Elderly people discharged directly home from an accident and emergency department are known to be a vulnerable group. The value of health visitor follow-up in patients aged 75 years and over was assessed in a random controlled trail; 222 intervention patients were seen at home by a research health visitor shortly after discharge and screened for new dependency and support needs, appropriate community services then being offered. These patients, and 192 controls for whom no special arrangements were made, were followed up four weeks later by a research occupational therapist. New dependency, most commonly trauma-related, was found in approximately 50%, and in the majority proved transient. Advice and/or referral to a wide range of services was offered to 92% of the intervention group. Service refusal rates were high in both groups. Compared to controls, intervention patients received more services and were significantly more independent at four weeks. Health visitor assessment was seen as helpful. In order to identify elderly accident and emergency department patients at risk following discharge, study data were used to derive a short questionnaire. In follow-up visits to 48 patients the use of this questionnaire was piloted, and its validity demonstrated. A number of study limitations and areas for development of discharge planning are discussed.

Background Intraarticular injections of corticosteroids combined with local anesthetics are commonly used for management of chronic pain symptoms associated with degenerative joint diseases and after arthroscopic procedures. Several studies suggest chondrotoxicity of local anesthetics whereas others report chondroprotective and cytotoxic effects of corticosteroids on cartilage. Given the frequency of use of these agents, it is important to know whether they are in fact toxic. Questions/purposes We asked whether (1) bupivacaine and triamcinolone acetonide, alone and combined, were chondrotoxic to chondrocytes in culture; (2) buffering of the reagents diminished toxicity of the bupivacaine and triamcinolone; and (3) the presence of the superficial layer of articular cartilage protects against toxicity. Materials and Methods We obtained cartilage from three patients undergoing arthroplasty. To address triamcinolone acetonide, bupivacaine, and combinatorial toxicity to human chondrocytes, we set up monolayer chondrocyte cultures (n = 8 wells per condition). The question of buffering was addressed by performing the same assays as above, but the reagents were buffered. An MTT assay was used to assess chondrocyte survival in the monolayer. We harvested 21 articular plugs from each of three patients (total 63 plugs) and exposed them to the same reagents as above, including the buffered reagents. A Live/Dead assay was used to determine chondrocyte survival. Results Triamcinolone acetonide, bupivacaine, and their combination were toxic to human chondrocytes in the monolayer comparisons. The addition of buffering did not mitigate chondrocyte death. With the intact superficial layer in the plug group, bupivacaine was not toxic as compared with for the control group; all the other reagents (triamcinolone, combination bupivacaine/triamcinolone, buffered bupivacaine, buffered triamcinolone, and buffered combination) produced chondrotoxicity. Conclusions Triamcinolone induced chondrotoxicity in the articular plug and monolayer culture, whereas bupivacaine induced chondrotoxicity only in monolayer culture. The combined used of triamcinolone and bupivacaine did not show additive chondrocyte death in any arm. Buffering of bupivacaine increased its chondrotoxicity. Clinical Relevance Although not necessarily reflecting in vivo conditions, our data suggest physicians should be cognizant of the potential in vitro chondrotoxicity of bupivacaine and triamcinolone when contemplating intraarticular administration.

Objective-To determine the level of knowledge of emergency contraception among 14 and 15 year olds.Design-Confidential questionnaire survey. Setting-10 secondary schools in Lothian, south east Scotland.Subjects-1206 pupils predominantly (98.7%) aged 14 and 15 in the fourth year of secondary school.Main outcome measures-Knowledge of the existence of emergency contraception; of its safety, efficacy, and time limits; and ofwhere to obtain it.Results-1121 (93.0%Y.) fourth year pupils aged 14-16 had heard of emergency contraception. 194 girls (32.7%) and 168 boys (27.5%) had experienced sexual intercourse. Ofgirls who had experienced sexual intercourse, 61 (31.4%) had used emergency contraception. Knowledge of correct time limits was poor, sexually active girls being the most knowledgeable. Pupils attending schools ranked lower than the national average for academic attainment were less likely to have heard ofemergency contraception and more likely to have been sexually active. 861 (76.8%) pupils knew they could obtain emergency contraception from their doctor. 925 (82.5%) pupils believed emergency contraception to be effective but 398 (35.5%) thought it more dangerous than the oral contraceptive pill.Conclusions-One third of sexually active girls aged under 16 in Lothian have used emergency contraception. This may help explain the fairly constant teenage pregnancy rates despite increasing sexual activity. Scottish teenagers are well informed about the existence of emergency contraception. However, many do not know when and how to access it properly. Health education initiatives should target teenagers from less academic schools as they are more likely to be sexually active at a young age and are less well informed about emergency contraception.

Several morphologic studies have suggested that gap junctions exist between bone marrow stromal cells. This possibility was examined by analysis of stromal cells present in the adherent layer of primary long- term lymphoid bone marrow cultures and in additional studies using a stromal cell line. Results showing that the fluorescent dye lucifer yellow, when microinjected into a single stromal cell, transferred between most other contacting stroma and that stromal cells were electronically coupled provided support that cell-cell communication occurs between these microenvironmental elements. Additional studies showed that transcripts for connexin (Cx) 43, but not for Cx26 or Cx32, were present in a stromal cell line. To examine the potential for regulated cell-cell communication between the stroma, cells were treated with interleukin-1 (IL-1), a cytokine known to affect stromal cell function, and the effects on dye transfer were examined. IL-1 treatment resulted in a reversible decrease in the ability of dye to transfer between stromal cells in contact. Taken together, these studies show that gap junctions exist between stromal cells and that their permeability can be regulated. However, gap junction-mediated cell-cell communication could not be shown between the stroma and developing lymphoid cells.