Tolerance induction with peripheral blood lymphocyte depletion using monoclonal antibodies: tip of the iceberg?
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to A S Soin.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
We studied 25 consecutive patients with noncirrhotic portal hypertension to determine whether portal hypertensive gastropathy occurred and whether it was related to hypoacidity, hypergastrinemia, or portal venous congestion. Preoperative tests included gastrointestinal endoscopy, gastric mucosal biopsies, gastric acid estimation, and serum gastrin measurements. All patients had a central splenorenal shunt performed during which a full-thickness gastric biopsy was performed. The tests were repeated 3 to 16 months postoperatively. Eight of the 25 patients showed endoscopic evidence of portal hypertensive gastropathy. The shunt procedure reversed the gastropathy in 6 of 7 patients followed up. Mucosal biopsies revealed vascular ectasia in 24 of 25 patients; in 8 of the most severely affected there was partial or complete regression after surgery. The basal and peak acid outputs in the patients were normal for our laboratory at 2.9 +/- 0.25 meq/hour and 16.37 +/- 0.96 meq/hour, respectively. They remained unchanged after surgery. Fasting serum gastrin levels were also normal both before and after surgery. Our findings indicate that venous congestion is the cause of portal hypertensive gastropathy in patients with noncirrhotic portal hypertension and that it can be reversed by a decompressive procedure.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
The widespread application of intestinal transplantation depends upon achieving a success rate sufficiently high to warrant treating patients by transplantation rather than parenteral nutrition. This is analogous to the situation in renal transplantation (where the alternative is dialysis) and pancreatic transplantation (insulin treatment) and contrasts with the situation in liver and heart transplantation where there is no effective alternative therapy. The main barrier to success at this level is immunological; progress will depend on improved prevention, diagnosis and treatment of rejection. Although developments are expected of new and more potent immunosuppressive drugs, it is possible that acceptable long-term results will require a more fundamental manipulation of the immune response in order to achieve at least partial tolerance of the graft.
The impact of donor arterial variations and their management was investigated retrospectively in 527 consecutive allografts. Anomalous arteries were found in 161 grafts (30.6 per cent). There was no significant difference in the overall incidence of arterial complications between grafts with normal (3.6 per cent) and abnormal (5.6 per cent) anatomy. However, there was a higher incidence of arterial complications in transplants requiring multiple arterial anastomoses (P = 0.02), or anastomosis of donor vessels to recipient aorta with (P = 0.0003) or without (P = 0.04) an interposition graft for arterial reconstruction. The incidence of biliary complications was similar in grafts with a normal (18.8 per cent) or anomalous (18.0 per cent) arterial supply. Anomalies of hepatic arterial anatomy occur in one-third of all livers and do not compromise graft outcome unless multiple anastomoses or direct anastomosis to the recipient aorta are required for arterial reconstruction.
