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Biomedical subjects

E Rossi

Publications and source records attributed to E Rossi.

At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Method for the determination of functional (clottable) fibrinogen by the new family of ACL coagulometers.

A new family of coagulometers ACL 100, 200 and 300 (Instrumentation Laboratory, IL) has recently been introduced, in addition to the existing ACL 810. This paper presents a technique to determine clottable fibrinogen using the ACL method based on the measurement of the light scattered from the reaction mixture during a PT test. This technique was found to compare well with the present most commonly used methods.

Afibrinogenemia↗
PubMed1988

Antiphospholipid antibodies in early repeated abortions: a case-controlled study.

The relation among lupus anticoagulant (LAC), anticardiolipin antibodies (ACA), and repeated abortions was evaluated in a case-controlled study of 49 women with two or more unexplained spontaneous abortions (cases) compared with 141 control subjects, who had had one or more normal pregnancies and no previous spontaneous abortion. The women were admitted to the same hospital where the cases had been identified for acute conditions other than immunologic neoplastic, gynecologic or cardiovascular. LAC was detected in 7 out of 49 cases (14%, 95% confidence limits 8% to 26%) but in none of the 141 controls. Similarly, ACA were detected in four cases (8%, 95% confidence limits 0.3% to 30%) but no controls. These differences in frequency were statistically significant. These findings confirm that LAC and ACA are associated with a history of repeated abortions in clinically asymptomatic patients for immunologic conditions.

Abortion, Habitual↗
PubMed1988

Ferrochelatase activity in human lymphocytes, as quantified by a new high-performance liquid-chromatographic method.

We describe a new rapid, sensitive high-performance liquid-chromatographic (HPLC) method for determining ferrochelatase (EC 4.99.1.1) activity in lymphocytes. Zinc and mesoporphyrin are incubated aerobically with sonicated lymphocytes and the zinc mesoporphyrin formed is extracted with dimethyl sulfoxide-methanol-EDTA for quantification by HPLC. Incubation conditions, including the concentration of the palmitic acid activator, were optimized. The Michaelis constant (Km) was 2.1 mumol/L for mesoporphyrin, 22.2 mumol/L for zinc. The mean ferrochelatase activity (expressed as zinc mesoporphyrin formed per hour per milligram of lymphocyte protein) for a reference population was 3.25 (SD 0.43) nmol.h-1.mg-1. For three patients with erythrohepatic protoporphyria (EHP), activities were 1.11, 1.30, and 1.35. Neutrophils contain negligible ferrochelatase activity.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Actinic damage in the skin of patients on haemodialysis for chronic renal failure.

Seventy-nine patients on long-term haemodialysis for chronic renal failure were interviewed and examined as to ethnic origin, actinic habits and the occurrence of blisters, skin fragility and slow healing of the skin of the dorsal part of the hands. On clinical examination, the 6 patients (7.5%) with blisters of the dorsal part of the hands had more damaged skin at that site than would be expected for their age. They also tended to be predominantly of English descent with blue eyes, poorer skin tanning ability and increased net exposure to sunlight. A skin imprint method for the grading of actinic damage showed a statistically significantly increased degree of actinic damage in the haemodialysis patients compared to a control group of healthy individuals matched for age and sex, the difference being more pronounced in the 35-64 year age group. Plasma and erythrocyte porphyrin levels were not related to the degree of actinic damage. It is suggested that reduction of the actinic load on the dermis by avoiding excessive exposure to sunlight might minimize the extent of skin changes in haemodialysis patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Palliation of cardiac malformations associated with right isomerism (asplenia syndrome) in infancy.

Right isomerism is characterized by the combination of an obstructed pulmonary outflow tract and a total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC), which is obstructed in nearly half of the patients. Fourteen patients less than 2 years of age with right isomerism have been seen in our unit. Thirteen of them underwent palliation consisting of a systemic-pulmonary shunt (10 patients) or a combination of shunt and TAPVC repair (3). There were 7 hospital deaths (54%). The presence of obstructed pulmonary venous drainage was the major risk factor in the surgical treatment of these complex cardiac anomalies (p less than .02). Guidelines for the palliative management of right isomerism are suggested.

