Search

The importance of psychosocial factors on the etiology and fluctuating disease activity of psoriasis has been discussed in recent years. The present experiment investigated whether psoriatics in an anger-inducing situation show less aggressive verbal behaviour than average person. Twenty-six psoriatics and 26 matched healthy controls were randomly assigned to either an anger-inducing or a non-anger-inducing social situation. The experimental conditions were arranged so that the persons were confronted with either negative, derogatory, or positive, favorable feedback on eight characteristics (intelligence, appearance, maturity, tolerance, honesty, friendliness, humor, and helpfulness). Standardized feedback was given by a confederate of the experimenter. Immediately after the feedback was received by the subjects the photo hand test (PHT) was applied. The PHT is an item-analyzed, validated projective test for aggression. Two independent raters categorized the subjects' responses into six mutually exclusive categories, including a category for responses with aggressive content. 2 x 2 analysis of variance (psoriatics vs controls; anger-induced vs non-anger induced) were calculated for the aggressive responses and the acting-out score (AOS). The results showed a significant interaction, suggesting that psoriatics did indeed exhibit fewer verbal aggression responses under anger-inducing circumstances than the controls.

The aim of the present study is the validation of a German questionnaire that was designed to assess "infant temperament" by parental judgement. The questionnaire represents an adaptation of Rothbart's "Infant Behavior Questionnaire" (IBQ). It was studied whether the parental judgements concerning positive emotionality, negative emotionality/irritability, motor activity and soothability of the infant are correlated to corresponding observed child behavior. Furthermore we tried to determine influences of parental characteristics on their judgements. 31 First-born healthy 4 months old infants were observed in their home environment as well as in the video laboratory of our institute. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development (Mental Scale) were applied. The mothers filled in the Temperament Questionnaire and scales to assess maternal depression and anxiety. We yielded the expected significant correlations for the scales measuring positive and negative emotionality, and motor activity with the observed behavioral characteristics of the infants. Independent of these results the mothers' judgements of their infant's positive and negative emotionality was associated with maternal depression. We can therefore conclude that the two scales contain subjective and objective elements that are independent of each other.

Most therapists recognize that emotional factors influence the course of neurodermitis (ND). Most studies concerning the influence of experimental, acute stressors brought only inconsistent results in ND. Most likely, the experimental stressors chosen thus far were only able to poorly simulate the reactions to real stressors in neurodermitis patients. More recent articles, however, were able to demonstrate changes in psychoimmunological parameters under experimental stress conditions in ND in comparison with a control group of persons with healthy skin. Retrospective studies, serial analyses over time and psychotherapeutic evaluation studies were able to demonstrate even more clearly that emotional factors influence the course of ND.

Adrenocortical carcinoma is a rare tumor which can extend into the right heart via the inferior vena cava. We describe a case of a 26-year-old woman who had progressive shortness of breath, intermittent chest pain, and peripheral edema. A two-dimensional echocardiogram on hospital admission showed a large multinodular mass in the right atrium which extended into the inferior vena cava. Further studies showed that this mass was adrenocortical carcinoma. An echocardiogram performed 3 weeks before admission was completely normal. It appears that an adrenocortical carcinoma is capable of rapid growth up the inferior vena cava and into the right atrium.

To determine whether replication of arterial smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in response to mechanical injury would occur in the absence of serum and other cells, we created an in vitro model in which confluent, growth-arrested cultures of rat SMCs were injured by gentle pressure of a soft plastic tube and then kept in serum-free medium for up to 4 days. Replication of SMCs in and around the injury, as measured by tritiated thymidine incorporation, was noted within 24 hours and peaked at 48 hours after injury, whereas noninjured cells remained quiescent. An increased expression of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) A mRNA, noted 6 hours after injury, was followed by an increased PDGF AA immunoreactivity in SMCs in and around the zone of injury at 24 and 48 hours after injury. A PDGF A chain antisense oligonucleotide inhibited 87.0 +/- 4.0% (P < .005) of SMC replication in the injury zone, whereas the corresponding sense oligonucleotide reduced SMC replication by only 37.2%. An antibody to fibroblast growth factor (FGF) almost completely inhibited SMC replication in the injured zone, whereas an antibody to PDGF AA was without effect. Incubation of SMCs with FGF increased PDGF A mRNA levels in SMCs, and 5 mumol/L PDGF A antisense oligonucleotides reduced FGF-induced SMC replication by 62%. Taken together, these results demonstrate that injured rat SMCs in culture release FGF that activates DNA synthesis of neighboring SMCs both by a direct mechanism and by stimulating the production of PDGF AA.

