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Biomedical subjects

A Bertani

Publications and source records attributed to A Bertani.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1998

Growth hormone response to growth hormone-releasing hormone stimulation in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Two groups of 30 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and 30 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects were given a growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) stimulation test to determine: (1) whether the downstream function of the somatotropic axis (growth hormone = GH, somatomedin-C = SMD-C) was impaired; (2) what might be the central alteration responsible for such impairment; and (3) whether alterations might be linked to the etiopathogenesis of the disease. Basal values of GH and SMD-C were the same in patients and control subjects, but GH responses to GHRH stimulation were significantly lower in patients than in control subjects. The absence of a pathology of basal GH and SMD-C concentrations indicates that the blunted GH responses to GHRH stimulation are not due to a negative feedback mechanism and suggests that a central neurotransmitter-neuropeptide pathology might be involved in the phenomenon.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Design and development of an electro-optic measurement system for 3-D topographic surveys: application to skin nevoid lesions.

OBJECTIVE: The authors designed and developed a system for the measurement of skin lesions geometrical proprieties. The measured characteristics can be of extreme importance in order to provide elements for the early diagnosis of melanoma. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: Actually, medical experience and prevention are the only instruments for melanoma diagnosis. Some studies have been conducted with thermocameras and with ecography and photoacoustics spectrography. METHODS: A scanning laser-based measurement system for non-contact shape measurement has been designed and tested. The system measurement characteristics have been studied to assure an accurate reconstruction of skin lesion surface characteristics. The laser sensor is fixed on a motorized system that scans the lesion surface. All the controls on the scanning system and on the recording of data have been automated and are software-controlled. RESULTS: Full success in the measurement and reconstruction of the skin lesions characteristics has been reached. An accuracy of 0.03 mm has been obtained with the system. Measurements of the height and perimeter of many suspected lesions have been performed. CONCLUSIONS: The research reported in this work has demonstrated the applicability and usefulness of the proposed method by means of an in-vitro prototype-version measurement system. The possibility of surveying the shape of skin lesions by means of a non-contact electro-optic measurement plays an important role in the objective evaluation of in vivo pigmented suspected nevoid lesions (melanoma). Next steps include the study of a possible correlation between topographic elements and histological tests and the possibility of controlling suspected lesions employing this technique both in the diagnostic and the follow-up phases.

Humans↗
PubMed1998

Carcinoma of the male breast: an underestimated killer.

Male breast carcinoma represents only 1 percent of all breast cancers. Despite the rarity of this neoplasia, the malignancy is often very aggressive, mostly because of delayed diagnosis. Consequently, large excisions are usually needed, and subsequent reconstruction is performed by means of fasciocutaneous or myocutaneous local or distant flaps, depending on the stage of the neoplasia. The signs, symptoms, prognosis, and reconstructive methods of such an unusual form of breast cancer are discussed in this article.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

CO2-induced panic attacks: a twin study.

OBJECTIVE: The authors investigated the role of genetic factors in 35% CO2-induced panic attacks. METHOD: Ninety twins recruited from the general population were challenged with one-vital-capacity inhalations of 35% CO2-65% O2. Probandwise concordance rates were calculated and rates compared for monozygotic and for dizygotic twins. RESULTS: A significantly higher concordance was found for 35% CO2-induced panic attacks among monozygotic than dizygotic twins (55.6% versus 12.5%). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest a relevant role of genetic factors in 35% CO2-induced panic attacks.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

[Epidemiologic investigation on the prevalence of goiter and urinary excretion of iodine in the school population of the province of Reggio Emilia].

The prevalence of goiter was evaluated in a sample from the schoolchildren population of Reggio Emilia district. 1020 children underwent physical examination of thyroid gland and thyroid ultrasonography for determination of thyroid volume. Urinary iodine excretion (UIE) was measured in 837/1020 (82.1%). Iodine content was measured in water samples collected from 65 wells and 12 springs all around the district. The prevalence of goiter according to thyroid gland palpation was 26.2%. Thyroid volume was 4.74 +/- 1.87 ml, and the median UIE value 85 micrograms/l. According to the UIE classes as defined by WHO, 57.8% of all subjects showed a UIE less than 100 micrograms/l. In 57 out of 65 wells and in all the 12 springs examined, iodine was completely absent. In the remaining 8 wells, only iodine traces were found. Based on the results of physical examination of the thyroid gland, Reggio Emilia district should be regarded as an endemic goiter area. Nevertheless, thyroid volume measurement by ultrasound indicates that goiter prevalence may be markedly overestimated by palpation. The high prevalence of subjects featuring an increased thyroid volume, the low median UIE value and the poor iodine content in the local reservoirs of drinkable water suggest the opportunity for iodine prophylaxis in the Reggio Emilia district.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Plasma interleukin-1 beta and tumor necrosis factor concentrations in obsessive-compulsive disorders.

