Brain-stem auditory response in Ondine's syndrome

Brain-stem auditory evoked responses were measured during sleep in four infants with congenital central alveolar hypoventilation syndrome (Ondine's syndrome) and four controls matched for age and sex. Delays in peak latencies p III and interpeak latencies p I-III were consistently seen in these patients but not in the control children. These abnormalities were reproducible and suggested disruption in the normal auditory pathways at the level of the mid to upper brain stem through which fibers pass close to the area of respiratory control. These abnormalities, both electrophysiologic and metabolic, imply a functional disturbance of brain-stem control of ventilation during sleep in infants and children suffering from Ondine's syndrome.

Endoscopic sclerotherapy for bleeding rectal varices: a case report

Rectal varices are not hemorrhoids and they are dilated submucosal veins connecting the middle and inferior hemorrhoidal veins. These rectal varices may occur in patients with portal hypertension because of the formation of portosystemic shunts. Like esophageal varices, the rectal varices may also bleed massively. Herein we report a case of such bleeding which was successfully controlled with endoscopic sclerotherapy to the rectal varices.

Splenic lymphosarcoma in a horse

A 10-year-old Tennessee Walker gelding, with a history of progressive weight loss, intermittent colic and lethargy, had a slight fever, tachycardia, tachypnea, pallor, ascites and marked ventral edema. Blood analyses revealed anemia, leukocytosis, neutrophilia with a left shift, lymphopenia, monocytosis, hypoproteinemia and a slightly increased SDH level. Abdominocentesis produced red-orange fluid with many RBC and an increased fibrinogen content. Rectal palpation revealed a large mass in the left caudal abdominal quadrant. The animal died shortly after resection of the mass. The histopathologic diagnosis was lymphosarcoma, involving the spleen, liver and lung.

Thalamic gliomas: clinical and computed tomographic correlations

Sixteen patients who had clinical and CT findings consistent with thalamic gliomas were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were clustered in a younger group of which 89% were females and the older group of which 72% were males. The CT findings were positive for a thalamic mass in all cases; however, other lesions simulated the findings of a thalamic glioma.

Mortality, morbidity and survival after colectomy for colon cancer

Between 1971 and 1980, 346 patients had a carcinoma of the colon resected. Seventy-seven patients had an urgent operation with a hospital mortality of 13.3%; 269 patients had an elective operation with a mortality of 3.8%. Three patients died as a result of anastomotic leakage. Other complications were thromboembolism (2%) and wound infection (14.5%). The overall median survival was 28.4 months and 57 months following curative resection. The clinicopathological staging system used identified 28% of patients as incurable at the time of resection.

Perhexiline maleate induced cirrhosis

Perhexiline maleate is a potent anti-anginal drug which may cause alcoholic-type hepatitis and cirrhosis. We report a case of a patient who developed cirrhosis on a relatively low dose within 16 mth.

How valid are self-report measures for evaluating relationships between women's health and labor force participation?

For a sample of white women aged 45-64, women who were out of the labor force had poorer self-reported health and higher mortality than women who were in the labor force. It has been hypothesized that women who are out of the labor force may tend to exaggerate their poor health in self-report data. However, no evidence of bias of this type was found in an analysis of the relationships between self-reported health and subsequent mortality. The validity of self-reports of illness as a reason for not seeking work has been assessed using data for a sample of 30-44 year old women who were out of the labor force. Over 90% of the women who gave illness or disability as their main reason for not seeking work had previous or contemporaneous independent, self-report evidence of poor health. The findings of this study and previous evidence indicate that poor health reduces the likelihood that a woman will join the labor force, and this is a major reason why women who are not in the labor force have poorer health than those who are in the labor force.

Hypopigmented iris spot. An early sign of tuberous sclerosis

Hypopigmented skin spots, resembling the mountain ash leaf, may represent the earliest sign in tuberous sclerosis. We examined two patients with hypopigmented iris spots who suffered from this systemic disease. These iris spots may be analogous to the skin lesions, which have decreased amount of melanin in the melanosomes.

Reciprocal effects of health and labor force participation among women: evidence from two longitudinal studies

Longitudinal data were analyzed to provide information concerning the effects of health on women's labor force participation and the effects of labor force participation on women's health. The data were from a representative national sample of middle-aged women and a representative sample of women from Alameda County, California. Significant relationships were observed between self-reported health and subsequent changes in labor force participation. Women who reported poorer health were more likely to leave the labor force and less likely to join the labor force. In contrast, no significant relationships were observed between labor force participation and subsequent self-reported change in health. (These latter relationships could be tested only for married women in the national sample.) In conclusion, our analyses provide substantial evidence that health affects women's labor force participation (the healthy worker effect). In contrast, we did not find evidence that, on the average, labor force participation has either harmful or beneficial effects on the general health of middle-aged married women in the United States.

Bronchioloalveolar cell carcinoma of the lung: a clinicopathological study

Thirty-nine patients with bronchioloalveolar carcinoma were reviewed. The primary lung tumor from 27 patients was examined and divided by histological criteria into three categories. The type 1 pattern was associated with a mean survival of 4.7 years. A mean survival of 3.8 years was attained in patients with type 2. Patients with the type 3 pattern had an average survival of 1.4 years. There was a statistically significant difference in survival when types 1 and 2 together were compared with type 3 (rho less than 0.05). Another statistically significant finding was a mean survival of 5.2 years in patients with negative lymph nodes after surgical resection and a 2.2 year mean survival in patients with positive nodes. The tumor histology of bronchioloalveolar carcinoma should be examined carefully to obtain helpful information in predicting survival. We recommend that these tumors be classified as well-differentiated or poorly differentiated bronchioloalveolar carcinoma.

The lissencephaly (agyria) syndrome in siblings. Computerized tomographic and neuropathologic findings

Two consecutive nontwin siblings had the lissencephalic syndrome. The literature of this syndrome in siblings is reviewed, and the somatic and clinicopathologic features and delineated further. Computerized tomography is reported for the first time to our knowledge in this entity as an important, nonivasive, and possibly specific test. Diagnosis early in life is possible for adequate management of the patients and genetic counseling.

Collection and preservation of urine for biochemical analyses

A specialized urine collection apparatus and buffered antimicrobial, urease-inhibiting preservative are reported herein. These techniques provide means for collecting and preserving urine at room temperature for multiple biochemical analyses.