Amlodipine increases nitric oxide production in exhaled air during exercise in patients with essential hypertension

BACKGROUND: Endothelial production of nitric oxide (NO) is attenuated in patients with essential hypertension. We investigated whether treatment with amlodipine increased exhaled NO output (VNO) at rest and during exercise in patients with essential hypertension. METHODS: We studied the effect of amlodipine in seven untreated hypertensive patients. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing and NO measurement of exhaled air were performed on these patients before and after 2 months of amlodipine treatment. RESULTS: Amlodipine decreased blood pressure (BP) both at rest and during exercise (at rest: 147.1 +/- 6.4 [SEM]/89.9 +/- 4.4 v 133.6 +/- 5.4/82.7 +/- 3.9 mm Hg, P <.05; at peak exercise: 224.9 +/- 8.0/113.1 +/- 5.3 v 207.0 +/- 6.0/100.7 +/- 5.0 mm Hg, P <.05) without affecting heart rate (at rest: 67.6 +/- 3.9 v 70.4 +/- 4.5 beats/min, P =.33; peak exercise: 146.4 +/- 7.4 v 144.0 +/- 7.2 beats/min, P =.49). Amlodipine did not affect minute ventilation (VE) at rest or during exercise. It did not alter anaerobic threshold, peak oxygen uptake (peak VO(2)), or peak workload. However, after amlodipine treatment, VNO was significantly greater both at rest (130.8 +/- 19.4 v 180.4 +/- 24.8 nL/min, P <.05) and at peak exercise (380.0 +/- 47.5 v 582.6 +/- 74.3 nL/min, P <.05). CONCLUSIONS: Amlodipine increased NO production, at least in the pulmonary circulation, in patients with essential hypertension. In addition to its antihypertensive effect, the enhancement of NO production by amlodipine in the vasculature of other organs may contribute to its beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system.     

In vitro indirect pathogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa against anti MRSA chemotherapy

In the patient with a chronic respiratory disease, both Pseudomonas aeruginosa and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) are frequently detected from expectoration. Vancomycin (VCM) and arbekacin (ABK) are both recommended for the chemotherapy of MRSA infection in Japan. Minocycline (MINO) is also selected for the treatment of MRSA infection. While rifampicin (RFP) and a trimetoprim-sulfamethoxazole combination (ST) are also recommended in Europe and USA but not recommended in Japan for the chemotherapy of MRSA infection. It is pointed out that coexistence bacteria affect chemotherapy as an indirect pathogen. Not only an antibacterial action but the immunological action or the metabolic effect against chronic P. aeruginosa infection such as DPB is known by the administration of 14-membered ring macrolides including erythromycin (EM). We considered the influence of P. aeruginosa isolated with MRSA on the activity against anti-MRSA agents by the disk diffusion method with bilayer flat agar in vitro. Moreover, we also examined the influence of EM against the activity of the anti-MRSA agents when P. aeruginosa was coexistence. One strain of MRSA as an indicator strain and 100 strains of P. aeruginosa as test strains, which were obtained from clinical materials, were used for the following experiment. P. aeruginosa was streaked on to the Mueller-Hinton agar culture medium (MHA), and they incubated at 35 degrees C for 24 hours. Then, the blood agar plate was piled up, MRSA was streaked on the blood agar surface, the susceptibility test disks (VCM, ABK, MINO, RFP, ST) were put on it, and incubated at 35 degrees C for a further 24 hours. The diameter of the zone of inhibition around the susceptibility disks against MRSA was measured and compared with P. aeruginosa free experiments. The anti-MRSA activity of MINO, ST and ABK was reduced by coexistence of P. aeruginosa. In RFP and VCM, the anti-MRSA activity was reinforced by coexistence of P. aeruginosa. Although the anti-MRSA activity of ST and ABK has improved by EM addition in the MHA plates, the anti-MRSA activity has not improved in MINO. These results are suggesting that in a MRSA infection, the chemotherapy by anti-MRSA agents were affected by coexistence of P. aeruginosa as an indirect pathogen. The macrolides such as EM may be useful as a modulator for chemotherapy by ST or ABK when MRSA and P. aeruginosa are isolated at the same time from the patient.     

