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Biomedical subjects

G Misciagna

Publications and source records attributed to G Misciagna.

49 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Serum and bile lipids in young women with radiolucent gallstones.

To investigate the relationship between blood and bile lipids, serum cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides were correlated with cholesterol saturation index of bile in 21 women-10 with radiolucent gallstones and 11 without stones. All of the women had regular menstrual cycles, were normolipidemic, and on a hospital diet. On the same morning, blood and the darkest duodenal bile were taken after cholecystokinin (CCK) stimulation. Standard laboratory procedures were used to analyze serum and bile lipids. We found: 1) statistically significant (t test, p less than 0.05) but only slight hypercholesterolemia (+ 12%) in patients with gallstones; 2) a negative correlation of serum cholesterol with cholesterol saturation index of bile, both in the control group (r = -0.654, p less than 0.05) and in gallstone patients (r = -0.665, p less than 0.05); 3) a correlation of high density lipoprotein cholesterol with cholesterol saturation index only in normal women (r = -0.619, p less than 0.05); 4) conversely, a correlation of triglycerides with the same index in only gallstone patients (r = 0.641, p less than 0.05). With the stepwise multiple regression analysis (independent variables: diagnosis of gallstones, serum cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, triglycerides; dependent variable: biliary cholesterol saturation index), only gallstone diagnosis and serum cholesterol influenced significantly (F test, p less than 0.05) the biliary cholesterol saturation index. These findings suggest that young women with radiolucent gallstones are slightly hypercholesterolemic, that in women both with and without gallstones there is a negative correlation between serum cholesterol and biliary cholesterol saturation, but women with gallstones have a higher cholesterol saturation index of the bile than women without gallstones with the same level of cholesterol in the blood.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Smooth pursuit eye movements among storage battery workers.

Eleven male workers in a battery storage plant with lead and erythrocyte protoporphyrin blood actual levels greater than 50 and 100 micrograms %, respectively, and 18 male controls without lead exposure were tested by a clinical pendular eye tracking test (PETT). Each worker underwent a series of lead absorption measurements including blood lead, urinary lead, erythrocyte protoporphyrin, delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase activity, and urinary delta-aminolevulinic acid. The SPEMs were evaluated by an eye tracking technique. The subjects followed a horizontally moving target which, in the form of a luminous spot on a dark background, was projected onto a screen placed 1 m from the subject. The maximum predicted eye movement velocity during tracking was about 30 degrees/s. Skin electrodes were applied on the outer canthi of both eyes and SPEM were plotted on a polygraph, recording both the actual eye movements and the corresponding first derivative. Our findings suggest that lead workers display a disorder of motor coordination of SPEMs system, and the PETT is useful, when associated with biochemical data, to evaluate the degree of subclinical damage of nervous system during lead poisoning.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Diet and duodenal ulcer.

BACKGROUND: Despite the fact that the main cause of duodenal ulcer incidence and recurrence is the Helicobacter pylori bacterium, more than 80% of Helicobacter pylori-infected people never develop an ulcer. Diet may be one of the most important environmental factors contributing to duodenal ulcer. AIMS: To explore the role of diet in causation, treatment and prevention of duodenal ulcer recurrence. METHODS: All research papers published in English from 1966 to October 1999 present in Medline, involving human subjects, and having duodenal ulcer as outcome, entered the review. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Soluble fibre from fruit and vegetables seem to be protective against duodenal ulcer and refined sugars a risk factor. The role of fibre in the treatment and prevention of recurrence of duodenal ulcer is uncertain, as is that of essential fatty acids. However, none of the epidemiological studies on the relationship between diet and duodenal ulcer disease controlled for Helicobacter pylori.

Diet↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Antibodies to hepatitis C virus and chronic hypertransaminasemia in southern Italy.

In an ecographic survey for gallstones, executed on a systematic sample from the municipal electoral roll of a town in Southern Italy, 164 subjects were found with ALT more than twice the upper normal limit (unl). Five years later 138 of these were re-examined; 76 still had ALT greater than 2 unl (group A), 41 still abnormal (group B) and 21 normal (group C). Anti-HCV antibodies were found in 52 subjects of group A (68%). 18 of group B (44%) and 2 of group C (9.5%). The odds ratio of ALT greater than 2 unl (A vs C) in anti-HCV+ was 20.6 and of a still elevated ALT (A + B vs C) was 14.1. Logistic regression was used to eliminate the effect of possible confounding factors (sex, age, alcohol, drugs, HBV markers) on the relationship chronic ALT increase and anti-HCV positivity but the odds ratio was still 18.9 (A vs C) and 11 (A + B vs C). These findings suggest that anti-HCV antibodies are strongly associated with chronic hypertransaminasemia at the population level in Southern Italy.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Genetic epidemiology of cholelithiasis. A case-control study of a population].

