We present a method for auditing and evaluating infant mortality with the aid of a preventability grading system, based on national computerized files of livebirths and infant deaths. Diagnostic categories and specific causes of deaths were classified into one of the following three preventability grades: Preventable (P), Possibly Preventable (PP) ...

In order to prevent the development of essential fatty acid deficiency, 19 premature babies and term infants needing parenteral nutrition were studied during 14 days. Intralipid 20% was administered to ten and sunflower seed oil was rubbed six times daily on the skin of nine infants. Fatty acid pattern of ...

Seven neonaticides were reported during a 14-month period in the State of Iowa. This is an alarming number considering that only one such case was reported in the previous year. The majority of cases involved the birth of a live infant to an adolescent who had reportedly kept her pregnancy ...

Women throughout the ages have preferred to be delivered with their trunks vertical and most delivery positions illustrated in historical texts show birth in an upright posture with abducted thighs. A consumer attitude study in our hospital showed that patients have considerable interest in alternative birth positions. Squatting has been ...

Severe malaria is a major cause of infant and childhood death in the tropics. Effective management relies on rapid diagnosis, prompt administration of parenteral schizonticidal antimalarial drugs, careful fluid balance, prevention of convulsions and early recognition of complications such as hypoglycemia, metabolic acidosis, anemia, pulmonary edema, renal failure, bleeding and ...

In an open comparative study in endoscopically proven cases of duodenal ulcer, concomitant therapy of H2 antagonist was initiated in two randomly allocated, homogenous patient groups, ie, H2 A + RF alginate antacid (Riflux Forte, Sol Pharmaceuticals Ltd) or H2 A + S non-alginate antacid (Siloxogene, Searle Ltd), both Riflux ...

Metabolic bone disease in the growing premature infant is an important disorder owing to inadequate intake of calcium or phosphorus over an extended period of time. Prevention of serious bone disease is an important goal in the care of the VLBW infant. Attempts to reproduce intrauterine bone accretion rates in ...

RDS continues to be a major problem for premature infants despite a better understanding of its pathophysiology and of ways to try to prevent it. To date, prenatal administration of glucocorticoids has been the most widely used method of accelerating fetal lung development. However, several limitations of this therapy have ...

1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) is a potent dopaminergic neurotoxin that causes biochemical, pharmacological, and pathological deficits in experimental animals similar to those seen in human parkinsonian patients. All of the deficits can be prevented by treating mice with selective inhibitors of monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B), including deprenyl, prior to MPTP administration. We ...

An overview of the normal and abnormal functional equilibrium of the lower extremity has been presented. The biomechanical and pathomechanical implications of activity and inactivity on this system have been discussed. Special emphasis has been placed on the effects of musculoskeletal imbalances on foot function. Evaluation and management guidelines for ...

A trial was conducted in an area where organophosphate resistance to the green blowfly of sheep, Lucilia curpina WIED had been reported. Three formulations containing Propetamphos, namely an oil based pour-on, a grease based smear-on, and an emulsifiable concentrate were applied to 300 sheep in an attempt to compare the ...

A detailed review of 100 consecutive head injury deaths in the Natal area was undertaken after forensic autopsies had been performed; neurohistological examination was carried out in 69 cases. It was found that one-third of deaths could have been prevented by medical treatment. Hypoxic and ischaemic brain damage was judged ...

One thousand consecutive deaths from injury in 11 coroner's districts in England and Wales were reviewed by four independent assessors, who studied necropsy reports to identify deaths in hospital that might have been preventable. Of 514 patients admitted to hospital alive, 102 deaths (20%) were judged by all four assessors ...

The effects of 4 proteolytic enzymes, alpha-chymotrypsin, bromeline, collagenase, and lysozyme on amyloid tissue sections from a patient with familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy (FAP) were evaluated. Degradation of amyloid fibrils was significant with alpha-chymotrypsin, moderate with bromeline and collagenase, and slight with lysozyme. All of these proteases except collagenase are used ...

To determine the impact of routine naso-oropharyngeal DeLee and tracheal suction on the prevention of meconium aspiration syndrome, we compared 755 infants with meconium-stained fluid, born during a 12-month period (1983), with a similar group of 742 infants born in a previous year (1975) when these suctioning techniques were not ...

3 major assumptions provided the basis to Malthus' theory of population: food is necessary to human existence; passion between man and woman is necessary and will continue nearly in its present state; and the power of population is indefinitely greater than the earth's power to produce subsistence for humans. With ...

The genetic transmission of X-linked agammaglobulinaemia (XLA) can be determined with high probability using closely linked DNA restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP's). In a family known to be at risk for XLA in male offspring, RFLP analysis demonstrated that the mother was an XLA carrier and her newborn son was ...