Plasma interleukin-1 beta (Il-1 beta) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) concentrations were measured twice, at a 48-hour interval, in 27 drug-free obsessive-compulsive patients (12 women and 15 men) and in 27 sex-age-matched healthy controls. Il-1 beta and TNF-alpha concentrations were significantly lower in patients than in controls, whereas there were no differences in either group between men and women, between the samples of the two days, or, in the patients, between those who had and those who had not been previously treated with psychopharmacologic drugs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Dopamine function in obsessive-compulsive disorder: growth hormone response to apomorphine stimulation.

Indirect observations suggest that the dopaminergic system may be involved in the pathophysiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The dopaminergic function of 15 patients with OCD and 15 age/sex-matched controls was evaluated by measuring the growth hormone (GH) responses to stimulation with the dopaminergic agonist apomorphine (APO), which increases growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), GH, and somatomedine C (SMD-C) secretions. Therefore, we measured basal plasma GH and SMD-C concentrations and GH responses to GHRH stimulation to exclude that a downstream pathology of the somatotropic axis could obscure the significance of the results of the APO test. The response of prolactin (PRL) to APO inhibition were also measured. Basal plasma levels of GH, SMD-C, and PRL, GH responses to GHRH stimulation, and PRL responses to APO inhibition did not differ in the two groups of subjects. GH responses to APO stimulation were blunted in obsessive-compulsive (OC) patients. The emetic response to the same stimulation was stronger in patients than in controls. These responses suggest that in our OC patients there is a dysregulation of the dopaminergic system, which is possibly expressed in different ways in the various areas of the central nervous system.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Asthma and panic attacks.

Panic disorder (PD) and asthma share many common characteristics and have been found in epidemiological studies to be significantly comorbid. To investigate possible reasons for this overlapping, the authors evaluated 51 patients with asthma, assessing the prevalence of PD and sporadic panic attacks, the temporal relationship between these two disorders, and the familial risk for PD in the families of asthmatics. The results showed significantly higher prevalences of PD, sporadic panic attacks, and social phobia in asthmatics than those reported for the general population. In 9 (90%) of the asthmatics with PD, asthma appeared first. Finally, the morbidity risk for PD in families of asthmatics with PD (13.5%) was significantly higher than in families of asthmatics without evidence of panic (2%). Our results suggest that the high prevalence of PD in asthmatics might be related to a facilitating effect of asthma on the development of PD in subjects with familial predisposition to PD.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

The 35% CO2 challenge test in patients with social phobia.

Panic disorder (PD) and social phobia (SP) share many clinical, demographic and biological characteristics. To investigate the relationships between the two disorders, the responses to inhalation of a 35% carbon-dioxide (CO2) and 65% oxygen (O2) gas mixture were assessed. Sixteen patients with PD, 16 patients with SP, 13 patients with both SP and PD, seven patients with SP who experienced sporadic unexpected panic attacks and 16 healthy control subjects inhaled one vital capacity of 35% CO2 or compressed air. A double-blind, randomized, crossover design was used. PD patients and SP patients showed similar anxiogenic reactions to 35% CO2, both stronger than seen in control subjects. Patients with both disorders and SP patients with sporadic unexpected panic attacks reacted similarly to subjects with PD or SP alone. These results suggest that PD and SP share a common hypersensitivity to CO2 and thus might belong to the same spectrum of vulnerability.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Noradrenergic receptor sensitivity in obsessive compulsive disorder: II. Cortisol response to acute clonidine administration.

Sensitivity of pre-synaptic alpha-2- and post-synaptic alpha-1- and beta-adrenoceptors was investigated in 15 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and in 15 age- and sex-matched healthy controls, by measuring cortisol responses to saline administration and to inhibition by clonidine (clon), a noradrenergic receptor agonist. Basal values of cortisol and responses to administration of saline and of clon were the same in patients and controls.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Noradrenergic receptor sensitivity in obsessive-compulsive disorders: I. Growth hormone response to clonidine stimulation.

