Nicardipine improves myocardial perfusion in systemic sclerosis

Primary scleroderma myocardial disease may be due in part to myocardial ischemia caused by a disturbance of the coronary microcirculation. We evaluated the effect of the calcium channel blocker nicardipine on myocardial perfusion assessed by thallium-201 scanning in 16 patients with systemic sclerosis. Thallium-201 single photon emission computerized tomography was performed at baseline and 90 min after 40 mg of oral nicardipine. The mean (+/- SD) number of left ventricular segments with perfusion defects significantly decreased from 6.0 +/- 2.0 at baseline to 4.1 +/- 2.3 after nicardipine (p less than 0.01). The mean global perfusion score significantly increased from 10.2 +/- 1.9 at baseline to 11.9 +/- 2.6 after nicardipine (p less than 0.02). Our study demonstrates short-term improvement in thallium-201 myocardial perfusion with nicardipine in patients with systemic sclerosis.     

Population kinetics of gentamicin in neonates

A population kinetic analysis was carried out on sparse plasma gentamicin (GE) concentration data from 469 neonates obtained as part of a routine therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) programme in the hospital neonatology unit.The best predictors of the kinetic parameters of the monoexponential model, volume of distribution (Vd) and clearance (CL), were the weight (WT) and gestational age (GA). Vd of the neonates was only related to WT, whereas the half-life was only related to the GA.     

Experimental studies on the recovery of anesthetic gases]

The volatile anesthetic agents halothane, enflurane, and isoflurane are chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) and contribute to ozone depletion. Although the contribution is small, its importance is rising, as technical CFCs will be phased out according to the Montreal protocol (1987) and the London conference (1990) by the year 2000. Alternative procedures and CFC-free volatile agents such as des- and sevoflurane do not contribute to depletion of the ozone layer, but will not replace standard methods using volatile anesthetic agents in the near future. METHODS. In an experimental setup, we filtered anesthetic waste gases from scavenging systems of rebreathing circles by activated carbon filters. The filtered substances were desorbed by a heat chamber and condensed in a cold trap. RESULTS. By this method, it was possible to retrieve 50%-60% of the applied gases. Gas chromatographic analysis showed halothane containing traces of pollutants and isoflurane and enflurane as pure substances. DISCUSSION. The retrieval of anesthetic waste gases is easy; no sophisticated technical equipment is necessary. Purity of substances could make recycling possible and offer a method to avoid environmental pollution by volatile anesthetics.     

Arbeitsunfähigkeit im ersten Jahr der chronischen Polyarthritis. Ein Vergleich mit Pflichtmitgliedern der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherung

Zusammenfassung Obwohl Arbeitsunf?higkeit (AU) eine direkte Folge der durch die Erkrankung reduzierten Arbeitskraft ist, wurde sie im Frühstadium der chronischen Polyarthritis (cP) kaum untersucht. Deshalb wurden die H?ufigkeit und die Dauer der AU in einer multizentrischen Querschnittsstudie von Patienten im Frühstadium der cP (≤12 Monate Krankheitsdauer) im Vergleich zu Pflichtmitgliedern der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherung ermittelt. 134 ambulante erwerbst?tige Patienten erfüllten die Kriterien des American College of Rheumatology für die cP von 1987: 85 Frauen (63% von 134 Patienten), Alter im Median 50 Jahre. AU wurde entsprechend den Patientenangaben zur „Krankschreibung“ dokumentiert. Bei der im Median 7 Monate bestehenden Erkrankung trat bisher wenigstens einmal AU wegen cP bei 102 Patienten (76%) auf. Sie bestand bei den M?nnern für ca. 11 Tage pro Monat, d.h. ca. ein Drittel der Krankheitszeit, und bei den Frauen für 8 Tage pro Monat entsprechend ca. einem Viertel der seit Beginn der cP vergangenen Zeit. AU wegen cP dauerte fast fünfmal l?nger als aufgrund der Referenzdaten zu erwarten war. über die „Krankschreibung“ wegen cP hinaus waren diese Patienten wegen anderer Erkrankungen etwa im gleichen Ausma? wie in die Referenzpopulation arbeitsunf?hig. Der gro?e Anteil der von Arbeitsunf?higkeit wegen cP betroffenen Patienten und die Dauer der AU verdeutlichen das Ausma? gravierender Beeintr?chtigungen der Erwerbst?tigkeit bereits im ersten Jahr der cP. Eingegangen: 21. M?rz 1996 Akzeptiert: 11. November 1996     

Linkage studies and mutation analysis of the PDEB gene in 23 families with Leber congenital amaurosis.

The phenotype in the rd mouse is similar to the clinical presentation of Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) in humans. Recently a nonsense mutation in the beta subunit of the cGMP phosphodiesterase (Pdeb) gene has been defined as the cause for the rd phenotype in the mouse and has raised the question as to whether mutations in the human PDEB gene might cause LCA. We have previously cloned and characterized the human homologue of the mouse Pdeb gene and have mapped it to chromosome 4p16.3. In this study, a total of 23 LCA families of various ethnic backgrounds have been investigated. Linkage analysis using highly polymorphic (CA)n microsatellites has excluded the PDEB gene as a cause for LCA in 6 families. In the remaining 17 families, we have searched for mutations in the 22 exons of the PDEB gene using single-strand gel electrophoresis (SSGE). Multiple exonic polymorphisms have been determined. However, no DNA changes in the PDEB gene have been identified in our study population which could be causative for the LCA phenotype.     

