Biomedical subjects
G Katz
Publications and source records attributed to G Katz.
Jerusalem syndrome.
BACKGROUND: Jerusalem's psychiatrists expect to encounter, as the millennium approaches, an ever-increasing number of tourists who, upon arriving in Jerusalem, may suffer psychotic decompensation. AIMS: To describe the Jerusalem syndrome as a unique acute psychotic state. METHOD: This analysis is based on accumulated clinical experience and phenomenological data consisting of cultural and religious perspectives. RESULTS: Three main categories of the syndrome are identified and described, with special focus on the category pertaining to spontaneous manifestations, unconfounded by previous psychotic history or psychopathology. CONCLUSIONS: The discrete form of the Jerusalem syndrome is related to religious excitement induced by proximity to the holy places of Jerusalem, and is indicated by seven characteristic sequential stages.
Rabbit syndrome treated with olanzapine.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Clozapine and risperidone: combination/augmentation treatment of refractory schizophrenia: a preliminary observation.
OBJECTIVE: Clozapine and risperidone were the first two antipsychotic drugs of a new class of agents for the pharmacotherapy of schizophrenia. It has been suggested that refractory schizophrenic patients who fail to respond to neither clozapine nor risperidone may respond to a combination/augmentation strategy of both medicaments. METHOD: Three cases of individuals with unremittent schizophrenia treated via this combination are presented. Response was evaluated by clinical follow-up and PANSS rating scale. RESULTS: Good clinical results with no noticeable adverse side effects, ascertained by a reduction from baseline scores of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) were obtained in all three patients. CONCLUSION: The findings from this pilot study suggest this combination as a possible therapeutic approach for treating resistant schizophrenic patients.
Pedal edema associated with clozapine use.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Ethanol-induced apoptosis in vitro.
OBJECTIVES: The aim is to study the apoptotic process in a human hepatocyte model for ethanol (EtOH)-induced apoptosis. DESIGN AND METHODS: Normal human primary hepatocytes (HPH) and Hep G2 cells were exposed to increasing EtOH. 6000 cells/ sample were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy. RESULTS: Apoptotic cells were observed (mmol/L EtOH): 40: 6 +/-0.5%, 60:13 +/- 2% (p < 0.05), 80: 26 +/- 1% (p < 0.001) (vs. control). Two consecutive doses of 80 mmol/L for 24 h each additionally increased apoptosis 55 +/- 3% (p < 0.0001 vs. control and p < 0.001 vs. single dose). In response to this exposure, there is a stronger apoptotic activity in HPH when compared to Hep G2 (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In vitro, EtOH-induced apoptosis is regulated by dose level and the frequency of exposure.
Withdrawal from clozapine: the "rebound phenomenon".
Clozapine is an "atypical" antipsychotic agent for treating previously resistant schizophrenic patients. Its main advantages over "typical" neuroleptics are low incidence of extrapyramidal side effects and its capacity to induce therapeutic response in previously treated refractory patients. However, withdrawal from clozapine has been observed to lead to "atypical" clinical characteristics or a "rebound phenomenon," manifested in two interwoven clinical forms: (1) psychotic exacerbation, and (2) cholinergic rebound. The underlying pathophysiological mechanism of this phenomenon is postulated to be a result of cholinergic supersensitivity. In this paper, the "rebound phenomenon" will be discussed and exemplified by three case histories in which abrupt cessation of clozapine led to serious deterioration and psychotic exacerbation, and one case in which gradual titration from the drug was employed in order to preempt this hazardous occurrence.
A splicing mutation (891+4A-->G) in SLC3A1 leads to exon 4 skipping and causes cystinuria in a Moslem Arab family.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
[Kleptomania: phenomenological, clinical and legal aspects].
