Parents' perceptions of their children's death concept.

To examine the differences between parents' and nonparents' beliefs regarding the concept of death in children, 352 individuals answered a demographic survey. Questions concerning beliefs about the age at which children develop the concept of the irreversibility of death were included on the survey. Parents believed that the concept is developed at an earlier age than did nonparents, and also believed that the concept is developed at an earlier age than has been revealed by most research.

Religious faith and spirituality in substance abuse recovery: determining the mental health benefits.

Recently, mental health professionals have begun examining the potential value of religious faith and spirituality in the lives of individuals suffering from a variety of acute and chronic illnesses. This study explored the relation between religious faith, spirituality, and mental health outcomes in 236 individuals recovering from substance abuse. We found that recovering individuals tend to report high levels of religious faith and religious affiliation, but choose to rate themselves as being more spiritual than religious. Results also indicate that among recovering individuals, higher levels of religious faith and spirituality were associated with a more optimistic life orientation, greater perceived social support, higher resilience to stress, and lower levels of anxiety. This represents the largest self-report study to date examining the relation between religious faith, spirituality, and mental health outcomes among individuals recovering from substance abuse.

Gross anatomy of the canine portal vein.

The gross anatomy of the portal vein of 21 dogs was studied by venous portography, corrosion casting, and gross dissection. The portal vein in all specimens originated by confluence of the cranial and caudal mesenteric veins. Its large tributaries were the splenic and gastroduodenal veins, which entered the portal vein between its origin and the hepatic porta. At the hepatic porta, the portal vein divided into a short right branch and a larger left branch. The right branch ramified in the caudate process of the caudate lobe and in the right lateral lobe of the liver. The left branch was essentially the continuation of the portal vein from which successive branches passed to each of the remaining lobes of the liver and the papillary process of the caudate lobe.

The systemic arterial pattern of the guinea pig: the pelvis and pelvic limb.

The systemic arterial pattern of 59 guinea pigs was examined by dissection, angiography, or corrosion casting. The blood supply to the pelvis and the pelvic limbs arises as two terminal branches of the aorta, the right and left common iliac arteries, and each of these divides into external and internal iliac arteries. Their pattern of distribution resembles a typical mammalian pattern. The external iliac artery passes throught the body wall to supply the pelvic limb and the internal iliac artery is distributed primarily to the pelvic region and its viscera.

The systemic arterial pattern of the guinea pig: the abdomen.

The systemic arterial pattern of the guinea pig was studied to determine the arrangement of the major arterial trunks and their branches. Fiftynine specimens were examined by dissection, angiography or corrosion casting. The arterial arrangement was found to resemble a typical mammalian pattern, although some exceptions were noted. For example, the guinea pig usually has a single vessel, the celiacomesenteric trunk, instead of separate celiac and cranial mesenteric arteries. The celiac components of this vascular axis were found to originate in four different patterns. Also, the renal arteries were found to be single or double on either side with double origins more frequent.