Contact with AIDS patients as a source of work-related distress: effects of organizational and social support

In this study, we hypothesized that a nurse's exposure to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients as part of the work role is positively associated with distress as indexed by negative mood at work. Given this expected relation, we sought to identify factors that might reduce the negative effects of caring for AIDS patients on nurses. We predicted that both organizational and social support would moderate the relationship between extent of exposure and negative mood, with the relationship being strongest when support is low and weakest when support is high. The results of tests among a sample of 256 nurses supported all the hypotheses. We discuss implications of this study and directions for future research.

Feeling good-doing good: a conceptual analysis of the mood at work-organizational spontaneity relationship

Five forms of organizational spontaneity are described (helping co-workers, protecting the organization, making constructive suggestions, developing oneself, and spreading goodwill). Organizational spontaneity is compared with the seemingly analogous constructs of organizational citizenship behavior and prosocial organizational behavior. Based on a selective review of the literature, a multilevel model of spontaneity is presented. Positive mood at work is a pivotal construct in the model and posited as the direct precursor of organizational spontaneity. Primary work-group characteristics, the affective tone of the primary work group, affective disposition, life event history, and contextual characteristics are proposed to have direct or indirect effects, or both, on positive mood at work. Motivational bases of organizational spontaneity also are described. The model and its implications are discussed.

Differential regulation in the avian song control circuit of an mRNA predicting a highly conserved protein related to protein kinase C and the bcr oncogene

An RNA identified by differential cDNA cloning (HAT-2) is highly enriched in canary forebrain in areas associated with the control of complex learned behaviors and higher perceptual processes. The nucleotide sequence predicts a protein that is 96% identical to the product of the n-chimaerin gene isolated from human brain and contains two identifiable domains suggesting a novel role in signal transduction processes. One domain is similar to the sequence in protein kinase C which mediates diacylglycerol binding and regulation. The second domain is similar to a portion of BCR, a GTPase-activating protein encoded by the breakpoint cluster region gene. In male canaries examined during the song season, HAT-2 RNA shows variable expression within the song control circuit, and is notably less abundant in the three nuclei which concentrate androgens (HVC, RA and L-MAN). A fundamental function in the vertebrate forebrain and a possible role in the regulation of neural plasticity are suggested by the conserved structure and pattern of expression of this gene in the brain.

The use of two-dimensional echocardiography during catheter ablation of the atrioventricular node

Atrioventricular nodal catheter ablation has proved an effective option in patients with drug-refractory, uncontrolled, supraventricular tachyarrhythmias; however, many complications in the immediate post ablative period relate to direct myocardial damage due to the electrical current generated by the catheter. The authors used two-dimensional echocardiography in a 57-year-old female patient with recurrent uncontrolled rapid ventricular rates despite multiple antiarrhythmic medications, in an attempt to identify the sequence of events responsible for complications of the ablation procedure. The echocardiographic images showed evidence of an explosion: microbubbles outlining an expanding force were seen which, if contained in a confined space such as the coronary sinus, might explain previously observed mechanical damage. Two-dimensional echocardiography may be useful for continual monitoring of catheter position during ablation.

Negative affectivity and the reporting of stressful life events

Maddi, Bartone, and Puccetti (1987) and Schroeder and Costa (1984) reported inconsistent findings regarding the impact of negative affectivity (NA; i.e., neuroticism) contaminated life event items on observed life event-illness relationships. Here, unlike the previous studied, such contaminated items were nonjudgmentally identified. Among a sample of managers and professionals, it was found that NA-contaminated items correlated significantly with three measures of well-being (depression, life satisfaction, and physical symptoms) and that uncontaminated items were unassociated with the well-being indicators. Moreover, in two of three cases, the correlations between contaminated items and the well-being measures were significantly different from the correlations between uncontaminated items and the well-being indicators. Therefore, we concluded that prior life event-well-being findings are inflated considerably by the use of NA-contaminated events. Suggestions for future life events research that incorporate the NA construct are detailed.

