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Biomedical subjects

C Gallo

Publications and source records attributed to C Gallo.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Liver cirrhosis in Italy. A multicentre study on presenting modalities and the impact on health care resources. National Project on Liver Cirrhosis Group.

A cross-sectional multicentric study was carried out over a six-month period as part of the "Progetto Nazionale Cirrosi Epatica", in order to update information about: a) the prevalence of different aetiologic factors and various nosological varieties of cirrhosis in Italy, as well as its presenting modalities; b) the currently used approach either to the diagnosis or the treatment of complications of cirrhosis; c) the impact of liver cirrhosis on medical care in terms of number of hospitalizations and length of hospital stay, instrumental procedures and management, and d) the size of patient's population referred to the participating centers, in order to help design further studies. From February 1st through July 31st 1987, 1,386 forms relative to 1,101 patients were collected. In 320 patients the diagnosis of cirrhosis was first made during the investigation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Steroid hormone receptor levels and adjuvant tamoxifen in early breast cancer. Ten year results of the Naples (GUN) Study.

Ten year disease-free survival (DFS) results of the Naples randomized trial of adjuvant tamoxifen (TM), 30 mg per day for 2 years versus no therapy according to receptor levels, are reported. From Feb. 1, 1978, through Dec. 31, 1983, 308 pre- and postmenopausal patients with early breast cancer entered the trial. Estrogen receptor (ER) data were available on 239 (77.6%) patients, progesterone receptor (PgR) data on 194 (63.0%), and both receptor data on 181 (58.8%). ER and PgR were assayed by dextran-coated charcoal technique in a single laboratory. The effect of adjuvant TM was significantly related to ER and PgR concentration of the primary tumor. The greatest TM benefit on DFS was evident in patients with the highest levels of receptors. The interaction between the treatment effect and receptor concentration was found whether ER and PgR were considered separately or together.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Effects of chronic lithium administration on brain weights, acetylcholinesterase activity and learning ability in rats.

In order to test the effects of chronic lithium (Li) administration on learning and memory, 21 day old rats were subjected to different degrees of environmental stimulation (enriched condition, EC and impoverished condition, IC) with and without Li for 144 days. Li was administered with food (2.18 mEq/Kg weight/day). Average plasma Li concentration at the end of the experiment was 0.41 +/- 0.04 mu Eq/ml. Both Li treatment and the environmental condition showed an overall significant effect on the cortex/subcortex weight ratio and learning ability index, but not on AChE activity in occipital cortex. A similar pattern of brain Li distribution was observed in both EC-Li and IC-Li, with occipital cortex having the highest levels. Li tissue/protein/plasma ratio was higher in EC than in IC, in all the brain areas studied. Other organs (liver and kidney) did not show EC-IC differences in the tissue/protein/plasma Li ratio.

Acetylcholinesterase↗
PubMed1990

Prolactin receptor does not correlate with oestrogen and progesterone receptors in primary breast cancer and lacks prognostic significance. Ten year results of the Naples adjuvant (GUN) study.

The correlation between prolactin (PRLR) and oestrogen (ER) or progesterone receptors (PgR) in breast cancer and a possible prognostic significance of PRLR at 10 year follow-up have been investigated in the Naples (GUN) adjuvant trial. A total of 308 pre- and post-menopausal patients with early breast cancer, who entered the trial from 1 February 1978 to 31 December 1983, received randomly Tamoxifen (TM), 30 mg per die for 2 years, or no therapy. PRLR status was known in 229 (74.3%) patients. Values of specific binding less than 1% were considered negative. PRLR was positive in 75/229 (32.8%). ER was assayed in 210/229 (91.7%) patients and PgR in 188/229 (82.1%). No significant correlation, by the Spearman test, was found between PRLR and ER or PgR, while ER status was highly interrelated with PgR status. By the Cox model no evidence of an independent prognostic role of PRLR on disease-free survival (DFS) was observed, nor an interaction between PRLR and adjuvant treatment with TM was found.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Intrasubject between-day variability of PD20 methacholine assessed by the dosimeter inhalation test.

The intrasubject between-day variability of the methacholine inhalation test (MIT) was estimated in a group of 30 patients (15 males, mean age 29 yr), representative of a wide range of degrees of nonspecific bronchial responsiveness (from normal to severely increased). In each patient, an MIT with the dosimeter method was carried out on three separate occasions within one week, keeping as constant as possible both the technical and patient-related factors (FEV1 within +/- 5 percent, no recent airway inflammation) and independently from operator-related factors (three tests, three different operators blinded with regard to previous MIT results). On each occasion, twofold increasing doses of methacholine were given from 6.25 to 3,200 micrograms as cumulative doses, at five-minute intervals by means of a dosimeter Me.far MB3 (nebulization time 0.8 +/- 0.2s, output 5 +/- 0.2 microliters/puff). The FEV1 was measured initially and 1.5 and 3 minutes after each inhalation. The test was continued until either a fall of 20 percent or more in FEV1 was obtained or the last dose was reached. The results were expressed in terms of PD20, ie, the dose of methacholine producing a 20 percent fall in FEV1. Under these carefully controlled conditions, the 95 percent confidence intervals (as based on a single determination) corresponded to +/- 0.22 on a log10 scale or, in a more meaningful way, +/- 1.66 fold-difference in PD20 from one visit to the other.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

[Total abdominal radiotherapy in epithelial cancer of the ovary].

