Oregon Regional Research Articles

Life table analysis of membership in an HMO retention.

The retention patterns of the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (Oregon Region) were studied over a six-year period using a life table analysis. A 5% random sample, consisting of subscriber units that were enrolled at the initiation of the study of subsequently joined during the six-year period, were followed with respect to enrollment retention. The analysis presented here focuses on the 2,112 subscribers enrolled during the 1967-1970 period. These subscribers were characterized by the year they joined the plan and by their age and sex. The analyses showed that age of the subscriber and length of time on the plan consistently affected the probability of continued enrollment. The sex of the subscriber and the initial year of enrollment showed only a slight differential affect. A general pattern of high attrition in the first year, but rapid slackening thereafter, existed in all subgroup specific analyses. The utility of the analyses and the impact of the effect of differential membership retention on the plan are discussed.

Examining the Annual Drug Utilization of a Cohort of Low Income Health Plan Members

Changes in the annual drug utilization of a cohort of 828 low income Kaiser Foundation Health Plan members in the Oregon region over a four-year period are examined. The study also attempts to identify relationships between consistency in the levels of annual drug utilization and characteristics of the cohort, prescriptions received and doctor office visits (DOVs). The results show no change in the: 1) annual prescription rate; 2) types of drugs received each year; 3) annual DOV rates; and 4) annual prescribing rate by physician specialties. There was consistency in the annual drug and DOV utilization rate among the cohort through time. Consistency in the level of drug utilization was not always directly related to consistency in the level of DOV utilization. Consistent high users of drugs, while few in number (4.6 per cent), received a large proportion (37.3 per cent) of all prescriptions. A substantial proportion (15.8 per cent) of the cohort were consistent nonusers of drugs. Consistency in the level of drug use was related to: sex and age, purpose (disease classification) of the DOVs, the types (new or refill) of prescriptions received, the therapeutic classes of drug received, the number of prescribing physicians and the number of pharmacies patronized.

Screening for congenital hypothyroidism: Results of screening one million North American infants

Pilot programs for screening of newborn infants for congenital hypothyroidism began in North America in 1972. To date, the five oldest programs (Quebec, Pittsburgh, Toronto, Oregon Regional, and New England Regional) have screened 1,046,362 infants. A total of 277 infants with congenital hypothyroidism have been detected and seven have been missed, resulting in a total of 284 affected infants in the screened population and an overall incidence of one in 3,684 live births. Of the affected infants, 246 were determined to have primary hypothyroidism, an incidence of one in 4,254 births. Ten infants with secondary-tertiary hypothyroidism were detected in Quebec, Oregon, and Toronto, an incidence of one in 68,200 births. Of all the infants with primary hypothyroidism who were adequately studied, 63% were determined to have aplastic or hypoplastic glands, 14% normal or enlarged glands, and 23% ectopic thyroid tissue. The estimated minimum incidence of infants with TBG deficiency is one in 8,913 births. Only 8 of the 277 detected infants were suspected clinically to have congenital hypothyroidism prior to the time of confirmation of the diagnosis at 4 to 8 weeks of age. The cost of screening varied from $0.70 to $1.60 per infant, depending on which costs were included in the estimate. Preliminary evidence from Quebec suggests that infants treated in the program have normal developmental testing scores at 18 months of age.

