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Biomedical subjects

A Notarbartolo

Publications and source records attributed to A Notarbartolo.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Lipids, lipoproteins and apolipoproteins AI, AII, B, CII, CIII and E in newborns.

In this study lipid and apolipoprotein patterns were investigated at birth and compared with those of adults. In cord sera, cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol were 38.2, 46.2, 50.5, and 31.9%, respectively, of adult values. Apolipoprotein AII, B and CIII were 48.6, 30.6 and 44.5% of adult values, while apo AI, apo CII and apo E showed values approaching those of adults (63.4, 73.3 and 89.7%, respectively). Also cholesterol/HDL cholesterol and LDL cholesterol/HDL cholesterol ratios were lower in newborns. In cord sera, lipids were correlated with various apolipoproteins in a surprisingly different way from adult sera. HDL cholesterol was not inversely correlated with triglycerides, and showed a highly positive correlation with apo E, apo CII and apo CIII, which did not correlate with HDL cholesterol in adults. These data supported the presence of significant differences in plasma concentrations and composition of lipoproteins at birth. Therefore HDL, apo CII, and apo E seem to play a different and more important metabolic role in neonatal lipid metabolism.

Apolipoproteins↗
PubMed1991

[Prevalence of biliary lithiasis in chronic liver disease].

The prevalence of cholelithiasis was determined by ultrasound in 168 patients affected by chronic liver disease and compared to 828 subjects of the general population. We found an increase of cholelithiasis in chronic liver patients (p less than 0.004). This difference persisted separating the subjects in males (p less than 0.003) but not in females (p less than 0.08). Examined by age groups, patients demonstrated, like in the control group, an increase of frequency with the increase in age. We did not find any association with BMI, cholesterolemia, triglyceridemia, albuminemia and gammaglobulinemia levels. A significant association was found in the total (p less than 0.003) and indirect (p less than 0.0001) bilirubinemia. Finally, there was no significant association with the etiology of the liver disease. Even though there was a greater association with alcoholic and cryptogenetic liver disease.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1990

Thromboxane biosynthesis and platelet function in type II diabetes mellitus.

It has been suggested that platelet hyperreactivity in patients with diabetes mellitus is associated with increased platelet production of thromboxane. We therefore compared the excretion of a thromboxane metabolite and platelet function in 50 patients with Type II diabetes mellitus who had normal renal function and clinical evidence of macrovascular disease and in 32 healthy controls. The mean (+/- SD) excretion rate of urinary 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2 was significantly higher in the patients than in the controls (5.94 +/- 3.68 vs. 1.50 +/- 0.79 nmol per day; P less than 0.001), irrespective of the type of macrovascular complication. Tight metabolic control achieved with insulin therapy reduced the levels of 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2 by approximately 50 percent. The fractional conversion of exogenous thromboxane B2 (infused at a rate of 4.5, 45.3, or 226.4 fmol per kilogram of body weight per second) to urinary 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2 was assessed in four patients, in whom it averaged 5.4 +/- 0.1 percent; this value did not differ from that measured in healthy subjects. Aspirin in low doses (50 mg per day for seven days) reduced urinary excretion of the metabolite by approximately 80 percent in four patients. The fact that thromboxane biosynthesis recovered over the following 10 days was consistent with a platelet origin of the urinary metabolite.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1990

The steatocrit test as a guide in the prevention of cow's-milk enteropathy following acute infectious enteritis.

This study was designed to evaluate the following in infants with acute enteritis (AE): the influence of different types of milk on the evolution of the acute phase of the diarrhea and whether the degree of steatorrhea during the acute phase might be a risk factor for developing cow's milk enteropathy (CME). We studied 90 infants with AE, divided into three groups and refed differently after the acute episode: group A was refed using a semielemental formula; group B was refed using a milk containing soy proteins and vegetable oils; and group C was refed using a common cow's-milk formula. Patients with pathological steatocrit values on hospitalization were randomly assigned to groups A and B; patients with normal steatocrit values were placed in group C. After 4 weeks, the patients included in groups A and B were challenged with cow's milk and their reactions were recorded. During the acute phase of the disease, we noticed a longer persistence of diarrhea in group A than in groups B (p less than 0.01) and C (p less than 0.0025). In addition, the number of evacuations per day and steatocrit values were higher in group A than in groups B or C, but these differences were not statistically significant. After 4 weeks, the patients in groups A and B were challenged with cow's milk, and eight of 60 patients had positive reactions; intestinal biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of CME. The mean age of these eight patients was 40.3 days.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1990

Chronic pancreatitis in Sicily. Preliminary reports.