Measuring affect at work: confirmatory analyses of competing mood structures with conceptual linkage to cortical regulatory systems

Twenty so-called clear markers of positive and negative mood (Watson & Tellegen, 1985) were applied in the current study to measure affect at work. Confirmatory factor analyses of a bipolar Two-Factor (i.e., positive and negative affect) Model and a competing multifactor model were conducted with three samples: managerial and professional workers in an insurance firm, retail sales personnel, and a heterogeneous group of students who were employed. The first-order Two-Factor Model (i.e., descriptively bipolar positive and negative affect factors) hypothesized to underlie the 20 affect items did not provide a strong fit to the data in the three samples. A first-order Four-Factor Model with descriptively unipolar factors labeled as Positive Arousal (Enthusiasm), Negative Activation (Nervousness), Low Arousal (Fatigue), and Low Activation (Relaxation) provided a better fit across the samples. These results support the measurement of positive and negative mood as descriptively unipolar factors. The measurement implications of these results as well as conceptual linkages between the four mood factors and the two major cortical regulatory systems, left-lateralized dopaminergic activation and right-lateralized noradrenergic arousal, are discussed.

Stress in patients with pain in the muscles of mastication and the temporomandibular joints

This study examined the role of stress in subjects having combined muscle and temporomandibular joint pain compared to subjects having only muscle pain or only joint pain. It was found that the combined pain (n = 39) and muscle pain (n = 24) groups had comparable levels of pain intensity and activity impairment. The combined pain group, however, had the lowest level of stress and was rated lower than the muscle group in clinicians ratings of psychological factors, stress and chronicity. The combined pain group and joint pain group (n = 28) were found to be comparable in terms of the clinician's ratings. This data does not support the concept of a progression of symptoms from muscle pain to combined muscle and joint pain that would be expected from a stress-induced muscle hyperactivity model of temporomandibular disorders.

Stress as a factor in muscle and temporomandibular joint pain

Stress-induced muscle hyperactivity has been proposed as a major aetiological factor in the production of pain in the muscles of mastication and the temporomandibular joints. In the present study, a total of fifty-two patients with joint or muscle pain were evaluated for stress with the Derogatis Stress Profile (DSP). The muscle pain group (n = 24) had higher clinician ratings of psychological factors, stress and chronicity. The muscle-pain group also had higher Environmental Stress scores on the DSP, more intense pain, and more activity impairment than the joint-pain group (n = 28). The results of multiple regression analysis suggest an association between pain, depression, and impairment of activity in the muscle-pain group but not in the joint-pain group. The overall results further suggest that muscle pain develops at 'normal' levels of stress.

Correlates of dental student stress

The purpose of this study is to identify correlates of dental student stress. Associations between characteristics of dental students and their stress levels are examined, along with the association of stress with drug use and health problems. A total of 300 out of 315 dental students completed a questionnaire that measured the frequency and stressfulness of 31 stressors; drug use; health problems; and student characteristics including Type A behavior, career commitment, demographics, and lifestyle variables. Characteristics that were associated with a higher stress level were a higher level of Type A behavior and lower level of career commitment. Greater stress was also associated with a greater frequency of health problems. The results suggest an interactional stress model in which the personalities and attitudes of students are important mediators of the stress response.

Noise-induced temporary threshold shifts: the effects of anticipatory stress and coping strategies

Temporary Thresholds Shifts were assessed in five groups from before to after 5-minute exposure to 110 dB SPL white noise and in one additional group without noise exposure. In each group the baseline conditions were designed to elevate psychological stress via anticipation of the noise and venipuncture procedures. In the three experimental groups, procedures to reduce psychological stress were employed: Information, Relaxation, and Behavioral Avoidance. Manipulation checks supported the effectiveness of these arousal-reducing interventions. Temporary threshold shifts were considerably greater in two of the experimental conditions than in the noise-exposed control conditions.

Effect of two-week infusion of deamino D-arginine vasopressin in rats

Our purpose was to investigate a method of prolonged desmopressin (DDAVP) infusion in a free roaming rat to better understand the SIADH (syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion) syndrome in man. DDAVP was infused for 2 weeks from implanted self-powered osmotic minipumps. At the end of that time, plasma DDAVP and urine osmolality were both significantly elevated in experimental as compared with control animals. However, hyponatremia and hypoosmolality, which are characteristic in the SIADH, did not develop. Our observations suggest that inappropriate high antidiuretic hormone levels do not necessarily lead to the SIADH either by urine sodium loss or by water retention if animals decrease water intake.

