hospital conditions are a useful national indicator to monitor access to care.