Children who are too ill to await a liver graft of suitable size may be transplanted with a relatively oversized graft by leaving the abdominal wound partially open, the defect reduced being bridged with polypropylene mesh and the mesh reduced in stages until it can be removed and the wound directly closed. This technique has been used in seven children who received nine grafts (five reduced and four full size). Their mean age was 7.3 (range 0.5-11) months and mean weight 5.8 (range 2.3-7.2) kg. Progressive reduction in the size of the transplanted liver made primary closure possible in survivors in up to four stages. Over a follow-up period of 3 to 58 months, five of the nine grafts and five of the seven patients survived. No significant complications attributable to the technique were encountered. The technique of delayed primary abdominal wall closure may be of benefit in children at risk of graft failure because of a size-mismatched graft.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
The increasing success of clinical liver transplantation has brought rejection to the forefront as a cause of morbidity and graft loss. The relationship of immunosuppressive drug doses and levels to acute and chronic rejection remains a matter of debate. The effect of blood CsA levels and drug doses on the incidence of acute and chronic rejection and the impact of acute rejection episodes on the occurrence of chronic rejection were studied in 146 grafts in 132 patients. These patients were transplanted in the 4-year period from June 1989 using CsA-based immunosuppression (CsA, azathioprine, prednisolone). Liver grafts in patients maintained on median CsA levels (whole blood, trough level) of > or = 175 micrograms/L in the first 28 days posttransplant had a significantly lower incidence of chronic rejection (2 out of 49 vs. 22 out of 97; P = 0.002). There was no significant difference in incidence of graft loss due to fatal sepsis (6% vs. 5%) or nephrotoxicity between the high and low CsA level groups. The overall graft loss rate was lower in the higher CsA level group (22% vs. 37%). The total doses of the individual drugs did not correlate with the incidence of acute or chronic rejection. Although the occurrence of acute rejection itself did not determine later chronic rejection, late occurrence (P < 0.00001) and multiple episodes (two or more; P = 0.0002) of acute rejection were significant risk factors for the occurrence of chronic rejection. We conclude that to minimize graft loss to rejection, CsA levels should be maintained at greater than 175 micrograms/L in the early posttransplant period, and late and recurrent episodes of acute rejection should be prevented.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Twenty-seven years ago, liver transplantation at Addenbrooke's Hospital was a very experimental procedure. It is now recognized as an accepted mode of treatment for end-stage liver failure. In the coming year, over 600 liver transplants will take place in the United Kingdom. All western European countries now have an active liver transplantation program and more than 17,000 liver transplants have already been performed. As results improve and the procedure becomes more readily and widely accepted, the donor shortage is likely to get worse, and will be only partially met by the introduction of split livers and living-related donors.
Twenty eight patients of sporadic primary hyperparathyroidism seen over a period of 10 years were studied. There were 18 females and 10 males with a mean age of 35.9 years. Bone involvement was the commonest clinical presentation (90%) followed by renal involvement (65%) and more than half the patients (54%) had involvement of both the skeletal and renal systems. The tumor was clinically palapable in six patients. Thalliumtechnetium subtraction scan had a sensitivity of 87% followed by computerised tomography (70%), and ultrasound (65%) in diagnosing parathyroid pathology. All the patients underwent surgical excision of the abnormal gland (S). Adenomas constituted the single largest group (90%). Histologically, only 32% of the patients had chief cell morphology. Clear cell (32%) mixed cell, and oxyphil cell (7.2%) types accounted for the remaining adenomas. Majority of the patients (82%) had symptomatic postoperative hypocalcemia requiring intravenous calcium with or without vitamin D supplementation. In contrast to western reports most of our patients were young, presented late with florid bone and renal disease and had large palpable tumors.
Generalized peritonitis is a common surgical emergency in India, the 'Tropical Spectrum' of generalized peritonitis being different from the western spectrum. A total 155 cases of generalized peritonitis were surgically treated at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences between 1981 and 1987, all patients undergoing peritoneal toilet with drainage after the cause of their peritonitis had been treated. The most common cause of peritonitis was peptic ulcer perforation, with simple closure being associated with a 2 per cent mortality, while typhoid perforation was the second most common cause. The diagnosis was clinical, supported by the operative findings of a terminal ileal perforation while bacteriological, serological and histopathological confirmation was retrospective. Appendicular perforations were less common than in the west but the clinical picture was the same. Tubercular perforations were not uncommon with a previous history of subacute intestinal obstruction and evidence of tuberculosis on chest X-ray suggesting the diagnosis. Ruptured amebic liver abscess was the most common hepatobiliary cause of generalized peritonitis with drainage of the abscess producing good results. The average hospital stay was 15 days with an overall mortality of 8 per cent.
A case with an unusual presentation of sepsis after Ivalon sponge rectopexy is reported. A strong index of suspicion is important for correct diagnosis. Early removal of infected sponge allows quick resolution of the sepsis without recurrent prolapse.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.