Feeding Habits of Mazama Pocket Gophers in South-Central Oregon

The annual diet of 110 Mazama pocket gophers (Thomomys mazama) collected in the pine region of south-central Oregon during 1973-74 consisted mainly of the aboveground parts of forbs (40%), grasses (32%), and woody plants (4%); plant roots comprised 24 percent of the diet. Food availability was an important determinant of diet. Vegetation on the study area was about one-third grasses and two-thirds forbs; annual forbs comprised 87 percent of the total forb cover. The diets of gophers collected during the growing season, July to September, did not differ significantly, but diets during other sampling periods did (P < 0.05). Succulent forbs were preferred to all other plants, but they were not abundant enough to provide a dependable food supply. Grasses were consumed most heavily during the dormant season when annual forbs were not available. Woody plants, including ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), were eaten in winter, but they constituted only a minor portion of the diet. J. WILDL. MANAGE. 42(2):383-390 Pocket gophers feed on conifer seedlings and may hinder or prevent reforestation in the Pacific Northwest (Dingle 1956, Hermann and Thomas 1963, Black et al. 1969, Barnes et al. 1970, Hooven 1971). Barnes (1973) reviewed methods of reducing gopher-caused damage to seedlings in pine plantations and concluded that altering vegetation had the greatest potential for achieving effective, long-lasting control. Vegetation probably is a major factor influencing population size (Walker 1949, Miller 1964, Turner et al. 1973). Keith et al. (1959) and Tietjen et al. (1967) reported significant reductions in gopher populations after applying 2,4-D herbicide. Forest-management practices alter vegetation, which in turn affects wildlife habitat. To predict and assess more accurately the effects of vegetative alteration on gopher populations, foresters require information about the feeding habits of pocket gophers on forest lands (Barnes 1973). Our objective was to determine gopher feeding habits in a forest habitat in southcentral Oregon by collecting information on the plant species eaten, the relative quantities ingested of each species, and the seasonal variation in feeding habits.

Announcement

Abstract Assignment of Copyright. The new Copyright Law which goes into effect January 1, 1978, makes it necessary for the published to receive assignment of copyright from authors of articles to be published in scientific periodicals. The assignment must be in writing so that authors, the American Association of Immunologists, and The Williams &amp; Wilkins Company may be protected from the unauthorized use of the contents of The Journal of Immunology. The authors of manuscripts accepted for publication will receive copyright assignment forms, which should be signed and returned to the Editorial Office as quickly as possible. Failure to return the signed form promptly will delay publication of the article involved. Positions Available. Cellular Immunologist. Applications are invited for a staff position at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center. This institution has a major commitment to reproductive biology. Cellular Immunologists at any career level are invited to apply; postdoctoral experience is essential.

Wrangellia—A displaced terrane in northwestern North America

A large terrane extending along the Pacific margin of North America, from Vancouver Island, British Columbia, to south-central Alaska, is characterized throughout by similar sequences of Triassic rocks. These rocks, including a thick pile of tholeiitic flows and pillow lava (Nikolai Greenstone and Karmutsen Formation) capped with inner-platform carbonates (Chitistone Limestone, Whitestripe Marble, Kunga Formation, and Quatsino Limestone), overlie an upper Paleozoic andesitic arc sequence and Permian argillite and limestone. This coherent terrane, herein named Wrangellia, is juxtaposed against unlike sequences of Triassic and older rocks throughout its extent and is interpreted to be allochthonous. Paleomagnetic data obtained from the Nikolai Greenstone and published in a companion article by Hillhouse indicate that Middle and (or) Upper Triassic rocks in southern Alaska formed in low paleolatitudes, probably within 15° of the paleo-equator.A possible southeastern extension of Wrangellia occurs in the Hells Canyon region of eastern Oregon and western Idaho. This area contains the typical Triassic sequence of Wrangellia and has been interpreted by other geologists as allochthonous. Paleomagnetic data are lacking, however, to document its original latitude.

Announcement

Abstract Midwinter Conference of Immunologists January 21–24, 1978. Place: Asilomar Conference Grounds, Pacific Grove, California Theme: Normal and Abnormal Aspects of Immunologic Regulation Session Titles: Immunologic Regulation Immunoregulatory Effects of the HLA System Autoimmunity Macrophage Regulation Manipulation of Immunoregulation CO-CHAIRMEN OF THE MEETING: Norman Talal and E. Benjamini. Programs will be available after September 15 from Arthur Malley, Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, 505 N. W. 185th Avenue, Beaverton, Oregon 97005. First International Kidney Transplant Course April 24–26, 1978, Barcelona, Spain. The 1st International Kidney Transplant Course will take place in Barcelona, Spain, on the 24th, 25th, and 26th of April 1978. This course is organized by the Department of Urology, the Renal Transplant Unit and the Department of Immunology of the “Hospital Clinico y Provincial”. The Directors are Prof. J. Ma. Gil-Vernet and Drs. A. Caralps, and J. Vives. Subjects of great interest for urologists, nephrologists, and immunologists will be discussed and kidney transplant operations will be carried out and transmitted by television.