The effects of body position during the neonatal period on subsequent functional and postural behaviours were examined in relatively low-risk preterm infants. 44 infants were nursed in the supine position and 37 in a prone position throughout their admission period. Persistent head-turning to the right was observed more often and ...

The purpose of this study is to review retrospectively the deaths that have occurred in the Shelby County detention center from 1970 to 1985. The Shelby County data are compared and contrasted with other studies to discern significant and preventable causes of death in custody. This study confirmed natural causes ...

This study examines whether 72 infant deaths in one urban neighborhood in one year could have been prevented and if so, how. The neighborhood was targeted for a Maternal and Child Health Block Grant demonstration project because of its combination of low income and high rates of unemployment, teenage births, ...

An unsuccessful attempt was made to lyse a large aortic thrombus in a newborn using systemic high-dose streptokinase and urokinase therapy and subsequently the use of heparin failed to prevent the propagation of thrombus. The patient was a seven-day old premature, sick neonate in whom an aortic thrombosis developed following ...

Infantile scoliosis has a potential for progression. This paper discusses the use of a soft material to correct scoliosis in a medically stable, at-risk infant. It illustrates that early intervention is desirable in preventing the progression of the lateral curve of the trunk. It also illustrates that the three-point positioning ...

We report that the bursting pacemaker neuron R15 has central actions on other identified neurons in the abdominal ganglion of Aplysia california. The follower cells are located on the dorsal surface of the left lower quadrant of the ganglion and include members of the LC cell cluster. A spontaneous burst ...

Pertussis (whooping cough), a highly contagious disease of childhood, is increasingly recognized among reproductive-age adults and neonates. Described are three cases of maternal-infant pairs in which mother-to-newborn transmission probably occurred and was the cause of extensive morbidity and cost. Means of recognition, treatment, handling, and prevention of this potentially lethal ...

After recalling some notions of embryology, the authors review in the light of recent literature the main causes of prenatal acquired hypoacusias (of viral, bacterial, parasitic, endocrinologic, toxic or other origins) and of perinatal acquired hypoacusias (prematurity, neonatal hypoxia, obstetrical traumatism, nuclear icterus, toxicity and others) by following a systematic ...

A retrospective survey was undertaken of all deaths in children under 5 in the borough of Wolverhampton over the years 1976-82. Cause of death was classified in terms of preventability and possibly preventable deaths studied in more detail. Birth weight in the study group was significantly lower than that of ...

A program to reduce the incidence of erythroblastosis fetalis was started in Nova Scotia in 1964. Up to the end of 1984, 120 fetuses received 247 intrauterine transfusions. The survival rate was 45.6% in the first 10 years of the program and 66.7% in the next 11 years. For fetuses ...

We have made a preliminary comparison of infant mortality with the preventable causes of death proposed by Rutstein and colleagues, as indicators of the quality of health care. Two analyses were carried out. The first analysis compared the correlations of infant mortality and of the preventable deaths with four health ...

The author outlines the recent advances in the field of developmental disabilities and discusses how these advances have expanded the role and scope of various professional groups. Genetic conditions and chromosomal aberrations, prenatal diagnosis, the infant at risk, and trends in assessing intelligence are detailed within the context of prevention. ...

Daily uptake of lithium salt (LiCl) in the drinking water at a rate of over 100 micrograms/g b.wt (or 2.4 mEq/kg) reduced or suppressed natural torpidity (hibernation) in the Turkish hamster (Mesocricetus brandti). The data indicate a direct influence of lithium on clock-related functions controlling the hibernation process rather than ...

Cost-effectiveness studies were carried out in The Gambia to estimate costs of preventing childhood morbidity and mortality through immunization. For the four priority diseases--neonatal tetanus, pertussis, measles and poliomyelitis--costs per case prevented ranged from $1.30 for pertussis to $655.54 for poliomyelitis. In terms of preventing childhood deaths through immunization, measles ...

Theoretically there are several ways to prevent pyelonephritis and renal scarring caused by P-fimbriated Escherichia coli. Screening for individuals at risk, e.g. those carrying P-fimbriated pyelonephritogenic E. coli or those with high receptor density on their uroepithelial cells, could perhaps define a population where prophylaxis with a receptor analogue or ...

Unintentional deaths from suffocation and strangulation account for about 20 percent of all nontransport-related infant and child fatalities in the United States. In the late 1950s, some preventive countermeasures were introduced to reduce the number of deaths resulting from refrigerator or freezer entrapment. A few years later, countermeasures were introduced ...

