Formoterol, a new long acting beta 2 agonist for inhalation twice daily, compared with salbutamol in the treatment of asthma.

Sixteen patients with stable chronic asthma participated in a double blind crossover study comparing the new inhaled long acting beta 2 agonist formoterol with salbutamol. Inhaled (n = 15) and oral steroid (n = 1) treatment were maintained at the same daily dose throughout the study. For four weeks the patients received either formoterol 24 micrograms twice daily or salbutamol 400 micrograms twice daily, plus additional puffs (with the same drug) when needed. Asthma symptoms, additional puffs of beta 2 agonist, peak expiratory flow (PEF), and side effects were recorded daily. During treatment with formoterol the patients used fewer additional puffs of beta 2 agonist, had better symptom scores, less disturbed sleep, more days without additional aerosol, and higher PEF both morning and evening than during salbutamol treatment. Thus formoterol 24 micrograms twice daily gave long lasting bronchodilatation and asthma symptoms were well controlled with regular twice daily administration.     

Implementing nursing practice guidelines: a complex undertaking.

Clinical practice guidelines have been proposed to significantly reduce the gap between available scientific evidence and clinical practice. Evidence-based guidelines are also being produced at an ever-increasing pace. However, guidelines do not implement themselves, and the research to support implementation does not provide straightforward answers. What works in one setting does not necessarily work in another. In short, guideline implementation and change of practice is complex and messy. The purpose of this article is to discuss the implementation of clinical practice guidelines using the Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services framework. More specifically, 3 key components are highlighted: (1) the evidence base for guideline recommendations, (2) the clinical context where guidelines are to be implemented, and (3) the nature of facilitation needed to ensure a successful change process. An overview of the literature in the field is provided, and the authors' experiences are shared, and a few recommendations are tentatively provided.     

Does a single device prevent further slipping of the epiphysis in children with slipped capital femoral epiphysis?

All 170 patients (212 hips) treated between 1946 and 1992 for slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE) with fixation in situ with a single device were reviewed to evaluate the incidence of further slipping of the epiphysis after primary treatment. In 154 hips, a smooth device without anchorage in the epiphysis was used and in 58, a device anchored in the epiphysis. In 3 hips, further slipping of the epiphysis occurred after primary treatment with no obvious cause. In 10 hips, an obvious cause for further slipping of the epiphysis was found. These 10 hips were re-operated due to the loss of epiphyseal grip in 6 hips, unsatisfactory placement of the device in 1, while in the remaining 3 hips, the device was removed before physeal closure. Twenty-six hips (12.3%) were re-operated because the device had lost its epiphyseal grip before physeal closure, and in 25 of these hips the device was smooth and had no anchorage in the epiphysis. The conclusion of this study is that a single device with anchorage in the epiphysis is stable enough to prevent further slipping of the epiphysis in hips with SCFE.     

Repair of large midline incisional hernias with polypropylene mesh: Comparison of three operative techniques

Polypropylene mesh is widely used for the reconstruction of incisional hernias that cannot be closed primarily. Several techniques have been advocated to implant the mesh. The objective of this study was to evaluate, retrospectively, early and late results of three different techniques, onlay, inlay, and underlay. The records of 53 consecutive patients with a large midline incisional hernia — 25 women and 28 men, mean age 60.4 (range 28–94) — were reviewed. Polypropylene mesh was implanted using the onlay technique in 13 patients, inlay in 23 patients, and underlay in 17 patients. Either the greater omentum or a polyglactin mesh was interponated between the mesh and the viscera. The records of these 53 patients were reviewed with respect to: size and cause of the hernia, pre- and postoperative mortality and morbidity, with special attention to wound complications. Patients were invited to attend the outpatient clinic at least 12 months after implantation of the mesh for physical examination of the abdominal wall. Postoperative complications occurred in 14 (26.4%) patients. The onlay technique had significantly more complications, as compared to both other techniques. Reherniation occurred in 15 (28.3%) patients. The reherniation rate of the inlay technique was significantly higher than after the underlay technique (44% vs 12%, P=0.03) and tended to be higher than the onlay technique (44% vs 23%, P=0.22). Repair of large midline incisional hernias with the use of a polypropylene mesh carries a high risk of complications and has a high reherniation rate. The underlay technique seems to be the better technique.     

