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H T Robertson

Publications and source records attributed to H T Robertson.

60 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Elevated alveolar PCO2 relative to predicted values during normal gas exchange.

A negative aADCO2 has been demonstrated during ventilation with hypercarbic gas mixtures and during rebreathing, but has never been demonstrated during normal gas exchange. This anomalous behavior of CO2 was studied by comparing it to the behavior of five infused inert gases during normal gas exchange in 10 anesthetized mongrel dogs. The distribution of VA/Q heterogeneity and the respiratory dead space in the animals was quantitated using excretion-solubility data from the five infused inert gases. The predicted excretion fraction (PACO2/PVCO2) for CO2 was obtained from the inert gas excretion-solubility curve, using a measured solubility for CO2. The measured excretion fraction for CO2 (PACO2/PVCO2), even after correction for Haldane effect, was significantly greater than the predicted fraction (P less than 0.001). This corresponded to an alveolar PCO2 that exceeded the predicted value by a mean of 5.0 Torr.

Animals↗

Chylomicronemia syndrome in diabetes mellitus.

Lipemic plasma with marked elevations of plasma triglyceride levels (3221 +/- 1590 mg/dl) and fasting chylomicronemia was observed in nine patients with uncontrolled non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Every case had hypertriglyceridemic relatives, suggesting that the very high triglyceride values seen resulted from the coexistence of diabetes with a familial form of hypertriglyceridemia. A number of clinical and biochemical features observed in the diabetic patients and also in a group of nondiabetic controls with comparable degrees of hypertriglyceridemia suggests that these manifestations are related to high plasma triglyceride levels rather than to the diabetes per se. Chronic abdominal pain, mental confusion, and memory loss improved with lipid-lowering therapy and clearing the plasma of chylomicrons. Pulmonary function tests, red cell 2,3-diphosphoglycerate, and hemoglobin oxygen affinity were normal; the mild hypoxemia observed is believed to be an artifact. It is suggested that a syndrome due to chylomicronemia can occur in uncontrolled non-insulin-dependent diabetic patients, who in addition have a familial form of hypertriglyceridemia. To prevent manifestations of this syndrome in these patients, specific lipid-lowering therapy may be required in addition to control of their diabetes.

Abdomen↗