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Biomedical subjects

F Vianello

Publications and source records attributed to F Vianello.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

[Famotidine in the short and long term treatment of duodenal ulcer: clinical and physiopathologic study].

UNLABELLED: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy of short and long-term treatment with famotidine 40 mg/daily at bed time in duodenal ulcer disease. 45 patients with endoscopically proven active duodenal ulcer undertaken the study. Endoscopic evaluations were performed at 6 weeks, 3 and 6 months from the start of the study. The following parameters were evaluated: pepsinogen group I and gastrin levels in serum, pH, acid and neutral glycoprotein, N-acetylneuraminic acid, pepsin in gastric juice collected during the upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. 6 weeks healing rate was 91.1%. After the third month of follow-up 14.2% of the patients presented an endoscopical proven episode of relapse. No relapses were observed at the end of the study (after 6 months of treatment). Acid glycoprotein, N- acetylneuraminic acid and pepsin concentrations significantly decreased after 6 weeks of treatment (p less than 0.0125, p less than 0.025, p less than 0.005 respectively), while serum levels of pepsinogen group I, gastrin and gastric pH increased (p less than 0.0005, p less than 0.005, p less than 0.025). After 6 months period of therapy, a significant increase of neutral glycoproteins (p less than 0.01) and a decrease of pepsin (p less than 0.005) and acid glycoproteins (p less than 0.01) was observed. On the contrary, gastric N- acetylneuraminic acid, pH, serum gastrin and pepsinogen group I presented the pre-trial values. IN CONCLUSION: 1) famotidine appears to be an effective and safe therapy for duodenal ulcer treatment; 2) it seems to act not only by inhibiting gastric acid secretion but also influencing some parameters related to the gastric mucosal barrier.

Adolescent↗

Early and advanced gastric cancer during follow-up of apparently benign gastric ulcer: significance of the presence of epithelial dysplasia.

One hundred and forty-four patients with apparently benign gastric ulcer were endoscopically followed up in order to evaluate the outcome of the lesion. Particular attention was given to: (a) detect possible delay in diagnosing gastric cancer; (b) ascertain the frequency of association with epithelial dysplasia; (c) establish the role of markers, such as serum pepsinogen group I (PGI), and gastric juice CEA in predicting gastric ulcer evolution. Endoscopic and bioptic check-ups were carried out during the first year at 3, 6 and 12 months after endoscopic healing of the ulcer, and then at every symptomatic recurrence. Ten patients (6.9%) were found to present histological evidence of malignancy (within 3 months in six cases, between 6 and 12 months in three cases, and after 41 months in the rest). Four cases were early gastric cancers, and six had shown dysplastic changes of the mucosa at the edge or scar of the ulcer. Serum PGI levels were not significantly different in gastric cancer patients, while gastric juice CEA levels were sharply increased compared to those of gastric ulcer patients: nine out of ten patients had values above normal range. These data suggest that: (a) there may be some delay in diagnosing gastric carcinoma, and gastric ulcer patients should be controlled routinely more than once; (b) the presence of dysplasia indicates the need for prolonged follow-up, because of the high risk of association with or evolution into gastric cancer, and because of the higher number of early gastric cancer detections that this protocol allows; (c) further support in monitoring patients "at risk" may be afforded by gastric juice CEA determination.

Adult↗

Clinical markers of slow healing and relapsing gastric ulcer.

The aim of the study was to identify the clinical markers useful in characterising slow healing and relapsing gastric ulcer patients. Ninety nine subjects entered the short term and 79 the long term study (12 months). The following parameters were taken into account: therapy, sex, age, smoking habit, alcohol consumption, analgesic intake, peptic ulcer family history and onset of the disease. Results of the studies were analysed by means of chi 2 test and logistic regression, both in stepwise and in specifying models. Cigarette smoking was found to be the most important risk factor of non-healing (p = 0.04). In women with late onset of the disease, cigarette smoking identified the gastric ulcer subjects at higher risk of non-healing with a predictive probability of 0.4679. Age under 50 years was found to be the most important risk factor of relapsing throughout the entire 12 month follow up period (p = 0.025). In those under 50 years, cigarette smoking and negative peptic ulcer family history in combination, identified the gastric ulcer subjects at higher risk of relapsing, the predicted probability being 0.6027. It is concluded that cigarette smoking is the most important risk factor for non-healing and those who relapse under the age of 50. The possibility of singling out categories of patients more prone not to heal and to relapse suggests new strategies in the management of gastric ulcer disease.