Echocardiography↗
PubMed1987

A comparison of the assessment of mitral valve area by continuous wave Doppler and by cross sectional echocardiography.

Transmitral pressure half time (PHT) was assessed by continuous wave Doppler in 44 patients with rheumatic mitral valve stenosis (14, pure mitral valve stenosis; 15, combined mitral stenosis and regurgitation; and 15 with associated aortic valve regurgitation). The mitral valve area, derived from transmitral pressure half time by the formula 220/pressure half time, was compared with that estimated by cross sectional echocardiography. The transmitral pressure half time correlated well with the mitral valve area estimated by cross sectional echocardiography. The correlation between pressure half time and the cross sectional echocardiographic mitral valve area was also good for patients with pure mitral stenosis and for those with associated mitral or aortic regurgitation. The regression coefficients in the three groups of patients were significantly different. Nevertheless, a transmitral pressure half time of 175 ms correctly identified 20 of 21 patients with cross sectional echocardiographic mitral valve areas less than 1.5 cm2. There were no false positives. The Doppler formula significantly underestimated the mitral valve area determined by cross sectional echocardiography by 28(9)% in 19 patients with an echocardiographic area greater than 2 cm2 and by 14.8 (8)% in 25 patients with area of less than 2 cm2. In thirteen patients with pure mitral valve stenosis Gorlin's formula was used to calculate the mitral valve area. This was overestimated by cross sectional echocardiography by 0.16 (0.19) cm2 and underestimated by Doppler by 0.13 (0.12) cm2. Continuous wave Doppler underestimated the echocardiographic mitral valve area in patients with mild mitral stenosis. The Doppler formula mitral valve area = 220/pressure half time was more accurate in predicting functional (haemodynamic) than anatomical (echocardiographic) mitral valve area.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

[Immune response to hepatitis B vaccine and duration of protection in a dialysis unit].

Thirty members of the staff and fifty-one patients of Parma hemodialysis unit, serum negative for HBV markers, having completed the vaccination (HB-vax vaccine) against hepatitis B, were followed for two years after booster dose. After the third injection, the response to HB vaccine was significantly higher (p less than .0005) in staff members, than in patients. In the staff group, 83.3% were responders at mean titers of anti-HBs of 2703 mUI/ml; only 51% of patients developed anti-HBs at mean titres of 287 mUI/ml. As to either sex or age, no significant differences were observed in the two groups. Among hemodialysis patients the higher response (71.4%) was noted in the less than 40 aged individuals in comparison with those 40-60 (56.9%) or greater than 60 aged (38%). The persistence of the immunisation in both groups appeared to be statistically correlated to the anti-HBs titres after booster injection. At the end of the follow-up, 63.3% of the staff vaccinated members, but only 15.6% of the patients still had protective titre. No ill-effects induced by vaccine developed. Hepatitis B infection was only observed in one non responder member of the staff. The study demonstrates a low response to HB-vaccine and a rapid decrease of anti-HBs titre in the hemodialysis patients, thus leading to the need of frequent revaccination.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

In vitro research on the possibility of chromosomal damage caused by polymethyl methacrylate in orthopaedics. A preliminary report.

There are few experimental studies in the literature concerned with evaluating the toxic effect of polymethyl methacrylate. Because of the number of patients who are now carriers of this substance, it seems important to ascertain whether or not it could cause chromosomal damage. This study reports the preliminary data obtained from an in vitro technique on human lymphocytes placed in contact with different concentrations of methyl methacrylate and its polymerized form. The method consists of an analysis of the exchanges of DNA tracts in the chromosomes of these lymphocytes; the increase in the frequency of exchange as compared to that in the controls is an indication of the mutagenic effect. A slight increase in the average frequency of isochromatid exchanges in the lymphocytes cultivated with the monomer was observed, and this deserves closer study. However, this preliminary data would appear to exclude the existence of chromosomal damage.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Porphyrin studies in chronic renal failure patients on maintenance hemodialysis.

