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Biomedical subjects

C Bachman

Publications and source records attributed to C Bachman.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

Is carbohydrate-deficient transferrin a specific marker for alcohol abuse? A study in patients with chronic viral hepatitis.

Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin, a transferrin isoform, is hailed as a new marker of chronic alcohol abuse, but its specificity is, however, not unequivocally accepted. The aim of the present study was therefore to determine carbohydrate-deficient transferrin levels in patients with chronic hepatitis B and C with or without documented chronic alcohol intake. Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin was measured using a double-antibody radioimmunoassay (CDTect, Pharmacia) in serum samples from 66 patients (45 males and 21 females; mean age: 39 years) with chronic viral hepatitis B (n = 20) or C (n = 46). Diagnosis of the underlying liver disease was established by liver biopsy. Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin levels were raised in 15 patients [23%; hepatitis B (n = 2) and hepatitis C (n = 13)]. In patients with chronic hepatitis B, the carbohydrate-deficient transferrin level was raised in two abstainers. In the 46 patients with chronic hepatitis C, 10 (22%) patients with an alcohol consumption of < 60 g/day for the men and 30 g/day for the women had raised carbohydrate-deficient transferrin levels. The overall specificity of carbohydrate-deficient transferrin for chronic alcohol abuse was thus 78%, suggesting an association between elevated carbohydrate-deficient transferrin levels and the presence of chronic viral hepatitis. Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin levels were not correlated with the histological grading or staging of chronic hepatitis B and C, or with biological markers of hepatic synthesis and cellular damage. Thus, an increased carbohydrate-deficient transferrin level may occur in patients with chronic viral hepatitis in the absence of chronic alcohol abuse. This fact should be kept in mind by physicians when using this marker to detect alcohol abuse.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Anaesthesia and Rett syndrome: a case report.

Rett syndrome is a neurological disorder of females characterized by dementia, autism, movement disorders and an abnormality of respiratory control. A 14-year-old girl with Rett Syndrome underwent spinal fusion surgery under general anaesthesia. No exacerbation of the respiratory control defect with surgery and anaesthesia was observed. Hypothermia, ongoing blood loss and a normal anion gap acidosis were encountered, but were not attributable to features of this disorder.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Fecal incontinence in elderly patients.

Fecal incontinence is a common and important problem in the care of the elderly. An understanding of the defecation mechanism, appropriate differential diagnosis, and the best choice of treatment method are necessary to control this problem. Establishing a regular bowel program takes time and energy, but when the final result is continence, it is time and energy well spent.

Aged↗
PubMed1986

The effect of lidocaine on regional blood flows and cardiac output in the non-stressed and the stressed foetal lamb.

Lidocaine has been used in obstetrical anaesthesia for many years but there are still concerns about possible adverse affects of this drug on the foetus in utero. To examine in greater detail the effects of lidocaine in the foetus, the following two-part study was done. In Part A, seven pregnant ewes were surgically prepared with maternal and foetal arterial and venous catheters. After recovery from surgery lidocaine was infused intravenously, initially into the ewe and then into both ewe and foetus. Blood lidocaine concentrations were monitored and foetal regional blood flows were determined by the radioactive microsphere method. In Part B, 14 ewes were prepared as in Part A with the addition of an inflatable loop around the umbilical cord. During each study the loop was inflated to partially compress the cord and produce foetal acidosis. In all animals this cord compression was maintained for 30 minutes. In seven animals a lidocaine infusion was given, to examine the effect of lidocaine in the acidotic foetus. Organ blood flows were measured and cardiac outputs calculated. The normal foetuses in Part A showed no change in organ blood flow or cardiac output with arterial lidocaine concentrations of 1.5-3.4 mg X ml-1. In the acidotic foetuses, lidocaine concentrations of 1.4-1.5 mg X ml-1 produced a tachycardia and an increase in cerebral blood flow compared to the control acidotic foetuses. There were no other significant changes. We conclude that arterial lidocaine concentrations of less than 3.5 mg X ml-1 do not produce significant alterations in organ blood flow in normal foetal lambs.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acidosis↗