[Psychologic adjustment to therapy in children with cancer]. / Osobennosti psikhologicheskoi adaptatsii k lecheniiu detei s onkopatologoiei.

Peculiarities of adjustment of pediatric cancer patients and their perception of the disease were studied in a group of 29 including 12 cases of hematooncological diseases and 17 cases of different solid tumors. Projective psychological methods were used. Such menifestations of failure to adjust as lower selfesteem, feeling of guilt, helplessness, passivity, anxiety and fear were observed in nearly all the patients. Adequate adjustment was found to be determined by the formation of a similarly adequate perception of the disease which in turn becomes possible when the problems involved were discussed with the patient by competent medical staff and well-counseled parents in an open and trust-worthy manner.

[The role of parents in the psychological adjustment of children with cancer]. / Rol' roditelei v psikhologicheskoi adaptatsii detei s onkopatologiei.

The behavior of parents may have a decisive impact on the child's adjustment to treatment. Their positive attitudes have a calming effect, support the patient's emotionally and overcome problems and bear sufferings involved in the treatment. Conversely, negative attitude may ruin the adjustment and provoke pessimism, lack of cooperation and even aggressiveness. Although the nature and degree of parental behavior and attitude may vary, their impact on pediatric patient adaptation processes shows a general trend. Of particular importance is the pattern of parental attitude at stages of treatment which involve frustration, extrapunitive behavior of parents being a possible negative factor. Our experience suggests that psychologists employed at children's oncological clinics should provide more counseling for parents and more training professional for the medical staff to improve adjustment of patients to therapy.

[Characteristics of intracellular and excretory glycosaminoglycans in hereditary mucopolysaccharidoses]. / Kharakteristika vnutrikletochnykh i ékskretiruemykh glikozaminoglikanov pri nasledstvennykh mukopolisakharidozakh.

A system for detection and diagnostication of mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) was organized to ensure the medico-genetic service of the families, where these diseases occurred. Content of intracellular and urinary glycosaminoglycans (GAG) was studied by means of a number of methods in various types of MPS. Amount of excreted GAG's was expressed as relative units to reduce the age differences. In all the patients with MPS hyperexcretion of GAG's was found, except of some cases of MPS IV, as well as the spectrum of non-dialyzed and cetyl pyridinium chloride precipitated GAG's was altered, where the latter fraction was increased and high molecular GAG's were also prevailed as compared with normal state. All the patients were divided into four classes depending on the spectrum of GAG's excreted as shown by means of electrophoresis. The data obtained in estimation of GAG's using electrophoretic technique corresponded to the results of column chromatographic analyses but the electrophoretic procedure was distinctly less labour-consuming.

[Characteristics of the Gd- alleles discovered in a population check of pupils in the city of Kostroma]. / Kharakteristika allelei Gd-, vyiavlennykh pri populiatsionnom obsledovanii uchashchikhsia g. Kostromy.

The population study of distribution of G-6-PD alleles among normal Russian school-children of Kostroma town was carried out. In total, 952 children were examined, 429 girls and 523 boys (from 7 to 18 years old). The frequency of Gd- alleles is 0.36%. Two Gd- alleles discovered in this study belong to the III class. One of them was characterized according to the WHO programme. This allele designated "Kostroma" has not been described earlier.