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Biomedical subjects

M Freddi

Publications and source records attributed to M Freddi.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

[Post-thyroidectomy cervical hematoma].

AIM: Postoperative hematoma is a complications of thyroid surgery uncommon but potentially life threatening. It has implications for the trend toward outpatient procedures. METHODS: Retrospective review of 1.221 thyroidectomies performed at our institution over a 6-years period, to identify patients with hematomas requiring reoperation. Symptoms, treatment and findings at reoperation were evaluated. A control group (n=120) was compared for perioperative risk factors and outcome. RESULTS: Eighteen patients (1.5%) developed a postoperative hematoma. Symptoms included neck pain/pressure in 10 patients, respiratory distress in 9, wound drainage in 2, dysphagia in 1, agitation and sweating in 1. Mean time to symptom onset was 12 hours (range: 1.3-40 hours). Six hematomas presented between 7 and 24 hours, and 3 beyond 24 hours. Six patients required bedside hematoma evacuation. The bleeding source was identified in 15 patients. All patients recovered well, but one required a temporary tracheostomy. Case/controls comparison yielded in the study group a higher prevalence of hyperthyroidism (55.6% vs 25.8%, P=0.022) and intrathoracic goiter (50% vs 22.5%, P=0.029), and a longer mean hospital stay (5.22 vs 4.1, P=0.012); morbidity was not increased. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative hematoma is an uncommon complication of thyroid surgery. If treated promptly, serious consequences can be avoided. The relatively long interval between the initial operation and the hematoma development needs to be considered when establishing outpatient practice guidelines.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Automated culture system experiments hardware: developing test results and design solutions.

The experiment proposed by Prof. Ricci University of Milan is funded by ASI with Laben as industrial Prime Contractor. ACS-EH (Automated Culture System-Experiment Hardware) will support the multigenerational experiment on weightlessness with rotifers and nematodes within four Experiment Containers (ECs) located inside the European Modular Cultivation System (EMCS) facility..Actually the Phase B is in progress and a concept design solution has been defined. The most challenging aspects for the design of such hardware are, from biological point of view the provision of an environment which permits animal's survival and to maintain desiccated generations separated and from the technical point of view, the miniaturisation of the hardware itself due to the reduce EC provided volume (160mmx60mmx60mm). The miniaturisation will allow a better use of the available EMCS Facility resources (e.g. volume. power etc.) and to fulfil the experiment requirements. ACS-EH, will be ready to fly in the year 2005 on boar the ISS.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2000

The effects of transdermal estradiol on the response to mental stress in postmenopausal women: a randomized trial.

PURPOSE: Estrogens inhibit adrenomedullary catecholamine release and catecholamine-mediated responses to stress. We examined whether estrogen supplementation reduces the sympathoadrenal response to mental stress in postmenopausal women. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We compared the effects of 3-week treatment with transdermal 17-beta-estradiol and placebo in 10 postmenopausal women using a randomized, blinded, crossover design. We measured plasma catecholamine levels and the cardiovascular and metabolic responses to a 15-minute stress with mental arithmetic. Treatments were compared using repeated measures analysis of variance. RESULTS: During placebo treatment, mean (+/- SD) epinephrine levels reached a peak of 431 +/- 135 pmol/liter after 15 minutes of stress; the epinephrine response was blunted during estradiol treatment, with a peak of 357 +/- 77 pmol/liter (P <0.05). Estradiol also blunted the diastolic blood pressure response to stress (baseline levels of 78 +/- 15 mm Hg vs peak of 90 +/- 6 mm Hg during placebo; baseline of 80 +/- 8 mm Hg vs peak of 84 +/- 6 mm Hg during estradiol; P <0.05). Estradiol treatment also blunted the decrease in the standard deviation of the mean of the electrocardiographic RR intervals and the increase in the ratio between the low-frequency and high-frequency bandwidths. CONCLUSION: We observed a moderate, although significant, reduction in markers of the stress response to mental arithmetic in postmenopausal women treated with transdermal 17-beta-estradiol.

Administration, Cutaneous↗
PubMed2000

Evaluation of the circadian profiles of serum dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), cortisol, and cortisol/DHEA molar ratio after a single oral administration of DHEA in elderly subjects.

