NobleBlocks

Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services

governmentSan Jose, California, United States

Research output, citation impact, and the most-cited recent papers from Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services (United States). Aggregated across the NobleBlocks index of 300M+ scholarly works.

Total works
437
Citations
35.0K
h-index
76
i10-index
331
Also known as
Santa Clara County Behavioral Health ServicesSanta Clara County Mental Health Department

Top-cited papers from Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services

Summary and Recommendations of the Fifth International Workshop-Conference on Gestational Diabetes Mellitus
Boyd E. Metzger, Thomas A. Buchanan, Donald R. Coustan, Alberto de Leiva +4 more
2007· Diabetes Care1.9Kdoi:10.2337/dc07-s225

The Fifth International Workshop-Conference on Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) was held in Chicago, IL, 11–13 November 2005 under the sponsorship of the American Diabetes Association. The meeting provided a forum for review of new information concerning GDM in the areas of pathophysiology, epidemiology, perinatal outcome, long-range implications for mother and her offspring, and management strategies. New information and recommendations related to each of these major topics are summarized in the report that follows. The issues regarding strategies and criteria for the detection and diagnosis of GDM were not reviewed or discussed in detail, since it is anticipated that the Hyperglycemia and Adverse Pregnancy Outcome (HAPO) study will provide data in mid-2007 that will foster the development of criteria for the diagnosis of GDM that are based on perinatal outcomes. Thus, for the interim, the participants of the Fifth International Workshop-Conference on GDM endorsed a motion to continue use of the definition, classification criteria, and strategies for detection and diagnosis of GDM that were recommended at the Fourth Workshop-Conference. Those guidelines are reproduced (with minor modifications) in this article in appendix Tables 1 and 2. The invited lectures, topical discussions, and posters presented at the conference and the invited manuscripts that appear in this issue of Diabetes Care served as the basis for the following summary and recommendations. ### Pathophysiology #### General considerations. Current diagnostic criteria assign the diagnosis of GDM to women with glucose levels in the upper ∼5–10% of the population distribution. The hyperglycemia varies in severity from glucose concentrations that would be diagnostic of diabetes outside of pregnancy to concentrations that are asymptomatic and only slightly above normal, but associated with some increased risk of fetal morbidity. Like all forms of hyperglycemia, GDM is characterized by insulin levels that are insufficient to meet insulin demands. The causes of pancreatic β-cell dysfunction that …

A Clone of Methicillin-Resistant<i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>among Professional Football Players
Sophia V. Kazakova, Jeffrey Hageman, Matthew J. Matava, Arjun Srinivasan +4 more
2005· New England Journal of Medicine740doi:10.1056/nejmoa042859

BACKGROUND: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an emerging cause of infections outside of health care settings. We investigated an outbreak of abscesses due to MRSA among members of a professional football team and examined the transmission and microbiologic characteristics of the outbreak strain. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study and nasal-swab survey of 84 St. Louis Rams football players and staff members. S. aureus recovered from wound, nasal, and environmental cultures was analyzed by means of pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and typing for resistance and toxin genes. MRSA from the team was compared with other community isolates and hospital isolates. RESULTS: During the 2003 football season, eight MRSA infections occurred among 5 of the 58 Rams players (9 percent); all of the infections developed at turf-abrasion sites. MRSA infection was significantly associated with the lineman or linebacker position and a higher body-mass index. No MRSA was found in nasal or environmental samples; however, methicillin-susceptible S. aureus was recovered from whirlpools and taping gel and from 35 of the 84 nasal swabs from players and staff members (42 percent). MRSA from a competing football team and from other community clusters and sporadic cases had PFGE patterns that were indistinguishable from those of the Rams' MRSA; all carried the gene for Panton-Valentine leukocidin and the gene complex for staphylococcal-cassette-chromosome mec type IVa resistance (clone USA300-0114). CONCLUSIONS: We describe a highly conserved, community-associated MRSA clone that caused abscesses among professional football players and that was indistinguishable from isolates from various other regions of the United States.

Active Monitoring of Persons Exposed to Patients with Confirmed COVID-19 — United States, January–February 2020
Rachel M. Burke, Claire M. Midgley, Alissa Dratch, Marty Fenstersheib +4 more
2020· MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report509doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm6909e1

with patients with confirmed COVID-19 (2). The aims of these efforts were to ensure rapid evaluation and care of patients, limit further transmission, and better understand risk factors for transmission.