A data adaptive reprojection technique for MR angiography.

Inability to detect vessel overlap and vascular loops can compromise the interpretation of magnetic resonance angiograms. A data-adaptive ray tracing (DART) technique was developed to produce the appropriate variations in signal intensity at points of vessel overlap in order to simulate the standard angiographic representation of vessels. In this technique a threshold is utilized to identify vessels in the image slices composing a 3D angiographic data set. A mask, which defines regions slightly larger than the vessel boundaries, is obtained by blurring the vessel information surviving the initial threshold. This mask is converted to binary form prior to multiplication by the original angiographic data set. Following application of an additional threshold to the masked data, line integrals through the regions defined by the mask are performed to obtain an angiographic signal proportional to the integrated vessel signal as in conventional angiography. This integrated reprojection is then uniquely combined with a maximum intensity pixel (MIP) reprojection to produce the final DART image. The application of the DART technique to 2D time-of-flight and 3D phase-contrast angiograms successfully enabled the identification of over-lapping vessels and vascular loops. DART was also found to produce less vessel narrowing than the MIP technique.     

Significance and specificity of antibodies to neutrophils detected by western blotting for the serological diagnosis of primary sclerosing cholangitis.

Antibodies against neutrophils have been detected in sera from patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis and inflammatory bowel diseases either by immunofluorescence or by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. To assess primary sclerosing cholangitis-specific antibodies, we examined sera from 30 patients with clinically and morphologically well-established primary sclerosing cholangitis by Western blotting against neutrophils and compared these results with those obtained by testing sera from patients with inflammatory bowel diseases. By Western blot using sonified neutrophils, 24 (80%) of 30 primary sclerosing cholangitis sera were positive. Five antigenic determinants at 95, 60, 55, 40 and 30 kD were visualized. Twenty-eight of the primary sclerosing cholangitis sera also showed the characteristic perinuclear fluorescence pattern by immunofluorescence on neutrophils. Thus a serological diagnosis of primary sclerosing cholangitis could be made in 80% of patients based on these two methods. In contrast, only 9% of 23 patients with ulcerative colitis and 10% of 60 patients with Crohn's disease were positive by Western blot, and these patients also showed positive perinuclear fluorescence pattern by immunofluorescence, suggesting an overlap between inflammatory bowel diseases and primary sclerosing cholangitis. Although some patients with classical primary biliary cirrhosis and autoimmune chronic active hepatitis had antibodies against primary sclerosing cholangitis epitopes, none of the patients with obstructive bile duct disorders, collagen diseases, Wegener's granulomatosis or other hepatic and nonhepatic disorders were positive by Western blot, indicating the specificity of these five primary sclerosing cholangitis-related neutrophilic epitopes.     

Effects of tennis training on lipid metabolism and lipoproteins in recreational players.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the short term effects of tennis training on lipid metabolism and to find out if a typical tennis training programme has positive longitudinal effects on cardiovascular risk factors in recreational players. METHODS: The experimental design consisted of an exercise study and a subsequent longitudinal study. In the exercise study the short term metabolic effects of a two hour technically orientated tennis training (TT) session and a running intensive tennis training (RIT) session were investigated in 16 recreational tennis players (eight men: 46 (SD 7) years, 177 (6) cm, 81 (10) kg; and eight women: 44 (5) years, 165 (5) cm, 64 (6) kg). In the longitudinal study the long term effects of a six week RIT programme in 22 players (11 men and 11 women) of similar characteristics were compared with those in 16 control subjects (eight men and eight women). The results of the exercise study (higher lipolytic activity and cardiopulmonary demand, as well as acceptance by the players) led to the RIT method being chosen for all training sessions in the longitudinal study. RESULTS: In RIT, significantly higher values for heart rate (148 (SD 10) v 124 (11) beats/minute) and lactate (2.8 (1.1) v 1.5 (0.6) mmol/l), significantly higher post exercise concentrations of serum glycerol (0.37 (0.15) v 0.29 (0.14) mmol/l) and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (1.31 (0.55) v 1.20 (0.50) mmol/l) and a higher acceptance than in TT (15 of the 16 players preferred RIT) were found. During the six week tennis training programme the changes in body weight (-1.41 (1.56) v 0.00 (1.50) kg) and anaerobic threshold (1.04 (0.84) v -0.08 (0.92) km/h) were significantly different between the training and control group. In the training group several parameters of the lipoprotein profile tended to change in an antiatherosclerotic direction. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that typical regular tennis training influences cardiovascular risk factors in a positive manner and can be suggested as an attractive alternative to other current health orientated sports programmes. A more frequent use of running intensive exercises during tennis training is recommended.