Change and continuity: childbirth and parenting across three generations of women in the United Arab Emirates.

BACKGROUND: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a country that has undergone remarkable physical, economic and social shifts in its short modern history. And while the economic and structural transformations of the society have been well documented and publicized, information about the changes and transformations of family processes is sparse. This study is one of the first steps towards documenting the changes in family processes, namely those related to childbirth and parenting, as described by three generations of Emirati women. METHODS: Family triads of Grandmothers, Mothers and married Daughters (n = 216) were interviewed in local Arabic dialect by Emirati female research assistants. Data were analysed using chi square and Analysis of Variance. RESULTS: Generational differences were found between the Grandmothers, Mothers and Daughters in: number of births, maternal age at first birth, location and type of birth attendant, medication during labour and birth, father presence at birth, social support following birth, feeding and weaning of infant, and preventive infant health care. Changes were not found in the proximity to the mother of the infant during sleep. CONCLUSIONS: The age of first birth has risen for Emirati women and the birth rate may have dropped. Health care has also significantly improved. These results are discussed in relation to government initiatives and physical and social change within the UAE and the Middle East.

Calcitonin gene-related peptide stimulates human villous trophoblast cell differentiation in vitro.

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is a multifunctional peptide present in both maternal and fetal circulations in pregnancy. Its receptors have been identified on human trophoblast cells, but the role of CGRP in trophoblast differentiation remains unknown. This study was designed to determine the effect of CGRP on the differentiation of villous trophoblasts isolated from normal human term placentae. The morphological and functional differentiation of the trophoblast cells were assessed by desmosomal protein immunofluorescent staining and the quantification of hCG, estrogen and progesterone secretion. Results showed that (i) exposure of villous trophoblast cells to CGRP led to a dose-dependent increase in intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) accumulation; (ii) immunofluorescent staining with antidesmosomal antibody was identified at the boundaries between aggregated cytotrophoblast cells, and these stainings disappeared when cells fused to form syncytiotrophoblast cells; (iii) the formation of multinucleated syncytiums in primary cultured cytotrophoblasts was stimulated by CGRP as evidenced by the changes in antidesmosomal staining; (iv) CGRP increases trophoblast hCG secretion in a time- and dose-dependent manner, and this secretion was blocked by CGRP antagonist, CGRP(8-37), and (v) both 17beta-estradiol (E(2)) and progesterone concentrations in the culture medium were increased by CGRP, and these increases were dose dependent. These observations suggest that CGRP may be involved in the morphological and functional differentiation of trophoblast cells, and these actions might be attributed to CGRP-induced intracellular cAMP accumulation.

Thought disorder in schizophrenia and mania: impaired context.

This research studied hypotheses that positive thought disorder in schizophrenia is influenced by patients' not taking in immediate target contextual material, thereby losing vital cues that guide thought processes. We assessed 164 acute inpatients (including 55 schizophrenia and 31 bipolar disorder patients), using standardized measures of thought disorder. We also used new measures that assessed (1) total ignoring of context, and (2) straying from the context. Results were as follows: (1) only 9 percent of the schizophrenia patients showed strong evidence of completely ignoring the external context; (2) straying from the external context while simultaneously maintaining part of the context was significantly more common than complete absence of context (p < 0.01); (3) patients with thought disorder strayed from the context significantly more than patients without thought disorder (p < 0.001); and (4) straying from the context was involved in the thought disorder of some, but not all, schizophrenia and mania patients. The data suggest that thought disorder in schizophrenia is not typically due to a failure to "hear" or to take in the relevant contextual material necessary for an appropriate response. Loss of context is involved in some, but not all, thought disorder in schizophrenia and mania.

Ocular penetration of topical Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol from rabbit corneal or cul-de-sac application site.

PURPOSE: To determine the relative effects of low-volume drop placement either on the corneal surface or in the lower cul-de-sac on Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) penetration into ocular fluids and tissues. METHODS: Pigmented rabbits received 10 microl drops in one eye at either application site. Care was taken to ensure that the drop remained at the site of drug placement. At different intervals after drop administration containing ( 3)H-Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol in combination with either alpha-cyclodextrin or hydroxypropylmethylcellulose as excipients in different vehicles, eye fluids and tissues were harvested, digested, sampled and counted. RESULTS: Greater quantities of THC were found in the corneal epithelium, stroma/endothelium and aqueous humor of treated eyes after corneal drug application relative to values obtained after cul-de-sac drug application. Cul-de-sac applications gave higher values for inferior bulbar conjunctiva compared with corneal application. These results occurred for each vehicle despite a quantitative difference in drug penetration between the two vehicles. No THC was found in untreated contralateral eyes. CONCLUSIONS: Application of a lipophilic drug to the rabbit corneal surface exposed in the interpalpebral space produced higher tissue and fluid drug concentrations in the anterior segment of the eye compared with drug application into the lower cul-de-sac. This observation has relevance to pre-clinical drug toxicity testing as well as drop placement in patients for the treatment of ocular diseases.

Effects of risk factors on adolescents' resiliency and coping.

The relationships among five factors characterized as placing adolescents at risk for behavioral problems such as dropping out of school or drug and alcohol use, and resiliency and coping were evaluated for a sample of 392 students in Grades 7 to 12. Students self-reported to be at-risk differed in scores on resiliency but not in coping from those with no self-reported risk factors.

