Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

D A Lieberman

Publications and source records attributed to D A Lieberman.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Improved scintigraphic assessment of severe cholestasis with the hepatic extraction fraction.

In previous studies, we found that biliary scintigraphy with technetium-99m-labeled iminodiacetic acid ([99mTc]IDA) provided excellent discrimination between intrahepatic and extrahepatic cholestasis, except in patients with profound cholestasis who had poor visualization of the biliary tree. In this study, we have used deconvolution analysis to determine the hepatic extraction fraction (HEF) of a hypothetical single circulatory pass of [99mTc]IDA. Our hypothesis was that extraction of radionuclide from the blood would be normal in patients with extrahepatic obstruction alone, but would be impaired in patients with intrahepatic disease (IHD). The purpose of this study was to compare the HEF in patients with profound cholestasis (bilirubin greater than or equal to 3.0 mg/dl) due to either IHD or common bile duct obstruction (CBDO). Normal subjects (N = 13) had an HEF of 100%. Patients with CBDO (N = 13) had slightly reduced HEF values (92.8 +/- 3.2%) despite profound hyperbilirubinemia (6.1 +/- 1.0 mg/dl). Patients with IHD (N = 23) had a markedly reduced HEF (43.1 +/- 4.1%) which was significantly lower than patients with CBDO and normal subjects (P less than 0.001). We conclude that the determination of the HEF during biliary scintigraphy is helpful in distinguishing between intrahepatic and extrahepatic disease in patients with hyperbilirubinemia (bilirubin greater than or equal to 3.0 mg/dl).

Bilirubin↗

Nonverbal sensitivity of normal-hearing and hearing-impaired older adults.

The study compared the nonverbal decoding abilities of normal-hearing and hard-of-hearing older adults using the Profile of Nonverbal Sensitivity (PONS). The PONS test allowed the measurement of subjects' decoding accuracy for a variety of nonverbal cues presented under two auditory, three visual, and six audiovisual conditions. Nonverbal perceptual scores were lower for the hearing-impaired group under all presentation conditions. Perception of prosodic features of speech by hearing-impaired subjects was significantly related to low-frequency hearing sensitivity. Between-group differences in the decoding of visually transmitted nonverbal cues varied across visual presentation conditions. Results are compared to past deaf studies and related to processing strategies used by normal-hearing and hearing-impaired persons.

Aged↗

24-hour esophageal pH monitoring before and after medical therapy for reflux esophagitis.

Medical treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease often results in improvement of symptoms. The purpose of this study was to determine if improvement in symptoms and endoscopic appearance after treatment was associated with a reduction in reflux, as measured with 24-hr pH recordings. Twenty patients with severe chronic reflux esophagitis participated in an eight-week double-blind trial of medical therapy with metoclopramide and cimetidine versus placebo and cimetidine. Significant symptom score improvement was noted in 11 patients. Eleven patients also had improvement in the endoscopic appearance of the esophageal mucosa, and eight of these patients had significant symptom improvement. Initial 24-hr pH recordings were abnormal in all patients, evidenced by an esophageal pH less than 4 during 20% of the study period. Improvement in 24-hr results was noted in only five patients--three with clinical and endoscopic improvement, and two with no improvement. In conclusion, there was no relationship between clinical improvement and the results of 24-hr pH recordings. Successful symptom relief and endoscopic healing of esophagitis during medical treatment may occur despite persistent reflux of gastric contents.

Cimetidine↗

Primary biliary cirrhosis: Tc-99m IDA planar and SPECT scanning.

The authors studied ten patients with primary biliary cirrhosis using planar and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT); results were compared with those from 13 healthy subjects. Patients with primary biliary cirrhosis had six- to tenfold prolongation of mean halflife (t 1/2) hepatic excretion of technetium-99m iminodiacetic acid (IDA) compared with mean t 1/2 excretion in healthy subjects. All patients with primary biliary cirrhosis had diffuse, uniform hepatic isotope retention and normal major bile ducts on planar and SPECT scans. The gallbladder was seen within 60 minutes in nine of nine patients who had intact gallbladders. The mean gallbladder volume was normal, but gallbladder ejection fractions and ejection rates were reduced in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis compared with those of healthy subjects. In contrast with previous studies of patients with sclerosing cholangitis and common bile duct obstruction, patients with primary biliary cirrhosis had different findings on scintiscans. In the early evaluation of patients with cholestasis, Tc-99m IDA hepatobiliary scintigraphy may be useful in the selection of the most appropriate invasive diagnostic test to enable a definitive diagnosis.

Adult↗

In the eye of the needle. A reappraisal of endoscopic sclerotherapy.

