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M Cazzola

Publications and source records attributed to M Cazzola.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Circulating thrombopoietin in reactive conditions behaves like an acute phase reactant.

In a recent study we found elevated thrombopoietin (TPO) levels along with a trend toward correlation between serum TPO and some acute phase reactants (APR) in patients with reactive thrombocytosis. In order to further clarify the behaviour of TPO in reactive conditions and to highlight the eventual drawbacks of serum TPO (sTPO) against plasma TPO (pTPO) measurements, serial measurements were made of sTPO, pTPO, interleukin (IL)-6, C-reactive protein (CRP), fibrinogen (FBG), and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) in 12 patients before and at the 3rd, 7th, 14th, 45th day after hip replacement surgery. Platelet count, sTPO and pTPO were also measured in 30 healthy donors. As expected sTPO were significantly higher than pTPO levels (approximately 30% on average) both in controls (P < 0.00001) and in patients (P < 0.00001). Overall a very good correlation (r = 0.975, P < 0.00001) was found between serum and plasma TPO, whereas no correlation was found between platelet count and the sTPO/pTPO ratio indicating that the difference between sTPO and pTPO is independent from platelet count. So both serum and plasma seem to be suitable samples for TPO measurement if it is taken into account that sTPO are about 30% higher than pTPO. All the parameters we measured in our patients increased during the post-surgery period and returned to the basal value at the 45th day. pTPO levels peaked at the 3rd day, preceding by 11 days the peak in platelet count. A significant correlation was found between pTPO and ESR (P = 0.012), pTPO and FBG (P = 0.044), pTPO and CRP (P = 0.033), and a nearly significant correlation between pTPO and IL-6 (P = 0. 054). These results indicate that, in the course of reactive conditions, an early rise in TPO precedes and probably induces a later increase in platelet count. Moreover, the significant correlations along with the similarity in the chronological variations between TPO and some APRs suggest that TPO behave like an APR.

Acute-Phase Proteins↗
PubMed1999

Juvenile hemochromatosis locus maps to chromosome 1q.

Juvenile hemochromatosis (JH) is an autosomal recessive disorder that leads to severe iron loading in the 2d to 3d decade of life. Affected members in families with JH do not show linkage to chromosome 6p and do not have mutations in the HFE gene that lead to the common hereditary hemochromatosis. In this study we performed a genomewide search to map the JH locus in nine families: six consanguineous and three with multiple affected patients. This strategy allowed us to identify the JH locus on the long arm of chromosome 1. A maximum LOD score of 5.75 at a recombination fraction of 0 was detected with marker D1S498, and a LOD score of 5. 16 at a recombination fraction of 0 was detected for marker D1S2344. Homozygosity mapping in consanguineous families defined the limits of the candidate region in an approximately 4-cM interval between markers D1S442 and D1S2347. Analysis of genes mapped in this interval excluded obvious candidates. The JH locus does not correspond to the chromosomal localization of any known gene involved in iron metabolism. These findings provide a means to recognize, at an early age, patients in affected families. They also provide a starting point for the identification of the affected gene by positional cloning.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Acute effect of pretreatment with single conventional dose of salmeterol on dose-response curve to oxitropium bromide in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

BACKGROUND: An earlier study documented that, in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), addition of ipratropium bromide at the clinically recommended dose (40 microg) does not produce any further bronchodilation than that achieved with salmeterol 50 microg alone. However, the dose of ipratropium bromide needed to produce near maximal bronchodilation is several times higher than the customary dosage. The full therapeutic potential of combined salmeterol plus an anticholinergic drug can therefore only be established using doses higher than those currently recommended in the marketing of these agents. A study was undertaken to examine the possible acute effects of higher than conventional doses of an anticholinergic agent on the single dose salmeterol induced bronchodilation in patients with stable and partially reversible COPD. METHODS: Thirty two outpatients received 50 microg salmeterol or placebo. Two hours after inhalation a dose-response curve to inhaled oxitropium bromide (100 microg/puff) or placebo was constructed using one puff, one puff, two puffs, and two puffs-that is, a total cumulative dose of 600 microg oxitropium bromide. Dose increments were given at 20 minute intervals with measurements being made 15 minutes after each dose. On four separate days all patients received one of the following: (1) 50 microg salmeterol + 600 microg oxitropium bromide; (2) 50 microg salmeterol + placebo; (3) placebo + 600 microg oxitropium bromide; (4) placebo + placebo. RESULTS: Salmeterol induced a good bronchodilation (mean increase 0.272 l; 95% CI 0.207 to 0.337) two hours after its inhalation. Oxitropium bromide elicited an evident dose-dependent increase in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1)) and this occurred also after pretreatment with salmeterol with a further mean maximum increase of 0.152 l (95% CI of differences 0.124 to 0.180). CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that acute pretreatment with 50 microg salmeterol does not block the possibility of inducing more bronchodilation with an anticholinergic agent when a higher than normal dosage of the muscarinic antagonist is used.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMed1999

