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Biomedical subjects

A Khan

Publications and source records attributed to A Khan.

At least 433 records · Page 24Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Clinical features and management of malignant ascites.

Retrospective analysis of 45 patients (33 females, 12 males) with cytologically-proven malignant ascites is presented. Abdominal pain was the most frequent symptom (69%). Fiftythree percent cases had low serum albumin. Ascitic fluid was haemorrhagic or serosanguinous in 48% cases, in the rest it was clear or straw-coloured. Peritoneal effusion was exudative in 84% cases. Mean glucose content of ascitic fluid was 95 mg/dl and the mean white cell count of 919 cells/cmm. Vast majority (82%) of the cases had metastatic adenocarcinomas. Primary malignancy was mostly ovarian (47%) followed by non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (11%) and gall bladder carcinoma (9%). Primary site could not be identified in 13% cases. Sixty-two percent patients received systemic chemotherapy for the underlying malignancy, of these 43% had complete or partial resolution of the ascites. Of the patients whose long-term follow-up is available, 54% were alive with a median follow-up of 9 months.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Juvenile aggressive fibromatosis: report of three cases and review of the literature.

AF is a non-encapsulated, non-metastasizing fibrous tumor that has a tendency for local recurrence in up to 70% of cases. We suspect possible genetic disposition. Microscopically, AF is a poorly circumscribed fibrous tumor that infiltrates surrounding tissues. It presents as a painless, rapidly growing mass with a predilection for bone destruction. Treatment consists of a carefully planned en bloc resection after biopsy and accurate radiologic evaluation of the extent of the tumor. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy can be used as adjuvant therapy in selected patients. Three patients with AF of the head and neck are described, of which two were found to have congenital disorders of mesodermal development.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

A clinicopathological analysis of ovarian tumours.

We performed a retrospective analysis of patients with ovarian tumors who were admitted to the Aga Khan University Hospital from January 1985 to December 1989. Sixty one cases were reviewed. Mean age of the whole group was 44 years. Majority of the patients presented with abdominal pain and distention. Most frequent physical finding was a palpable mass on pelvic or abdominal examination. Overall these patients had a higher incidence of breast cancer than expected in the general population. Two-thirds of the tumors were malignant. Comparison of the patients with malignancy against those with benign tumors failed to show any correlation with parity. Majority of the patients with malignant disease were above forty and had ultrasound showing a cystic mass over 10 cms in size. Cancer was mostly epithelial in origin, with widespread disease (stage III or IV) at the time of presentation. Benign tumors, mostly of germ cell type, were predominantly seen in patients under the age of forty with ultrasound showing cystic mass of any size from under 5 cms to over 10 cms.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Venlafaxine in depressed outpatients.

Venlafaxine is a structurally novel compound with a biochemical and pharmacological profile suggesting antidepressant properties. We report the results of a Phase II, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial assessing the efficacy and safety of venlafaxine in a sample of 93 depressed outpatients. Venlafaxine doses of 25 mg t.i.d., 75 mg t.i.d., and 125 mg t.i.d. were compared to placebo. Patients receiving venlafaxine showed a significantly greater improvement in their mood symptoms compared to those receiving placebo. Venlafaxine was well tolerated and the most common side effect was nausea. There was some evidence to suggest that venlafaxine may have antidepressant activity within the first 2 weeks of treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Seasonal variation in the occurrence of Pallisentis ophiocephali and Acanthosentis betwai (Acanthocephala) in relation to their fish hosts.

Male and female Channa striatus (BL.) and Labeo rohita (HAM.) were examined monthly for Pallisentis ophiocephali (THAPAR, 1930) and Acanthosentis betwai (TRIPATHI, 1959) infections for a period of two years. C. striatus showed greater proportion of infection with P. ophiocephali in March to May and males were significantly more infected than females. L. rohita showed greater infection with A. betwai in June and July and sexes were not differentially affected. The frequencies of male and female P. ophiocephali and A. betwai in the overall sample did not depart significantly from the expected ratio of 1:1 and 2:3 though in certain months the deviation from these ratios was significant.