Adult↗

[Methodological aspects of gastric acid examination].

The aim of the present work was to study gastric acid secretion in control subjects and in gastric and duodenal ulcer patients and to evaluate sex, age, body weight, blood group, cigarette smoking and the intake of H2-blockers in the 24 hours preceding gastric acid analysis. The results obtained seem to indicate that 6 micrograms/kg b.w./i.m. Pentagastrin is the best stimulus and that basal secretion may be assessed in thirty minutes, without altering the BAO value. Factors such as cigarette-smoking and H2-blockers intake on the one hand and body weight and male sex on the other influence gastric juice output and should therefore be considered in interpreting the results.

Adult↗

Is maximal acid output useful in identifying relapsing duodenal ulcer patients?

In a group of 94 duodenal ulcer patients consecutively studied and followed-up for 1 year, subjects with maximal acid output (M.A.O.) above 60 mmol/hour (mostly heavy-smoking men), were found to relapse more frequently than those with lower M.A.O. values (72.2% versus 27.6%; p less than 0.0005). A significantly higher relapse rate was also detected in patients treated with maintenance dosages of effective antisecretory drugs (cimetidine, ranitidine, pirenzepine) and presenting M.A.O. over 60 mmol/hour. It is yet to be established whether an alternative therapeutic regime may prove effective in preventing ulcer recurrence in patients with gastric hypersecretion.

Adult↗

Recurrence of duodenal ulcer under continuous antisecretory treatment: an approach to the detection of predictive markers.

Seventy consecutive duodenal ulcer patients endoscopically followed up and treated after ulcer scarring with maintenance dosages of effective antisecretory drugs for 1 year were studied in order to identify the factors associated with ulcer relapse. Logrank test, discriminant analysis (Rao's method), and chi 2 were used in evaluating the results. Nineteen patients (27.1%) relapsed. Duodenal ulcer was found to relapse more frequently in patients with total serum pepsinogen more than 109 micrograms tyr X ml-1 X 24 h-1 and in patients with maximal acid output more than 60 mmol/h (Logrank test; both p less than 0.025). Discriminant analysis showed that blood group, age at onset of the disease, and sex were together useful in recognizing subjects relapsing within 6 months' maintenance treatment (77.1% cases correctly classified); age at onset of the disease, alcohol intake, and smoking habit were together useful in picking out subjects relapsing throughout the entire observation period (1 year) (61.76% cases correctly classified). Our data suggest that: 1) duodenal ulcer subjects with elevated serum pepsinogen or maximal acid output are significantly more prone to relapse than patients with normal or slightly increased values; 2) genetic and acquired factors (such as blood group A, early onset of the disease, male sex, alcohol intake, and cigarette consumption) may have a role in influencing ulcer relapse.

Adolescent↗

Carcinoembryonic antigen in gastric juice collected during endoscopy. Value in detecting high-risk patients and gastric cancer.

In order to ascertain the role of gastric carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) determination in detecting patients with a risk for gastric cancer, 69 subjects were studied; 23 were referred for endoscopy because of dyspepsia but without obvious macroscopic lesions, 27 with duodenal ulcer, 11 with benign gastric ulcer, 8 with gastric cancer. The following results were obtained by subdividing the material according to the histologic interpretation of the results of gastric mucosal biopsies: (1) in the presence of minor histologic abnormalities of the gastric mucosa, CEA in gastric juice was under 100 ng/ml in all but five cases; and (2) in moderate or severe chronic atrophic gastritis (associated or otherwise with intestinal metaplasia or dysplasia), and in gastric cancer, gastric CEA ranged between 224 and 3120 ng/ml in all but two cases. Although not diagnostic for gastric cancer, gastric CEA is a promising test in detecting patients at risk, including those with dysplasia of the gastric mucosa.