Comparative study of dirithromycin and azithromycin in the treatment of acute bacterial exacerbations of chronic bronchitis.

We compared the clinical and microbiological efficacy of dirithromycin with that of azithromycin in outpatients with acute bacterial exacerbations of chronic bronchitis who could be graded into stage III according to Ball's system of stratification. A total of 80 patients was studied. Of these, 40 were treated with dirithromycin as a once-daily dose of 500 mg for 5 days, and 40 with azithromycin as a once-daily dose of 500 mg for 3 days. At post-therapy, treatment success (cure or improvement) was achieved in 36 out of 40 (90%) patients receiving dirithromycin compared with 37 out of 40 (92.5%) in the azithromycin group. At the late post-therapy visit, 34 out of 36 (94.4%) dirithromycin-treated patients were cured as were 33 of 37 (89.2%) azithromycin-treated patients. A small proportion of patients treated with dirithromycin (10%) or with azithromycin (12.5%) suffered mild side effects. Gastrointestinal disorders, including abdominal cramps, nausea, or diarrhea, were common adverse effects. The main pathogens isolated before treatment were Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis. Eradication rates at the end of treatment were 90% (36 out of 40) for the dirithromycin group and 92.5% (37 out of 40) for the azithromycin group. Persistence of H. influenzae isolates was found in 3 out of 11 (27.3%) patients treated with dirithromycin and in 2 out of 9 (22.2%) who had received azithromycin. At the late post-therapy visit, eradication occurred in 34 out of 36 (94.4%) strains in the dirithromycin group and in 33 out of 37 (89.2%) in the azithromycin group. We conclude that dirithromycin and azithromycin appear to be equally effective in the treatment of acute bacterial exacerbations of chronic bronchitis.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Red blood cell precursor mass as an independent determinant of serum erythropoietin level.

Serum erythropoietin (sEpo) concentration is primarily related to the rate of renal production and, under the stimulus of hypoxia, increases exponentially as hemoglobin (Hb) decreases. Additional factors, however, appear to influence sEpo, and in this work, we performed studies to evaluate the role of the red blood cell precursor mass. We first compared the relationship of sEpo with Hb in patients with low versus high erythroid activity. The first group included 27 patients with erythroid aplasia or hypoplasia having serum transferrin receptor (sTfR) levels < 3 mg/L (erythroid activity < 0.6 times normal), while the second one included 28 patients with beta-thalassemia intermedia having sTfR levels > 10 mg/L (erythroid activity > 2 times normal). There was no difference between the two groups with respect to Hb (8.3 +/- 1.6 v 8.0 +/- 1.3 g/dL, P > .05), but sEpo levels were notably higher in patients with low erythroid activity (1,601 +/- 1,542 v 235 +/- 143 mU/mL, P < . 001). In fact, multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that, at any given Hb level, sEpo was higher in patients with low erythroid activity (P < .0001). Twenty patients undergoing allogeneic or autologous bone marrow transplantation (BMT) were then investigated. A marked increase in sEpo was seen in all cases at the time of marrow aplasia, disproportionately high when compared with the small decrease in Hb level. Sequential studies were also performed in five patients with iron deficiency anemia undergoing intravenous (IV) iron therapy. Within 24 to 72 hours after starting iron treatment, marked decreases in sEpo (up to one log magnitude) were found before any change in Hb level. Similar observations were made in patients with megaloblastic anemia and in a case of pure red blood cell aplasia. These findings point to an inverse relationship between red blood cell precursor mass and sEpo: at any given Hb level, the higher the number of red blood cell precursors, the lower the sEpo concentration. The most likely explanation for this is that sEpo levels are regulated not only by the rate of renal production, but also by the rate of utilization by erythroid cells.

