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R Del Porto

Publications and source records attributed to R Del Porto.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

[Usefulness of computerized dynamic capillaroscopy in the monitoring of treatment of progressive systemic sclerosis with synthetic prostacyclin].

The aim of this study was to evaluate the variations of blood flow velocity in the skin microcirculation before and after vasoactive drugs' administration. Eight patients affected by progressive systemic sclerosis have been treated with synthesis prostacyclin for six hours during a period of fifteen days at the standard dosage of 0.5-2 ng/kg/min. We used computerized dynamic capillaroscopy with Capiflow technique to evaluate cutaneous microcirculation before and after the treatment. The Capiflow technique is a new videophotometric technique to study and quantify the diameter, density and velocity blood flow in the nutritional skin capillary. The quantitative analysis of blood flow velocity detected an increase, statistically significant, at the end of the treatment. The statistic analysis was performed by "t Student" test.

Adult↗

Prevalence of valvular regurgitation in structurally normal hearts: a colour-Doppler study.

AIM: To evaluate, by colour-Doppler echocardiography, the effects of ageing on the continence of the heart valves in patients with normal hearts. METHODS: We reviewed all the consecutive echocardiographic examinations performed in our laboratory from 1988 to 1994. From a total of 4592 records, 1654 (977 from females and 677 from males) were selected as normal-that is, not having excluded any kind of valvular, chamber or wall pathology of the heart. These records alone were considered in the study. RESULTS: One or more valve regurgitations were evident on 286 of the records (17.3%; 202 from females and 84 from males); regurgitation was always mild and was more frequent in females (20.7% compared with 12.4% of males; P < 0.001). Mitral regurgitation was the most frequent (49.3% of all regurgitant valves), followed by tricuspid, aortic and pulmonary. In age groups 0-17 years and > or = 60 years there was no sex difference in regurgitation. With ageing, there was an increasing trend in prevalence of regurgitation of the mitral, aortic and tricuspid valves in females (P < 0.001, P < 0.001 and P < 0.05, respectively), and of aortic and mitral valves in males (P < 0.001 for both). Multiple regurgitation (two or three valves) was not sex-dependent, but showed an increasing trend with ageing (from 13% to 27.5% of records showing regurgitation; positive trend, P < 0.005). CONCLUSIONS: Prevalence of mild valvular regurgitation is age-dependent, but is more common in women than in men aged 18-59 years; there is no sex-related difference in patients aged 60 years or more.

Adolescent↗