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Biomedical subjects

L Heinrich

Publications and source records attributed to L Heinrich.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Ultra-fast-track anesthetic technique facilitates operating room extubation in patients undergoing off-pump coronary revascularization surgery.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if implementation of ultra-fast-track anesthetic (UFTA) technique facilitates operating room extubation in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. DESIGN: Retrospective review. SETTING: Referral center for cardiovascular surgery at a university hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-seven patients undergoing off-pump CABG surgery. INTERVENTIONS: Two groups represented UFTA (n = 10) and standard anesthetic (controls, n = 27) techniques. Anesthesia was conducted with propofol, remifentanil, vecuronium, and thoracic epidural analgesia in the UFTA group and thiopental, fentanyl, pancuronium, and isoflurane in the control group. Active temperature control was an integral part of the UFTA technique but not the standard technique. The active temperature control included intravenous fluid warmer, prewarmed skin preparation, humidified inspired gases, a circulating water warming blanket, and a forced-air warmer, along with the maintenance of the operating room temperature at 24 degrees C. The control group was managed with an intravenous fluid warmer, and the ambient temperature remained constant (20 degrees C). Patients who did not satisfy extubation criteria within 30 minutes from the end of surgery were sedated and transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU). MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: All patients in the UFTA group and 2 in the control group were extubated in the operating room immediately after surgery. None of the patients required reintubation. There was no significant difference in postextubation PaO(2) and PaCO(2) between the groups. Nasopharyngeal temperature decreased from 36.7 +/- 0.4 degrees C to 36.4 +/- 0.3 degrees C in the UFTA group and from 36.6 +/- 0.5 degrees C to 35.6 +/- 0.4 degrees C in the control group (p < 0.0001). Bradycardia occurred significantly more often in the UFTA group but there was no difference in episodes of hypotension. There were no perioperative deaths. Patients who were extubated in the operating room required lower nurse-to-patient acuity ratio (1:2) in the ICU. No difference was found in ICU and hospital length of stay. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of UFTA technique provided adequate hemodynamic control and facilitated operating room extubation in all patients. The impact of UFTA on earlier patient discharge and actual cost savings within a fully integrated post-cardiac surgery unit requires further evaluation.

Aged↗

Haemoglobin, haematocrit and red blood cell indices in elite cyclists. Are the control values for blood testing valid?

BACKGROUND: In international cycling and cross-country skiing competitions, blood tests are used to unmask the performance enhancing misuse of erythropoietin. Haematocrit (cycling) and haemoglobin (cross-country skiing) limits have been set by international sporting federations (haematocrit 50%, haemoglobin 18.5 g/dl). Athletes tested above these cut-off values are declared unfit for competition. To investigate the validity of these regulations, we studied haemoglobin, haematocrit and red blood cell indices of elite cyclists before erythropoietin became commercially available. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We investigated 523 blood samples of 92 male elite cyclists (age 16-31 years) from 1978 to 1987. Haematocrit, haemoglobin and red blood cell count were analysed automatically, erythrocyte indices were calculated. RESULTS: Haemoglobin (-0.3 +/- 1 g/dl), haematocrit (-1.2 +/- 2.8%) and red blood cell count (-0.2 +/- 0.4 x 10(6)/mm3) decreased significantly (p < 0.05) with increasing training workload. The erythrocyte indices showed no significant change. Fifty-four blood samples (10.3%) showed a haematocrit above 50%, one sample presented a haemoglobin mass higher than 18.5 g/dl. During periods of increased workload, less athletes tested above the haematocrit limit. CONCLUSION: The current haematocrit limit used in blood tests might lead to a high number of false positive tests.

Adolescent↗

Extreme UV exposure of professional cyclists.