Composition and Quality of Musts and Wines of California Grapes
M. A. Amerine, A. J. Winkler
1944· Hilgardia395doi:10.3733/hilg.v15n06p493

does not appear. First page follows. The utility of a given variety of grapes for wine making depends upon several factors. These include production factors such as scion-stock interrelationship, susceptibility to disease, inherent vigor of the vine, resistance to frost (which depends on the time of leafing out, the vine’s ability to produce crops after frost injury, and the like), and the yield and composition of the grapes under various soil and climatic conditions. One must also carefully evaluate: (1) the influence of environmental conditions (rainfall, wind, fogs, humidity, exposure, mean daily temperature, and time of maturity); (2) the adaptability of the must to various vinification and amelioration practices (temperature, type of yeast, aeration, and other variations); (3) the suitability of the wine for aging in the wood and in the bottle (rate of clarification, bouquet development, and resistance to disease); and (4) the basic quality of the wine produced by the variety. The production of wine may be considered as the complex interrelation, interaction, and mutual influence of all these factors with and upon each other. In order to study wine-grape-variety adaptation in California, one must consider each of these critically and separately. The primary problem in enology is to determine the influences which affect the utility of a wine. Since grapes are the raw material, a study of the various varieties is the starting point. Because of the numerous variations in environmental conditions in California, the experiments must be repeated with each variety in as many different localities as possible.

Genomic surveillance reveals multiple introductions of SARS-CoV-2 into Northern California
Xianding Deng, Wei Gu, Scot Federman, Louis du Plessis +4 more
2020· Science308doi:10.1126/science.abb9263

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread globally, with >365,000 cases in California as of 17 July 2020. We investigated the genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in Northern California from late January to mid-March 2020, using samples from 36 patients spanning nine counties and the Grand Princess cruise ship. Phylogenetic analyses revealed the cryptic introduction of at least seven different SARS-CoV-2 lineages into California, including epidemic WA1 strains associated with Washington state, with lack of a predominant lineage and limited transmission among communities. Lineages associated with outbreak clusters in two counties were defined by a single base substitution in the viral genome. These findings support contact tracing, social distancing, and travel restrictions to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in California and other states.

Potentiation of Anticoagulant Effect of Warfarin by Phenylbutazone
Paul M. Aggeler, Robert A. O’Reilly, Lois S. Leong, Patricia E. Kowitz
1967· New England Journal of Medicine237doi:10.1056/nejm196703022760904

THE administration of the pyrazolone derivatives, phenylbutazone and oxyphenbutazone, to a patient already being treated with coumarin anticoagulant drugs can lead to serious hemorrhagic complications.1 2 3 4 5 6 The means whereby these drugs potentiate the prothrombinopenic effect of the coumarins is not clear. It is not caused by impaired liver function or defective vitamin K metabolism since these drugs do not alter blood coagulation when given alone.7 , 8 In 1956 Sigg et al.1 reported a decrease in the disappearance rate of ethylbiscoumacetate in 1 of their patients when phenylbutazone was given. They attributed this to delayed renal excretion of the coumarin drug. Weiner and . . .

A systematic review of global cultural variations in knowledge, attitudes and health responses to tuberculosis stigma
S.T. Chang, Janine K. Cataldo
2014· The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease230doi:10.5588/ijtld.13.0181

SETTING: Tuberculosis (TB) related stigma is associated with lack of treatment adherence. Individual perceptions of stigma differ by societal context. Limited data are available on variations of TB stigma worldwide. OBJECTIVE: To describe the influence of TB stigma on knowledge, attitudes and responses to TB and to identify similarities and differences across countries. DESIGN: Systematic review of international descriptive studies. RESULTS: A total of 1268 studies were identified from PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, Cochrane, PsycINFO and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature database searches. Eighty-three studies from 35 countries met the inclusion criteria for English, peer-reviewed, original and non-interventional studies. Variation and similarities in the influence of TB stigma on knowledge, attitudes and responses to TB across countries were identified. Stigma antecedents included negative attitudes and misperceptions regarding the causes of TB and the association with the human immunodeficiency virus. Decisions about illness disclosure and choices between traditional healers and public or private providers were influenced by TB stigma. Sex-influenced perceptions and management of TB and public health responses contributed to TB stigma. CONCLUSION: Our findings confirm cultural variations with respect to TB and the potential for stigma. Cultural variations should be considered in the development of interventions aimed at reducing stigma and improving treatment adherence.

