Comparison of cefotetan versus combination therapy in peritonitis and serious intra-abdominal sepsis.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to S D Scott.
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Although bacterial culture is considered to provide the most definitive diagnosis of gonorrhea, it has limitations when specimens must be transported long distances. A study was carried out to evaluate the validity and cost-effectiveness of an alternative method of diagnosing gonorrhea, the Gonozyme test, a commercially available enzyme immunoassay. Urogenital specimens from 100 men and 100 women with symptoms suggestive of or a history of exposure to gonorrhea were tested for the presence of Neisseria gonorrhoeae by means of bacterial culture and for gonococcal antigen with the Gonozyme test. The specimens from the men were also examined by means of microscopy of Gram-stained smears. The sensitivity and specificity of the Gonozyme test with reference to culture results were 95.6% and 97.4% respectively in the men and 84.2% and 98.7% in the women. The predictive value of a positive result was 91.6% in the men and 94.1% in the women, and the predictive value of a negative result 98.6% in the men and 96.3% in the women. The cost-effectiveness of the Gonozyme test was higher than that of bacterial culture in this population, which had a high prevalence rate of gonorrhea (23% in the men and 19% in the women). The Gonozyme test would be an adequate alternative to culture for the diagnosis of gonorrhea and contact tracing in areas far from diagnostic laboratories.
Two patients with low random serum vitamin K1 concentrations but with normal prothrombin times and normal biological assays of the vitamin K dependent coagulation proteins were treated with an N-methyl-thiotetrazole cephalosporin (cefotetan) postoperatively. Four to six days later both patients developed a prolonged prothrombin time and a noticeable and specific lowering of the clotting activities of factors II, VII, IX and X, though the serum vitamin K1 concentrations remained unchanged. Crossed immunoelectrophoresis of prothrombin showed the appearance of a second peak corresponding to descarboxyprothrombin (PIVKA II). These abnormalities corrected after vitamin K administration. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that cephalosporins with an N-methyl-thiotetrazole side chain inhibit the hepatic utilisation of vitamin K but that this only causes hypoprothrombinaemia when liver reserves of vitamin K are low.
Rituximab is an effective single agent available for short-course outpatient treatment in low-grade NHL, particularly with follicular histology (IWF B-D), that offers a relatively nontoxic alternative to chemotherapy regimens currently available. Early indications are that retreatment is effective with similar levels of predictable adverse events to the initial course of therapy. Further development is awaited of regimens that combine rituximab with chemotherapeutic agents to enhance treatment efficacy without overlapping side effects in low-grade NHL as well as use in other CD20+ malignancies.
Since, in a previous study, inhalation of carbon monoxide resulted in demonstrable electrocardiographic effects on the myocardium, it was of interest to determine the effects of reduced hemoglobin oxygen content following carbon monoxide inhalation on the vulnerability of the heart to fibrillation. Normal monkeys and monkeys subjected to myocardial infarction were exposed to 100 ppm (115 mg/cu m) carbon monoxide for six hours, and the vulnerability of the heart to induced fibrillation was evaluated. The mean carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) concentration attained was 9.3%. The voltage required to induce fibrillation was highest for normal, air-breathing animals and lowest for infarcted animals inhaling carbon monoxide. Infarction alone and carbon monoxide alone each required significantly less voltage for fibrillation, and when the two were combined, the effects were additive.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the use of continuous subcutaneous heparin infusion in the treatment of 2 cases of Trousseau's syndrome. CASE SUMMARIES: Two patients with metastatic carcinoma presented to the hospital with acute coagulopathies consistent with a diagnosis of Trousseau's syndrome. In both cases conventional anticoagulant therapies proved to be impractical and ineffective. DISCUSSION: Considerable literature suggests that oral anticoagulants such as warfarin are ineffective in the treatment of Trousseau's syndrome. Heparin is more effective for this purpose, although continuous intravenous infusion may prove difficult in the ambulatory setting. Intermittent subcutaneous injections of heparin or low-molecular-weight heparin may not provide reliable anticoagulation for the entire dosage interval. Although the use of continuous subcutaneous infusion of heparin has been used for anticoagulation during pregnancy, this is the first report of the use of sodium heparin administered by continuous subcutaneous infusion in the treatment of Trousseau's syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: Continuous subcutaneous heparin infusion may be an effective option for the treatment of Trousseau's syndrome in the ambulatory setting.
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