Hearing research career development for deaf students.

One goal of the Americans with Disabilities Act is to enhance access to career opportunities for individuals with hearing loss. Hearing-impaired professionals are woefully underrepresented among the cadre of scientists currently involved in hearing and deafness research. Information was obtained by questionnaire from 190 consecutive attendees (13 through 17 years of age) at a summer program for gifted hearing-impaired adolescents regarding career goals, attitudes toward academic and extracurricular activities, educational placement, primary communication modality, and parental hearing status.

Sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ pump expression in denervated skeletal muscle.

This study was undertaken as one approach to better understand how contractile activity regulates excitation-contraction coupling phenotype in skeletal muscle. The effects of denervation on the expression of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca(2+)-adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase), a key protein of the contraction-relaxation cycle, was analyzed in fast-twitch (FT) and slow-twitch (ST) skeletal muscle. Muscle mass, mRNA, and protein expression of specific isoforms of the sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase (SERCA) and contractile parameters related to muscle relaxation were measured in rat soleus and extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles at 1, 4, 7, 14, and 28 days after sciatic nerve transection.

[Satisfactory results of surgical reconstruction of rotator cuff ruptures, 1984-1990].

Objective: Evaluation of the middle-long term results of open surgical treatment of rotator cuff tears and identification of pre- and peroperative parameters with predictive value for the final result.

Design: Retrospective study (1984-1990).

Setting: Department of orthopaedics of the Sint Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, the Netherlands.

Physiological assessment of speech and voice production of adults with hearing loss.

The purpose of this investigation was to study the impact of hearing loss on phonatory, velopharyngeal, and articulatory functioning using a comprehensive physiological approach. Electroglottograph (EGG), nasal/oral air flow, and intraoral air pressure signals were recorded simultaneously from adults with impaired and normal hearing as they produced syllables and words of varying physiological difficulty. The individuals with moderate-to-profound hearing loss had good to excellent oral communication skills.

Developmental patterns of laryngeal and respiratory function for speech production.

Estimates of subglottal air pressure, laryngeal airflow, and laryngeal airway resistance from syllable repetitions of children and adults were used in describing developmental changes in these variables and in hypothesizing corresponding changes in respiratory function. A trend was found for pressure and resistance to decrease with increases in flow from preschool age through adulthood. These patterns could be explained by the smaller size of laryngeal airway structures and increased expiratory muscle forces during speech in the younger subjects.

Aerodynamic and electroglottographic measures of normal voice production: intrasubject variability within and across sessions.

The purpose of this investigation was to quantify the normal intrasubject performance variability of four measures of phonatory function within and across sessions. Two different speaking tasks, syllable series and sentence production, were used to determine if more natural speaking tasks resulted in greater intrasubject variability. Vowel type ([i] versus [a]) also was varied.

A comparison of transient-evoked and distortion product otoacoustic emissions in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired subjects.

The ability of transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) to distinguish normal hearing from hearing impairment was evaluated in 180 subjects. TEOAEs were analyzed into octave or one-third octave bands for frequencies ranging from 500 to 4000 Hz. Decision theory was used to generate receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for each of three measurements (OAE amplitude, OAE/noise, reproducibility) for each OAE measure (octave TEOAEs, 1/3 octave TEOAEs, DPOAEs), for octave frequencies from 500 to 4000 Hz, and for seven audiometric criteria ranging from 10 to 40 dB HL.

A quantitative assessment of limited joint mobility in patients with diabetes. Goniometric analysis of upper extremity passive range of motion.

Objective: The syndrome of limited joint mobility is a common but not widely recognized musculoskeletal complication of diabetes. The purpose of this study was to further characterize this syndrome using quantitative goniometric measures.

Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of a sample population was performed to establish the prevalence, location, and severity of limited joint mobility and to determine its relationship to extraarticular manifestations and complications of diabetes.

Regulation of sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium pump gene expression by hindlimb unweighting.

Hindlimb unweighting (HU) causes upregulation of several muscle-specific genes responsible for the slow-to-fast transition in soleus skeletal muscle properties despite the profound muscle atrophy. The purpose of this study was to examine the expression of the fast and slow isoforms of the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase at the mRNA and protein level in the soleus muscle over a time course of HU and relate them to Ca(2+)-dependent ATPase activity and selected contractile properties. mRNA levels of the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) were measured to compare the signal of unweighting with denervation.

Similarity of copper and technetium binding sites in human IgG.

Kits for direct labeling of IgG with 99mTc were used without modification for the preparation of [67Cu]IgG. The IgG was pre-treated to generate thiolate groups which would bind 67Cu. The direct labeling of reduced IgG with 67Cu was highly efficient, resulting in approx.

Equivalent ear canal volumes in children pre- and post-tympanostomy tube insertion.

Pre- and postoperative equivalent ear canal volume measures were obtained from a group of 334 children ranging in age from 6 weeks to 6.7 years. The purpose of the study was to develop volumetric guidelines for the determination of tympanostomy tube patency.

Regulation of skeletal muscle dihydropyridine receptor gene expression by biomechanical unloading.