Studies on the optical enantiomorphs of warfarin in man
Robert A. O Reilly
1974· Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics213doi:10.1002/cpt1974162348

The optieal enantiomorphs of warfarin were studied in 10 normal sub;ects. Eaeh sub;ect was given in separate experiments a single oral dose of R(+) warfarin, S(‐) warfarin, and the racemate, R,S(±) warfarin, in the amount of 1.5 mg of drug per kilogram of body weight. The biologie half‐life for (+) warfarin, (‐) warfarin, and raeemie warfarin was 58 ± 5, 33 ± 4, and 42 ± 2 hours, respeetively, a highly significant differenee (p &lt; 0.01) between the enantiomorphs. The blood level of drug for (+) warfarin was 94% greater than that tor (‐) warfarin. The area under the pro thrombin time curve plotted logarithmically showed a 76% greater effect for (‐) warfarin than for (+) warfarin. Thus, the intrinsic activity of (‐) warfarin was 3.4 times as great as thot of (+) warfarin in the induction of hypoprothrombinemia. A high degree of direct correlation was found between the area for the blood level of drug and the hypoprothrombinemic effect for both the (+) and (‐) warfarin enantiomorphs. It is concluded that the greater intrinsic activity of (‐) warfarin than (+) warfarin does not result primarily from the blood level of the enantiomorphs but may result from a difference in permeability or affinity for the receptor site.

STUDIES ON THE COUMARIN ANTICOAGULANT DRUGS: THE PHARMACODYNAMICS OF WARFARIN IN MAN*
Robert A. O’Reilly, Paul M. Aggeler, Lois S. Leong
1963· Journal of Clinical Investigation209doi:10.1172/jci104839

Link (1) suggested in 1948 that the coumarin compound warfarin be used as a rodenticide. Its first human use was in a suicide attempt in 1952 (2). Although warfarin has been employed in- creasingly in the treatment of thromboembolic disorders (3-5), no published reports of its physi- ologic disposition in man have appeared, probably owing largely to the lack of a suitable method for its measurement in biologic fluids (6).

Molecular Evidence of<i>Bartonella</i>spp. in Questing Adult<i>Ixodes pacificus</i>Ticks in California
Chao‐Chin Chang, Bruno B. Chomel, R.W. Kasten, V. Romano +1 more
2001· Journal of Clinical Microbiology191doi:10.1128/jcm.39.4.1221-1226.2001

Ticks are the vectors of many zoonotic diseases in the United States, including Lyme disease, human monocytic and granulocytic ehrlichioses, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Most known Bartonella species are arthropod borne. Therefore, it is important to determine if some Bartonella species, which are emerging pathogens, could be carried or transmitted by ticks. In this study, adult Ixodes pacificus ticks were collected by flagging vegetation in three sites in Santa Clara County, Calif. PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism and partial sequencing of 273 bp of the gltA gene were applied for Bartonella identification. Twenty-nine (19.2%) of 151 individually tested ticks were PCR positive for Bartonella. Male ticks were more likely to be infected with Bartonella than female ticks (26 versus 12%, P = 0.05). None of the nine ticks collected at Baird Ranch was PCR positive for Bartonella. However, 7 (50%) of 14 ticks from Red Fern Ranch and 22 (17%) of 128 ticks from the Windy Hill Open Space Reserve were infected with Bartonella. In these infected ticks, molecular analysis showed a variety of Bartonella strains, which were closely related to a cattle Bartonella strain and to several known human-pathogenic Bartonella species and subspecies: Bartonella henselae, B. quintana, B. washoensis, and B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii. These findings indicate that I. pacificus ticks may play an important role in Bartonella transmission among animals and humans.

Gestational Diabetes After Delivery
John L. Kitzmiller, Leona Dang-Kilduff, M. Mark Taslimi
2007· Diabetes Care173doi:10.2337/dc07-s221