Primary hypothyroidism in chronic renal failure

Serum thyroid hormone concentrations have been measured in 8 patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) who are currently enrolled on a chronic hemodialysis program. Three of these patients were diagnosed to be suffering from coexistent primary hypothyroidism whereas the other 5 were considered euthyroid. There was a variable decline in serum thyroid hormone levels in both groups. However, the serum TSH response to TRH was normal or blunted in the euthyroid group but was characteristically brisk in subjects with CRF and coexistent primary hypothyroidism. The TRH test may be useful in the diagnosis of primary hypothyroidism coexistent with CRF.

Abnormal retinal artery responses to stress in patients with type I diabetes

The brachial artery pressure and retinal artery pressure responses to a one-minute cold pressor test were evaluated simultaneously in 14 patients with type I diabetes mellitus (six with and eight without diabetic retinopathy) and 10 age-matched control subjects. Five patients with type I diabetes had autonomic neuropathy. Mean baseline brachial artery pressure and retinal artery pressure were similar in patients with type I diabetes and control subjects. After cold pressor testing, the brachial artery pressure increased significantly (p less than 0.01) compared with baseline values in both groups. Retinal mean arterial pressures increased significantly (p less than 0.001) after cold pressor testing compared with the baseline values only in patients with type I diabetes. Positive correlation was found between the brachial and retinal mean arterial pressures after cold pressor testing (r = 0.48; p less than 0.05) in the diabetic patients but not in the control subjects (r = 0.10; p = NS). No correlation was found between the retinal artery pressure and age of onset of diabetes, duration of diabetes, the presence or absence of diabetic retinopathy, and glycemic control. Four patients with autonomic neuropathy and low retinal artery pressures, which remained unchanged after cold pressor testing, had no diabetic retinopathy. The fifth patient with autonomic neuropathy and exaggerated systolic brachial artery pressure (175 mm Hg) and retinal artery pressure (more than 80 mm Hg) responses had severe background diabetic retinopathy. In conclusion, abnormal retinal artery responses to stress are present in patients with type I diabetes. This may be modified by the presence or absence of both autonomic neuropathy and hypertension. The biologic significance of these findings is yet to be determined.

The repeatability of rearing performance of Merino and Dorset Horn ewes and its relationship with mature pelvic size

Data from one Dorset Horn and three Merino flocks were used to examine factors influencing the ability of ewes lambing four times to successfully rear their lambs. Repeatability of rearing performance, defined as the ratio of lambs weaned:lambs born, was estimated in three flocks and the intra-class correlation estimates ranged from 0.05 to 0.17, with a mean of 0.10. Ewes rearing at least one lamb at their first lambing reared an average of 7.6% more lambs at each of the subsequent three lambings, compared with those that failed to rear a lamb at their first lambing. Mean pelvic dimensions, notably the conjugate diameter and the area of the pelvic inlet, of mature ewes, which reared lambs on three or four occasions were significantly larger in two flocks than in ewes which had poorer rearing performances (P<0.05), whereas in a third flock they were not significantly different. In the two flocks in which the significant differences were observed, mature pelvic dimensions were correlated with rearing performance at individual lambings. Rearing performance in these two flocks increased, respectively, by 16.3 and 6.3% per cm increase in conjugate diameter, and by 1.4 and 0.5% per cm2 increase in pelvic area (P<0.05). The slopes of these linear regressions were significantly greater for single than for twin-born lambs (P<0.05). The relationships between rearing performance and pelvic dimensions were also significantly curvilinear, the slopes of the regressions being significantly steeper below the mean pelvic dimensions than above them (P<0.05). Removing differences between ewes in pelvic dimensions reduced the repeatability of rearing performance. Allowing for differences in conjugate diameter reduced the repeatability in two flocks from 0.15 to 0.05, and from 0.09 to 0.08, respectively. In both flocks, allowing for differences in pelvic dimensions reduced the repeatability of rearing single lambs more than that for twin lambs.