Aging is associated with a selective decline in circulating levels of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfate, with no major changes in cortisol secretion. In young subjects, serum levels of both DHEA and cortisol are regulated according to a circadian rhythm, and an age-related attenuation of DHEA, but not cortisol, circadian rhythmicity has been reported. Several trials have evaluated the effects of DHEA supplementation in elderly subjects, although the results are still controversial. However, no data are available on the 24-hour profile of DHEA circulating levels in elderly subjects with DHEA administration. In the present study, we evaluated the circadian rhythms of DHEA, cortisol, and the cortisol/DHEA molar ratio in old subjects treated with either placebo (old-PL) or a single 50-mg dose of DHEA (old-D), both administered orally at 0700 hours. For each variable, the circadian profiles were compared with those obtained in young control subjects. The group of young subjects displayed a circadian rhythm for both DHEA and cortisol serum concentrations but no rhythm for the cortisol/DHEA molar ratio. In the old-PL group, the circadian rhythm of DHEA was completely abolished, whereas significant rhythms for both cortisol and the cortisol/DHEA molar ratio were observed. Particularly, at each time point, the cortisol/DHEA molar ratio was significantly higher in these subjects versus the young group. In the old-D group, the circadian rhythm of DHEA was completely restored and was comparable to that observed in the young group. Analogous to the observations in young subjects, the profile of the cortisol/DHEA molar ratio in old-D subjects did not display any circadian rhythmicity, the values being almost completely comparable to those observed in young controls. Our data demonstrate that the circadian rhythm of DHEA is totally abolished in elderly subjects. A single 50-mg dose of DHEA administered orally at 0700 hours restores the circadian rhythmicity of serum DHEA and almost completely normalizes the 24-hour profile of the cortisol/DHEA molar ratio in old subjects without affecting the cortisol circadian rhythm.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1998

Effects of galanin and the galanin receptor antagonist galantide on plasma catecholamine levels during a psychosocial stress stimulus in rats.

The aim of this study was to investigate the role played by the neuropeptide galanin (GAL) in the regulation of sympathoadrenal function. We evaluated the effects of rat GAL (rGAL) and of the putative GAL receptor antagonist galantide (GLT) on epinephrine (E) and norepinephrine (NE) plasma levels in conscious freely moving male rats, during a psychosocial stress condition. Four groups of male rats were challenged by a stress stimulus, obtained by exposing the animals to a resident conspecific fighter (intruder model), following an intravenous injection with (1) rGAL + saline (SAL), (2) GLT + SAL, (3) rGAL + GLT, or (4) SAL + SAL. Plasma levels of both E and NE were also measured in an additional group of male rats not exposed to any stressor stimulus. The results (mean+/-SEM) showed that rats exposed to the stressor stimulus (intruder rats) exhibited a significant increase above baseline in circulating levels of both E (peak values of 834.13+/-115.13 pmol/l vs. basal values of 309.31+/-32.93 pmol/l; p < 0.01) and NE (peak values of 5,299.03+/-450.62 pmol/l vs. basal values of 2,798.24+/-311.56 pmol/l; p < 0.01) in comparison to control, nonstressed rats. The comparison of the areas under the curve response (AUC) among treatments in the intruder rats revealed that rGAL + SAL injections resulted in a further increase in E levels when compared to SAL + SAL treatment (AUC values: 8.26+/-0.64 vs. 25.38+/-5.52 nmol/ 1/20 min in SAL + SAL vs. rGAL + SAL treatment, respectively; p < 0.02). No significant changes in stress-induced E plasma levels were found following GLT + SAL treatment in comparison to SAL + SAL injections. When the intruder rats were submitted to rGAL + GLT injections, the increments in E levels were found to be higher than those observed following SAL + SAL treatment (AUC values: 8.26+/-0.64 vs. 36.00+/-13.76 nmol/ 1/20 min in SAL + SAL vs. rGAL + GLT treatment, p < 0.03); however, the values were not significantly different from those observed in rGAL + SAL-injected rats. No significant changes in stress-induced NE levels were found in either treatment group when compared to SAL + SAL-injected intruder rats. The results of this study demonstrate that rGAL administration leads to an increase in the E response to the stress stimulus without any effect on NE response. Galantide does not affect either the physiological stress-induced elevation of plasma catecholamines or the effects of rGAL on E plasma levels in response to stress. Therefore, GLT does not appear to behave as a GAL receptor antagonist in the regulation of sympathoadrenal function in rats.

Adrenal Glands↗
PubMed1997

Effects of aging on dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate in relation to fasting insulin levels and body composition assessed by bioimpedance analysis.

