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Biomedical subjects

A Bichler

Publications and source records attributed to A Bichler.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

A combination of caffeine and taurine has no effect on short term memory but induces changes in heart rate and mean arterial blood pressure.

Red Bull energy drink has become extraordinarily popular amongst college students for use as a study aid. We investigated the combined effects of Red Bull's two active ingredients, caffeine and taurine, on short term memory. Studies on the effects of these two neuromodulators on memory have yielded mixed results, and their combined actions have not yet been investigated. In this double-blind study, college student subjects consumed either caffeine and taurine pills or a placebo and then completed a memory assessment. Heart rate and blood pressure were monitored throughout the testing period. The combination of caffeine and taurine had no effect on short term memory, but did cause a significant decline in heart rate and an increase in mean arterial blood pressure. The heart rate decline may have been caused by pressure-induced bradycardia that was triggered by caffeine ingestion and perhaps enhanced by the actions of taurine.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

[Normalization of perinatal morbidity in gestational diabetes by strict metabolic adjustment].

A prospective study compared the perinatal morbidity of 141 normal pregnancies (group I) with that of 108 pregnancies in whom gestational diabetes had been treated early (group II) and 35 with unsatisfactorily treated gestational diabetes (group III). The therapeutic goal in gestational diabetes was to have a postprandial blood-glucose level of less than 130 mg/100 ml. If this was not achievable through diet alone, insulin was injected once daily. Neonatal macrosomia, dystrophy, acidosis, hyperbilirubinaemia, hypoglycaemia and hypocalcaemia had a normal incidence in group II, but in group III macrosomia was twice as frequent as in group II (P less than 0.02), and acidosis (pH less than 7.20) twice as frequent (P less than 0.05). The results indicate that strict metabolic control in gestational pregnancy will achieve a normal rate of perinatal morbidity.

Apgar Score↗
PubMed1987

[Fetal erythroblastosis in Kell incompatibility].

The case study reported here concerned an intrauterine death as a result of a Kell erythroblastosis. Allergization had been caused by the administration of Kell-positive banked blood. Irregular antibodies are on the increase as a result of the increasing number of blood transfusions. It is recommended that the Kell system be considered in the selection of banked blood for girls and women of childbearing age--a practice that has been followed at the Innsbruck University Clinics for almost four years now. The indirect Coombs' test should be performed in order to establish Kell antibodies and other clinically significant antibodies. The enzyme test is recommended as a supplementary examination, but should never be used as the sole antibody test. As with rhesus incompatibility, and insofar as the determination of the father's Kell characteristics show him to be an antigen carrier, monitoring of allergized pregnant women must be carried out with the help of antibody titer follow-ups, amniocenteses, and ultrasonographic examinations at short notice.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Determination of neopterin in serum and urine.

Concentrations of neopterin, a product of activated macrophages, in serum from 662 apparently healthy individuals (ages 1 to 97 years, median 22 years) were measured by radioimmunoassay and the results statistically analyzed. Consistent with prior investigations on the urinary excretion of neopterin, we found no significant sex dependence, but values for subjects younger than 18 or older than 75 years were significantly higher. Renal clearance of neopterin in nine healthy individuals was 218 (SD 44) mL/min, which suggests that the kidneys have an active role in neopterin excretion. Results for neopterin concentrations measured in serum by RIA and "high-performance" liquid chromatography (HPLC) are consistent, but for urinary neopterin the concordance between methods was weak. Therefore, the RIA should be used only for measuring neopterin in serum. In comparison of the clinical utility of serum neopterin and urinary neopterin/creatinine concentrations, in patients with gynecological tumors, the latter values (measured by HPLC) discriminated slightly better between patients with favorable and unfavorable prognoses.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Neopterin, a biochemical indicator of cellular immune reactions, in the detection and control of patients with neoplastic diseases.

The incidence of elevated neopterin levels is presented for 748 patients with various malignancies. The mean urinary neopterin levels varied directly with stage and in patients with carcinoma of bladder according to histological grade of disease. In 178/208 patients with subsequent treatment for gynecological cancer, neopterin levels returned to normal within 3 weeks when tumor remission was achieved but remained high or even raised when persistent or recurrent cancer was later diagnosed. In 160 patients suffering from cervical carcinoma, significant differences in survival were demonstrated by Cox regression when patients were grouped according to their pretherapeutical neopterin level.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

[Diagnosis of diabetes in pregnancy. Accuracy and prognostic value].

Pregnancy can impair glucose tolerance severely enough to increase the perinatal mortality rate. In the presence of easily recognizable signs pointing to diabetes mellitus we have performed an oral glucose tolerance test. Among 634 patients who were investigated, 151 or 23.8% had impaired glucose tolerance. As there were 11,017 pregnancies in the observation period from January 1976 to May 1981, the detection rate of impaired glucose tolerance was 1.37%. The patients were treated by diet or by diet plus insulin (105 patients). The observed favourable fetal outcome justifies and promotes the proposed diagnostic procedures.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Measurement of urinary neopterin in normal pregnant and non-pregnant women and in women with benign and malignant genital tract neoplasms.