The relationship of endogenous ACTH levels to visual-attentional functioning in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia

The within subject experimental approach of either doubling cortisone medication dose or withdrawing steroid treatment for 36 hr preceding behavioral testing was found to induce corresponding significantly elevated or suppressed plasma ACTH levels, as measured by radioimmunoassay, in six of eight adults diagnosed as having congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). During the session characterized by elevated ACTH levels, the CAH patients exhibited significantly reduced median reaction times on the Sternberg Item Recognition Task. Their response pattern was suggestive of facilitated visual attentional functioning and/or overt motor response capacity rather than alteration of simple cognitive processing. Moreover, Sternberg performance was significantly correlated with endogenous ACTH levels but not with levels of plasma cortisol or cortisone replacement medication. This enhancement of performance paralleled a previous finding of improved performance on the Sternberg paradigm by normal adults following exogenous administration of ACTH 4-10 (Ward et al., 1979). Further analysis of the Sternberg performance suggests that other variables such as mineralocorticoid treatment, type of CAH impairment, and sex may act to moderate the degree of ACTH-related facilitation on this task. Performance on other visual and verbal attention and memory tasks, found earlier to be sensitive indices of exogenous administration of ACTH 4-10 and related fragments, was not significantly altered by manipulation of endogenous ACTH levels in these CAH patients.

Angiotensin II and norepinephrine antagonize the secretory effect of VIP in rat ileum and colon

Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) induces intestinal secretion of water and electrolytes in experimental animals and man. We assessed the ability of angiotensin II (AII) and norepinephrine (NE) to block the secretion evoked by VIP, in vivo. Ileal and colonic segments in rats were perfused in situ for two hours with a physiological buffer containing [14C]-PEG-4000 as a volume marker. Saline (0.9% NaCl) was infused intravenously during the first hour and VIP or a combination of VIP plus AII or NE was infused during the second hour. All (0.7 ng/kg/min) alone enhanced water absorption significantly (p less than 0.01) in the ileum and an appreciable, although not a statistically significant, effect was observed in the colon. AII antagonized the secretory effects of VIP in the ileum as well as in the colon. Norepinephrine (5 micrograms/kg/min) also reversed the effect of VIP on the small intestine and colon. Although the mechanism by which AII antagonizes the secretory effects of VIP has not been identified, it is probable that AII promotes absorption, at least in part secondary to release of mucosal NE.

Specific binding sites for vasoactive intestinal polypeptide on nonadherent peripheral blood lymphocytes

Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP), an octacosapeptide isolated from porcine duodenum and thought to have neuromodulator function in several functional systems (gastrointestinal tract, brain, lung, genital tract, heart), was recently detected in human neutrophils by radioimmunoassay. Subsequent studies demonstrated a VIP-mediated increase in lymphocyte adenylate cyclase. In this paper, VIP binding studies are presented using viable nonadherent human lymphocytes. Binding of 125I-VIP to nylon wool column-purified lymphocytes is specific, time dependent, rapid, and reversible. Bound radioactivity varies linearly with the number of cells used and is displaceable by non-iodinated VIP in a dose-dependent manner with complete displacement between 1 pM and 50 nM. Scatchard analysis of competition experiments demonstrates one class of specific binding sites with a KD of 0.47 +/- 0.23 nM and a Bmax of 24.9 +/- 7.0 pM. This Bmax represents 1700 binding sites/cell. secretin, gastric inhibitory polypeptide, and glucagon did not effectively compete with 125I-VIP for binding sites. This is the first demonstration of VIP receptors in a purified population of human lymphocytes; the data suggest that VIP may modulate lymphocyte function.

Specific binding sites for vasoactive intestinal polypeptide on nonadherent peripheral blood lymphocytes

Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP), an octacosapeptide isolated from porcine duodenum and thought to have neuromodulator function in several functional systems (gastrointestinal tract, brain, lung, genital tract, heart), was recently detected in human neutrophils by radioimmunoassay. Subsequent studies demonstrated a VIP-mediated increase in lymphocyte adenylate cyclase. In this paper, VIP binding studies are presented using viable nonadherent human lymphocytes. Binding of 125I-VIP to nylon wool column-purified lymphocytes is specific, time dependent, rapid, and reversible. Bound radioactivity varies linearly with the number of cells used and is displaceable by non-iodinated VIP in a dose-dependent manner with complete displacement between 1 pM and 50 nM. Scatchard analysis of competition experiments demonstrates one class of specific binding sites with a KD of 0.47 +/- 0.23 nM and a Bmax of 24.9 +/- 7.0 pM. This Bmax represents 1700 binding sites/cell. secretin, gastric inhibitory polypeptide, and glucagon did not effectively compete with 125I-VIP for binding sites. This is the first demonstration of VIP receptors in a purified population of human lymphocytes; the data suggest that VIP may modulate lymphocyte function.