Endoscopic sclerotherapy is routinely used as treatment for bleeding esophageal varices. Recent controlled trials have evaluated the impact of sclerosis on short and long term survival after varices hemorrhage and compared sclerotherapy with shunt surgery. These studies are reviewed and the future of sclerotherapy discussed.

Esophageal and Gastric Varices↗

Frequency of isolated proximal colonic polyps among patients referred for colonoscopy.

The American Cancer Society now advocates screening asymptomatic populations over the age of 40 to 50 years for colonic malignancy. It is possible, however, that fecal occult blood testing and sigmoidoscopy to 60 cm would fail to identify patients with adenomatous polyps located only in the proximal colon. The purpose of this study was to determine how many patients without polyps in the distal 60 cm of the colon would have more proximal lesions. Ninety-eight consecutive patients with positive fecal blood test results or suspicious barium enema results were studied, using the assumption that if they had been seen six months earlier, when asymptomatic, they would have been candidates for screening examination. Forty-one (42%) of 98 patients had adenomatous polyps or cancer, and 15 (37%) of these patients had isolated proximal lesions. The polyp detection rate from 0 to 60 cm was significantly less than the detection rate for a full colonoscopy (27% vs 42%). We conclude that isolated proximal colonic polyps may be common.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Hepatocyte versus biliary disease: a distinction by deconvolutional analysis of technetium-99m IDA time-activity curves.

A combination of quantitative hepatobiliary imaging techniques was developed to study normal control subjects and patients with 3 categories of hepatobiliary disease: 1) alcoholic cirrhosis; 2) sclerosing cholangitis; and 3) isolated common bile duct obstruction. Scintigraphic images were supplemented by quantitative measurement of hepatic extraction fraction by deconvolutional analysis and liver excretion T 1/2 by a nonlinear least squares method. In diseases confined primarily to the biliary tract (isolated common bile duct obstruction and sclerosing cholangitis), the mean hepatic extraction fraction as measured by deconvolutional analysis was not different from that in normal controls. In severe alcoholic cirrhosis, considered primarily a hepatocyte disease, the hepatic extraction fraction was markedly reduced. The T 1/2 excretion, compared to normal subjects, was prolonged in all three liver disease categories. We conclude that these quantitative parameters were able to detect hepatobiliary disease and to separate severe hepatocyte disease from biliary tract disease.

Biliary Tract Diseases↗

Metabolic bone disease in asymptomatic men after partial gastrectomy with Billroth II anastomosis.

We sought to determine whether gastric surgery might be associated with metabolic bone disease in a well-characterized population, and if so to explore its etiology. Sixteen asymptomatic middle-aged men who had had partial gastrectomy with Billroth II anastomosis but no other risk factors for metabolic bone disease were compared with unoperated healthy controls. Studies included a dietary survey, biochemical tests of bone and mineral metabolism, radiographs of the spine, determinations of bone mineral content, and bone histomorphometry. The gastric surgery subjects exhibited frequent vertebral fractures and an unusual constellation of bone abnormalities characterized by decreased bone mineral content and hyperosteoidosis without evidence of osteomalacia. Although serum immunoreactive parathyroid hormone and 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were not different, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels were significantly higher (p = 0.037), and 24,25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels were significantly lower (p less than 0.0001) in subjects than in controls. Partial gastrectomy with Billroth II anastomosis may be associated with asymptomatic but clinically important metabolic bone disease. The pathophysiology is uncertain, but appears to involve alterations in vitamin D metabolism.

Bone Diseases, Metabolic↗

Diagnosis of sclerosing cholangitis with technetium 99m-labeled iminodiacetic acid planar and single photon emission computed tomographic scintigraphy.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether 99mTc-iminodiacetic acid planar biliary scintigraphy combined with single photon emission computed tomography could detect sclerosing cholangitis and provide additional information regarding the extent and severity of disease. Thirteen patients with sclerosing cholangitis and 13 normal control subjects were studied. Scintigraphic results were also compared with previously reported studies of patients with isolated common bile duct obstruction and with primary biliary cirrhosis. The planar scintigraphy in patients with sclerosing cholangitis showed beading or bandlike constrictions of the biliary tract corresponding to lesions seen on cholangiography, and the image pattern was distinctly different from images obtained from patients with isolated common bile duct obstruction or primary biliary cirrhosis. The single photon emission computed tomography images of the liver in patients with sclerosing cholangitis demonstrated multiple focal areas of 99mTc-iminodiacetic acid retention, representing bile stasis in intrahepatic bile ducts. Compared to controls, the mean hepatic clearance half-time of 99mTc-iminodiacetic acid was markedly delayed in patients with sclerosing cholangitis (6-10 times normal). Individual patients with sclerosing cholangitis had wider variation in isotope clearance half-time from three regions of the liver than patients with isolated common bile duct obstruction, consistent with regional difference in disease severity and variable impairment of bile flow. In 4 patients with sclerosing cholangitis with incomplete filling of the right and left hepatic ducts at cholangiography, planar and single photon emission computed tomographic scintigraphy provided evidence of significant intrahepatic sclerosing cholangitis. In conclusion, combined 99mTc-iminodiacetic acid planar and single photon emission computed tomographic scintigraphy is a sensitive noninvasive test for the diagnosis of sclerosing cholangitis and reliably differentiates sclerosing cholangitis from isolated common bile duct obstruction or primary biliary cirrhosis. Measurement of isotope clearance half-time provides quantitative physiologic data that may be useful in the longitudinal follow-up of patients with sclerosing cholangitis.

