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Biomedical subjects

C Defilippi

Publications and source records attributed to C Defilippi.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

[Are disturbances of small intestinal motility associated with hyperglucagonemia in patients with liver cirrhosis?].

Patients with liver cirrhosis develop marked abnormalities in small bowel motility and high plasma glucagon levels. Disturbances in small intestinal motor activity could be related to hyperglucagonemia. To investigate the relationship between fasting plasma glucagon levels and changes in small bowel motility in patients with liver cirrhosis, eighteen cirrhotic patients and ten controls were studied. Plasma glucagon was measured by RIA. Mouth to cecum transit time was estimated by lactulose hydrogen breath test. Fasting small bowel motility was investigated by means of intraluminal manometry. Plasma glucagon levels were significantly higher in patients with cirrhosis (61 +/- 5 pmol/l) than in controls (32 +/- 3 pmol/l); p < 0.01. In patients with liver disease, plasma glucagon levels were not significantly correlated to mouth to cecum transit time (r: -0.32), duration of migrating motor complex (r: -0.24), nor to the frequency of multiple clustered contractions (r: -0.26). The degree of small bowel dysmotility is not related to plasma glucagon levels in patients with hepatic cirrhosis. These results do not support the hypothesis that hyperglucagonemia plays an important pathogenic role in the abnormalities of gut motility in cirrhosis.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Effect of casein on the temporo-spatial organization++ of the contractile activity of the small intestine in the dog].

Some observations in man and experimental animals have demonstrated that casein decreases intestinal transit speed. However, its effects on intestinal motility have not been studied previously in a systematic fashion. The aim of this work was to study the temporospatial distribution of small bowel motility before and after the administration of calcium caseinate. Studies were performed in fasting dogs using 6 catheters perfused with a pneumo-hydraulic system. After the administration of 300 ml of a 10% solution of calcium caseinate, a global decrease in motor activity was observed, specially of grouped propulsive contractions, they were reduced in 64.9 to 19.5%. On the contrary, a significative increase, in 1.4 to 22%, of individual wave, non propulsive motor activity was observed. These quantitative changes in contractions, specially in their organization and temporo-spatial distribution, may be responsible for the decrease in intestinal transit after the administration of casein.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

[Treatment of acute secretory diarrhea with casein: an effect of beta-casomorphins?].

A patient with acute secretory diarrhea refractory to conventional therapy received calcium caseinate as sole nutrient, based on the recognized development of constipation and fecaloma in patients receiving this agent. Complete remission of diarrhea followed within 10 days. An inhibition of intestinal motility mediated by B-casomorphins released after hydrolysis of casein in the intestinal tract may be the mechanism involved in this effect. These exorphins have varying effects upon the opioid receptors of the intestinal tract.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1992

[The leukemia-lymphoma syndrome with gastrointestinal involvement in childhood. A case report].

The gastrointestinal tract is an uncommon site of presentation for acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children. We report a child who developed a leukemia-lymphoma syndrome with central nervous system and gastrointestinal tract involvement at the diagnosis. The patient received an intensive combination chemotherapy and is currently off-therapy in continuous complete remission 29 months after the diagnosis.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗
PubMed1991

[Bacterial overgrowth in small intestine in patients with liver cirrhosis].

Hepatic encephalopathy, bacterial infections and endotoxemia in cirrhotic patients have been related to colonic flora. However, an abnormal small bowel bacterial content could also be implied. We investigated small bowel bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) by jejunal cultures in 14 cirrhotic patients and 5 control subjects, and indirectly by the lactulose H2 breath test in 22 patients with cirrhosis and 12 controls. SIBO was demonstrated by cultures in 64% of cirrhotic patients and 1 of 5 controls. The breath test was positive for SIBO in 45% of patients with cirrhosis and 8% of controls. No differences were noted between patients with alcoholic and non-alcoholic liver disease. According to fasting H2 breath levels, SIBO was significantly correlated with the Child-Pugh score for hepatic function (r = 0.45; p < 0.05). Also, patients with positive criteria for SIBO in jejunal cultures had worse hepatic function in comparison to cirrhotics with normal jejunal bacterial counts (p < 0.05). Thus SIBO is frequent in patients with hepatic cirrhosis and is associated with impairment in hepatic function.

Bacteria↗
PubMed1991

[Effect of hyperosmotic solutions on duodenal motility: a mechanism of resistance or of propulsion to the luminal flow?].

Infusion of hyperosmotic solutions into the duodenum lead to increased motility. To investigate the mechanism of this effect, 9 healthy volunteers received small infusions of hypertonic (1250 mOsm/kg) NaCl or glucose. Intestinal motility was registered using manometric system with multiple lumens 3 cm apart. Nineteen glucose infusions did not modify intestinal motility. Of 43 NaCl infusions, motility was increased in 24, 7 of them with a typical migratory complex, phase III. In 17 cases, non propagated contractions increasing in a cephalo-caudal direction were noted. The latter may be related to delayed gastric emptying associated to hyperosmotic loads.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

[Computer analysis of motility of small intestine in the dog].