After the intensified treatment often required for treating gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), clinicians may be tempted to relax after delivery of the baby. If it is assumed that no further management is needed, an excellent opportunity to improve the future health status of these high-risk women may be lost. There are special concerns for the early postpartum care of women with GDM. Encouragement and facilitation of exclusive breastfeeding is very important because of the profound short-term as well as long-term health benefits to the infant and the reduced risks for subsequent obesity and glucose intolerance demonstrated in many breastfeeding women. A method of contraception should be chosen that does not increase the risk of glucose intolerance in the mother. Some women with GDM will have persisting hyperglycemia in the days after delivery that will justify medical management for diabetes and perhaps for hypertension, microalbuminuria, and dyslipidemia. Treatment should be maintained according to the guidelines of the American Diabetes Association and other relevant organizations and adjusted for the needs of lactation. Treatment should be continued in adequate fashion to minimize risks to the early conceptus if there is a subsequent planned or unplanned pregnancy. Most women with GDM will not have severe hyperglycemia after delivery. This group should be followed for at least 6–12 weeks to determine their glucose status. Many studies over 3 decades on all continents of the globe demonstrate the high risk of subsequent diabetes in this female population. The degree of this risk is best assessed by glucose tolerance testing. Randomized controlled trials have proven that several interventions (diet and planned exercise 30–60 min daily at least 5 days per week and antidiabetic medications) can significantly delay or prevent the appearance of type 2 diabetes in the women with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). The high-risk women can …

Why is parkinsonism not a feature of human methamphetamine users?
Anna Moszczyńska, Paul S. Fitzmaurice, Lee Cyn Ang, Kathryn S. Kalasinsky +4 more
2004· Brain151doi:10.1093/brain/awh046

For more than 50 years, methamphetamine has been a widely used stimulant drug taken to maintain wakefulness and performance and, in high doses, to cause intense euphoria. Animal studies show that methamphetamine can cause short-term and even persistent depletion of brain levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine. However, the clinical features of Parkinson's disease, a dopamine deficiency disorder of the brain, do not appear to be characteristic of human methamphetamine users. We compared dopamine levels in autopsied brain tissue of chronic methamphetamine users with those in patients with Parkinson's disease and in a control group. Mean dopamine levels in the methamphetamine users were reduced more in the caudate (-61%) than in the putamen (-50%), a pattern opposite to that of Parkinson's disease. Some methamphetamine users had severely decreased dopamine levels, within the parkinsonian range, in the caudate (up to 97% dopamine loss) but not in the putamen. As the putamen and caudate subserve aspects of motor and cognitive function, respectively, our data suggest that methamphetamine users are not parkinsonian because dopamine levels are not sufficiently decreased in the motor component of the striatum. However, the near-total reduction in the caudate could explain reports of cognitive disturbances, sometimes disabling, in some drug users, and suggests that treatment with dopamine substitution medication (e.g. levodopa) during drug rehabilitation might be helpful.

Leveraging Citizen Science and Information Technology for Population Physical Activity Promotion
­Abby C. King, Sandra J. Winter, Jylana L. Sheats, Lisa G. Rosas +4 more
2016· Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine151doi:10.1249/tjx.0000000000000003

PURPOSE: While technology is a major driver of many of society's comforts, conveniences, and advances, it has been responsible, in a significant way, for engineering regular physical activity and a number of other positive health behaviors out of people's daily lives. A key question concerns how to harness information and communication technologies (ICT) to bring about positive changes in the health promotion field. One such approach involves community-engaged "citizen science," in which local residents leverage the potential of ICT to foster data-driven consensus-building and mobilization efforts that advance physical activity at the individual, social, built environment, and policy levels. METHOD: The history of citizen science in the research arena is briefly described and an evidence-based method that embeds citizen science in a multi-level, multi-sectoral community-based participatory research framework for physical activity promotion is presented. RESULTS: Several examples of this citizen science-driven community engagement framework for promoting active lifestyles, called "Our Voice", are discussed, including pilot projects from diverse communities in the U.S. as well as internationally. CONCLUSIONS: The opportunities and challenges involved in leveraging citizen science activities as part of a broader population approach to promoting regular physical activity are explored. The strategic engagement of citizen scientists from socio-demographically diverse communities across the globe as both assessment as well as change agents provides a promising, potentially low-cost and scalable strategy for creating more active, healthful, and equitable neighborhoods and communities worldwide.

Features and Outcomes of Methamphetamine-associated Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
Roham T. Zamanian, Haley Hedlin, Paul Greuenwald, David M. Wilson +4 more
2017· American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine137doi:10.1164/rccm.201705-0943oc

