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Obituary: Elmer Clea Birney, 1940-2000, Hugh H. Genoways, Carleton J. Phillips, Jerry R. Choate, Robert S. Sikes, Kristin M. Kramer

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

On 11 June 2000, Dr. Elmer C. Birney unexpectedly passed away from cardiac arrest suffered while outside caring for his cattle at his home in Blaine, Minnesota. One of his former students, Robert Timm, probably best expressed the immediate reaction of his family and many friends: ‘‘He was too young and in too good of health to be gone so soon.’’ At the time of his death, Elmer was Professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, the Curator of Mammals at the Bell Museum of Natural History, and Director of Graduate Studies of the program in Ecology, Evolution …

Runoff And Soil Loss As Affected By The Application Of Manure, John E. Gilley, L. Mark Risse

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Manure has been used effectively to improve crop production and soil properties because it contains nutrients and organic matter. While it is generally accepted that the improved soil properties associated with manure application lead to changes in runoff and soil erosion, few studies have quantified these impacts. Water quality models used to assess watershed management and estimate total maximum daily load must accurately predict loading rates from fields where manure has been applied. This study was conducted to assemble and summarize information quantifying the effects of manure application on runoff and soil loss resulting from natural precipitation events, and to …

Electrophysiological Studies Of Olfaction In The Whip Spider Phrynus Parvulus (Arachnida, Amblypygi), Eileen Hebets, Reginald F. Chapman

Eileen Hebets Publications

The olfactory response of the whip spider Phrynus parvulus from Costa Rica was examined using a technique analogous to that used for insect electroantennograms on the tarsi of the antenniform legs which bear multiporous sensilla. Responses to 42 chemicals representing different chain lengths of alkanes, carboxylic acids, alcohols, aldehydes, and ketones, as well as some esters, monoterpenes, and phenolics were examined. Fifty-four percent of the chemicals tested elicited responses. Concentration–response curves were generated for guaiacol, hexanal, methyl salicylate, benzaldehyde, octanoic acid, and linalool. Guaiacol, benzaldehyde, and hexanol elicited the greatest responses and no differences were detected between the sexes. Compounds …

Report Of The Qcd Tools Working Group, R. K. Ellis, R. Field, S. Mrenna, Gregory R. Snow, C. Balazs, E. Boos, J. Campbell, R. Demina, J. Huston, C-Y. P. Ngan, A. Petrelli, I. Puljak, T. Sjostrand, J. Smith, D. Stuart, K. Sumorok

Gregory Snow Publications

We report on the activities of the “QCD Tools for heavy flavors and new physics searches” working group of the Run II Workshop on QCD and Weak Bosons. The contributions cover the topics of improved parton showering and comparisons of Monte Carlo programs and resummation calculations, recent developments in Pythia, the methodology of measuring backgrounds to new physics searches, variable flavor number schemes for heavy quark electro-production, the underlying event in hard scattering processes, and the Monte Carlo MCFM for NLO processes.

Clean Intermittent Catheterization In Saudi Children. Suggestion For A Common Protocol, Roberto De Castro, Ahmad M. Alshammari

Saudi Medical Journal

In the last thirty years, clean intermittent catheterization of urinary bladder has proven to be one of the most important advances in Urology. Clean intermittent catheterizationis already utilized in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, but the materials and the methods in use are not always the most appropriate. The acceptance of the long-term treatment with clean intermittent catheterization among Saudi families does not seem to be adequate. Moreover, the knowledge and the agreement about clean intermittent catheterization by Saudi Medical Community, and even among Urologists, does not seem to be satisfactory everywhere. We analyzed many different catheters and their cost. …

Prevalence Of Parainfluenza And Influenza Viruses Amongst Children With Upper Respiratory Tract Infection, Gheyath K. Nasrallah, Mamdoh M. Meqdam, Abdullah Al-Shurman

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of Parainfluenza and Influenza causing upper respiratory tract infections and to evaluate shell vial culture assay and direct immunofluorescence assay. METHODS: A retrospective study during the period between November 1997 and May 1998. A total of 350 nasopharyngeal aspirates were obtained from children suffering from respiratory tract infections. Nasopharyngeal aspirates were investigated for the presence of Parainfluenza 1, 2 and 3, Influenza A and B using shell vial culture assay, conventional culture assay and direct immunofluorescence assay. RESULTS: Parainfluenza 1 were identified in 3%, Parainfluenza 2 in 5% and …

