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Biomedical subjects

L A Kennedy

Publications and source records attributed to L A Kennedy.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Successful removal and prevention of resynthesis of anti-HLA antibody.

The successful removal and prevention of the resynthesis of an anti-HLA antibody by plasma exchange and immunosuppression in a patient awaiting renal transplantation is described. Before treatment, the patient's serum contained a high titer (greater than 1/50) anti-HLA antibody that reacted with 94% of our lymphocyte donor panel and produced positive cross matches with the lymphocytes from 40 cadaver kidneys. Following treatment, her anti-HLA titers fell to less than 1/10 and her sera reacted with 43% of our lymphocyte donor panel and produced negative crossmatches with lymphocytes from the first two cadaver kidney donors she was tested against. She was successfully transplanted with the second of these kidneys and is now well eight months later, with good graft function.

Adult↗

Traumatic deaths from dog attacks in the United States.

A newspaper survey and search of the medical literature identified 74 deaths from dog attacks, 51 of which occurred in a designated five-year study period. Most attacks were by single pet dogs without a preceding history of viciousness and without known provocation by the victim. The highest number of deaths (23) occurred in infants less than 1 year of age. Most of the remaining victims were children aged 1 through 8 years, and elderly women.

Accidents, Home↗

The stubbed great toe: a cause of occult compound fracture and infection.

Six children suffered Salter I fractures of the distal phalanx of a great toe caused by stubbing. The first four children presented with cellulitis and osteomyelitis. The last two were treated promptly with antibiotics, and no infection developed. Analysis of the anatomic relationship of the distal phalanx and nail indicates that these fractures were compound despite the absence of usual clinical signs. Recognition of these occult compound fractures and treatment with antibiotics should prevent infectious complications.

Adolescent↗

Amputated calcified ovaries in children.

A calcified abdominal mass was an identical finding in four asymptomatic girls, ages 2 weeks to 9 years. At laparotomy the right ovary was absent, and in three patients the ipsilateral oviduct was at least partially absent. The most likely explanation is antenatal or subclinical torsion of the adnexa with subsequent amputation, necrosis, and calcification.

Calcinosis↗

HLA antigens and responses to rubella vaccination.

Attempts were made to correlate virus excretion, joint symptoms and antibody response with human leukocyte antigens (HLA) in seronegative adult women given attenuated rubella vaccine. No association was shown between HLA antigens of the A and B loci and excretion of either high or low titres of RA27/3 vaccine among 26 volunteers. However, virus excretion was influenced by such factors as the time of day at which specimens were collected and the method of virus isolation. Our study therefore failed to confirm the hypothesis that certain persons are good 'spreaders' of rubella virus and that this capacity is associated with HLA-A1 and B8. The study of joint symptoms following vaccination with Cendehill, HPV77.DE-5, RA27/3 or To-336 vaccines showed no association between such symptoms and HLA antigens. However, joint symptoms occurred within 7 days of the onset of menstruation in 33 of 47 (70%) vaccinees (P less than 0.01) and it is therefore suggested that hormonal factors must play a role. No association between HLA antigens and haemagglutination inhibition (HAI) antibody titres, 8 weeks after vaccination with RA27/3, was found amongst 34 volunteers.

Adult↗

Prenatal toxicity of simultaneously administered ethanol and pentobarbital in the rat.

The use and abuse of drugs has reached epidemic proportions among individuals of child-bearing age. The frequency with which alcohol and pentobarbital are used in our society increases the probability that they will be taken simultaneously. Experiments were designed to investigate the prenatal toxicity of alcoho and pentobarbital interaction in the rat. Pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were treated intraperitoneally with one of three doses of ethanol (0.56 to 1.4 g/kg) in combination with 5, 15, or 25 mg/kg pentobarbital on days 9 through 12 of gestation. Maternal and fetal toxicities were evaluated and compared with the results of previous studies using the same doses of ethanol and pentobarbital. In pregnant rats treated with combinations of the two drugs, there was no consistent pattern of response. With respect to the offspring, there was no evidence that combinations of ethanol and pentobarbital, at the dose levels used here, had any more deleterious effect on fetal development than either drug acting independently.

Animals↗

Pentobarbital intoxication in the pregnant rat.

Pregnant rats were treated intraperitoneally with low doses of pentobarbital (5, 15 or 25 mg/kg) on days 9 through 12 of gestation. There was no significant differences in fetal weight, length, or placental weight. Other than minor ossification delays, there were no external, skeletal or visceral abnormalities and no treatment-related variation in fetal mortality. Microscopic examination of various maternal and fetal tissues revealed no major deleterious effects of short-term pentobarbital intoxication.

Adrenal Glands↗

Histocompatibility antigens as markers of abnormal iron metabolism in patients with idiopathic haemochromatosis and their relatives.

HLA-A3 was significantly more common in 35 unrelated patients with idiopathic haemochromatosis (69%) than in 95 controls (31%). Further studies in two families suggest that 2 genes are involved in the pathogenesis of the disease, each associated with a separate metabolic defect. Whereas minor abnormalities, namely raised serum-iron and some increase in storage iron, were found in relatives with an HLA A11, B27, CW2 haplotype, those with the A3, B14, CW5 haplotype had no detectable abnormalities. When both these haplotypes were found together, as in the propositus and one sibling in the first family investigated, all the signs of the fully developed disease were apparent. It is suggested that one of the genes is in linkage disequilibrium with HLA-A3 and could be responsible for a kinetic abnormality, possibly increased plasma to storage iron exchange. The other gene, also carried on the sixth chromosome and, in the first family, marked by the HLA A11, B27, CW2 haplotype might result in an increased absorption of dietary iron. The concomitant inheritance of these two genes and the metabolic defects they determine are required for the full development of the disease

Adult↗

Pathogenesis of developmental defects induced in the rat by amniotic sac puncture.

The morphogenesis of developmental defects induced by aminotic sac puncture was studied at the gross and microscopic levels. In fetuses recovered from 15 min to 48 h after amniocentesis, a pattern of hemorrhagic lesions, excessive accumulation of interstitial fluid, followed by tissue necrosis and leading ultimately to the reduction of amputation of distal limb segments and morphological changes in the head, was observed. These changes were indicative of venous stasis, hypervolemia and embryonic oxygen deficiency. Intrauterine compression of the fetus and the obstruction of the fetomaternal circulation were considered to be the primary etiological factors in amniocentesis-induced anomalies which included hemorrhagic lesions, limb reductions and amputations, deformities of the head and abdominal regions, generalized edema and postural moulding.

Amniocentesis↗

Histocompatibility antigens, autoantibodies, and immunoglobulins in alcoholic liver disease.

Determination of histocompatibility antigens in 63 patients with alcoholic liver disease showed that HLA-B8 was more prevalent in patients with cirrhosis than in controls, but among those with fatty liver and minimal fibrosis the prevalence of this antigen was normal. Another noticeable difference was the absence of HLAA28 in the cirrhotic group. In the total series of 219 patients the prevalence of antinuclear and smooth muscle antibodies was raised; they were especially prevalent in patients with cirrhosis. Raised serum IgA and IgG concentrations were also common (found in 50% and 37% respectively) and were again significantly associated with cirrhosis. In contrast, serum IgM levels, which were raised in 46% of cases, were not significantly related to the presence of cirrhosis but correlated significantly with the degree of portacaval shunting. These results support recent evidence suggesting that immune responses may be implicated in alcohol-induced liver damage, particularly in its progression to cirrhosis.

Adult↗