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Biomedical subjects

J Charpin

Publications and source records attributed to J Charpin.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Influence of anxiolytic drugs (Prazepam and Diazepam) on respiratory center output and CO2 chemosensitivity in patients with lung diseases.

Occlusion pressure at 0.1 s (P0.1) and its evolution during progressive hyperoxic hypercapnia (CO2 chemosensitivity) were measured in 40 patients. Most of them (26) were affected by asthma and /or chronic bronchitis and had mild obstruction and hypoxemia. Measurements were made after 2 days of oral prazepam, diazepam or a placebo (single-blind study). Diazepam induced a significant decrease in P0.1 without affecting CO2 chemosensitivity. In contrast, prazepam did not significantly modify P0.1 or CO2 chemosensitivity. However, P0.1 decreased in 5/18 individual cases. 1 week of treatment by prazepam has advantages over diazepam by not depressing respiratory center output.

Asthma↗

[Host factors in asbestos-associated disease. A study in twins (author's transl)].

Observations in two pairs of identical twins illustrate the importance of genetic factors in determining the outcome of exposure to asbestos in relation to pleural plaques and bronchogenic carcinoma. The first pair of twins, laggers with french railroad (S.N.C.F.), were discovered fortuitously, after only several years exposure, to have bilateral pleural plaques and calcification at the same site on the axillary and diaphragmatic surfaces. The second set of twins developed epidermoïd bronchial carcinoma : one at the right hilum, the other postero-basally on the right in 1969 and 1977 respectively. Both were in ship-building and each had been exposed to asbestos in the same yard for 20 years between 1945 and 1965. Radiographs showed left sided pleural calcification and reticular shadowing at the bases in the two cases. These observations show the role of the host in the generation of asbestos disease. They are in keeping with studies on the presence of certain tissue types (HLA B27, and HLA B8) in those with asbestosis and of non-specific auto-antibodies (anti-nuclear factor, rheumatoid factor) in asbestosis, silicosis and the idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The relation between genetic factors and asbestos-induced cancer is suggested by the variable susceptibility of different kinds of animals to carcinogenesis in response to asbestos and by the increased inductibility of the enzyme system Aryl-hydrocarbon-hydroxylase in subjects exposed to this air-born contaminant who develop pleural tumours and/or bronchitis. There are only two other publications of bronchial carcinoma in twins in the literature.

Adult↗

A prospective national study of the safety of immunotherapy.

A prospective study was made in France to determine the frequency, nature, causes and consequences of systemic reactions occurring during specific immunotherapy. One hundred and fifty five reactions were recorded in 151, 997, injections given to 19,739 patients; a percentage of 0.1. It was higher with pollen extracts (0.2%) and practically nil with other extracts (house dust, Dermatophagoides, insect body, bacteria). Asthma, spasmodic rhinitis and urticaria were the most frequent, 80% of systemic reactions. In 59% no explanation could be found. The main known causes of adverse reactions were excessive doses of antigen, improper timing of treatment or incorrect technique of injection. After appropriate treatment the immunotherapy was continued in nearly 90% of the cases. Specific immunotherapy with the majority of extracts now being used, namely adsorbed extracts, is not dangerous but it must be precisely and cautiously done because errors are responsible for nearly 50% of the recorded systemic reactions.

Adolescent↗

Pollen-allergen IgE response in the inbred rat. Regulation of allergen P-IgE antibodies in high and low responders by suppressive factors.

Cyclophosphamide treatment (100 mg/kg) significantly increased the IgE response to plane-tree allergen P in low-responder strains of rats. A suppressive serum was obtained by injection of CFA in normal low-responder strains. The injection of this serum 2 days after cyclophosphamide treatment and 1 day prior to primary immunization, reversed the cyclophosphamide-enhanced IgE antibodies response without affecting the IgG2a levels. This effect is strain specific.

Allergens↗

Premenstrual syndrome and atopy: a double-blind clinical evaluation of treatment with a gamma-globulin/histamine complex.

The relationship between atopy and premenstrual syndrome was studied in 138 women, aged between 20 and 39-years' old, who had suffered from symptoms for at least 6 months. The results showed that there was a high incidence of a personal or familial history of allergy, immediate positive skin test reactions to conventional allergens, eosinophilia, low titre of histamine latex test and high levels of IgE in the premenstrual syndrome patients compared with the normal controls. A preliminary study in 40 patients showed that a course of treatment using a gamma-globulin/histamine complex by subcutaneous injection produced a satisfactory response in 70%. A follow-on double-blind, placebo-controlled study was carried out using the same drug in 42 out of 86 women. Very effective or effective symptomatic relief was significantly higher in the group receiving active treatment. The best results were obtained in patients who had high IgE levels.

Adult↗

[Multicenter, double-blind study of oral acetylcysteine vs. placebo].

The mucolytic activity of acetylcysteine (NAC) was evaluated in a double-blind, placebo controlled, clinical trial performed in three pneumology centres and involving a total of 215 patients with the following diagnoses: 84 acute bronchitis, 95 superinfections of chronic bronchitis, 36 complicated bronchitis in patients with severe chronic respiratory insufficiency. Treatment consisted of 1 sachet of 200 mg NAC t.i.d. for 10 days. Standard antibiotic therapy (amoxycillin 1.5 g/day) was concurrently administered for 7 days. Statistical analysis comparing sputum volume and viscosity, sedation of cough and improvement of PEFR in 108 NAC and in 107 placebo treated patients, showed that NAC was very significantly more effective than placebo. The effect of NAC was negligible in the 36 patients with complicated bronchitis, whereas it was evident and remarkable in patients with acute and chronic bronchitis.

Acetylcysteine↗

[Are rat alveolar macrophages capable of phagocytizing pollen grains?].

Plane-tree pollen grains were incubated in vitro with alveolar macrophages from inbred Rats, and the possibility of phagocytosis was investigated. No phagocytosis was observed even after 48 hrs incubation. But alveolar cells were bound to pollen grains generally at the apertures. This binding did not require the Fc receptor on the macrophage membrane.

Animals↗

Anaphylactic reactions to muscle relaxants under general anesthesia.

Eleven patients who suffered a reaction to the administration of muscle relaxants during induction of general anesthesia were explored using skin tests, leukocyte histamine release, lymphocyte transformation test, and the Prausnitz-Küstner test (P-K). Fifteen normal subjects served as controls. Patients who suffered a reaction showed considerable cutaneous hypersensitivity to muscle relaxants. Leukocyte histamine release was positive in three cases and the P-K test was positive in one case. These findings suggest possible specific serum IgE antibodies to muscle relaxants. However, reliable discrimination between immunological and idiosyncratic pharmacological mechanism is difficult to obtain.

Anaphylaxis↗