Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to E Rotstein.
The ear-lobe sign is seen in those who develop contact dermatitis to a substance applied with one hand to the skin of the face and neck. On the ipsilateral side of the face the ear-lobe is spared whereas on the contralateral side the ear-lobe is involved. The sign manifests because of the unique combination of the anatomy of the hand and the sweeping movement the hand makes during application.
Three cases are presented with a rash due to captopril which, on histology, showed a lichenoid pattern of bandlike upper dermal infiltrate of lymphocytes and histiocytes, together with hydropic degeneration of the basal layer of the epidermis producing Civatte bodies and pigmentary incontinence. The rash presented either as a pityriasis rosea-like picture which appeared about three to six months after the onset of treatment in patients taking low doses, or alternatively, as lichenoid plaques which appeared three to six months after commencement of medication in patients taking high doses. Although both clinical patterns produced a "saw tooth" pattern of the epidermal rete ridges, hypergranulosis and acanthosis were seen only with the lichenoid plaques.
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Binding of 3H-spiroperidol was determined in ten (10) unmedicated recently admitted and four (4) drug holiday schizophrenic patients to determine whether it could serve as a peripheral marker of central dopaminergic hyperactivity. Preliminary results indicate significantly increased binding but there is considerable intersubject variability. Displacement studies, the lack of stereospecificity and the necessity of having an intact lymphocyte do not indicate that this is binding to a dopamine receptor but rather an uptake phenomenon.
Combined treatment with haloperidol and lithium is a frequently employed strategy for the treatment of acute psychoses. Although this combination regime is safe in most clinical situations, under certain circumstances it has resulted in neurotoxicity, with organic brain syndrome, and ultimately, in some patients, irreversible brain damage and death. Plasma lithium levels in these neurotoxic patients are generally within the clinically acceptable range of 0.7 - 1.5 mEq/l, but RBC-lithium levels, when reported are abnormally elevated. To account for these observations we hypothesized that in vivo haloperidol will alter the transport of lithium across the RBC membrane and thus cause an increase in RBC lithium levels. We report preliminary results from a study that tested this hypothesis by measuring RBC lithium transport in vitro, in patients treated with a) haloperidol only, b) haloperidol, followed by haloperidol and lithium, c) combined haloperidol and lithium. In eight manic depressive patients in vivo haloperidol alone, or in combination with lithium resulted in a statistically significant (p less than 0.0001) reduction of the in vitro RBC Li+ uptake values. These results are interpreted as supportive of our hypothesis, that in vivo haloperidol alters the transport of lithium across the RBC membrane, and this effect can be detected by the use of a sensitive in vitro test. Work is currently in progress to evaluate, whether the RBC Li+ transport alteration is due to a direct effect of the drug on the cell membrane or secondary to some circulating factor, and to extend these findings to a larger sample of patients.