Profile Of Stroke In A Teaching University Hospital In The Western Region, Faiza A. Qari

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: An epidemiological study of stroke on patients admitted at King Abdul Aziz University hospital to determine the pattern of stroke, clinical presentation, risk factors and the outcome of the stroke in Saudis and non Saudis. METHODS: Case records of patients admitted with stroke between (January 1997 to January 2000) at King Abdul Aziz University Hospital which is a teaching hospital affiliated to Ministry of Education, provides health care to multinational population of mixed socioeconomic status. The diagnosis was established by radiological assessment either by computerized tomography scan or magnetic resonance imaging. Pattern of stroke, clinical presentations, risk factors and …

Diabetic Autonomic Neuropathy, Awad M. Ahmed, Abbashar Hussein, Nada H. Ahmed

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: The diabetic autonomic neuropathy is a poorly studied subject in our medical literature. This study is aimed at investigating the presence of diabetic autonomic neuropathy in a group of Sudanese diabetic patients and its relationship to factors like glycemic control, duration of diabetes and presence of peripheral neuropathy. METHODS: During one year we examined 120 diabetic patients and an age-matched control group of 42 by applying a battery of 5 cardiovascular autonomic tests, beside a full history and clinical examination. The patients were also tested for glycemic control and presence of peripheral neuropathy. RESULTS: Diabetic autonomic neuropathy was diagnosed …

Power Spectrum Analysis And Conventional Electromyogram In Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Khalil I. Shaikhly, Farqad B. Hamdan, Fakher S. Al-Ani

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: A comparative study of automatic electromyogram analysis (power spectral analysis) and manual measurements of the individual motor units potentials parameters in normal and Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients was performed to assess the diagnostic yield of both methods. METHODS: The analysis of 20 motor unit potentials elicited at weak effort manually by visual assessment and by power spectrum analysis at 1400 Hz Haning window were performed with concentric needle electrode in the biceps brachii and tibialis anterior. The study includes 18 healthy controls and 32 Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients. The primary diagnosis of the patients was based on the clinical …

Bronchoscopy, Indications, Safety And Complications, Omer S. Alamoudi, Susan M. Attar, Tawfik M. Ghabrah, Mohammed A. Kassimi

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To review the safety, indications, complications of flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopies performed at university teaching hospital, and to correlate the bronchoscopic findings with radiology, histology, and history of smoking. METHODS: A total of 124 consecutive flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopies were reviewed in the last 3 years. A special form that contains personal data, indications, premedications, route of insertion, bronchoscopic findings, and complications in subjects-undergone bronchoscopy was completed. RESULTS: A suspicion of pulmonary tuberculosis (31%), lung mass (19%) and hemoptysis (18%) were the most common indications. Hypoxemia (14%) during procedure and pneumothorax post procedure were the most common complications. Mortality rate was …

Screening For Asthma And Associated Risk Factors Among Urban School Boys In Abha City, Mohammed A. Alshehri, Mostafa A. Abolfotouh, Ali Sadeg, Youssef M. Al-Najjar, Asindi A. Asindi, Hassan Al-Trabulsi, Suleiman Al Fifi, Abdulrahman Al Frayh

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present study was to measure the prevalence of asthma and asthma-related symptoms among male school children in Abha City and to determine some of the possible risk factors influencing its occurrence. METHODS: A randomly selected sample of 4300 male school children aged 7 to 15 years in Abha were subjected to a previously validated questionnaire for asthma to be completed by parents. Asthma was identified based on the Rush Medical College and International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Children questionnaire. Information of asthma family history, asthma related symptoms, and other atopic conditions, smokers in …

Can The Rate Of Cesarean Section Be Reduced?, Ratib A. Mesleh, Ahmad M. Kurdi, Hisham S. Ayoub

