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Biomedical subjects

R Birkner

Publications and source records attributed to R Birkner.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1980

[Medication with flunitrazepam in electroconvulsive therapy].

The electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) continues to be of use in the management of patients suffering from affective psychosis and some clinical forms of schizophrenia. The use of premedicated anaesthetic and miorelaxant drugs lessens the possibility of complications, but risks the induction of serious cardiorespiratory accidents. The flunitrazepam is a benzodiazepine with hypnotic, ansiolytic and miorelaxant properties, which has been used as an anaesthetic in major and minor surgery. 241 ECT were essayed on 28 psychotic patients and flunitrazepam induced deep sleep in 94.6% of the applications within 0.5 and 15 minutes after the intravenous injection, the required dose oscillating between 2 and 4 mg. In all the applications a generalized convulsive crisis was induced. No significant pulse variations, arterial pressure, nor respiratory frequency took place. Post ECT agitation appeared in 0.82%. The associated pharmacological therapy (neuroleptics, lithium salts) did not modify the effect of flunitrazepam. Nor did tolerancy to the drug appear.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

[Results of radiotherapy of bronchial carcinoma (author's transl)].

In a joint retrospective study by 17 radiotherapy clinics in German-speaking countries the results of treatment of bronchial carcinoma after radiotherapy were analysed in 7503 cases. The age peak was between the 60th and 70th year. Squamous-cell carcinoma was the most frequent histological type, followed by anaplastic carcinoma, with adenocarcinoma being rare. There was a high proportion of histologically not clearly identified cases (27% in central and 35% in peripheral carcinomas). Survival rate at one year was 31% for central (3662 patients) and peripheral (961 patients) tumours, but only 2% at five years. Prognostically there was no difference between histological types and kind of radiotherapy or technique, but total dose affected survival rate. At a total dose of less than 5000 rd the survival rate at five years was minimal. The prognosis of combined surgical and radiotherapeutic measures was slightly better than with a radiotherapy alone, but results were unpredictable for the individual case. It is concluded that radiotherapy aiming at cure should be used in imoperable bronchial carcinoma if the tumour state and general condition of the patient appear to make a cure possible. But if this is not the case, radiotherapy should be used only palliatively, i.e. only to ameliorate symptoms.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Standard and high doses of haloperidol. Clinical, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic aspects].

The investigation was designed to study plasma drug concentration and prolactin response determined by two different doses of haloperidol, a standard one and four-fold higher the other, and to explore the relationships between clinical effects and pharmacokinetic and physiological variables in psychotic patients. 24 psychotic patients received haloperidol during 40 consecutive days. During the first 10 days they received 0,25 mg/kg b.w. During the next 20 days they were given 1 mg/kg b.w. Finally they received 0,25 mg/kg b.w. during the last ten days. The patients were clinically assessed and plasma haloperidol and prolactin concentrations were determined on days 0, 5, 10, 20, 30 and 40. In the range of dose studied, the use of higher than conventional doses of haloperidol results in an increased concentration in the cellular site of action and in a more complete blockade of central dopamine receptors. Prolactin response was positive correlated with serum haloperidol concentration. Clinical remission was not direct correlated, neither with serum neuroleptic concentration nor with prolactin level. Those patients who reached higher levels of plasmatic neuroleptic and prolactin concentrations were more susceptible to develop severe extrapyramidal side-effects. Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic monitoring of neuroleptic treatment could be useful to identify these patients.

Adolescent↗