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Biomedical subjects

G Pace

Publications and source records attributed to G Pace.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Improvement of uterine artery Doppler velocimetry indices after metroplasty in arcuate uteri.

OBJECTIVE: Our study aimed to evaluate the effect of metroplasty performed in arcuate uteri on uterine artery Doppler velocimetry. STUDY DESIGN: We performed uterine artery Doppler velocimetry transvaginally before and after metroplasty in 36 women with arcuate uteri. Pulsatility indexes (PI) of uterine arteries were calculated and the presence or absence of a protodiastolic notch was evaluated. RESULTS: Comparing Doppler indexes before and after metroplasty, we found that uterine artery impedance improves as assessed by lower mean PI. We observed that PI after intervention was significantly lower compared with indexes before for mean Doppler index evaluations (mean uterine PI pre: 2.07+/-0.61 and post: 1.49+/-0.24 [p<0.03]). No differences were observed as regards bilateral protodiastolic notch absence or presence. A protodiastolic notch was present in 22 out of 36 women before metroplasty (61%), and a notch was observed in 19 out of 36 (52%) after metroplasty. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that, metroplasty, as well as making the uterine cavity wider, leads to better uterine perfusion.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Septate uterus: reproductive outcome after hysteroscopic metroplasty.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate hysteroscopic metroplasty and its effect on reproductive outcome. STUDY DESIGN: Seventy-five patients consulted for uterine septum between January 1996 to December 2000 at "La Sapienza" University in Rome were included in the study. RESULTS: Forty patients attempted pregnancy and a total of 30 spontaneous pregnancies resulted (75% pregnancy rate). The uterine cavity was normal at hysteroscopic follow-up in 68% of cases. CONCLUSION: Correction of uterine septum improves pregnancy outcome of patients. Broadening the indications for hysteroscopic metroplasty should be encouraged for patients who desire to conceive.

Abortion, Habitual↗
PubMed2001

Bi-quadratic surface response for quantitative determination of analytes leading to partially overlapped chromatographic peaks.

A simple analytic approach is described for the accurate determination of the concentration of components which give rise to partially overlapped chromatographic peaks. This method requires neither deconvolution processes nor chromatographic separation of the peaks. From the empirical point of view a bi-quadratic function has been found relating the area of an unresolved peak with the concentrations of the related analyte and of the interfering one. Such concentrations are then computed by solving the related non linear system of equations by the Newton-Raphson method.

Chromatography, Liquid↗
PubMed2001

Initial experience with a new transurethral microwave thermotherapy treatment protocol '30-minute TUMT'.

OBJECTIVE: We report on our experience with a less invasive treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), a high-energy '30-minute' treatment algorithm of transurethral microwave thermotherapy (TUMT). As initial investigators of this new device, we have tested its safety, tolerance and efficacy. METHODS: From April 1998 to May 1999, all males attending our Outpatient Clinic for symptomatic BPH were evaluated with physical examination, symptoms questionnaire, bladder and prostate ultrasound scan, cystomanometry and pressure-flow study. Sixty-one males with: prostate volume > 30 cm3, prostate length > 25 mm, Qmax < 15 ml/s, IPSS > or =13, MSS > or = 8, and without excessive middle lobe, underwent one session of 30-min TUMT treatment after informed consent was obtained. Treatments were performed on an outpatient basis and with oral sedation and local analgesia. Follow-up visits were scheduled for 2 weeks, 1, 3, 6 and 12 months post-treatment. RESULTS: Fifty-six out of 61 patients (92%) completed the 6-month follow-up visit: mean MSS improved from 12.0 to 4.3; IPSS changed from 18.1 to 5.2. The mean maximum flow rate improved from 9.1 to 17.8 ml/s and the mean post-void residual decreased from 92 to 18 ml. Cavities within prostatic tissue were observed in 54 out of 56 patients (95%). The most frequent adverse event was UTI (21.3%); no major complications were observed. CONCLUSION: Our experience demonstrated that 30-min TUMT is a safe, effective and well-tolerable treatment for patients with BPH and LUTS, although further studies are needed to assess result durability and long-term efficacy.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

Mixed-mechanism ionization to enhance sensitivity in atmospheric pressure ionization LC/MS.

