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Biomedical subjects

M Rocca

Publications and source records attributed to M Rocca.

107 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1976

Treatment of chronic gastric ulcer with gefarnate: a long-term controlled therapeutic trial.

A long-term controlled therapeutic trial of gefarnate (600 mg daily) in the treatment of chronic gastric ulcer was carried out in 32 patients. Assessment was based on the clinical course and on repeated radiological and endoscopic examinations, which were performed after 3-months' treatment, at the end of the 1-year trial period, and towards the end of a follow-up period of approximately 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 years. In men with gastric ulcer, gefarnate proved to be highly effective, with 10 out of the 11 patients who received this treatment showing persistent healing of the ulcer compared with only 4 out of the 11 who were on dummy treatment. In the very small group of women it was not possible to show any difference between treatments. No adverse reactions to gefarnate occurred. These results suggest that gefarnate is a safe and effective treatment for chronic gastric ulcer.

Chronic Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The effect of surface material and roughness on bone screw stability.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of osteointegration ability and surface texture on bone screw interface stability in three different groups of titanium screws. DESIGN: Sixty titanium tapered screws were used: twenty screws were polished, uncoated (Group A); twenty screws were rough, coated with titanium (Group B); and twenty screws were rough, coated with fluor-hydroxyapatite (Group C). Thirty screws, ten per group, were implanted in the femurs and tibiae of two sheep, which were euthanized one month after surgery. The remaining thirty screws, ten per group, were implanted in the femurs and tibiae of another two sheep, which were euthanized three months after surgery. RESULTS: At one month, extraction torque of Group C was higher than that of Group A (p = 0.042). At three months, extraction torque of Group C was higher than that of Group A (p < 0.0001) and Group B (p < 0.0001). At three months, extraction torque of Group C was higher compared with the corresponding insertion torque (p < 0.0001) and compared with the corresponding extraction torque at one month (p < 0.0001). At one and three months, a high percentage of bone-screw contact was observed histologically in Groups B and C. A continuous gap with fibrous tissue encapsulation was observed in Group A. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that the osteointegration ability provided by the type of coating is a very important parameter for optimizing the bone-screw stability. Surface texture is also important. By using screws with optimal osteointegration ability, very positive clinical consequences can be expected.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Emerin increase in regenerating muscle fibers.

The fate of emerin during skeletal muscle regeneration was investigated in an animal model by means of crush injury. Immunofluorescence, immunoblotting and mRNA analysis demonstrated that emerin level is increased in regenerating rat muscle fibers with respect to normal mature myofibers. This finding suggests an involvement of emerin during the muscle fiber regeneration process, in analogy with its reported involvement in muscle cell differentiation in vitro. The impairment of skeletal muscle physiological regeneration or reorganization could be a possible pathogenetic mechanism for Emery Dreifuss muscular dystrophy.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Distal centering in locked intramedullary osteosynthesis of the femur: use of a magnet-resistant probe.

The authors present an original solution for distal screw fixation in locked nail intramedullary osteosynthesis, traditionally carried out with image intensifier. The system includes the determination of an electromagnetic field produced by a microbobbin placed in the hole and, thus, coaxial with it. The study, conducted through a probe equipped with special magnet-resistant sensors capable of picking up electromagnetic variations, is based on the same principle as a compass. In addition to being effective and simple, the method avoids exposure to ionizing radiations required for the search for holes.

Bone Nails↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Chondrosarcoma of the ribs and sternum. Considerations on 20 cases treated.

Over the last 20 years at the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute in Bologna 20 cases of chondrosarcoma (CS) of the thoracic wall (14 males, 6 females, mean age 49 years) have been submitted to surgery. Localization was costal in 11 cases, costosternal in 3, sternal in 3, costovertebral in 3. The most frequent histological variety was central with 15 observations. All of the cases were treated surgically. Exeresis was wide in 14 cases, marginal in 6. Reconstruction of the thoracic wall took place either by direct suturing or (14 cases) using prosthetic materials (Marlex mesh, 1 or 2 shapeable metal plates). Of the 20 cases treated, 16 patients are still alive (80%) with a mean survival rate of 33.5 months and a mean reduction in the postoperative ventilative index of function of less than 10%. The results obtained lead us to believe that surgical treatment involving wide exeresis is adequate, and the reconstruction method using Marlex mesh and metal plates is reliable.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Current trends in chest wall malignant tumor.

Surgery used to treat chest wall sarcomas requires preoperative evaluation in order to document their margins, and to reveal any nodules of recurrence. Because of its considerable sensitivity and specificity ultrasound was associated with routine imaging techniques. The results obtained are useful in defining superficial and lateral tumor margins, but particularly in determining micro-nodules of recurrence which would otherwise go unrecognized. Based on the data obtained using routine methods of diagnosis and ultrasound, we submitted patients to excision that each and every time proved to be wide on histological examination. A particular surgical method was used for reconstruction, involving a polypropylene mesh fixed to one or two mouldable plates. This method exploits the elasticity of polypropylene, which is indispensable for the correct respiratory dynamics of the rib cage, thus avoiding paradoxical or harmful movement. Oncological and functional results were satisfactory.

Follow-Up Studies↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Tubulization in the reconstruction of the peripheral nervous system: the current status of experimentation].

