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Biomedical subjects

G Corti

Publications and source records attributed to G Corti.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1995

[Primary response to tetanus toxoid stimulation in early infancy].

The authors attempt to evaluate the degree of immune response to the first dose of anti-tetanus vaccination in young infants and to study the correlation between maternal and infantile antitetanus antibody titers. The sample studied comprised 5 males and 5 females aged between 61 and 75 days old, without acute and/or chronic pathologies and uncircumsized. Three samples of peripheral venous blood were collected for each infant: 1 at time 0, and the other two during the 15 days after the administration of the first dose of tetanus toxoid. The results support the hypothesis that vaccinal stimulation has a greater effect on cellular rather than humoral immunity, causing an increase in the CD4/CD8 ratio and a decrease in CD16. The study confirms that women with high antitetanus antibody titers during pregnancy have children with protective antibody titers. This underlines the importance of vaccinating pregnant women who, for various reasons, have not been immunised so as to prevent infantile tetanus and to allow the possibility of delaying, if necessary, the administration of the first dose of toxoid in infants without the risk of short-term toxoinfection.

Antibodies↗
PubMed1994

Arrhythmias in mitral valve prolapse: relation to anterior mitral leaflet thickening, clinical variables, and color Doppler echocardiographic parameters.

Atrial and ventricular arrhythmias have been reported with variable incidence in symptomatic patients with mitral valve prolapse (MVP). The role of clinical and echocardiographic parameters as predictors for arrhythmias still needs to be clarified. One hundred nineteen consecutive patients (56 women and 63 men, mean age 40 +/- 17 years) with echocardiographically diagnosed MVP were examined. A complete echocardiographic study (M-mode, two-dimensional, and Doppler) and 24-hour electrocardiographic monitoring were performed in all patients. Complex atrial arrhythmias (CAAs) included atrial couplets, atrial tachycardia, and paroxysmal or sustained atrial flutter or fibrillation. Complex ventricular arrhythmias (CVAs) included multiform ventricular premature contractions (VPCs), VPC couplets, and runs of three or more sequential VPCs (salvos of ventricular tachycardia). The relation between complex arrhythmias and clinical parameters (age and gender) and echocardiographic parameters (left atrial and left ventricular dimensions, anterior mitral leaflet thickness [AMLT], and presence and severity of mitral regurgitation) was evaluated by multiple logistic regression analysis. CAA were present in 14% of patients and CVA in 30%. According to multiple logistic modeling, CAA correlated separately in the univariate analysis with age, presence of MR, and left ventricular and left atrial diameters; age was the only independent predictor (p < 0.001). CVA, in the univariate analysis, correlated with age, female gender, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter, and AMLT; only female gender and AMLT were independent predictors in the multivariate analysis (p < 0.01). The incidence of mitral regurgitation (59%) was higher than expected in a general population of MVP patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1994

[Pathogenetic mechanisms responsible for producing a secondary immunodeficiency state].

Abnormalities of the immune response can be secondary to old age, to several pathologic conditions (i.e. diabetes mellitus, renal failure, solid and lymphohematologic neoplasias, leukopenia, malnutrition, autoimmune diseases, AIDS), to surgical stress or to burns, and to immunosuppressive therapies, both medical (corticosteroids, cytotoxic agents, antilymphocytic globulins) and surgical (splenectomy) as well as radiant (extensive radiotherapy). Old age can affect both humoral (reduced antibody synthesis) and cell-mediated (thymus involution, diminished ratio Th/Ts, depression of both delayed hypersensitivity reactions and cytotoxic activity of K cells) immune response. Hyponutrition, often observed in the elderly, adds a reduced production of secretory IgA, lysozyme and interferon, diminished complementary activity, phagocytosis defects, and vitamin deficits. Furthermore, in some chronic diseases we can observe reduced primary antibody response or depression of delayed hypersensitivity reactions (renal failure, neoplasias), changes in leukocyte functions (diabetes mellitus, leukemias and lymphomas) and, in particular in solid neoplasias, increased activity of Ts lymphocytes and the presence of circulating immunocomplexes. Changes in phagocytosis, opsonization and chemotaxis are typically seen in burns, whereas surgical stress can cause some inhibition of cell-mediated immunity. Finally, after splenectomy it is possible to observe an increased synthesis of IgA and IgG and, on the contrary, reduced production of IgM and properdin.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1994

[Obstruction of the superior vena cava following a corrective intervention for total anomalous pulmonary venous return treated by percutaneous angioplasty].

We report a case of a patient operated on for total anomalous pulmonary venous drainage at the age of six months. Seven years later an angiographic examination showed a obstruction of superior vena cava at Juxta right atrial. The patient, asymptomatic until the age of fifteen, was then subjected to further hemodynamic and angiocardiographic examination due to the appearance of an incessant and therapy-resistant cough. After the diagnostic procedure was completed, percutaneous balloon angioplasty was performed on the obstruction, which marked the remission of the symptoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Urinary tract infections in the city of Florence: epidemiological considerations over a twenty-year period.

Our study of significant bacteriurias indicated that the worldwide shift in the etiology of infections also holds true for the Florence area. In a twenty-year period (1970-1990), we noted a decreased frequency of Gram-negative bacilli, particularly of the family Enterobacteriaceae, and a significant increase of Gram-positive cocci in urinary patients. This finding was observed both in hospital and in community-acquired cases in the male sex and only in nosocomial bacteriurias in the female sex. There was a reduced isolation of "classic" urinary pathogens such as Proteus mirabilis: its prevalence in hospital-acquired urinary tract infection (UTI) decreased from 16% in 1970 to 5% in 1990 both in males and in females. On the other hand, we noted an increase of "difficult" microorganisms such as enterococci and methicillin-resistant staphylococci, particularly in the male sex; in 1970 enterococci were occasionally isolated in males both from hospital and from community-acquired UTIs (3% and 5%, respectively), whereas in 1990, on the contrary, they were encountered much more frequently (19% in both cases).

