PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

C Delafosse

Publications and source records attributed to C Delafosse.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

[Cancer-related bone pain in children].

Pain often discloses the existence of bone tumors in children. The complex physiopathology of pain in malignant bone tumors remains largely unknown and is currently investigated. Cancer-related bone pain is independent from the type and the location of the tumor, and from the number and size of the malignant lesions. It does not necessarily increase with tumor growth. Pain, which is the most common early symptom of bone cancer, may also be present at every step of the disease. It may arise from postsurgery injury, side effects of chemo- or radiotherapy, tumor evolution, secondary sequels of treatments, phantom pain. Tumor eradication using cancer therapeutic strategies is the major etiological treatment option for bone cancer pain. Symptom control requires multidisciplinary medical management with drugs effective against bone lysis, analgesics, drugs with anti-neuropathic activity, as well as non-pharmacological techniques and psycho-social management. This psycho-social management must be tailored to the specific needs of teenagers who are particularly prone to this pathological manifestation. Measures to prevent the occurrence of residual chronic pain must be implemented, whereas children and their family should be clearly informed of the risks and of analgesic options available.

Analgesics↗

Effects of muscle group recruitment on sniff transdiaphragmatic pressure and its components.

Measuring maximal sniff pressures is an easy way of assessing inspiratory muscle strength. During a static manoeuvre, the pattern of inspiratory muscle recruitment during a sniff can vary from one individual to another. We therefore assessed how voluntarily changing muscle recruitment would affect sniff oesophageal, gastric and transdiaphragmatic pressures (Pes,sn, Pga,sn and Pdi,sn, respectively). Ten normal subjects (age 27-38 years) performed natural sniff manoeuvres ("nat"), and preferentially diaphragmatic ("dia") or extradiaphragmatic ("extradia") sniff manoeuvres, after having learnt to dissociate between the inspiratory muscle groups. Abdominal displacements were monitored using a belt-mounted strain gauge. Natural patterns of muscle recruitment varied among subjects. On average, Pes,sn,nat was [median (range)] 81 (21-105) cmH2O. All of the subjects were able to modify inspiratory muscle recruitment voluntarily. Pes,sn was not significantly affected by the type of manoeuvre performed, as opposed to Pdi,sn, which, as expected, increased with both the diaphragmatic and extradiaphragmatic manoeuvres [Pdi,sn,dia 132 (99-157) cmH2O, Pdi,sn,extradia 96 (50-146) cmH2O, P<0.05]. Whatever the manoeuvre, there was no correlation between Pes and Pdi, but Pga and Pdi were correlated during both the diaphragmatic (r = 0.82, P < 0.05) and the extradiaphragmatic manoeuvre (r = 0.70, P < 0.05). Pes,sn may have limitations as an index of diaphragm function, but by showing its independence from inspiratory muscle recruitment, this study contributes to its validation as a robust index of global inspiratory muscle strength that is particularly well suited for follow-up studies. This should extend to Pes,sn substitutes measured at the airway opening.

Abdominal Muscles↗

Evaluation of caudal anaesthesia performed in conscious ex-premature infants for inguinal herniotomies.

Ex-premature infants, before 45 weeks postconceptional age, are at high-risk of apnoea after surgery. General anaesthesia increases the risk of apnoea. We evaluated the tolerance and the efficiency of caudal anaesthesia performed in 25 consecutive conscious ex-premature infants for inguinal herniotomies. N2O/O2 and EMLA cream are used to facilitate caudal puncture. Anaesthesia procedure, patient comfort and complications following the 24 postoperative hours were studied. We report good anaesthesia conditions without compromising the baby's comfort and few perioperative complications. Only two infants with a prior history of apnoea or bronchopulmonary dysplasia had apnoea during and after surgery. A total spinal anaesthesia was the major complication in one infant and prolonged surgery requiring general anaesthesia was the main limitation of this technique in another child. The principal advantage of the procedure is to facilitate and simplify the postoperative management of the babies. The anaesthetic technique does not alter surgical conditions. Caudal epidural anaesthesia performed in awake high-risk preterm infants is beneficial for these infants but requires experienced operators.

Anesthesia, Caudal↗

Multiple organ failure complicating probable scrub typhus.

This report describes a case of life-threatening acute respiratory distress syndrome with multiple organ failure complicating probable scrub typhus. Favorable outcome was associated with fluoroquinolone therapy. Scrub typhus should be suspected in travelers returning from Southeast Asia presenting with unexplained respiratory manifestations.

