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Biomedical subjects

M M Ghoneim

Publications and source records attributed to M M Ghoneim.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Determination of Norfloxacin by square-wave adsorptive voltammetry on a glassy carbon electrode.

The adsorptive and electrochemical behavior of norfloxacin on a glassy carbon electrode were investigated by cyclic and square-wave voltammetry. Cyclic voltammetric studies indicated that the process was irreversible and fundamentally controlled by adsorption. To obtain a good sensitivity, the solution conditions and instrumental parameters were studied using square-wave voltammetry. In acetate buffer of pH 5.0, norfloxacin gave a sensitive adsorptive oxidative peak at 0.920 V (versus Ag-AgCl). Applicability to measurement of norfloxacin at submicromolar levels in urine samples was illustrated. The peak current was linear with the norfloxacin concentration in the range 5-50 microg ml(-1) urine. The detection limit was 1.1 microg ml(-1) urine.

Anti-Infective Agents↗

Polarographic behaviour of loratadine and its direct determination in pharmaceutical formulation and human plasma by cathodic adsorptive stripping voltammetry.

The polarographic behaviour of the antihistaminic drug loratadine has been investigated in B.R. buffer solution of different pH values. Contradictory to that mentioned before in a previously published work, loratadine is electro-active at the mercury electrode. In B.R. buffer solution of pH values > or =6 it is reduced via a single 2-electrons irreversible wave corresponding to saturation of carbon-nitrogen double bond of the pyridine ring. The electrode reaction pathway was proposed and discussed. A sensitive differential pulse stripping voltammetric method based on controlled adsorptive accumulation of loratadine on a hanging mercury drop electrode has been developed for its direct determination at nanomolar concentrations without nitration of the drug. The optimized conditions for the direct cathodic adsorptive stripping voltammetric determination of the drug are: 0.1 M sodium hydroxide solution as a supporting electrolyte, accumulation potential, -1.2 V; accumulation time, 30 s; scan rate, 2-5 mV x s(-1) and pulse amplitude 100 mV. The proposed procedure was applied for the assay of loratadine in pharmaceutical formulation and human plasma. The average recoveries were 99.32-99.44 and 100.33-102.99% with the RSD 0.27-0.42 and 0.39-0.90% in pharmaceutical formulation and human plasma, respectively. The limits of detection of 1.60x10(-7) and 1.25x10(-7) M loratadine were found in pharmaceutical formulation and human plasma, respectively.

Electrochemistry↗

Speed of recovery and side-effect profile of sevoflurane sedation compared with midazolam.

BACKGROUND: Sedation for surgical procedures performed with regional or local anesthesia has usually been achieved with intravenous medications, whereas the use of volatile anesthetics has been limited. The use of sevoflurane for sedation has been suggested because of its characteristics of nonpungency, rapid induction, and quick elimination. The purpose of this investigation was to assess the quality, recovery, and side effects of sevoflurane sedation compared with midazolam. METHODS: One hundred seventy-three patients undergoing surgery with local or regional anesthesia were enrolled in a multicenter, open-label, randomized investigation comparing sedation with sevoflurane versus midazolam. Sedation level was titrated to an Observer's Assessment of Alertness--Sedation score of 3 (responds slowly to voice). Recovery was assessed objectively by Observer's Assessment of Alertness--Sedation, Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST), and memory scores, and subjectively by visual analog scales. RESULTS: Significantly more patients in the sevoflurane group had to be converted to general anesthesia because of excessive movement (18 sevoflurane and 2 midazolam; P = 0.043). Of remaining patients, 141 were assessable for efficacy and recovery data (93 sevoflurane and 48 midazolam). Sevoflurane and midazolam produced dose-related sedation. Sevoflurane patients had higher DSST and memory scores during recovery. Seventy-six percent (sevoflurane) compared with 35% (midazolam) returned to baseline DSST at 30 min postoperatively (P < 0.05). More frequent excitement-disinhibition was observed with sevoflurane (15 [16%] vs. midazolam; P = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Sevoflurane for sedation produces faster recovery of cognitive function as measured by DSST and memory scores compared with midazolam. However, sevoflurane for sedation is complicated by a high incidence of intraoperative excitement.

