Treatment of nasal polyps with intranasal beclomethasone dipropionate aerosol

In a double-blind trial thirty-five patients with moderately-severe nasal polyposis were treated with intranasal beclomethasone dipropionate aerosol for 3 weeks. The dose given (400 γg/day) had only local effect on the symptoms. Judged by diary card scores the nasal symptoms were reduced to 52% of the pre-trial level for the whole group. Corrected for the placebo effect the percentage was 68. The reduction of symptoms was equally apportioned to the three symptoms, sneezing, nasal secretion and blockage. The treatment was tolerated well, and it is concluded that intranasal treatment with beclomethasone dipropionate aerosol offers most patients with nasal polyps a good response without any risk of systemic steroid side-effects.     

A PROSPECTIVE STUDY ON THE INCIDENCE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF CONGENITAL CYTOMEGALOVIRUS INFECTION

Abstract. Screening of 3060 neonates for congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection by virus excretion in the urine showed an overall incidence of 0.4%. The incidence was about 1 % for mothers between 16 and 25 years and only 0.2% for mothers between 25 and 35. No mothers over 35 years of age gave birth to congenitally infected infants. The percentage of women in the child-bearing age susceptible to CMV infection was estimated by the absence of CMV complement-fixing antibodies in cord sera and ranged from 48% to 33% with increasing age. None of the infected infants showed obvious signs of congenital CMV infection at birth. At follow-up, two infants showed slight, but transient symptoms compatible with a foetal infection; a pair of premature twins exhibited retarded physical and psychomotor development, but this could just as well be ascribed to the prematurity itself. None of the infants had detectable CMV-IgM antibodies in cord sera, but a trend towards elevated total IgM concentration in cord sera and elevated virus excretion titres appeared in the infants with symptoms. With the very low incidence and no signs of sensomotor sequelae the preliminary conclusion is that foetal CMV infection in our population by no means has a significance to deserve routine screening or a vaccination programme.