The aetiology and clinical characteristics of 42 patients affected with chronic calcifying pancreatitis in a Sicilian population were investigated and compared with a series of other Italian and foreign reports. It was found that the aetiology was 62% alcoholics and 38% idiopathic in origin and that the M/F ratio was 2.5:1. Clinical features as pain, weight loss, pancreatic calcifications, steatorrhea, pseudocysts and associated cirrhosis are significantly more frequent in the group of alcoholics, while cholelithiasis was more frequent in the non-alcoholic group. Two aspects are worth noting in comparison to the north of Italy: a) the lesser frequency of alcoholic forms and b) the high incidence of women.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

[Serum PABA test in diabetes mellitus].

The serum values of para-amino-benzoic acid in subjects affected by type II diabetes mellitus, were measured hourly for 6 hours, after oral ingestion of B-T-PABA. These values were compared with those of a control group. The results demonstrate that at 1, 2, 4 and 5 hours, the mean values of the two groups were significantly different: p less than 0.01, p less than 0.002, p less than 0.0001 and p less than 0.005 respectively. Comparing the area under the curve the data did not differ significantly, indicating that at the end of the sixth hours the quantity of PABA absorbed is very similar in the two groups. These results indicate that patients with diabetes seem to have an altered exocrine pancreatic function, which may be due to a reduction in the zymogen stocked in the acinar cells or a lower secretory response to physiological stimulus. This impairment does not affect the digestion and the nutritional state of the patients.

4-Aminobenzoic Acid↗
PubMed1990

[Short-term metabolic compensation improves the lipo-apoprotein profile in type II diabetics in secondary insufficiency].

In the present study the effect of short-term metabolic control on plasma lipids and apoproteins in a group of subjects with type II diabetes mellitus in insulin treatment for secondary failure to oral agent therapy (sulphonylureas) was examined. For this reason 40 diabetic patients and 40 normal controls were studied. The lipoapoproteic pattern at the admission in the study and after a steady metabolic control, achieved by conventional insulin therapy and estimated by seric fructosamine, was evaluated. Diabetic patients, when compared with normal controls, showed a more atherogenic lipo-apoproteic profile and after achieving metabolic control, showed a reduction of triglyceride and apo B levels and a significant increase of the apo AI levels. The achievement of a good metabolic control, even after a short time, was associated with an improvement of the lipo-apoproteic profile, altered in diabetes mellitus in secondary failure.

Apoproteins↗
PubMed1990

Steatocrit test: normal range and physiological variations in infants.

In order to define the normal values of steatocrit during the first 3 months of life and the normal correlation between fecal fat content and steatocrit values, 60 full-term healthy unweaned infants (30 bottle-fed, 15 breast-fed, and 15 mixed-fed) were studied. The steatocrit micromethod was performed in these babies at 7, 14, 21, 28, 45, and 90 days after birth. Steatorrhea often occurs during the first month and then decreases, as shown by the fall in the steatocrit curve from 7th to 28th day in our subjects; at 45 days, few babies have steatorrhea. The 90th percentile profile of steatocrit values shows a value of 25% at the first week of life and a value of 13% at the fourth week. After the end of the third month, babies with steatocrit values higher than 2% should be put under close observation. Moreover, fat absorption can be greatly influenced by diet; in breast-fed babies, steatorrhea disappears more rapidly and steatocrit values are lower at every age than in partly or totally formula-fed babies. The good correlation between steatocrit values and fecal fat content (r = 0.97) confirms that this micromethod can be used for monitoring steatorrhea instead of other more cumbersome and expensive methods.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Effects of synvinolin on platelet aggregation and thromboxane B2 synthesis in type IIa hypercholesterolemic patients.

An increased susceptibility of platelets to aggregation induced by various agents and a higher production of active arachidonate metabolism have been described in type IIa hypercholesterolemia. This study was designed to evaluate whether changes in platelet function could be observed in hypercholesterolemic patients after synvinolin therapy. Administration of synvinolin to 12 type IIa hypercholesterolemic patients for 24 weeks had a lipid lowering effect and resulted in a marked reduction of platelet aggregation and thromboxane formation induced by collagen and arachidonate. Maximum response was achieved at 4-8 weeks and lipid lowering effects at 2 weeks. This finding indicates that platelet changes cannot be explained by a direct effect of synvinolin on platelets, and the antiplatelet response may therefore depend on platelet membrane lipid composition changes, particularly in the platelet cholesterol content of platelet membranes, following substantial reductions of total plasma cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Serum apolipoprotein profile of hypertriglyceridemic patients with chronic renal failure on hemodialysis: a comparison with type IV hyperlipoproteinemic patients.

