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Biomedical subjects

G Turitto

Publications and source records attributed to G Turitto.

45 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Antiarrhythmic effects of oral indecainide in patients with ventricular tachyarrhythmias.

In order to assess the efficacy and safety of oral indecainide in patients with serious ventricular arrhythmias we studied 11 patients with high-grade ventricular ectopy and ventricular tachycardia (VT) which were refractory to therapy with at least one standard antiarrhythmic drug. Spontaneous arrhythmias were quantitated by 24-h Holter monitor before and during therapy with indecainide. Spontaneous VT was sustained in 4 patients and nonsustained in 7. Ten patients underwent baseline electrophysiologic study (EPS) and VT was induced in 9. The mean ejection fraction was 25 +/- 14%. Indecainide was given orally at a dose of 211 +/- 118 mg/day. The frequency of ventricular premature beats (VPBs) was significantly (greater than 85%) decreased in 90% of patients, while ventricular couplets frequency decreased in 78%. Spontaneous VT was abolished in 5 of 11 (45%). Sustained VT was induced in 5 of 7 (71%) patients who underwent follow-up EPS. The QRS duration was significantly prolonged during therapy (0.13 +/- 0.04 s) compared to control (0.10 +/- 0.02 s). The PR, QTc, and JTc intervals were not significantly changed. Indecainide was well tolerated, but 2 patients died of ventricular tachyarrhythmias while receiving the drug. Indecainide suppressed VPBs in a high percentage of patients, but was much less successful in controlling VT. Caution is necessary when using this drug because of its potential for exacerbation of arrhythmia.

Aged↗
PubMed1985

[Diltiazem in spontaneous angina: comparison with nifedipine and verapamil].

Sixteen patients with spontaneous angina were studied to assess the relative efficacy of diltiazem (D) at different doses [240 mg/day (D240) versus 360 mg/day (D360)], nifedipine (N: 120 mg/day), and verapamil (V: 480 mg/day), given according to a latin-square protocol. Of the 16 patients, 6 had ischemic attacks with ST elevation, 6 had ischemic attacks with ST depression, 4 showed ST elevation or ST depression in different ischemic attacks. All the patients underwent 24-hour Holter monitoring: at the beginning of the study; during the third day of treatment with D240, D360, N or V; after the withdrawal of each treatment. An atrioventricular block was observed in 2 patients during treatment with V, and in 1 patient during treatment with D240 and D360. In the remaining cases, D and V significantly (p less than 0,05) prolonged the PR interval (D240: + 18%; D360: + 16%; V: + 20%), and reduced the mean daily heart rate (D240: -9%; D360: -12%; V: -11%). The effects of D and V were statistically not different. All the treatments significantly reduced the frequency of the ischemic attacks (p less than 0,05) (D240: -79%; D360: -93%; N: -90%; V: -90%). In particular, D240 reduced by the same percentage (-79%) the frequency of ischemic attacks with ST elevation and ST depression, while D360 completely abolished ischemic attacks with ST elevation and reduced by 79% those with ST depression. Our results suggest that: diltiazem is highly effective in the treatment of spontaneous angina; the efficacy of 360 mg/day of diltiazem is equivalent to that of 120 mg/day of nifedipine and of 480 mg/day of verapamil.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1984

[Characterization and therapy of ventricular arrhythmias due to transient myocardial ischemic attacks in variant angina].

Forty-two patients with variant angina were studied by ambulatory ECG monitoring to determine the incidence and the characteristics of ventricular arrhythmias during ischemic attacks. Twenty-six patients had no ventricular arrhythmias in 633 ischemic attacks; 16 patients had ventricular arrhythmias in 116/586 ischemic attacks. The number of ischemic attacks per day and the magnitude of ST elevation were significantly (p less than 0.05) greater in patients with ventricular arrhythmias. Ventricular arrhythmias appeared at the onset or at the peak of ST elevation (first phase) in 17 ischemic attacks, during the resolution of ST elevation (second phase) in 43 attacks, during both the phases in 9 attacks. ST alternans appeared during 6 ischemic attacks with arrhythmias. Two episodes of ventricular fibrillation and 22 runs of ventricular tachycardia occurred during the first phase, 17 episodes of ventricular tachycardia were recorded during the second phase. Ventricular tachycardia of the second phase compared with ventricular tachycardias of the first phase were significantly (p less than 0.01) slower, uniform and initiated by a late premature beat. Incidence of arrhythmias of the second phase was strictly correlated with the duration of ischemic attacks. Nine patients who showed ventricular arrhythmias during the second phase of ischemic attacks were enrolled in a cross-over study to assess the antiarrhythmic effects of nifedipine (120 mg/day) and verapamil (480 mg/day). During treatment with nifedipine, the frequency of ischemic attacks declined by 85%, while the frequency of attacks with arrhythmias declined by 97% (p less than 0.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1981

[Clinical application of echocardiokymography for detection of global and sectorial dyskinesias (author's transl)].

