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Biomedical subjects

D Kaskarelis

Publications and source records attributed to D Kaskarelis.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1984

Psychosocial stress and its relation to obstetrical complications.

A Greek adaptation of the Schedule of Recent Experience of Holmes and Rahe was employed to study the relationship of psychosocial stress to symptoms during pregnancy, obstetric complications, family planning and breast feeding. An initial experiment with 130 pregnant women in the third trimester indicated that psychosocial stress was not related to education, whether they were from Athens or the provinces, nor age. The second experiment with 103 mothers 3 or 4 days after delivery indicated that high psychosocial stress is related to increased symptom scores during pregnancy and to obstetric complications. Symptoms were not related to obstetric complications, nor were family planning nor breast feeding. Psychosocial stress was also related to family planning and also to whether or not the mother breast fed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1983

Prenatal diagnosis of hemoglobinopathies in twin pregnancies by double simultaneous fetoscopy.

A new technique for sampling fetal blood in twin pregnancies using two fetoscopes simultaneously is described. Two fetoscopes were inserted, one after the other, into both amniotic cavities and fetal blood samples were obtained from either the chorionic plate vessels or the umbilical cord insertion area. The observation of the bright tip of the second fetoscope behind the septum using the first fetoscope assured the successful entry of the two fetoscopes into the two different amniotic sacs. This technique was performed on 15 out of 17 patients. In all patients the fetuses were at risk of beta-thalassemia major. Sampling was successful in all cases. Double simultaneous fetoscopy seems to be a safe and accurate technique without technical problems or complications. The simultaneous use of two fetoscopes opens new possibilities in intrauterine fetal surgery and research.

Diseases in Twins↗
PubMed1983

Zinc, cobalt and selenium concentrations in the premature and full-term newborn eye.

Zinc, cobalt and selenium concentrations were determined in tunics, vitreous and lens of the eyes of 17 infants who died during the neonatal period. Significantly higher concentrations of the measured elements were found in the vitreous. The tunics contained more zinc and cobalt than the lens, while the latter contained more selenium.

Cobalt↗
PubMed1983

Treatment of chronic prostatitis by consecutive per os administration of doxycycline, sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, and cephalexin.

Fifty men with cytologically confirmed chronic prostatitis were treated for 3 months by consecutive p.o. administration of doxycycline, sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, and cephalexin. The subjective symptoms, palpatory findings, secretory capacity of the accessory genital glands (values of acid phosphatase and fructose in the seminal plasma) were evaluated. The cytologic findings from the expressed prostatic fluid and semen analysis before and after the treatment were also studied. Approximately 60% of the patients were cured of the subjective symptoms. The palpatory findings disappeared in 50% of the cases. The cytologic findings became normal in 70% of the patients (inflammatory cells less than 25/HPF). The secretory function of the prostate and the seminal vesicles was improved in 50% and 25%, respectively, of the patients, and the quantitative and qualitative motility and viability of the spermatozoa after treatment were significantly enhanced.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1982

Cardiovascular birth defects and antenatal exposure to female sex hormones.

The etiological correlations of congenital heart diseases to antenatal exposure of pregnant women to sex hormones were studied retrospectively. Of a total of 15,535 women who delivered between the years 1975-1977, 91 had babies with congenital heart disease (frequency 5.80/00). From these babies 11 were born to 559 mothers who had taken during pregnancy hormones of the estrogen-progesterone type (frequency 190/00). The remaining 80 babies were born to 14,976 mothers who had not taken such hormones (frequency 50/00). The main reason for having been given hormones were: bleeding of the first trimester in 80%, and the pregnancy test in 20%. Both groups of mothers had the same possibility for being affected by factors causing congenital heart diseases. An attempt is made to correlate the structure of the hormones given, the cause and time of the administration, the outcome of the newborn, and the type of heart disease.

Estrogens↗
PubMed1982

Evaluation of diagnostic fetoscopy.

The authors evaluate the efficacy and safety of fetoscopy on a series of 510 patients in which the procedure was carried out between the 18th and 20th week of gestation in order to obtain a suitable fetal blood sample for prenatal genetic diagnosis; the whole pregnancy could be completely followed up in them. The complication rate was low (1.7%) when the first attempt of fetoscopy was successful, but rose dramatically up to 17.9% on repeated attempts: however, they only amounted to 7.8% of all cases. The results of their study lead the authors to propose fetoscopy as a powerful, accurate and safe addition to the presently available diagnostic methods, provided it is performed by well trained fetoscopists, under aseptic conditions and local anaesthesia.

Abortion, Therapeutic↗
PubMed1981

Bacterial contamination of the cervix and premature rupture of membranes.

The endocervical flora was examined in 32 women with premature rupture of membranes (PROM). Sixty-six pregnant women served as controls. Ten patients with PROM who later developed chorioamnionitis were also included in the study. Samples for culturing were obtained from the endocervix on admission and at delivery and later from the fetal surface of the placenta. Blood for culturing was also taken in cases of chorioamnionitis. The total number of bacteria in the endocervix and placenta was higher in patients with PROM. Anaerobes were the most common, except for the fetal surface of the placenta, where aerobes were found in greater numbers. Cultures of blood from women with chorioamnionitis were positive in seven cases. These findings suggest that the high incidence of pathogenic or potentially pathogenic cervical bacteria in pregnancy is related to chorioamnionitis and PROM.

Amniotic Fluid↗
PubMed1981

The transition in frequency of Y-chromatin in males during early infancy.