The prognosis of ovarian cancers, which are frequently diagnosed at a late stage, can probably be improved by whole abdominal radiotherapy. 45 patients in Lyon and 8 patients in Montélimar (7 stage I or C, 10 stage II and 36 stage III) were treated by whole abdominal radiotherapy, generally after 6 courses of chemotherapy (46 cases). The overall 5-year survival of this group of patients was 48% (Kaplan-Meier method). When the patients treated by complete resection at 1st look surgery (19 cases) are compared with those in whom 1st look surgery was incomplete (34 cases), the actuarial survival was 83% versus 27%. This study demonstrates that whole abdominal radiotherapy is feasible without any serious long-term complications after two operations and 6 courses of chemotherapy. These encouraging results need to be confirmed by randomised prospective studies.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1988

Adjuvant therapy with tamoxifen in operable breast cancer. 10 year results of the Naples (GUN) study.

Treatment with tamoxifen (TM), alone or in combination with cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and fluorouracil (CMF), was used as an adjuvant to surgery in 433 patients with stage I, II, or III(T3a) breast cancer. Oestrogen receptors (ER) and progesterone (PgR) receptors were assayed in most cases. 308 premenopausal node-negative and postmenopausal node-negative or node-positive patients were randomised to receive TM, 30 mg daily for 2 years, or no further therapy. 125 premenopausal node-positive patients were randomised to receive either CMF for nine courses plus TM or CMF alone. After a median follow-up of 63 months TM significantly reduced the incidence of relapses and deaths compared with no therapy. A significant interaction between treatment effect and ER/PgR status was seen. Disease-free and overall survival were similar after treatment with CMF+ TM or CMF.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Prognostic significance of circulating immune complexes in a long-term follow-up of breast cancer patients.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the prognostic value of circulating immune complexes (CIC) in surgically treated breast cancer patients as compared with other well-known prognostic factors. CIC of IgG and IgM classes were determined by a C1q immunoenzymatic assay in serum samples of 122 patients before mastectomy and 51 of them were found positive for IgG. The other class of CIC was virtually absent. No relevant differences of distribution of other prognostic parameters such as estrogen and progesterone receptors, histological grading, nodal and menopausal status were found according to CIC levels. Level of IgG CIC was affected by surgical removal of the tumor since significant reduction of it was observed 2 weeks after mastectomy; however, this reduction did not show prognostic significance. The patients included in the present study were subjected to a 7-year follow-up; eventually a significant association was observed between preoperative IgG CIC and relapse of the disease. Patients with positive values of immune complexes relapsed more frequently than those with negative values. Serial determinations of IgG CIC were carried out within the 24 months following mastectomy and statistically evaluated for their prognostic use. No significant association was found between increase of IgG CIC level and relapse of the disease.

Antigen-Antibody Complex↗
PubMed1988

[Different modalities of classification and prognostic significance of ventricular arrhythmias after acute myocardial infarct. Prospective study].

In our study we compared the prognostic significance of clinical variables, laboratory results and different classification models of ventricular ectopic beats recorded by means of a pre-discharge 24 hour ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring, in 210 survivors of acute myocardial infarction. In addition a full multivariate analysis of the factors affecting survival time was carried out using Cox's proportional hazards (multiple) regression model. Multivariate stepwise discriminant analysis identified hypertension, congestive heart failure assessed by Killip class, and the grading system for ventricular arrhythmias as the most important prognostic variables. When Moss grading system for ventricular arrhythmias was used, the relative risk was a superior as heavy Moss grading system (Moss 2 vs Moss 1 and Moss 3-4 vs Moss 1, relative risk = 1.2 and 3.6 total death, respectively). Furthermore, the hazard ratio of Moss grading system was higher utilizing as comparison patients without ventricular ectopic beats (relative risk = 1.7 for Moss 2 and 5.3 for Moss 3-4) than patients with ventricular ectopic beats less than one/hour (relative risk = 1.2 for Moss 2 and 3.7 for Moss 3-4). Thus, in survivors of acute myocardial infarction, a rational and useful ventricular ectopic beats categorization includes both frequency and the presence or absence of malignant characteristics.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

The role of surgery in transmitting "post-transfusion hepatitis".

The role of surgery as an additional risk in transmitting "post-transfusion" hepatitis was investigated in a retrospective study on acute hepatitis occurring in 77 transfused patients, 293 transfused and operated patients and 243 hepatitis cases with history of surgery without transfusion. Hepatitis A patients admitted to the same centres in the same period were utilized as controls. In transfused patients the percentage of NANB hepatitis was higher than that of type B (61.0% vs. 36.4%), while in the operated not transfused group the percentage of type B was twice that of type NANB (63.4% vs. 32.5%). In transfused and operated cases intermediate values were observed. The age-adjusted measures of association between exposures and the different hepatitis types showed a lack of effect of transfusion and a dominant role of surgery in transmitting type B hepatitis. In contrast, NANB "post-transfusional" cases were actually a mixture of post-transfusional and post-surgical cases, since both these exposures were found to be significantly associated with the disease. Our results suggest that studies on the incidence and the etiology of post-transfusion hepatitis should take into account the risk of surgical exposure which might have occurred.

