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R Giuffré

Publications and source records attributed to R Giuffré.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Birthday of peripheral nervous system surgery: the contribution of Gabriele Ferrara (1543-1627).

SURGERY OF THE peripheral nerves has only recently achieved brilliant results thanks to technological advances in the development of neurosurgical instrumentation. In past centuries, few surgeons made relevant contributions to this topic and improvement was slow and difficult. Avicenna, Guglielmo da Saliceto, and Guido Lanfranchi reported some attempts to suture nerves directly, but Gabriele Ferrara was the first to give a lucid and succinct description of suturing of the stumps of a transected nerve. He described applying gentle traction on the retracted stumps, suturing using a special needle with an eye, after immersion in a decoction of red wine, rosemary, and roses (alcoholic disinfection?), and, finally, insulating the sutured segment with a mixture of oils. We are celebrating the 400th anniversary of the first edition of his fundamental work (1596-1996), and we truly esteem this surgeon, a pioneer of peripheral nerve surgery wo primarily contributed to its progress.

History, 16th Century↗
PubMed1995

Celebrating the centennial (1894-1994): Leonardo Gigli and his wire saw.

In spite of the recent introduction of craniotomes in neurosurgical practice, the simple but brilliant wire saw invented by Leonardo Gigli still holds an important place in neurosurgical instrumentation. Born in Florence in 1863, Gigli was forced by circumstances to leave Italy soon after getting his medical degree. He first spent 2 years attending the most celebrated obstetrical clinics in Paris and London and then, in 1892, moved to Breslau where he worked with Fritsch and Mikulicz. During this successful and rewarding period, Gigli proposed the lateralized pubiotomy (Gigli's operation) for safe delivery in cases of maternal pelvic deformities and, inspired by the sight of a jagged knife during a country banquet, conceived his wire saw to simplify the procedure. In 1894, at Professor Obalinski's suggestion, he successfully tested a modified saw type with a whalebone guide for the preparation of osteoplastic cranial flaps. In spite of his great popularity and the high esteem in which he was held abroad, Gigli's aims were systematically belittled in Italy, where he never qualified for a university teaching position. He died in 1908, at age 44. Although the once celebrated Gigli's operation has merely historical interest today, the favorable features of his wire saw make it a safe and efficient tool in the hands of twentieth-century neurosurgeons worldwide.

History, 19th Century↗
PubMed1994

Time dependence of plasma malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleosides during incomplete cerebral ischemia in the rat.

Incomplete cerebral ischemia (30 min) was induced in the rat by bilaterally clamping the common carotid arteries. Peripheral venous blood samples were withdrawn from the femoral vein four times (once every 5 min) before ischemia (0 time) and 5, 15, and 30 min after ischemia. Plasma extracts were analyzed by a highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the direct determination of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleosides. During ischemia, a time-dependent increase of plasma oxypurines and nucleosides was observed. Plasma malondialdehyde, which was present in minimal amount at zero time (0.058 mumol/liter plasma; SD 0.015), increased after 5 min of ischemia, resulting in a fivefold increase after 30 min of carotid occlusion (0.298 mumol/liter plasma; SD 0.078). Increased plasma malondialdehyde was also recorded in two other groups of animals subjected to the same experimental model, one receiving 20 mg/kg b.w. of the cyclooxygenase inhibitor acetylsalicylate intravenously immediately before ischemia, the other receiving 650 micrograms/kg b.w. of the hypotensive drug nitroprusside at a flow rate of 103 microliters/min intravenously during ischemia, although in this latter group malondialdehyde was significantly higher. The present data indicate that the determination of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleosides in peripheral blood, may be used to monitor the metabolic alterations of tissues occurring during ischemic phenomena.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1992

MDA, oxypurines, and nucleosides relate to reperfusion in short-term incomplete cerebral ischemia in the rat.

