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Biomedical subjects

S Marti

Publications and source records attributed to S Marti.

16 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Treatment of the gravity dependence of downbeat nystagmus with 3,4-diaminopyridine.

The authors examined the effect of 3,4-diaminopyridine (DAP) on the gravity-dependent (GD) vertical ocular drift component of downbeat nystagmus in 11 patients with idiopathic cerebellar ataxia. With the head tilted downward (45 degrees ), DAP reduced slow phase velocity (SPV) in 7 of 11 patients by 36%. Its efficacy correlated with the GD modulation. DAP minimizes the gravity-independent velocity bias and may improve deficient inhibitory cerebellar control on overacting otolith-ocular reflexes.

4-Aminopyridine↗
PubMed2006

Effects of early high-dose levothyroxine treatment on auditory brain event-related potentials at school entry in children with congenital hypothyroidism.

AIMS: We tested whether brain event-related potentials (ERPs) are normal in children with congenital hypothyroidism (CH) after early high-dose levothyroxine treatment. METHODS: Auditory ERPs were recorded in 33 normal controls and in 15 children with CH at 5 years 9/12. Based on bone maturation at diagnosis, the CH group was divided into severe (n = 8) and moderate (n = 7) subgroups. CH patients were treated at a median age of 14 days with a mean initial dose of levothyroxine of 11.6 microg/kgxday. Two ERP components (N100 and N200) were measured and clinical follow-up variables collected. RESULTS: The functional anatomical and cognitive organisation of the auditory system, as revealed by the analyses of ERP measures, did not differ between CH and controls, or between severe and moderate CH subjects. However, N200 latency was globally longer in the CH than in the control group (p = 0.01) and was positively correlated with the over-treatment index (r = 0.61; p < 0.05) and verbal IQ. N200 amplitude was negatively correlated with initial dose (r = -0.74; p < 0.005). CONCLUSION: These data suggest that sensitive tools such as ERPs can reveal differences between CH and controls and relate these differences to the adequacy of treatment of CH.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed2006

Performance of mechanical ventilators at the patient's home: a multicentre quality control study.

BACKGROUND: Quality control procedures vary considerably among the providers of equipment for home mechanical ventilation (HMV). METHODS: A multicentre quality control survey of HMV was performed at the home of 300 patients included in the HMV programmes of four hospitals in Barcelona. It consisted of three steps: (1) the prescribed ventilation settings, the actual settings in the ventilator control panel, and the actual performance of the ventilator measured at home were compared; (2) the different ventilator alarms were tested; and (3) the effect of differences between the prescribed settings and the actual performance of the ventilator on non-programmed readmissions of the patient was determined. RESULTS: Considerable differences were found between actual, set, and prescribed values of ventilator variables; these differences were similar in volume and pressure preset ventilators. The percentage of patients with a discrepancy between the prescribed and actual measured main ventilator variable (minute ventilation or inspiratory pressure) of more than 20% and 30% was 13% and 4%, respectively. The number of ventilators with built in alarms for power off, disconnection, or obstruction was 225, 280 and 157, respectively. These alarms did not work in two (0.9%), 52 (18.6%) and eight (5.1%) ventilators, respectively. The number of non-programmed hospital readmissions in the year before the study did not correlate with the index of ventilator error. CONCLUSIONS: This study illustrates the current limitations of the quality control of HMV and suggests that improvements should be made to ensure adequate ventilator settings and correct ventilator performance and ventilator alarm operation.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2006

Body weight and comorbidity predict mortality in COPD patients treated with oxygen therapy.

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between clinical variables and all-cause and respiratory mortality in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) undergoing long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT). The authors retrospectively studied a historic cohort of 128 patients with COPD (126 males, mean age+/-SD 68.9+/-9.7 yrs, body mass index (BMI) 25.1+/-4.5 kg.m-2, and forced expiratory volume in one second 25.4+/-8.8% predicted), who were being treated with long-term oxygen therapy in a tertiary teaching hospital between 1992 and 1999. Comorbidity, assessed with the Charlson Index, was present in 38% of the patients. Vital status and cause of death were assessed through the population death registry. A total of 78 patients (61%) had died by the end of follow-up. Three-year survival was 55%. Death was due to respiratory causes in 77% of cases. On Cox analysis, BMI<25 kg.m-2, comorbid conditions, age>or=70 yrs and cor pulmonale were associated with all-cause mortality. The BMI and comorbidity were the only significant predictive factors when the analysis was restricted to respiratory mortality. In conclusion, body mass index<25 kg.m-2 and comorbidity were predictors of all-cause and respiratory mortality in a cohort of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients treated with long-term oxygen therapy. These factors should be taken into account when considering the management and prognosis of these patients.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Genetic heterogeneity of pestiviruses of ruminants in Switzerland.

