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Biomedical subjects

C J Lang

Publications and source records attributed to C J Lang.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Zinc and its specific transporters as potential targets in airway disease.

The dietary group IIb metal zinc (Zn) plays essential housekeeping roles in cellular metabolism and gene expression. It regulates a number of cellular processes including mitosis, apoptosis, secretion and signal transduction as well as critical events in physiological processes as diverse as insulin release, T cell cytokine production, wound healing, vision and neurotransmission. Critical to these processes are the mechanisms that regulate Zn homeostasis in cells and tissues. The proteins that control Zn uptake and compartmentalization are rapidly being identified and characterized. Recently, the first images of sub-cellular pools of Zn in airway epithelium have been obtained. This review discusses what we currently know about Zn in the airways, both in the normal and inflamed states, and then considers how we might target Zn metabolism by developing strategies to monitor and manipulate airway Zn levels in airway disease.

Absorption↗
PubMed2004

[Primary loss of consciousness and amnesia in subarachnoid hemorrhage--a quantitative study].

Subarachnoid hemorrhages (SAH) being sudden events affecting the brain in a rather wide-spread fashion are apt to induce loss of consciousness (LOC) and amnesia. The aim of the present study was to collect data on their frequency and extent. To this end we examined 48 patients at a mean of one year post-onset. Two thirds of them reported anterograde and an additional 17% retrograde amnesia; in 40% LOC (median 6 minutes) was observed. The durations were extremely skewed towards shorter times with a median of 2.7 days for anterograde and 1.3 days for retrograde amnesia who--with a single exception--were markedly shorter than anterograde amnesia. Summing up, a significant proportion of all SAH suffered LOC and amnesia occurred in the majority of cases. SAH therefore are events which with respect to LOC and amnesia bear some resemblance with closed head injuries. Exact observation and history taking may disclose important data on their severity and possible sequelae.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Recognition of familiar handwriting in stroke and dementia.

Patients with left stroke (n = 17), right stroke (n = 16), and dementia (n = 17) and healthy controls (n = 15) were asked to recognize familiar handwriting among 10 handwritten texts. All healthy controls and 96% of the left-brain-damaged patients were able to recognize the familiar handwriting, but only 44% of the right-brain-damaged and 41% of the dementia patients (none if Mini-Mental Status Test score was <18, n = 5) were able to do so. The authors conclude that the recognition of handwriting is a special skill that is independent of other verbal and lexical tasks.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

[Cerebrovascular circulation from a clinical view. Historical review, physiology, pathophysiology, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects].

Strokes have been known since ancient times. Today, stroke is the second most frequent cause of death and the most frequent cause of invalidity. In about 80% of cases, stroke is caused by cerebral ischemia and in about 20% by intracerebral hemorrhage, subarachnoidal hemorrhage, venous thrombosis and other cerebrovascular diseases. The brain is one of the most richly perfused tissues and depends fundamentally on the supply of oxygen and glucose. In order to assure adequate cerebral blood flow, the brain is capable of autoregulation through the interaction of diverse autoregulatory mechanisms (myogenic, neurogenic and metabolic factors, blood viscosity, renin-angiotensin-system and endothelium). Reduction of cerebral blood flow below the threshold of about 25 ml/100 g x min leads to an impairment of the functional metabolism and later to impairment of the structural metabolism. Pathophysiologically, a large number of isolated pathobiochemical processes (loss of energy, lactate acidosis, excitating amino acid release, ion balance disorders, calcium overload, free radical release, etc.) start to interfere with each other. Delayed edema and inflammation lead to secondary brain damage. Apoptosis is probably induced by ischemia and can cause secondary deterioration. The basic principles in the treatment of ischemia are firstly the rapid restoration of cerebral blood flow (lysis, carotid endarterectomy) and secondly--following infarction--a limitation of brain damage (preservation of ischemic but not necrotic brain tissue, prevention of secondary complications). Stroke treatment requires profound diagnostic and therapeutic expertise and interdisciplinary cooperation of neuroradiologists, neurosurgeons, vascular surgeons and cardiologists. Stroke can best be managed in special "stroke units", which have now been established in nearly all parts of Germany. Beside acute management of stroke and neurological rehabilitative treatment, emphasis has to be laid on primary (public information, education, treatment of risk factors) and secondary prophylaxis (treatment with antiaggregants, anticoagulants, a. o.).

Brain Ischemia↗
PubMed2001

Disease latency in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease via dural grafting: a case report.

The case of a 57-year old man is reported who had been operated upon for cerebellar angioblastoma more than 19 years previously. Having received a lyophilized dural patch he developed Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease of which he died 19 months later. This is the longest latency with dura-associated Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease reported so far.

Cerebellar Neoplasms↗
PubMed2001

Ultrasonography for the evaluation of forearm interosseous membrane disruption in a cadaver model.