Acanthocephala↗
PubMed1991

Chronicity of depressive episode in relation to antidepressant-placebo response.

Pooled data from three 6-week placebo-controlled, double-blind, phase III clinical trials, designed to assess the efficacy of newer antidepressants, were retrospectively analyzed to study the relationship between chronicity of presenting depressive episode and response to placebo, imipramine, and adinazolam. One hundred forty-six depressed outpatients met criteria for inclusion into this study; 80 received placebo treatment, 27 imipramine and 39 adinazolam treatment. Consistent with our hypothesis the response to placebo was low in subjects who were depressed for 1 year or longer (22.6%) as compared to a higher response rate (44.9%) among those who were not as chronically depressed. The response to imipramine and adinazolam was not related to the duration of presenting depressive episode. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Epidural spinal cord compression from metastatic cancer: clinical features and management.

We retrospectively analyzed thirty-three patients (21 males, 12 females) with malignancy induced spinal cord compression (SCC). The mean age of the patients was 42.8 years and almost half (51%) of them presented with SCC. Mean duration of symptoms was 4.5 months and the mean interval between the original diagnosis of cancer and the development of SCC was 14.6 months. Back pain was the most frequent (97%) symptom with an equal number of patients having subjective or objective evidence of lower limb weakness. Majority (73%) of the patients were non-ambulatory at the time of diagnosis. Spinal level involvement was mostly thoracic (62%) followed by lumber (38%). Breast cancer was the commonest underlying malignancy (21%). Lung (12%), prostrate (12%), multiple myeloma (9%), and carcinoma with unknown primary (12%) were also frequently encountered. There was an overall response rate of 22% to the therapeutic interventions: mostly observed in the ambulatory patients. Only 7% of the non-ambulatory patients regained ability to walk. None of the responders had bladder or bowel dysfunction. Twenty-two percent of the responders are still ambulatory with a mean follow-up of six months.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Sleep is undisturbed in elderly, depressed individuals who have not sought health care.

Sleep deficits are commonly found in geriatric depressed patients, particularly shortened rapid eye movements (REM) latency, disturbed sleep continuity, and decreased slow wave sleep (SWS). Here we report the sleep patterns of community volunteers responding to ads about memory loss and depression. The two groups, 24 geriatric-onset major depressive disorder (MDD) subjects with a minimal history of seeking treatment for depression and 24 gender- and age-matched control subjects, significantly differed from each other on only one measure of sleep--sleep latency; the MDD group showed a modest but significant shortening of latency to fall asleep. All other sleep/wake measures, including REM latency, temporal distribution of REM sleep across the night, SWS, and measures of nighttime wakefulness did not differ between groups. This lack of significant sleep disturbance suggests that the sleep deficits reported in many studies of major depression may be related to factors underlying treatment-seeking behaviors, physical health status, severity of the depression, or heterogeneity within the MDD population with some types seeking treatment and others not seeking it, rather than depressive state per se. The data indicate that community-dwelling healthy elderly individuals who have a diagnosed major depression but who have not actively sought health care do not necessarily manifest the sleep disturbances thought to be characteristic of major depressive illness.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗
PubMed1990

Insulin potentiating factor and chromium content of selected foods and spices.

An unidentified factor that potentiates the action of insulin in glucose metabolism was investigated in selected foods and spices. Chromium content of these foods and spices was also determined. Foods and spices were extracted with 0.1N NH4OH (1:20, w/v) and the supernatants assayed for insulin potentiation activity in the rat epididymal fat cell assay. Among the selected foods, tuna fish, peanut butter, and vanilla ice cream had some insulin potentiating activity. Among the spices, apple pie spice, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, and turmeric potentiated insulin activity more than three-fold. Chromium concentration of foods ranged from 1 to 145 ng/g, and spices ranged from 4 to 1818 ng/g. Insulin potentiating activity of foods and spices did not correlate with total chromium. Spices are generally used for flavor and taste in food preparations, but cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, and turmeric may have an additional role in glucose metabolism.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

A multifactorial study of birth place options: improving health care delivery in Saudi Arabia.