Anemia↗
PubMed1998

Preface.

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Journal Article↗
PubMed1998

A comparison of bronchodilating effects of salmeterol and oxitropium bromide in stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Anti-cholinergic agents are generally regarded as the bronchodilator therapy of first choice in the treatment of stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), considering that they may be more effective than in inhaled beta 2-agonist. However, results of the authors' recent studies conflict to some extent with this suggestion because they demonstrate that this is true only for short acting beta 2-agonists but not for long-acting beta 2-agonists. Oxitropium bromide is an anti-cholinergic drug that has been shown to produce a similar degree of bronchodilation to that obtained with ipratropium bromide, but with a longer-lasting effect. In the present study, the time course of inhaled oxitropium bromide bronchodilation in comparison to that of inhaled salmeterol in a group of patients with partially reversible COPD was evaluated. Twelve male patients with moderate to severe COPD participated in the study. The study had a single-bind, cross-over, randomized design. The bronchodilator activity of 50 micrograms salmeterol hydroxynaphthoate, 200 and 400 micrograms oxitropium bromide and placebo, which were all inhaled from a metered-dose inhaler, was investigated on several non-consecutive days. The highest FVC and FEV1, obtained from one or the other of the reproducible curves, were kept for analysis. Measurements were performed at the following times: immediately before inhalation of treatment, and at 15, 30, 60, 120, 180, 240, 300, 360, 480, 600 and 720 min after inhalation of the individual treatment. Salmeterol tended to have a delayed time to peak effect, but had a longer duration of effect than oxitropium. The response to salmeterol exceeded the response to 200 micrograms oxitropium for 12 h, but its responses were significantly (P < 0.05) greater than those to 200 micrograms oxitropium from 10 to 12 h. From 3 to 12 h, salmeterol also surpassed 400 micrograms oxitropium but differences were not significant (P < 0.05). The mean FEV1 area under the curve was significantly (P < 0.05) larger after salmeterol when compared to 200 micrograms oxitropium bromide, but there was no significant difference (P < 0.05) between salmeterol and 400 micrograms oxitropium bromide. No significant changes in pulse rate, blood pressure or electrocardiograms were found among the four groups as compared with placebo group. These findings confirm and extend what has been demonstrated by the authors' previous studies, and show that salmeterol compares conveniently with anti-cholinergic drugs in terms of effects on lung function at clinically recommended doses.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Early reversibility to salbutamol does not always predict bronchodilation after salmeterol in stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The assessment of reversibility is recognized as being an essential part of the management of airways obstruction, but testing for reversibility of airways obstruction may not be useful for identifying patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who are likely to benefit from bronchodilator treatment. We studied 100 patients with stable COPD. Early reversibility of airways obstruction to 200 mg salbutamol and peak bronchodilation to 50 micrograms salmeterol or 200 micrograms salbutamol were evaluated in four different sessions (two for salbutamol and two for salmeterol), using a double-blind, cross-over, randomized study. Fifteen minutes after inhalation of salbutamol, 47 patients presented an increase in FEV1 greater than 15% of baseline, whereas 48 showed an increase of FEV1 of at least 160 ml from basal value and 33 an increase in FEV1 greater than both 15% of baseline and 200 ml. On the contrary, 69 patients presented an increase in FEV1 greater than 15% of baseline, 65 an increase of FEV1 of at least 160 ml from basal value and 60 an increase in FEV1 greater than both 15% of baseline and 200 ml as maximum increase over baseline usually 2-4 h after inhalation of salmeterol. Twenty-seven other subjects defined as irreversible by the lack of acute improvement in FEV1 after salbutamol, showed an increase in FEV1 greater than 15% of baseline, 20 showed an increase of FEV1 of at least 160 ml from basal value, and 18 showed an increase in FEV1 greater than both 15% of baseline and 200 ml; all had the maximum degree of bronchodilation usually 1-2 h after salbutamol administration. These findings clearly demonstrate that many patients suffering from stable COPD show early reversibility to a short-acting beta 2-agonist and patients who do not manifest early reversibility to salbutamol can still benefit from salbutamol or salmeterol. Therefore, treatments with beta 2-agonists must always be tried.

