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Biomedical subjects

I Schiff

Publications and source records attributed to I Schiff.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

A preliminary evaluation of the effect of lofexidine on vasomotor flushes in post-menopausal women.

This is a preliminary study of a new orally administered alpha-adrenergic agonist, lofexidine, to establish its effectiveness in the control of vasomotor flushes (VMF) in five post-menopausal women. The initial dose of lofexidine, 0.1 mg b.i.d., was increased by 0.1 mg b.i.d. every two weeks until VMF disappeared, until side-effects became intolerable, or until a maximum dose of 0.6 mg b.i.d. was reached. When the maximum dose for these criteria was reached, there was a patient-blinded crossover to placebo. Each patient recorded her VMF each day and was monitored by finger thermistor for three hours every two weeks to record VMF. At the maximum tolerated dose, the patients had an average 74% (P less than 0.001) decrease in subjectively noted VMF, and a 61% (P less than 0.05) decrease in VMF objectively measured by finger thermistor. The side-effects (dry mouth, fatigue, headache) became intolerable for one patient at 0.3 mg b.i.d. and for one patient at 0.5 mg b.i.d. Two patients tolerated 0.6 mg b.i.d. Four patients had a return to near baseline numbers of VMF with placebo. Preliminary evidence indicates that lofexidine is probably effective in the treatment of VMF; however, at doses which completely eliminate VMF, the side-effects may become intolerable.

Clonidine↗
PubMed1985

Lower prevalence of breast cancer and cancers of the reproductive system among former college athletes compared to non-athletes.

The prevalence (lifetime occurrence) rate of cancers of the reproductive system (uterus, ovary, cervix and vagina) and breast cancer was determined for 5,398 living alumnae, 2,622 of whom were former college athletes and 2,776 non-athletes, from data on medical and reproductive history, athletic training and diet. The former athletes had a significantly lower risk of cancer of the breast and reproductive system than did the non-athletes. The relative risk (RR), non-athletes/athletes, for cancers of the reproductive system was 2.53. 95% confidence limits (CL) (1.17, 5.47). The RR for breast cancer was 1.86, 95% CL (1.00, 3.47). The analysis controlled for potential confounding factors including age, family history of cancer, age of menarche, number of pregnancies, use of oral contraceptives, use of oestrogen in the menopausal period, smoking, and leanness. Of the college athletes, 82.4% had been on pre-college teams compared to 24.9% of the college non-athletes. We conclude that long term athletic training may lower the risk of breast cancer and cancers of the reproductive system.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Comparison of bone density in amenorrheic women due to athletics, weight loss, and premature menopause.

Studied was the peripheral bone density of 39 women (ages 18 to 43) with the diagnosis of secondary amenorrhea in an effort to define the population of amenorrheic women at risk for osteoporosis. Eight women had exercise-induced amenorrhea (athletes), 20 women had amenorrhea associated with weight loss, and 11 women had premature menopause. These diagnoses were made on the basis of history, physical examination, and luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and prolactin levels, and failure to have withdrawal bleeding after the administration of progestin. Twenty-five nonathletic, normally menstruating women served as control subjects. The peripheral bone density of the amenorrheic athletes (0.738 g/cm2 +/- 0.047) was not significantly different from that of the controls (0.726 g/cm2 +/- 0.044). The average bone density of the group with weight loss-associated amenorrhea (0.672 g/cm2 +/- 0.066) was significantly less than controls (P less than .005) as was that of the women with premature menopause (0.616 g/cm2 +/- 0.048, P less than .001). There was a significant correlation between months of amenorrhea and decrease in bone density (r = 0.506, P less than .001). From this study it was concluded that women with exercise-associated amenorrhea are not at significant risk for cortical bone loss as measured by direct photon absorptiometry. Women with weight loss-associated amenorrhea and women with premature menopause are at significant risk for bone loss when compared with normal controls.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Episodic secretory patterns of immunoreactive luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (IR-LH-RH) in the systemic circulation of normal women throughout the menstrual cycle.