Although consumer demands may dictate a review of the highly mechanized and sophisticated technology of obstetric care provided in some parts of the western world, problems in Saudi Arabia revolve around under-utilization of health care facilities for maternity care and the consequences of this circumstance. A multifactorial analysis was performed to study the association of certain social correlates with options for birth settings in a rural region of the Kingdom. Age and educational level of the mother were found to be highly significant (P less than 0.005) variables influencing the choice for place of delivery, whereas economic status (P greater than 0.1) and housing conditions (NS) tailed to make an equally impressive contribution. Within the constraints of available health care manpower at the local level, suggestions are made for the best strategy to successfully educate mothers for safer options in birth.

Developing Countries↗
PubMed1990

Antipsychotic effect of milieu in the acute treatment of schizophrenia.

We studied 35 patients meeting DSM-III criteria for schizophrenia, paranoid or undifferentiated type, chronic with acute exacerbation. All were treated in hospital, 13 on a psychiatric intensive care unit, and 22 on an open ward. The former unit is a more structured and less stimulating one. We found those patients treated on that ward to show greater improvement in BPRS ratings during the first 2 days of hospitalization compared to the open-ward group, despite similar doses of medication being utilized. Additionally, this improvement was noted to occur among BPRS items comprising a psychotic subscale.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1990

Pyoverdin-facilitated iron uptake in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: immunological characterization of the ferripyoverdin receptor.

A purified polyclonal antiserum directed against the isolated main 80 kD IROMP (iron-regulated outer-membrane protein) from Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 detected only the 80 kD polypeptide of outer-membrane proteins from PAO1 cells grown in iron deficiency in Western blots. It was also shown to inhibit the uptake of 59Fe pyoverdin by PAO1 cells as well as its binding to purified outer membranes. Immunofluorescence experiments with intact PAO1 cells confirmed that the receptor is present only at the surface of cells grown under conditions of iron deficiency. All these data allow us to conclude that the 80 kD main IROMP of P. aeruginosa is indeed the receptor for the siderophore ferripyoverdin.

Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins↗
PubMed1990

Bright light treatment of winter depression: morning versus evening light.

In a randomized crossover design, 7 patients with winter depression were treated with 7 d of bright morning light (0600 to 0800) and 7 d of evening light (2000 to 2200). Bright lights in the morning significantly reduced the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) score (18.4 to 5.0); the bright light in the evening moderately decreased the HRSD score (19.4 to 15.1). The improvement in the HRSD score was significantly greater with morning light than with evening light.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Construction and applications of DNA probes for detection of polychlorinated biphenyl-degrading genotypes in toxic organic-contaminated soil environments.

Several DNA probes for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-degrading genotypes were constructed from PCB-degrading bacteria. These laboratory-engineered DNA probes were used for the detection, enumeration, and isolation of specific bacteria degrading PCBs. Dot blot analysis of purified DNA from toxic organic chemical-contaminated soil bacterial communities showed positive DNA-DNA hybridization with a 32P-labeled DNA probe (pAW6194, cbpABCD). Less than 1% of bacterial colonies isolated from garden topsoil and greater than 80% of bacteria isolated from PCB-contaminated soils showed DNA homologies with 32P-labeled DNA probes. Some of the PCB-degrading bacterial isolates detected by the DNA probe method did not show biphenyl clearance. The DNA probe method was found to detect additional organisms with greater genetic potential to degrade PCBs than the biphenyl clearance method did. Results from this study demonstrate the usefulness of DNA probes in detecting specific PCB-degrading bacteria, abundance of PCB-degrading genotypes, and genotypic diversity among PCB-degrading bacteria in toxic chemical-polluted soil environments. We suggest that the DNA probe should be used with caution for accurate assessment of PCB-degradative capacity within soils and further recommend that a combination of DNA probe and biodegradation assay be used to determine the abundance of PCB-degrading bacteria in the soil bacterial community.

