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Biomedical subjects

E M Alhava

Publications and source records attributed to E M Alhava.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Effect of calcitonin on bone histomorphometry and bone metabolism in rheumatoid arthritis.

Twenty-four women (mean age +/- SD 49 +/- 13 years) with classical or definite rheumatoid arthritis (disease duration 15 +/- 8 years) were treated with synthetic salmon calcitonin (SCT) nasal spray 200 IU three times a week for 3 months. Bone biopsies from the iliac crest were taken before and after SCT treatment. Histomorphometrical quantification of undecalcified bone sections was made using the manual point-counting method. SCT decreased the resorption surface of trabecular bone (ES/BS) significantly (P less than 0.001). There was also a significant increase (P less than 0.05) in trabecular bone volume (BV/TV) after 3 months of treatment, whereas no statistically significant changes were found in osteoid parameters. There were no significant changes in biochemical analyses of bone metabolism. We conclude that SCT might be useful in the prevention of bone loss in RA.

Adult

Bone density measurements.

Early diagnosis of osteoporosis is difficult. Bone density measurements, however, are helpful in screening patients at risk. Technology now provides means of measuring densities of both peripheral and central bones. The most practical method is dual X-ray densitometry, which is of good sensitivity and accuracy. Single photon absorptiometry on peripheral bones can be used to screen populations at risk. Computed tomography is also useful but the radiation dose is relatively high. In dual X-ray densitometry, calibration methods and comparisons with reference values are fairly reliable. The best sites for measurements are the lumbar spine and proximal femur, in which osteoporotic fractures are common. In general, however, one measurement is not enough. Biological variation is great. Repeated measurements will allow estimation of the rate of bone loss. Precise location of a previous site is sometimes difficult on reexamination and extraskeletal calcifications can be sources of error. Bone densitometry in connection with the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis is fairly easily performed with a single patient. Knowledge about the correlation between bone density and fracture risk is not yet adequate. The results of measurement of bone mineral density relate only to mineral content, not bone quality, i.e., differential diagnosis of osteoporosis and osteomalacia is not possible.

Absorptiometry, Photon

Use of non-collagen markers in osteoporosis studies.

Clinical and research laboratories routinely measure various hormonal and nonhormonal parameters of calcium and phosphorus metabolism, and markers of bone turnover. Such measurements may help clinical decision-making relating to metabolic bone disease and osteoporosis. Molecular biological and cell-culture techniques are being used in basic biochemical research on bone-cell metabolism. Results may aid understanding of normal and abnormal regulation of the bone-cell metabolism, and thus provide further insights relating to the diagnosis and prevention of osteoporosis.

1-Carboxyglutamic Acid

Piperacillin compared with cefuroxime plus metronidazole in diffuse peritonitis.

Eighty-five patients were randomly allocated to receive either piperacillin (n = 38) or cefuroxime plus metronidazole (n = 45) after surgical treatment of diffuse peritonitis; 78 were evaluable. A mean of 1.5 (piperacillin group) and 1.7 (cefuroxime/metronidazole group) pathogens/patient were identified. Twenty-seven patients (71%) were successfully treated in the piperacillin group compared with 29 (64%) in the cefuroxime/metronidazole group. These data suggest that piperacillin was neither better nor worse than cefuroxime/metronidazole in diffuse, secondary peritonitis.

Acute Disease

Vocal cord paralysis caused by a cyst in extraglandular thyroid tissue. Case report.

A 37-year-old woman presented with hoarseness two days after developing pain while undergoing physiotherapy for tension in her neck. Computed tomography showed a probably benign mass near to the left lobe of the thyroid, which was found at operation to be attached to the recurrent laryngeal nerve. The nerve was dissected free, the tumour removed, and the patient and her voice recovered fully. Histological examination confirmed a benign cyst in extraglandular thyroid tissue and the patient is well two years later.

Adult

Hip fracture incidence not affected by fluoridation. Osteofluorosis studied in Finland.

Iliac crest biopsies were taken from patients with hip fracture from a low-fluoride area (less than 0.3 ppm), from an area with fluoridated drinking water (1.0-1.2 ppm), and from a high-fluoride area (greater than 1.5 ppm). Fluoride content analysis and histomorphometry of bone were performed. The hip fracture incidence during 1972-1981 was studied in the same areas. The fluoride content of the bone samples correlated with drinking water fluoride. In patients with hip fracture, both osteomalacia and osteoporosis were common. In the high-fluoride area also osteofluorosis was found in many patients. Osteofluorosis may occur if the fluoride content of trabecular bone exceeds 4,000 ppm and either the volumetric density of osteoid or the osteoid-covered trabecular bone surface is abnormally increased. There was no difference in incidence of hip fracture in the three areas.

Aged

Effects of fluoride on bone in Finland. Histomorphometry of cadaver bone from low and high fluoride areas.

In three different areas of Finland, fluoride in bone and its effect on the histomorphometry of trabecular bone was studied. Bone samples were taken from cadavers from a low-fluoride area (fluoride concentration under 0.3 ppm), an area with fluoridated drinking water (1.0-1.2 ppm) and a high-fluoride area (over 1.5 ppm). The fluoride content in trabecular bone was greatly increased in the high-fluoride area, and it was also higher in the fluoridated-water area than in the low-fluoride area. Histomorphometric bone changes were markedly increased when the fluoride content in water exceeded 1.5 ppm.

