Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

K L Resch

Publications and source records attributed to K L Resch.

78 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

[Rheologic risk factors of apoplexy].

There can be no doubt about the relevance of various established risk factors of stroke, which therefore will not be discussed. When trying to manipulate factors as hypertension, hyperlipoproteinemia and smoking, in most cases an improvement of the flow properties of blood can be observed. This makes flow properties at least very likely to trigger cerebral ischaemia and stroke. Furthermore there is increasing evidence, that single factors, contributing to a deterioration of blood rheology (i.e. haematocrit, fibrinogen, plasma viscosity, red cell rigidity) may be considered risk factors of apoplexie depending on the quality of interaction. There seem to exist positive correlations to the extent of atherosclerotic alterations of the vessel system. Blood viscositiy and red cell aggregation can be interpreted as the respective state of different pathologic profiles of blood rheology and thus might reach pathologic levels already before it is notified by single factors. In conclusion there is a good chance for blood viscosity and red cell aggregation to play an independent role as risk factors of apoplexie derived from cerebral ischaemia.

Blood Viscosity↗

Does blood rheology revert to normal after myocardial infarction?

After myocardial infarction there is an acute deterioration of the flow properties of blood. The present study was designed to test whether the abnormality persists. Blood and plasma viscosity, red cell aggregation and deformability, haematocrit, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, white cell count, cholesterol, and triglycerides were measured in 51 patients who had had a myocardial infarction 5.4 (mean) years before. Results in patients and controls were compared and matched pairs with identical cardiovascular risk factors were also selected. Blood viscosity and red cell aggregation were increased and red cell deformability was decreased in the 51 patients. The abnormalities were independent of the interval since infarction and persisted for years. The rheological abnormalities present after myocardial infarction are at least partly independent of the acute event and acute phase reactions. They contribute to the reduced perfusion of the microcirculation of the heart.

Adult↗

Changes in blood rheology of grossly obese individuals during a very low calorie diet.

A group of grossly obese individuals were put on a 300 kcal diet for 15 days. Blood rheology was quantified by measuring blood and plasma viscosity, haematocrit, red cell aggregation and deformability, fibrinogen and ESR. After 15 days blood viscosity had decreased and red cell deformability increased. The results suggest that the rheological deficit in obesity can be partly normalized by low calorie diets.

Blood Viscosity↗

Complementary medicine. What physicians think of it: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Complementary (or alternative) medicine has become a prevalent phenomenon in most industrialized countries. At present the evidence from randomized controlled trials investigating its effectiveness is fragmentary and therefore inconclusive. OBJECTIVE: To assess whether physicians perceive complementary medicine as useful and/or effective. METHOD: A literature search was performed to retrieve all relevant articles. Twelve surveys addressing this question were found and analyzed by evaluating perceived usefulness and/or effectiveness. RESULTS: The results show a remarkable variability between surveys. On average physicians perceive complementary medicine as moderately effective--the rating was 46 +/- 18 on a scale of 0 to 100 points. Young physicians seem to judge complementary medicine more optimistically than their more seasoned colleagues. There is no trend to suggest that complementary medicine is increasingly perceived as useful and/or effective. The data do not answer the question whether physicians view complementary medicine as a nonspecific powerful placebo or as specifically effective. CONCLUSION: Complementary medicine may be useful; however, the notion urgently needs to be tested in randomized controlled trials.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

Passive and active exercises increase cerebral blood flow velocity in young, healthy individuals.

Unlike the well-examined cardiovascular changes during movement stimuli, changes of cerebral hemodynamics and cerebral metabolism in physical exercises have, as yet, rarely been studied. Our objective was to investigate whether there are changes in cerebral hemodynamics and cerebral metabolism caused by active and passive movement stimuli. Response to repetitive active and passive movement stimuli was studied in 14 volunteers (8 females, 6 males; mean age, 35.2+/-8 yr). Each volunteer was subjected to four measurement series while performing a defined active and passive exercise program of the right upper or right lower limb. Measurement series were designed according to Aaslid's "evoked flow test"; exercises were performed for 20 s, followed by a rest of 20 s. This sequence was repeated 10 times in each series. As a measure of cerebral hemodynamics mean and peak blood flow velocity of the middle cerebral artery were recorded by transcranial Doppler sonography (Multidop-X-DWL). In addition, cerebral metabolism was quantified in a subsample by means of oxygenic cytochrome aa3 (respiratory chain enzyme), cerebral oxygen saturation using near infrared spectroscopy (Critikon). As well, noninvasive blood pressure (Penaz method) and expiratory pCO2 were measured. Compared with resting measures, an increase in mean cerebral blood flow velocity of the middle cerebral artery of 3.8% (P = 0.003, paired t test) was observed after active exercises of the right lower limb and 3.5% after active exercises of the right upper limb. Respective changes were 3.4% (P = 0.004) for passive exercises of the lower limb and 4.6% (P = 0.007) for passive exercises of the right upper limb. Peak cerebral blood flow velocity of the middle cerebral artery showed an even more pronounced increase during passive and active exercises in all cases, with values of between 12.2% (P < 0.001) and 13.6% (P < 0.001). Significant increases (1.5-3%) of cytochrome aa3 and cerebral oxygen saturation were observed during active and passive exercises. These studies show that active as well as passive exercises are followed by an increase of cerebral blood flow velocity. We attribute the increase of cerebral hemodynamic and cerebral metabolism to cerebral activation and autoregulative mechanisms.

Adult↗