Safety of MR scanning in patients with nonferromagnetic aneurysm clips.

The purpose of this study was to report our surveillance of patients with nonferromagnetic aneurysm clips (NFAC) who have undergone magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Forty-six patients with NFAC underwent MRI over a 7-year period. Medical records were studied for evidence of subjective or objective clinical findings as a result of the MRI scan.

Testing relationships from the hierarchical model of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation using flow as a motivational consequence.

The purpose of this study was to test a motivational model based on Vallerand's (1997) Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation. This model incorporates situational and contextual motivational variables, and was tested using a time-lagged design. Master's level swimmers (N = 104) completed a questionnaire on two separate occasions.

Effects of prolonged ACTH-stimulation on adrenocortical accumulation of lipofuscin granules in aged rats.

Subcellular deposition of lipofuscin granules is a marker of aging. Human and rodent adrenal cortices accumulate lipofuscin granules with age, but the mechanism that leads to the accumulation is not known. The ultrastructural appearance of lipofuscin granules resembles that of secondary lysosomes.

Prolonged hypoxic stress increases adrenal cholesterol reserve in rats without causing adrenal hypertrophy.

1. It is known that, in rats, hypoxia stimulates adrenal steroidogenesis, but our understanding of the hypoxic effect on the glandular parameters remains incomplete. 2.

Effects of prolonged ACTH-stimulation on adrenocortical cholesterol reserve and apolipoprotein E concentration in young and aged Fischer 344 male rats.

Changes in the morphology of rat adrenal cortex with age include increased accumulations of lipid droplets and lipofuscin granules. Because glandular concentrations of cholesteryl esters (CE) and apolipoprotein (apo) E are also increased in parallel, the utilization or metabolism of lipid-droplet stored CE for steroidogenesis might be altered in aging cells. To explore this possibility, adrenocortical cholesterol storage and utilization were studied in 3-6 months-old (mo) (Y) rats and 20-23 mo (O) Fischer 344 male rats.

Tectal tumors of childhood: clinical and imaging follow-up.

Purpose: This study was done to determine which clinical and imaging findings best correlate with outcome in children with tectal tumors.

Methods: A retrospective review was done of the medical records and imaging studies of 32 children (16 boys and 16 girls; mean age, 8 years) with tectal tumors. Eight children had CT, 11 had MR imaging, and 13 had both CT and MR studies.

Do acute care for elders units increase hospital costs? A cost analysis using the hospital perspective.

Objective: To compare the hospital costs of caring for medical patients on a special unit designed to help older people maintain or achieve independence in self-care activities with the costs of usual care.

Design: A randomized controlled study.

Participants: A total of 650 medical patients (mean age 80 years, 67% women, 41% nonwhite) assigned randomly to either the intervention unit (n = 326) or usual care (n = 324).

A phase I trial of a new recombinant human beta-interferon (BG9015) for the treatment of patients with recurrent gliomas.

Primary brain tumors represent an important cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality in the United States. Despite advances in neurosurgery and radiotherapy, the median survival of patients with malignant gliomas remains less than 1 year. A contributing factor to the poor prognoses of these patients is the diffuse, infiltrative nature of these tumors, which limits the effectiveness of focal therapies (i.

Clinical epidemiology of endocrine disorders in the elderly.

Many epidemiologic studies have examined age-related processes in humans. Some of the difficulties with these studies are noted. Endocrinologic changes of aging often are compensated for by feedback mechanisms and do not cause dysfunction.

Characterization and identification of an adrenal age-related nonpolar fluorescent substance.

The adrenal cortexes of humans and rodents accumulate lipofuscin with age, but the chemical nature of the substance that produces lipofuscin fluorescence in the gland is not known. Analysis of rat adrenal nonpolar lipids revealed a fluorescence profile with increased intensity in the lipids extracted from older animals (23-24 months > 6 months > 6 weeks). The peak occurred at a wavelength of 470 +/- 5 nm(n = 26) when excited at 340 nm.

Apolipoprotein E is increased in aged rat kidney.

There is growing evidence to indicate that apolipoprotein (apo) E may be associated with age-related disorders and altered longevity in humans. Using rats as a model, we measured apoE in plasma, brain, heart, kidney, liver and spleen in aged (24-25 mo) and younger rats (6-8 mo). The results disclosed that: (a) the plasma concentrations of immunoreactive apoE in aged rats were higher than those in young animals by 70% (P < 0.

A randomized trial of care in a hospital medical unit especially designed to improve the functional outcomes of acutely ill older patients.

Background: Older persons who re hospitalized for acute illnesses often lose their independence and are discharged to institutions for long-term care.

Methods: We studied 651 patients 70 years of age or older who were admitted for general medical care at a teaching hospital; these patients were randomly assigned to receive usual care or to be cared for in a special unit designed to help older persons maintain or achieve independence in self-care activities. The key elements of this program were a specially prepared environment (with, for example, uncluttered hallways, large clocks and calendars, and handrails); patient-centered care emphasizing independence, including specific protocols for prevention of disability and for rehabilitation; discharge planning with the goal of returning the patient to his or her home; and intensive review of medical care to minimize the adverse effects of procedures and medications.

Aging in rats is associated with an increase in adrenal apolipoprotein E.

Extrahepatic tissues including the adrenal cortex are capable of synthesizing apolipoprotein E (apoE). Locally synthesized apoE is believed to affect cellular uptake, transport and redistribution of cholesterol within that organ. We and another laboratory have previously reported that the adrenal cortex of aged rats has an elevated cholesteryl ester content.

Analysis of adrenal cholesteryl esters by reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography.

A reversed phase high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed for direct profiling and determination of adrenal cholesteryl ester composition. Cholesteryl adrenate and cholesteryl cervonate, which are not commercially available, were synthesized as markers. Lipid extracts of rat adrenal homogenates or lipid droplets were individually applied to a conditioned silica gel-60 column which separated cholesteryl esters from other native lipids.

A medical unit for the acute care of the elderly.

Older patients often experience a loss of independent physical functioning during the course of an acute illness requiring hospitalization. This functional decline is associated with serious sequelae including prolonged hospital stay, nursing home placement, and mortality. Elements of hospitalization may contribute to the progression or persistence of functional decline.

Endogenous drug-like factors in a Polish population.

In two hundred and twenty-five healthy volunteers not receiving any treatment the occurrence of drug-like factors in blood serum was studied. The examinations were carried out with the use of the fluorescence-polarization-immunoassay (FPIA)-TDx Abbott. The presence of endogenous phenytoin-like, theophylline-like and cyclosporin-like factors has been demonstrated.

Hospital Outcomes Project for the Elderly (HOPE): rationale and design for a prospective pooled analysis.

Objective: To describe a collaborative investigation that is based on a series of six clinical studies aimed at reducing functional decline in the acutely-ill hospitalized elderly.

Design: A prospective, multicenter pooled analysis project involving collection of a common set of data from a group of related but distinct intervention trials with similar objectives.

Setting: Five university-affiliated hospitals and one community hospital.