A novel dual-mechanism ionization technique for LC/MS/MS has been observed, characterized and applied to the quantitation of a tertiary amine-containing drug compound in dog plasma. This mixed-mechanism ionization approach can improve the sensitivity of the pneumatically assisted electrospray experiment. Under conditions of higher than normal chromatographic flow and lower electrospray voltage, approximately a 4-fold increase in sensitivity was realized. A detection limit of 16 pg (45 fmol) on-column, and inter-day imprecision and inaccuracy of < 11 and < 15%, respectively, were obtained. A trade-off in concentration sensitivity in favor of ease of sample preparation was made to increase sample throughput. Although results strongly suggest that mixed-mechanism ionization is in operation, and that pneumatically assisted electrospray is a partial contributor to the overall ionization process, the exact nature of the second mechanism of ionization is unclear at this time.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

The effects of traumatic brain injury on reporting and responding to causal relations: an investigation of sensitivity to reinforcement contingencies.

Impairments in judging and responding to consequences that follow behaviour are often attributed to changes in various cognitive processes. An alternative conceptualization is that impairments may produce a reduction in sensitivity to reinforcement contingencies. The present investigation employed a methodology commonly used in research on judgements of causality to examine the effects of TBI on sensitivity to reinforcement contingencies. Participants were non-injured control subjects and adults with TBI. The experimental task required subjects to press a response key under a series of concurrent response-reinforcer contingencies that periodically delivered money for responding and not responding. Afterwards, subjects provided a judgement about each response-reinforcer contingency by reporting the amount of money earned for responding and for not responding. Results suggest that TBI reduced the sensitivity of judgements and responding under select contingencies. These results lend some support to the view that TBI may reduce sensitivity to reinforcement contingencies. Furthermore, the investigation highlights the potential benefits of employing methods commonly used in human and animal operant research for the study of TBI.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Efficacy and safety of the new high-energy 30-minute transurethral microwave thermotherapy: results of 1-year follow-up in a multicenter study.

PURPOSE: To assess the efficacy and durability of a new 30-minute algorithm for high-energy transurethral microwave thermotherapy (TUMT, Prostasoft 3.5) in the treatment of men with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 167 men (mean age 67 years) with bothersome LUTS were treated with the new TUMT protocol. Evaluation included assessment of the short- and long-term objective and subjective outcome measures of this treatment. RESULTS: The treatment is well tolerated. The International Prostate Symptom Score improved from a mean of 19.2 at baseline to 7.9 at 12 months after treatment. Maximum urinary flow improved from 8.9 to 16.4 mL/s at 12 months. Mean duration of catheterization was 16.1 days. Urodynamic evaluation showed a change from the obstructed to the nonminimally obstructed zone. There were no serious complications. CONCLUSION: High-energy TUMT using the new high-dose Prostasoft 3.5 protocol appears to be a safe, effective, and durable treatment. The faster procedure improves tolerance of the treatment. Subjective and objective improvements were significant and the treatment-related morbidity low.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Nocturnal enuresis can be caused by absorptive hypercalciuria.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine whether nocturnal enuresis (NE) can be caused by absorptive hypercalciuria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 1981 to 1995, 406 patients with primary monosymptomatic nocturnal enuresis were studied. Up to 1989 (Group 1), urinary electrolytes and urinary creatinine were not evaluated, but since 1990 (Group 2) these tests have been performed routinely. In doing so, we noticed that in 8 patients in Group 2 and in 13 patients in Group 1 with persistent NE the urinary calcium and the urinary calcium/creatinine ratios were significantly high (p < 0.001). These patients were submitted to Pak's test and parathyroid hormone (PTH) and antidiuretic hormone (ADH) measurements. RESULTS: In all 21 patients, PTH and ADH levels were normal, while the Pak's test showed absorptive hypercalciuria. They were given an appropriate diet. After 3 months, NE had ceased completely in 4 patients (19%); bedwetting episodes diminished and calciuria levels were found to be borderline in the remaining 17. A new urodynamic evaluation showed normal patterns in 12 and detrusor instability (DI) in 5. Patients with DI received oxybutinine: enuresis disappeared in all. The remaining 12 children with persistent NE and normal urodynamic findings and the child with DI and persistent NE empirically received DDAVP; enuresis ceased in all of them within 1 month and calciuria stabilized at normal levels. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that absorptive hypercalciuria can be responsible for NE and can be treated with the combination of diet and DDAVP.

Calcium↗
PubMed1999

Relations between traumatic brain injury and the environment: feedback reduces maladaptive behaviour exhibited by three persons with traumatic brain injury.