Insulin can inhibit dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) biosynthesis in humans, as suggested by several studies performed in induced or spontaneous hyperinsulinemia. The increased insulin resistance documented throughout aging, with its accompanying hyperinsulinemia, may contribute to the age-related decline in DHEA synthesis. The aim of this study was to assess if the aging-related differences in DHEA sulfate (DHEA-S) serum levels can be associated with differences in fasting insulin levels, as well as body composition. Two hundred fifty-two healthy subjects of both sexes aged 19 to 90 years with a body mass index (BMI) less than 30 (mean +/- SD, 23.5 +/- 2.4) were studied DHEA-S and insulin serum levels were determined by a radioimmunologic procedure; body composition was assessed by anthropometry (fat mass percentage [FM%] estimated from four skinfold thicknesses by Durnin and Womersley and Siri equations [FM%-SKF]) and by bioimpedance analysis (BIA) (FM% estimated by equations developed by Segal et al and Deurenberg et al for subjects < and > 62 years, respectively [FM%-BIA]). DHEA-S levels were significantly and inversely related to age in both sexes. No significant aging-related differences were found in fasting insulin levels, although a trend toward an increase was apparent in the women on simple regression analysis. No significant associations were found between DHEA-S and insulin levels. As for body composition, a positive relationship to age was apparent for FM%-SKF, FM%-BIA, and waist to hip ratio (WHR), whereas BMI and phase angle ([PA] a bioelectric parameter considered an index of the ratio between intracellular and extracellular water) were inversely related to age. Fasting insulin levels were positively related to FM% as estimated by both BIA and anthropometry, independently of age in both sexes; in addition, a positive correlation with WHR and with the subscapular to triceps skinfold thickness ratio (SS/TS) was found in men and women, respectively. No significant correlation was apparent between DHEA-S and body composition indices in men, whereas in women a slight negative correlation between DHEA-S and WHR was documented, and was still significant after adjustment for age and fasting insulin. Stepwise multiple regression analysis confirmed that DHEA-S levels are not related to fasting insulin, but are independently related to age and, in women only, to WHR. Our study suggests that the DHEA-S decline due to aging is independent of fasting insulin, at least in healthy, non-obese people. In addition, it is not related to the aging-dependent changes in body composition in terms of FM% and fat-free mass (FFM) percentage (FFM%). Only in women could changes in fat distribution be slightly associated with DHEA-S decline, although such a relation cannot be accounted for by changes in insulin levels.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Evaluation of circulating galanin levels after exercise-induced pituitary hormone secretion in man.

The neuropeptide galanin (GAL) is widely distributed in the central and peripheral nervous systems, anterior pituitary, and adrenal medulla. GAL is colocalized with corticotropin (ACTH) in the human pituitary and with epinephrine (E) and norepinephrine (NE) in chromaffin cells of the adrenal medulla. The function of GAL in peripheral tissues is not known, although the presence of the peptide in corticotrophs and the adrenal gland suggest that it participates in stress responses. In the present study, we investigated whether GAL is cosecreted with ACTH during activation of corticotrophs by an acute physical exercise test. Circulating levels of GAL and pituitary hormones were measured in healthy exercise-tested and control male subjects. Blood samples were collected during basal conditions, maximal power output (MPO), and the recovery period. Control subjects were sampled during the resting condition. The pituitary response to exercise was characterized by a significant increase in ACTH plasma levels (peak value 13.28 +/- 2.19 v 6.68 +/- 1.01 pmol/L, P < .05) and growth hormone (GH) serum levels (peak value, 14.53 +/- 5.59 v 0.29 +/- 0.1 microg/L, P < .02), with the peak in hormone levels detected 15 minutes after the end of exercise. No change in circulating prolactin (PRL) levels was detected. An expected significant increase in plasma levels of both E (peak value, 1,574.41 +/- 403.31 v 267.44 +/- 60.03 pmol/L, P < .01) and NE (peak value, 7,275.25 +/- 955.80 v 961.51 +/- 168.40 pmol/L, P < .01) was also observed. Plasma GAL levels were not affected by the acute exercise test, with the levels being comparable to baseline during the exercise test and the recovery phase. At any sample time, GAL values were comparable between exercise-tested and control subjects. These data show that despite the colocalization of GAL and ACTH within the same pituitary cells, the two peptides are not coreleased in response to stress resulting from acute physical exercise. Furthermore, pituitary GAL seems not to be involved in the stimulation of GH secretion in exercise-tested subjects. The results also indicate that GAL is not coreleased with E or NE in response to the exercise-induced stress condition.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1997

Concomitant evaluation of plasma galanin and catecholamine levels during a cold pressor test in healthy human male and female subjects.

The neuropeptide galanin (GAL) is localized in the peripheral and central nervous systems as well as in the adrenal medulla where it coexists with catecholamines. We evaluated the changes in GAL plasma levels as well as systolic and diastolic blood pressures and in the plasma levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine (NE) in normal human male and regularly menstruating female subjects during the activation of the sympathoadrenal system by a cold pressor test. The test was performed by immersing the hand of the subject in 1 degree C cold water for 4 min. Blood samples were collected both under basal conditions and at subsequent intervals during the cold stimulus as well as at the end of the recovery phase. The values were compared with those obtained when the same subjects were sham tested. As expected, systolic and diastolic blood pressures increased in both sexes during the cold test; the systolic blood pressure values were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in males. Epinephrine and NE levels rose significantly above baseline in both male and female subjects after the cold stimulus; the NE increments were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in males. The basal GAL levels were found to be variable but not sexually dimorphic. In both sexes, during cold stimulus and recovery phase, GAL values were found to be not significantly different from those detected during the sham test. These results demonstrate that the release of GAL in peripheral blood is not associated with that of catecholamines in response to the cold pressor test.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Effects of ovine corticotropin-releasing hormone injection and desmopressin coadministration on galanin and adrenocorticotropin plasma levels in normal women.

