Fatal acetaminophen poisoning with evidence of subendocardial necrosis of the heart.

The authors describe a case of fatal acetaminophen overdose which occurred in a 16-year-old female. Her serum acetaminophen concentration 11.5 h postingestion was 154 mg/L. Antidotal therapy was unsuccessful, and after 9 days she died. Autopsy findings included centrilobular zonal liver necrosis, acute proximal renal tubular necrosis, and diffuse alveolar pulmonary damage. Her heart was transplanted into a young woman with congenital heart disease. The recipient expired 14 days after the transplant as a result of sepsis complicating bowel ischemia. The transplanted heart showed extensive subendocardial myocyte necrosis related to acetaminophen toxicity and not rejection.     

Staff cohesion in residential treatment

There is a continuous recognition in the literature of residential treatment of the need for studies to assess the impact of key variables which constitute a residential milieu on the treatment environment and, by implication, on the treatment outcome. One key variable is staff cohesion. The present study explored the effect of varying levels of staff cohesion on the treatment environment in a residential treatment center for disturbed adolescents. The results suggest that the variables Support, Personal Problem Orientation, Autonomy, Practical Orientation, and Staff Control are significantly affected by varying levels of staff cohesion. However, the clients' perception of their environment did not appear to be influenced by staff cohesion level.Received M.A. from University of British Columbia, B.C., Canada. Current interests are process of psychotherapy, interpersonal conflict resolution.     

Validation and uses of a Y-chromosome STR 10-plex for forensic and paternity laboratories

Y-chromosome short tandem repeats (Y-STRs) provide valuable information in cases of rape and questioned paternity, and they allow for the genetic identification of male lineages. The present study validated a Y-STR 10-plex on the ABI PRISM 3100 Genetic Analyzer for use in forensic and paternity laboratories at Orchid Cellmark. Following optimization of the polymerase chain reaction, father-son pairs were analyzed to ensure that each pair generated identical haplotypes. This study demonstrated that the 10-plex is sensitive to 0.125 ng of input DNA and that female samples mixed with male samples did not interfere with Y-STR haplotyping. In a sample of 525 males, there were three instances of locus multiplication, two at DYS19 and one at DYS435. Overall, haplotype diversity was 0.996, suggesting that the 10-plex can effectively distinguish among male lineages.