Nonheme iron in sickle erythrocyte membranes: association with phospholipids and potential role in lipid peroxidation

Previous studies documented the abnormal association of heme and heme proteins with the sickle RBC membrane. We have now examined RBC ghosts and inside-out membranes (IOM) for the presence of nonheme iron as detected by its formation of a colored complex with ferrozine. Sickle ghosts have 33.8 +/- 18.2 nmol nonheme iron/mg membrane protein, and sickle IOM have 4.3 +/- 3.0 nmol/mg. In contrast, normal RBC ghosts and IOM have no detectable nonheme iron. The combination of heme and nonheme iron in sickle IOM averages nine times the amount of membrane- associated iron in normal IOM. Kinetics of the ferrozine reaction show that some of this nonheme iron on IOM reacts slowly and is probably in the form of ferritin, but most (72% +/- 18%) reacts rapidly and is in the form of some other biologic chelate. The latter iron compartment is removed by deferoxamine and by treatment of IOM with phospholipase D, which suggests that it represents an abnormal association of iron with polar head groups of aminophospholipids. The biologic feasibility of such a chelate was demonstrated by using an admixture of iron with model liposomes. Even in the presence of tenfold excess adenosine diphosphate, iron partitions readily into phosphatidylserine liposomes; there is no detectable association with phosphatidylcholine liposomes. To examine the bioavailability of membrane iron, we admixed membranes and t-butylhydroperoxide and found that sickle membranes show a tenfold greater peroxidation response than do normal membranes. This is not due simply to a deficiency of vitamin E, and this is profoundly inhibited by deferoxamine. Thus, while thiol oxidation in sickle membranes previously was shown to correlate with heme iron, the present data suggest that lipid peroxidation is related to nonheme iron. In control studies, we did not find this pathologic association of nonferritin, nonheme iron with IOM prepared from sickle trait, high-reticulocyte, postsplenectomy, or iron-overloaded individuals. These data provide additional support for the concept that iron decompartmentalization is a characteristic of sickle RBCs.     

Subclinical pulmonary oedema and intermittent haemodialysis

It has been postulated that patients with chronic renal failure,even in the absence of cardiopulmonary symptoms, accumulateinterstitial pulmonary fluid, which is removed by haemodialysis.To test this hypothesis we used the indocyanine green (ICG)-heavywater double indicator dilution method to measure lung water,cardiac output, and central blood volume in relation to haemodialysis.Ten uraemic patients, without cardiopulmonary symptoms, wereinvestigated at the beginning and end, and 2 h after, a regulardialysis session. A group of 18 surgical patients about to undergoelective abdominal surgery served as controls. Despite normalgas exchange, central blood volume, and cardiac output at thestart of dialysis the mean (SD) lung water was significantlyhigher than in the control group [4.8 (0.9) compared with 3.6(0.7) ml/kg, P<0.001]. There was no correlation between weightgain between sessions of dialysis and the magnitude of lungwater at the start of dialysis. Lung water decreased (P <0.001)to the level of the control group in response to dialysis. Therewas no correlation between weight loss and reduction in lungwater induced by dialysis. In conclusion, we have verified thepresence of subclinical pulmonary oedema which was removed bydialysis in a group of patients with established renal failure.The variations in lung water cannot be explained by hydrostaticmechanisms alone.     

The apolipoprotein E allele epsilon 4 does not correlate with the number of senile plaques or neurofibrillary tangles in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Apolipoprotein E (apoE) has been implicated in regenerative processes in the brain after trauma, as well as in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. Inheritance of a specific apo epsilon allele (apo epsilon 4) determines in part the risk and the mean age at onset of Alzheimer's disease. ApoE has been found to bind isoform specifically to beta-amyloid protein, the major component of senile plaques, and to the microtubule associated protein tau, which forms paired helical filaments and neurofibrillary tangles. The aim was to further examine the relation between apo epsilon alleles, especially apo epsilon 4, and the development of neuropathological changes associated with Alzheimer's disease. METHODS: Brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease (n = 44) and vascular dementia (n = 11) and of age matched controls (n = 29) were studied. Senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the hippocampus and frontal cortex were quantified. RESULTS: No correlation was found between the number of apo epsilon 4 alleles and the number of senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the hippocampus or the frontal cortex of patients with Alzheimer's disease, or vascular dementia, or control groups. No significant differences in duration or severity of dementia were found between patients with or. without the apo epsilon 4 allele. No increased frequency of apo epsilon 4 was found in vascular dementia. CONCLUSION AND COMMENT: Although the apo epsilon genotype clearly affects whether Alzheimer's disease will develop or not, the present study suggests that it has no influence on pathology or clinical intellectual status, once the dementia has manifested itself. No increased apo epsilon 4 allele frequency was found in neuropathologically diagnosed patients with vascular dementia in whom concomitant Alzheimer's disease can be excluded.     

Renal disease and syphilis: a report of nephrotic syndrome with minimal change disease

A case of nephrotic syndrome and acute renal failure in a 74-year-old man with latent syphilis is described. A renal biopsy demonstrated focal global sclerosis in three of nine glomeruli, however, the remaining glomeruli revealed typical lesions of minimal change disease. Previous reports of renal involvement in syphilis have described membranous glomerulonephritis, mesangial and endothelial cell proliferative glomerulonephritis, and, recently, rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis. The proteinuria and renal failure resolved after penicillin therapy alone. This response strongly suggested that there was a causal relationship between the syphilis and the nephrotic syndrome. This is the first report of such a relationship.