In 15 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and in 15 healthy controls postsynaptic alpha-2-adrenoceptor sensitivity was examined by measuring the growth hormone (GH) response to growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and to clonidine stimulation. Basal values of GH and somatomedin-C (SMD-C) and mean GH responses to GHRH were the same in patients and controls, thus suggesting that a peripheral pathology of the somatotropic axis should not be present. GH responses to clonidine stimulation were blunted in patients suggesting that post-synaptic alpha-2-adrenoceptors are subsensitive, possibly due to higher than normal noradrenergic secretion.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Modification of 35% carbon dioxide hypersensitivity across one week of treatment with clomipramine and fluvoxamine: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study.

The effects of short treatments (7 days) with clomipramine and fluvoxamine on the reactivity to inhalations of 35% CO2/65% O2 were compared in 39 panic patients who had positive responses to 35% CO2 inhalations. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled design was applied. Each patient was given the 35% CO2 challenge on days 0 (before starting treatment), 3, and 7. Patients on placebo did not report any significant changes in their reactivity to 35% CO2 across the three sessions, whereas patients on clomipramine and fluvoxamine reported a significant attenuation of the reactivity on day 7. These results indicate that treatments with clomipramine and fluvoxamine decrease hypersensitivity to 35% CO2 after a few days, suggesting a relevant role of the modulation of CO2 sensitivity by the serotonergic system in antipanic properties of these compounds.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Application of stereophotogrammetry to total body three-dimensional analysis of human tremor.

This work aims at verifying the possibility of investigating joint rotations, with amplitude and frequency ranges typical of pathological human tremor, using commercially available stereophotogrammetric systems together with signal processing techniques. A rotating disk is used as a mechanical tremor simulator to test the ability of the system to track known marker trajectories both in a large and a small calibrated volume. The performances of standard discrete Fourier transform (DFT) and autoregressive techniques are also evaluated and compared in the signal spectrum estimation. Results obtained from a pathological test subject and their dependence on the processing techniques adopted are also presented. The use of stereophotogrammetry and of the proposed signal spectrum estimation technique allow to quantify both frequency and amplitude content of three-dimensional (3-D) rotations of many human joints simultaneously and therefore to isolate the contribution of each joint to the whole body tremor.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

Reconstruction of the external auditory canal with a laterocervical twisted flap (snail flap)

A case of circumferential reconstruction of the external auditory canal following basal cell carcinoma is described using a laterocervical tubed flap. One-stage reconstruction with a single flap, absence of donor-site deformity, and easy dissection are the main advantages of the procedure, which also can be conveniently used to reconstruct part of the concha and the tragal region.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

Skin expansion versus free forearm flap in forehead reconstruction.

The authors present their experience in surgical reconstruction of the forehead cosmetic unit, either with tissue expansion or free tissue transfer. Some of the cases underwent a full reconstruction of the entire cosmetic forehead unit en bloc performed by means of free forearm flap such as in postoncological exeresis and in post-traumatic reconstruction. The other method of choice was tissue expansion. The authors expanded the forehead unit for a giant naevus treatment in a child, and used a bilateral expansion of the forehead for tumour clearance of the middle third of the forehead. Results and problems related to the two techniques are presented and discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Transthoracic forequarter amputation and left pneumonectomy.

We describe a variation of the technique of transthoracic forequarter amputation, consisting of a completely anterior approach, removal of the left forequarter en bloc with the chest wall and lung, and sparing of the scapula. This latter bone is mobilized and is used, along with the transposition of the lower ribs, to stabilize the chest wall.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

Gigantic epidermoid cyst of the skull.

One case of an unusually giant epidermoid cyst of the skull is described. The neoformation had been present for 40 years, becoming extremely large in the last 20 years, in a 65-year-old woman. Difficulty in wearing glasses was the sole complaint of the patient, who otherwise concealed the mass by wearing a wig. Preoperative examinations (x-rays, CT scan, MRI) were important to better evaluate the nature of the cyst and to make a differential diagnosis. Dissection of the mass from the surrounding tissues was extremely easy because of its capsule. Sixteen months of follow-up have been pleasant, with no evidence of recurrence.

Aged↗