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D Short

Publications and source records attributed to D Short.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Intensive venous sampling paradigms disclose high frequency adrenocorticotropin release episodes in normal men.

Recent studies in the rat and rhesus monkey have disclosed apparently high frequency in vivo ACTH release episodes. While the circadian pattern of plasma ACTH concentrations has been known for many years, the exact frequency of ultradian pulsatile ACTH release in man is not clear, due in part to variable intensities of blood-sampling schedules and the limited availability of sensitive ACTH assays. In this study we used a new sensitive and specific immunoradiometric assay to measure plasma ACTH concentrations in blood sampled at 1) 2-min intervals for 3 h, followed by 4-min intervals for 4 more h in six men; and 2) 10-min intervals for 24 h in eight other men. An objective peak detection algorithm (Cluster) and cosinor analyses were used to assess the episodic pulsatility and circadian rhythmicity of ACTH. Comparisons were made among the 2 min (3 h), 4, 8, and 12 min (7 h), and 10 min (24 h) time series. Mean ACTH interpulse intervals were significantly different among the five sampling groups (P less than 0.00001). Sampling every 2 min yielded a mean ACTH interpulse interval of 18 min, which was significantly shorter than the mean interpulse intervals of 35, 53, 52, and 73 min resulting, respectively, from sampling every 4, 8, 10, and 12 min (P less than 0.05). In contrast, maximal peak ACTH amplitudes (picomoles per L or percent increase) did not vary as a function of sampling frequency. The 24-h plasma ACTH concentration time series showed significant diurnal variation, with a mean circadian amplitude of 0.95 +/- 0.15 pmol/L occurring at 1008 h (+/- 25 min). Cosinor analysis of various ACTH pulse parameters deduced from the 24-h time series revealed significant circadian rhythmicity in the ACTH peak maxima (P less than 0.05), peak increments (P less than 0.05), and prepeak nadir (P less than 0.05) concentrations, but not in ACTH interpulse intervals. We conclude that in men, 1) intensive sampling at 2-min intervals unmasks high frequency ACTH release episodes that cannot be detected at conventional sampling rates; and 2) ACTH peak amplitude, but not frequency, varies significantly during the course of circadian changes in the plasma ACTH concentrations.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone

Treatment of symptomatic peripheral atherosclerotic disease with a rotational atherectomy device.

Narrowings 70 to 90% in diameter in 3 iliac, 4 superficial femoral and 2 popliteal arteries were crossed and atherectomized successfully in 6 patients using the Squibb Rotablator under angiographic guidance during surgical bypass procedures on these arteries. The Rotablator consists of a 1.25 to 4.5 mm diameter oblong burr with tiny diamond blades mounted on a flexible shaft, which tracks over a spring-tip guidewire and rotates at speeds greater than 120,000 rpm. All stenoses were reduced to less than or equal to 50% of the normal luminal diameter. No significant complications occurred. Of the 6 patients having the atherectomy procedure, 5 were reevaluated by duplex Doppler measurements 1.5 to 5.5 (mean 3.5) months after atherectomy and found to be patient with only mild residual flow disturbance. Repeat follow-up by angiography after a mean of 5.2 months, however, showed only 3 (37%) of the atherectomized segments in 3 patients to still be patent. All were symptomatically improved. Of the effluent particles analyzed, 90% were less than 8 microns in size, while only 5% reached 250 microns. With improvements in technique, the largest particles were 150 to 180 microns, constituting only 1.4% of effluent debris. Samples of the effluent from 2 patients were injected in vivo into the left coronary system of 2 pigs. There were no acute hemodynamic or electrocardiographic complications or pathologic evidence of muscle necrosis or vascular thrombosis 18 to 48 hours later. These preliminary results with respect to feasibility and safety of the Rotablator are promising.

Adult

The anatomic basis for the occasional failure of transfemoral balloon catheter thromboembolectomy.

A Fogarty balloon catheter was advanced from the common femoral artery through the popliteal artery and its branches in 15 cadavers. The catheter passed into the peroneal branch 89% of the time. In all 15 cadavers, the peroneal artery was the direct continuation of the popliteal artery and the arterior tibial and posterior tibial arteries branched off at varying angles from the popliteal. This provides an anatomic explanation for the occasional failure of transfemoral Fogarty catheter embolectomy of the leg. Our study suggests that if the patient's foot does not improve after Fogarty embolectomy, the popliteal artery should be exposed and the catheter directed into the shank arteries using vascular forceps.

Catheterization

Eosinophilic fasciitis. A pathologic study of twenty cases.

This report presents a detailed light-microscopic evaluation of biopsies obtained from 20 patients with eosinophilic fasciitis, a newly recognized disorder characterized by inflammation and thickening of the deep fascia, hypergammaglobulinemia, and peripheral and tissue eosinophilia. Early in the course of the disease, the deep fascia and lower subcutis are edematous and infiltrated with lymphocytes, plasma cells, histiocytes, and eosinophils; these features are associated with impressive peripheral eosinophilia. As the illness progresses, these structures and eventually the dermis become collagenized, thickened, and sclerotic. Tissue eosinophilia may be focal or diffuse and is usually observed in the fascia and/or lower subcutis. Extracutaneous involvement has been limited to a chronic synovitis and tenosynovitis, the latter frequently associated with the carpal tunnel syndrome. Deposits of immunoglobulin and/or complement were found in five of eight biopsies studied by direct immunofluorescence, which suggests that an immunologic stimulus may be responsible for initiating this syndrome. Differential diagnoses are discussed.

Adult

Angina.

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Adrenergic beta-Antagonists

The great circulatory paradox.

A review of the relationship between infarction and arterial obstruction in four major vascular territories--brain, gut, leg, and heart--shows that infarction without demonstrable arterial stenosis is common in the brain and gut though rare in the heart and leg. The converse--arterial occlusion without infarction--is common in all four territories. Three factors are recognised as important causes of infarction without demonstrable arterial stenosis--embolism (with rapid disintegration of the clot), spasm, and acute circulatory failure. The importance of cerebral embolism and coronary spasm has only recently been established. An appreciation of the role of factors other than atheroma in the aetiology of infarction is essential for rational prevention and treatment.

Arterial Occlusive Diseases