Abstract Rationale Although amphetamines are recognized as “likely” agents to cause drug- and toxin-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), (meth)amphetamine-associated PAH (Meth-APAH) has not been well described. Objectives To prospectively characterize the clinical presentation, histopathology, and outcomes of Meth-APAH compared with those of idiopathic PAH (iPAH). Methods We performed a prospective cohort study of patients with Meth-APAH and iPAH presenting to the Stanford University Pulmonary Hypertension Program between 2003 and 2015. Clinical, pulmonary angiography, histopathology, and outcomes data were compared. We used data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project to estimate the epidemiology of PAH in (meth)amphetamine users hospitalized in California. Measurements and Main Results The study sample included 90 patients with Meth-APAH and 97 patients with iPAH. Patients with Meth-APAH were less likely to be female, but similar in age, body mass index, and 6-minute-walk distance to patients with iPAH. Patients with Meth-APAH reported more advanced heart failure symptoms, had significantly higher right atrial pressure (12.7 ± 6.8 vs. 9.8 ± 5.1 mm Hg; P = 0.001), and had lower stroke volume index (22.2 ± 7.1 vs. 25.5 ± 8.7 ml/m2; P = 0.01). Event-free survival in Meth-APAH was 64.2%, 47.2%, and 25% at 2.5, 5, and 10 years, respectively, representing more than double the risk of clinical worsening or death compared with iPAH (hazard ratio, 2.04; 95% confidence interval, 1.28–3.25; P = 0.003) independent of confounders. California data demonstrated a 2.6-fold increase in risk of PAH diagnosis in hospitalized (meth)amphetamine users. Conclusions Meth-APAH is a severe and progressive form of PAH with poor outcomes. Future studies should focus on mechanisms of disease and potential therapeutic considerations.

Hereditary Transmission of Exceptional Resistance to Coumarin Anticoagulant Drugs
Robert A. O’Reilly, Paul M. Aggeler, M. Silvija Hoag, Lois S. Leong +1 more
1964· New England Journal of Medicine134doi:10.1056/nejm196410152711602

THE variability of response of human beings to many drugs is usually continuous and gives a unimodal frequency-distribution curve for the drug action measured. These unimodal distribution curves are consistent with multifactorial inheritance and are difficult to analyze for the genetic influences involved. The few drugs that have a discontinuous variation in action show a bimodal or trimodal distribution. This probably indicates a single gene system with each mode representing a phenotype1 from which the genotype may be inferred. This multimodal distribution curve of drug response is usually the result of an alteration in drug metabolism and causes increased sensitivity . . .

Tools for interpretation of wastewater SARS-CoV-2 temporal and spatial trends demonstrated with data collected in the San Francisco Bay Area
Hannah Greenwald, Lauren C. Kennedy, Adrian Hinkle, Oscar N. Whitney +4 more
2021· Water Research X126doi:10.1016/j.wroa.2021.100111

Wastewater surveillance for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) RNA can be integrated with COVID-19 case data to inform timely pandemic response. However, more research is needed to apply and develop systematic methods to interpret the true SARS-CoV-2 signal from noise introduced in wastewater samples (e.g., from sewer conditions, sampling and extraction methods, etc.). In this study, raw wastewater was collected weekly from five sewersheds and one residential facility. The concentrations of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater samples were compared to geocoded COVID-19 clinical testing data. SARS-CoV-2 was reliably detected (95% positivity) in frozen wastewater samples when reported daily new COVID-19 cases were 2.4 or more per 100,000 people. To adjust for variation in sample fecal content, four normalization biomarkers were evaluated: crAssphage, pepper mild mottle virus, Bacteroides ribosomal RNA (rRNA), and human 18S rRNA. Of these, crAssphage displayed the least spatial and temporal variability. Both unnormalized SARS-CoV-2 RNA signal and signal normalized to crAssphage had positive and significant correlation with clinical testing data (Kendall's Tau-b (τ)=0.43 and 0.38, respectively), but no normalization biomarker strengthened the correlation with clinical testing data. Locational dependencies and the date associated with testing data impacted the lead time of wastewater for clinical trends, and no lead time was observed when the sample collection date (versus the result date) was used for both wastewater and clinical testing data. This study supports that trends in wastewater surveillance data reflect trends in COVID-19 disease occurrence and presents tools that could be applied to make wastewater signal more interpretable and comparable across studies.