Kleptomania is currently classified in psychiatric nomenclature as one of the impulse control disorders (DSM-IV, 1994). It is characterized by repeated failure to resist impulses to steal objects, not for personal use or monetary gain. The objects are therefore discarded, given away, or hoarded (ICD-10, 1992). This disorder is known since the early 18th century from the phenomenological and clinical viewpoints, yet is still debated with regard to therapeutic strategies and criminal liability. Although there are usually complications associated with the legal consequences of being caught and arrested, subjects continue to violate the law despite repeated arrests and convictions. In a 28-year old man suffering from kleptomania, years of psychodynamic psychotherapy were ineffective. Only when he was treated as suffering from an impulse control disorder or a variant of obsessive-compulsive disorder, was there significant improvement. The positive response to buspirone (5-HT1A) augmentation of fluvoxamine (SSRI) suggested that disturbed central serotonergic neurotransmission might play an important role in the pathogenesis of kleptomania. This concept is strengthened by the comorbidity of the syndrome with depression and by its compulsive traits. We stress that although kleptomaniacs cannot differentiate between right and wrong, testing shows that their sense of reality is intact, but they act under the influence of drives they cannot resist.
Complete staghorn calculi: random prospective comparison between extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy monotherapy and combined with percutaneous nephrostolithotomy.
PURPOSE: We determined the preferred treatment of staghorn calculi. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between January 1992 and December 1994 we performed a prospective, randomized, single center study involving 50 kidneys with complete staghorn calculi: 27 renal units were treated with extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) monotherapy (group 1) and 23 were treated with combined (initial) percutaneous nephrostolithotomy with ESWL (group 2). The 2 treatment groups were compared regarding stone size, grade of collecting system dilatation and urine culture at presentation. The number of treatment sessions, narcotic doses, renal colic episodes, septic complications, unplanned ancillary procedures, length of hospitalization, total treatment duration and stone-free rate at 6 months were recorded and compared. RESULTS: At the conclusion of therapy the stone-free rate was significantly greater in group 2 than in group 1 (74 versus 22%, respectively, p = 0.0005). The complication rate was significantly greater in group 1, with 15 septic complications (fever greater than 38.5C for longer than 3 days) in 10 patients compared to only 2 episodes in group 2 (p = 0.007). The unplanned ancillary procedure rate was significantly greater in group 1 (8 procedures in 7 patients versus 1 procedure in group 2, p = 0.03). The overall treatment length was significantly shorter in group 2 (1 versus 6 months, p = 0.0006). There was no significant difference in the number of procedures performed with anesthesia or in the number of hospitalization days between the 2 treatment groups. CONCLUSIONS: Combined percutaneous nephrostolithotomy and ESWL should be recommended as the first line treatment choice for most patients with staghorn stones.
Buspirone augmentation of fluvoxamine in the treatment of kleptomania.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Network formation: lessons learned.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Molecular analysis of cystinuria in Libyan Jews: exclusion of the SLC3A1 gene and mapping of a new locus on 19q.
Cystinuria is a hereditary disorder of amino acid transport and is manifested by the development of kidney stones. In some patients the disease is caused by mutations in the SLC3A1 gene, which is located on the short arm of chromosome 2 and encodes a renal/intestinal transporter for cystine and the dibasic amino acids. In Israel cystinuria is especially common among Jews of Libyan origin. After excluding SLC3A1 as the disease-causing gene in Libyan Jewish patients, we performed a genomewide search that shows that the Libyan Jewish cystinuria gene maps to the long arm of chromosome 19. Significant linkage was obtained for seven chromosome 19 markers. A maximal LOD score of 9.22 was obtained with the marker D19S882. Multipoint data and recombination analysis placed the gene in an 8-cM interval between the markers D19S409 and D19S208. Significant linkage disequilibrium was observed for alleles of four markers, and a specific haplotype comprising the markers D19S225, D19S208, D19S220, and D19S422 was found in 11 of 17 carrier chromosomes, versus 1 of 58 Libyan Jewish noncarrier chromosomes.
Not the right middle lobe syndrome?
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
[The physician as patient. A resource for better health care].
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Bladder wall fibrosis following intravesical mitomycin treatment for superficial bladder cancer.
Mitomycin is used extensively for the prevention of recurrence of superficial bladder cancer. Most treatment regimens of mitomycin are long term, since this seems more effective in preventing recurrence. During treatment some patients develop cystitis of variable severity, which may lead to mucosal ulcerations and cessation of treatment. We report a case in which long-term treatment with mitomycin, following a single episode of transitional cell bladder cancer, has led to bladder fibrosis and loss of its function, without evidence of tumor recurrence.
Psychiatric illness and the serotonin syndrome: an emerging adverse drug effect leading to intensive care unit admission.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.