Biomechanical unloading of the rat soleus by hindlimb unweighting is known to induce atrophy and a slow- to fast-twitch transition of skeletal muscle contractile properties, particularly in slow-twitch muscles such as the soleus. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the expression of the dihydropyridine (DHP) receptor gene is upregulated in unloaded slow-twitch soleus muscles. A rat DHP receptor cDNA was isolated by screening a random-primed cDNA lambda gt10 library from denervated rat skeletal muscle with oligonucleotide probes complementary to the coding region of the rabbit DHP receptor cDNA.

Auditory brainstem responses elicited by 1000-Hz tone bursts in patients with sensorineural hearing loss.

Auditory brainstem responses were measured in response to 1000-Hz tone bursts from 115 patients with sensorineural hearing loss, presumably of cochlear origin. Mean wave V latencies and variability were comparable to those observed in normal hearing subjects for similar stimuli. The range of interaural differences in wave V latencies for 1000-Hz tone bursts were slightly greater than those observed for clicks, which may not be surprising, given the greater variability in wave V latencies for tonal stimulation, even in normal-hearing subjects.

Age effects on myosin subunit and biochemical alterations with skeletal muscle hypertrophy.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether skeletal muscle mass, myofibrillar adenosinetriphosphatase activity, and the expression of myosin heavy (MHC) and light chain subunits are differentially affected in juvenile (4 wk) and young adult (12 wk) rats by a hypertrophic growth stimulus. Hypertrophy of the plantaris or soleus was studied 4 wk after ablation of either two [gastrocnemius (GTN) and soleus or plantaris] or one (GTN) synergistic muscle(s). There was no difference in the relative magnitude of hypertrophy because of age.

Coupling of FM systems to individuals with unilateral hearing loss.

This study examined the attenuation characteristics of five FM system sound delivery options for a group of 10 adults and 15 children (5-13 years). Sound delivery options included a tube-fitting, lightweight headphones, a CROS earmold with tubing, a CROS earmold with a snap-ring, and a standard snap-ring earmold with a vent. Attenuation was defined as the difference between probe-tube microphone measures of the ear canal resonance and the SPL in the ear canal with each sound delivery option in place.

The effects of psychotherapy on behavior problems of sexually abused deaf children.

This study assessed the effectiveness of a broad based psychotherapeutic intervention with a sample of 72 children sexually abused at a residential school for the deaf. An untreated comparison group emerged when about half of their parents refused the offer for psychotherapy provided by the school. Treated and untreated children were randomly assigned to two assessment groups: those who participated in a pretreatment assessment and those who did not.

Localization ability in infants with simulated unilateral hearing loss.

This study investigated the feasibility of using a localization task to rule out unilateral hearing loss in infants. Fourcorner localization ability was assessed in 29 normal-hearing infants (9-20 mo) using four different test stimuli. In these same infants, a mild unilateral hearing loss was simulated by occlusion of the external auditory canal and the test sequence was repeated.

Elevated interstitial fluid volume in rat soleus muscles by hindlimb unweighting.

Hindlimb unweighting is a commonly used model to study skeletal muscle atrophy associated with disuse and exposure to microgravity. However, a discrepancy in findings between single fibers and whole muscle has been observed. In unweighted solei, specific tension deficits are greater in whole muscle than in single fibers.

Correlates of vestibular evaluation results during the first year of life.

Prenatal and perinatal correlates of abnormal auditory brainstem responses in neonates have been studied extensively. In contrast, vestibular function during the first year of life has received sparse attention. Using a specially modified vestibular test battery, 65 infants (17 low-risk, 48 high-risk) were initially evaluated during their first 6 months of life.

Patterns of physical and sexual abuse of communicatively handicapped children.

Evidence suggests that handicapped children are at increased risk for abuse and neglect. Communicatively impaired youngsters are particularly vulnerable because of their limited ability to report the maltreatment. Of 482 abused handicapped children evaluated at Boys Town National Research Hospital, 212 had hearing impairment, 87 speech language disorders, 39 learning disorders, 43 behavioral-emotional disturbances, 74 mental retardation, 5 visual impairment, 3 cleft lip or palate, and 19 other disorders.

[Arthrodesis of the carpometacarpal joint of the thumb for arthrosis deformans].

In a retrospective study we evaluated the results of arthrodesis of the carpometacarpal joints in 24 patients of whom three were operated on both sides. After one to 14 years 22 patients did not have any pain; only 2 patients complained of impaired function.

The venous pattern in femoral head necrosis. Digital subtraction angiography and phlebography in 5 patients.

According to digital subtraction angiography in 5 cases of idiopathic ischemic necrosis of the head of the femur, the arterial and venous circulation was normal. However, pertrochanteric phlebography showed stasis of contrast indicating venous obstruction. We suggest that this could be due to arteriovenous-venous shunting, possibly resulting from sympathetic dysfunction, as in the diabetic foot.

Cloning and characterization of the Salmonella typhimurium metE gene.

The metE gene of Salmonella typhimurium was cloned into plasmid pACYC184 by using a lambda gt7 -metE transducing phage as a source of metE DNA. The recombinant plasmid, designated pGS41 , carries a 12.8-kilobase-pair EcoRI insert fragment.

Discoid knee menisci in children.

Five children were operated for discoid menisci. One of them had, in addition, an anomalous capsular attachment and an anomalous course of the popliteus tendon. Vascularisation at the free margin was a striking feature in the four discoid menisci of the primitive type.