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Biomedical subjects

C Bianco

Publications and source records attributed to C Bianco.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

[Treatment with enalapril maleate in patients with arterial hypertension, pluri-metabolic syndrome and habitual snoring].

The effects of enalapril maleate were studied in a group of 6 patients with arterial hypertension, hypertensive cardiopathy, multiple metabolic disorders and habitual snoring. Earlier treatment with antihypertensive drugs (diuretics, antiadrenergics, calcium antagonists) had been suspended when a marked deterioration was noted in metabolic parameters and plasmatic electrolytes as well as extremely disturbed sleep. The latter is probably attributable to increased respiratory obstruction during the night as a result of the increased hypertonia of the muscles of the upper air ways due to low blood potassium as well as the central and peripheral effects of the antiadrenergic drugs. After the wash-out period there was a marked improvement in laboratory parameters that continued after treatment with enalapril maleate. In particular, apart from a further slight fall in blood cholesterol and uricaemia there was a statistically significant drop in triglyceride levels. The improvement in the laboratory parameters made it possible to reduce the doses of the drugs being taken for the metabolic disorders. A distinct improvement was also noted in the sleep disturbances especially the excessive drowsiness during the day. There was also a statistically significant drop in arterial, systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure without any significant change in heart beat. The results indicate that enalapril maleate should be the treatment of choice for those patients in whom high blood pressure is accompanied by alterations to the main metabolic parameters and habitual snoring.

Aged↗

[Aspecific bronchial reactivity during pharmacologic treatment of arterial hypertension].

The study of 216 hospitalised patients with essential arterial hypertension (108 males and 108 females) revealed a high percentage of essential arterial hypertension associated with other diseases, in particular chronic obstructive lung disease in males. The behaviour of bronchial hyperreactivity was studied in 10 patients by means of inhalation tests with carbachol in order to assess the extent of the condition and its response to antihypertensive treatment with alpha-methyldopa. The result showed that the drug had no effect on bronchial reactivity and is therefore to be recommended even in cases where chronic aspecific lung disease is associated with arterial hypertension.

Adult↗

[A case of acute sensory and autonomic neuropathy with regression].

The authors report the case of a 24 year old man with no previous disease who presented with a severe autonomic neuropathy. This included major gastrointestinal dysfunction characterised by decreased peristalsis without distension and paralysis of the gall bladder, and orthostatic hypotension with a normal cardiac tachycardia reflex. There was an associated sensory neuropathy affecting heat sensitivity without motor dysfunction and an increased CSF protein content. The proprioceptive nerve fibre conduction was decreased but another nerve conduction was normal initially. The mesenteric plexuses examined during sigmoidectomy performed for peritonitis due to multiple bowel perforations caused by fecoliths, showed no significant changes. Peripheral nerve biopsy revealed massive rarefaction of myelinated fibres which were of small diameter, and of the unmyelinated fibres, mainly due to axonal degeneration. Only two similar cases with incomplete recovery were found in the literature. In our case, a complete recovery was observed. The cause of the condition is unknown.

Acute Disease↗

[Edematogenic syndrome in diabetics treated with insulin: a little-known complication].

Two cases of insulin oedema similar to that of nephrotic syndrome were described. It appeared in two diabetic patients after the beginning of insulin therapy, when glycemia was normalized, as described by other Authors, with a spontaneous tendency to decrease. Pleural and pericardial effusion were also associated. The possible pathogenesis of insulin oedema in the two cases was discussed.

Diabetes Mellitus↗

Ageing and Parkinson's disease.

Based on the examination of 400 patients suffering from Parkinson's disease, the main symptoms of motor and brain ageing have been underlined. Motor ageing is evidenced by the importance of akinesis, while rigor and quaking are limited, and by the arrival of dystonic attitudes which tend to last. Brain ageing is revealed by memory disturbances, mental disorders and delusions without phasic or praxis troubles. The comparative study of different types of dementia did not allow clinical or anatomopathological confirmation.

Aged↗

Response of pulmonary macrophages to hyperoxic pulmonary injury. Acquisition of surface fibronectin and fibrin/ogen and enhanced expression of a fibronectin receptor.