Urinary neopterin was measured in healthy women (n = 209) and men (n = 208), in patients with benign gynecological tumors (n = 53), in women with precancerous lesions of the cervix and the endometrium (n = 24) and in women with cancer of the genital tract (n = 108). In addition urinary neopterin measurements were made in 109 pregnant women and 20 women in the puerperium. No significant difference was found between mean neopterin values in patients with benign gynecological tumors, in women with precancerous lesions and in healthy women. Patients with cancer had significantly higher mean urinary neopterin levels than the control group. Raised neopterin levels were found in 56% of patients with genital tract cancer, the figures varying between 93% for ovarian cancer and 47% for cancer of the cervix. Some of the cancer patients had serial urinary neopterin measurements and in about 80% there was some relation between urinary neopterin values and clinical progress as judged clinically and radiologically, the best agreement existing in patients with ovarian cancer. Significantly higher mean neopterin values were found during normal pregnancy and in the early puerperium than in non-pregnant healthy controls. Raised urinary neopterin excretion may be due to enhanced cell proliferation and alloantigenic activation of T-lymphocytes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Significance of urinary neopterine in gynecological oncology: follow-up of patients with ovarian cancer.

In patients with genital cancer (N = 108) significantly higher mean neopterine levels were found than in a healthy control group. Prior to therapy elevated neopterine levels were seen in 60% of the patients with cancer of the genitals varying between 90% (ovarian cancer) and 54% (cervical cancer). Nine patients with ovarian cancer (stages IIb-IV) were followed for a period of 16 months to date. All patients had elevated neopterine values prior to therapy. When the urinary neopterine excretion remained increased over the period of observation, progression of the tumor occurred within a few months. In patients with complete or partial remission of the tumor, the neopterine excretion dropped to normal values. Thus, we feel that neopterine sampling may be helpful in the follow-up of patients with ovarian cancer, as tumor progression is indicated very early, before clinicoroentgenological findings are present.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Urinary neopterine excretion in patient with genital cancer.

Urinary neopterine values in 96 healthy women were compared with those in a group of 63 patients with cancer of the genitals who had not yet undergone treatment. Significantly higher median neopterine levels were found in the patients with carcinoma (p less than 0.001). In the 63 cancer patients who had not yet been treated, the diagnosis was made correctly in 65% of the cases by monitoring neopterine levels. In the follow-up of 72 patients with cancer of the genitals in 74% the neopterine values corresponded with the clinico-roentgenological findings. In 22%, false positive neopterine values (no recurrence of the tumor), and in 4% false negative values (recurrence, or progression of the carcinoma) were observed. These results confirm previous reports concerning the significance of pteridine excretion in patients with cancer. However, more investigations have to be performed to establish the value of neopterine sampling in monitoring patients with malignant tumors.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

[Clinical experience with sulprostone (author's transl)].

Sulprostone (SHB 286, Schering) was used for the induction of abortion mainly in patients with missed abortion, but also in cases of intrauterine death and hydatid mole (total number: 226). In the first trimester a single injection of 25 or 50 mcg into the cervix ("intramural" injection) in order to obtain preoperative dilatation of the cervix was favoured. In the second and third trimester Sulprostone was administered by the intravenous (mean dosage 925 mcg), the intragluteal (mean dosage 540 mcg) or the extra-amniotic (mean dosage 660 mcg) route. After "intramural" administration an abortion score of at least 20 according to Csapo was obtained in 78% of patients. With the intravenous route the abortion rate was 86%, with the extra-amniotic 74% and with the intragluteal route 70%. The main use of "intramural" application is seen in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy in order to ensure non-traumatic dilatation of the cervix. In the second and third trimester intravenous and intragluteal administration seem to be superior to the extra-amniotic route because of their better tolerance.

Abortion, Eugenic↗
PubMed1981

[Pregnancy after renal transplantation].

Since the number of women with renal cadaver transplantation is increasing, the obstetrician seems himself more often confronted with the situation: pregnancy after renal transplantation. The purpose of this paper is to report about our own case, to give a review of international studies written on this subject, and to inform the obstetrician, the surgeon and the pediatrician about the following points: - Common aspects of renal transplantation in fertile women and the information to be given to the patient. - Selection criteria and anticonception. - Pregnancy assessment and delivery - Pediatric problems.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

[Breech Presentation--a problem of prematurity? (author's transl)].

The single breech deliveries at the Universitäts-Frauenklinik Insbruck from 1973 to 1977 have been reviewed. Related to a total number of 10.693 deliveries 390 children (3.6%) were born in breech presentation. The unselected perinatal mortality rate of infants in breech presentation was 7.0% which is 4 times higher than the total infant mortality (1.6%). This seems to be due to the higher prematurity rate with breech presentation compared to all deliveries (22.6% versus 8%). In 1977 only premature breeches have been lost. The perinatal mortality rate of premature infants with breech presentation is higher than those of premature babies with vertex presentation (26.3% versus 9.8%). Therefore, more care is needed for the prevention of premature labour in breech presentation. The Caesarean section rate because of breech presentation increased from 18% (1973) to 40% (1977); nevertheless the perinatal mortality rate couldn't be reduced. Up to the present we have been afraid of deliver large series of premature breeches by Caesarean section. Maybe that therefore the perinatal mortality rate couldn't be reduced. However, according to our results routinely performed Caesarean section with mature breeches is not justified. In our opinion a decrease of perinatal morbidity and mortality only can be obtained by reducing the premature breeches.

Acidosis↗