Cardiovascular autonomic nervous system dysfunction of chagasic etiology: Proposal for a new approach to treatment

The authors review the evidence supporting the therapeutic use of gangliosides in autonomic neuropathies, with particular reference to those occurring in Chagas’ disease.     

Immunohistological study of grumose degeneration of the dentate nucleus in progressive supranuclear palsy

The grumose degeneration observed in the dentate nuclei of 7 cases of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) was studied with a panel of antibodies which included 2 neurofilaments, Tau and ubiquitin. Dentate nucleus neurons were negative with all antibodies except ubiquitin which showed a slightly positive homogeneous pattern of staining. The amorphous material surrounding swollen or normal neurons was strongly positive for neurofilament and subunits and numerous torpedoes were observed in the granular layer of the cerebellar cortex. Our results confirm that grumose degeneration consists in degeneration of terminal axons of Purkinje cells in the dentate nucleus. The positivity of dentate nucleus neurons for ubiquitin may support the concept of synaptic dysfunction between Purkinje cells and dentate nucleus neurons.     

Percutaneous Alcohol Sclerotherapy of Simple Hepatic Cysts. Results From a Multicentre Survey in Italy

The increased use of Ultrasonography (US) has led to increased detection of simple hepatic cysts. For symptomatic cysts treatment is necessary. Until some years ago surgery was the only therapy. We have treated a large number of patients with Percutaneous Alcohol Sclerotherapy (PAS) and evaluated retrospectively the efficacy of this approach.Data on 21 patients with symptomatic simple hepatic cysts were reviewed retrospectively. Cysts had a mean diameter of 9 cm (range: 7–15 cm). PAS was always performed under local anesthesia and US guidance. 25% of the volume was replaced with 95% ethanol and then completely aspirated after 20–30 minutes.No complications or deaths occurred. In all patients symptoms disappeared after treatment. In 15 out of 21 cases there was no evidence of residual cyst on US, computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance (MRI). In 6 patients with shorter follow-up, cysts showed a mean reduction in diameter of 50%. The mean follow-up was 18 months (range 6–60 months).We conclude that PAS is easy with low risk for the patients and with good long-term results; it should therefore become the procedure of choice for simple hepatic cysts.     

Clobetasol vs. testosterone in the treatment of lichen sclerosus of the vulvar region]

The paper describes a study carried out in 40 patients affected by lichen sclerosus (LS) of the vulva. The mean age of patients was 60.9 years (range 27-83) and 31 were in menopause. Patients were divided randomly into two groups of 20. The symptoms (itching, burning, pain, dyspareunia), clinical aspects (atrophy, hyperkeratosis, sclerosis) and histological alterations (atrophy of the epithelium, edema, inflammatory infiltrate, fibrosis) were quantified in each patient by a score. The mean scores relating to the three parameters examined were then calculated for each group. One group was treated with testosterone propionate 2% and the other with a strong synthetic corticosteroid, clobetasol dipropionate 0.05%. After 24 weeks of treatment patients were again evaluated in relation to clinical (symptoms and clinical aspects) and histological parameters, following the procedure used before the start of treatment. The mean scores obtained were then compared with those before the start of treatment. Statistical analyses were performed using Student's t-test. Testosterone was found to be effective in relation to symptoms but no significant change was observed in relation to clinical aspects and histological alterations. It also caused major secondary effects which led to the suspension of treatment in one patient. Clobetasol was shown to be highly effective both in relation to symptoms and in terms of clinical aspects and histological alterations, and did not cause any noteworthy collateral effects, especially contact dermatitis. In the context of the objective parameters examined in this study, sclerosis and hyperkeratosis were easily modified by corticosteroid treatment in comparison to atrophy, especially in those patients with a longer duration of disease.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Appearance of esophageal peristalsis in treated idiopathic achalasia

The authors studied 22 patients with severe dysphagia, and follow-up studies showed the appearance of some esophageal peristalsis for the first time in three of these patients after Heller myotomy. Comparison of pre- and postoperative clinical, radiological, and manometric data of these three subjects and the data of the other 19 patients showed no statistically significant differences between the two groups of patients either before or after cardiomyotomy except for the unusual appearance of esophageal peristalsis after surgery. According to these results it is not possible to predict which patients will develop peristalsis after cardiomyotomy. The different motor pattern observed after surgery might suggest the existence of a different pathogenesis underlying the esophageal motor disorders in these two groups of patients.     

How do genes exert their role? Period 3 gene variants and possible influences on mood disorder phenotypes

The action of multiple liability genes is responsible for complex phenotypes at the same time, a single gene, could control several phenotypic features. This is the case of human period 3 gene (hper3), mainly involved in the setting of the biologic clock. Some variants of this gene, besides being associated with the Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome, showed a key role in determining evening preference rather than morning one. According to this rationale, we hypothesized that this gene could influence circadian mood fluctuations, in mood disorders. Our study demonstrated that rare genetic variants of hper3 are significantly associated to a number of mood disorders features, such as age of onset, response to SSRIs treatment, circadian mood oscillations and characteristics of temperament. These preliminary results could shed further light on the involvement of circadian genes in various aspects of physiological and psychopathological mechanisms of the brain.     

In vivo measurements of fibrin formation and degradation in nephrotic patients

Summary Intraglomerular fibrin deposition has been implicated as an important pathogenetic mechanism in patients with glomerular diseases and the nephrotic syndrome. To investigate fibrin formation and degradation in nephrosis, we measured fibrinopeptide A by radio-immunoassay and D-dimer by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in the plasma of 30 consecutive adult patients with the nephrotic syndrome; in 10 the serum creatinine was more than 2 mg/dl. Both fibrinopeptide A and D-dimer were abnormally elevated in the majority of nephrotics (P<0.001 vs. healthy controls), providing evidence of increased fibrin generation and lysis “in vivo.” A positive correlation was found between fibrinopeptide A and D-dimer (correlation coefficient 0.64,P<0.001), suggesting a close relationship between fibrin formation and degradation. Calcium heparin, administered to 12 nephrotics, caused a marked decrease in plasma fibrinopeptide A, due to a reduction of in vivo thrombin activity. As enhanced thrombin activity can favor fibrin deposition within the renal parenchyma, as well as vascular complications, it is reasonable to assume that an antithrombotic treatment aimed at controlling thrombin generation may ameliorate the natural history of nephrosis.