Livestock-Deer Relations in the Lodgepole Pine-Pumice Region of Central Oregon

Livestock-Deer Relations in the Lodgepole Pine-Pumice Region of Central Oregon

Rb-Sr and K-Ar geochronometry of Mesozoic granitic rocks and their Sr isotopic composition, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho

Mesozoic orogeny and magmatism began in the northwestern United States soon after deposition of Permian strata, but no rocks have yet been dated from the Permian-Triassic orogenic period. Middle Triassic to Late Jurassic sediment sequences include major unconformities and evidence of several episodes of igneous activity. An early culmination of magmatism occurred in Late Triassic and Early Jurassic time (200–217 m.y. ago) in eugeosynclinal parts of far western Idaho. A widespread and intense culmination in Late Jurassic time was the final major orogenic event in the Oregon eugeosyncline. The Bald Mountain (147 to 158 m.y. old), Wallowa (probably 143 to 160 m.y. old but affected by Cretaceous metamorphism), Deep Creek (at least 137 m.y. old), and many other plutons in the Blue and Klamath Mountain regions in Oregon and in western Idaho were emplaced shortly before the end of Jurassic. The bulk of the Idaho batholith was emplaced during a Cretaceous culmination of igneous activity — the southern (Atlanta) lobe about 75 to 100 m.y. ago and the northern (Bitterroot) lobe about 70 to 80 m.y. ago. Much of the batholith was affected by Eocene magmatism which resulted in widespread resetting of isotopic dates for older rocks to values of 50 m.y. or less. Between 55 and 70 m.y. ago, there was a lull in igneous activity in the northwestern United States. Sr isotope initial ratios change abruptly across a boundary in western Idaho from ∼0.7040 or less, to the west, to ∼0.7060 or greater, to the east. This change marks the boundary between Precambrian crust and Phanerozoic eugeosyncline. The geologic setting of the observed transition and its time independence suggest that it is due to contamination and assimilation processes involving magmas from the mantle and enclosing crustal rocks. Contamination of magmas with radiogenic Sr renders the Sr whole-rock isochron technique useless in dating the Idaho batholith and other intrusive rocks in central and eastern Idaho, areas underlain by Precambrian basement.

Logging Impacts on Bitterbrush in the Lodgepole Pine-Pumice Region of Central Oregon

Highlight: The effect of logging on factors in.uencing production of bitterbrush in the lodgepole pine forest of central Oregon was evaluated. Production of bitterbrush in logged areas was approximately the same or greater than in adjacent nonlogged areas even though an average of 43% of the bitterbrush plants were lost during the logging operation. Bitterbrush plants growing in logged areas had leaders 2.5 cm longer than plants in nonlogged areas with 71% of their production in terminal and lateral leaders. Plants in nonlogged areas had only 45% of their production in the developed leaders. Plants taller than 40 cm were more frequently destroyed during logging operations than smaller plants. Plants 20-40 cm in height accounted for the greater production response after logging. Densities of germinated rodent caches of bitterbrush were much lower in logged areas. Percent canopy cover and density of lodgepole pine were highly correlated with cache densities of bitterbrush in logged areas.

Twinning in prosimians

Twinning pedigrees for Lemur catta and Galago crassicaudatus argentatus colonies at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center have been constructed. Unlike-sexed twin pairs were more numerous than like-sexed twin pairs in both species. Evidence is presented which supports the hypothesis that twinning in prosimians, as in man, is genetically controlled.

Editorial: The sebaceous glands.

For 23 years, first at Brown University and more recently at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, an interdisciplinary group interested in cutaneous biology has met to discuss varying topics related to the skin. These highly successful symposia, which are led by William Montagna, Ph.D., have been published as bound volumes and more recently as special issues of the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. On three occasions, sebaceous glands have been the topic of discussion, and the proceedings of the 22d symposium, dealing with these cutaneous appendages, have just been published.1 The expansion of knowledge related to the sebaceous glands . . .

Do We Need More Pediatricians? Effect of Group Practice

We appreciate being cited as a model efficient primary care system by D. Haggerty1 in his commentary which questions the existence of a pediatric manpower shortage. Readers might be interested in some of our statistical data. Our group of 20 pediatricians (18 when corrected for research and administrative activities), has provided primary services to a known Kaiser Health Plan (Oregon Region) population of 55,000 children under age 17 in 1972. We have been able to function at a ratio of one pediatrician per 2,800 to 3,200 patients since 1965, when we began "keeping score."