Presented is the description of the objective, environmental demands of a medical intensive care unit (MICU). These are significant as the situational background of the subjective perception of working-situation by nurses and physicians. Therefore on the one hand a strain-index of the MICU in process of 101 days shows the daily variation of straining variables and a cycle of 33 days. On the other hand, we found days with a specific pattern of straining variables by a factor-analysis. These results were discussed on a stress-theoretical view.

Within the first year, 15-20% of coronary artery saphenous bypass vein grafts (SVGs) occlude because of thrombosis or progressive intimal hyperplasia. One potential new strategy to reduce this complication would be to introduce antithrombotic or antiproliferative genes in vein grafts before implantation. The success of this approach requires an efficient DNA delivery system. In the present study we tested the feasibility of using adenovirus-transferrin/polylysine-DNA complexes (TfAdpl/DNA) to achieve high-efficiency gene transfer into vascular interposition vein grafts. All studies used the Escherichia coli LacZ (beta-galactosidase [beta-Gal]) reporter gene under the control of the cytomegalovirus (CMV) earlier promoter and enhancer (pCMV/LacZ). Autologous rabbit jugular vein segments were incubated ex vivo for 60 min in a solution of TfAdpl/DNA complexes (1.2 x 10(10) biotinylated adenovirus particles, 2,430 ng of streptavindylated polylysine. 10 micrograms of plasmid DNA, and 9 micrograms of transferrin-polylysine per ml), and then reimplanted across the ligated right carotid artery. Control veins were incubated in TfAdpl solution in which DNA was omitted. A total of six grafts were treated with TfAdpl/DNA, and two grafts were treated with TfAdpl. Veins were harvested 3 (n = 3) and 7 (n = 3) days later and beta-Gal activity was determined by X-Gal chromogen staining. All six TfAdpl/DNA-treated grafts stained intensely blue, whereas control grafts were negative. Microscopic examination of serial sections revealed intracellular blue granules consistent with beta-Gal activity to be present in all of the endothelial cells and in numerous medial and advential cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

This empirical study investigates defined influences and central tendencies within the process of an inpatient treatment in a case of urticaria. The results demonstrate substantial correlations between the course of treatment and endocrinological as well as immunological data. Objective biological parameter and psychodynamic case description complement and enrich each other.

Background: Models for predicting operative mortality for coronary bypass surgery assume that preoperative risk factors affect mortality to the same extent in all patients groups., Methods and Results: To determine whether certain preoperative risk factors disproportionately increase operative mortality in the elderly, 663 consecutive elderly patients (age 75 years or older) and 1,464 younger patients (age 65 or younger) undergoing isolated coronary bypass surgery between 1982 and 1990 were studied. Hospital mortality was significantly greater in the elderly patients than in younger patients (7.5% versus 1.8%; relative risk, 4.5). Univariate analysis identified age, prior coronary artery bypass grafting, congestive heart failure, left main disease, New York Heart Association functional class, hypertension, prior myocardial infarction (MI), and preoperative atrial fibrillation as associated with mortality. Multivariate analysis was then used to construct a model to describe the risk of operative mortality in terms of selected risk factors. However, comparison of observed mortality rates with those predicted by the model revealed problems with the model's goodness of fit. Further testing revealed that young patients without prior MI had a mortality rate lower by an order of magnitude than either younger patients with prior MI or elderly patient groups with and without MI. Two separate models were therefore constructed stratifying by the presence of prior MI. This resulted in a significant improvement in the fit of the models to the observed data., Conclusions: These results suggest that the impact of risk factors on the elderly may be significantly different from the effect of these risk factors on younger patients. Models for predicting outcome after bypass surgery should be tested for potential interactions between age and risk factors.

