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Biomedical subjects

M A Lou

Publications and source records attributed to M A Lou.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Floc-forming properties of polyphosphate accumulating organisms in activated sludge.

The physico-chemical characteristics of polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAO) involved in enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) was investigated in order to find a novel method for phosphorus recovery. If the physico-chemical characteristics of PAO are different from those of other main floc components, it may be possible to enrich PAO in bulk water or in the floc material for improved recovery of phosphorus. A combination of shear tests, chemical manipulation, and quantification of PAO by fluorescence in situ hybridization was applied. The microcolony strength of both Rhodocyclus-related PAO and Actinobacteria-related PAO was generally high as no treatment could break up more than 20% of all PAO in microcolonies. In contrast, it was possible to remove 20-40% of the organic matter and other bacterial cells by applying a high pH value or adding EDTA. With that a selective enrichment of PAO in the remaining floc material was possible. The feasibility of applying this selective PAO enrichment in flocs remains to be evaluated in full-scale plants for P-recovery.

Actinobacteria↗
PubMed1997

Novel patterns of p53 abnormality in breast cancer from Taiwan: experience from a low-incidence area.

Among 114 breast cancers in Taiwan, the prevalence of p53 mutation (22.8%) and p53 accumulation (38.3%) was similar to that in high-incidence areas. However, novel patterns of p53 abnormalities, including unique sites or types of mutation (i.e. an excessive proportion of G:C to A:T transition at CpG site), and accumulation of wild-type p53 either within nuclear or cytoplasmic compartments were noted. These may have relevance to breast cancer in Taiwan, a low-incidence area.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMed1993

Piperacillin monotherapy compared with metronidazole and gentamicin combination in penetrating abdominal trauma.

The therapeutic efficacy and safety of piperacillin (4.5 g, every 6 hours) were compared with combined gentamicin (80 mg, every 8 hours) and metronidazole (500 mg every 6 hours) therapy in 246 patients hospitalized for penetrating abdominal injuries. Sixty-five patients had penetrating injury of the colon, rectum, or terminal ileum. The overall clinical cure rate was about 94% in both treatment groups. Adverse clinical experiences or biochemical abnormalities required discontinuation of therapy in three patients on gentamicin/metronidazole and in no patients on piperacillin.

Abdominal Injuries↗
PubMed1991

Bacteriology of the appendix and the ileum in health and in appendicitis.

The bacteriology of the ileum and the appendix in appendicitis patients with or without perforation and compared with patients who had "incidental appendectomy" was studied. Of 42 appendicitis patients, 24 (57%) of them had anaerobic bacteria in the appendix compared with two of eight (25%) with normal appendix. Anaerobes were found in the ileal aspirates of 20 of 42 (47.6%) appendicitis patients and two of eight (25%) in normal persons. This suggests that anaerobic bacteria increasingly colonize the appendix and the ileum in cases of appendicitis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Human intestinal tissue antibiotic concentrations. Clindamycin, gentamicin, and mezlocillin.

An antibiotic, to be effective for prophylaxis in abdominal trauma, should quickly achieve high concentrations in the intestinal wall and at enough inhibitory levels to kill most aerobic and anaerobic bacteria that are potential contaminants at the site of surgical incision. Therefore, we studied the intestinal tissue levels of clindamycin, gentamicin, and mezlocillin to see whether the tissue levels achieved by these antibiotics in the intestinal tissue were adequate. A single dose of mezlocillin, 4 grams; clindamycin, 600 mg and gentamicin, 80 mg; quickly reached the desired concentrations, i.e., 52.3, 9.69 and 6.1 micrograms/gram of intestinal tissue respectively. These levels were high enough to inhibit the growth of most isolates of E. coli and B. fragilis, common pathogens involved in intra-abdominal abscess.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

[Studies on the chemical constituents of Fritillaria in Hubei. X. Isolation and identification of alkaloids from Fritillaria ebeiensis var.purpurea G.D.Yu et P.Li].