Bacteria↗
PubMed1990

Limited correlation of left ventricular end-diastolic pressure with radiographic assessment of pulmonary hemodynamics.

Left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP) is a reliable indicator of the diastolic function of the left ventricle. The purpose of this study was to correlate the radiographic assessment of pulmonary hemodynamics with LVEDP. The study population consisted of 104 consecutive patients with four categories of LVEDP: less than 13 mm Hg (n = 26), 13-19 mm Hg (n = 30), 20-24 mm Hg (n = 24), and more than 24 mm Hg (n = 24). Chest radiographs obtained within 24 hours of cardiac catheterization were assessed for evidence of congestive heart failure (CHF) by three experienced radiologists. Findings were graded from 0 to 3 (normal to abnormal) on the basis of the following signs of CHF: redistribution, perihilar and perivascular haze, peribronchial cuffing, pulmonary artery-bronchus ratio, septal lines, subpleural edema, air-space edema, pleural effusion, cardiomegaly, and overall radiographic assessment of CHF. A consensus report was then generated. In patients with LVEDP over 20 mm Hg, 38% did not show CHF in the overall assessment. Correlation between radiographic signs of CHF and LVEDP was limited.

Cardiac Catheterization↗
PubMed1990

Dexamethasone increases glucose cycling, but not glucose production, in healthy subjects.

We established that measurement of glucose fluxes through glucose-6-phosphatase (G-6-Pase; hepatic total glucose output, HTGO), glucose cycling (GC), and glucose production (HGP), reveals early diabetogenic changes in liver metabolism. To elucidate the mechanism of the diabetogenic effect of glucocorticoids, we treated eight healthy subjects with oral dexamethasone (DEX; 15 mg over 48 h) and measured HTGO with [2-3H]glucose and HGP with [6-3H]glucose postabsorptively and during a 2-h glucose infusion (11.1 mumol.kg-1.min-1). [2-3H]- minus [6-3H]glucose equals GC. DEX significantly increased plasma glucose, insulin, C peptide, and HTGO, while HGP was unchanged. In controls and DEX, glucose infusion suppressed HTGO (82 vs. 78%) and HGP (87 vs. 91%). DEX increased GC postabsorptively (three-fold) P less than 0.005 and during glucose infusion (P less than 0.05) but decreased metabolic clearance and glucose uptake (Rd), which eventually normalized, however. Because DEX increased HTGO (G-6-Pase) and not HGP (glycogenolysis + gluconeogenesis), we assume that DEX increases HTGO and GC in humans by activating G-6-Pase directly, rather than by expanding the glucose 6-phosphate pool. Hyperglycemia caused by peripheral effects of DEX can also contribute to an increase in GC by activating glucokinase. Therefore, measurement of glucose fluxes through G-6-Pase and GC revealed significant early effects of DEX on hepatic glucose metabolism, which are not yet reflected in HGP.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

A brief note on serum calcium levels in schizophrenics and controls.

The present investigation examined the relationship between serum calcium levels and schizophrenic disorder. Unlike earlier studies a wider range of diagnoses was surveyed, subjects were limited to first time admission, and the relationship of socio-demographic factors to the hypothesized biological risk factor was assessed. Analysis revealed no significant differences in levels of serum calcium between schizophrenics and four nonschizophrenic comparison groups, nor were any one of several socio-demographic factors found to correlate significantly with serum values. Some risk factors, however, differentiated between schizophrenics and nonschizophrenics. They were being single, poor employment history, and reason for admission. A more promising avenue for further research in the area is outlined.

Adolescent↗