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Biomedical subjects

J Sierra

Publications and source records attributed to J Sierra.

245 records · Page 14Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Mitoxantrone and intermediate-dose cytosine arabinoside for poor-risk acute leukemias: response to treatment and factors influencing outcome.

Mitoxantrone (MIT, 12 mg/m2, i.v. 5 days) and intermediate-dose cytosine arabinoside (IDAC 1 g/m2/12 h, i.v. 3 days) was given to 43 patients with poor-risk acute leukemias (AL). Moderate or severe toxicity was infrequent. The proportion of complete remissions (CR) in the main patient categories was as follows: 15/18 (85 per cent) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in the first relapse, 2/6 in ALL in the first relapse, 0/2 in AML in relapse after bone marrow transplantation (BMT), 2/7 in AML refractory to first-line treatment (REF-AL), and 1/6 in postmyelodysplastic (PMD-AL) plus secondary AL (S-AL). The mortality rate during induction was 23 per cent. Median duration of CR was 24 weeks. The multivariate prognostic factor analysis on CR obtention showed that data concerning treatment for the first relapse and platelet count higher than the median of the series were favourable. On the contrary, PMD-AL, S-AL and REF-AL were unfavourable situations. A percentage of marrow erythroblasts superior to the median was a favourable prognostic factor for survival. Finally, the duration of CR after MIT-IDAC was directly related to the duration of previous CR. In conclusion, MIT-IDAC was highly effective to attain CR in AML in the first relapse. However, due to the poor long-term results in these patients, additional measures are recommended after CR.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Truncus arteriosus repair with double aortic homograft.

Truncus arteriosus (TA) represents 1% to 3% of congenital heart malformations and carries a high mortality if untreated of approximately 85% at 1 year, with almost half the deaths occurring during the first month of life. Significant truncal valve regurgitation (TVR) can be present in up to 50% of cases and reduces survival if persistent after surgical correction. Repair of truncal valves is a promising approach since growth potential and hemodynamics are maintained. Nevertheless this remains a technical challenge and as much as 50% of these valves still need to be replaced at the time of primary repair. Cryopreserved aortic homografts used as aortic root substitutes have provided preservation of excellent hemodynamic conditions as well as prevention of infectious and thromboembolic complications of prosthetic valves. Even if they present structural deterioration with time, they represent an attractive alternative to prosthetic valves in infants and children who would anyhow need reoperation because of the outgrowth of valvular or conduit substitutes.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Cardiac sarcoma originating from the tricuspid valve.

Primary cardiac sarcomas are uncommon. We report an unusual presentation of a cardiac sarcoma that originated from the posterior leaflet of the tricuspid valve. This tumor, which provided a working diagnosis of tricuspid valve myxoma before and during surgery, should be considered in the differential diagnosis of right atrial and ventricular masses.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Low-dose amphotericin B lipid complex for the treatment of persistent fever of unknown origin in patients with hematologic malignancies and prolonged neutropenia.

