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Biomedical subjects

G Celle

Publications and source records attributed to G Celle.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Reduction of cerebral blood flow in subclinical hepatic encephalopathy and its correlation with plasma-free tryptophan.

Cerebral blood flow (CBF), measured by the noninvasive xenon-133 inhalation method, EEG, and plasma levels of ammonia (NH3) and free tryptophan were determined in 18 hospitalized cirrhotic patients affected with subclinical hepatic encephalopathy, as diagnosed by the Kurtz test. CBF results were significantly lower (p less than 0.001) in the patients' group as compared with a sex- and age-matched normal control population, although seven patients had values in the normal range. NH3 was increased only in six, while free tryptophan was increased in all but two patients. A significant negative correlation (p = 0.02) between CBF and free tryptophan was found, even though it appears to be difficult to interpret. We suggest that CBF impairment in some cirrhotic patients with subclinical hepatic encephalopathy may be related to the systemic metabolic derangement caused by the liver disease; free tryptophan could have some implication in producing CBF reduction.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Circadian monitoring of gastric juice mutagenicity.

The circadian monitoring of intragastric pH and of the mutagenicity of 440 gastric juice samples collected hourly from 22 subjects provided evidence that, irrespective of diagnosis and treatment, a weak yet consistent increase in revertants can be detected in his- Salmonella typhimurium strains during the 3-4-h periods following each meal. The recorded mutagenic activity was not related to the histidine content of gastric juice, was due to thermostable components and was not significantly inhibited by administration of vitamin C. Various genetic mechanisms were involved, which were different from those consequent to the artificial supplementation of gastric juice with sodium nitrite. Treatment with a histamine H2-receptor antagonist (famotidine), either at dinner or at bedtime, was followed by a nocturnal plateau of mutagenicity. However, such effect was not due to mutagenicity of the drug or of its derivatives, but to the therapeutic rise in pH associated with its antisecretory activity.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Continuous 24-hour intragastric pH monitoring in the evaluation of the effect of a nightly dose of famotidine, ranitidine and placebo on gastric acidity of patients with duodenal ulcer.

In 11 duodenal ulcer patients, the antisecretory effects of bedtime famotidine 40 mg were compared to those obtained with ranitidine 300 mg and placebo by means of continuous 24-hour intragastric pH monitoring. The 24-hour areas under the curve of pH profiles of the two H2 blockers were significantly different from those related to placebo (p approximately 0 for ranitidine and p = 0.00001 for famotidine), but not from each other (p = 0.51). Onset and duration of the famotidine action, however, were respectively earlier and longer lasting (12 vs. about 9 h) than those of ranitidine. Famotidine was also significantly superior (p approximately 0) to ranitidine in keeping intragastric pH at high values (especially those comprised between 6 and 8 pH units), although theoretically equipotent doses of the two H2 antagonists were used.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

24-H comparison between pH values of continuous intraluminal recording and simultaneous gastric aspiration.

This study was undertaken to show whether the correlation between pH values indicated by an intraluminal pH electrode and those simultaneously recorded for gastric aspirates is not only linear but also proportional, so that the two measurement techniques can be considered alternative. A 24-h intragastric pH-monitoring with an antimony electrode, to which a nasogastric tube for hourly aspiration of gastric juice was closely attached, was performed on 20 duodenal ulcer patients. Our data show that the slope of the straight line related to 335 pH pairs is virtually equal to 1, whereas the elevation is almost equal to zero, and this result strongly suggests that a proportional relationship exists between intragastric and aspirate pH levels throughout the whole 24-h period. Besides, in the majority of cases (81%) the pH pairs differ by no more than 1 pH unit. It can be concluded that these two pH monitoring methods may be alternative.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Leucovorin rescue of enteric lesions induced by high-dose methotrexate: a time-related study in mice.

In this study, different groups of mice were treated with a single high-dose of methotrexate or with a leucovorin-methotrexate association, and the changes in structure and cell types of the small intestine were studied histologically. The results suggested that leucovorin rescue diminished the degree of mitotic abatement induced by methotrexate in the first days after treatment, with better preservation of enteric structures and the cell type ratio.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Comparison between ranitidine 150 mg b.d. and ranitidine 300 mg nocte in the treatment of duodenal ulcer.

