Southern medical journal
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Southern medical journal · Feb 2004
Concentrations of B vitamins and homocysteine in children with sickle cell anemia.
Elevated concentration of serum homocysteine contributes to thrombosis, a frequent event in patients with sickle cell anemia. We aimed to test whether children with sickle cell anemia have elevated concentrations of serum homocysteine with diminished levels of folate or B vitamins from accelerated blood cell turnover. ⋯ Despite comparable intake, children with sickle cell anemia had lower concentrations of vitamin B6 than unaffected children. Larger studies are needed to determine if chronically low serum vitamin B6 concentration contributes to hyperhomocysteinemia in this population.
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Southern medical journal · Feb 2004
Comparative StudyIncidence of constipation associated with long-acting opioid therapy: a comparative study.
Opioid therapy plays a key role in the management of chronic pain. Constipation is one of the more frequently occurring adverse effects associated with opioid therapy. ⋯ In this population, patients receiving transdermal fentanyl had a lower risk of developing constipation compared with those receiving oxycodone CR or morphine CR.
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Southern medical journal · Jan 2004
Prevalence of occult celiac disease in patients with iron-deficiency anemia: a prospective study.
Occult celiac disease has been reported in 0 to 6% of adults presenting with iron-deficiency anemia. Most prior studies have been retrospective or screened only a selected population of patients with small bowel biopsies. To more accurately define the true prevalence of this disorder in patients presenting with iron-deficiency anemia (with or without stool hemoccult positivity), we initiated this prospective study. ⋯ The prevalence of occult celiac disease in this prospective study of patients presenting with iron-deficiency anemia was 2.8%. A significant number of other gastrointestinal lesions amenable to therapy were also found on upper and lower endoscopy in these patients. Given the treatable nature of celiac disease, it should be screened for in patients with unexplained iron-deficiency anemia with or without hemoccult-positive stools.
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Southern medical journal · Jan 2004
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialSex differences in analgesia: a randomized trial of mu versus kappa opioid agonists.
We sought to evaluate whether there is a sex difference in the analgesic response to mu versus kappa opioids in the management of acute moderate to severe pain of injury in the emergency department. ⋯ Females had better pain scores with butorphanol than morphine at 60 minutes.
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Southern medical journal · Jan 2004
Comparative StudyMedical comorbidity in black and white patients with Alzheimer's disease.
Little is known about co-medical illnesses in black and white patients with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD). ⋯ In both groups, black patients with probable AD had a higher rate of hypertension than white patients with probable AD, and whites had higher rates of atrial fibrillation and cancer. This finding suggests that these comorbid illnesses in black and white patients with probable AD is not due to a statistical Type II error, but rather to differences in these groups.