Porphyrin studies were performed on 85 chronic renal failure patients on maintenance hemodialysis. Free erythrocyte porphyrins were elevated in 70% of patients, and a significant positive correlation between erythrocyte porphyrin and serum aluminium was found. Although plasma porphyrins were elevated in 58% of our patients, the elevated heptacarboxylic fraction invariably seen in porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT) was not present in the hemodialyzed patients. Total urine and fecal porphyrins were low, due to a marked decrease in the coproporphyrin and dicarboxylic fractions, respectively. An unequivocal diagnosis of PCT was made in 1 hemodialysis patient whose biochemical findings included an extremely high total plasma porphyrin with a large heptacarboxyl-porphyrin fraction. We found no biochemical evidence for any trend towards PCT in the remaining hemodialysis patients. The porphyrin results on a subgroup of hemodialysis patients with blisters or a history of blisters on sun-exposed skin were similar to those of the hemodialysis patients without blisters.

Aluminum↗
PubMed1987

Human lymphoblastoid interferon for hairy cell leukemia: results from the Italian Cooperative Group.

Since April 1985, 82 patients with HCL entered a multicenter study using lymphoblastoid alpha-interferon; 51 (including 15 who failed splenectomy and 24 with substantial splenomegaly) enrolled before April 1986 are evaluated in this study. The patients were treated with 3 mega units daily subcutaneously until complete or partial response and were thereafter randomly allocated to a maintenance regime of 3 mega units/week or to observation only. Ten cases had a complete response, 18 a partial response, and 15 a minimal response. Two patients had no response, two interrupted therapy due to major toxicity (toxic hepatitis and thrombocytopenia), six died before completing 1 month of therapy of sepsis, and two died of myocardial infarction. In the two groups of splenectomized and nonsplenectomized patients the mean time to hemoglobin recovery was 8.5 and 6.5 weeks, respectively, the neutrophil count recovery was 6.5 and 9.3 weeks, and the time to platelet count recovery was 4.0 and 5.4 weeks, respectively. No significant differences in recovery time and response rate were observed between the two groups. In 31 out of 32 patients with substantial splenomegaly the spleen became either inpalpable (18) or significantly smaller (13). This study confirms the responsiveness of HCL to IFN in nonsplenectomized patients with high tumor burdens and is therefore recommended as a first-line therapy.

Humans↗
PubMed1986

Pulsed Doppler echocardiographic analysis of mitral regurgitation after myocardial infarction.

In 72 patients with previous myocardial infarction (MI), mitral regurgitation (MR) was assessed by pulsed-wave Doppler echocardiography and compared with physical and 2-dimensional echocardiographic findings. MR was found by Doppler in 29 of 42 patients (62%) with anterior MI, 11 of 30 (37%) with inferior MI (p less than 0.01) and in none of 20 normal control subjects. MR was more frequent in patients who underwent Doppler study 3 months after MI than in those who underwent Doppler at discharge (anterior MI = 83% vs 50%, p less than 0.01; inferior MI = 47% vs 27%, p = not significant). Of 15 patients who underwent Doppler studies both times, 3 (all with anterior MI) had MR only on the second study. Of the patients with Doppler MR, 12 of 27 (44%) with a left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (EF) greater than 30% and 1 of 13 (8%) with an EF of 30% or less (p less than 0.01) had an MR systolic murmur. Mitral prolapse or eversion and papillary muscle fibrosis were infrequent in MI patients, whether or not Doppler MR was present. The degree of Doppler MR correlated with EF (r = -0.61), LV systolic volume (r = 0.47), and systolic and diastolic mitral anulus circumference (r = 0.52 and 0.51, respectively). Doppler MR was present in 24 of 28 patients (86%) with an EF of 40% or less and in 16 of 44 (36%) with EF more than 40% (p less than 0.001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