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A Anke

Publications and source records attributed to A Anke.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

Lung volumes in tetraplegic patients according to cervical spinal cord injury level.

Fifty-six tetraplegic patients with motor complete lesions (Frankel A and B) underwent spirometric measurements more than 6 months after injury. The results were evaluated according to the level of transection of the cervical cord. A pronounced restrictive respiratory dysfunction was demonstrated in all patients. The expiratory reserve volume (ERV) was zero or markedly reduced in patients at all lesion levels. Systematic increases in both ERV and vital capacity (VC) were found with lower lesion level. The inspiratory capacity (IC) was reduced at all injury levels, but there were no systematic differences in IC between injury levels C4-C8. The total lung capacity (TLC) was reduced and the ratio residual volume/total lung capacity (RV/TLC) was increased in patients at all injury levels. The lung function of patients tested > 12 months after injury was not significantly different from the function in those tested 6-12 months after injury. A respiratory rehabilitation programme for tetraplegic patients should take into account the fact that the respiratory function, especially the forced expiration, is dependent upon injury level.

Adolescent↗

Beneficial effect of liposome-encapsulated muramyl tripeptide in experimental septicemia in a porcine model.

In a porcine model of pneumococcal septicemia, animals were pretreated with 1 mg of liposome-encapsulated muramyl tripeptide phosphatidylethanolamine (MTP-PE) or with liposomes alone. After 24 h each animal received an injection of either 10(9) or 10(10) pneumococcal serotype 6B cells. MTP-PE pretreatment resulted in less pronounced leukocytopenia, with a nadir of 6,700 (versus 4,100) leukocytes per mm3 after injection of 10(9) bacteria and a nadir of 4,400 (versus 3,800) leukocytes per mm3 after injection of 10(10) bacteria. At the same time bacterial clearance was substantially improved by MTP-PE pretreatment. Finally, pretreatment with MTP-PE dramatically reduced mortality; the average death rates for both series of animals used were 55% for liposome-pretreated animals and 3% for animals pretreated with MTP-PE-containing liposomes. These results in a preclinical model suggest that treatment with MTP-PE-containing liposomes might be beneficial in controlling septicemia in patients at risk.

Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine↗

Splenectomy does not influence outcome of pneumococcal septicemia in a porcine model.

The existence of the overwhelming postsplenectomy infection syndrome in adults after traumatic splenectomy is controversial. Due to the similarity of the porcine immune system to man we chose the pig to study subsets of peripheral mononuclear cells after splenectomy and resistance to experimental Pneumococcal infection after splenic surgery and specific immunization. Female miniature pigs were assigned to four operative groups: sham operation, splenectomy, splenic resection, and heterotopic splenic autotransplantation. Hematologic and flow cytometric analysis of mononuclear cells and their subsets revealed a marked leukocytosis following splenectomy and autotransplantation but no significant shift in monocyte and B-cell numbers. Response of leukocytes to septicemia, bacterial elimination from peripheral blood, and mortality were not affected by splenectomy or spleen-preserving operations. Mortality of splenectomized animals was 18%, compared to 42% in sham-operated controls (difference not significant). Immunization protected animals from development of leukopenia, and led to an enhanced bacterial elimination, and a significantly decreased mortality of 5%, compared to 48% in nonimmune animals. Thus our data do not show significant effects of splenectomy on subsets of porcine mononuclear cells or on resistance to experimental Pneumococcal septicemia.

Animals↗