Adrenergic beta-Agonists↗
PubMed1998

Unbalanced X-chromosome inactivation in haemopoietic cells from normal women.

We studied X-chromosome inactivation patterns in blood cells from normal females in three age groups: neonates (umbilical cord blood), 25-32 years old (young women group) and >75 years old (elderly women). Using PCR, the differential allele methylation status was evaluated on active and inactive X chromosomes at the human androgen receptor (HUMARA) and phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) loci. A cleavage ratio (CR) > or = 3.0 was adopted as a cut-off to discriminate between balanced and unbalanced X-chromosome inactivation. In adult women this analysis was also performed on hair bulbs. The frequency of skewed X-inactivation in polymorphonuclear (PMN) cells increased with age: CR > or = 3.0 was found in 3/36 cord blood samples, 5/30 young women and 14/31 elderly women. Mathematical analysis of patterns found in neonates indicated that X-chromosome inactivation probably occurs when the total number of haemopoietic stem cell precursors is 14-16. The inactivation patterns found in T lymphocytes were significantly related to those observed in PMNs in both young (P < 0.001) and elderly women (P < 0.01). However, the use of T lymphocytes as a control tissue for distinguishing between skewed inactivation and clonal proliferation proved to be reliable in young females, but not in elderly women, where overestimation of the frequency of clonal myelopoiesis may appear.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

How and when to use erythropoietin.

Recombinant human erythropoietin is used in clinical practice mainly for treatment of anemia of renal failure. In the past years, however, its use has been approved for other indications, including prevention of anemia in surgical patients or in patients undergoing platinum-based chemotherapy, treatment of anemia of prematurity, of anemia induced by zidovudine therapy in HIV-infected patients, and of anemia induced by chemotherapy of nonmyeloid malignancies. Erythropoietin should routinely be given subcutaneously to maximize its effects. Most patients undergoing rHuEpo treatment develop functional iron deficiency, a situation in which iron supply to the erythroid marrow is inadequate for the erythrocyte precursor demand. Iron supplementation should, therefore, be given to all individuals receiving rHuEpo except for those patients with increased serum iron and transferrin saturation. Outside the setting of uremia, only a portion of patients can clearly benefit from erythropoietin therapy; therefore, the use of rHuEpo should be individualized in nonrenal applications.

Anemia↗
PubMed1998

Effects of formoterol, salmeterol or oxitropium bromide on airway responses to salbutamol in COPD.

We examined whether a pretreatment with formoterol, oxitropium bromide, or salmeterol might modify the dose-response curves to inhaled salbutamol in patients with stable and partially reversible chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Sixteen outpatients with partially reversible, stable COPD received 24 microg formoterol, 50 microg salmeterol, 200 microg oxitropium bromide, or placebo on four non-consecutive days. Spirometric testing was performed immediately before inhalation of treatment and after 2 h. A dose-response curve to inhaled salbutamol was then constructed using doses of 100, 100, 200 microg and 400 microg--that is, a total cumulative dose of 800 microg. Dose increments were given at 20 min intervals with measurements being made 15 min after each dose. Formoterol, salmeterol, or oxitropium bromide elicited a significant increase in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) compared with placebo (mean differences (L) = placebo 0.05; formoterol 0.34; salmeterol 0.27; oxitropium bromide 0.23). Dose-dependent increases in FEV1 were seen (mean values (L) before salbutamol and after a cumulative dose of 100, 200, 400, and 800 microg = placebo: 1.06, 1.28, 1.35, 1.39, 1.41; formoterol: 1.33, 1.37, 1.41, 1.44, 1.44; salmeterol: 1.30, 1.33, 1.36, 1.39, 1.42; oxitropium bromide: 1.27, 1.34, 1.37, 1.41, 1.40). Statistical analysis revealed no significant differences in FEV1 and forced vital capacity (FVC) responses to salbutamol after therapy with formoterol, salmeterol, or oxitropium bromide compared with placebo. This study clearly shows that a pretreatment with a conventional dose of formoterol, salmeterol, or oxitropium bromide does not preclude the possibility of inducing a further bronchodilation with salbutamol in patients suffering from partially reversible chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Adrenergic beta-Agonists↗