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To look into all cases with previous one cesarean section who were cared for and delivered at Armed Forces Hospital, Riyadh, between January 1990 and December 1998, to determine its prevalence, final method of delivery, and outline measures of reducing its incidence. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of hospital records of all women with previous one cesarean section who had either a repeat cesarean section or delivered vaginally after cesarean section. RESULTS: Between 1990 and 1998, 61,060 mothers were delivered. Two thousand five hundred and seventy eight patients had one previous cesarean section. They represented 3.5% of the total number of …

Prognostic Significance Of Endometrial Evaluation By Ultrasonography In Ovulation Induced Cycles, Walid K. Idriss, Mohamed A. Mohiuddin, Mini Zachariah, K. Sambasivarao

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To find out prognostic significance of pre-ovulatory endometrial evaluation by ultrasound scanning after exposure to the drugs during different protocols of ovulation induction with particular reference to clomiphene citrate and to correlate with pregnancy rate. METHODS: The thickness and texture of endometrium were the two biophysical parameters considered to be evaluated by ultrasonography. The cycles of 47 women of primary infertility were studied after ovulation induction by 4 types of protocols with or without clomiphene citrate. RESULTS: The pregnancy rate was recorded highest (36%, 5/14) in the exclusive treatment group of clomiphene citrate protocol. Most of the women in …

The Value Of Treating The Male Partner In Vaginal Candidiasis, Awad S. Shihadeh, Ashraf N. Nawafleh

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether treatment of the sexual partners of women with vulvo-vaginal candidiasis with oral Ketoconazole can affect the cure and recurrence rate of candida vaginitis. METHODS: A total number of 144 women with vaginal candidiasis were treated with Ketoconazole 400 mg daily for 7 days, and half the male partners were treated with Ketoconazole 400 mg daily for 7 days. All women had physical follow-up examination, and mycological cultures were obtained at one week and four weeks after the start of treatment. The incidence of predisposing factors or of a recurrence history did not differ between treatment groups. …

To Ligate Or Not To Ligate The Hernial Sac In Adults?, Kamal I. Gharaibeh, Yousef Y. Matani

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: Prospective evaluation of the long term effect of leaving the hernial sac open without ligation on the recurrence rate of indirect inguinal hernia repair. METHODS: During the period from July 1987 to July 1990, a total of 60 consecutive patients with 64 indirect inguinal hernia were entered into this prospective study. The indirect inguinal hernia was repaired using Maloney technique with excision of the hernial sac proximally as deep as possible without any attempt to ligate or transfix the sac. All patients were followed up at regular intervals. RESULTS: During the 3-year period, a total of 64 indirect inguinal …

Spinal Versus Epidural Anesthesia For Transurethral Resection Of The Prostate, Nabil A. Jayousi

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To compare spinal versus epidural anesthesia for transurethral resection of the prostate. METHODS: A total of 65 patients undergoing transurethral resection of the prostate between September 1996 and March 1997, from the King Hussein Medical Centre, Amman, Jordan, were enrolled in this study. RESULTS: Epidural anesthesia was successful in 30 patients using an initial dose of 15 ml of 0.5% bupivicaine; whereas spinal anesthesia was successful in 32, using 2.5 ml of 0.5% bupivicaine. Sensory blockade at the level of T8 was similar in both techniques as were hypotension and postoperative hemorrhage. Differences occurred in the degree of motor …

Subcutaneous Panniculitic T Cell Lymphoma Mimicking Histiocytic Cytophagic Panniculitis In A Child, Sulafa K. Ali, Nadir M. Othman, Alexander B. Tagoe, Asma A. Tulba

Saudi Medical Journal

Subcutaneous panniculitc T-cell lymphoma is a very rare malignancy in the pediatric age group, its association with hemophagocytic syndrome had been described but the association with the skin lesions mimicking histiocytic cytophagic panniculitis which is characteristic of hemophagocytic syndrome has not, to our knowledge, been described in children. We report a child with panniculitic T-cell lymphoma associated with bone marrow hemophagocytosis and subcutaneous histiocytic infiltration with active phagocytosis simulating histiocytic cytophagic. We stress the importance of searching for T-cell lymphoma in patients with panniculitis and hemophagocytic syndrome.