A Mechanical Interpretation of Terminal Branch Feeding

Journal Article A Mechanical Interpretation of Terminal Branch Feeding Get access Theodore I. Grand Theodore I. Grand Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, 505 NW 185th Avenue, Beaverton, Oregon 97005 Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Journal of Mammalogy, Volume 53, Issue 1, 24 March 1972, Pages 198–201, https://doi.org/10.2307/1378849 Published: 24 March 1972 Article history Accepted: 28 September 1971 Published: 24 March 1972

Determinants of Medical Care Utilization: The Use of the Telephone for Reporting Symptoms

This preliminary report is based on a study in progress for more than two years that seeks to identify significant determinants of medical-care utilization within a particular medical care system-The Oregon Region of the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan. The particular focus is on telephone utilization for the reporting of symptoms. The data presented here relate social and demographic characteristics of Plan members to telephone utilization and is a limited test of the hypothesis that more cosmopolitan persons with a more scientific health orientation are more likely to utilize the telephone than less cosmopolitan persons with a less scientific health orientation.

Pigment-Cell Biology

Advances in Biology of Skin Vol. 8: The Pigmentary System. (Proceedings of a Symposium held at the University of Oregon Medical School, 1966. Publication No. 183 from the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center.) Edited by William Montagna and Funan Hu. Pp. xxiii + 659. (Oxford, London and New York: Pergamon Press, 1967.) 210s.

Documentation of Twenty Years of Operation and Growth of a Prepaid Group Practice Plan

THE SEEDS of the Kaiser Foundation Medical Care Plan were sown in the California desert and at the Coulee Dam site before World War II. The fundamentals of this medical care organization and the story of its growth into a system which now provides comprehensive health services for more than 1.7 million people has been documented.2,3 However, this story can well be supplemented by examination of the development of the program in Oregon, as a case study in the birth and growth of a community-based medical care program. Two separate but similar Permanente Foundations were inaugurated in 1942, one in the Oakland, California area and one in the Portland, Oregon area. It was not until 1960 that they were legally joined, although they were founded on the same principles. The geographical separation and legal autonomy allows study of the Oregon region independent of the larger structure. This region is one of the pioneer prepaid group practice plans. It has grown and prospered and now serves

The social structure of the Oregon troop of Japanese macaques

Intensive observations were made of a troop ofM. fuscata which was kept in a large outdoor corral at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center during the summer and fall of 1967. The intent of the observations was to determine whether the troop's normal patterns of social behavior and social structure seemed to be affected by confinement in the corral. Substantial deviations were noted between the spatial structure of the Oregon troop and the central-peripheral structure typical of free-ranging troops in Japan. There was also some indication of heightened aggressiveness within the corral but other aspects of social behavior seemed unaltered.

Extraction of chromatographically isolated fatty acids from liquid scintillation fluid

LipidsVolume 2, Issue 5 p. 438-439 Short Communication Extraction of chromatographically isolated fatty acids from liquid scintillation fluid Charles F. Howard Jr., Charles F. Howard Jr. Department of Primate Nutrition and Biochemistry, Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OregonSearch for more papers by this authorGeorge W. Kittinger, George W. Kittinger Department of Primate Nutrition and Biochemistry, Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OregonSearch for more papers by this author Charles F. Howard Jr., Charles F. Howard Jr. Department of Primate Nutrition and Biochemistry, Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OregonSearch for more papers by this authorGeorge W. Kittinger, George W. Kittinger Department of Primate Nutrition and Biochemistry, Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OregonSearch for more papers by this author First published: 01 September 1967 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02531863Citations: 5AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume2, Issue5September 1967Pages 438-439 RelatedInformation

Absence of Nodule Formation on Ceanothus cuneatus in Serpentine Soils

YOUNGBERG has reported that Ceanothus cuneatus Nutt., a woody shrub native to semi-arid regions of California and Oregon, has clusters of nitrogen-fixing nodules on its roots1. During the past 2 years, I have examined the root systems of this species in seven populations in Oregon and California with particular attention to the parent material of the soils involved (Table 1). No plant less than 3 dm tall was examined.