The ocular manifestations of Lyme disease.

Lyme disease (with its ocular manifestations) is a worldwide disorder that is rapidly increasing in frequency. It is a treatable, multisystemic disease that presents in three stages of severity. It can present with unusual forms of conjunctivitis, keratitis, cranial nerve palsies, optic nerve disease, uveitis, vitritis, and other forms of posterior segment inflammatory disease.

Feminizing genital reconstruction for male pseudohermaphroditism.

The ambiguous genital structures of Male Pseudo-hermaphrodites may be reconstructed either in a masculinizing or feminizing manner. This decision is made attempting to maximize body image and function. Early assignment of an appropriate sex of rearing is important.

Reversible late potentials due to ischemia.

The role of ischemia in the development of reversible late potentials was assessed in 19 patients undergoing percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. Signal-averaged electrocardiograms were performed before angioplasty, during ischemia caused by balloon inflation and after angioplasty. Five of 19 patients developed late potentials that reverted to normal after angioplasty.

Accessory and ectopic scrotum with VATER association.

Scrotal ectopia or accessory scrotum are both rare conditions. This report describes a neonate with both abnormalities, who also has elements of the VATER association. This constellation of anomalies has not been previously described.

Use of a novel technique of cutaneous lavage for diagnosis of Lyme disease associated with erythema migrans.

Objective: Determining the microbial cause of cellulitis is often difficult. In this study, a novel two-needle lavage technique was used to culture Borrelia burgdorferi from the skin of suspected erythema migrans lesions.

Design: The yield of lavage cultures for B burgdorferi was compared with that of a 2-mm skin biopsy sample.

Elevated pulmonary artery systolic storage volume associated with improved ventilation-to-perfusion ratios in acute respiratory failure.

The possibility that an elevated pulmonary artery systolic storage volume (PASSV) correlates with improved overall ratios of ventilation-to-perfusion and hence benefits gas exchange in acute respiratory failure was examined. We examined this by assessing the correlation between PASSV and both the physiologic dead space to tidal volume ratio (VD/VT) and intrapulmonary shunt fraction (Qsp/Qt). The VD/VT and Qsp/Qt were used as an index of distribution of ventilation-to-perfusion as well as efficiency of pulmonary gas exchange.

Effects of fentanyl-diazepam-pancuronium anesthesia on heart rate variability: a spectral analysis.

The effects of induction of anesthesia with fentanyl, 62.1 +/- 7.9 micrograms/kg, diazepam, 0.

Copepods associated with a perirectal abscess and copepod pseudo-outbreaks in stools for ova and parasite examinations.

We observed copepods, an intermediate host for several human parasites, in material obtained from a perirectal abscess of a 22-year-old man with Crohn's disease. We subsequently noted copepod "outbreaks" in stool specimens submitted for ova and parasite examination. Copepods in the hospital tap water supply were the source for one "outbreak".

Pressure techniques for the prevention of hypertrophic scar.

No ideal or all-purpose method of scar control exists. Successful management of hypertrophic scar depends on early and aggressive treatment. The creative use of available products facilitates the production of a cosmetic and functional scar.

Development of a real-time algorithm for predicting sufentanil plasma levels during cardiopulmonary-bypass surgery using a systems approach.

During cardiopulmonary-bypass (CB) procedures, anesthesiologists have traditionally based the administration of narcotics on general dosage recommendations and past experience. Initial doses are usually based on body weight and supplemental amounts are given in anticipation of, or in response to, the effects of surgical stimuli. There has been considerable recent interest in using the population pharmacokinetics of narcotics to optimize the attainment and maintenance of drug plasma concentrations at analgesic target levels which will blunt the hemodynamic responses to noxious stimuli.

Nocardiosis in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection. Report of 2 cases and review of the literature.

Nocardia infection is a rarely reported opportunistic infection in HIV-infected patients. Nocardiosis typically occurs in HIV-infected patients with advanced immunodeficiency (89% of cases), often as the initial serious opportunistic infection (42% of cases). In most HIV-infected patients, nocardia infection is disseminated at the time of diagnosis and is characterized by an indolent course that may be difficult to differentiate from other systemic infections.

