Biomedical subjects

G L Muntingh

Publications and source records attributed to G L Muntingh.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1994

Application of diode array detection for the identification of poisoning by traditional medicines.

A large percentage of acute poisonings in black South Africans is due to traditional medicines and plants. The combination of isocratic high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with on line UV spectrum detection via a diode array configuration has been applied to the detection and identification of traditional medicines (and plants) in poisoned patients. Four standard isocratic systems are used. Combination of the retention times in the HPLC chromatogram and a comparison of the full spectra between 190-600 nm of the peaks obtained from extracted patient samples (urine or blood) with that of traditional medicine extracts (collected and stored in a reference data file) makes reliable identification possible. Such information could improve the quality of data accumulation and therapeutic strategies.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

PubMed1994

Decreasing asthma morbidity.

Apart from the optimal use of drugs, various supplementary methods have been tested to decrease asthma morbidity, usually in patients from relatively affluent socio-economic backgrounds. A study of additional measures taken in a group of moderate to severe adult asthmatics from very poor socio-economic backgrounds who had had on average only 5 years of schooling, is reported here. The additional methods were selection of patients who could successfully use a metered dose inhaler and prescription of other forms of administration for those who could not, with regular repeat checking of the techniques of aerosol use, use of theophylline blood level monitoring to improve the basis for discussing drug non-compliance with patients, and repeated explanation to patients why regular medication and clinic attendance are essential. These measures resulted in a significant improvement in morbidity, whereas no such improvement was found in a control group.

Asthma↗

PubMed1991

[The effect of enalapril and prazosin on mild to moderate hypertension in black South Africans].

A double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial with a parallel design was conducted on 35 black patients with mild to moderate hypertension. After a 4-week run-in on placebo, baseline values were recorded and only patients with diastolic pressures of 95 - 115 mmHg were admitted to the trial, which lasted 10 weeks. These patients were randomised in three groups, receiving daily initially either 5 mg enalapril, 2 mg prazosin or placebo. Blood pressures and heart rates were measured once every week and in poor responders dosages were increased on a 2-weekly basis. Enalapril was increased to 10, 20 and 40 mg during the last 4 weeks, and prazosin was respectively increased to 4, 10 and 20 mg. The only statistically significant difference between baseline and post-treatment values (week 10) was a reduction in heart rate in the prazosin group, but no differences in either systolic or diastolic pressure could be detected in this group or between any of the three measurements in the other two groups. When the mean values of 3 groups were compared on a weekly basis it transpired that there were no statistically significant differences between any of the baseline values but that the mean heart rate at week 2 and the mean diastolic pressure at week 9 in the prazosin group and the mean systolic pressures in the enalapril group at weeks 6, 8 and 10 were significantly lower than the corresponding placebo values. Cumulative sum techniques were used to measure the course of the effects of treatment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Penbutolol in the treatment of mild to moderate essential hypertension in black South Africans.

The antihypertensive effects of penbutolol, a nonselective beta-adrenoceptor antagonist with intrinsic sympathomimetic activity, was assessed in nonobese black South Africans aged 25 to 65 years with uncomplicated mild to moderate essential hypertension. After a 4-week placebo run-in period 50 patients entered a randomized placebo-controlled study with a crossover design. For 8 weeks they received a once daily dose of 40 mg penbutolol (or placebo) which was increased to 80 mg per day for the next 4 weeks in poor responders. This was followed by a 4-week placebo washout period after which a crossover of treatment was achieved and a second 12-week period of treatment initiated. Thirty-five patients completed the whole study and in 15 patients diastolic blood pressure was reduced below 95 mm Hg. The mean systolic pressures of these patients decreased by 21 mm Hg and their mean diastolic pressure decreased by 11 mm Hg during treatment with penbutolol. These results suggest that penbutolol monotherapy is an alternative therapeutic approach to hypertension in black South Africans.

Adult↗