Adult Kawasaki Disease, Hamdi H. Shelleh, Sarosh A. Khan, Latif A. Khan, Hussni Al-Hateeti, Samar Iqbal, Abdul F. Saleh

Saudi Medical Journal

Kawasaki disease was first described from Japan in 1967. Most of the patients reported have been under 3 years of age. We are reporting a typical case of Kawasaki disease in an adult Yemeni male, who had all criteria for diagnosis. Additionally our patient had tricuspid regurgitation as well as tricuspid valve endocarditis, which is only rarely reported in literature. We also noted a rise in monocyte and eosinophil count up to 10%, which may have pathophysiologic significance in this disease. At two year follow up our patient had persistent right bundle branch black which he had developed during the …

Bronchiolitis Obliterans Organizing Pneumonia Associated With Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Infection, Daad H. Akbar, Omer S. Alamoudi

Saudi Medical Journal

Bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia is a rare disease characterized by the presence of granulation tissue within alveolar ducts and alveoli. Most cases are idiopathic, but it may also be seen during resolution of viral or bacterial pneumonia (mycoplasma, legionella and chlamydia). It may present as a community acquired pneumonia which does not respond to antibiotics, which make the diagnosis very difficult. We described a 53-year old patient who presented with Bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia during the resolution of pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia. Initially there was slight improvement on antibiotics but later he became severely hypoxic and placed on mechanical ventilator. Diagnosis …

Gastric Perforation. An Unusual Cause Of Ascites In A Newborn Baby, Omer B. Abdelbasit, Meeralebbae M. Shaheed, Mohammad S. Al-Omari, Abdullah M. Abomelha, Mirghani O. Babiker

Saudi Medical Journal

We report a case of a low birth weight asymmetrical small for gestational age baby, who presented at the age of 20 hours with sudden abdominal distension. Since birth he has been breastfed and was kept with his mother. Absence of radiological findings of necrotizing enterocolitis or perforation at the time of presentation delayed the diagnosis for 48 hours. At laparotomy the baby was found to have perforation of the stomach with no evidence of other gastrointestinal disorder.

Multiple Choice Questions In Medical Schools, Dirk Deleu, Awad M. Ahmed

Saudi Medical Journal

No abstract provided.

Predictors Of Self-Reported Sexually Transmitted Diseases Among Homeless And Runaway Adolescents, Kimberly A. Tyler, Les B. Whitbeck, Dan R. Hoyt, Kevin A. Yoder

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Path analysis was used to investigate factors associated with self-reported sexually transmitted diseases among 569 homeless and runaway adolescents in four Midwestern states. Youth were interviewed by outreach workers directly on the streets, in shelters, and in drop-in centers. Results indicated that family abuse was positively related to substance use, affiliation with friends who sold sex, and time on own. Early family abuse indirectly increased the likelihood of self-reported sexually transmitted diseases through time on own, substance use, friends selling sex, and risky sexual behaviors. Finally, substance use and affiliation with friends who sold sex was positively associated with risky …

Comparative Studies Of Dissociative Electron Attachment To Methyl Halides, R. S. Wilde, Gordon A. Gallup, Ilya I. Fabrikant

Gordon Gallup Publications

The dissociative electron attachment cross sections for the methyl halides vary in an enormous range from the virtually unmeasurable 10⁻²³ cm² for CH₃Cl at room temperature to 10⁻¹⁴ cm² for CH₃I. In this paper we supplement our previous studies by calculations of dissociative electron attachment to CH₃Br and compare results for all methyl halides studied so far. The rate as a function of temperature for CH₃Cl and CH₃Br exhibits an exponential dependence on 1/T (Arrhenius law) with the activation energy lower for CH₃Br. …

Shubnikov–De Haas Effect In The Superconducting State Of An Organic Superconductor, J. Wosnitza, S. Wanka, J. Hagel, R. Häussler, H. V. Löhneysen, J. A. Schlueter, U. Geiser, P. G. Nixon, Rolf Walter Winter, Gary L. Gard

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

We report the observation of Shubnikov–de Haas (SdH) oscillations in the mixed state of the organic superconductor β″-(BEDT-TTF)₂SF₅CH₂CF₂SO₃ (Tc≈4.4K). At low temperatures the SdH oscillations persist clearly below the upper critical field Bc₂(0)≈3.6 T almost down to the field where the resistivity vanishes. Rather unusually, no additional damping of the SdH-signal amplitude — as well as of the de Haas–van Alphen amplitude — is observed in the superconducting state. This indicates that the damping in the vortex state of this quasi-two-dimensional superconductor is different in character to that observed for most three-dimensional materials.