BACKGROUND: The most important risk factor for the development of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer is thought to be ultraviolet (UV) radiation. To date there is no quantification of the UV exposure of outdoor sports professionals training and competing at high solar UV levels. METHODS: During eight stages of the 'Tour de Suisse' cycling race, the UV exposure of 6 professional cyclists was monitored with Bacillus subtilis spore film dosimeters. RESULTS: The measurements showed a personal UV exposure between 0.2 minimal erythema dose (MED) during the prologue and 17.2 MED during a mountain stage. The mean daily personal exposure of all full stages (prologue excluded) was 8.1 MED. The personal exposure level determined during these races exceeded international exposure limits by more than 30 times. CONCLUSION: Therefore UV exposure of sports professionals should be limited by application of sun screens, protective clothing and training/competition at low insolation.

Bicycling↗

A Pentacoordinated Di-N-carboxamido-dithiolato-O-sulfinato-iron(III) Complex Related to the Metal Site of Nitrile Hydratase.

Postcoordination oxidation by dioxygen of one of the thiolate groups in a pentadentate N(2)S(3) ligand results in an iron(III) complex with two N-carboxamido, two thiolato, and one O-sulfinato ligands (see the CAMERON representation). This novel mixed coordination is similar to that determined for the inactive form of the nitrile hydratase from Rhodococcus sp. N-771, but differs by the O versus S binding of the sulfinato ligand.

Journal Article↗

Direct observation of the anchoring process during the adsorption of fibrinogen on a solid surface by force-spectroscopy mode atomic force microscopy.

Atomic force microscopy in a force-spectroscopy mode has been used to investigate the kinetics of the adsorption process of fibrinogen molecules on a silica surface. An original "approach/retraction" cycle of the tip/surface was used for this purpose. Fibrinogen molecules were adsorbed on the atomic force microscopy tip and were brought into contact with the silica surface for different interaction times varying from 5 to 2,000 ms. Multiple consecutive ruptures were observed. The mean number of ruptures nr per cycle increases steadily with the interaction time as well as the mean strength fr which varies from 300 pN for 5 ms to 1,400 pN for 2,000 ms. The minimal interaction time for a fibrinogen molecule to bind strongly to a silica surface during an adsorption process appears to lie between 50 and 200 ms. The histograms of the distances between two consecutive ruptures in one cycle exhibit maxima around 20-25 nm. This length is comparable to the characteristic distance between D and E globules of one fibrinogen molecule and suggests that fibrinogen molecules mainly adsorb through their D and E globules.

Fibrinogen↗

[Determination of phenols in coffee].

The structure and quantity of phenols, occurring in two different roasted Robusta coffees and in four samples of roast coffee, were investigated. Identification and quantification were carried out after special extraction procedures and clean-up methods by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The quantities of 35 phenols investigated ranged from below 0.1 mg/kg to more than 1000 mg/kg. Sixteen phenols were identified in coffee for the first time.

Coffee↗

[Occurrence of phenols in coffee melanoidins].

Compounds with higher molecular weights in roast coffee were separated by means of adsorption chromatography followed by gel chromatography which yielded seven fractions of different molecular weights. These were tested sensorially and degraded by Curie point pyrolysis high-resolution gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (HRGC/MS) about 100 products, among them 33 phenols, were found. The products were compared with fragments formed via model pyrolysis experiments on chlorogenic acid.

Chromatography, Gel↗

Causal attributions, sanctions, and normal mood variations.

The causal-locus hypothesis (CLH) asserts that persons making internal attributions for failure and external attributions for success experience more negative postoutcome moods than persons making the opposite attributions. Three experiments assessed the CLH. Although outcomes consistently affected moods and attributions, attributions did not affect moods. Significant correlations consistent with the CLH were also infrequently obtained. Another theory, the sanctioned-object hypothesis (SOH), was proposed for understanding how causal attributions lead to mood changes. This hypothesis asserts that the application of positive or negative sanctions to objects in the perceptual field is a central determinant of mood and that attributions affect mood when their content and salience activate sanctioning processes. A fourth experiment evaluated the competing theories. The results supported the SOH but not the CLH. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for understanding mood variations and the effects that moods have on the construction of attributions and for adopting methodological alternatives that may be valuable for future laboratory research studying mood variations.

Affective Symptoms↗