A multicenter trial was undertaken to assess the clinical usefulness of a single night-time dose of ranitidine in the short-term healing of duodenal ulcer. 384 patients with endoscopically diagnosed duodenal ulcer were randomly allocated to treatment with ranitidine either 150 mg b.d. or 300 mg as a single night-time dose for four weeks. The patients not healed after four weeks were again treated for four weeks. Of the 356 patients who completed the study, according to the protocol, 148 of 176 (84.1%) recovered on ranitidine 150 mg b.d. and 147 of 180 (81.7%) recovered on 300 mg nocte after four weeks. The healing rates increased to 95.8% and 94.8% respectively after four more weeks. Ulcer symptoms were rapidly reduced with no significant differences between the two treatment groups. There were no unwanted effects in either group and no significant abnormal biochemical or hematological changes. The results of this study support the hypothesis that ranitidine 300 mg given as one night-time dose and ranitidine 150 mg b.d. are equally effective. Ranitidine 300 mg once daily in a clinical practice may be advantageous to the patient.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Comparative study of percutaneous and peroperative fine-needle aspirations in the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.

A consecutive series of 51 patients with suspected pancreatic cancer were studied in order to evaluate the contribution of cytologic data in establishing a definitive diagnosis of the tumor. A percutaneous ultrasonically-guided, and a peroperative fine-needle, aspiration were performed in 26 and 29 patients, respectively; 4 cases underwent both methods. Final histologic diagnosis in surgical or autopsy specimens showed cancer of the pancreas in 41 cases and chronic pancreatitis in 10. Cytology was successful in 33/41 cancer patients (80.5%): percutaneous aspiration was positive in 15/20 (75%) cases, and peroperative aspiration in 18/25 (72%). The difference between the two methods was not significant. Neither technique gave false positives in chronic pancreatitis. In none of the 51 patients was relevant morbidity reported. These cytological studies are at present accurate and mostly safer than histologic examinations. In particular ultrasound-guided percutaneous aspiration should be given precedence, since it provides preoperative confirmation of the tumor, thus obviating the need for exploratory laparotomy.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Continuous 24 hour intragastric pH monitoring: focus on reproducibility in duodenal ulcer patients. A preliminary report.

Continuous 24 h intragastric pH monitoring is increasingly recommended for deciding which is the most appropriate regimen and dosage of new gastric antisecretory drugs. In order to assess its reproducibility, we have repeated the test twice on consecutive days in six patients with endoscopically proven duodenal ulcers because this type of patient seems to be the most suitable for studies on the efficacy of the above mentioned therapy. No patient received medication during the two examination days. Our data showed there was no significant difference (t = 0.31, p = 0.76) between the 24 h areas under the curve of pH profiles of the first day compared with those of the second (mean +/- SD : 3.152 +/- 681 vs 3.073 +/- 1,122). The lack of significant difference (p = 0.20) between the mean times elapsed at the various pH levels during the first and second days was further proof of the reproducibility of the method. As wells these results suggest that day-to-day reproducibility of the technique is good in duodenal ulcer patients. Therefore, its repeated use on the same patient to investigate the effects of various drugs and their different dosages on gastric acidity appears to be reliable.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

A non-absorbable rifamycin for treatment of hepatic encephalopathy.

Ammonia (NH3) plays a role in hepatic encephalopathy (HE). Agents affecting colonic ammonia production, such as non-absorbable antibiotics, decrease plasma levels of NH3 and findings of HE. The short-term efficacy of a non-absorbable rifamycin, rifaximin, was studied in comparison with paramomycin in 20 cirrhotic patients with high levels of NH3 and impaired number connection test (NCT). Both antibiotics significantly decreased ammonia-producing colonic bacteria. Rifaximin proved to be active on both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria and is thus effective, even at the dosage used, in the treatment of HE.

Absorption↗
PubMed1984

Evaluation of a new tumor-associated antigen in pancreatic cancer.