Aim of this study is to evaluate the familial risk of cholelithiasis in non hospitalized subjects with and without gallstones. A population sample of 2.472 subjects was examined by echography for gallstones; 220 subjects (92 males and 128 females) had gallstones or had already been cholecystectomized for gallstones. These cases and an equal number of controls were interrogated about the diagnosis of gallstones in their family using a standardized questionnaire. The comparison of the frequency of symptomatic gallstones and cholecystectomies for gallstones in the relatives of cases and controls showed an increase of the relative risk of gallstones in sons of parents with cholelithiasis (OR 2.9, CI 95% 1.2-8.0) and in siblings of subjects with cholelithiasis (if sister with gallstones: OR 2.4, CI 95% 1.05-5.6; if brother with gallstones: OR 2.9, CI 95% 0.6-14.6). The stratification for sex of cases and controls, however, pointed out that the risk increased only in daughters and sisters of subjects with gallstones. There was no statistically significant difference of frequency of gallstones between spouses of cases and controls (chi square, p greater than 0.05). The results of this study confirm that there is a familial risk of gallstones, even if it is evident only in the female relatives of subjects with gallstones, and suggest that probably the main cause of this risk is genetic and not environmental.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Duodenogastric reflux, histology and cell proliferation of the gastric mucosa before and six months after cholecystectomy.

In order to evaluate the effects that an increase in duodenogastric reflux (DGR) has on the mucosal cell proliferation of the non-operated stomach, we made a prospective study on 13 patients (9 female and 4 male, mean age 52 years) both before and 6 months after cholecystectomy, an operation which determines a significant increase in DGR with an intact pyloric sphincter. DGR was evaluated by measuring total intragastric bile acids (dosed by an enzymatic method), and single intragastric bile acids (dosed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography) and it was expressed as Fasting Bile Reflux (FBR) in mumol/h. Gastric cell proliferation was evaluated by measuring (by High Performance Liquid Chromatography) polyamine (putrescine, spermidine and spermine) levels in biopsy specimens taken from the antrum and gastric body. The histology of the antrum and gastric body was also evaluated. After cholecystectomy, there was a significant increase in DGR (delta = 39.23 mumol/h, 95% C.L. 11.69-136.22, sign-test for matched pairs p = 0.0003). The tissue concentration of putrescine in the antrum increased significantly (delta = 8.36 mumol/g of tissue, 95% C.L. 0.34-18.01, sign-test for matched pairs p = 0.013) and there was a worsening of histological findings in the antrum (preoperative chronic atrophic gastritis rate 38.5%, postoperative 69%). In the body there were no significant variations either in polyamine levels or in histology. The increase in DGR and in putrescine concentrations in the antrum were associated negatively (Spearman's rank -0.64, 95% C.L. -0.88 to -0.14).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Demonstration of low density lipoprotein receptor in human colonic carcinoma and surrounding mucosa by immunoenzymatic assay.

In order to verify the presence of Low Density Lipoprotein Receptor (LDLR) in cellular membranes isolated from human colonic tissue, samples from the neoplastic colorectum and the normal surrounding mucosa were studied by an enzyme-linked-immunosorbent assay. A monoclonal antibody against the human LDLR was used. The LDLR content revealed a considerable inter-individual variation. In 36 out of 53 cases (68%) there was no LDLR presence in either normal or neoplastic tissue samples. In 5 out of 53 cases (9.4%), LDLRs were detected in both types of tissue samples, in 9 cases out of 53 (17%) LDLRs were present in neoplastic tissue, while in 3 out of 53 cases (5.6%) only in normal mucosa. The anti-LDLR mono-clonal antibody (mAb) binding was significantly higher in neoplastic tissue samples than normal surrounding colonic mucosa ones. Sex, age, body mass index (BMI), serum cholesterol, tumour site, histologic grading and Dukes' stage did not seem to be associated with LDLR presence.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Complications after elective gastric resection for duodenal ulcer. Multivariate analysis of risk factors.

The records of 545 consecutive patients, who underwent elective Billroth II gastric resection for pyloric or duodenal ulcer were examined retrospectively to identify a group of high-risk patients for life threatening postoperative complications or death. Thirty-two preoperative clinical, endoscopic, surgical and haematological variables were analyzed by stepwise logistic regression. Major complications occurred in 39 patients (7%) and eight patients (1.5%) died. The patient characteristics associated with the major complications and death were liver cirrhosis (Odds ratio 6.7 95% Confidence interval 1.3-33.8), white blood cell count > 10,000/mm3 (Odds ratio 5.5 95% Confidence interval 1.7-17.3), previous abdominal surgery (Odds ratio 4.6 95% Confidence interval 1.7-12.1), and ulcer penetrating contiguous structures (Odds ratio 3.3 95% Confidence interval 1.2-8.9). There was no statistically significant interaction between the above risk factors in causing complications or death. It can be concluded that even if only one of these four risk factors is present in patients undergoing elective surgery for duodenal ulcer a riskless technique, such as proximal gastric vagotomy, should be used instead of Billroth II gastric resection.

Aged↗