Adult↗

Medical therapy for chronic reflux esophagitis. Long-term follow-up.

The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the long-term course of medically treated severe reflux esophagitis to determine if prolonged pharmacologic therapy was necessary to control symptoms. Twenty patients with chronic reflux esophagitis (mean duration, 13 years) achieved significant clinical improvement after acute intensive therapy with cimetidine and metoclopramide. During the 26-month follow-up period after remission, nine (45%) patients experienced a relapse of symptoms as drug dosages were tapered or discontinued, eight (40%) patients remained in remission, and three experienced a relapse of symptoms after a remission of longer than two years. Lower esophageal sphincter pressures were lower among patients who relapsed compared with patients with prolonged remission (4.9 vs 13.2 mm Hg). Drug requirements to maintain symptom control were antacids alone in five patients, bedtime H2-blocker in five, full-dose H2-blocker in four, and bedtime metoclopramide (10 mg) plus an H2-blocker in six. Moreover, the symptoms of three patients receiving full-dose H2-blocker therapy were controlled with antacids alone for two years, until relapse occurred. In conclusion, some patients with severe, long-standing reflux esophagitis will have a lasting response to short-term intensive medical therapy. Long-term intensive therapy may be unnecessary in many patients. Patients with lower sphincter pressures may have a higher likelihood of symptomatic relapse.

Barrett Esophagus↗

Eosinophilic gastroenteritis presenting with biliary and duodenal obstruction.

Eosinophilic gastroenteritis is a rare disease associated with eosinophilic infiltration of the gastrointestinal tract which can result in gastroduodenal obstruction. Biliary obstruction due to duodenal disease is rare, and the simultaneous occurrence of obstruction of the duodenum and biliary tract has not been previously reported. We now present a patient with abrupt onset of both biliary tract and duodenal obstruction due to eosinophilic infiltration of the muscularis of the duodenum and stomach. The differential diagnosis and unique features of this disease are reviewed.

Cholestasis↗

Intrahepatic versus extrahepatic cholestasis. Discrimination with biliary scintigraphy combined with ultrasound.

Biliary scintigraphy and ultrasound imaging were performed in 52 patients with suspected biliary tract pathology. Results were correlated with the findings of direct cholangiography. Several new innovations in scintigraphic technique were used. The combination of ultrasound imaging and scintigraphy correctly identified biliary tract obstruction in 17 of 19 patients, 12 of whom had dilated bile ducts on ultrasonography. Intrahepatic cholestasis was correctly diagnosed in 11 of 13 patients. Accurate discrimination between intrahepatic and extrahepatic cholestasis was achieved in 28 of 32 patients (88%) with the combined studies. Scintigraphy also provided a correct diagnosis of acute cholecystitis in all 9 patients with surgically confirmed disease. Eleven additional patients with gallbladder or pancreatic disease had normal bile ducts at scintigraphy, which was confirmed with cholangiography. When combined with ultrasound imaging, modern biliary scintigraphy can (a) provide excellent discrimination between intrahepatic and extrahepatic cholestasis and (b) help determine the need for subsequent invasive diagnostic studies in selected patients.

Adult↗

Intrahepatic cholestasis due to Hodgkin's disease. An elusive diagnosis.

The case of a 53-year-old man with idiopathic cholestasis due to Hodgkin's disease illustrates the difficulty in making a definitive diagnosis and the limitations of noninvasive imaging studies. Hodgkin's disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of profound intrahepatic cholestasis.

Cholestasis, Intrahepatic↗

Treatment of severe reflux esophagitis with cimetidine and metoclopramide.

