Causes of death of patients in an institution for the developmentally disabled

The causes of death of 53 severely to profoundly developmentally disabled patients who died in an intermediate care facility were reviewed. Respiratory disease, predominantly pneumonia and aspiration, accounted for 72% of deaths. Seven patients died of nonrespiratory causes, and in 8 patients, no cause of death could be determined, even after a complete autopsy or investigation. The median age at death was 20 years. The weights of these patients' organs at autopsy were lower than those for normal individuals of the same age. The lifespan of these severely impaired individuals continues to be significantly shortened, even with improved methods of care.     

Detection and use of salivary hemagglutinins for forensic blood grouping

A sensitive method for the detection of anti-A and anti-B hemagglutinins in fresh saliva has been developed. The method utilizes a bromelin treated erythrocyte suspension as indicator cells and includes a simple procedure to concentrate these hemagglutinins. Antiserum directed against immunoglobulin A enhances the hemagglutination assay. We find that these salivary hemagglutinins are present in over 90% of the population and that their titer remains stable over a period of two months. These hemagglutinins can be used to blood type the donor of a saliva sample and can be used in a confirmatory test that complements the commonly used absorption-inhibition test which is used to detect salivary blood group agglutinogens. In preliminary studies we have determined that hemagglutinins can be successfully isolated and analyzed from dried saliva stains.     

A comparison of the use of visible microspectrometry and high performance thin layer chromatography for the discrimination of aqueous inks used in porous tip and roller ball pens

Ink lines made by porous tip and roller ball pens have been examined by high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) and by transmission microspectrophotometry (VM) in the visible region. Better discrimination between apparently similar coloured inks was obtained with HPTLC but VM has value as an additional technique for ink examination.