A behavioral neurogenetics approach to developmental disabilities: gene-brain-behavior associations.

This review provides a discussion of behavioral neurogenetics' contribution to understanding neurodevelopmental pathways in learning and developmental disabilities. A brief overview is given of several common neurogenetic disorders with various genetic etiologies including Down syndrome, Turner syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, Angelman syndrome, and Tourette's syndrome. Special emphasis is placed on fragile X syndrome as representative of a newly-discovered class of genetic conditions characterized by an unstable trinucleotide repeat. A spectrum of cognitive, behavioral, and social-emotional phenotypic features associated with fragile X syndrome is examined. Also included are findings from recent neuroimaging research and a discussion of the need for the classification of symptoms on the basis of underlying genetic/medical conditions.

Analogues of platelet activating factor. 6. Mono- and bis-aryl phosphate antagonists of platelet activating factor.

A series of aryl phosphoglyceride (3, 19-61) and bis-aryl phosphate (67-135) antagonists of platelet activating factor (PAF) were prepared. A group of four bifunctional phosphorus reagents (5a-c and 7) were developed that allowed the preparation of these aryl phosphates in which the position of aromatic substitution can be varied. These compounds were examined for their ability to inhibit PAF-induced platelet aggregation of rabbit platelets. Selected compounds were also evaluated for their ability to displace [3H]PAF from its receptor on rabbit platelets. These in vitro data were compared to similar data obtained for a number of known PAF antagonists. The compounds were evaluated in vivo, in both the mouse and rabbit, for their ability to prevent death induced by a lethal challenge of PAF. The relationships between the biological activity and the nature, lipophilicity, and position of substituents of the aromatic rings were studied. Compound 105 (CL 184005) has been selected to undergo further development as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of septic shock in man.

Common illnesses and self-care.

Self-care has become a topic of widespread interest in recent years. However, few studies of the content and methods of self-care are available to inform health education program design. The present study identified common illnesses that were reported by 258 western university students and how those illnesses were typically cared for. Illness reporting differed significantly by gender, marital status, and perceived health status. Illness treatment differed only for perceived health status. Results suggest that treatment of an illness once self-diagnosed does not differ across groups but that labeling of illnesses does. The suggestion is made that educational programs may need to place greater emphasis on appropriate diagnosis of illness.

The structure of children's beliefs about health and illness.

This study examined the structure of causal beliefs in children, concentrating on attributions by children about "staying well" vs. "getting sick." Eighty-two children in grades one, three, five, and seven-eight participated in the study. Children were asked pairwise to compare five causes of health and five causes of illness. Self-controlled or self-initiated actions were the most highly ranked causes of health. As a cause of illness, self-initiated behaviors were ranked second to germs and bad weather. Health and illness seemed to be understood as reciprocal aspects of the concept "health" by older but not by younger children. Results are discussed in relation to attributions made at different age levels.

Identification of the facets of self-health management.

This article reviews conceptualizations of self-health management, or self-care, from three perspectives. Positions held (pro and con) on self-care, theoretical or definitional papers, and empirical usage of self-care were examined to isolate commonalities and differences in ideas about what self-health management or self-care are. This resulted in identification of both facets of self-health management and research perspectives taken in working with the construct. It is suggested that researchers need to reach a consensus about what self-health management is and then need to invest effort in reliable, valid measures of the construct before a profitable research program can be undertaken.

Social support and social network scales: a psychometric review.

Social support and social network scales were reviewed from a psychometric perspective. A sample of 29 behavioral science studies were selected from social support and social network articles published between 1967 and 1982. Each study was classified according to psychometric issues of scaling, reliability, and validity. The review was motivated by the hypothesis that many social support and social network scales are developed without complete utilization of existing measurement technology. Results of this review confirm this hypothesis. Limited availability of basic psychometric data for such scales attenuates theory development and research efficiency. Researchers in this field are encouraged to increase the availability of basic psychometric information for social support and social network scales.

Two promising measures of health education program outcomes and asthmatic children.

Two measures of health education program outcomes were administered to a group of 50 asthmatic children: the Child's Health Locus of Control Scale and the Piers-Harris Children's Self Concept Scale. Interest centered on the reliabilities and discriminant validity of these instruments. Results showed high alpha reliabilities for both scales and a low, positive intercorrelation. Mean health locus of control and self-concept scores for this group were comparable to those of healthy children. These findings may be useful in designing and evaluating health education programs for children with asthma.

Attitudes toward self-care: a consumer study.

Although self-care is emerging as a growing movement wherein lay persons are assuming more responsibility for prvention, detection and treatment of health problems, we have almost no basic descriptive studies of attitudes toward self-care of professionals and consumers. The present study explored the reliability and validity of an attitude instrument designed to assess consumer's attitudes toward self-care and also its sensitivity to group differences in attitudes. A scale constructed for use with a provider population was revised and administered by telephone interview to 245 families in central California. Attitudes were found to be favorable. The scale's internal consistency reliability was calculated and found to be .65 (Cronbach's alpha); mean attitudes of three treatment groups were found to differ significantly. In view of the scale's moderate reliability, it is suggested that the scale be revised to provide a more sensitive discrimination of favorable attitudes.