Recent data suggest that the heart can act as both a source and target for the actions of polypeptide growth factors. Insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) is a polypeptide that has both mitogenic and differentiation properties that function at the autocrine/paracrine level, and has recently been demonstrated to be expressed in the heart. This knowledge, coupled with the observation that thyroid hormone (T3) promotes relative cardiac growth compared to the proportional increases in body and heart growth evoked by growth hormone (GH), lead us to speculate whether differential induction of cardiac IGF-I may account for the specialized trophic effects of T3 on the heart. Cardiac IGF-I gene expression was studied in an in vivo model in which cardiac growth in the hypophysectomized juvenile rat was stimulated with either GH, T3 or GH + T3. Two week infusions of T3 that resulted in cardiac growth, but no gain in body weight, resulted in a 4.6-fold increase in cardiac IGF-I mRNA levels compared to hypophysectomized controls. GH infusions that resulted in similar cardiac growth, but were accompanied by proportional body growth, had no effect on cardiac IGF-I mRNA levels. These data are the first to demonstrate stimulation of cardiac IGF-I mRNA levels by T3 and further support cardiac autocrine/paracrine actions for this polypeptide growth factor.

The Giessen Subjective Complaints List for children (GSCL-C) a questionnaire on physical complaints in self-image form, was developed out of the adult GSCL. The questionnaire contains items from the areas; general wellbeing, vegetative complaints, pains, emotionality and children's complaints. The subject is asked to estimate the degree of distress caused by each complaint (never/rarely/sometimes/often/always). Factor analysis based on a sample of 1047 schoolchildren aged 9 to 15 revealed five complaint complexes containing seven items each, which were subsequently grouped into the following scales: (1) Exhaustion, (2) Gastric Complaints, (3) Pains in Limbs, (4) Circulatory Problems, (5) Cold Symptoms. The sum of the five scales makes up the sixth scale score, overall distress. Besides describing the development of the instrument and its scales, sex- and age-related norms are given and the assessment criteria explained. Procedure and areas of application are also discussed.

Although variation in ventricular cycle length during Wenckebach-type second-degree atrioventricular block traditionally has been explained by the direction of incremental change in PR lengthening preceding the blocked complex, changing PP intervals can also affect Wenckebach periodicity. A generalized algebraic solution was derived to define changing ventricular cycle length as a function of both changing PP and changing incremental PR interval behavior in Wenckebach block. Based on this solution, the determinants of cycle-length variation were examined for 65 episodes of Wenckebach block detected by ambulatory electrocardiography in 51 patients. As previously demonstrated, only 20% (13 of 65) of Wenckebach episodes were characterized by the "classic" shortening of RR intervals; in contrast, ventricular cycle length increased in 57% (37 of 65) and remained constant in 23% (15 of 65) of cases. Algebraic analysis of these episodes revealed that the direction of ventricular cycle-length change preceding the blocked complex was primarily determined by the direction of change of incremental PR intervals in only 35% (23 of 65) of Wenckebach episodes; RR change was governed by the direction of change of preceding PP intervals in 34% (22 of 65) and by equal change of PP and incremental PR intervals in 31% (20 of 65) of these episodes. Both inverse and concordant relationships between changing RP and PR intervals were primarily determined by the direction of PP variation during in vivo Wenckebach block. These data confirm that classic Wenckebach block is less common than "atypical" Wenckebach periodicity and demonstrate that RR variation in Wenckebach block is governed by the changing PP interval as often as by the changing incremental PR interval.

About 0.25 percent of all registered industrial accidents are caused by electric current. One in 20 of these accidents has been fatal. The consequences of electric flow are determined by several factors, above all voltage, time and path of flow, type of current, and resistors within the power circuit. These are attributable to physiological criteria of conduction. Slight electric shock and death by ventricular fibrillation are close to each other by the all-or-nothing law. Conclusions are suggested for practice, and a discussion is proposed with a view to find an adequate definition of the power-related accident.

The problem of potential health implications in visual display units (VDUS) workers does not exist when the requested ergonomic equipment of the working place is realized. Repetitive gestures and compulsive attitudes must be avoided. A healthy or optimally corrected visual organ is a prerequisite, as well. According to the hitherto knowledge there is neither to observe a harm of the germ-cells with a raised risk of malformations and abortions due to the emission of electromagnetic waves of the VDUs nor health implication of the pregnant woman. The works doctor has to realize the medical care.