Biomedical subjects

D von Gerichten

Publications and source records attributed to D von Gerichten.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1988

Regional hyperthermia--assessment of tolerance to treatment.

To assess the patient's tolerance and the complications of treatment associated with delivery of regional hyperthermia using APAS BSD equipment, the data on 30 patients who received regional hyperthermia at the Radiation Oncology Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, has been reviewed. Most patients presented with advanced or recurrent tumors not amenable to conventional treatment modalities. Hyperthermia was administered in combination with either radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Cardiovascular evaluation was a standard part of pre-treatment work-up. Temperatures were obtained through interstitial probes, catheters inserted into the body cavities and (to record core temperature) esophagus. Local discomfort, anxiety, systemic temperature elevation, and tachycardia were the predominant factors limiting the number of sessions, the duration of sessions and the deposition of power, in 18, 6, 3, and 2 patients, respectively. The complications of treatment were rare. Significant injuries of the superficial tissues were recorded in two patients in whom this could be attributed to contact of urine and stool with the skin surface. Neuropathy was observed in two patients, both of whom had pelvic masses adjacent to or invading into the affected nerves. Both patients had received pelvic irradiation. Neuropathy developed within several days after the first hyperthermia session and proved reversible within several months. No injuries of the visceral organs that could be clearly attributed to hyperthermia have been recorded.

Adipose Tissue↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Regional hyperthermia: a feasibility analysis.

Thirty patients received regional hyperthermia using the annular phased array system (APAS) in conjunction with either radiotherapy or chemotherapy. A total of 139 treatment sessions were available for analysis, averaging 4.6 per patient. The number of hyperthermia sessions per patient varied from 1 to 9 and was dependent on the patients' tolerance. The duration of the sessions also varied considerably. Although the goal of each session was to attain temperatures of 42 degrees C or higher for 1 h, minimally one-half hour, this was rarely achieved. Temperatures of 42 degrees C or higher were achieved in 95 (68.8 per cent) sessions. The time span at that level ranged between 1 and 40 min, median 8.5 min. The predominant limiting factor in 18 (60 per cent) of patients was local discomfort. Generalized discomfort (anxiety) as a predominantly limiting factor in 5 (16.6 per cent), systemic temperature elevation in 3 (10 per cent), and tachycardia in two (6.6 per cent) patients. Careful attention to technical details and patient preparation may ameliorate or eliminate some of the limiting factors and improve the efficacy of heat delivery.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Physical predictors of adequate hyperthermia with the annular phased array.

One hundred and fifty-two hyperthermia sessions in 36 consecutive patients treated with the BSD 1000 annular phased array system (APAS) are reviewed with regard to physical predictors of quality of hyperthermia. Although central tumour temperatures exceeding 42 degrees C were momentarily obtained in 62% of the sessions, it frequently proved difficult to maintain the patient at temperature for prolonged periods of time. The time to reach target temperature was negatively associated with quality of hyperthermia. Thus, of 25 sessions which required over 25 min to attain a temperature of 42 degrees C, only one was adequate (defined as central tumour temperature greater than or equal to 42 degrees C maintained for at least 30 min) as opposed to 28/69 adequate sessions when 42 degrees C was reached in less than 25 min. Physical parameters measured in the first 3 min of the session found to be associated with adequate hyperthermia include an initial rate of temperature rise at the tumour site exceeding 0.4 degrees C/min achieved with a net forward power less than 1500 W. Only three of 57 sessions not meeting these criteria were adequate. Treatment policy recommendations and recommendations for future research are made.

Abdominal Neoplasms↗