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Biomedical subjects

A Cavallo

Publications and source records attributed to A Cavallo.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Plasma melatonin rhythm in disorders of puberty: interactions of age and pubertal stages.

A concurrent effect of age and puberty has hampered assessment of the influence of melatonin on human puberty. This study examined the pineal-puberty interaction in 41 subjects (ages 5-17 years) whose puberty was asynchronous from age (constitutional delay, hypopituitarism and idiopathic precocious puberty). Melatonin nocturnal profile was determined using blood samples drawn hourly by constant withdrawal. There was no significant trend for melatonin peak or time peak in pubertal or age groups. The linear correlation between age and melatonin peak was not significant. Thus, neither age nor puberty alone can account for the decline in nocturnal melatonin concentration observed across human development.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Sleep, clonidine, and their interactive effect on growth hormone secretion in normal men.

Central alpha 2-adrenergic function is often inferred from the growth hormone (GH) response to clonidine, despite the drug's known hypnotic effect and the accepted cholinergic mechanism for sleep-related GH secretion. We examined the effect of daytime sleep on GH secretion in normal men taking placebo or clonidine orally, using a two-group blind design (placebo, clonidine; n = 9 each). Each subject participated in two morning sessions monitored by polysomnography: wake (sleep actively prevented) and sleep (subjects asked to sleep for 3 hr after receiving placebo or clonidine). Blood samples were drawn at times -15 min, 0, and every 30 min for 3 hr after the test dose was given. The total sleep time was similar for both groups. The placebo/wake group had lower GH responses than the other three groups. None of the GH responses in the clonidine/sleep group were significantly different from those in the placebo/sleep group; and the peak GH micrograms/L, mean +/- SD) was 16.9 +/- 10.9 vs. 14.6 +/- 10.5, respectively. We conclude that the GH response to clonidine may not be indicative of alpha 2-adrenergic function if sleep is permitted during the test.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1990

Plasma insulin-like growth factor I levels during treatment of congenital adrenal hyperplasia.

We tested the hypotheses that the levels of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) reflect the degree of control during the treatment of patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), and that suppressed IGF-I levels during puberty contribute to decreased adult height. We measured serial IGF-I levels in 26 CAH patients followed over 6 months to 5 years. The control of CAH was variable, with several cases of overtreatment in infancy, and frequent undertreatment in childhood and adolescence. IGF-I levels were quite variable and inconsistent with the control of CAH. Our results suggest that IGF-I levels are not helpful in monitoring CAH patients; IGF-I does not seem to play a role in the growth failure during CAH therapy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

[Ultrasonic identification of foreign bodies in superficial soft tissues].

The authors investigated US capabilities in detecting foreign bodies retained in superficial soft tissues. Ten patients were studied: 5 of them with history of recent trauma and 5 with painful superficial swelling where US revealed the presence of foreign matter. US findings were confirmed by subsequent surgical specimens. In the first group of patients, a hyperechoic stripe was observed, whereas a hyperchoice nodule with a hyperechoic core was detected in the second group of patients. The latter US pattern may be explained by the presence of a reactive granuloma. US has shown to be very useful in diagnosing this kind of lesion, and it can thus be considered as the only reliable imaging modality to identify radiolucent foreign bodies.

Evaluation Studies as Topic↗
PubMed1990

[Monoclonal gammopathy of uncertain significance in rheumatic disease].

Among 358 patients with rheumatic diseases, the incidence of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) as detected by immunofixation was 4.4% (11 of 248 patients) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 3% (1 of 32 patients) in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), 6% (3 of 49 patients) in Sjögren's syndrome (SS) and 3% (1 of 29 patients) in progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS). Solid tumor was present in 4 (36%) of the 11 RA-MGUS patients. In these cases the monoclonal component could be related to a paraneoplastic syndrome rather than to rheumatic diseases. The association of rheumatic diseases, MGUS, solid tumor and immunological disorders are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Thymectomy in myasthenia gravis. Results of 662 cases operated upon in 15 years.

