Resonance signatures in the body-frame valence photoionization of CF4.

We present a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of the electron dynamics and body-frame angular dependence of valence photo-single ionization of CF4 and subsequent dissociation into CF3+ and F. Ionization from a valence t2 orbital shows overlapping shape resonances close to threshold that couple to the same total symmetry, leading to striking changes in the photoelectron angular distributions when viewed in the body-frame.

Impact of handgun types on gun assault outcomes: a comparison of gun assaults involving semiautomatic pistols and revolvers.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether gun assaults committed with semiautomatic pistols are more injurious and lethal than those committed with revolvers. SETTING: Jersey City, New Jersey from 1992 through 1996. METHODS: Using police records on fatal and non-fatal handgun assaults, t tests and chi(2) tests were employed to determine if attacks with pistols result in more shots fired than those with revolvers, leading to more gunshot victims and more severely wounded victims. RESULTS: More shots were fired in attacks with pistols (average = 3.2 to 3.7) than in attacks with revolvers (average = 2.3 to 2.6). Although pistol use was unrelated to the probability that an incident resulted in any injury or death, it was associated with a 15% increase in the number of wounded victims in those cases in which people were shot (1.15 per pistol case, 1.0 per revolver case), implying that the total number of gunshot victims may have been 9.4% lower had pistols not been used in any attacks. Pistol use was not related to the number of wounds per gunshot victim. CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide limited evidence that recent growth in the production and use of pistols has contributed to higher levels of gunshot victimizations. However, available data did not permit an assessment of whether the associations between gun types and assault outcomes are mediated by characteristics of incidents and actors.

Brain injury: quality of life's greatest challenge.

The objectives of this investigation were to (1) identify elements that comprise an acceptable quality of life (Q-L) post-traumatic brain injury (TBI) from the perspectives of patients and families, and (2) explore patient and family satisfaction with treatment decisions relevant to QoL. The authors created, tested, and administered two forms (patient; family) of a 35-question interview to 33 participants in a longitudinal TBI study (14 women, 19 men) and 33 associated family members. Men associated ratings of QoL with numerous variables, while women's responses revealed no significant relationships shared by QoL and other variables. Women reported a poorer QoL than did men. Older patients reported a better QoL than did younger patients. Families emphasized the family relationship, emotional control, and ability to concentrate when considering overall QoL. Patients did not. The majority of patients and families expressed satisfaction with decisions made about acute treatment. QoL research is essential to illuminate best practice models.

Gene-centromere mapping of 312 loci in pink salmon by half-tetrad analysis.

We estimated recombination rates between 312 loci and their centromeres in gynogenetic diploid pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) that we produced by initiating development with irradiated sperm and blocking the maternal second meiotic division. Amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) were significantly more centromeric than loci identified by three other techniques (allozymes, microsatellites, and PCR using primer sequences from interspersed nuclear elements). The near absence of AFLPs in distal regions could limit their utility in constructing linkage maps. A large proportion of loci had frequency of second division segregation (y) values approaching 1.0, indicating near complete crossover interference on many chromosome arms. As predicted from models of chromosomal evolution in salmonids based upon results with allozyme loci, all duplicated microsatellite loci that shared alleles (isoloci) had y values of nearly 1.0.

Alteration in gastrointestinal and neurological function after electrical injury: a review of four cases.

OBJECTIVE: Individuals exposed to an electrical injury develop a variety of complications, several of which are recognized years after the initial electrical shock. Alteration in gastrointestinal and nervous system function has been described in these patients, yet the frequency and character of these abnormalities are poorly understood. We reviewed records of 40 individuals with a history of electrical injury to identify evidence of delayed onset of complications. METHODS: Forty consecutive patients with electrical shock injuries were monitored for up to 5 yr after their traumatic event using a comprehensive systems review. Of the eight patients who described an alteration in their gastrointestinal and neurological functions, four agreed to undergo further testing. Investigations included a flexible sigmoidoscopy, anorectal manometry, stool evaluation, serological and biochemical serum analysis, and a psychological examination. RESULTS: Each of the four patients described an increase in stool frequency and urgency. Anorectal manometry detected a reduction in threshold to rectal balloon distention and an abnormal anal sphincter control. Bowel function improved with meselamine. Psychiatric symptoms involving memory and concentration were observed in varying degrees. CONCLUSIONS: To our knowledge, these induced physiological and psychological changes after exposure to electrical shock injury have not yet previously been described. Our findings should encourage further clinical investigations to better anticipate, diagnose, and manage these and other as yet unrecognized delayed complications of electrical shock injury.

