PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M Lifshitz

Publications and source records attributed to M Lifshitz.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Prenatal lead exposure in Israel: an international comparison.

BACKGROUND: Prenatal lead exposure (umbilical cord blood lead concentration > 10 (micrograms/dl) may impair cognitive development. Childhood lead poisoning is infrequent in Israel, and there are no data on lead exposure in immigrants to Israel from the former Soviet Union. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate prenatal blood lead concentrations in Israeli newborns whose mothers were born in Israel and in those whose mothers recently immigrated from Russia, and to compare data of prenatal lead exposure in Israel with those reported from other countries. METHODS: We compared the UCBLC of 35 newborns of new immigrants from Russia with a group of 35 newborns whose mothers were born in Israel. Venous BLC was also measured in 50 mothers. Data are compared with similar reports on prenatal lead exposure internationally. RESULTS: The UCBLC in all 70 newborns (mean +/- SD) was 3.53 +/- 1.6 micrograms/dl, and mothers' BLC (mean +/- SD) was 3.90 +/- 1.39 micrograms/dl. UCBLC and BLC in the 50 mother-newborn pairs correlated (r = 0.36, P < 0.01). All newborns except one had UCBLC < 8.0 micrograms/dl. There was no significant difference between UCBLC in the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Prenatal lead exposure among the study subjects in both groups was low. In this sample the newborns of mothers born in Israel and those whose mothers recently immigrated from Russia were not found to be at risk for lead poisoning. Prenatal lead exposure in this sample was low compared to that reported from various parts of the world.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

The effect of 2,3 dimercaptosuccinic acid in the treatment of lead poisoning in adults.

Four patients, aged 22-60, belonging to a single family that had been exposed to lead-contaminated food for an unknown period, and nine workers, aged 20-65, who had been exposed to air-borne lead for 6-8 years, were evaluated for lead poisoning in our centres. Blood lead levels were 3.57 +/- 0.39 micromol/L (mean +/- SD) in the family members and 3.46 +/- 0.43 micromol/L (mean +/- SD) in the group of workers. 2,3 dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) therapy was instituted in the four family members while the nine workers were closely monitored after being removed from the contaminated environment without receiving any chelation therapy. DMSA therapy given for the duration of 19 days reduced the blood lead levels to 0.63 +/- 0.44 micromol/L (mean +/- SD), P<0.01, in the four family members. No significant change was observed in the untreated group. The exposure time in the untreated group was probably longer than that in the treated group. Following long-term exposure most of the lead in the body is found in the bones and therefore not easily removed by chelation therapy. No side-effects were reported in the treated group and no rebound elevation of blood lead levels was observed during the therapy period or during the 12-week follow-up period following cessation of therapy. We conclude that 19 days of chelation therapy with DMSA in adults with moderate to severe lead poisoning is effective and safe.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1997

Carbamate poisoning in early childhood and in adults.

OBJECTIVE: Retrospective evaluation of the clinical course of carbamate poisoning in young children and adults. DESIGN: Thirty-six children aged 1 to 8 years (median 2.5 years) and 24 adults aged 17 to 41 years (median 22 years) ingested rat poison resulting in carbamate poisoning. The ingested poisons in all cases were positively identified as methomyl or aldicarb by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. RESULTS: Symptoms of intoxication in children were compared to those in adults with similar depression of the serum cholinesterase. The predominant symptoms in young children were central nervous system depression and hypotonia. The most common muscarinic effect was diarrhea. In adults, the main signs were miosis and fasciculations. Fasciculations in children were less frequent. Central nervous system depression, hypotonia, and diarrhea were uncommon in adults. CONCLUSION: Based on a relatively large number of carbamate poisonings in young children, we conclude that the clinical presentation differs from adult poisoning manifestations. The absence of classic muscarinic effects does not exclude the possibility of carbamate poisoning in young children with central nervous system depression.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Interleukin-6 release following scorpion sting in children.

Interleukin-6 levels were measured in the serum of ten children following severe scorpion envenomation. Measurements were taken on arrival, at the emergency room, and 12 and 24 hr after arrival. Interleukin-6 was markedly elevated in the serum of eight out of ten children on arrival. Interleukin-6 levels gradually decreased toward normal values on 12 and 24 hr measurements, but remained above control levels on all measurements. These results imply that signs and symptoms following scorpion envenomation may in part be explained by release of cytokines. Human and experimental animal studies are required in order to verify the assumption that interleukin-6 and other cytokines are involved in the pathogenesis of scorpion envenomation.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Snake bite by Cerastes vipera in children: report of two cases.

Two children, ages 2 and 4 years, envenomed by the snake Cerastes vipera are presented. Both children suffered from local pain and swelling of the hand that spread up to the shoulder in the 2-year-old and up to the elbow in the 4-year-old. A hemorrhagic blister was noted on the bitten finger in the younger patient. Urinary retention, tachycardia, and a slight prolongation of prothrombin time was noted in the 2-year-old, whereas hypertension and fever were observed in the 4-year-old. In both cases, the swelling receded gradually and the patients were discharged from the hospital after several days without any complications and in a good condition.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Carbamate poisoning and oxime treatment in children: a clinical and laboratory study.