Using established radioimmunoassays for measuring plasma luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) and serum gonadotropins, we studied the secretory dynamics of these hormones in eight normal ovulatory women during different phases of their menstrual cycle. All of the women demonstrated evidence of pulsatile immunoreactive LH-RH (IR-LH-RH) release throughout the cycle, with IR-LH-RH concentrations fluctuating between 0.5 and 35 pg/ml in the systemic circulation. Analysis of IR-LH-RH episodic secretions revealed a significant increase of both mean IR-LH-RH concentrations (P less than 0.001) and pulse frequency (P less than 0.05) during the periovulatory period. Furthermore, plasma IR-LH-RH titers in five normal women studied during the morning and night at mid-menstrual cycle fluctuated markedly, with slightly greater episodic discharges observed during the night than in the morning (P less than 0.05) and no significant change in pulse frequency.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Vasomotor flushes and the release of peripheral immunoreactive luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone in postmenopausal women.

The plasma concentrations of immunoreactive luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (IR-LH-RH) and LH and the peripheral skin temperature of symptomatic menopausal women were recorded continuously and compared with those of asymptomatic menopausal women. These studies were performed by an intermittent withdrawal technique (n = 13) and a continuous withdrawal technique (n = 3). The mean plasma concentration of IR-LH-RH was much higher in symptomatic than in asymptomatic women by both methods of analysis. Large episodic secretory spikes of IR-LH-RH and a temporal correlation between the IR-LH-RH spikes and temperature elevations was found (P less than or equal to 0.025) only in symptomatic women.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Decidual cast mimicking an intrauterine gestational sac and fetal pole in a patient with ectopic pregnancy. A case report.

In a case of ectopic pregnancy, ultrasound findings showed a pseudogestational sac in the uterus containing debris that mimicked a fetal pole. Ultrasonography done one week before had revealed no intrauterine gestational sac. The progression in one week of an "empty" uterus to a seven-week-sized intrauterine gestational sac with the appearance of a fetal pole without a heartbeat should suggest to the sonographer the possibility of a pseudosac and ectopic pregnancy.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Collaborative study of pregnancy rates following danazol therapy of stage I endometriosis.

Pregnancy rates following danazol therapy of endometriosis vary widely. In order to reduce variations in patient selection and establish danazol effectiveness, six collaborative centers evaluated 75 infertile patients with normal infertility screening studies and mild (stage I) endometriosis documented by laparoscopy. Following diagnosis and 3 months coital exposure, all patients were treated with danazol for 6 months, and patient surveillance after danazol therapy lasted at least 12 months, with a range of 12 to 34 months. Of the 75 patients treated, 21 (28%) conceived, and the term pregnancy rate was 20% (15 of 75). The low pregnancy rate observed in these patients suggests that the role of danazol therapy for patients with mild endometriosis and infertility should be reconsidered.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Pregnancy outcomes following Tompkins metroplasty.

Eighteen patients with poor reproductive histories and 2 patients with primary infertility underwent Tompkins metroplasty for a septate uterus. There were 19 pregnancies within 2 years of surgery, and 11 patients had at least 1 viable pregnancy, for an overall success rate of 55%. One of the infertile patients conceived and delivered. The average fecundability rate for the first 24 months was 0.078 (normal, 0.20). The cumulative pregnancy rate at 27 months was 94% by the life-table method. The group of patients (n = 14) with two or more losses and no other major risk factors for reproductive failure had higher fecundability and a better success rate (71%). The Tompkins metroplasty is a technically simple procedure with a success rate similar to that of the Jones procedure.

Abortion, Habitual↗
PubMed1983

Cost-effectiveness of hormone replacement therapy in the menopause.

Costs, risks, and benefits of estrogen-progestin therapy in the menopause were compared with those for estrogen alone, using techniques of cost-effectiveness analysis. With the progestin added, reduced costs of endometrial monitoring and treatment of endometrial lesions more than offset the increased cost of the drug regimen with a net saving of $230-$430 per patient, depending on the duration of treatment. An estimated gain in life expectancy with estrogen-progestin compared to estrogen alone may be partly offset by a perceived reduction in the quality of life owing to the prolongation of menstruation in women receiving progestin. Overall, based on currently available evidence, estrogen-progestin therapy appears to be cost-effective, except in women who consider the adverse effects of continued menstruation to offset the relief of menopausal symptoms. These conclusions must be viewed as tentative, pending further clarification of the roles of estrogens and progestins in cardiovascular disease and breast cancer.

Aged↗
PubMed1983

Testicular hormone concentration in men with varicoceles: immediate effects of varicocelectomy.