The frequency of Y-positive lymphocytes in blood smears at delivery and during early infancy was assessed to determine the exact time at which it is similar to the frequency in adults. It was found that at day 0 of life the frequency of Y-chromatin-positive cells was 26.6 +/- 13.2% (mean +/- SD); subsequently, it increased gradually to 41.2 +/- 12.2%, 49.7 +/- 9.7% and 55.4 +/- 5.2% at the 30th day, the end of the 3rd month and the end of the 4 month of life, respectively (Fig. 1). The frequency in adult males was 57.8 +/- 5.8%. This is the first time that the same infant population has been investigated in all the stages of a study.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Clindamycin phosphate in the treatment of endometritis due to anaerobic bacteria.

Treatment of endometritis due to anaerobic pathogens demands early isolation and identification of the offending pathogen by the appropriate culture and optimum use of antibiotics according to the sensitivity test. Clindamycin phosphate has been used as a highly active antibiotic against both gram-positive and gram-negative anaerobic pathogens, including bacteroides fragilis. The concentration of clindamycin phosphate in blood from the uterus was tested in 30 women after administration of one single dose (600 mg) intramuscularly. The levels of clindamycin in the above-mentioned tests state how samples were compared with the minimal inhibitory concentration of the offending anaerobic pathogens in cases of endometritis.

Anaerobiosis↗
PubMed1980

Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in normal and pre-eclamptic pregnancies (values in maternal blood, amniotic fluid and umbilical cord blood).

Values of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were measured by radioimmunoassay in 100 pregnant women divided into 4 groups. In group 1 (49 normal pregnancies) and 2 (17 pre-eclamptic pregnancies), the estimation of CEA was done in maternal vein blood, umbilical cord blood and in amniotic fluid. In group 3 (20 normal pregnancies) CEA was measured separately in blood of the two umbilical vessels as well as in maternal vein blood. In group 4 (14 pregnancies with small-for-date infants) CEA was estimated in umbilical cord blood. The values in amniotic fluid of normal and pre-eclamptic pregnancies were more than 20 times higher than in the other two compartments. A significant correlation was found between the amniotic fluid and umbilical cord blood values (r = 0.500; P < 0.05), as well as between the values in umbilical artery and vein (r = 0.792; P < 0.001). Thus, it is thought that CEA is transferred from the amniotic cavity to the umbilical cord while a part of CEA perhaps is produced by the placenta. Umbilical cord blood values of small-for-date fetuses do not differ significantly from the normal. On the contrary, significantly lower values were obtained in umbilical cord blood and in amniotic fluid of pre-eclamptic women as compared to the normal, but this finding is not useful clinically because of the large standard deviation.

Amniotic Fluid↗
PubMed1980

A study of the kinetics of cephapirin and cephalexin in pregnancy.

The kinetics of cephapirin and cephalexin were studied in 60 pregnant women after the administration of single 1 g doses of the antibiotics given by the intramuscular and oral route, respectively. Maternal serum, amniotic fluid and cord serum concentrations were measured at intervals after the dose by the agar diffusion method. The results showed that the mean peak concentration of cephalexin in maternal serum, after 1 hour, was significantly greater than that of cephapirin. Both antibiotics crossed the placenta barrier and reached levels in the amniotic fluid and cord serum adequate for the in vitro inhibition of pathogens involved in materno-foetal infections.

Amniotic Fluid↗
PubMed1980

Ampicillin and gemtamicin in the treatment of fetal intrauterine infections.

The optimum clinical results in the treatment of fetal intrauterine infections are obtained by the administration of the appropriate antibiotic, which reaches an adequate concentration in the fetal serum. The pharmacokinetics of ampicillin and gentamicin were studied in 60 pregnant women. Ampicillin and gentamicin were given intramuscularly prior to cesarean section. At delivery maternal serum, amniotic fluid and cord serum antibiotic levels were tested. Assays of the levels of antibiotic were performed by agar diffusion method using Staph. aureus A.C.T.C. 25923 (American Type Control Collection) and E. coli N.C.T.C 1346, as standard organisms. During peak time, concentration of ampicillin in the maternal serum was found to be significantly higher than those of the amniotic fluid and cord serum (p less than 0.001). Peak levels of the antibiotic in the amniotic fluid was also significantly higher than in the cord serum (p less than 0.001). Our results, also showed that the determined levels of ampicillin, especially during peak time, are sufficient to inhibit in vitro, a high proportion of infecting pathogens in the maternal serum and amniotic fluid, but have little effect against organisms in the fetal serum. Concentration of gentamicin in the maternal serum during peak time was found higher than those of the amniotic fluid, but there was not a significant difference. Maternal serum peak levels of the drug were also higher than in cord serum, with a very significant difference (p less than 0.001). Maximum levels of gentamicin in amniotic fluid were higher than in cord serum, also with a very significant difference, (p less than 0.001). Gentamicin levels in amniotic fluid and fetal serum, especially, during peak time, would be adequate to inhibit in vitro the most common pathogens, sensitive to the drug.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

Antepartum aminophylline treatment for prevention of the respiratory distress syndrome in premature infants.

The frequency of idiopathic respiratory distress (IRD) among premature offspring born of women who were given aminophylline before the thirty-fourth week of pregnancy was evaluated. Sixty-seven premature deliveries were included in the aminophylline group and 75 in the control group. The perinatal death rate was 7.1% in the aminophylline group and 17.9% in the control group (p less than 0.05). A statistically significant difference was noted between the aminophylline and control groups in the frequency of IRD which was three times lower (10%) in the aminophylline group than in the control group (29.5%) for the total of premature infants. If the time of rupture of membranes is taken into consideration, a significant decrease in the frequency of IRD following aminophylline administration is noted in the infants, whose mothers had ruptured membranes for more than 24 hours. No complications or side effects of aminophylline administration were noted in the mothers or their infants.

Aminophylline↗