Bacteriuria↗
PubMed1992

Which prophylactic regimen for which surgical procedure?

For optimal prevention of infection subsequent to a surgical intervention, it is necessary to follow a series of general principles, including the classification of the type of surgical intervention, the characteristics of the antibiotic used, and the route and the time of its administration. Moreover, with reference to the different types of surgery, other factors assume importance: the etiology of the infection and the ability of the antibiotic to achieve adequate levels in the tissues at the beginning of the infective process. In general abdominal, biliary, and obstetric-gynecologic surgery, which covers many clean-contaminated and contaminated interventions for which antibiotic prophylaxis has been shown to be the most effective, the etiology is often mixed (aerobic and anaerobic flora) with a predominance of gram-negative microorganisms. Thus, an appropriate prophylactic regimen must consider a third-generation cephalosporin, such as cefotaxime, that is effective against most gram-negative bacteria, in particular against Klebsiella pneumoniae. Acylureido penicillins can also be used because of their activity against enterococci, gram-positive microorganisms that are also causes of infection in this area of surgical intervention. Combining an antimicrobial such as clindamycin or metronidazole, which are particularly active against anaerobes, may be recommended as well. In urologic surgery, most infections are caused by Enterobacteriaceae; in addition to the antimicrobial spectrum, the ability of the antibiotic to concentrate adequately in the urine and renal tissue must also be considered. Beta-lactam antibiotics are the agents of choice, in particular, third-generation cephalosporins, aztreonam, and acylureido penicillins. In cardiac, orthopedic, and partially in neurologic surgery, where most infections are due to gram-positive bacteria (primarily methicillin-resistant staphylococci), antibiotic prophylaxis should include a glycopeptide agent (teicoplanin, vancomycin). In the field of surgical prophylaxis, more experience has been accumulated with cefotaxime, used as a short-course regimen or as a convenient single dose, than with any other newer cephalosporin. Cefotaxime's broad spectrum of action provides coverage against most potential pathogens and, when used as a single dose, is both convenient and cost-effective.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1990

Antimicrobial agent susceptibility patterns of staphylococci isolated in urban and rural areas of Bolivia.

Staphylococcal strains obtained from cutaneous swabs of hospital staff and school students of Camiri and Boyuibe and healthy people living in Javillo, Bolivia, were tested for their in-vitro antimicrobial susceptibility. The highest percentages of resistance to the antibiotics tested were found in staphylococcal strains isolated from hospital personnel. All the S. aureus strains from these subjects were resistant to penicillin. Coagulase-negative staphylococci from hospital personnel evidenced a high rate of multiresistant strains, mainly to penicillin, ampicillin, tetracycline, and chloramphenicol. The staphylococcal strains isolated in the rural population of Javillo were highly susceptible to all the antibiotics tested.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1989

In vitro antimicrobial sensitivity of staphylococci isolated in the Santa Cruz region of Bolivia.

The in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility of staphylococci isolated in two different communities, Camiri and Javillo, of the Santa Cruz region in south-eastern Bolivia was tested by the agar diffusion technique and by a micro dilution susceptibility test to determine the Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations. Staphylococcal strains isolated from hospital staff of the Camiri Hospital were compared to that isolated from healthy people of Javillo, a very small community isolated in the jungle. In the Camiri Hospital, staphylococci showed a high prevalence of penicillin resistance, 100% for S. aureus strains and 73.5% for coagulase-negative staphylococci. Among coagulase-negative strains we found a high rate of multiresistant strains, mainly to ampicillin, tetracycline and chloramphenicol. In the rural population of Javillo we found staphylococcal strains highly susceptible to all the antibiotics tested.

Axilla↗
PubMed1989

Prevalence of antibody to hepatitis A virus in the Santa Cruz region of Bolivia.

Several epidemiological studies have shown the worldwide distribution of hepatitis A with the highest prevalence of anti-HAV antibodies in developing countries (Papaevangelou 1984). There is no information about the epidemiology of hepatitis A in Bolivia. The goal of this study was to evaluate the anti-HAV antibody prevalence in the Santa Cruz region, southeastern Bolivia.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1980

The use of organic solvents in mutagenicity testing.

13 organic substances (dimethylsulfoxide, methanol, ethanol, n-propyl alcohol, sec-butyl alcohol, tert-butyl alcohol, dl-sec-amyl alcohol, ethylene glycol, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, 1,4-diethylene dioxide, acetone, methyl acetate and formamide) were considered from the standpoint of their use as solvents for water-insoluble chemicals to be tested for mutagenicity. First, the effect of these solvents on cell survival was studied in the yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe and in V79 Chinese hamster cells. 8 solvents showing relatively low toxicity on either cell system (dimethylsulfoxide, ethanol, ethylene glycol, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, 1,4-diethylene dioxide, acetone, methyl acetate and formamide) were tested for their effect on aminopyrine demethylase. 4 solvents (ethanol, 1,4-diethylene dioxide, methyl acetate and formamide) showed a more or less pronounced adverse effect on the microsomal enzymic activity. The remaining 4 and methanol (whose effect on aminopyrine demethylase was not testable) were assayed for mutagenicity in S. pombe. They all gave negative results both with and without the post-mitochondrial fraction from mouse liver.

Animals↗