Reflux esophagitis may be unresponsive to standard medical therapy with an H2-receptor antagonist drug. Twenty-five patients with chronic reflux esophagitis, refractory to cimetidine treatment alone, were randomly assigned in a double-blind design to receive cimetidine (1200 mg/d), in combination with metoclopramide (40 mg/d) or placebo. Nine of twelve patients receiving cimetidine with metoclopramide had significant symptomatic improvement at the end of the 8-week study period, compared with 3 of 12 patients receiving cimetidine with placebo (p less than 0.02). Endoscopic appearance improved in 9 patients receiving metoclopramide and in 4 patients receiving placebo (p less than 0.05). Neither group had significant improvement in lower esophageal sphincter pressure, 24-hour esophageal pH recordings, and esophageal histologic findings. Side effects were common with cimetidine and metoclopramide but were rarely disabling. This combination is efficacious in the management of chronic reflux esophagitis but, because of frequent side effects, should be reserved for patients refractory to treatment with cimetidine alone.

Biopsy↗

Sclerotherapy for bleeding esophageal varices after randomized trials.

Endoscopic sclerotherapy remains an uncertain therapy for bleeding esophageal varices. Several recently reported randomized trials address the efficacy of immediate, long-term and prophylactic sclerotherapy. Analysis of these studies suggests that sclerotherapy may stop acute bleeding but has little impact on survival of an acute bleeding episode. Ongoing sclerosis reduces the incidence of rebleeding episodes and improves survival for those patients fortunate enough to survive the acute bleeding episode. Prophylactic therapy is an exciting concept limited by difficulty in identifying "high-risk" patients and by the high rate of complications associated with sclerotherapy.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗

Cardiopulmonary risk of esophagogastroduodenoscopy. Role of endoscope diameter and systemic sedation.

The impact of endoscope diameter and the presence of systemic sedation on the cardiopulmonary risk of esophagogastroduodenoscopy was investigated. One hundred and forty-six patients undergoing elective esophagogastroduodenoscopy were randomly assigned to one of three groups which differed in either endoscope diameter or use of sedation: group 1 (8.5-mm endoscope with no sedation), group 2 (8.5-mm endoscope with diazepam), and group 3 (11.5-mm endoscope with diazepam). Esophagogastroduodenoscopy was tolerated best by group 2, and this group had the fewest electrocardiographic changes observed on a Holter recording during esophagogastroduodenoscopy. The incidence of electrocardiographic changes during esophagogastroduodenoscopy correlated with patient tolerance (p less than 0.001) and the use of the smaller endoscope (p less than 0.05). The most common arrhythmia was sinus tachycardia (49 patients), but more serious electrocardiographic changes were observed in 21 patients. Serious arrhythmias were more common in patients with a prior history of cardiovascular disease compared with patients with no such history (30% vs. 6%, p less than 0.001). Arterial oxygen desaturation (measured by ear oximetry) during intubation and esophagogastroduodenoscopy was usually modest (2%-5%). However, 16 patients receiving diazepam experienced high levels of desaturation exceeding 7%; this small group of patients also experienced more electrocardiographic changes than other patients. The use of diazepam sedation and an 8.5-mm endoscope may offer the safest and most comfortable combination for most patients undergoing esophagogastroduodenoscopy. Diazepam sedation, however, may represent a potential danger to a small number of patients with marginal baseline arterial saturation.

Diazepam↗

Detection, localization, and quantitation of degree of common bile duct obstruction by scintigraphy.

The detection, localization, and quantitation of the degree of obstruction was successfully accomplished by [99mTc]IDA scintigraphy in 13 of 14 patients with cholangiographically documented common bile duct (CBD) obstruction. Ductal dilatation was present on ultrasound examination in only seven patients. The accuracy of biliary scintigraphy was enhanced by several innovations including: (a) selection of a radiopharmaceutical with rapid hepatic uptake and excretion; (b) shorter imaging interval over longer period of time; (c) substitution of image parameter for appearance time; and (d) quantitative measurement of bile emptying parameters following cholecystokinin infusion. Scintigraphically, the partial obstruction was characterized by CBD segmental narrowing or intraluminal filling defects and bile stasis within the area and segmental ducts. The gallbladder mean (+/- s.d.) ejection fraction of 20.0 +/- 17.5%, ejection period of 6.8 +/- 1.6 min, and ejection rate of 3.1 +/- 2.6% per min following 3-min infusion of 10 ng/kg of cholecystokinin octapeptide were reduced significantly when compared to control subjects. The level of CBD obstruction correlated well with the results of cholangiography. It is concluded that quantitative biliary dynamic scintigraphy employing modern techniques can accurately detect and localize CBD obstruction.

Adult↗