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Biomedical subjects

H Freund

Publications and source records attributed to H Freund.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

Percutaneous cannulation of the internal jugular vein in infants and children.

A technique for percutaneous catheterization of the internal jugular vein in infants and children was used since January 1975 in 206 patients ranging in age from a few hours to 12 years old. The series included 31 premature infants weighing less than 2,500 grams and 107 babies weighing less than 4,000 grams. Five attempts at cannulation failed. Each catheterization procedure required an average of 1.8 needle insertions before the vein was entered. In 129 patients, the first attempt was successful. Sixteen complications related to the procedure occurred early in our experience, seven of which were life threatening. One death was directly ascribed to the actual insertion of the catheter and mediastinal extravasation of infusion material. Most of the early complications probably could have been injected through the catheter immediately after cannulation, in addition to aspirating the blood and lowering the infusion bottle. The 22 late complications were related to infection; one infant died because of catheter sepsis. To minimize septic complications, an arbitrary limit of seven days was set, after which the catheter was replaced. Cannulation of the internal jugular vein in infants and children should be regarded as a serious surgical procedure to be performed by a trained team and only when properly indicated.

Bacterial Infections↗

Effects of biguanides on the intermediate metabolism of glucose in normal and portal-strictured rats.

Phenformin and metformin treatments may be complicated by lactic adidosis. This metabolic complication seems favoured by preexistent hepatic disease. We have therefore compared the metabolic effects of phenformin and metformin on non fasting normal and portal-strictured rats. The latter group is characterized by impaired hepatic passage of these drugs without hepatocellular lesions. Given orally to normal rats over 5 days, phenformin (20 mg/kg/24 h) and metformin (150 mg/kg/24 h) decreased blood glucose levels and increased blood urea and the substrates of gluconeogenesis (alanine, glutamine, lactic and pyruvic acids), effects more apparent with phenformin than metformin. In non-treated portal strictured rats, blood glucose levels were lower and the intermediate metabolites were higher than in noraml rats, suggesting a modification of gluconeogenesis. Treatment of the portal strictured group by phenformin or metformin induced no changes in the studied parameters. This absence of effect of the biguanides in portal strictured rats supports the postulate that, in normal rats, biguanides act principally on hepatic metabolism by reducing gluconeogenesis and that, in the absence of other hepatic damage, the presence of a peri-hepatic shunt, which, by itself, modifies gluconeogenesis, does not further predispose to lactic acidosis during short term administration of biguanides.

Alanine↗

Lactate kinetics after short strenuous exercise in man.

Arterial blood lactate was measured at 10 s time intervals after a 3 min strenuous exercise for six athletes pedaling a bicycle ergometer in the sitting position. Recovery curves were fitted to the equation: Y(t) = A1(1-e-gamma1t)+A2(1-e-gamma2t)(0). The evolution of arterial lactate concentrations during recovery can accurately be represented by this equation. The values of the coefficients A and gamma found were used for a numerical application to an open two-compartment model: the "working muscle space" (1) and the "lactate space" (2). Intramuscular concentrations, the transfer coefficients from compartment 1 to compartment 2 and from compartment 2 to compartment 1 and the fractional turnover and basal turnover rate were calculated. Computed intramuscular lactate concentrations at the end of exercise compare favorably with those found earlier by muscular biopsic samplings. The turnover data are higher than those previously reported. This discrepancy may possibly be attributed to the method of mathematical analysis.

Adult↗

Factors affecting survival following radical mastectomy.

Data on 17 potentially useful factors from 152 women undergoing radical mastectomy for operable breast cancer were analyzed in order to determine the effect of each on survival and their relative importance. Only four, clinical stage, clinical and pathological lymph node involvement, and appearance of recurrence and metastases, proved to be of significant prognostic value. Axillary nodal involvement was the main single determinant of survival. Multiple regression analysis, based on factor analysis of the original input variables, was able to account for 34% of the variance in survival and is thus of only very limited use as a predictive instrument in the clinical management of prospective patients.

Adult↗

Primary neoplasms of the small bowel.

The treatment of thirty-one malignant and eleven benign neoplasms of the small intestine is reported. The most common symptom was abdominal pain followed by vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, constipation, and gastrointestinal bleeding. In four cases small bowel perforated. Intestinal obstruction occurred in 31 per cent of patients. Preoperative diagnosis was made in 19 per cent of patients. All eleven patients with benign neoplasms were curatively treated by resection and primary anastomosis. Eighteen of the thirty-one patients with malignant tumors had curative resection, five had palliative resection, and eight had laparotomy and biopsy only. The most common benign tumor was leiomyoma. The most common malignant tumor was lymphoma (67 per cent) followed by adenocarcinoma (16 per cent), carcinoid (10 per cent), and leiomyosarcoma (3 per cent). Twenty-four patients were available for follow up; thirteen remain alive and eleven died, seven within one year and four within two years.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Cysts of the adrenal gland.