Hepatitis A↗
PubMed1986

Constitutive RNA synthesis for the yeast activator ADR1 and identification of the ADR1-5c mutation: implications in posttranslational control of ADR1.

The regulation of mRNA production for the yeast positive activator ADR1, a gene required for the expression of the glucose-repressible alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH II), was studied. ADR1 mRNA levels did not vary when yeasts were switched from glucose- to ethanol-containing medium, while ADH II expression increased 100-fold. The mRNA for the ADR1-5c allele, which augments ADH II expression 60-fold during glucose repression, was not present in greater abundance than ADR1 mRNA. Additionally, the ccr1-1 allele, which blocks ADH2 mRNA formation and partially suppresses the ADR1-5c phenotype, did not alter the levels of ADR1 mRNA. These results indicate that ADR1 is not transcriptionally controlled. To determine the character of the ADR1-5c mutation, the region containing the mutation was identified and sequenced. At base pair +683 a G-to-A transition was detected in the ADR1 coding sequence which would result in the substitution of a lysine residue for an arginine at amino acid 228. The location of the ADR1-5c mutation in the interior of the ADR1 coding sequences suggests that it enhances the activity of an extant but inactive ADR1 protein rather than increases the abundance of ADR1 by altered translation of its mRNA. The ADR1-5c mutation occurs in a region of the polypeptide corresponding to a cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase phosphorylation recognition sequence. The potential role of reversible phosphorylation in the posttranslational regulation of ADR1 is discussed.

Alcohol Dehydrogenase↗
PubMed1986

[Prognostic evaluation of patients surviving acute myocardial infarct: univariate and multivariate analysis].

The relationship between 31 variables and survival after acute myocardial infarction was evaluated in 432 patients discharged from our Coronary Care Unit from 1975 to 1984. The patients were followed for 1 to 105 months and either univariate and multivariate analysis were performed. For end-point death the significant variables (p less than 0.05) selected by the univariate analysis were: age, diabetes, smoke, heart rate at recovery, supraventricular arrhythmias, cardiac failure and complex ventricular arrhythmias either during recovery, either after discharge and finally spontaneous angina after hospital discharge. Meanwhile, for the end-point cardiac death age, smoke and supraventricular arrhythmias were not yet significant while arterial pressure at recovery and effort angina after hospital discharge were. Multivariate analysis identified cardiac failure during recovery, diabetes, complex ventricular arrhythmias before and spontaneous angina after discharge as independent variables contributing to total mortality: effort angina was a further significant one relatively to cardiac death. Thus, our study points out the importance of multivariate survival analysis when evaluating the relationship between survival after discharge for the effect of other prognostic factors. Moreover, providing identification of high risk cohorts permits appropriate interventions designed to lessen risk.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Comparison of laser and radiofrequency dorsal root entry zone lesions in cats.

Dorsal root entry zone lesions are effective in the control of intractable pain in several types of spinal cord injuries. Traditionally, these lesions have been made with the radiofrequency technique. This is effective, but has the drawback of being laborious, and there is a significant incidence of permanent weakness. We have evaluated the carbon dioxide laser, hoping that it would be both faster and more controlled, thereby offering the chance to lower the complication rate. In comparing a parallel series of radiofrequency and laser dorsal root entry zone lesions along the cat's spinal cord, we observed that the radiofrequency lesion was larger. In addition, it had 3 times more variability in its size than the laser lesion. We attribute this in part to the nature of the laser in making a very precise and reproducible lesion. Second, the extremely brief pulse of the laser, a fraction of a second, means that movement of the spinal cord from respiration and heartbeat and movement of the surgical instrument from the surgeon's hand become far less important in inducing lesion variability. We also studied for 2 months a series of chronic cats; there were no complications due to the laser. This work suggests that the laser is a useful instrument for dorsal root entry zone lesions, but requires more precise aiming and focusing.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Application of a statistical approach to determining reference intervals in clinical chemistry.

In clinical chemistry a linear-regression model may be used to determine reference intervals. A crucial point in this approach is the choice of variables to introduce into the model. In the present paper, we have applied a nonautomatic selection procedure, known as "element analysis," to a sample of 126 individuals from a small, ethnically homogeneous community in southern Italy. We investigated the effects of four independent variables--sex, age, weight, and alcohol consumption--on values for serum urea. Only sex and age proved to affect the urea values and were therefore introduced into the final model. This approach may be useful in determining reference intervals from observational studies when it is difficult to control a priori relevant factors. Moreover, variables may be selected not only on the basis of statistical criteria, but also according to biochemical and medical criteria.

Adolescent↗