The in vivo acquisition of coagulation plasma proteins on the surface of pulmonary macrophages was studied in guinea pigs breathing 95% oxygen. Fibrin/ogen and fibronectin appeared rapidly and concurrently on the surfaces of macrophages in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, which was judged by immunohistologic examination and flow cytometry. Pulmonary macrophages showed a parallel increase in the expression of a surface fibronectin receptor. Hyperoxic lung injury was accompanied by deposition of an extravascular pulmonary matrix of fibronectin and fibrin/ogen and depressed plasma levels of fibronectin. Binding to clot matrix proteins may lead to aggregation and retention of macrophages at sites of acute lung injury as well as alteration of cell function.

Animals↗

[Nitrendipine, a new calcium antagonist, in the therapy of arterial hypertension].

Bay e 5009 (nitrendipine) is a new calcium-antagonist that acts mainly on blood vessel smooth muscles. The effects of this drug on hypertensive patients of both sexes was investigated. Nine patients were treated for 42 days at a fixed dosage of 1 tablet/day. A highly significant fall in arterial pressure was obtained (p less than 0.001). Seven patients took 20 mg/day of nitrendipine for 14 days and a significant reduction in A.P. was obtained (p less than 0.001): for the next four weeks, the dosage was increased to 20 mg twice a day when a further decrease in systolic and diastolic A.P. was obtained without the occurrence of side effects. A further five patients were treated for 14 day (20 mg/day). These showed a fall in blood pressure levels (p less than 0.001) but suffered from slight oedema which made it necessary to suspend the treatment. An increase in heart rate was noted in all patients (p less than 0.001). This was due to reflex adrenergic activation. Nitrendipine therefore proved effective as an antihypertensive drug even at a daily dose of only 20 mg.

Adult↗

Monocyte receptors for fibronectin characterized by a monoclonal antibody that interferes with receptor activity.

We describe a molecule on the surface of human peripheral blood monocytes that appears to be a plasma membrane receptor for fibronectin. We have identified this protein using a monoclonal antibody, A6F10, which prevents the interaction between monocytes and substrate-bound fibronectin. Thus, at least functionally, the antibody appears to recognize the plasma membrane receptor for fibronectin. The antibody and its Fab fragments bound to the cell surfaces of human monocytes, tissue macrophages, and, to a lesser extent, neutrophils. It did not react with fibroblasts, lymphocytes, platelets, or erythrocytes. It bound human and guinea pig cells but did not react with rat, mouse, or hamster cells. In Western blots, this monoclonal antibody bound specifically to a polypeptide with apparent molecular weight of 110,000 and made of a single chain. The antigen recognized by A6F10 was susceptible to trypsin digestion. These observations suggest that the monoclonal antibody A6F10 is directed to the fibronectin receptor of human monocytes.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Visual evoked potentials and brainstem auditory evoked potentials in migraine and transient ischemic attacks.

A study of brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs) and pattern reversal visual evoked potentials (VEPs), recorded in intercritical phase, was carried out in 20 subjects (10 suffering from common migraine and 10 suffering from vertebrobasilar TIA) in order to obtain a comparative evaluation of cortical-subcortical functions. The data we obtained demonstrate the presence of BAEPs alterations in patients with previous vertebrobasilar TIA: no abnormalities were found in the migraine group. VEPs parameters are normal in both groups. Our data show that the study of the so-called "stimulus-related" potentials, such as BAEPs and pattern reversal VEPs, is useful in evaluating the damage produced by any noxa, while it cannot clearly emphasize individual factors predisposing to a specific pathology, as the absence of specific alterations in migraine patients demonstrates.

Adult↗

[Familial dementia of the Neumann type (subcortical gliosis)].

The case of a 70 year-old patient with familial dementia is reported. A cerebral biopsy and neurotransmitters dosages in CSF and brain tissue ruled out a primary dementia as Pick's or Alzheimer's disease. Our case may be related to Neumann's cases of subcortical gliosis.

Aged↗

[Neuroendocrinologic aspects of epilepsy].

Although the literature recognises the involvement of neuropeptide structures in the genesis of epilepsy, only tentative preliminary data are available at present. Experiments indicate that neuropeptides primarily involved in the genesis of epilepsy are leuencephalin, metencephalin and beta-endorphin. Their convulsion properties are apparently related to the specific levels, locations and convulsive potential of the individual substances. A qualitative and/or quantitative change to the GABA-neuropeptide balance may also be involved in convulsive disorders; decreased GABA fluid levels have been identified in both severely epileptic patients and infants with febrile convulsions. Neuropeptide modulation and GABAergic neurotransmission clearly therefore play a major role in the regulation of cortical bioelectrical activity. It is therefore likely that their interaction is involved in the genesis of epilepsy.

Epilepsy↗