Adult

Measurement of bone blood flow with a 133 Xe washout method. A preliminary report.

A method based on the intravenous 133Xe injection technique has been used for measurement of bone blood flow in man. The measurements were made from the greater trochanteric region of the femur of eight healthy subjects and three patients with bone marrow or a bone disease in which bone blood flow is known to be increased. The half-times of the fast and the slow compartments of the externally recorded two-exponential bone washout curves were 4.05 +/- 0.88 min and 45.4 +/- 7.4 min (mean +/- 1 sd) in the healthy subjects, 1.46 min and 20.1 min in the patient with chronic myeloid leukemia, 2.50 min and 22.9 min in metastic bone disease and 1.93 min and 18.1 min in the patient with osteosarcoma, respectively. The corresponding flow values were 11.5 +/- 1.4 ml/100 g/min (mean +/- 1 sd) in healthy subjects and 59.8, 28.3 and 34.0 ml/100 g/min in patients with bone disorders. The precision of the method estimated from the duplicate measurements in eight healthy persons is; for the fast compartment, 6.8%; and for the slow one, 3.2%. Because of the rapid washout of xenon and the very low radiation dose the measurements are easily repeatable.

Adolescent

Blood flow in proximal femur of the dog determined by the local 133Xe injection method.

A new approach for measuring blood flow in bone is presented. It consists of the local injection of 133Xe into the proximal femur of adult beagles and the external measurement of isotope washout curves. The curves were analyzed using a two-compartment exponential model. The half-times for the tracer washout from the fast and slow compartment were 3.34 +/- 0.48 min and 33.6 +/- 11.7 min (mean +/- 1 S.D.) respectively. Blood flow was calculated using a measured blood to bone partition coefficient of 1.55 ml/g. The mean blood perfusion in proximal femur of the dog was 10.8 +/- 4.3 ml/100 g/min (mean +/- 1 S.D.). This value agrees well with most estimates of bone circulation. Due to rapid disappearance of 133Xe the method is easy to repeat and is thus suitable for physiological studies of local blood flow in bones.

Animals

Acute cholecystitis treated by early and delayed surgery. A controlled clinical trial.

100 patients with acute cholecystitis (AC) diagnosed by clinical, laboratory, and roentgenological examinations were randomly divided into 2 groups; early surgery (ES), operated within 7 days after the onset of acute symptoms, and delayed (DS), operated 2--3 months after the acute episode. Patients with elevated serum bilirubin and/or amylase were included in the trial. Two patients died during conservative treatment, and in 4 cases medical treatment was interrupted because of peritonitis, and in 3 cases because of increasing jaundice. Recurrence of AC was found in 24% of the patients in the DS group. There was no mortality in the ES group, but 2 patients died postoperatively in the DS group. Wound infection developed in 3 patients in the ES, and in 8 patients in the DS group. Retained stones remained in 3 cases of the DS and in 1 case of the ES group. The operative procedures were easier to perform in the ES group than in the DS, as estimated by the duration of operation. The operation time was 76.7 +/- 4.6 min (mean p S.E.) in the ES and 98.0 +/- 7.3 min in the DS group. There was a statistically significant difference between the 2 groups (p less than 0.01). The results suggest that early surgery in the treatment of acute cholecystitis is recommended. The complications of failed medical treatment can be avoided by early operation without added risk of mortality or complications.

Acute Disease

Bone mineral content of the forearm in a healthy population.

The bone mineral content in the distal radius, in the midshaft radius and ulna was measured in 83 healthy males and 89 females from 11 to 87 years old using the 241Am gamma ray attenuation method. The age distributions of different 'density' quantities characterizing bone mineral are presented and the usefulness of these quantities is discussed.

Adolescent

Zinc content of human cancellous bone.

The zinc content of cancellous bone from the iliac crest was determined by the X-ray fluorescence technique in an autopsy series of 28 women and 66 men. The bone-zinc content was statistically related to age, but there was a large variation. It reached a maximum value in the fifth decade and thereafter decreased with age in both sexes. Men with a chronic disease had a lower zinc content than those who had died suddenly. There was a significant correlation between the zinc content and the bone strength in women (p less than 0.01) and in men (p less than 0.05). Zinc is thought to play a part in osteoporosis.

Adolescent

Peroperative infusion of dextran 70 and dextran 40 in the prevention of postoperative deep venous thrombosis as confirmed by the I-125-labelled fibrinogen uptake method.

The antithrombotic effect of dextran 70 and dextran 40 was studied by a double blind trial in 235 patients with major or medium sized elective procedures. 6% dextran 70 (Macrodex) or 10% dextran 40 (Rhemacrodex) or 5% dextrose in 0.9% saline were given in a double blind manner in 500 ml quantities over 30 minutes starting with the induction of anaesthesia. The diagnosis of deep venous thrombosis was confirmed objectively by the I-125-labelled fibrinogen uptake method. Statistically significant differences in the incidence of deep venous thrombosis between the controls and the dextran groups were not found.

Clinical Trials as Topic