3 cases of adrenal cysts are reported. The incidence of cyst originating in the adrenal gland was found to be 0.02-0.06% in autopsies. Adrenal cysts are usually symptomless making the diagnosis difficult. The cases described here were diagnosed and removed at operation. One of them was associated with hypertension, and another with pregnancy, considered to be exceptional. Two of these cysts were calcified. All of them were benign. The definite preoperative diagnosis is difficult and the surgical procedure recommended is resection of the cyst with preservation of as much adrenal tissue as possible if malignancy is excluded by frozen section. Since the number of operated cases diagnosed preoperatively are too small, the possibility of treating adrenal cyst by percutaneous aspiration and injection of opaque material to eventually avoid surgery could not be established.

Adrenal Gland Diseases↗

A continent ileostomy and reservoir using the canine ileocolonic segment.

The present study was an attempt to create a simple reservoir with a reliable continent ileostomy, so as to overcome the many drawbacks of the regular ileostomy. The ileocolonic segment was isolated and the ileum was intussuscepted into the colon to augment the ileocolonic sphincter. Pressure recordings disclosed a high pressure zone in the ileocolonic sphincter area reacting with a significant pressure increase to colonic distention. The proximal ileal end was anastomosed to the colonic part of the ileocolonic segment, and the ileal part of the ileocolonic segment was maturated as an ileostomy. The colonic reservoir was emptied by catheterization. Between catherizations, the ileostomies remained completely continent to small intestinal contents and gas. The reservoir and continent ileostomy are easily constructed, offer convenience and safety, voluntary and controlled emptying and conservation of part of the water and sodium excessively lost with conventional ileostomies. The procedure should be applied only to those patients in whom the right colon is unaffected or only slightly affected by the inflammatory process.

Animals↗

The influence fo traumatic splenectomy on the volume of human platelets.

A rise in the blood platelet count and volume occurred in 11 patients following traumatic splenectomy. The pattern of the volume distribution, however, remained unchanged. This indicates an increased rate of platelet production, with the newly formed cells substantially larger than their preoperative counterparts, and can be interpreted in terms of a humoral factor of splenic origin that is able to exert its control over the bone marrow. The stable shape of the volume distribution, despite splenectomy, suggests the presence of an organ other than the spleen that is capable of maintaining the normal age distribution in the peripheral circulation, and the liver is proposed as a possible candidate for this role. The evidence, so far, has been circumstantial and further investigation will be required before definite conclusions can be drawn.

Blood Platelets↗

A new infusion flow stabilizer.

A new intravenous flow stabilizer (IFS) for keeping constant infusion rates was evaluated and found to be precise and easy to use. The IFS enables precise intravenous treatment while relieving the nursing staff of the frequent checking and readjustment that are required with the intravenous sets in current use.

Humans↗

Choledochoduodenostomy in the treatment of benign biliary tract disease.

Recurrent surgical interventions on the biliary system for benign biliary tract diseases carry high morbidity and mortality. Choledochoduodenostomy creates a large and easily performed biliodigestive anastomosis enabling good drainage of the biliary system. Among 27 patients undergoing choledochoduodenostomy for benign biliary tract diseases, recurrent cholangitis occurred in only one patient, in whom a stenosed anastomosis was probably the culprit. The other patients have been free of abdominal complaints, cholangitis, or pancreatitis for follow-up periods of from six months to eight years. There was no operative mortality; morbidity was 45%, but hospital stay averaged only 14.7 days. The traditional objections to this procedure do not seem valid where choledochoduodenostomy is rightly indicated, the common bile duct is dilated, and a wide enough anastomosis is constructed. Our favorable results mark choledochoduodenostomy as a safe, simple, and effective procedure in the management of benign biliary tract disease, particularly in the high risk patient.

Adolescent↗

Small paraduodenal hernias.

During an 18-month period, five patients ranging in age from 3 1/2 to 79 years old were treated for small paraduodenal hernia. Three had acute strangulated obstruction, while in the other two patients the hernia was found incidentally, during surgery for other causes. As the mortality of obstructing internal hernias exceeds 50%, all paraduodenal hernias, even small and asymptomatic ones, should be considered an operable condition. The operating surgeon must be aware of the various types and locations of paraduodenal hernias and look for them whenever operating for unexplained abdominal pain or obstruction. Contrary to the common assumptioh that paraduodenal hernias are rare congenital anomalies, we believe the rarity of this condition to be due to insufficient attention to the clinical picture and inadequate exploration of the paraduodenal hernia during laparotomy.

Aged↗

Paget's disease of the breast.

Twenty-nine histologically verified cases of Paget's disease of the breast treated at the Hadassah University Hospital in the years 1949-1972 were followed up and analyzed. Dividing this material into two groups according to the presence or absence of a palpable breast tumor revealed significant difference in behavior and survival. Patients with a breast mass (34%) had a 50% axillary lymph node involvement and behaved as with any other ordinary breast cancer, with a 5-year survival rate of 40% and a 10-year survival rate of 33%. Patients with no palpable breast mass (66%) had only a 10.5% lymph node involvement, the 5-year survival rate being 94% and the 10-year survival rate being 91%. Delay in diagnosis seems to play no significant factor in survival rates and outcome. We believe radical mastectomy to be the treatment of choice in all cases of Paget's disease of the breast.

Adult↗