The neuropeptide galanin (GAL) has been shown to be located in the pituitary gland and to modulate the secretion of several pituitary hormones. In the human pituitary, GAL is almost exclusively located within corticotrophs. We examined whether GAL is secreted from corticotrophs in response to stimuli that induce ACTH release. Plasma levels of GAL and ACTH were evaluated in six healthy female subjects in the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle after the following treatments: 1) ovine CRH (oCRH) injection during saline (SAL) infusion, 2) oCRH injection during infusion of the arginine vasopressin analog desmopressin (DP), 3) SAL injection during DP infusion, and 4) SAL injection during SAL infusion. DP (4.3 ng/min.kg BW) or SAL was infused from 0-60 min. oCRH (1 microgram/kg BW) or SAL was administered by a 2-min injection at 5 min. The expected ACTH response to oCRH was enhanced by the concomitant DP administration (peak level, 10.39 +/- 1.12 vs. 21.37 +/- 3.43 pmol/L in SAL infusion plus oCRH injection vs. DP infusion plus oCRH injection, respectively; P < 0.05). The mean integrated ACTH response, expressed as the area under the curve, to SAL infusion plus oCRH injection vs. that to DP infusion plus oCRH injection was 288.23 +/- 61.94 vs. 699.70 +/- 91.80 pmol/L.60 min, respectively (P < 0.05). A slight, but not significant, increase was observed in ACTH values after DP infusion plus SAL injection compared to that after SAL infusion plus SAL injection challenge. Plasma GAL levels were highly variable. No changes in GAL levels were found concomitant to ACTH values in either experimental group. In fact, GAL levels were not significantly affected by either treatment. These data confirm that DP potentiates the ACTH response to CRH in humans. Furthermore, our results suggest that GAL is probably not cosecreted with ACTH in normal subjects. The possibility exists that GAL produced by corticotrophs exerts its action principally through a locally mediated paracrine or autocrine mechanism without being secreted into the bloodstream.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1992

[Ischemic colitis manifested as Crohn's disease. A case report].

Ischaemic colitis has many and different clinical features as it is often linked to the severity of ischaemic injury. In this paper two patients with clinical features of Crohn's disease are reported. In both patients the diagnosis has been confirmed with endoscopy and biopsy. They have been treated with specific therapy until they developed bowel obstruction in one case and peritonitis in the other. Both patients underwent laparotomy and the histological specimen showed a picture of ischaemic colitis. In one case a Dixon's resection was done, in the other Hartmann's operation.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

[Solitary splenic abscess. Clinical picture, diagnosis and treatment].

Splenic abscess, especially the solitary type, is a rarely seen condition, although it has been seen more frequently in recent years. On the basis of a case of splenic abscess with unusual features, the literature on the subject, 171 cases published in Italy, Britain, France and Spain in the past 10 years, is reviewed. It is pointed out that the diagnosis is generally difficult only because abscess is not considered. The diagnostic methods with the best results are ultrasonography and CT scanning, although a checkup after the event showed that straightforward X-ray of the chest, if correctly interpreted, may be enough. Scintigraphy is not indicated and arteriography should only be used in the event of special problems. The clinical picture is scanty and insignificant. The various aetiological agents and changes in these over recent years are illustrated, with special attention with regard to immunodepressed patients. The usual treatment is surgical removal. Other methods with more limited indications, such as drainage and medical treatment, are described.

Abscess↗
PubMed1987

One-stage operation for diverticular disease.

The experience with 59 patients affected by diverticular disease who underwent surgery after failure of medical treatment, is reported. 40 patients showed one or more postoperative complications, 19 none. The operations performed were: in 46 cases one-stage resection with anastomosis, Hartmann's operation in 8 and other procedures in 5. Six patients died: 3 after Harmann's operation, 2 after colostomy and one after anastomosis. The mean stay in bed for complicated cases was 24 days after anastomosis and 36 after Hartmann's operation. Therefore anastomosis is preferred in all cases including those with stenosis, fistula or abscess provided that peritonitis is not present. The anastomosis is performed away from the site of abdominal sepsis. In cases with peritonitis the selected surgical procedure is usually Hartmann's operation.

Adult↗