Clinical trials: impact evaluation and implementation considerations.

It is commonplace for oncology nurses to care for patients entered on clinical trials. However, clinical research can impose a significant impact on the resources of sponsoring institutions or agencies, especially in today's environment of cost containment. Thus, institutions and nurses are increasingly involved in systematic resource impact evaluations to determine their commitment to cancer clinical trials.

Diltiazem enhances potassium disposal in subjects with end-stage renal disease.

Seven subjects with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who were anuric and dialysis-dependent were studied during a 28-hour interdialytic period to assess changes in plasma potassium. Plasma potassium, glucose, magnesium, aldosterone, and cortisol were measured every 4 hours. Eight normal subjects were similarly treated.

Improving the autopsy rate at a university hospital.

Purpose: Although the autopsy is widely recognized as an invaluable tool for medical education, as well as the gold standard by which the accuracy of diagnoses are measured, there has been a steady decline in the autopsy rate over the last 20 years. At Westchester County Medical Center, a university hospital of New York Medical College, we observed an alarming drop in our autopsy rate. We realized that the methods used to obtain consent from the family of the deceased were haphazard and often left to the junior houseofficer available.

Prospective evaluation of heart block complicating early Lyme disease.

Lyme disease is a recognized cause of heart block/carditis. The incidence of heart block complicating early Lyme disease has not been prospectively evaluated. In this study, 61 patients with early Lyme disease documented by the rash of erythema migrans were prospectively evaluated for carditis.

Hepatic resections for primary and metastatic tumors using the ultrasonic surgical dissector.

We have previously described the development of new hepatic surgical techniques using the ultrasonic surgical dissector. With 10 years' experience, we have found that major liver resections have been simplified and that the technique is repeatable in hands other than our own. Thirty-three patients had 37 tumors, averaging 5.

Primary cardiac tumors. Diagnosis and management in 14 cases.

In our experience over a 10-year period at Westchester County Medical Center (Valhalla, NY), we diagnosed 11 left atrial myxomas and three primary cardiac malignancies in ten females and four males, aged 18-74 years. Two-dimensional echocardiography enabled the correct diagnosis of these lesions. Detailed characteristics of the cardiac tumors were provided by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning in five patients.

Incidence and prevalence of Lyme disease in a suburban Westchester County community.

This study was designed to determine the incidence and prevalence of Lyme disease in a section of Chappaqua, NY, a residential community in which Lyme disease is epidemic, and to identify risk factors for this disease. On the basis of clinical history and baseline serologic testing, the overall prevalence of Lyme disease for 114 persons entering the study was 8.8%.

Absence of infectious human immunodeficiency virus type 1 in "natural" eccrine sweat.

Although human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) has been found in numerous body fluids, there are no reports of attempts to demonstrate this virus in eccrine sweat, a fluid frequently encountered during person-to-person interactions. "Natural" eccrine sweat samples and blood from 50 HIV-1-seropositive patients and 2 HIV-1-seronegative controls were cultured for HIV-1 by a cocultivation method. Polymerase chain reaction for HIV-1 RNA and proviral DNA was done on 40 sweat samples (39 patients, 1 control).

Doppler studies of the uteroplacental circulation in pregnancies complicated by diabetes.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the uteroplacental side of the circulation in pregnancies complicated by diabetes. A total of 54 women with pregnancies complicated by diabetes underwent uterine and umbilical artery Doppler studies. Uterine Doppler velocity waveforms were not obtained in two women.

Comparison of nifedipine and ritodrine for the treatment of preterm labor.

Treatment of preterm labor with beta-sympathomimetics has been questioned because of the many maternal and fetal complications associated with its use. Nifedipine, a calcium antagonist, has been shown to suppress uterine activity in vitro and in vivo. A randomized prospective study was performed to compare the efficacy of nifedipine to ritodrine in the suppression of preterm labor.