The Forms and the Levels of Fecal PMN-Elastase in Patients with Colorectal Diseases

Objectives : To compare the form of polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN)-elastasc in feces with that in plasma and to investigate the usefulness of measuring fecal PMN-elastase levels in patients with colorectal diseases. Methods : We examined PMN-elastase complexed with αl-antitrypsin (αl-AT), chymotrypsin, and α2-macroglobulin by ELISA in feces and plasma. Fecal levels of total PMN-elastase were determined in patients with colonic polyp ( N = 19), colonic cancer ( N = 20), ulcerative colitis (UC; N = 36), colonic Crohn's disease (CD; N = 26), and in control subjects ( N = 20). Result : Most PMN-elastase was not complexed with αl-AT, chymotrypsin, or α2-macroglohu)in in feces, whereas most plasma PMN-elastase was complexed with αl-AT. Fecal concentrations and daily fecal extretion of PMN-elastase were significantly increased in patients with active UC (medians 54.8 μg/g, 15.14 nig/day) and active CD (41.5 μg/g, 10.24 mg/day) compared to those values in control subjects (0.6 μg/g, 0.11 mg/day) and in patients with colonic cancer (2.5 μg/g, 0.33 mg/day). In inactive UC and CD, these values (3.4 μg/g, 0.52 mg/day and 5.2 μg/g, 0.59 mg/day, respectively) were significantly lower than in active UC and CD, respectively. In UC, all patients whose rectal biopsies showed infiltration of PMN had high fecal PMN-elastase levels. Conclusions : Our results suggest that the measurement of fecal PMN-da.stase concentrations are useful for monitoring the disease activity of UC and CD, especially when evaluating whether intestinal inflammation has disappeared completely.     

Risk of osteomyelitis of the jaw induced by oral bisphosphonates in patients taking medications for osteoporosis: A hospital-based cohort study in Japan

Oral bisphosphonates (BPs) represent the first line of prevention and treatment for osteoporosis. However, several studies have reported osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ), also known as osteomyelitis of the jaw (OMJ), as a side effect of these drugs. Although absolute risk is suggested to be low, information to date on the relative risk or attributable risk has in fact been limited. Here, we estimated risk of oral BPs for OMJ in osteoporosis patients taking oral BPs compared with other osteoporosis drugs. Using an electronic medical records retrieval system and manual confirmation of OMJ, we conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients taking medications for osteoporosis at Kyoto University Hospital between November 2000 and October 2010. To evaluate relative risks of oral BPs for OMJ, logistic regression analysis was performed and odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence interval (CIs) were estimated. In addition, sensitivity analyses were performed according to hierarchical diagnosis. A total of 4129 patients (59.6%) were prescribed BPs while 2794 (40.3%) received other osteoporosis drugs. Absolute risk for OMJ was estimated to range from 0.46% to 0.99% (95% CIs: 0.25-0.66 to 0.69-1.2) among patients receiving oral BPs and 0.071% to 0.17% (95% CIs: 0-0.17 to 0.022-0.33) among patients receiving other osteoporosis drugs. The attributable risks of oral BPs for OMJ were estimated to range from 0.38% to 0.81% (95% CIs: 0.38-0.39 to 0.80-0.81). ORs (95% CIs) adjusted for confounding factors were 5.0 (1.9-12.9) to 6.0 (1.3-26.1) for confirmed cases only. In terms of absolute and attributable risks, the risk of oral BPs for OMJ is considered to be less than 1% in patients with osteoporosis. However, oral BPs may increase the risk of OMJ compared with patients treated with other osteoporosis medications and the risk of side effects should be kept in mind.     