We have genetically analyzed ruminant pestiviruses. All >150 bovine viral diarrhea (BVD) viruses isolated from cattle in Switzerland belonged to genotype 1, with subgenogroups e, h, k and b found in decreasing frequency. To date, representatives of subgenogroup k have been detected in Switzerland only. Despite serological evidence of Border disease in sheep, only few Border disease viruses have been isolated, all of which belong to the novel group 3. Serological evidence suggested that pestivirus infections may occur also in wild ruminants in Switzerland but no isolates are available for analysis. In addition, we describe two pestiviruses, one a cell culture contaminant and the other isolated from a buffalo, that cluster with a recently proposed novel pestivirus species.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Cognition and behavior at school entry in children with congenital hypothyroidism treated early with high-dose levothyroxine.

OBJECTIVE: To document cognition and behavior at school entry in these patients. Study design Eighteen children with congenital hypothyroidism (CH; 9 severe and 9 moderate, based on a surface of the knee epiphyses at diagnosis or=0.05 cm(2)) treated from a median of 14 days with a median of 12.0 microg/kg per day of levothyroxine were evaluated at 5 years, 9 months, with the McCarthy Scale and the Questionnaire for Evaluation of Social Behavior, as were 40 control children. RESULTS: The global IQs at 5 years, 9 months, were similar: medians (range) were 102 (87 to 133), 102 (84 to 135), and 115 (88 to 136) (not significant) for severe CH, moderate CH, and control children, respectively. The behavioral scores of CH children were within the normal range. However, the number of times when plasma TSH was >6.0 mIU/L during treatment was correlated positively with anxiety (P=.02) and inattention (P=.05), whereas the number of times TSH was <0.8 mIU/L was correlated with lower verbal scores (P=.05). CONCLUSIONS: Children with severe CH treated early with a high dose of levothyroxine have normal global development and behavior at school entry.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2002

Mortality in severe sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome patients: impact of treatment.

The aim of this study was to determine mortality in patients with sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (SAHS) according to the treatments employed and comorbidity. An historical cohort of patients with SAHS diagnosed at a university hospital between 1982 and 1992 and followed until 1996 was studied. From a total of 475 SAHS patients, 444 (94%), with a mean+/-SD apnoea/hypopnoea index at diagnosis of 55+/-27, were located and included in the study. SAHS treatments employed were: surgery (88), weight loss (134), continuous positive airway pressure (124) and 98 patients were not treated. By the end of follow-up, 49 patients had died. According to Cox regression analysis, mortality in treated patients was lower than in those not treated, but higher in those with a history of severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Mortality in nontreated patients compared with that of the general population, adjusted for age and sex, showed excessive mortality, which decreased in treated patients. Stratification by age showed a greater mortality rate ratio in patients <50 yrs. These findings were maintained when mortality from cardiovascular causes was compared. In conclusion, a rise in mortality was found in nontreated sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome patients compared with the general population, whereas mortality in those treated for sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome did not differ significantly from that of the general population.

Comorbidity↗
PubMed1996

Repetitive peptide motifs in the cuticlin of Ascaris suum.

The cuticle of parasitic nematodes is composed of extracellular structural proteins. Over 90% of these proteins are collagenous molecules in the basal and median layers of the cuticle. The outermost layers of the cuticle, the epicuticle, is composed of non-collagenous proteins, that represent the structural surface of nematodes. In Ascaris these proteins have been termed 'cuticlins'. While cuticular collagens have been well studied by both biochemical and genetic means, knowledge of the molecular structure of cuticlin components of parasitic nematodes is scarce. In the present paper we report on the production of monoclonal antibody 8.1, which is specific for cuticlin, but does not recognize collagen epitopes. We have screened a cDNA library derived from adult Ascaris suum mRNA of the hypodermal tissue underlying and synthesizing the cuticle. One positive cDNA clone encodes alanine-rich repetitive motifs, which are part of the insoluble cuticlin of the outermost layers of the epicuticle of Ascaris suum. This was shown in immunocytochemical experiments using specific polyclonal antisera raised against these motifs, expressed as fusion protein with glutathione S-transferase of the helminth Schistosoma japonicum. Comparison of the repetitive amino acid sequence with structural proteins of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and the insects Locusta migratoria and Ceratitis capitata revealed a minimal consensus motif.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Systemic lupus erythematosus and pernicious anemia in an 82-year-old woman.