Adolescent↗

[Benign and malignant gastric ulcers: is their localization relevant in their differential diagnosis?].

A study of potentially benign or malignant ulcer in the stomach was made to assess its role in the differential diagnosis between these two conditions. In the 201 patients observed, no statistically significant differences in frequency in the various sites were noted as regard either benign or malignant lesions. The site of the ulcer cannot be taken as indicative of its nature.

Adolescent↗

Actual role of pepsinogen group I in the study of upper gastrointestinal diseases.

The role of serum PG I in screening patients with chronic atrophic gastritis and gastric cancer, and in detecting peptic ulcer patients with high relapse risk, was ascertained in 276 subjects. Although not diagnostic per se, PG I was found to be under 20 micrograms/L in patients with chronic atrophic gastritis and in some gastric cancer or partially gastrectomized patients. In patients presenting with relapsing duodenal ulcer, PG I values were significantly higher than in the non-relapsing ones, but a satisfactory identification of all the duodenal ulcer patients with high relapse risk was not possible on this basis. Even the correlation between PG I and MAO was not accurate in every subject considered. These results suggest that the value of PG I is limited to assessing patients with upper gastrointestinal diseases in which a reduction of peptic secretion, and therefore of PG I in serum, is present.

Duodenal Ulcer↗

Pepsinogen Group I radioimmunoassay and total serum pepsinogen colorimetric determination: a comparative study in normal subjects and in peptic ulcer patients.

Pepsinogens, proteolytic enzymes produced by peptic cells of the stomach and discharged into the gastric lumen as well as into the blood have been divided into two groups: PG-I, originating from chief cells, and PG-II, mainly from antrum peptic cells. Both total serum pepsinogen (s-Pg) and PG-I have been separately reported as being significantly increased in gastric (GU) and duodenal ulcer (DU) patients and related to maximal acid output. In order to ascertain the relationship between s-Pg measured by means of the colorimetric Uete method, and PG-I determined by RIA method, these were assayed in 72 control subjects, 35 GU and 95 DU patients. s-Pg was found to be significantly increased both in GU and DU patients in comparison with control subjects. Likewise PG-I was significantly enhanced in GU and DU patients as compared with controls. A significant direct correlation between s-Pg and PG-I was found in all the subjects studied (r = 0.732).

Adult↗

Are biopsy forceps helpful in the endoscopic evaluation of ulcer diameter?

A hand-made papier-mâché stomach model with hollowed-out ulcers was employed for evaluating the accuracy in estimating ulcer diameters by means of endoscopy. The opened biopsy forceps were also used as a reference marker. Ten endoscopists with various degrees of experience were involved in the study. All the endoscopists underestimated the ulcer diameters; the use of the forceps, resulted in an improvement, in particular in the case of the comparatively inexperienced endoscopists. A stomach model may be helpful in the subjective assessment of the endoscopists' ability to estimate ulcer size.

Biopsy↗

Is mild gastric epithelial dysplasia an indication for follow-up?

We evaluated the changes over 1-55 months in mild gastric epithelial dysplasia (a relatively frequent, but not widely studied histological lesion) in 20 patients (11 with benign gastric ulcer, eight with chronic gastritis, and one after Billroth 2 operation), in order to ascertain whether to follow-up such patients in the future. Regression of the lesion was documented in 13 (65%), and no change in six (30%). Progression from mild to moderate dysplasia occurred in only one patient (5%). As mild dysplasia regresses or remains unchanged in most patients, at least over the short-term, specific follow-up is probably unnecessary. Nevertheless, a rational program of monitoring the associated precancerous conditions is in order.

Adult↗