Adult↗

Inducible expression and regulation of the alpha 1-acid glycoprotein gene by alveolar macrophages: prostaglandin E2 and cyclic AMP act as new positive stimuli.

We have reported that alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (AGP) gene expression was induced in lung tissue and in alveolar type II cells during pulmonary inflammatory processes, suggesting that local production of this immunomodulatory protein might contribute to the modulation of inflammation within the alveolar space. Because AGP may also be secreted by other cell types in the alveolus, we have investigated the expression and the regulation of the AGP gene in human and rat alveolar macrophages. Spontaneous AGP secretion by alveolar macrophages was increased 4-fold in patients with interstitial lung involvement compared with that in controls. In the rat, immunoprecipitation of [35S]methionine-labeled cell lysates showed that alveolar macrophages synthesize and secrete AGP. IL-1 beta had no effect by itself, but potentiated the dexamethasone-induced increase in AGP production. RNase protection assay demonstrated that AGP mRNA, undetectable in unstimulated cells, was induced by dexamethasone. Conditioned medium from LPS-stimulated macrophages as well as IL-1 beta had no effect by themselves, but potentiated the dexamethasone-induced increase in AGP mRNA levels. In addition to cytokines, PGE2 as well as dibutyryl cAMP increased AGP mRNA levels in the presence of dexamethasone. When AGP expression in other cells of the monocyte/macrophage lineage was examined, weak and no AGP production by human blood monocytes and by rat peritoneal macrophages, respectively, were observed. Our data showed that 1) AGP expression is inducible specifically in alveolar macrophages in vivo and in vitro; and 2) PGE2 and cAMP act as new positive stimuli for AGP gene expression.

Adult↗

Squamous-cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-A) values related to clinical outcome of pre-invasive and invasive cervical carcinoma.

The serum concentration of squamous-cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-A), a subfraction of tumour antigen, was determined by RIA from healthy donors (control group) and from patients with malignant cervical disease. Ninety-six percent (173/180) of the healthy patients had squamous-cell carcinoma antigen serum levels below 2 ng/ml. Ten of 70 (14.3%) patients with CIN III, 53.8% (34/62) of patients with invasive squamous-cell carcinoma stage I, 85.8% (30/35) with stage II and 96.5% (27/28) with stage III/IV had squamous-cell carcinoma antigen serum levels above 2 ng/ml. We observed that 22.5% (11/49) of patients with a tumour volume below 10 ml and 92.6% of patients with a tumour volume greater than 10 ml had squamous-cell carcinoma antigen levels above 2 ng/ml (p less than 0.005). SCC-A was correlated with recurrence or progressive disease in 90.0% of cases. Other risk factors such as depth of invasion, microscopic parametrial involvement, lymphatic and/or vascular space permeation and histological grade were not correlated with squamous-cell carcinoma antigen. Furthermore, this marker increased 4.3 +/- 2.7 months before clinical evidence of recurrence or progressive disease. We conclude that serial serum levels of squamous-cell carcinoma antigen provide a means for early detection of recurrence or progressive disease. This tumour marker might also be useful for monitoring the treatment effects and has some prognostic value.

Antigens, Neoplasm↗

Necrotizing tracheobronchitis: a complication of high frequency jet ventilation.

The tracheal and bronchial lesions observed are described in seven patients, presenting with respiratory distress syndrome and receiving both conventional and high frequency jet ventilation for various periods. The histological findings are related to the duration of the exposure as well as the number of pulsations administered to the tracheobronchial tree. Severe damage to the mucosa leading to acute tracheobronchitis, hyperplasia and hypersecretion of the mucosal glands may explain some of the clinical symptoms observed, especially the upper respiratory obstruction. Care should be taken to limit these changes which may lead to various degrees of stenosis in survivors receiving this mode of therapy.

Adolescent↗

[Perforation of a jejunal diverticulum].

An observation of jejunal diverticulum is reported by the authors. It concerned a woman 82 years old whose disease appeared as an acute white spread peritonitis complication. The delay brought to perform the operation made it impossible to save diseased. About that case is evoked the pathogeny of the diverticulum: congenital or acquired. In the case reported it was acquired, the proof resulting from the anatomy-pathology. The disease can appear under a chronicle form with a difficult diagnosis or under a single relevant form whose surgical treatment must be done without delay.

Acute Disease↗