The interest in developing a prosthesis that may be effective in nerve repair as an alternative to autologous grafts, promotes experimental investigations in order to improve the so called tubulization techniques. A review of the literature of the last 10 years is performed to draw an outline of the state of the research, pointing out three main topics: the animal model, the type of the conduit and the length of the repaired gap. The rat, the rabbit and non human primates are the species with which experimental models are most often fashioned for this purpose. Among the great number of investigated conduits, interesting perspectives are arrived at mainly by those obtained with biologic or degradable materials; until now, experimental nerve defects of 3 cm or less are better repaired with artificial guides while unsatisfactory results were reported for the repair of longer gaps. The introduction in the micro-environment of the conduit of neurotrophic substances represents a challenge for the future development of these investigations aimed at improving healing and obtaining nerve regeneration through extensive defects.

Absorption↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Prevention of ischemia-reperfusion damage with polymerized superoxide dismutase.

The efficacy of preventing ischemia-reperfusion damage by employing native or modified (mPEG-SOD) superoxide dismutase in an experimental model of acute ischemia was tested in the left hind limb of 43 Wistar rats. A significative difference (p=0.004) of the survival leg rate was found in the group treated with mPEG-SOD (86.6%) compared with the control group (30%). This difference was confirmed both clinically and by TEM analysis of muscular specimens.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Preliminary histoenzymatic muscular evaluations after ischemia-reperfusion damage.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the muscular regenerative properties after an induced ischemia/reperfusion injury of 4 hours and 30 min. of the left hind limb of the rat and to evaluate and compare the efficacy of native and modified polyethylene glycol superoxide dismutase (SOD and mPEG-SOD). In particular, we try to find a suitable method to study the histological and histoenzymatic properties of muscular fibres, focusing also the technical procedure employed to evaluate the new activated motor end-plates. Biopsies from flexor digitorum superficialis were collected immediately after the ischemia/reperfusion damage and also at 4th, 6th and 10th days. The adopted protocol showed a good reliability both for the necrosis and the regenerative process evaluations. However the assessment of regenerative and reinnervative processes will be completed by histomorphometric analysis.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Functional evaluation of an experimental model of cutaneous microcirculation and pO2 after surgical excision: traditional method vs laser CO2].

Within an experimental study project about the interaction between Laser and biological tissues, the authors utilized a Laser Doppler Flowmeter device and a Polarographic method to study the cutaneous microcirculation and the tissue pO2. Under standardized conditions, the experimental model considered the microcirculation measurement and the ptiO2 before and after the exsection of a cutaneous lozenge on the animals back realized with traditional surgical methods (scalpel and electrotome) or with a last generation CO2 Laser in continuous and in pulsed mode. The Laser Doppler Flowmeter showed that the largest perturbation of the microcirculatory flux occurred after the exsection realized with the scalpel and the electrotome. The CO2 Laser utilized in continuous mode showed an influence slightly lower on the microcirculation while in pulsed mode the perturbation was absent. The ptiO2 measurement showed similar results emphasizing that the CO2 surgical Laser technique is less invasive than the traditional. To sum up, these functional methods allowed a careful microcirculation an ptiO2 evaluation and provided useful information about vasal and metabolic alterations, showing that the CO2 surgical Laser utilized in pulsed mode appears to be the less harmful surgical technique for the tissues surrounding the exsection site.

Laser-Doppler Flowmetry↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Role of lactose, arginine and lysine combination in fracture healing (an experimental study)].

L-arginine and L-lysine are essential amino acids which seem to possess some properties able to influence bone fractures healing. In fact, they seem to be involved not only in the increase of intestinal calcium adsorption but also in collagen synthesis, in insulin and growth hormone secretion and in osteoblastic activation. So, an experimental in vivo model was carried out by using 50 adult rabbits which, under general anaesthesia, were submitted to an osteotomy of the left fibula. Animals were divided into 5 groups and were daily treated with a mixture of lactose, L-arginine and L-lysine or with the only lactose (control group) at the same dosage as recommended for humans. They were sacrificed after 15, 30, 40, 50 and 60 days for radiological and histological studies. The results of the study showed that the pharmacological mixture containing L-arginine and L-lysine accelerates and ameliorates the healing processes and this positive effect was particularly evident from the 30th day after the osteotomy. We think that these results are linked not only to calcium metabolism but also to different biological properties which positively contribute to a good healing of bone fractures.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Polymer biomaterials (polyphosphazenes) in the repair of peripheral nervous system].

Biodegradable polymers gives interesting perspectives of use in making artificial conduits for peripheral nerve reconstruction. Poliphosphazenes are materials highly biocompatible and have a controllable reabsorption rate. According to the substitutes that are introduced in the molecule, they can also be used as a framework for drug release. Conduits obtained with poli [bis(etilalanate) phosphazene] were evaluated as guides for nerve regeneration in an experimental animal model. In six Wistar rats, under general anesthesia and with microsurgical technique, the ischiatic nerve was isolated. On the right side a segment of the nerve was removed in order to create a 10 mm gap. The defect was then repaired using the conduit. On the controlateral limb the nerve continuity was restored using as an autograft the segment removed from the right. Control were performed at 30, 90, 180 days and consisted in histological and electron microscopy investigations. They showed the gradual degradation of the conduit without signs of local and general toxicity. The regeneration of the nerve fibers in the lumen of the conduit was not significantly different from the one obtained with the autologous grafts. So poliphosphazene conduits may be considered effective as a guide for nerve regeneration, above all for the possibility of use the polymer as a carrier for neurite-promoting factors.

Animals↗