The associative behaviour of methylglucamine salts of the dicarboxylic acid dianilides of 3-carboxy-2,4,6-triiodoaniline in aqueous solutions (author's transl)]

The Associative Behaviour of Methylglucamine Salts of the Dicarboxylic Acid Dianilides of 3-Carboxy-2,4,6-triiodoaniline in Aqueous Solutions . Measurements of the activation energies of the viscous flow have shown that the degree of order of solutions of the methylglucamine salts of a series of homologous dicarboxylic acid dianilides of 3-carboxy-2,4,6-triiodoaniline depends extensively on the length of the dicarboxylic acid. This dependence passes through a maximum at the glutaric acid derivative. This effect can be explained by a counteraction of intermolecular and hydrophobic associations.     

Scintigraphic diagnosis of tricuspid regurgitation

The authors describe a simple technique for diagnosis of tricuspid regurgitation. Red blood cells were labeled in vivo with 99mTc and 22 patients were studied with ECG-gated blood-pool imaging of the liver. A single region of interest was manually drawn around the liver and a time-activity curve obtained. The per cent change in liver counts during the cardiac cycle was found to be significantly higher in the 12 patients with tricuspid regurgitation (Group I) (mean, 4.04 +/- 1.6%; range, 1.3-21.4%) compared with the 10 controls (Group II) (mean, 0.35 +/- 0.16%; range, 0.013-1.3%) (p less than 0.05). Using a 1% change in liver counts as the criterion of a positive study, all 12 cases in Group I were diagnosed correctly, but there was one false positive in Group II; thus the sensitivity was 100% and the specificity 90%.     

Über das Assoziationsverhalten des neuen Röntgenkontrastmittels Iotasul mit zwei wäßrigen Lösungsphasen

The Association Behaviour of the New X-Ray Contrast Agent Iotasul with two Aqueous Phases Physicochemical properties are reported of a new non-ionic, dimeric X-ray contrast agent, whose aqueous solutions separate into two phases within a large concentration range. This behaviour is caused by a hydrogen bonded association and is strongly influenced by agents, which break this association. From volume, viscosity and light scattering measurements it is deduced, that the two phases are solutions of micelle associates with a molecular weight ratio of 1 : 5.     

Fluoxetine versus trimipramine in the treatment of depression in geriatric patients

INTRODUCTION: Fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), and trimipramine, a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA), were compared in terms of efficacy and tolerability in a six-week, parallel group, double-blind pilot study in 41 geriatric patients with major depression (61 - 85 years old). METHOD: The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD-17), the Montgomery-Asberg Rating Scale (MADRS), the Adjective Mood Scale (Bf-S), the Clinical Global Impression (CGI), and the Patients Global Impression (PGI) were used to measure changes in depressive symptoms. RESULTS: Improvement with treatment was found on all scales. Efficacy and tolerability were similar in both groups. No statistically significant differences were found. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that fluoxetine and trimipramine are comparable in terms of efficacy and tolerability in the treatment of major depression in geriatric patients.     

Mitochondrial bedingte Schwerhörigkeiten

Hearing impairment (HI) is one of the most common neurosensory disorders, with sensorineural hereditary HI being the most common form. Mitochondrial maternally inherited HI appears to be increasing in frequency. The incidence of mitochondrial defects causing HI is estimated to be between 6 and 33% of all hearing deficiencies, with an even higher percentage for some syndromic cases. This review summarises the syndromic and non-syndromic characteristics of sensorineural HI based on mutations in mitochondrially encoded genes, the relationship to aminoglycoside-induced HI and related diagnostic tools.     

Effect of lateral ankle ligament anesthesia on single-leg stance stability

PURPOSE: This study was designed to determine, in isolation, the contribution of lateral ankle ligament mechanoreceptors to postural stability during single leg static (eyes open, eyes closed) and landing tasks. METHODS: Fourteen healthy subjects (nine males, five females) underwent two different treatment conditions (control, anesthesia) in a counterbalanced order (48-h interval). During the anesthetic treatment, lidocaine was injected into the anterior talofibular and calcaneofibular ligament (1.5 cc each) regions. Postural stability was measured using forceplate and kinematic variables. The average of each variable across multiple trials under each treatment for the three tasks was analyzed statistically. RESULTS: Results of all statistical analyses failed to demonstrate significant alterations (P > 0.05) in postural control attributable to the treatment condition. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that lateral ankle ligament mechanoreceptors either do not make a significant contribution to single leg stance stability, do not have a unique, irreplaceable role, or have a role that is too subtle to be detected given the measurement techniques used. Thus, the idea that single leg stability becomes altered after ankle joint injury because of proprioceptive disruption was not supported. This would suggest that reported postural control alterations in persons after repetitive ankle injury more likely occur as a result of alterations in mechanical stability, motor components, and/or central motor programming.