We studied the safety of low-dose amphotericin B lipid complex (ABLC, at 1 mg/kg/day) in 30 persistently febrile (>38 degrees C for at least 5 days or with recurrent fever after 3 days of apyrexia) and neutropenic (<0.5 x 10(9)/l) adult patients with hematologic malignancies. The median age was 45 years (range 18-67), most (60%) had an acute leukemia and all had fever of unknown origin (FUO). The total duration of neutropenia was a median of 17 days (range 9-33), and the total number of days with fever 10 days (range 6-39). Seven patients experienced mild-to- moderate infusion-related adverse events (IRAE). The serum creatinine and urea increased from baseline to end of therapy in 76 and 63% of cases, but the maximum levels reached were <130 micromol/l and <11 mmol/l, respectively, in all cases. Liver enzymes showed modest but significant increases in most patients during therapy, while bilirubin decreased in 74% of cases. Response to treatment (defervescence within 6 days without developing a fungal or nonfungal infection) was seen in 22 cases (73%, 95% CI 58-89%), while 8 episodes were considered treatment failures: 2 due to persistent FUO, 1 withdrew due to IRAE, 2 developed nonfungal infections and 3 developed a presumed or definite invasive mycosis. We conclude that low-dose ABLC is very safe and well tolerated and seems as effective as c-AmB for this indication. Thus, randomized trials at this dose level appear justified to demonstrate any real benefit over c-AmB or other lipid formulations for the treatment of FUO in neutropenic patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Treatment of febrile neutropenia with cefepime monotherapy.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The empirical administration of a broad-spectrum beta-lactam antibiotic, either as monotherapy or in combination with an aminoglycoside, is an essential component of the initial management of patients with fever and severe neutropenia. Multiple antibiotics have been tested for this indication. Cefepime is a fourth-generation cephalosporin with in vitro activity against most gram-negative and many gram-positive bacteria. We have studied the use of this agent as monotherapy in this indication. METHODS: One hundred and twenty-six episodes of febrile neutropenia in 98 adults with hematological malignancies were treated with cefepime monotherapy. Cefepime was given at a dose of 2 g every 8 h i.v. Most episodes (49%) were fever of unexplained origin, while a microbiologically documented and clinically documented infection occurred in 25% episodes each. Seventy-six (61%) episodes occurred after conventional chemotherapy, while 51 (41%) after a hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. RESULTS: Twelve episodes (10%) were not evaluable for response. Among the 114 evaluable episodes, 69 (55% of the initial sample and 61% of those evaluable) responded to cefepime monotherapy, while therapy failed in 45 cases (36% of the initial sample and 39% of those evaluable), including 14 cases who developed breakthrough bacteremia during therapy. There were no deaths due to bacterial infection. At the end of all antibiotic therapy (final outcome) 69 episodes were cured only with monotherapy, 47 were cured with modification of therapy and 10 patients died from an unrelated cause. The only variable that appeared to correlate with response to therapy was the duration of neutropenia, which was longer among patients who failed or developed breakthrough bacteremia than among those who responded to monotherapy. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSIONS: Initial empirical antibiotic therapy with cefepime as a single agent in patients with febrile neutropenia and a hematological malignancy is effective, but patients with prolonged neutropenia appear to be at higher risk for failure. However, with appropriate therapeutic changes the risk of dying from a bacterial infection is very low.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Effects of low doses of aprotinin in heart surgery].

OBJECTIVES: To study the effect of aprotinin (Trasylol) administration on bleeding after surgery and on the need for blood transfusion in patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass with extracorporeal circulation (ECC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred ten patients were studied prospectively, divided into two groups. In the aprotinin group (n = 80), the ECC pump was primed with 140 mg of aprotinin and followed with continuous intravenous perfusion at 70 mg/h from the start of ECC until the patient left the operating theater. The control group (n = 30) served as reference. The parameters compared were the hematocrit, number of platelets, prothrombin time and activated coagulation time, as well as drainage of blood through thoracic tubes at 3 and 24 h after surgery and the amount of blood transfused both during and after the procedure. RESULTS: Blood loss was significantly lower in the aprotinin group as compared with the control group, both at 3 h (227 +/- 193 vs 380 +/- 169 ml; p < 0.05) and at 24 h (422 +/- 322 ml vs 736 +/- 342 ml; p < 0.05) after surgery. There was also a significant decrease in blood requirements in the aprotinin group (550 +/- 450 ml vs 872 +/- 747 ml; p < 0.05). There were no differences between the two groups for the other parameters studied. CONCLUSIONS: Administration of aprotinin at low doses during surgery in patients undergoing cardiac surgery with ECC significantly reduces postoperative bleeding and the amount of blood transfused.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Severe accidental hypothermia: rewarming by total cardiopulmonary bypass].

We present a case of a 20-year-old male with a history of habitual drug use who suffered extreme hypothermia (26 degrees C) after several hours' accidental exposure to low ambient temperature. The patient presented in deep coma with recurring ventricular fibrillation that yielded to electrical defibrillation once a central temperature of 27.4 degrees C was reached through internal rewarming with intravenous liquids and gastric lavage with warm water. Because this method was slow, we decided to continue rewarming with extracorporeal circulation through cannulation of the femoral vein and artery. The patient recovered consciousness after three hours, with no neurological secuelae. Emergency room staff have available the means for recognizing hypothermia and a protocol for its management. Extracorporeal circulation is an effective method for internal rewarming and must be used when the patient requires cardiopulmonary resuscitation or presents signs of severe hemodynamic instability.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Cholesterol granuloma of the temporal lobe].

Cholesterol granuloma is a histological term used to describe a non-specific inflammatory reaction produced by the presence of cholesterol crystals, which may originate a foreign-body reaction. Cholesterol granuloma of the temporal bone is silent for years and not preceded by a history of otitis media. The diagnosis is made by CT and MRI, which reveal an expansive, isodense lesion brain tissue and increased signal intensity on both T1 and T2-weighted images respectively. A case of cholesterol granuloma of the petrous apex is presented. The granuloma was excised completely using an infra-retrolabyrinthine approach.

Adult↗