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Biomedical subjects

D Aderka

Publications and source records attributed to D Aderka.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphomas masquerading as "idiopathic" liver granulomas.

Three patients presented with liver granulomas and fever. An intensive investigation was initially negative. Corticosteroids were administered with dramatic clinical improvement. Ten months to 3 years later, upon tapering the corticosteroid dose, the initial manifestations reappeared. In two patients Hodgkin's lymphoma was discovered and in a third histiocytic lymphoma. Thus, the diagnosis of lymphoma should be considered in patients with idiopathic liver granulomas, fever, and hepatosplenomegaly without lymph node enlargement, who respond initially to steroid administration but relapse upon tapering the dose.

Adult↗

Life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias in septicemia.

Sixteen episodes of ventricular tachycardia and/or fibrillation, 12 of which occurred during shaking chills, were recorded in six patients with septicemia. All patients were greater than 60 years of age and had suffered a previous myocardial infarction. Patients who survived the condition sustained no further arrhythmias during a follow-up period of 1 to 4 years, despite the fact that no antiarrhythmic medication was administered. It is suggested that patients greater than 60 years of age who had suffered a previous myocardial infarction should be carefully monitored during septic episodes and especially during shaking chills, since these may represent vulnerable periods facilitating the precipitation of potentially lethal arrhythmias.

Aged↗

Life-threatening theophylline intoxication in a hypothyroid patient.

In a hypothyroid patient who suffered also from chronic obstructive lung disease and mild congestive heart failure, treatment with 1 g/day theophylline administered orally, was followed by a life-threatening theophylline intoxication manifested by repeated epileptic fits and ventricular fibrillation, successfully reverted to sinus rhythm. The plasma theophylline was 34.7 micrograms/ml when the life-threatening arrhythmia occurred. Pharmacokinetic studies conducted during the hypothyroid state revealed a markedly prolonged theophylline plasma half-life of 29.5 h. 2 months later, after reestablishment of an euthyroid state, theophylline plasma half-life was shortened to normal, i.e. 5.7 h and the theophylline plasma level was 13.5 micrograms/ml, while the daily intake was 1 g. We conclude that hypothyroidism may predispose to theophylline intoxication, probably because of the decreased activity of the hepatic microsomal drug-metabolizing enzymes, responsible for the degradation of theophylline.

Aged↗

Fatal peripheral neurolymphomatosis after remission of histiocytic lymphoma.

A 32-year-old woman with histiocytic lymphoma was in complete clinical remission after two courses of chemotherapy, when peripheral neuropathy developed fulminantly. Abnormalities included facial nerve paralysis, dysphagia, quadriparesis, myalgia, and incontinence. She died 10 days after onset of these symptoms. Postmortem examination revealed infiltration of peripheral nerves by lymphomatous cells with no involvement of meninges, brain, lymph nodes, or other organs. Differences in the blood-brain barrier of peripheral and central nervous system are suggested: The peripheral barrier may be more penetrable by malignant histiocytes or less permeable to cytotoxic drugs. Intrathecal chemotherapeutic drug instillation and irradiation may be beneficial.

Adult↗

Hyperglucagonemia--a partial explanation for the increased amylase/creatinine clearance in pancreatitis.

Hyperglucagonemia accompanies several clinical conditions characterized by increased amylase/creatinine clearance. We tested the hypothesis that glucagon may be responsible for this augmented clearance. Therefore, a constant glucagon infusion was given to eight volunteers in order to attain physiological levels comparable to those obtained during acute pancreatitis. The amylase/creatinine clearance increased from 0.84 +/- 0.8% to a mean of 1.30 +/- 1.14% (p less than 0.001). This was, however, less than the clearance of 2.94 +/- 0.23% observed during acute pancreatitis. The rise in amylase clearance during acute pancreatitis is, therefore, only partially explained by the hyperglucagonemia.

Acute Disease↗

Homogeneous populations of macrophages from histiocytic lymphoma patients as a source for macrophage subpopulations which differ in immunoregulatory properties.

The existence of subpopulations of macrophages which express a variety of regulatory activities of other branches of the immune system is suggested in a comparative study of a human macrophage long term culture ZI and a macrophage cell line DAB-1. Both cell cultures were derived from pleural effusions of patients with diffuse histiocytic lymphoma. DAB-1 cells were found to secrete factors which strongly suppress the response of normal T and B lymphocytes to the mitogens PHA, Con-A and pokeweed mitogen (PWM) (by 96-98%) and to stimulate the cytotoxic activity of NK cells. ZI cells secrete factors which have a mild inhibitory effect on the response of lymphocytes to the T-cell mitogens PHA and Con-A and a stimulatory effect on the response to PWM, whereas very little effect could be detected on the activity of NK cells. While DAB-1 cells form large clusters during growth in culture, and are capable of inducing the formation of lymphocyte rosettes around the tumor cells, ZI cells grow as a homogeneous monolayer and could not be shown to form such rosettes. The differences in the behavior of the two cell populations suggest that the malignant transformation may have affected different subsets of macrophages in each case. Cells from histiocytic lymphoma patients may therefore be a source for homogeneous subpopulations of macrophages and their isolation and propagation in culture is one approach by which such subsets can be defined characterized and classified. The biological characterization of macrophage subsets may also be of clinical importance since a transformed subset with broad suppressory activities may lead to a violet and rapidly deteriorating course of disease, as was in the case of the patient from whom the DAB-1 cell line was derived.

Adult↗

Hypothesis: antagonism to interferon as a possible cause of the deleterious effects of corticosteroids in HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis.

Corticosteroids hasten relapse and shorten survival of patients with HBsAg positive chronic active hepatitis. A hypothesis is advanced suggesting that the steroid hormones, acting as interferon antagonists, may compromise the establishment of a cellular anti-viral state. under such circumstances the hepatitis virus replicates undisturbed, is propagated from cell to cell and precipitates terminal liver failure at a faster rate. The hypothesis provides a theoretical basis for condemning the administration of corticosteroids to patients with HBsAg positive chronic active hepatitis.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