The bulb of Fritillaria ebeiensis var. purpurea G.D. Yu et P. Li (Liliaceae) are commercially available as the substitute for the principal Chinese traditional medicine "Beimu". This plant is easily cultivated, has high alkaloid content and conspicuous antitussive and expectorant effects. Seven C-nor-D-homo steroidal alkaloids (I-VII) were isolated from the bulb cultivated in Suizhou district, Hubei. I-IV have been identified as the known alkaloids peimine, peiminine, ebeinine and ebeinone on the basis of spectral data and by TLC and mixed mp comparison with authentic samples. The alkaloid VI, C27H43NO2, mp 186-188 degrees C, named ziebeimine, is a new alkaloid isolated from the title plant. The structure of VI has been established as 5 alpha, 14 alpha-cevanine-13, 17-dehydro-3 alpha, 6 beta-diol on the basis of its IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR and mass spectra. The structure of alkaloids V and VII is still under investigation.

Cevanes↗
PubMed1988

Safety and efficacy of mezlocillin: a single-drug therapy for penetrating abdominal trauma.

This study was done to determine if a single drug, mezlocillin (Mezlo), is as safe and as effective as combined clindamycin (Clind) and gentamicin (Gent) in the treatment of penetrating abdominal wounds. One hundred seventy-three patients received either Mezlo or Clind/Gent combined therapy as assigned by computer-generated randomization. Of these, 147 patients were evaluable. Of 73 patients treated with Clind/Gent the mean duration of hospital stay was 8.9 +/- 4.0 days. Infectious complications developed in 18 patients of whom five failed to respond promptly, but only one required change in therapy. Of 74 patients treated with Mezlo, the mean duration of hospital stay was 9.1 +/- 5.0 days. Infectious complications occurred in 17, in whom four patients failed to eliminate their infections, and two needed changes in antibiotic therapy. None of the patients in either antibiotic group failed because of Enterococcus or Pseudomonas infections. There were no deaths. Twelve isolates of Bacteroides were found in peritoneal fluid cultures and all these patients had colon injuries. The overall therapeutic response was excellent to good in 94% on Clind/Gent and 93% on Mezlo. Azotemia developed in one patient on Clind/Genet and one on Mezlo but no other adverse reactions occurred. The differences shown between the two groups were not statistically significant. We conclude that a single drug mezlocillin is as safe and as effective in the treatment of abdominal trauma as combined clindamycin and gentamicin.

Abdominal Injuries↗
PubMed1988

The antireflux feeding gastrostomy: an improved method.

For patients who are not able to maintain nutrition by normal oral feeding, the choices of nutritional support can be parenteral, enteral, or gastric. Very little has been written in recent surgical literature about permanent feeding gastrostomies. Dissatisfaction with the conventional Stamm and Witzel gastrostomies prompted the authors to devise an improved method that creates a stapler-constructed, proximally based, antral gastric tube with an antireflux valve made by imbricating the gastric wall around the base of the gastric tube. Forty such procedures done between 1982 and 1984 were reviewed.When properly constructed, this antireflux feeding gastrostomy has the distinct advantage of being physiologic, economical, and easy to maintain for long-term use. If the patient recovers to the point of no longer needing the feeding gastrostomy, the tube stoma can be closed easily under local anesthesia.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

The effect of human bile on Bacteroides fragilis in health and disease.

Bacteroides fragilis is generally believed to be stimulated by bile. Although B. fragilis is rarely found in the human duodenum, it is relatively frequent in gall bladder infections. To investigate this paradox, the growth of B. fragilis in the human bile in both health and disease was studied, and compared with the effect of bovine and porcine bile. B. fragilis was stimulated by the bovine bile and inhibited by the porcine bile. The normal human bile was either bacteriostatic or inhibitory whereas bile from cholelithiatic patients, in 50% of cases, stimulated the growth of B. fragilis. This explains the relative prevalence of B. fragilis in cholelithiatic cholecystitis patients although it is not a resident flora of the duodenum.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1985

Ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid versus moxalactam in the treatment of skin and soft tissue infections.

A formulation of 3.0 g of ticarcillin and 0.1 g of clavulanic acid was evaluated in the treatment of skin and soft tissue infections, and its efficacy was compared with that of moxalactam in a randomized open study. Thirty-three patients received 3.1 g of ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid every six hours via intravenous infusion, and 36 patients received 2.0 g of moxalactam every eight hours via intravenous infusion. Diagnostic categories included intramuscular abscesses, cellulitis, skin ulcers, gangrene, and perirectal abscesses. The average age of the patients and the duration of therapy were similar in both groups. Overall, 45 aerobic and 25 anaerobic bacteria were isolated from the ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid-treated patients; 58 aerobic and 24 anaerobic bacteria were isolated from the moxalactam-treated patients. Thirty of 33 patients in the ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid-treated group had a satisfactory response; a skin rash developed in one patient; therapy failed in one patient with Staphylococcus aureus infection; and one patient died as a result of a bleeding peptic ulcer. In the moxalactam-treated group, 32 of 36 patients had a satisfactory response; a skin rash developed in one patient; therapy failed in a patient with Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection; and two patients were unevaluable. Ticarcillin plus clavulanic acid as a single agent was found to be as effective as moxalactam in the treatment of skin and soft tissue infections.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Comparison of cefamandole and carbenicillin in preventing sepsis following penetrating abdominal trauma.

