Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to A A Fondak.
Blast tattoos occur when fragments of gunpowder are propelled into the skin during a firearm discharge. This unusual type of injury is often associated with accidents involving replica firearms. Some of the more superficially embedded powder fragments may be removed with dermabrasion; however, deeper fragments may cause permanent tattooing. Blast injuries to the face also have the potential of causing permanent eye injury.
A focal adenocarcinoma in a rectal villous adenoma occurred in a patient with pemphigus vulgaris. The dermatologic, surgical, and anesthetic aspects of the patient's management required special consideration. A gastrostomy was performed and the rectal carcinoma was removed surgically by low anterior colon resection with end-to-end anastomosis. Because of the patient's pemphigus lesions, epidural anesthesia augmented by intravenous ketamine was administered to avoid airway instrumentation. Supplemental oxygen during surgery was delivered by nasal cannula. Therapy with oral prednisone was begun two weeks postoperatively.
Treatment of herpes simplex virus (HSV)-infected hairless mice with a 2% phosphonoacetic acid (PAA) ointment prevented the appearance of virus-induced skin lesions and subsequent central nervous system (CNS) involvement. Treatment started 24 h after infection significantly reduced the intensity of the skin lesions and also prevented CNS involvement. After four to six applications of PAA ointment, a moderate skin erythemia developed, followed by scaling and complete healing 7 days after cessation of the treatment. Mice treated early after HSV infection had low or undetectable levels of virus-specific antibodies but were completely resistant to reinfection. Early treatment prevented the development of a latent ganglionic infection, but treatment initiated 24 h after infection could not prevent the establishment of the latent infection. PAA-treated and HSV-infected mice with nondetectable levels of antibodies did not develop, with a single exception, a latent ganglionic infection unpon reinfection. The cell-mediated immune response determined by levels of [14C]thymidine incorporation in Ficoll-Hypaque-purified spleen lymphocytes cultures was low in PAA-treated mice; it increased slightly after challenge infection but was strong in mice that proved to harbor a latent HSV infection in the ganglia.
The antiviral efficacy of phosphonoacetic acid (PAA) was studied in localized skin lesions of rabbits produced by the intradermal inoculation of vaccinia virus (VV) and of Shope fibroma virus (SFV). Systemic administration of PAA by intraperitoneal injections had no significant effect on the pustular lesions induced by VV or on the benign skin tumors caused by SFV. A complete suppression of the appearance of VV-induced pustular lesions was achieved by 2% PAA ointment applied twice daily for 4 days, starting 24 hr after virus inoculation. A significant effect against SFV-induced tumors was obtained by PAA ointment applied beginning either 24 or 72 hr after virus inoculation. A complete suppression of SFV-induced tumors was observed when a dose of 10 mg PAA was injected intralesionally once daily for 5 days, beginning treatment 24 hr after virus inoculation. A significant reduction of the intensity of the tumors was seen following the same treatment schedule but with a delay of 72 hr after virus inoculation or by reducing the length of treatment to 3 days or with a dose of 1 mg injected intradermally daily for 5 days. After the healing of the lesions, PAA-treated rabbits were resistant to reinfections to the same extent as those in which spontaneous healing had occurred.