Tidal Asymmetry In An Estuarine Pycnocline: Depth And Thickness, Cynthia N. Cudaback, David A. Jay

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Tidal variations in estuarine stratification are revealed by the depth and thickness of the density interface. The depth of the interface may be predicted using an inviscid two-layer model that combines baroclinic estuarine circulation with barotropic tidal currents [Helfrich, 1995]. Here we present results from a two-layer model modified to include the effects of bottom friction and interfacial mixing. Modeled layer thickness and speed compare favorably with prior analytic studies [Farmer and Armi, 1986; Pratt, 1986]. We use a bulk Richardson number criterion to estimate the thickness of the pycnocline from two-layer model results; the predicted pycnocline depth and thickness …

Mission College, Thailand, Assignment: October 26 - November 8, 2000, Keith Clouten

Faculty Publications

This report tells the story of a library consultation visit to Mission College, a new Adventist post-secondary school situated in the hill country northeast of Bankok, Thailand.

Using 'Drop-Biasing' To Stabilize The Occupancy Of Random-Drop Queues With Tcp Traffic, Archan Misra, Teunis Ott, John Baras

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The paper describes how the use of ‘drop-biasing’, a technique to control the distribution of the gap between consecutive packet losses in random drop queues (such as RED) can be used to reduce the variability of the queue occupancy with TCP traffic. Reducing the variance of the queue occupancy reduces delay jitter for buffered packets, as well as decreases the likelihood of buffer underflow. We find that modifying the packet drop probabilities to ensure a minimum separation between consecutive packet drops serves to decrease the variability in the queue occupancy. This is really achieved as a result of the increased …

Alternative Principal Components Regression Procedures For Dendrohydrologic Reconstructions, Hugo G. Hidalgo, Thomas C. Piechota, John A. Dracup

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

Streamflow reconstruction using tree ring information (dendrohydrology) has traditionally used principal components analysis (PCA) and stepwise regression to form a transfer function. However, PCA has several procedural choices that may result in very different reconstructions. This study assesses the different procedures in PCA-based regression and suggests alternative procedures for selection of variables and principal components. Cross-validation statistics are presented as an alternative for independently testing and identifying the optimal model. The objective is to use these statistics as a measure of the model's performance to find a conceptually acceptable model with a low prediction error and the fewest number of …

Development And Validation Of A Pedestrian Lower Limb Non-Linear 3-D Finite Element Model, Peter Schuster, Gopal Jayaraman

Mechanical Engineering

Lower limb injury is becoming an increasingly important concern in vehicle safety for both occupants and pedestrians. To enable vehicle manufacturers to better understand the biomechanical effects of design changes, it is deemed beneficial to employ a biomechanically fidelic finite element model of the human lower limb.

The model developed in this study includes long bones (tibia, fibula, femur) and flat bone (patella) as deformable bodies. The pelvis and foot bones are modeled as rigid bodies connected to the femur and tibia/fibula via rotational spring-dashpots. The knee is defined by scanned bone surface geometry and is surrounded by the menisci, …

Spaceflight Effects On Single Skeletal Muscle Fiber Function In The Rhesus Monkey, Robert H. Fitts, Dominique Desplanches, Janell Romatowski, Jeffrey J. Widrick

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

The purpose of this investigation was to understand how 14 days of weightlessness alters the cellular properties of individual slow- and fast-twitch muscle fibers in the rhesus monkey. The diameter of the soleus (Sol) type I, medial gastrocnemius (MG) type I, and MG type II fibers from the vivarium controls averaged 60 ± 1, 46 ± 2, and 59 ± 2 µm, respectively. Both a control 1-G capsule sit (CS) and spaceflight (SF) significantly reduced the Sol type I fiber diameter (20 and 13%, respectively) and peak force, with the latter declining from 0.48 ± 0.01 to 0.31 ± 0.02 …