Combination therapy of ecabet sodium and cimetidine compared with cimetidine alone for gastric ulcer: prospective randomized multicenter study

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Little is known about the clinical efficacy of co-therapy of ecabet sodium, a mucoprotective agent, and a histamine H2-receptor antagonist. The aim of the present study was to assess its additive benefit in combination with cimetidine for gastric ulcer. METHODS: In this prospective randomized study, after gastric ulcer was confirmed by endoscopy, 200 patients in 47 hospitals received either ecabet sodium 1 g b.i.d and cimetidine 400 mg b.i.d. (EC), or cimetidine 400 mg b.i.d. alone (C) for 8 weeks. Healing was examined by endoscopy at 4 and 8 weeks. RESULTS: Of the intention-to-treat (ITT) population (EC, 103; C, 97), 181 patients comprised the per protocol (PP) analysis (EC, 93; C, 88). At 4 weeks, healing rates were significantly higher in the EC group (60%) than in the C group (36%) ( p < 0.01). At 8 weeks, those by the ITT and PP analyses were 82% (EC) versus 58% (C), and 90% (EC) versus 64% (C), respectively ( p < 0.01 and p < 0.001). Symptom relief rates (EC vs C) at 2, 4 and 8 weeks were 73%versus 47% ( p < 0.01), 89%versus 66% ( p < 0.001), and 97%versus 73% ( p < 0.001), respectively. Significant additive effects of ecabet sodium were observed in patients aged 60 years or older, with solitary and medium to large ulcer, and without smoking or drinking habits. No adverse effects were critical. CONCLUSION: Ecabet sodium significantly augmented gastric ulcer healing and symptom relief by cimetidine, especially in the elderly.     

Psychoses in patients with Parkinson's disease; their frequency, phenomenology, and clinical correlates]

The frequency, phenomenology, and risk factors of hallucinations and delusions were investigated in 64 consecutive inpatients with Parkinson's disease. Fifty patients were admitted to our hospital with symptoms related to Parkinson's disease: psychiatric problems 27 (psychosis 22; anxiety 2; depression 2; mania 1): motor symptoms, 20 (wearing-off 5; akinesia 4; freezing 4; postural instability 4; dyskinesia 2; tremor 2; dystonia 1), and sensory symptoms, 3. Fourteen patients were admitted with other medical problems (pneumonia 4; cerebral infarction 3; bone fracture 3; lumbago 2; seizure 1; cat bite 1). Totally 49 patients had psychiatric problems. Psychosis was present in 43 patients, dementia in 10, depression in 8, mania in 1, anxiety in 10, agitation in 6, stereotypy in 2, and hypersexuality in 2. Of the 43 patients with psychoses, 40 presented with visual hallucinations, 18 with auditory hallucinations, and 23 with delusions. To determine what the clinical correlates with the severity of psychosis were, we divided the patients into 3 groups: the severe group, 22 patients admitted because of psychotic symptoms; the mild group, 21 patients admitted because of problems other than psychosis but presenting psychotic symptoms; and the control group, 21 patients who had no psychotic symptoms. Incidences of auditory hallucinations and delusions were higher in the severe group as compared to the mild group. Patients in the severe group had higher Hoehn-Yahr stages, lower Mini-Mental State Examination scores, decreased H/M ratios of cardiac 123I-MIBG uptake, and lower frequencies of background activity on electroencephalograms. There were no differences in age at admission, age at onset of Parkinson's disease, duration of illness, amounts of levodopa and dopamine agonists received, Hamilton's depression rating scores, and brain MR findings, including atrophy and ischemic changes. Emergence of psychotic symptoms in parkinsonian patients appears to be clearly associated with impaired cognitive function. Therefore, it may be associated with the disease process itself. Terms such as dopaminomimetic or levodopa-induced psychosis may not be appropriate when describing psychosis in Parkinson's disease.