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Biomedical subjects

L Kappenberger

Publications and source records attributed to L Kappenberger.

226 records · Page 13Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

[Proceedings: Lung lesions caused by "rare earths"].

Three reproduction photographers were found to have light patchy and reticular infiltrates on the chest x-rays. They had a 30-year history of inhaling "rare earths" and thorium deriving from the dust of the electric carbon arc-light. The diagnosis was confirmed by whole-body gamma-counting in all cases and by additional lung biopsy in one. This type of pneumoconiosis shows no definite disease progression and no serious functional deterioration.

Aged↗
PubMed1975

[Epidemiology and clinical aspects of infectious endocarditis].

There has been a change in the epidemiological, etiological and clinical pattern of infective endocarditis. This changing pattern has been substantiated by comparison of 156 cases of infective endocarditis seen over the period 1947-1957 (period I) and 227 cases treated during the period 1961-1974 (period II). Epidemiologically the pathomorphosis consists in a slight decline in "medical" cases, contrasted with a marked increase of--predominantly acute--cases after cardiac surgery. Etiologically the change is characterized mainly by a reduction of streptococci (61%/33%) and a much higher incidence of virulent organisms, especially staphylococci (3%/21%), as the infective agent. With regard to the clinical picture of infective endocarditis, the changing pattern is apparent in an increase in atypical and misleading features and an often oligosymptomatic presentation. In period II the classical signs were more often absent. The difference in the course of infective endocarditis consists in a higher hospital mortality during period II. In this period the main cause of death was refractory heart failure, often provoked by acute rupture of the aortic valve. The factors which may be responsible for this change and the clinical implications are discussed. The difficulties in early diagnosis and the role of misleading symptoms of this still "malignant" disease are outlined. Special interest is focused on the diagnostic problems involved in recognizing acute endocarditis, right-heart endocarditis and acute rupture of the aortic valve.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Ventricular interdependence during Valsalva maneuver as seen by two-dimensional echocardiography: new insights about an old method.

Two-dimensional echocardiography was used in 15 normal volunteers to assess left (LV) and right ventricular (RV) responses, as well as their interdependence, during the Valsalva maneuver. During the strain phase, LV and RV areas decreased progressively, the RV area decreasing more than the LV area. Immediately after strain release, the RV end-diastolic area increased suddenly and dramatically to 143.3% +/- 9.4% of its baseline value, whereas the LV end-diastolic area decreased further. This transiently overloaded right ventricle and associated septal shift changed LV shape and further reduced the LV cross-sectional area. Thus the resulting momentary drop in the stroke LV area may contribute, along with pulmonary blood pooling, to the abrupt systemic blood pressure drop characteristic of phase III seen in normal subjects. Real-time imaging with echocardiography during respiratory maneuvers is feasible for clinical use. Its application in patients with congestive heart failure might bring further understanding of LV and RV interrelationships in the failing heart.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Poststroke atrial fibrillation bursts with sinus rhythm at stroke onset: what was the cause of stroke?

Intermittent atrial fibrillation may cause stroke, and acute stroke may lead to secondary bursts of atrial fibrillation. We studied with continuous ECG before, during and after stroke a patient with a history of intermittent atrial fibrillation. To our knowledge, this is the first case with continuous monitoring of atrial fibrillation bursts and their precise timing in the peristroke period.

Atrial Fibrillation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Long-term prognosis for patients undergoing thrombolysis during the acute phase of myocardial infarction].

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to analyse the long-term mortality and morbidity of a group of patients undergoing thrombolysis during the acute phase of myocardial infarction and to determine the factors influencing the prognosis. One hundred and seventy five patients (149 mean and 26 women, mean age: 54 years) were included in a randomized study, comparing the efficacy of 2 thrombolytic substances administered during the acute phase of myocardial infarction. A standard questionnaire was sent to the various attending physicians to follow-up of these 175 patients. RESULTS: The hospital mortality was 5% (9 patients) and 14 patients (9%) died after a mean follow-up of 4.3 +/- 2.1 years. The 5-year actuarial survival was 81%. Fourteen patients (8%) were lost to follow-up and 49 patients (32%) underwent surgical or percutaneous revascularization during follow-up. Revascularized patients had a significantly better survival than non-revascularized patients. The mean left ventricular ejection fraction of patients who died was lower (48% versus 71%) than that of survivors. Patients with an ejection fraction < 40% also had a significantly lower survival (p = 0.01). Patency of the vessel after thrombolysis was associated with a slightly better survival; this difference was not significant. The ejection fraction at 6 month was also significantly higher (60 +/- 10% versus 49 +/- 11%) for patients with a patent artery. Three risk factors for death or reinfarction were identified: age > 65 years at the time of infarction, disease in more than one coronary vessel and absence of angina pectoris before infarction. The probability of a coronary accident varied from 2 to 88% according to the number of risk factors present. At the time of follow-up, 60% of patients presented hypercholesterolaemia versus only 7% before infarction 73% of patients received anticoagulant or antiaggregant treatment and 81% of patients were asymptomatic. CONCLUSION: The mortality and the acute and long-term morbidity of myocardial infarction remain high, as only 34% of our patients did not develop any events during follow-up, despite serious medical management and follow-up. The ejection fraction has an important prognostic value. Patient management should take the abovementioned risk factors into account.

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