Thirty-three patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) and uremic hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) on hemodialysis were compared with 33 type IV hyperlipoproteinemic patients matched for age, body mass index (BMI), and triglyceride (TG) levels. The two forms of hypertriglyceridemia showed different apolipoprotein profiles: apo AI, AII, and B levels and apo CII:CIII and TG:apo CIII ratios of CRF-HTG patients were lower and apo CIII levels were higher than the levels of type IV subjects.

Apolipoproteins↗
PubMed1989

[Effect of a long-term treatment with simvastatin, an inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, in dyslipidemic patients at high risk].

The reduction of total and LDL cholesterol (TC and LDLc), apoprotein B (ApoB) and in some instances triglycerides (TG) and the increase of HDL cholesterol (HDLc) and apoprotein A (ApoA) seem to be associated to a reduced coronary risk. Aim of our work was to evaluate the effects of a chronic treatment with the HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor simvastatin (MK-733), in a group of 8 dyslipidemic patients, 5 women and 3 men, aged between 48 and 69 years (mean age 59 +/- 8 years) at high risk being already affected by clinical compliances of atherosclerosis and not previously controlled by diet and/or other antidyslipidemic drugs. At the beginning and at the end (6 months) of this open study it was performed a clinical, ECG and ophthalmological examination, as well as an evaluation of the routine laboratory parameters. The initial dosage of simvastatin was a tablet of 10 mg/day, increased after a month to 20 mg and then to 40 mg/die. The mean dosage was 26.25 mg at the 3rd month and 21.25 mg at the 6th. Long-term simvastatin treatment was well tolerated (lack of important side effects as well as of significant changes of other clinical and laboratory parameters) and effective, reducing significantly (p less than 0.01) TC (317.9 +/- 30.8 vs 238.5 +/- 37.9 mg/dl), LDLc (210.6 +/- 48 vs 147.9 +/- 52 mg/dl), ApoB (144.7 +/- 17.5 vs 104.5 +/- 18), and TG (272.9 +/- 184 vs 200.5 +/- 117.6 mg/dl) and increasing in contrast HDL and ApoA values.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Platelet function in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: the effect of glycaemic control.

In the present study the effects of a short term intensive glycaemic control obtained with subcutaneous insulin therapy on lipids and apoprotein levels, platelet aggregation, platelet sensitivity to prostacyclin and platelet thromboxane production were investigated in 20 patients with type 2 diabetes and vascular disease. In 11 out of the 20 patients there was a significant improvement of glycaemic control (fructosamine reduction). Only with tight improvement of glycaemic control there was significant change in the concentration of ADP and collagen required to produce 50% of the maximum aggregation wave response, in the responsiveness of platelet to PGI2 and in the TxB2 synthesis. Lower Apo B levels were also shown in the tight control group suggesting that Apo B changes may have influenced platelet aggregation and thromboxane synthesis.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

[Antiplatelet effects of combined therapy with ticlopidine and low doses of aspirin on patients with ischemic cardiopathy].

The aim of study was to evaluate the effects on platelet function, in 8 patients with ischemic heart disease, of the following treatments administered consecutively: ticlopidine in a daily dose of 500 mg (10 days); aspirin in a daily dose of 50 mg (10 days); ticlopidine plus ASA, at the same dosages, for the last 10 days. Only ticlopidine plus ASA significantly inhibited EC 50 of ADP, collagen and arachidonate. Platelet activation and platelet sensitivity to prostacyclin was affected by ticlopidine and ticlopidine plus ASA but not by ASA alone. We conclude that in our ischemic heart disease patients the association of ticlopidine and low dose aspirin seems superior to each drug alone in inhibiting platelet activity.

Aged↗
PubMed1988

Effectiveness of enteric-coated preparations on nutritional parameters in cystic fibrosis. A long-term study.

To evaluate the effectiveness of enteric-coated pancreatic enzyme supplements in comparison to conventional preparations of ingested enzyme on growth and nutritional parameters of patients with cystic fibrosis, we conducted a long-term study involving 40 patients. The data reproduced here were recorded after 6 months of therapy with powder-containing capsules or with enteric-coated products. Fat absorption was estimated by measurement of steatorrhoea with the steatocrit method. All parameters studied improved after enteric-coated pancreatic enzyme therapy, with a statistically significant increase in weight, cholesterol and haemoglobin values. Furthermore, the number of patients with positive steatocrit test was lower after therapy with enteric-coated enzyme supplementation. These findings suggest that the enteric-coated product not only reduces steatorrhoea, but above all improves the nutritional parameters and growth of patients affected by cystic fibrosis.

Adolescent↗