PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

K Kätkä

Publications and source records attributed to K Kätkä.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

Intensive chemotherapy of poor prognosis myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia following MDS with idarubicin and cytarabine.

Forty patients with high risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) or acute myeloid leukemia (AML) preceded by MDS were treated with intensive induction and consolidation chemotherapy in a prospective multicenter pilot study. They were given two cycles of cytarabine 100 mg/m with 12-h intervals on days 1-7 and idarubicin 12 mg/m2 on days 5-7, both intravenously. Patients who were in remission after these two cycles were given two further cycles of cytarabine on days 1-5 and idarubicin on day 5. No maintenance treatment was given. Eleven out of 19 MDS patients (58%) and 10 out of 21 AML patients (48%), in total 21 out of 40 patients (53%), entered remission. Eight patients underwent allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. The follow-up time was 13-48 (median 33) months. At the time of the analysis, seven patients survived, four patients with MDS all of whom had been treated with bone marrow transplantation (three in continuous remission), and three patients with AML treated with chemotherapy only (two in continuous remission). The median survival of the patients treated with chemotherapy only was 12 months, with the median progression-free survival being 8 months. In view of the poor prognostic factors of the patients, the remission rate was satisfactory, but the responses as well as the survival were short. The post-remission treatment needs to be improved.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Tolerability and kinetics of a solvent-detergent-treated intravenous immunoglobulin preparation in hypogammaglobulinaemia patients.

The tolerability and kinetics of a solvent-detergent-treated 6% intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) preparation were studied in 15 hypogammaglobulinaemia patients during 3-4 regular substitution infusions of 9-48 g, the mean dose being 359 mg/kg. The infusions were well tolerated, and the trough serum IgG levels achieved were comparable to two commercial IVIG preparations. The stepwise increase of the infusion rate up to 5 mg/kg/min and the use of this IVIG as a 12% solution were possible without serious adverse events in all the 6 studied hypogammaglobulinaemia patients. This greatly reduced the time needed for the infusions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Dramatic response of a metastatic carcinoid tumour to a combination of interferon and octreotide.

The combination of alpha-interferon and octreotide has rarely been tested in the treatment of carcinoid syndrome. We describe a patient who was moribund when treated with interferon alone, but enjoyed a dramatic response leading to disappearance of all symptoms, normalization of dU-5-HIAA, and restoration of his normal life-style when octreotide was initiated. Neither interferon nor octreotide could be withdrawn without reappearance of the symptoms, suggesting that the combination of alpha-interferon and octreotide may have synergistic effects in carcinoid syndrome.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Value of maintenance therapy with chemotherapy or interferon during remission of acute myeloid leukaemia.

108 consecutive patients with de novo acute myeloid leukaemia at ages 15 to 59 years were treated in a prospective controlled multicentre trial. Induction with combination TAD resulted in a complete remission in 85 cases (79%). After a cyclic consolidation programme for 6 months, 73% of the remissions continued. The maintenance therapy was at random either nothing, or alpha interferon, or monthly 5 day courses with thioguanine and cytarabine. The median duration of all remissions was 13 months; that of those in the control and interferon arms 15 months each, and in the chemotherapy arm 18 months. The median survival of all the 108 patients was 16 months; that of those in the control arm 20 months, in the interferon arm 33 months and in the chemotherapy arm 26 months. At 5 yr, 31%, 22% and 31%, respectively, were alive. The survival curves did not differ from each other significantly. Maintenance treatment after an intensive induction and a moderately intensive consolidation was of no benefit in this study. Interferon did not improve the prognosis.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1988

Serum IgA deficiency and anti-IgA antibodies in pernicious anemia.

Three pernicious anemia (PA) patients with selective IgA deficiency and anti-IgA antibodies in their sera were followed for over 3 years. After instituting therapy with cyanocobalamin there was a slight increase in the anti-IgA antibodies. After 1 year the titers of anti-IgA antibodies in the sera of these patients declined significantly as compared to the values before treatment (P less than 0.02), and after 2 years one patient had no measurable anti-IgA antibodies, yet no IgA appeared in the serum of any of the three. Further, in a medium with no anti-IgA the lymphocytes of these patients were not capable of producing IgA in vitro. Thus, the reason for the IgA deficiency in PA appears to be linked to the function of B cells rather than to anti-IgA antibodies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation in multiple myeloma: a report of four cases.

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation offers a new and promising form for treatment of multiple myeloma incurable with chemotherapy. We present four cases of advanced multiple myeloma given bone marrow transplantation from HLA-identical and MLC-negative sibling donors. One patient had a recurrent plasmacytoma 8 months later and one died 12 days after the transplantation whereas the other two are in good clinical remission 15 and 19 months post-transplantation.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Immune functions in pernicious anaemia before and during treatment with vitamin B12.

Lymphocytes and their function in patients with pernicious anaemia (PA) have been studied. E-rosette forming cells (E-RFC) and surface immunoglobulin positive (S-Ig) lymphocytes in peripheral blood, PHA responses of peripheral blood lymphocytes and tuberculin skin test (Mantoux) were studied before and during specific treatment with cyanocobalamin. First in order to test possible alterations in the metabolism of lymphocytes in PA, the effect of culture conditions was studied; the optimal conditions proved to be the same as for normal cells. The serum of PA patients as a supplement for culture medium did not differ from normal. When the patients were in remission, responses in a folate poor thymine free medium (TC 199 special) were significantly greater than those obtained using a folate rich medium (RPMI 1640) (P less than 0.01), possibly indicating activation of the salvage pathway for DNA synthesis and, therefore, increased incorporation of 125IUdR in the folate poor medium. In vitro tests did not indicate any disturbances in the functions of lymphocytes either before or during appropriate treatment as studied in 23 PA patients. However, the tuberculin skin test changed from negative to positive in 5 out of 7 cases tested.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Monoclonal IgG immunoglobulinemia with subsequent myeloma in psoriatic arthritis.

A 42-year-old man had suffered from skin psoriasis for 27 years, psoriasis arthritis for 6 years and corneal crystalline deposits for 1 year, when an IgG-kappa monoclonal immunoglobulin was detected in his serum electrophoretic pattern. All the diagnostic studies for multiple myeloma were negative. However, 16 months later he developed this disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Granulocyte function in untreated pernicious anaemia.

Neutrophil granulocyte functions were evaluated in nine patients with pernicious anaemia (PA). Membrane potential, oxygen consumption, nitroblue tetrozolium reduction, and phagocytosis and killing of staphylococci were determined prior to the institution of vitamin B12 therapy. There were no significant alterations in these granulocyte functions as compared with normal controls, although in several patients low values were seen. We conclude that in PA the oxidative metabolism and microbicidal functions of granulocytes in general are normal, even in severely anaemic patients.

Aged↗