This study was carried out to assess the diagnostic accuracy of a new gastrointestinal cancer antigen ( GICA ) defined by a monoclonal antibody. Its sensitivity and specificity were assayed in a group of patients with different pancreatic diseases (10 acute pancreatitis, 27 chronic pancreatitis, 22 cancers of the pancreas) and in 29 normal individuals. The concentration of GICA was always inferior to 37 units/ml (our discriminant limit between cancer and noncancer patients) both in cases with chronic pancreatitis and in healthy subjects. Increased levels of the antigen were found in 16/22 (72.7%) pancreatic cancer patients and in 3/10 (33.3%) cases with acute pancreatitis. The assay was within the normal range in 2 (28.6%) out of 7 cancers judged resectable. The test is simple and rapid, but its relative sensitivity and the frequent elevation of GICA in other adenocarcinomas of the gastrointestinal tract make it unsuitable for screening programs in pancreatic cancer. Even its use for early diagnosis of cancer of the pancreas does not seem promising. The major finding of our study is the lack of false-positives in patients with chronic pancreatitis and therefore the usefulness of this test in differentiating preoperatively between chronic inflammation and cancer of the gland. Frequent increase of the marker in patients with acute pancreatitis is not yet clear.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1984

Percutaneous or laparoscopic needle biopsy in the evaluation of chronic liver disease?

Liver biopsies were performed on 60 patients by means of percutaneous needle biopsy, and immediately after that procedure, during laparoscopy from the right and left liver lobes. The histological diagnoses obtained by examining the percutaneous biopsies were found to overlap with the final one that was based on an evaluation of all three liver biopsies. Moreover, highly significant correlation was found to exist between the scores of histological parameters of inflammation, fibrosis, necrosis, and steatosis.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Chronic delta hepatitis: a difficult problem for the hepatologist.

Delta antigen was detected by means of direct immunofluorescence in the liver of 20 out of 118 chronic carriers of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). Delta antigen was frequently found in young chronic HBsAg carriers with chronic active hepatitis. Positivity for anti-HBe occurred in almost all cases. A peculiar aspect of delta infection was a predominance in patients from Southern, rather than from Northern or Central Italy. Another interesting finding is the higher mean values of GOT and GPT in delta-positive patients compared with those in delta-negative patients. The follow-up of some patients confirmed that chronic delta hepatitis is a particularly progressive disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Failure of new diagnostic aids in improving detection of pancreatic cancer at a resectable stage.

This study was undertaken to verify whether new diagnostic tools (angiography, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, ultrasonography, and computed tomography) have improved the detection of pancreatic cancer at a resectable stage. Two groups of patients with histologically ascertained cancer of the pancreas were examined. The first consisted of 54 cases investigated before the clinical application of the four above-mentioned techniques and the second of 74 cases investigated thereafter. Cancer resectability was judged by a surgical team at the time of laparotomy according to preestablished criteria. No significant difference was found between the number of resections and other procedures in the two groups. On the other hand exploratory laparotomies performed exclusively for diagnostic purposes were significantly (P less than 0.01) reduced in the second group. On the basis of these results one may conclude that new diagnostic aids are useful and reliable in the preoperative detection of pancreatic cancer, but their introduction into clinical practice has not permitted an earlier diagnosis of the disease and therefore there has been no important increase in its resectability.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

One or two liver biopsies during laparoscopy?

"Laparobiopsies" were taken from the right and left liver lobe of 57 patients. Despite some minor discrepancies, the histologic diagnoses "overlapped" in most cases. Moreover, a highly significant correlation was detected between the scores of histologic parameters (inflammation, fibrosis, necrosis and steatosis) evaluated in the two series of biopsies.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

[Instrumental diagnosis of pancreatic diseases].

The purpose of this review is to examine the diagnostic value of traditional and modern morphological examinations in various pancreatopathies, on the basis of a critical evaluation of the features, indications and limitations of each system. The multiplicity of techniques available today often creates a problem of choice. For this reason an attempt has been made to establish valid criteria for a more rational allocation of each system in the diagnosis of individual pancreatic diseases. Finally some blueprints for diagnostic methodology are proposed in respect of each pancreopathy, though it is emphasised that the sequence of tests laid down should always be guided by the dominant factors in the clinical picture.

Acute Disease↗