We describe an 82-year-old woman with systemic lupus erythematosus who developed pernicious anemia 3 years later. Although both diseases are autoimmune in origin, this association is rather rare, and only 3 other cases have been described. Pernicious anemia appeared after steroid treatment was withdrawn.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

Antibodies against the cuticlin of Ascaris suum cross-react with epicuticular structures of filarial parasites.

The insoluble cuticlin from the cortical zone of the cuticle of adult Ascaris suum was purified and used to raise antibodies in C57/bl mice. The specificity of the antibodies for the external cortical layer was shown in the indirect immunofluorescence antibody test and by immunoelectronmicroscopy. A very high specificity for the external cortical layer was found. Some cross-reactions with cuticular collagens occurred, and increased after booster immunizations. The anti-cuticlin antibody cross-reacted with the electron-dense layers of the cortical zones of adult Acanthocheilonema viteae and Brugia pahangi. A very weak reaction was found in the cortical zone of adult Onchocerca volvulus. In the cuticles of third stage larvae of all three species mainly epitopes in the cortical zones were labelled. In no case did the anti-cuticlin antibody interact with the outermost surface of the cuticle.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Multicentric giant follicular lymph node hyperplasia. Favorable response to radiotherapy.

Angiofollicular lymph node hyperplasia is a disease of unknown etiology in which two distinct histologic forms are recognized: the hyalin vascular and the plasma-cell types. Up to the current time only a few multicentric cases have been described. The authors describe an unusual case of the multicentric type, which furthermore showed an excellent response to low dosis radiotherapy. Complete, lasting remission was induced and the patient became asymptomatic.

Aged↗
PubMed1981

[Islet cell antibodies in diabetic patients with other autoimmune diseases (author's transl)].

The presence of antibodies directed against pancreatic islet cells was investigated in 18 insulin pendent diabetic patients with autoimmune disease (Group 1), in 8 insulin-independent diabetic patients with autoimmune disease (Group 2), in 42 non-diabetic patients with thyroid antibodies (Group 3), in 18 patients with antibodies against gastric parietal cells (Group 4) and in 100 healthy subjects (controls). Islet cell antibodies were found in 46% of group 1 patients and in only 1 patient of group 3 and 1 control. This would suggest the existence of a special form of autoimmune insulin-dependent diabetes characterized by a high incidence of islet cell antibodies and associated with other autoimmune diseases.

Autoantibodies↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hybrid formation between African trypanosomes during cyclical transmission.

Trypanosomes of the species Trypanosoma brucei reproduce primarily by binary fission, but the frequency of enzyme electrophoretic variants in natural populations of T. brucei has provided indirect evidence for the existence of a sexual cycle. These studies, coupled with studies of restriction fragment length polymorphisms of genes encoding glycolytic enzymes, have also provided evidence for T. brucei being diploid. Here we report direct evidence of gene exchange between two different clones of trypanosomes after mixed infection and full cyclical development in the tsetse fly vector.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Platelet count and the risk of bleeding in hospitalized patients with venous thromboembolism starting anticoagulant therapy.

In a series of patients with pulmonary embolism (PE) we have previously demonstrated that the risk of recurrent PE was inversely correlated to platelet count (PlC) levels. To find out whether PlC levels were also associated to a different incidence of heparin-related bleeding complications, we report our experience with 1,103 consecutive patients with venous thromboembolism (VTE) receiving full-dose heparin therapy. Six points of clinical and laboratory information were recorded on admission and then compared to the development of bleeding: the patient's age and sex; the etiology of VTE; the type of heparin used (unfractioned, UFH, vs. low-molecular-weight, LMWH), the presence or lack of PE findings on lung scan, and the PC levels on admission. Bleeding occurred in 64/1,103 patients (6%). Patients who bled were significantly older than those who did not (72 +/- 11 vs. 64 +/- 17 years; p = 0.0005). There were no significant differences in bleeding rate according to any of the risk factors that could have predisposed to VTE, but patients treated with UFH bled significantly more frequently than those on LMWH (48/636 vs. 16/467; odds ratio: 2.30; 95% confidence interval: 1.25-4.28). Finally, mean PlC levels were significantly lower at VTE diagnosis in patients who subsequently bled (227 +/- 112 vs. 262 +/- 110 x 10(9) liters-1; p = 0.01). The logistic regression analysis confirmed that all three variables were independent risk factors for bleeding complications. This is the first study to demonstrate that PlC levels (within the normal range) are inversely correlated with the risk of heparin-related bleeding. These findings may be interest not only from the point of view of pathogenesis but also clinically, as they may be used in the decision as to which VTE patients could receive heparin therapy at home.

Age Factors↗