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Biomedical subjects

J Kocsis

Publications and source records attributed to J Kocsis.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Mutual excitation among dorsal root ganglion neurons in the rat.

Intracellular recordings were obtained from primary sensory neurons in excised dorsal root ganglia (DRGs). Most (90%) neurons sampled became depolarized during periods of repetitive stimulation of a branch of the dorsal root (DR) which contained only axons of neighboring neurons. DR stimulation also evoked a transient rise in extracellular K+ concentration ([K+]o), following similar kinetics. Thus, the mutual excitation among DRG neurons may be mediated by [K+]o. Activity-dependent cross-excitation in DRGs could contribute to neuropathic sensory abnormalities often triggered by nerve injury or disease.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Relationship of anxiety and depression.

There has been considerable controversy regarding the relationship between depression and anxiety. We review briefly the descriptive, longitudinal, genetic, biological, and treatment response data indicating that there is overlap between depression and anxiety. Several possible models are explored that provide different conceptions of how this relationship may best be understood: (1) that there are a variety of more or less discrete, but sometimes coexisting, syndromes within the spectrum of anxiety and depression; (2) that symptoms of depression and anxiety represent different external manifestations of a more basic underlying cause; (3) that one condition may predispose to the other; (4) that the association may be due to artifactual definitional overlap, particularly since the instruments used to measure depression and anxiety share so many items. All these propositions are supported. An important, practical question is discussed--should the mixed anxiety/depressive disorder that has been suggested by ICD-10 be included in DSM-IV?

Anxiety↗
PubMed1991

Identifying the specific clinical actions of amitriptyline: interrelationships of behaviour, affect and plasma levels in depression.

Despite increasing knowledge of the neurochemical bases of the action of the tricyclic drugs, little is known about the sequence of psychological effects which precede recovery in drug-responsive patients. This research was aimed at identifying the specific behavioural effects associated with the therapeutic action of amitriptyline in depression. The design involved measurement (post-hoc) of weekly changes in a severely depressed placebo-resistant group who recovered with drug treatment, compared with a group of similar patients treated for the equivalent four weeks, who showed minimal to no clinical response. The research strategy, in accordance with a dose-response paradigm, was to determine which of the early changes in emotion and behaviour found in treatment responders were systematically associated with plasma concentrations of amitriptyline or its major metabolite. Amitriptyline was found to act within seven days on the components of anxiety and on hostility in the responders, and on sleep disorder in all patients. After 12 to 14 days of treatment these effects increased, with improvements in other significant components distinguishing the responders from the non-responders. At the 12th to 14th treatment days when a steady state concentration of drug in plasma was approached, reductions in anxiety and hostility and in certain somatic components correlated significantly with plasma concentrations of amitriptyline. Implications of the findings for clarifying the specificity of clinical actions of the tricyclic drugs, and for understanding the psychobiological dynamics underlying rapid drug-induced recovery in depression, were explored.

Affect↗
PubMed1989

[Ultrasonic diagnosis of kidney injuries].

The authors analyse on the basis of a one-year patient material the significance and primary role of ultrasonography of renal injuries in the diagnostic tactics. The importance of follow-up examination is emphasized and the ultrasonographic signs of different types of renal injuries are characterized. The attention is drawn to the ultrasonographic technique which is indispensable in the emergency attendance, quick, inexpensive, non-invasive means little stress for the patient and replaces other methods too.

Humans↗
PubMed1989

Cognitive functioning in depression.

Verbal learning and memory, and recognition of famous faces, were assessed in 21 non-demented inpatients with RDC endogenous depression. Severity of depression was related to attention span, and patient age was related to measures of learning and recall. However, even in this severely depressed sample, verbal learning/memory measures were not below normative values. Facial recognition was significantly impaired relative to test norms. The results suggest that mild impairment in the early stages of verbal information encoding, and more marked impairment in the recognition of famous faces, may be associated with depression. These impairments differ from the cognitive changes associated with aging.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1989

Diagnostic criteria for dysthymic disorder.

The DSM-III (American Psychiatric Association 1980) criteria for dysthymic disorder selected a heterogeneous group of patients who overlapped with major depression and personality disorders in ways that were difficult to interpret. DSM-III-R (American Psychiatric Association 1987) revised the dysthymia criteria by (1) distinguishing early from late age of onset; (2) providing separate designations for primary and secondary states of dysthymia; (3) including a category of chronic major depression; and (4) revising the specific content of criteria. The performance characteristics of the new criteria set are yet to be tested--a necessary next step to inform the discussions that will culminate in DSM-IV. The remaining areas of greatest controversy are whether (1) early onset, primary dysthymic disorder should be redefined as depressive personality and placed on Axis II; (2) "double-depression" represents a real clinical phenomenon or a definitional artifact; and (3) the content of the diagnostic criteria can be made more specific for chronic depressions. The implications of possible changes and the workings of the DSM-IV Affective Disorders Work Group are discussed.