OBJECTIVE: (1) Retrospective evaluation of the clinical course of carbamate poisoning and the effect of oxime therapy in children. (2) In vitro study of the effect of oximes on the reactivation of carbamylated cholinesterase. DESIGN: (1) Clinical survey: The records of 26 children intoxicated with carbamates were examined retrospectively. The poisoning agents in all cases were positively identified as methomyl or aldicarb by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. (2) Laboratory study: The direct effect of obidoxime and of pralidoxime on acetylcholinesterase activity in vitro was investigated in normal human packed red blood cells pretreated with an organophosphate (paraoxon) or a carbamate (aldicarb or methomyl). CLINICAL SETTING: Pediatric intensive care unit of a teaching hospital. PATIENTS: Twenty-six infants and young children (aged 1 to 8 years) admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit with severe carbamate intoxication. INTERVENTIONS: All cases had been treated with repeated doses of atropine sulfate (0.05 mg/kg) administered every 5 to 10 minutes until muscarinic symptoms disappeared. Obidoxime chloride (Toxogonin, 6 mg/kg) was administered on admission, and again after 4 to 5 hours. RESULTS: Predominant symptoms were related to central nervous system and nicotinic effects. All the patients showed marked improvement within several hours and recovered completely within 24 hours. None of the children deteriorated and none showed exacerbation of cholinergic symptoms after obidoxime treatment. In vitro, oximes reactivated acetylcholinesterase inhibited with paraoxon, whereas no significant effect of oximes on carbamylated enzyme activity was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the recovery of all cases, as compared with other reports of carbamate poisoning treated with atropine alone, it is concluded that, in the case of aldicarb or methomyl poisoning, oxime therapy apparently does not contribute to the recovery of poisoned patients. In cases of poisoning by an unknown pesticide or of mixed poisoning, oxime therapy can prove beneficial because no negative effects of the therapy can be discerned.

Aldicarb↗
PubMed1990

Monitoring phenytoin therapy using citric acid-stimulated saliva in infants and children.

Two factors have limited the use of saliva in monitoring phenytoin therapy: availability of adequate volume of clear saliva and lack of a sensitive phenytoin assay. The applicability of citric acid-stimulated saliva and of a sensitive analytical assay (fluorescence polarization immunoassay, "TDx" Abbott) was evaluated in this study. Phenytoin was measured in paired plasma-saliva specimens from epileptic children during the long-term or the initial phase of phenytoin therapy. Analysis was carried out in plasma and in the clear supernatant of saliva (following centrifugation). Pooled-estimate SD of the analytical assay variability was 0.175 micrograms/ml for plasma total phenytoin, 0.063 for plasma free phenytoin, and 0.009 for saliva phenytoin. Recovery measurements of phenytoin spiked into saliva samples gave a coefficient of variation of less than 5%. Correlations between saliva and total plasma phenytoin levels and between saliva and free plasma phenytoin levels were strong and highly significant (r = 0.99, p less than 0.01). The percentage of temporal fluctuation (as determined by saliva phenytoin profiles) during 10-24 h ranged between 25.5-177 (mean, 58.3; SD, 47.3). Ratios of plasma total phenytoin/saliva phenytoin and of plasma free phenytoin/saliva phenytoin levels were 9.54 +/- 1.05 and 0.71 +/- 0.09, respectively. Dialysis experiments showed no binding of phenytoin to saliva supernatant. The greater saliva phenytoin concentrations as compared to plasma free phenytoin concentrations could be due to active transport of phenytoin from plasma to saliva. Measurement of phenytoin in citric acid-stimulated saliva by fluorescent polarization immunoassay is a reliable, noninvasive, and convenient method for monitoring phenytoin therapy in children.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Clinical observation of high-risk children.

Systematic observations of the behavior of high-risk and control children were made during the clinical interview, the neurological examination, psychometric testing, and the experimental psychological test battery. Children were unaware that observations of them were being made and recorded. In all four examination settings, index children were seen as impaired relative to control children in their communication skills, ability to relate to the examiners, and motor behavior. There were no consistent differences between town and kibbutz subjects, and no interactions with genetic background. However, index boys showed a general trend toward greater pathology than index girls.

Child↗
PubMed1985

Perceptual-motor and memory performance of high-risk children.

Subjects were examined with a battery of protocols based on principles of experimental psychology and designed to measure motor control, perceptual-motor coordination, attention, learning, and memory. Differences between index and control subjects were found on the mirror-drawing protocol, reflecting visual-motor coordination, and the distractibility protocol, in which subjects divided their attention between verbal and visual stimuli. There were no differences in subjects due to conditions of rearing, and no interactions. Differences between index and control children were subtle, and tended not to appear on simpler tasks. The stage of processing leading to poor performance by the index children awaits further study for elucidation.

Attention↗
PubMed1982

Long-term lithium carbonate therapy causes hyperparathyroidism.

Twelve patients taking lithium carbonate for two to 13 years were compared with age- and sex-matched controls to determine whether long-term lithium carbonate therapy is associated with alterations in calcium metabolism. As a group and individually, patients had significantly higher levels of serum total calcium, ionized calcium, and parathyroid hormone. When compared with serum calcium levels, patients' parathyroid hormone levels were significantly more likely than those of controls to indicate hyperparathyroidism. Lithium carbonate-induced mild hyperparathyroidism appears to be more common than had previously been suspected.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Perceived similarity versus contrast between kibbutz parents and their preadolescent children's adjustment.

Parents' characteristics and the behavioral manifestations of 100 two-parented, 10- to 13-year-old kibbutz children were analyzed in a 2 x 2 fractiorial design (boys versus girls x girls x parents similar versus different) to assess the effect to parental degree of socially perceived similarity on their children's adjustment. It is found that children of similar parents had more positive interpersonal relationships but more fears, especially the boys, while children of contrasting parents had more negative interpersonal relationships, with the boys exhibiting fewer fears. It seems that a unified family structure reinforces a normative social behavior, but it fosters dependency and restricts breadth of preception and possibilities for exercising diversity in behavior. It leaves boys, even within the kibbutz egalitarian educaiton, less confident in acting independently.

Animals↗