AST/ALT ratio > or = 1 is not diagnostic of cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Medical guidelines for interferon-alpha2a or -alpha2b (IFN-alpha) treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection depend upon baseline liver histology. A better long-term response to IFN-alpha therapy correlates with less inflammation and absence of cirrhosis. It has been suggested that the presence of cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection may be predicted based on an AST/ALT ratio > or = 1. This study was designed to determine if the presence of cirrhosis can be predicted in patients with chronic HCV infection by such a ratio. Seventy-seven patients, including 23 cirrhotics, with chronic HCV infection were studied. Serum ALT, AST, and HCV-RNA levels and hepatic activity index (HAI), reflecting histologic inflammation in all liver biopsies, were assessed. AST/ALT ratios and mean ALT, AST, and HCV-RNA were determined for both cirrhotic and noncirrhotic patients. HAI was correlated with ALT, AST, and HCV-RNA levels, the latter determined by quantitative RT-PCR. The likelihood ratio (LR) and positive predictive value of an AST/ALT ratio > or = 1 for cirrhosis was 7.3 and only 77%, respectively. In cirrhotics vs noncirrhotics, there were no significant differences between mean serum ALT (149 +/- 28 vs 176 +/- 17 units/liter), AST (139 +/- 28 vs 102 +/- 8 units/liter), or HCV-RNA levels (589,160 +/- 147,053 vs 543,915 +/- 75,497 copies/ml), respectively. There was a significant, but clinically weak, correlation between serum ALT and HAI (r = 0.234), and none between HAI and either serum AST or HCV-RNA levels. Our results support the need for a liver biopsy prior to treatment of chronic HCV infection, since the AST/ALT ratio fails to predict accurately the presence of cirrhosis.

Pavement temperature and burns: streets of fire.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To measure pavement temperatures over a 24-hour period to determine when patients are at risk for burns and to report cases of pavement burns with predisposing factors. DESIGN: Descriptive study of pavement temperatures and retrospective case series of 23 patients with pavement burns admitted to the Maricopa Medical Center during the years 1986 to 1992. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-three patients with pavement burns serious enough for them to be admitted to the burn center. RESULTS: We measured the temperatures of asphalt, cement, and other outdoor materials hourly for one 24-hour period using a thermocouple thermometer. Asphalt pavement was hot enough to cause burns from 9 AM to 7 PM during the summer months. It was hot enough to cause a second-degree burn within 35 seconds from 10 AM to 5 PM. The group of burned patients could be divided into three categories: incapacitated, restrained, and sensory deficient. All burns involved less than 13% of the total body surface area. CONCLUSION: During summer days in the desert, pavement is often hot enough to cause burns and does so with regularity in the southwestern United States. No one should be allowed to remain in contact with hot pavement, even transiently.

Motor evoked potentials in the dog: effects of global ischemia on spinal cord and peripheral nerve signals.

Motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in cats, rats, and humans have been reported. They appear promising as a test of central nervous system function, and they are sensitive not only to mechanical injury but also to ischemia. In mechanical trauma, the peripheral nerve response is much more sensitive to damage than the cord response, with a lower threshold and an earlier disappearance. We are reporting that the MEP can also be produced in the dog and that, under conditions of cardiac arrest induced by fibrillation, the peripheral nerve response disappears first at about 30 seconds and then the spinal cord response disappears at about 10 to 13 minutes. The late disappearance of the spinal cord response raises serious questions about its role as an adequate injury monitor. The most useful warning feature of the spinal cord response is an increase in amplitude during the critical first 2 minutes of arrest. Latency changes in the cord and peripheral nerve response did not seem as useful as amplitude changes in terms of providing adequate detection of injury. We also evaluated the peripheral nerve signals to determine whether they are partially volume-conducted weak muscle responses, and evidence substantiates their nonmuscle origin.

Treatment of acute focal cerebral ischemia with propranolol.

Propranolol's potential as a protective agent against tissue injury has been noted in experimental myocardial, renal and early acute focal cerebral ischemia. The purpose of the present investigation was to study further the effects of racemic (d,l) propranolol on blood-brain barrier permeability, morphological changes, cortical electrical activity, and regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in experimental focal cerebral ischemia. Thirty adult cats, anesthetized with nitrous oxide, underwent 6 hours of right middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion. Fifteen cats were untreated. Fifteen cats were given a continuous infusion of racemic propranolol (1 mg/kg/hr) for 7 hours beginning 1 hour before MCA occlusion and a 4 mg/kg bolus immediately before occlusion, both directly into the right carotid artery. Right Sylvian rCBF did not significantly differ in the treated and untreated groups. Carbon filling defects and vital dye (i.e., Evans blue and fluorescein) extravasation were less severe in the propranolol treated animals. Light microscopic findings demonstrated no difference in infarct size between the two groups. The findings suggest that at doses given, racemic propranolol does not exert a protective effect upon cerebral tissue subjected to 6 hours of incomplete ischemia.

Role of radiation therapy in the treatment of cerebral oligodendroglioma: an analysis of 57 cases and a literature review.

Fifty-seven cases of histologically confirmed cerebral oligodendroglioma treated at the Cleveland Clinic between 1950 and 1980 were reviewed. No difference in the 5-year survival rate was seen in patients treated with postoperative radiation therapy vs. operation alone. These data are compared to previously published series with special emphasis on the role of radiation therapy.