Prolonged recordings at different levels of the small intestine have become necessary in motility studies. This has increased the number of motor events that are registered. The direct measurement of the numerous contractions is time-consuming, monotonous and rutinary. The use of computer analysis of this activity has been small. It is our objective to report our experience with this technique. Simultaneous recordings of small intestine motility were obtained on a polygraph and in a computer with an analogue digital converse system. The following parameters were compared: frequency, amplitude, motility index, and area under the curve. Excellent correlation of results obtained by both methods was observed. Computer analysis reduced the relation recording time/analysis time from 1/1.2 to 1/0.08. In our experience, the study of intestinal motility with analogue digital technique is very efficient and exact.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Relationship between small intestinal fasting motility and vomiting in dogs.

Preceding vomiting, several changes in small intestinal motility have been described. They consist mainly of high-amplitude retrograde contractions and inhibition of motility before and after these contractions. The recordings of 94 episodes of emesis occurring spontaneously, during manometric studies of intestinal motility by means of infused catheters in dogs with gastric and duodenal cannulae, showed that 95.7% of all episodes developed during phase II of the migratory motor complex. In order to establish whether different phases of the fasting cyclic activity are associated with a different sensitivity to emetic stimulus, two agents, apomorphine, a centrally acting drug and copper sulfate, a peripherally acting agent, were administered at the beginning of phases I and II of the migratory motor complex. Coincident with spontaneously occurring vomiting, a statistically significative greater number of responses to both emetic agents was observed during phase II as compared to phase I. This finding suggests that cyclic changes of the small bowel motility are related to changes in the threshold of the vomiting center.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

[The relationship between functional symptoms of the digestive tract and the motility of the small intestine].

Although abnormalities of intestinal motility are usually considered to underly functional gastrointestinal symptoms, objective evidence of such a relation is controversial. We performed manometric studies using perfused catheters in 26 patients with such symptoms. A marked variation in duration of cyclic motor activity (range 34 to 168 min) was observed; motility was absent in 5 patients. No clear relation between symptoms and motility pattern was demonstrated. Thus, altered intestinal motility is not clearly related to functional gastrointestinal complaints.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

[Potential difference of the gastric mucosa in gastroduodenal disease. Relation with endoscopical and histologic findings].

Most studies of gastric transmucosal potential difference concern acute damage. We studied this phenomenon in 168 patients with different pathologic processes: erosive gastritis, duodenal and prepyloric ulcer, atrophic gastritis, gastric ulcer and normal controls. Ag-AgCl electrodes and Agar-KCl bridges were used to record potential differences. Biopsies were taken from gastric antrum and body and potential differences were related to endoscopic and histologic findings. Maximal values of -29.2 + 2 and -22.2 + 1.6 for body and antrum, respectively, were found in normals. Lowest values (-19.4 + 1.4 and -14.3 + 1.5, respectively) were found in gastric ulcer, with intermediate values for the other conditions. Normal histologic findings were associated to potentials of -31 + 2 and -20 + 3.1 whereas lower values were recorded in patients with moderate or severe atrophic changes. Our findings suggest a relation between mucosal atrophy and lower transmucosal potential differences.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Relationship between antropyloric and intestinal motility and duodenogastric reflux in fasting dogs.

Duodenogastric reflux was studied in fasting dogs with gastric and duodenal cannulae, by means of recovery from the gastric cannula of phenol red infused into the duodenum and bile acids recovered from the gastric cannula. Simultaneously, antropyloric and intestinal motility was studied in order to establish a relationship between motility and duodenogastric reflux. A different pattern of duodenogastric reflux was observed, depending on the method utilized. While a significantly higher reflux was observed during phase II in bile acid studies, an irregular pattern not related to the different phases of the interdigestive motor complex was observed in experiments with phenol red. Antral motility estimated by an antral motility index showed a statistically significant correlation with DGR estimated by both methods. Pyloric pressure and intestinal motility did not show a correlation with DGR. We concluded that the results obtained in studying duodenogastric reflux depend on the method used. The main factor related to increased duodenogastric reflux was the decreased antral motility.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Abnormalities of interdigestive motility complex and increased duodenogastric reflux in gastric ulcer patients.

Just as cyclic changes in motility and secretions occur during fasting, recent evidence demonstrates that duodenogastric reflux during fasting is also cyclic and related to the motility and secretory variations. We investigated the characteristics of the migrating motility complex and duodenogastric reflux in 17 patients with gastric ulcer and compared these characteristics to those of 16 healthy subjects. We found three abnormalities of the complex in patients with gastric ulcer: (1) the antral motility was significantly decreased during the phase II of the complex (P less than 0.05) when compared to controls; (2) in about two thirds of them, the phase III of the complex was initiated at the duodenum or more distally; and (3) the mean bile salt concentration in the gastric aspirate was significantly higher (P less than 0.05) than that of the controls. We observed no relationship between the ulcer activity, the location of the crater, and the motility or reflux abnormalities.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

[Sequential endovenous angiourography (AUS) with image subtraction for the study of the arterial phase of urography. Comparison with nephroangiotomography (NAT)].

Two urographical techniques employed in the endovenous study of renal arteries are compared. They are nephroangiotomography (NAT) using synchroplan and sequential angiourography (SAV) with image subtraction. 64 patients were studied, 32 with NAT and 32 with AVS. Both techniques were shown to be useful, but AVS through infrequently used was cleary more efficient than Nat in the study of the vascular arterial phase.

Adult↗