Transesophageal atrial pacing was used to initiate and terminate tachycardia in 24 infants (seven female and 17 male, aged 1 to 34 days) with ECG documentation of supraventricular tachycardia. Six infants received no chronic treatment, and chronic oral digoxin prophylaxis was administered to 18 infants in an effort to prevent ...

Argininosuccinic aciduria, due to deficiency of argininosuccinic acid lyase, is generally associated with severe neonatal hyperammonaemia and its neurological sequelae. The cases of two siblings with this autosomal recessive disorder are presented. Both infants were preterm and delivered by Caesarean section for maternal pre-eclampsia. The first infant was not diagnosed ...

With the exception of talipes equinovarus, there has been an unfortunate tradition of treating infant foot deformities with benign neglect. Most often the physician who confidently assures the trusting parent that the problem will be outgrown is not present at a later time when symptoms develop and someone else must ...

In several modern pacemakers, end-of-life (EOL) is indicated by a single-step rate drop, which is initiated by a voltage-sensitive electronic switch. This switch may also be activated by other causes, such as very short voltage drops, low temperatures, and electrocautery. We report a case in which a Cordis 233 F ...

Administration of silver nitrate 1% solution into the eyes of the newborn has proven effective in the prophylaxis of gonococcal neonatal conjunctivitis. Silver nitrate, however, is not active against Chlamydia trachomatis, the most common cause of neonatal conjunctivitis. Also, silver nitrate commonly is associated with substantial chemical irritation. For these ...

There appears to be no doubt that where there is supportive obstetric care and intensive neonatal care, the long-term outlook for the very preterm infant has improved dramatically since the 1950s. However, the rate of neurodevelopmental handicap in these children is still unacceptably high when compared with term infants. To ...

Increased fibrinolytic activity in the ganglionic eminence of the preterm human brain has been proposed as a factor in the aetiology of periventricular haemorrhage. The effect of tranexamic acid in preventing periventricular haemorrhage was evaluated in 100 infants in a double blind, randomised controlled trial. Haemorrhages developed in 22 infants ...

An effort was made to present the historical development of postmilking teat sanitizers, to discuss advantages and limitations of postmilking teat sanitization relative to specific mastitis pathogens, regulatory requirements, and the generic types of teat sanitizers. Methodologies used to evaluate the potential of teat sanitizers in reducing incidence of new ...

Neonatal tetanus affects 1 in every 82 and kills 1 in every 110 infants born in the town of Juba, southern Sudan. It is also an important cause of death in adult life both in southern Sudan and in many other regions of the developing world. One vehicle of infection ...

An increase in the infection rate both in mother and newborn after antenatal administration of corticosteroids for prevention of RDS has been shown. The aim of this study was to compare PMN functions in two groups of premature infants whose mothers had received betamethasone or ambroxol for prevention of RDS. ...

The high mortality rate observed in newborn infants who contract bacterial sepsis within the first day of life has prompted investigators to seek new methods for the prevention and treatment of this disorder. Among the putative measures recommended for prevention are: administration of antimicrobials to all infants at the time ...

The changing incidence of idiopathic scoliosis in 672 patients who attended the Edinburgh Scoliosis Clinic between 1968 and 1982 inclusive is reported. Of these patients, 144 had infantile, 51 juvenile and 477 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Thirty-seven of the infantile curves progressed and 107 resolved. The relative frequency of both progressive ...

Without preventive measures, gonococcal ophthalmia will develop in approximately 28% of infants born to women with gonorrhea, a disease that is relatively frequent and largely asymptomatic in pregnant women. In addition, in some settings conjunctivitis caused by Chlamydia trachomatis may be more frequent than gonococcal conjunctivitis among neonates. The Canadian ...

For two decades the perinatal mortality caused by erythroblastosis has been decreasing in Manitoba. The improved management of Rh-immunized pregnancies has lowered the death rate among affected infants from 10.8% to 3.4%, while the prevention of Rh immunization has reduced its incidence from 9.1 to 2.2 per 1000 total births. ...

Marked female Anopheles culicifacies were released into an enclosed palm-leaf hut at dusk and survivors recovered the following drawn by hand on several occasions before and after spraying with the insecticide malathion. Pre-spray releases yielded only 25-50% recovery which was thought to be due to concealment of resting mosquitoes in ...

A longitudinal survey of child health in Juba was done to secure data on which preventive schemes could be based. 223 pregnant women were identified in a systematic search of a district. 5 infants were stillborn and 10 were born prematurely. The mothers of 5 of the 10 premature infants ...

We describe a new method of formulating stopping rules for clinical trials, one that incorporates opinion on what difference is clinically important. We compare the method with conventional group sequential designs and illustrate it by application to a study of Pancuronium Bromide for prevention of haemorrhage in pre-term infants.