The results of thymectomy in the treatment of myasthenia gravis (MG) are reviewed in the light of a personal series of 662 MG patients, operated upon during the last 15 years. In 500 MG patients without thymoma, the following results have been achieved: remission 37.9%, improvement 49.4%, unchanged or worse 7.4%, dead 5.2%. There is no sex prevalence and the remission rate is higher in patients under 40 years of age (P less than 0.01), with mild disease (P less than 0.05), with a MG duration of less than 1 year (P less than 0.05) and with a follow-up length of between 5 and 10 years (P less than 0.01). No correlations are found between outcome and thymic histology. The results of 162 MG patients with thymoma are: remission rate 15.7%, improvement 60.3%, unchanged or worse 3.7% and dead 20.1%. The remission rate is higher with mild symptoms (P less than 0.05) and when the tumour is encapsulated (P less than 0.02). The postoperative mortality is 0.8% (none in the last 5 years) for non-thymomatous MG and 4.9% for thymomatous MG (2 of 8 patients died of pancytopaenia and 1 of pulmonary embolism).

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Evoked potentials show early and delayed abnormalities in children with congenital hypothyroidism.

To evaluate the effect of congenital hypothyroidism (CH) on nervous system development, we performed evoked potential studies on 7 CH infants at 3-8 weeks of age before treatment and at four months or more after treatment began. All infants were screened using filter paper determination of T4 and TSH, confirmed by serum specimen determinations. These infants had serum TSH concentrations greater than 100 microU/ml (normal less than 7), and the serum T4 range was 4.1-8.5 micrograms/dl. All had thyroid tissue on 99Tc scan; five had ectopic thyroid tissue, and two had a thyroid gland in the normal location. Four older CH children were tested after 3-6 years of treatment. Brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEP) were abnormal in three of the 7 infants and showed bilateral conduction delays in caudal brainstem regions. The BAEP became normal after 6 months of thyroxine treatment. Visual evoked potentials (VEP) were abnormally delayed and had an immature pattern in the four patients tested at four weeks of age. At age 8 weeks, even in untreated patients, the VEP was normal and remained so. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) were normal at the time of diagnosis. However, seven patients tested after at least five months of therapy had prolonged central conduction times. We conclude that infants with relatively mild CH (serum T4 values greater than 4 micrograms/dl at 3-8 weeks of age) have evidence of delayed visual system maturation that becomes normal even without treatment and of abnormal caudal brainstem development that resolves slowly with replacement therapy.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Brain↗
PubMed1989

Sleepiness and nap sleep following a morning dose of clonidine.

The effects of a single oral dose of clonidine on morning nap sleep and daytime sleepiness were evaluated in 18 normal young adult male volunteers aged 18-21 years. Polysomnography and subjective sleepiness (Stanford Sleepiness Scale and linear analog sleepiness rating scale) measures were obtained on 2 mornings. Half the subjects received placebo and half clonidine (0.25-0.3 mg) on both occasions. Subjects were instructed to stay awake on the first morning (wake) and to sleep on the second (sleep). Efforts were made to help subjects maintain arousal on the wake day. Results from the wake morning showed that clonidine subjects were significantly sleepier than placebo subjects as measured by introspection. In addition, clonidine subjects tended to have more polysomnographic signs of sleepiness (microsleeps) when not actively aroused. On the sleep morning, clonidine and placebo subjects slept for approximately 90% of the 3-h nap. Stage 1 and rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep were significantly reduced and stage 2 sleep significantly increased in the clonidine group. In conclusion, a morning dose of clonidine produced profound sedation in waking subjects and marked REM suppression in sleeping subjects.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

[Echotomographic evaluation of the anterior urethra].

A simple method of sonographic (US) evaluation of penile and bulbous urethra is reported. Twenty-three dysuric patients were examined. They were divided into 2 groups according to their pathology. The US patterns of normal urethra were evaluated in 10 patients (first group) with no obstructive lesions. Urethral and periurethral structures were examined in 13 patients (second group) with urethral obstructive pathology. All patients underwent conventional cystourethrography. The diagnostic parameters considered were urethral gauge and thickness, echogenicity of the urethral wall, and Cowper's glands. US evaluation of obstructive lesions provided the same findings as conventional radiological techniques. Moreover, US allowed the evaluation of both thickness and echogenicity of the urethral wall, and of normal/injured Cowper's glands.

Adolescent↗