As part of an investigation of the role of gonadal steroid concentrations and testicular function, testosterone (T), estradiol (E2) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) were measured in bilateral testicular biopsies from infertile men with varicoceles. The biopsies were performed randomly either immediately before or 1 hour after varicocelectomy in an effort to detect acute changes in testicular hormone concentrations. No significant differences were noted between these two groups nor was there consistent evidence of disturbed in vivo Leydig cell function. A wide range of testicular hormone concentrations was found in these biopsies, which did not correlate well with morphologic findings. This suggests that many different pathophysiologic conditions may exist in association with the presence of a varicocele.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1982

Endometrial hyperplasia in women on cyclic or continuous estrogen regimens.

Twenty-five symptomatic postmenopausal women with an intact uterus were assigned in random double-blind fashion to receive 0.625 mg of conjugated estrogens on either a cyclic (3 weeks on, 1 week off) or continuous (daily) basis. The incidence of endometrial hyperplasia as demonstrated by screening biopsies at 6 and 12 months of therapy was 4.5 per 100 woman-months in the cyclic group and 3.7 per 100 woman-months in the continuous group (a difference not statistically significant). Thus, in this study, cyclic therapy was found to offer no advantage over continuous therapy. In our opinion, the rate of hyperplasia development in both groups unacceptably high, and efforts must be directed at reducing its incidence primarily.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1982

Factors influencing the success of artificial insemination.

Factors influencing the probability of conception following artificial insemination with donor semen (AID) have been investigated in a series of 124 married females. Overall, 79 conceptions were achieved, for a cumulative rate of conception of 85.1% at the end of 1 year and an average fecundability of 15%, using life-table analysis. Women aged 30 or over or those with evidence of tubal or ovulatory problems had decreased probability of conception, although not to a significant extent. Women whose husbands were azoospermic had 20% fecundability in response to AID, significantly better than the 10% fecundability after AID observed in the women whose mates were oligospermic. Cycles during which AID was successful were significantly more likely to have had a positive postcoital test observed, compared with unsuccessful AID cycles.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Determinations of endogenous immunoreactive luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone in human plasma.

A specific and sensitive RIA was developed for measuring immunoreactive LHRH (IR-LHRH) in methanol acid-extracted human plasma. Heparinized blood samples were obtained from normal adult women and men, and the plasma was extracted with methanol, acidified, lyophilized, and stored at -20 C until assayed for LHRH. The lowest detectable levels of IR-LHRH in 1.0-3.5 ml methanol acid-extracted plasma ranged from 0.975-1.95 pg/assay tube, and recovery of synthetic LHRH from plasma averaged 88.6 +/- 2.4% (SE). Gel chromatographic separation analysis revealed comparable elution peaks for endogenous, tritiated, and synthetic LHRH. The plasma extract was also effective in evoking the release of LH and FSH in vitro using isolated rat hemipituitaries. IR-LHRH levels in human peripheral plasma rose 50-fold within seconds after an iv bolus injection of 100 micrograms synthetic LHRH with a return to baseline within 60 min. When the pattern of IR-LHRH secretion in peripheral plasma was studied, episodes of IR-LHRH rise were observed approximately every 60 min in both men and women. The physiochemical and biochemical properties of IR-LHRH suggest that it is an authentic LHRH. The presence of pulses of IR-LHRH suggests that its concentration in peripheral blood reflects changes in levels in the pituitary portal blood.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

The effects of vaginal contamination on two pulmonary phospholipid assays.

During the examination to confirm premature rupture of membranes, amniotic fluid unavoidably contaminated with cervical mucus and other vaginal debris can often be obtained from the posterior fornix. This study was undertaken to determine the validity of phospholipid measurements on contaminated amniotic fluid. Fifteen paired amniocentesis and vaginally contaminated samples of amniotic fluid were used to measure the lecithin/sphingomyelin ratio and saturated phosphatidylcholine (SPC). The amniocentesis specimens had a mean L/S ratio of 3.94 +/- 0.22 (mean +/- SEM), and contaminated samples had a mean L/S ratio of 3.82 +/- 0.29 (mean +/- SEM). Paired t-test was unable to demonstrate a significant difference (p greater than 0.10), and the correlation coefficient between paired L/S samples was r = 0.79. SPC measurements on the amniocentesis fluid had a mean value of 1,243 microgram/DL +/- 217 (mean +/- SEM) as compared to the contaminated-specimen mean of 1.375 micrograms/dl 223 (mean +/- SEM). Paired t-test likewise was unable to demonstrate a significant difference (p greater than 0.10), and the correlation coefficient between paired SPC samples was r = 0.93. Within the design of this study, we were unable to demonstrate a statistically significant effect of brief vaginal contamination on the measurement of the L/S ratio or SPC.

Amniocentesis↗