The Medical journal of Australia
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Age-standardized comparisons of mortality rates from four causes in 14 Aboriginal reserves and communities in Queensland were examined. The 14 reserves were allocated to two groups within 10 socioenvironmental variables. The findings point to an association between Queensland government Aboriginal policy, the administration of reserves, and the consequent mortality rates of the residents of these reserves.
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A case of Cushing's syndrome in a 36-year-old woman, in whom the corticosteroid levels remained elevated in peripheral blood despite high doses of dexamethasone (8 mg/day), is reported. Although, on her skull X-ray film, the pituitary fossa was seen to be asymmetrically enlarged and had signs of possible erosion and depression of the floor on the left, the question whether this was an anatomical variant was raised. The correct diagnosis was made after measuring ACTH levels in venous blood samples taken from multiple sites, including the left petrosal sinus, in which a significant elevation of ACTH level, compared with the level in peripheral blood, was found.