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S Hemminghytt

Publications and source records attributed to S Hemminghytt.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Do human lumbar discs reconstitute after chemonucleolysis? A 7-year follow-up study.

STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective, longitudinal study of 51 patients, covering a mean follow-up period of 81 months. OBJECTIVE: To observe the long-term temporal course of the height of human lumbar discs after chemonucleolysis. To document whether human lumbar discs reconstitute, thus characterizing the healing potential of central disc tissue. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Although reconstitution of disc height within some months of chemonucleolysis has been observed in animal experiments, human lumbar discs have shown no tendency to regain their initial height within 1 year of treatment. To date, there has been no report on longer follow-up periods. The different reactions of animal and human discs may be dose-related or related to differences in tissue properties, physiologic environment or in vivo loading conditions. METHODS: Using a new protocol, the heights of lumbar discs were measured from sets of lateral radiographic views of 51 patients subject to chemonucleolysis by treatment with chymopapain (doses of 4000 or 3000 picokatals [pkat]). The sets comprised a view taken before treatment, a view taken (on average) 4 months after treatment, and a view taken (on average) 81 months after treatment. In the majority of patients, untreated discs adjacent to discs treated with chemonucleolysis served as control discs. RESULTS: Shortly after injection of chymopapain, all treated discs decreased in height. The height decrease of treated discs amounted to 15.8% on average. In the subcohort treated with 4000 pkat, the loss did not reverse during the entire follow-up period; in the subcohort treated with 3000 pkat a small fraction of the lost height was regained. Untreated neighboring control discs showed a minor (3.4%) decrease in height. CONCLUSIONS: Human lumbar discs do not reconstitute after chemonucleolysis. Because the long-term temporal course of disc height in patients is in disagreement with observations from animal experiments, caution is suggested when generalizing results from animal studies to humans.

Chymopapain↗
PubMed1997

[Chemonucleolysis of lumbar disk prolapse. Choice and complications].

Chemonucleolysis with chymopapain is a well-documented method of treating lumbar disc herniation. In spite of this, only few patients are treated in this way in Norway. We have offered selected patients chemonucleolysis at our hospital since 1985. This article reports the long-term outcomes as regards employment status, back pain and leg pain. We have treated 277 patients. 269 were still alive in October 1995 and were sent a follow-up questionnaire. 257 patients responded, of whom 36 (14%) had undergone surgery later, due to an unsatisfactory outcome of chemonucleolysis. 72% of the patients were fully employed at the time of follow-up. 61% had little or no back pain, while 69% never or only rarely suffered pain in the leg.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Lumbar disk prolapse treated with chymopapain].

We report results from 108 consecutive patients followed up for one year after chymopapain injection. The patients were selected on strict clinical and radiological criteria. In nine patients (8%) the result was poor, and they were surgically treated within one year after the injection. 99 (92%) patients improved and after one year 87 of these (81% of the total material) had returned full time to their previous occupation. The only serious complication was one case of septicemia and possible discitis. The patient made a full recovery after antibiotic treatment. On the basis of these results, we shall continue to use chymopapain injection to treat selected patients with sciatica caused by herniated lumbar discs.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Computed tomographic study of hormone-secreting microadenomas.

A review was made of the computed tomographic (CT) studies of 33 patients with hormone-secreting microadenomas that had been verified by transsphenoidal surgery and endocrinologic evaluation. In previous studies in small series of patients, the CT appearance of pituitary microadenomas has been reported as hypodense, isodense, and hyperdense. In this study, CT showed a region of diminished enhancement and usually an enlarged pituitary gland in cases of prolactin-secreting adenomas. HGH- or ACTH-secreting adenomas were less consistently hypodense. It is concluded that hypodensity and enlargement in the pituitary gland are the most useful criteria for identification of microadenomas. Some technical factors that may affect the CT appearance of microadenomas and lead to conflicting reports are discussed.

Adenoma↗
PubMed1982

Spondylolysis studied with computed tomography.

Spinal CT scans, plain radiographs, and medical records of 81 patients with an abnormal pars interarticularis were reviewed to define the CT criteria for spondylolysis. In many cases, it was difficult to detect because it simulated the adjacent facet joints; however, it could be differentiated by careful analysis of the section level and the contiguous facet joints, which usually had regular cortical surfaces (in contrast to the pars defects). Spondylolysis was evident on the lateral localizer image in most cases. In some patients the pars appeared abnormally narrow and elongated or sclerotic as well as interrupted. In a few cases, CT demonstrated a pars defect which was not effectively shown by the plain radiographs. In one patient, a herniated disk was also seen.

Adult↗