Electron microscopic analysis of the specific granule content of human atria. An investigation of the role of atrial pressure and atrial rhythm in the release of atrial natriuretic peptide

Knowledge about the stimulus for the release of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) from human atria is incomplete. Atrial stretch is known to be a stimulus and atrial tachyarrhythmias are thought to be another. The effects of atrial size (by two-dimensional echocardiography) and atrial fibrillation on the atrial specific granule content of human atria were studied to gain insight into the secretory mechanisms of ANP. An electron microscopic analysis of the atrial granule content was used to study 12 patients--5 with mitral stenosis and sinus rhythm, 3 with mitral stenosis and atrial fibrillation and 4 controls. Granules were counted using a free count and montage method. This is the first report of such a morphometric analysis in humans. Granule counts were significantly raised in the patients with mitral stenosis compared with controls (P less than 0.014). This observation probably reflects a high turnover state induced by elevated atrial pressures. Further support for this conclusion is provided by the demonstration of a positive correlation between granule counts and left atrial size (r = 0.86; P less than 0.01). The tendency for higher counts in patients with atrial fibrillation may be related to the rhythm disturbance itself, but clinical and echocardiographic data suggest more severe atrial pressure overload in this group.     

Brain abscess in the 1980s

Brain abscess was reviewed in 24 patients admitted to University Hospital, Nottingham over a period of 3 years. Chronic ear infection was the most common predisposing factor, but in 11 patients the focus of infection remained unknown. CT scanning, carried out in all patients, was negative in one patient with clinical signs of meningitis. Polymicrobial and anaerobic infections were common. Actinomyces species were isolated in mixed culture from seven patients; in five the abscess was located in the cerebellum. Therapy was most often a combination of surgical drainage and antimicrobial therapy with beta-lactam agents and metronidazole. Evidence suggests that cefotaxime may offer a suitable alternative to chloramphenicol and benzylpenicillin in the treatment of brain abscess.     

Serpentine aneurysm of the posterior circulation: report of two cases

Giant serpentine aneurysms form a subgroup of giant intracranial aneurysms with specific radiological and surgical features. Previous reports have stressed the predilection of these lesions for the carotid circulation, particularly the middle cerebral artery. Two cases of serpentine aneurysm affecting the posterior circulation are reported and the problems of diagnosis and treatment of this lesion are discussed.     

Pathogenesis and biological significance of seminal vesicle invasion in prostatic adenocarcinoma

Seminal vesicle invasion and the percentage involvement by cancer of each seminal vesicle were related to cancer volume, quantitative histological grade and presence or absence of lymph node metastases in 243 radical prostatectomy specimens. There were 47 prostates with seminal vesicle invasion. Frequency and extent of seminal vesicle invasion were strongly correlated with cancer volume, with minimal invasion noted in only 6% of the cases less than 4 cc. The relationship of seminal vesicle invasion to lymph node metastasis was statistically significant but cancer volume and histological grade were much stronger predictors of lymph node metastasis. The route of invasion from the prostate in 46 cases involved direct tumor spread into the midbase region near the ejaculatory ducts. Seminal vesicle invasion often may not be identified if the tissue nearest the ejaculatory ducts at the prostate base is not sampled.     

Selection of the method of operation on the stomach in the complex treatment of esophageal and gastric burns

The results of treatment of 317 patients with concurrent burn of the esophagus and stomach are generalized. Various restorative operations were carried out in 214 of them. The pyloroplasty-type plasty with local tissues was performed in short strictures of the pylorus, cardioesophageal junction, duodenum, and the initial portion of the small intestine. Resection of the stomach after Billroth I was conducted in cicatricial affection of the distal part of the stomach. The Billroth II operation or gastroenterostomy is indicated in subtotal burn and combined cicatricial stenosis of the stomach and duodenum. Enterostomy with subsequent restorative operation is indicated in total burn of the stomach. Preoperative management with consideration for the operative risk, elaboration of a rational therapeutic tactics and improvement of operative techniques with the use of laser and microsurgical techniques facilitated a decrease in the number of complications and in the mortality rate.     

Increase in survival time of liver transplants by protease inhibitors and a calcium channel blocker, nisoldipine

Kupffer cells are activated by calcium and release a variety of toxic mediators, including proteases. The purpose of these studies, therefore, was to determine if protease inhibitors and a calcium channel blocker could increase survival time in the rat model of orthotopic liver transplantation. Survival for 30 days was greater than 90% in this model when livers were stored for 1 hr in Ringer's solution (survival conditions)--however, grafts stored for 4 hr in Euro-Collins solution or 8 hr in University of Wisconsin (UW) solution survived postoperatively only 1.2 and 0.7 days, respectively (nonsurvival conditions). When livers were stored for 4 hr in Euro-Collins containing a cocktail of protease inhibitors (leupeptin, pepstatin A, phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, 20 ng/ml each; diisopropyl fluorophosphate, 100 microM) and subsequently transplanted, however, survival time was increased significantly to 11.5 days. Inclusion of a calcium channel blocker, nisoldipine (1.4 microM), in the protease inhibitor cocktail increased survival time to 23 days. Actually, nisoldipine alone increased survival time to 25 days. Nisoldipine alone also increased survival time in livers stored for 8 or 16 hr in UW solution to between 15 and 20 days. Serum transaminase levels reached peak values greater than 2400 U/L one day postoperatively in the nonsurvival groups, and liver injury assessed histologically was apparent. Under these conditions, pulmonary infiltration of inflammatory cells was observed in about 60% of the lungs examined and was associated with massive bleeding. Inclusion of the protease cocktail, nisoldipine, or both in the storage solutions decreased maximal SGOT levels and injury to both liver and lung significantly by about 50% postoperatively. Nisoldipine also decreased phagocytosis of carbon particles by the perfused liver 2- to 3-fold following storage under nonsurvival conditions (half-maximal effect = 0.3-0.4 microM nisoldipine). Moreover, nisoldipine improved hepatic microcirculation. It accelerated blood flow into the liver, as indexed by hemoglobin reflectance from the liver surface. These data support the hypothesis that Kupffer cells are activated early in the sequence of events that causes graft failure leading to endothelial cell-mediated alterations in the microcirculation. This work demonstrates clearly that dihydropyridine-type calcium channel blockers such as nisoldipine may be clinically useful in storage solutions for liver prior to transplantation.