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Biomedical subjects

D Porto

Publications and source records attributed to D Porto.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

A triple therapy regimen after failed Helicobacter pylori treatments.

BACKGROUND: Following standard triple therapy, up to 20% of patients require further Helicobacter pylori eradication treatment. Data regarding the efficacy of re-treatment in these patients are scarce. AIM: To evaluate the efficacy of a triple therapy after one or more consecutive treatment failures. METHODS: A total of 51 patients with persistent H. pylori infection after at least one unsuccessful standard 1-week regimen were enrolled in the study. H. pylori infection at entry was assessed by rapid urease test and histology on biopsies from the antrum and the corpus. Patients were given a 2-week triple therapy, comprising ranitidine bismuth citrate 400 mg b.d., tetracycline 500 mg t.d.s., and tinidazole 500 mg b.d. Ranitidine bismuth citrate was given during meals, whilst tetracycline and tinidazole was given after meals. Bacterial eradication was assessed by endoscopy (36 patients) or 13C-urea breath test (15 patients) 4-6 weeks after therapy had ended. RESULTS: All 51 patients completed the study and H. pylori eradication was achieved in 46, with an eradication rate of 90% (95% CI: 82-98). In detail, bacterial eradication was obtained in 96% of patients who had previously failed one course of clarithromycin-amoxicillin based triple therapy, in 88% patients who had failed a clarithromycin-tinidazole based triple therapy, in 83% patients who had failed both treatment schedules, and in the only patient who had failed three consecutive therapeutic attempts. Two patients took the therapy for 9 and 10 days instead of the full 14 day-course. No major side-effects were reported, whilst six (12%) patients complained of mild side-effects. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that this triple therapy regimen is effective for re-treatment of H. pylori infection.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Chaotic behavior in noninteger-order cellular neural networks

In this paper, a simple system showing chaotic behavior is introduced. It is based on the well-known concept of cellular neural networks (CNNs), which have already given good results in generating complex dynamics. The peculiarity of the CNN model consists in the fact that it replaces the traditional first-order cell with a noninteger-order one. The introduction of the fractional cell, with a suitable choice of the coupling parameters, leads to the onset of chaos in a simple two-cell system. A theoretical approach, based on the harmonic balance theory, has been used to investigate the existence of chaos. A circuit realization of the proposed fractional two-cell chaotic CNN is reported and the corresponding strange attractor is also shown.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1986

Plastic bronchitis.

Plastic bronchitis is an uncommon disease of children characterized by the formation of long, branching bronchial casts. Of three children with such bronchial casts, one developed status asthmaticus and coughed out a complete cast of the tracheobronchial tree. One other child also had a course of desensitization for allergies. Two children presented with what was originally thought to be pneumonitis, but when chest x-rays were taken, one child was suspected of having an inhaled foreign body, and the other had complete opacification of one lung. When these two children were examined bronchoscopically the tracheobronchial tree was found to be filled with white, cheesy material. This material was extremely hard to remove bronchoscopically as the material was too soft to grab with forceps but too thick to suction. The material extended all the way down into the tertiary bronchi, and in one child multiple bronchoscopies were necessary to remove this material, and even so he developed bronchiectasis. The pathologic examination of these casts showed layers of inspissated mucus and inflammatory cells.

Adolescent↗