First 12 patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the United States
The COVID-19 Investigation Team, Stephanie Kujawski, Karen K. Wong, Jennifer P. Collins +4 more
2020· medRxiv125doi:10.1101/2020.03.09.20032896

Abstract Introduction More than 93,000 cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been reported worldwide. We describe the epidemiology, clinical course, and virologic characteristics of the first 12 U.S. patients with COVID-19. Methods We collected demographic, exposure, and clinical information from 12 patients confirmed by CDC during January 20–February 5, 2020 to have COVID-19. Respiratory, stool, serum, and urine specimens were submitted for SARS-CoV-2 rRT-PCR testing, virus culture, and whole genome sequencing. Results Among the 12 patients, median age was 53 years (range: 21–68); 8 were male, 10 had traveled to China, and two were contacts of patients in this series. Commonly reported signs and symptoms at illness onset were fever (n=7) and cough (n=8). Seven patients were hospitalized with radiographic evidence of pneumonia and demonstrated clinical or laboratory signs of worsening during the second week of illness. Three were treated with the investigational antiviral remdesivir. All patients had SARS-CoV-2 RNA detected in respiratory specimens, typically for 2–3 weeks after illness onset, with lowest rRT-PCR Ct values often detected in the first week. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected after reported symptom resolution in seven patients. SARS-CoV-2 was cultured from respiratory specimens, and SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in stool from 7/10 patients. Conclusions In 12 patients with mild to moderately severe illness, SARS-CoV-2 RNA and viable virus were detected early, and prolonged RNA detection suggests the window for diagnosis is long. Hospitalized patients showed signs of worsening in the second week after illness onset.

Maternal Strategies for Regulating Children's Behavior
Mary Alice Conroy, Robert D. Hess, Hiroshi Azuma, Keiko Kashiwagi
1980· Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology118doi:10.1177/0022022180112002

The strategies that Japanese and American mothers use to gain compliance from young children were compared. Six hypothetical compliance-relevant situations were described to 58 Japanese and 67 American mothers. Their responses were scored for the rationale or cognitive structure they offered as a basis for compliance and the flexibility or psychological space evident in their negotiations with the child. Japanese mothers were more likely to utilize feeling-oriented appeals and demonstrated greater flexibility than their American counterparts. American mothers relied more extensively on appeals to their authority as mothers. The cultural contexts that contribute to these different responses are discussed.

Southeast Asian Parents Raising a Child With Autism: A Qualitative Investigation of Coping Styles
June Luong, Marian Yoder, Daryl Canham
2009· The Journal of School Nursing112doi:10.1177/1059840509334365

Autism is a developmental disability increasing in incidence over the past decade. Parents of children with autism experience prolonged levels of stress and isolation. Using qualitative research design, nine parents of children with autism participated in this study that focused on the effect of autism on the family, coping styles, and support systems. The target population was first-generation Southeast Asian American parents. Results revealed nine coping style patterns: (a) denial/passive coping, (b) empowerment, (c) redirecting energy, (d) shifting of focus, (e) rearranging life and relationships, (f) changed expectations, (g) social withdrawal, (h) spiritual coping, and (i) acceptance. The school was considered the primary supportive entity. Although findings may not be unique to the Southeast Asian group, the research provides an in-depth perspective on their lived experience, their struggles, and strengths. Insight gained from this investigation can help school nurses better understand the affect of autism on families, identify specific needs, and address these needs by advocating for appropriate supportive programs.

Studies on the Coumarin Anticoagulant Drugs: Interaction of Human Plasma Albumin and Warfarin Sodium*
Robert A. O’Reilly
1967· Journal of Clinical Investigation109doi:10.1172/jci105582

In studies by continuous flow electrophoresis the coumarin anticoagulant drug warfarin sodium was found to be bound solely to the albumin fraction of the plasma proteins. The interaction was studied in detail by equilibrium dialysis of solutions of crystalline human plasma albumin and warfarin sodium. Analysis of the data showed that albumin possesses a single strong binding site for warfarin with an association constant of 154,000 at 3 degrees C and secondary classes of several sites with a much lower affinity. The free energy of binding for the first anion determined at 3 degrees and 37 degrees C was -6.54 and -7.01 kcal per mole, respectively. The standard enthalpy change for the interaction was -3.48 kcal per mole, and the entropy change was +11.2 U. The negative enthalpy change was surprisingly large and the positive entropy change small for an anion-albumin interaction, suggesting significant nonionic binding. The inability to saturate the albumin binding sites, even when high concentrations of warfarin were used, is consistent with a reversible configurational alteration of the albumin molecule during the binding process. The thermodynamic data indicate that the albumin binding sites for warfarin sodium are formed during the process of binding, rather than being performed as in antigen-antibody reactions. The strength of the binding process suggests that many of the pharmacodynamic characteristics of warfarin sodium in man are determined by its strong interaction with plasma albumin. Such correlations of the physicochemical interactions and biologic effects of the coumarin anticoagulant drugs should lead to a better understanding of their mechanisms of action.