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Biomedical subjects

A Fich

Publications and source records attributed to A Fich.

87 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Comparison of misoprostol and cimetidine in the treatment of gastric ulcer.

The efficacy of misoprostol (a synthetic analogue of prostaglandin E1) and cimetidine in the treatment of gastric ulcer was evaluated. Thirty-two patients with endoscopically proven gastric ulcer were randomized, in a double-blind manner, in one of three groups that received four daily doses of either misoprostol, 50 or 200 micrograms, or cimetidine, 300 mg. Ulcer healing was assessed endoscopically after 4 weeks of treatment. The three groups were fairly comparable in their alcohol and caffeine intake, previous ulcer history and ulcer size. A relatively high proportion of patients in the cimetidine-treated group was smokers. Only one patient was withdrawn from the study. On the misoprostol low dose, healing of the ulcer was observed in 20% of the patients. In contrast, healing on the high dose of misoprostol (70%) was not significantly different from that on cimetidine (73%). No important clinical side effects were observed in any of the patients. These results (part of a multicenter, international study) suggest that the divided daily dose of 800 micrograms misoprostol is safe and effective in the short-term treatment of gastric ulcer.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Sulfasalazine hepatotoxicity.

Hepatotoxicity has been recently described as a rare complication of sulfasalazine therapy. Two patients with hepatic damage after sulfasalazine treatment are reported. Liver biopsy performed in one patient revealed granulomatous hepatitis. On rechallenge with 5 aminosalicylic acid enema the second patient developed a hypersensitivity reaction without hepatic involvement.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Ictal hemiparesis.

2 cases of ictal hemiparesis in adults are presented. The clinical picture was recurrent transient hemiparesis with contralateral focal hemispheric discharge. The etiology in such cases seems to be a stimulation of the second somatosensory and/or the supplementary motor areas. Emphasis is placed on the fact that, while transient ischemic attacks in adults are readily diagnosed, some cases might be subject to misdiagnosis, being actually due to inhibitory fits.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

Priapism in a non-black with sickle cell anemia associated with alpha-thalassemia.

Sickle cell anemia, the most prevalent type of hemoglobinopathy, appears almost exclusively in backs. Since the first report of sickle cell anemia in a Caucasian by Cooley and Lee in 1929 [1], additional cases have been reported, mainly from Mediterranean countries, the Persian Gulf, and India [2]. Several cases were also found among Arabs in Israel with a relatively benign clinical course [3, 4]. The present report describes a unique case of sickle cell anemia associated with alpha-thalassemia in a non-black young adult. The diagnosis was made at the age of 23 years. Severe priapism was almost the first manifestation of the disease and subsided following transfusion of five units of packed red blood cells.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Prolactin concentration in prostates with benign hypertrophy.

Twenty-two hypertrophied prostates removed in surgery were checked for prolactin concentration by the radioimmunoassay method. The mean concentration in the prostatic tissue was found to be 38.2 +/- 1.9 ng./Gm. while the mean basal serum level was 11.9 +/- 1.3 ng./ml. It is concluded that serum prolactin levels do not reflect prostatic prolactin concentration. The possibility that interrelationship in action exists between androgens and prolactin affecting each other's concentration, both influencing prostatic metabolism is discussed.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Measles is more prevalent in Crohn's disease patients. A multicentre Israeli study.

The question whether there is a transmissible pathogenetic agent as a cause for Crohn's disease, remains unanswered. Measles virus has been the subject of many intensive studies, in the attempt to find a role for it in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease. Whether an early infection with measles virus may predispose to Crohn's disease in later life is still not clear. We conducted a large scale multicentre study, in order to obtain sufficient data to answer this question. To do so, we compared inflammatory bowel disease patients, with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis, with two matched control groups: clinical controls, and community controls. A total of 531 patients, 271 with ulcerative colitis and 260 with Crohn's disease were interviewed, as well as 903 matched controls. Blood from 104 inflammatory bowel disease patients and 50 controls was tested for antibodies to measles virus. We did not find any differences related to measles vaccination, either in Crohn's disease or in ulcerative colitis. Exposure to measles in childhood was more frequent in Crohn's disease patients than in their controls, the difference being statistically significant (p < 0.05) in relation to community controls. The presence of IgG antibodies to measles virus was higher in patients with Crohn's disease than in patients with ulcerative colitis or controls (p = 0.084). Another observation of interest was the finding that Crohn's disease patients who had measles in childhood, more frequently had large bowel disease than those who had not had measles. These data lead us to postulate that there may be a role for measles infection in Crohn's disease, even if, at present, this role remains unclear.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Constipation and megacolon in rats related to treatment with oxodipine, a calcium antagonist.

The constipatory effects of oxodipine, a dihyrdopyridine-type calcium antagonist, have been described in a 3-mo, 12-mo, and 30-mo feeding toxicity study in rats. This paper reports the occurrence of megacolon in rats as a result of the constipatory effects of chronic administration of oxodipine. The first mortality due to oxodipine was seen after about 1 yr of treatment at a dose of 225 mg/kg/day. The toxic effects noted were dose-, time-, and sex-related. Female rats appeared more sensitive to the constipatory effects of the drug. The dose at which the effect occurred in both male and female rats was from about 75 to 675 times the recommended therapeutic dose for humans. To the best knowledge of the authors, this is the first report of a calcium channel blocker causing constipation in rats.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Detection of tumor mutant APC DNA in plasma of patients with sporadic colorectal cancer.

The aim of this study was to detect mutant APC DNA of tumor origin in the plasma of patients with sporadic colorectal carcinomas. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and the single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) procedures were employed to detect DNA alterations using primers to amplify the mutation cluster region of the APC gene. APC mutations were observed in 7 out of 11 archival colonic tumor specimens examined. Matching mutations in free plasma DNA of tumor origin were detected in 3 of the 7 patients (42.8%). The results of this preliminary report indicated the presence of APC DNA in plasma harboring the identical abnormal molecular signature of tumor APC DNA. Detection methods of mutant APC DNA in blood may prove useful in the screening and monitoring of patients at risk of or with colorectal cancer.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

New endoscopic palliative treatments in gastrointestinal malignancies.

Many gastrointestinal cancers are diagnosed when no curative approach is possible. Patients with these malignancies frequently have dysphagia, jaundice, intestinal obstruction and other severe symptoms which significantly impair their quality of life. We present our experience with two new endoscopic techniques for palliative treatment in these patients: placement of biliary endoprostheses to alleviate malignant obstructive jaundice and destruction of neoplastic tissue by phototherapy with laser rays.

Cholestasis↗