Depressive Disorder↗
PubMed1989

Personality disorders: issues in assessment.

The multiaxial system adopted in DSM-III (American Psychiatric Association 1980) has fostered much research in the area of the assessment of personality disorders. This paper will address issues and controversies that have an impact on the assessment of personality. Topics to be discussed in this paper include (1) a review of and comparison between categorical and dimensional approaches to personality classification; (2) discussion of differing viewpoints regarding the most appropriate way to conceptualize Axis II diagnoses, with emphasis on their relationship with Axis I and II conditions; and (4) a review of between Axis I and II conditions; and (4) a review of different assessment instruments.

Humans↗
PubMed1988

Effect of the anti-oestrogen tamoxifen on the development of renal cortical necrosis induced by oestrone + vasopressin administration in rats.

Bilateral renal cortical necrosis was observed after vasopressin administration in rats pretreated with oestrone acetate. Histochemical (succinic dehydrogenase, trichrome, periodic acid Schiff) and electronmicroscopic methods were used to examine how the anti-oestrogen, Tamoxifen, influences the development of this renal cortical necrosis. The experiments revealed that in most rats vasopressin did not induce renal tubular necrosis if the anti-oestrogen was administered simultaneously, even during oestrogen pretreatment. The results suggest that oestrogen receptors in the kidney are involved in the induction of renal cortical necrosis by vasopressin.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

The timing, specificity and clinical prediction of tricyclic drug effects in depression.

This research was aimed at studying the rate of action of tricyclic drugs in depressive disorders, specifying the behavioural effects associated with recovery, and predicting clinical response. The research design involved comparison of a recovered group with a group treated for the equivalent four weeks, who showed minimal to no response. The findings indicated significant differences in baseline characteristics between responders and non-responders. Further, the drugs were found to act early in the responders, within the first week of treatment. Specific changes at one week which distinguished responder and non-responder groups occurred in the disturbed affects, and in cognitive functioning. Improvements also occurred in somatic symptoms, but these latter changes were general and not associated with later recovery. At 2 1/2 weeks, all facets of the depressed condition showed positive change in the responders. Implications of the results for assessing rate of tricyclic drug actions, their effects on the interaction of affect and neurochemistry, and the practical application of the results for the clinical situation, are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Effect of a vasopressin antagonist d(CH2)5Tyr(Met)AVP on the development of renal vasospasm induced by estrin plus vasopressin administration in rats.

The authors studied rats pretreated with estrin acetate to determine the renal circulation changes caused by vasopressin and how these changes are influenced by the pressor effect of an antagonist of vasopressin d(CH2)5Tyr(MET)AVP. Abdominal angiography was performed with contrast material administered via a catheter introduced through the common carotid artery up to the aortic arch. After vasopressin administration, a marked spasm occurred in the larger renal arteries, the arteriovenous time increased, and the parenchymal filling became defective. Renal circulation remained undisturbed if the vasopressin antagonist was administered simultaneously. The results suggest that the vasopressin antagonist prevents renal vasospasm after vasopressin administration in rats pretreated with estrin.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Nasal sarcoidosis--a review and a case report.

The literature relating to the diagnostics and therapy of Boeck's sarcoidosis is reviewed. A patient with sarcoidotic alteration of the nasal mucosa is reported, and in connection with this case attention is drawn to the diagnostic importance of the otorhinolaryngological manifestations of the disease. For the treatment of sarcoidosis lasting administration of prednisolone in a single oral dose early in the morning every other day is recommended.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Histochemical and ultrastructural study of renal cortical necrosis in rats treated with oestrone + vasopressin, and its prevention with a vasopressin antagonist.

Renal cortical necrosis was induced by the administration of vasopressin to oestrogen-pretreated rats. Histochemical (succinic dehydrogenase, trichrome, perjod acid Schiff) and electronmicroscopic methods were applied to examine how the vasopressin antagonist d(CH2)5Tyr(Met)AVP influences the development of this renal cortical necrosis. The experiments revealed that vasopressin did not induce hypoxia or necrosis in the renal tubules if the antagonist was administered simultaneously, even after oestrogen pretreatment. The conclusion is drawn that this pressor antagonist may be of value for the prevention of renal cortical necrosis in rats or in human beings.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Biochemistry and suicidal behavior in depressed patients.