One hundred and five patients with penetrating abdominal injuries were treated with single-antibiotic regimens. Forty-seven patients were treated with intravenous (IV) cefamandole and for comparison 58 patients were treated with IV carbenicillin previously shown to be effective against postoperative infections associated with abdominal trauma. The overall incidence of deep infection on a single antibiotic therapy was 8.6 per cent, including two patients on cefamandole alone (4.3%) and seven (12.1%) on carbenicillin alone. One in each antibiotic group died of sepsis with a total mortality of 1.9 per cent. The authors concluded that cefamandole when used alone was found to be safe and more effective than carbenicillin alone in preventing sepsis in patients with abdominal trauma.

Abdominal Injuries↗
PubMed1984

Factors affecting outcome in pancreatic trauma.

Reported mortality from pancreatic trauma remains at approximately 20% and morbidity is about 33%. A recent series was reviewed to highlight unresolved problems associated with this injury. From 54 consecutive patients treated operatively for pancreatic trauma during a recent 7-year period, 44 patients were evaluated. Among these 44, six died and 12 developed fistulas and/or abscesses. Of those who died, four had colon injuries and two had duodenal injuries, one of whom had combined colon and duodenal injuries. Patients with colon injuries also had a higher incidence of intra-abdominal abscesses and fistulas. Indeed, colon injury currently may be the most significant factor causing morbidity and mortality in cases of pancreatic trauma. Despite improved management of duodenal injuries, morbidity and mortality rates for these patients also remain high. Twenty-six patients went into shock before the end of their operation, and all six deaths occurred in this group. The mean number of intra-abdominal associated organ injuries was 2.1 per patient; complications and deaths were directly related to these injuries.

Abscess↗
PubMed1984

Small bowel obstruction: review of nine years of experience.

Strong evidence in the literature suggests that improvements in the management and outcome of small bowel obstruction result from early diagnosis, better fluid and electrolyte replacement, use of antibiotics, and early surgical intervention. This paper reviews the outcomes of 49 male and 31 female patients who were operated on for small bowel obstruction. The average age was 38 years (range, 3 to 87 years); the average hospital stay was 13 days. There was one death. The causes of obstruction included postoperative adhesions (78 percent), strangulated external hernia (11 percent), gangrenous bowel (4 percent), intussusception (2.5 percent), appendiceal mass (3.5 percent), and Meckel's diverticulum (1 percent). The outcome was worse with late presentation, perforation or gangrene of the bowel, and delayed surgery.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Evaluation of antibiotic therapy and surgical techniques in cases of homicidal wounds of the colon.

Infectious morbidity associated with colonic trauma was evaluated with respect to the specific site of the colonic injury, the surgical method used, and the antibiotic treatment prescribed. Septic complications were more frequent among patients who had left-sided colon injuries (P = less than 0.01) and among those who received antibiotics known to be ineffective against anaerobic bacteria (P = less than 0.01). A statistical analysis of the different surgical methods used, i.e., primary repair of the colon, primary repair with loop exteriorization, or colostomy, was indeterminable.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1984

Injuries to the profunda femoris artery and its branches.

Six cases of uncommon profunda femoris artery injury are analyzed. One half of the cases were not treated surgically at the time of injury and resulted in chronic arteriovenous fistulas. Even after operative correction, residual symptoms persisted in two of these three cases. The generous use of arteriography is recommended in cases of proximal thigh penetrating injuries to avoid this problem. Either repair or ligation of the injured vessel yielded the same good results. The postoperative hospital stay was short in all instances, ranging from four to eight days, and there were no deaths.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

A "wandering bullet" in the thoracic esophagus.

This paper describes a patient with a perforation of the thoracic esophagus that was not recognized for 30 hours. Curiously, this patient did well without surgical intervention. Therapeutic considerations for thoracic and cervical esophageal perforations are discusses.

Adolescent↗