Feedback is a commonly used technique in neurorehabilitation. It functions to strengthen or weaken select relations between individuals' behaviour and their environment. The study of behaviour-environment relations is a focus of operant psychology, commonly referred to as behaviour analysis. Central to behaviour analysis is the analysis of interrelations among stimuli, behaviour, and consequences. The focus on behaviour-environment relations may have considerable benefits for designing clinical treatments and accounting for successful and unsuccessful treatments, especially psychological interventions for maladaptive behaviour. In the present investigation, three persons with traumatic brain injuries, diagnosed with depression and presenting mild cognitive impairments, received feedback about their maladaptive behaviour. Weekly feedback resulted in general reductions in the variability and frequency of maladaptive behaviour. The results support the utility of giving equal consideration to relations between persons with traumatic brain injury and their environment, despite existing psychological or cognitive impairments. Future research on variables that influence the development and maintenance of behaviour-environment relations, and more generally operant behaviour, may provide a unique perspective on the effects of traumatic brain injury.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

Evidence of profiled hemodialysis efficacy in the treatment of intradialytic hypotension.

In the last 10 years the percentage of dialysis patients suffering from clinical intradialytic intolerance has greatly increased. Profiled hemodialysis (PHD) is a new technical approach, alternative to standard hemodialysis (SHD) for the treatment of intradialytic symptomatic hypotension. It is based on intradialytic modulation of the dialysate sodium concentration, using a dialysate sodium concentration profile elaborated by a new mathematical kinetic model. The aim of PHD is to reduce the intradialytic blood volume decrease, thanks to a dialysate sodium profile, which allows a reduction in the plasma osmolarity decrease, thereby boosting intravascular fluid refilling. This work aims at clinically validating the PHD technique, by testing its ability against SHD, to maintain a more stable intradialytic blood volume; this evaluation was supported by monitoring some hemodynamic parameters. Twelve dialysis patients on SHD treatment were selected because of their intradialytic symptomatic hypotension. Twelve SHD (one per patient) and 12 PHD sessions (one per patient) were performed to achieve the same sodium mass removal and body weight decrease on both PHD and SHD. During these sessions we monitored the blood volume variation % by the crit-line (a non invasive blood volume monitoring device), the mean blood pressure and heart rate directly and, finally, the stroke volume and cardiac output indirectly by bidimensional doppler-echocardiography. Comparison of the results obtained with the two techniques shows PHD to achieve a significantly more stable blood volume, blood pressure and cardiovascular function than SHD, in particular during the second and the third hour of the dialysis session.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

[Role of dynamic penile color Doppler echography in the evaluation of the patient with La Peyronie's disease].

From March 1995 to February 1996, sixteen consecutive patients with Peyronie's Disease (PD) were routinely submitted to penile dynamic colour-coded doppler ultrasonography (CCDU). The test yielded normal results in 6 patients who had no erectile problems and in other 4 patients who conversely complained of reduced erectile function. In the other 6 patients who complained of reduced erectile function, the test pointed out pure arteriogenic failure in 1 case, pure venogenic failure in 4, and mixed arteriogenic and venogenic failure in 1. CCDU enables a precise assessment of erectile function as well of the site, kind and entity of the penile curvature to be corrected. These data are very useful when planning the surgical approach for each patient.

Alprostadil↗
PubMed1996

[Penile dynamic color Doppler echography in the diagnosis of erection disorders].

Penile dynamic colour-coded doppler ultrasonography (CCDU) provides reliable information on both hemodynamic factors, arterial inflow and veno-occlusive mechanism, involved in erectile function. However false negative results may occur due to sympathetic discharge and consequent incomplete smooth muscle relaxation. From March 1994 to February 1996, 150 patients suffering from ED were submitted to penile dynamic CCDU after high-dose (40 micrograms) pharmacostimulation and manual genital stimulation. False negative results occurred only in 3 (2%) patients. This experience suggests that high-dose pharmacostimulation and manual genital stimulation may reduce the occurrence of false negative results, further increasing the diagnostic value of CCDU.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Is Ace inhibitor treatment a possible cause of better cardiovascular remodelling in well functioning kidney transplant?

Diseases of the cardiovascular system are a common cause of death in renal transplanted patients. In this study we assessed the echocardiographic morphological and functional findings after renal transplantation of two homogenous groups of transplanted patients with normal renal function. The first (A) with spontaneously normotensive patients, the second (B) with moderate hypertension treated mainly with Ace inhibitors. Analysis of these data highlights two noteworthy results: the similar left ventricle hypertrophy found in both groups and the existence of better diastolic compliance among the hypertensive transplanted patients. If this is confirmed by studies currently in progress, the importance of Ace-inhibitors treatment in remodelling cardiac dysfunction after long term dialysis treatment might be seriously considered.

Adult↗