The present study was undertaken in order to further explore the relationship between monoamine levels and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HYPAC) functioning and suicidal behavior in depressed patients. One hundred and thirty-two depressed inpatients participated in the NIMH Collaborative Study on the Psychobiology of Depression. Similar to previous reports, our suicide attempters were younger, more likely to be bipolar, had an earlier age at onset, and displayed more psychotic features. No correlation between cortisol hypersecretion or Dexamethasone Suppression Test (DST) nonsuppression and suicide attempts were found. Only the pre-DST evening plasma cortisol distinguished the groups, being lower in the attempter group. We were unable to confirm the previously reported correlation between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) and suicide attempts. Of the monoamines examined, only urinary and plasma 3-methoxy-4-hydroxphenylglycol (MHPG) differed between suicide attempters and nonattempters, showing lower levels in the attempter group. There was a trend for CSF MHPG in the same direction. This latter reduction was restricted to the bipolar group.

Biogenic Amines↗
PubMed1986

Path analysis of psychopharmacological data: catecholamine breakdown in man.

This article applies path analysis to the problem of characterizing metabolic alterations in catecholamine systems when only static or single measures of precursor and products are available. In this article, simulated data from kinetic models of norepinephrine metabolism were examined using path analysis. The method of path analysis, which is based on correlations between compartments and not actual flow, correctly identified operative and nonoperative metabolic pathways in simulated models. In addition, actual data from normal subjects as to the 24-hour urinary values for norepinephrine, normetanephrine, vanillylmandelic acid, and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol were analyzed using path analysis. It was found that metabolic routes that are known to be incomplete did not fit these data, whereas the known metabolic pathways for norepinephrine were correctly identified using path analysis. These results suggest that path analysis may provide a useful tool in identifying normal and abnormal catecholamine metabolic pathways in experimental situations where only single values of precursor and products are available.

Humans↗
PubMed1986

Adrenocortical function and suicidal behavior in depressive disorders.

In order to examine the hypothesis that abnormal adrenocortical function is associated with suicidal behavior, morning and afternoon plasma cortisols and 1-mg dexamethasone suppression tests (DSTs) were performed in 65 patients with primary major depressive disorder. Patients with recent suicide attempts (within 28 days before DST) were compared to patients who had made past attempts and those who had never made suicide attempts with respect to age, gender, severity of depression, and plasma cortisol levels. Plasma cortisol levels did not differ significantly among the three groups. Nonsuppression on the DST was associated with presence of delusions, increasing age, and global severity of depression, but not with suicide attempts.

Adrenal Cortex↗
PubMed1986

Patterns of melatonin rhythms in depression.

The nocturnal rise of melatonin in serum of humans is the result of endogenously released norepinephrine (NE) acting upon beta-adrenergic receptors of the pineal gland. As there is much interest in the possibility of there being changes in the function of beta-receptors in depressed patients, the nocturnal rise of melatonin was measured in depressives and healthy control subjects. In one study, multiple serum samples were taken between 4.30 p.m. to 7.30 a.m. in seven male depressed patients with melancholia and five healthy male control subjects. The melancholic patients had a significantly reduced nocturnal elevation of melatonin. In a separate study, serum samples were taken at 8 a.m. and 11 p.m. in melancholic depressives, non-melancholic depressives and healthy control subjects. The melancholic patients had a significantly lower concentration of melatonin at 11 p.m., but not at 9 a.m., than that measured in either the control subjects or the non-melancholic depressed patients. These results are similar to those found recently by several other groups of investigators. Further research is indicated to elucidate mechanism(s) responsible for this phenomenon.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Mosaic Turner's syndrome and pituitary microadenoma.

A case of a 25-year-old woman with amenorrhoea-galactorrhoea syndrome and microprolactinoma is reported. The 45 XO/46 XX chromosome aberration did not cause complete ovarian failure. The presence of a pituitary microadenoma was demonstrated by thin layer pluridirectional x-ray tomography of the sella and the pathologically high prolactin reserve capacity of the pituitary. After the removal of the microprolactinoma and postoperative bromocriptine administration, regular menstrual bleeding occurred and the galactorrhoea disappeared. Some possible explanations of peripheral endocrine gland disorders accompanied by pituitary adenomas are discussed.

Adenoma↗