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Biomedical subjects

B Kolack

Publications and source records attributed to B Kolack.

3 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1989

Effects of elevation on nerve function in an acute upper extremity nerve compression model.

External compression was applied to the palmar surface of the wrist over the carpal tunnel in eight healthy volunteer subjects. With the arm in the maximum elevated position, the carpal tunnel pressure was elevated to 50 mm Hg, being continuously monitored by a slit catheter inserted into the carpal canal. Sensory and motor latencies and amplitudes were evaluated at 1-min intervals. When the sensory amplitude decreased by 50% (correlating with subjective sensory changes), the hand was lowered to heart level, still maintaining the carpal tunnel pressure at 50 mm Hg. Nerve conduction velocity and amplitude monitoring continued at 30-s intervals until complete sensory block. Four subjects demonstrated a transient reversal in the sensory amplitude decline with lowering of the hand to heart level, but soon progressed to a complete sensory block. The remaining four subjects demonstrated no change in the sensory amplitude decline with lowering of the hand to heart level. Our results suggest that with moderately elevated carpal tunnel pressures, once the sensory amplitude drops by 50% and the patient starts experiencing subjective sensory changes, lowering the hand to heart level may not change the local tissue blood flow sufficiently to maintain a sustained reversal in the declining nerve function and impending nerve damage.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Airway reactivity in cotton bract-induced bronchospasm.

Most healthy subjects challenged with cotton bract extract demonstrate some degree of bronchospasm. This response has been associated with the endogenous production of histamine by the inhalation of cotton bract extract. We examined whether this responsiveness reflects increased sensitivity to histamine. Thirty-one healthy subjects were screened for sensitivity to cotton bract extract administered by nebulization. Pulmonary function was measured using partial expiratory flow-volume curves on which flows at 60% of the control vital capacity below total lung capacity were measured (MEF40%(P)). Responders were defined as subjects who exhibited a 20% or greater decrease in MEF40%(P) after 10 min inhaling cotton bract extract. Of those screened, 10 subjects were responders. From the remaining nonresponders, 11 consecutive subjects were selected. The maximal decrease in MEF40%(P) in responders was 40.5 +/- 5.1%, compared to 10.9 +/- 2.2% in nonresponders. The dose-response relationship for histamine was measured in all subjects, using inhalations of progressively more concentrated histamine solutions. The mean +/- SEM threshold for the responders was 38.4 +/- 7.4 mg of histamine per ml, compared to 42.2 +/- 6.8 mg of histamine per ml for responders (difference not significant). The percentage decrease in MEF40%(P) at the threshold dose was 27.6 +/- 3.7% for responders and 32.4 +/- 5.2% for nonresponders (difference not significant). We conclude that healthy subjects sensitive to cotton bract extract do not exhibit increased reactivity to histamine. This suggests that responders are not, in general, subclinical asthmatics, and that the difference between responders and nonresponders to CBE is not due to increased histamine sensitivity among responders.

Adult↗