Recognition of interosseous membrane disruption associated with radial head injury and Essex-Lopresti injury is important, especially if radial head excision is contemplated. Because a widely accepted method to diagnose interosseous membrane disruption does not exist, we evaluated the accuracy of ultrasonography to diagnose this injury in a cadaver model. Nine pairs of cadaver forearms were randomized into 2 groups. The central third of the interosseous membrane of forearms of group 1 was cut, whereas it was visualized but not cut in group 2. A dynamic ultrasound examination was performed to determine interosseous membrane integrity, and static images were made. The static images were evaluated by 2 other radiologists and interpretations were recorded. One radiologist incorrectly interpreted 1 pair of forearms; the other 2 radiologists were 100% accurate. The accuracy of ultrasonography in detecting interosseous injuries was 96% with our methods.

Biomechanical Phenomena↗
PubMed2001

A nonimpact article about nonimpact injury.

If reports of this caliber are required to insinuate that significant "brain damage" may ensue from rather mild nonimpact injury, there is some a priori reason to believe that this is not the case. The introduction of security belts, head rests, side-impact protection, and air bags has made driving safer; yet, the incidence of "brain injury" is allegedly rising. To definitely settle this issue, we will have to wait for other, preferably prospective, randomized, double-blind studies yielding a higher class of evidence. So, what do we learn from this study? First, in the United States, it is possible to select a sample of litigants that after a car accident or similar injury behaves and complains the way they did, even if there was no proof of morphological brain damage. Second, reports like this headed by a misleading title should better go unpublished until certain minimal standards of scientific scrutiny are met.

Brain↗
PubMed2000

Longitudinal study of neurotoxicity with occupational exposure to aluminum dust.

Two cross-sectional studies were conducted at a German aluminum (Al) powder plant to evaluate possible nervous system effects from occupational Al exposure. The investigation included biological monitoring, a neuropsychological test battery, and event-related P300 potentials. Neurophysiologic findings in workers chronically exposed to Al dust did not differ from non-Al-exposed controls from the same plant. The authors suggest that chronic exposure to Al dust, at the levels documented in this study, does not induce measurable cognitive decline.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

[Olfactory testing with "sniffin' sticks" for clinical diagnosis of Parkinson disease].

Olfactory dysfunction seems to be one of the most frequent symptoms in idiopathic parkinsonian syndrome (IPS). In contrast to the increasing number of studies providing evidence of the usefulness of olfactory tests in the diagnosis of IPS, clinical assessment of olfactory function is rarely performed. This may be due to the lack of an easy-to-use, inexpensive, standardized, and reliable test. In this study, we administered the newly developed "sniffin' sticks" test to a group of 40 nondemented IPS patients and compared the results with 40 healthy controls matched for age, gender, and smoking habits. In all three subtests including odor identification, odor detection threshold, and odor discrimination, the control group scored significantly better than the IPS group, yielding a specificity and sensitivity of 90% each. Our results indicate that olfactory disturbances in IPS can be found at early stages of the disease, appear bilaterally, and do not correlate with the dominant side of parkinsonism. Therefore, we emphasize that olfactory testing may be a useful tool in the diagnosis of IPS.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2000

Neurologic manifestations of cerebral air embolism as a complication of central venous catheterization.

UNLABELLED: OBJECTIVE, PATIENTS, AND METHODS: A severe case of cerebral air embolism after unintentional central venous catheter disconnection was the impetus for a systematic literature review (1975-1998) of the clinical features of 26 patients (including our patient) with cerebral air embolism resulting from central venous catheter complications. RESULTS: The jugular vein had been punctured in eight patients and the subclavian vein, in 12 patients. Embolism occurred in four patients during insertion, in 14 patients during unintentional disconnection, and in eight patients after removal and other procedures. The total mortality rate was 23%. Two types of neurologic manifestations may be distinguished: group A (n = 14) presented with encephalopathic features leading to a high mortality rate (36%); and group B (n = 12) presented with focal cerebral lesions resulting in hemiparesis or hemianopia affecting mostly the right hemisphere, with a mortality rate as high as 8%. In 75% of patients, an early computed tomography indicated air bubbles, proving cerebral air embolism. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy was performed in only three patients (12%). A cardiac defect, such as a patent foramen ovale was considered the route of right to left shunting in 6 of 15 patients (40%). More often, a pulmonary shunt was assumed (9 of 15 patients; 60%). For the remainder, data were not available. CONCLUSION: When caring for critically ill patients needing central venous catheterization, nursing staff and physicians should be aware of this potentially lethal complication.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

The use of neuroimaging techniques for clinical detection of neurotoxicity: a review.

Although toxins exert their impact on a molecular level, they may yield molar effects by affecting areas large enough to be visualized by neuroimaging techniques. Therefore, neuroimaging of the brain may be used to render the macroscopic sequelae of neurotoxins visible. Toxic agents may induce brain edema or atrophy, demyelination, infarctions, calcifications, hemorrhages, or changes of perfusion, metabolism or receptor density. Although they do not readily disclose their nature, clues as to the offending agent may in some instances be gleaned from the pattern, distribution, and appearance of the cerebral changes. Intoxication, however, has always to be proved or substantiated independently by appropriate means. This paper deals with the extent and certainty to which conclusions as to some of the most common offending substances may be drawn from pictures of the brain.

Brain↗