Short-term incomplete cerebral ischemia (5 min) was induced in the rat by the bilateral clamping of the common carotid arteries. Reperfusion was obtained by removing carotid clamping and was carried out for the following 10 min. Animals were sacrificed either at the end of ischemia or reperfusion. Controls were represented by a group of sham-operated rats. Peripheral venous blood samples were withdrawn from the femoral vein from rats subjected to cerebral reperfusion 5 min before ischemia, at the end of ischemia, and 10 min after reperfusion. Neutralized perchloric acid extracts of brain tissue were analyzed by a highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the direct determination of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, nucleosides, nicotinic coenzymes, and high-energy phosphates. In addition, plasma concentrations of malondialdehyde, hypoxanthine, xanthine, inosine, uric acid, and adenosine were determined by the same HPLC technique. Incomplete cerebral ischemia induced the appearance of a significant amount (8.05 nmol/g w.w.; SD = 2.82) of cerebral malondialdehyde (which was undetectable in control animals) and a decrease of ascorbic acid. A further 6.6-fold increase of malondialdehyde (53.30 nmol/g w.w.; SD = 17.77) and a 18.5% decrease of ascorbic acid occurred after 10 min of reperfusion. Plasma malondialdehyde, which was present in minimal amount before ischemia (0.050 mumol/L; SD = 0.015), significantly increased after 5 min of ischemia (0.277 mumol/L; SD = 0.056) and was strikingly augmented after 10 min of reperfusion (0.682 mumol/L; SD = 0.094). A similar trend was observed for xanthine, uric acid, inosine, and adenosine, while hypoxanthine reached its maximal concentration after 5 min of incomplete ischemia, being significantly decreased after reperfusion. From the data obtained, it can be concluded that tissue concentrations of malondialdehyde and ascorbic acid, and plasma levels of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleosides, reflect both the oxygen radical-mediated tissue injury and the depression of energy metabolism, thus representing early biochemical markers of short-term incomplete brain ischemia and reperfusion in the rat. In particular, these results suggest the possibility of using the variation of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleosides in peripheral blood as a potential biochemical indicator of reperfusion damage occurring to postischemic tissues.

Adenine Nucleotides↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Incomplete cerebral ischemia in the rat provokes increase of tissue and plasma malondialdehyde.

Short-term incomplete cerebral ischemia was induced in the rat by bilaterally clamping for 5 min the common carotid arteries; subsequent reperfusion of 10 min was obtained by removing carotid occlusion. At the end of ischemia or reperfusion, animals were sacrificed by decapitation. A control group was represented by sham-operated rats. Peripheral venous blood samples were withdrawn from the femoral vein from rats subjected to cerebral reperfusion 5 min before ischemia, at the end of ischemia, and 10 min after reperfusion. A highly sensitive HPLC method for the direct determination of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleosides was used on 200 microL of brain tissue and plasma extracts. Incomplete cerebral ischemia induced the appearance of a significant amount of tissue malondialdehyde (undetectable in control animals) and a decrease of ascorbic acid. A further 6.6-fold increase of malondialdehyde and a 18.5% decrease of ascorbic acid occurred after 10 min of reperfusion. Plasma malondialdehyde, which was present in minimal amount before ischemia, significantly increased after 5 min of ischemia, being strikingly augmented after 10 min of reperfusion. A similar trend was observed for oxypurines and nucleosides. From these data, it can be affirmed that tissue concentrations of malondialdehyde and ascorbic acid, and plasma levels of malondialdehyde, oxypurines, and nucleotides, reflect both the oxygen radical-mediated tissue injury and the depression of energy metabolism, thus representing early biochemical markers of short-term incomplete brain ischemia and reperfusion in the rat.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Orbital pseudotumor. Pathologic and therapeutic considerations.

Orbital pseudotumor is a chronic, idiopathic granuloma acting as an orbital expanding lesion. The importance of clinical features for a proper diagnosis is relevant. A subdivision in three subgroups is made taking in account surgical, pathological and CT-scan patterns. Therapeutic indications are given according to the follow-up of 29 cases.

Adult↗