The clinical application of a new ultrasonic technique, echocardiokymography (ECKG), has been showed particularly useful in the detection of myocardial and pericardial dyskinesias. In patients with congestive cardiomyopathy, the global hypokynesia was confirmed by the ECKG; regional impairment of parietal wall motion after myocardial infarction is clearly demonstrated by the technique; acute and chronic pericarditis show peculiar kymographic patterns. The ECKG is a kind of two-dimensional examination, that keeps some of the advantages of the time-motion, in the comparative study of cardiac walls dynamics.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1981

[Two-dimensional contrast echocardiography of hepatic veins in the diagnosis of tricuspid regurgitation (author's transl)].

The diagnosis of tricuspid regurgitation (TR) is often controversial. We used peripheral venous contrast echocardiography for the detection and the quantitative assessment of valvular regurgitation. We studied 10 normal subjects, 7 patients with atrial fibrillation, but without tricuspid lesions, 36 patients with TR confirmed by right heart catheterization, divided in three subgroups, according to ventriculography and jugular pulse recording: 10 cases with mild TR, 17 cases with moderate TR, 9 with severe regurgitation. After the injection of contrast medium (CM) (saline solution), the regurgitant flow was visualized in the hepatic veins (HV) and in the inferior vena cava (IVC), by two-dimensional subxiphoid projections; the time of disappearance of the CM was studied by time-motion echograms. The appearance of CM in the HV and in IVC wasn't demonstrated in any normal case. Subjects with atrial fibrillation alone, showed, in 71,5% of cases of persistence of CM in IVC for less than 10 cardiac beats. The diagnosis of severe TR was correctly made in 100% of cases; in all the patients the CM was showed in the HV for more than 40 beats. In patients with mild TR, the diagnosis was correct in 60% of cases with a short persistence of the CM in the HV. In the other cases of mild TR, the presence of CM in HV was misinterpreted as due to atrial fibrillation. Moderate TR was correctly recognized in 70.5% of patients, while in the remainder it was under or overestimated. The method shows a good sensitivity; some cases with atrial fibrillation, in the absence of TR, may cause "false-positive" diagnosis.

Echocardiography↗
PubMed1980

[An echocardiographic problem: the interventricular septum thickness in hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (author's transl)].

Peripheral venous contrast echocardiography is an established method in the assessment of cyanotic congenital heart diseases and for the exact definition of the inner cardiac surfaces outlines. We found it extremely useful in order to correctly delineate the right border of the interventricular septum in IHSS. The method showed that the interventricular system thickness had been underestimated in five out of six patients.

Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Analysis of interleukin-2/interleukin-2 receptor system in advanced non-small-cell lung cancer.

AIMS AND BACKGROUND: The purpose of the study was to investigate the IL-2/IL-2 receptor system in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sera from 40 subjects and 80 patients with stage III and IV NSCLC were assayed for soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) and interleukin-2 (IL-2) by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Circulating CD25+ cells were analyzed by flow cytoflorimetry. The data were related to clinical status by comparing the levels of sIL-2R and IL-2 at diagnosis and during the treatment. RESULTS: The mean sIL-2R concentrations of the NSCLC patients were significantly higher than the control population (P=0.0001); the patients with metastatic disease had significantly higher levels than those with locally advanced disease (P=0.02). No correlation was seen between circulating CD25+ cells and sIL-2R levels. Disease progression was associated with an increase in sIL-2R levels and a decline in IL-2; the sIL-2R/IL-2 ratio showed a gradual increase with tumor progression. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates in a large series of patients that in advanced NSCLC there is an imbalance of the IL-2/IL-2 receptor system. Furthermore, circulating sIL-2R levels and the sIL-2R/IL-2 ratio may be useful as markers of disease activity and treatment response, suggesting a potential prognostic value.

Adult↗