Adult↗

Cerebellar hypoactivity in frequent marijuana users.

It is uncertain whether frequent marijuana use adversely affects human brain function. Using PET, regional cerebral blood flow was compared in frequent marijuana users and comparable, non-using controls after at least 26 h of monitored abstention by all subjects. Marijuana users showed substantially lower brain blood flow than controls in a large region of posterior cerebellum, indicating altered brain function in frequent marijuana users. A cerebellar locus of some chronic and acute effects of marijuana is plausible, e.g. the cerebellum has been linked to an internal timing system, and alterations of time sense are common following marijuana smoking.

Adult↗

Effects of frequent marijuana use on brain tissue volume and composition.

To investigate CNS effects of frequent marijuana use, brain tissue volume and composition were measured using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in 18 current, frequent, young adult marijuana users and 13 comparable, non-using controls. Automated image analysis techniques were used to measure global and regional brain volumes, including, for most regions, separate measures of gray and white matter. The marijuana users showed no evidence of cerebral atrophy or global or regional changes in tissue volumes. Volumes of ventricular CSF were not higher in marijuana users than controls, but were, in fact, lower. There were no clinically significant abnormalities in any subject's MRI. Sex differences were detected in several global volume measures.

Adult↗

Simultaneous determination of Cd, Pb, Cu, Sb, Bi, Se, Zn, Mn, Ni, Co and Fe in water samples by differential pulse stripping voltammetry at a hanging mercury drop electrode.

A highly sensitive and selective voltammetric procedure is described for the simultaneous determination of eleven elements (Cd, Pb, Cu, Sb, Bi, Se, Zn, Mn, Ni, Co and Fe) in water samples. Firstly, differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV) with a hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE) is used for the direct simultaneous determination of Cd, Pb, Cu, Sb and Bi in 0.1 M HCI solution (pH = 1) containing 2 M NaCl. Then, differential pulse cathodic stripping voltammetry (DPCSV) is used for the determination of Se in the same solution. Zn is subsequently determined by DPASV after raising the pH of the same solution to pH 4. Next, the pH of the medium is raised to pH 8.5 by adding NH3/NH4Cl buffer solution for the determination of Mn by DPASV. Ni and Co are determined in the same solution by differential pulse adsorptive stripping voltammetry (DPAdSV) after adding DMG (1 x 10(-4) M). Finally, 1 x 10(-5) M 2-(5-bromo-2-pyridylazo)-5-diethylaminophenol (5-Br-PADAP) is added to the solution for the determination of Fe by DPAdSV. The optimal conditions are described. Relative standard deviations and relative errors are calculated for the eleven elements at three different concentration levels. The lower detection limits for the investigated elements range from 1.11 x 10(-10) to 1.05 x 10(-9)M, depending on the element determined. The proposed analysis scheme was applied for the determination of these eleven elements in some ground water samples.

Journal Article↗

Auditory evoked responses and learning and awareness during general anesthesia.

BACKGROUND: There is a major distinction between conscious and unconscious learning. Monitoring the mid-latency auditory evoked responses (AER) has been proposed as a measure to ascertain the adequacy of the hypnotic state during surgery. In the present study, we investigated the presence of explicit and implicit memories after anesthesia and examined the relationships of such memories to the AER. METHODS: We studied 180 patients scheduled for elective surgical procedures. After a thiopental induction, one of four anesthetics were studied: Opioid bolus: 7.5 microg x kg(-1) fentanyl, 70% N2O, with 2.5 microg x kg(-1) supplements as needed (n=100); Opioid infusion: Alfentanil 50 microg x kg(-1) bolus, 1-1.5 microg x kg(-1) x min(-1) infusion, 70% N2O (n=40); Isoflurane 0.3%: Fentanyl 1 microg x kg(-1), 70% N2O, isoflurane 0.3% expired (n=16); Isoflurane 0.7%: Fentanyl 1 microg x kg(-1), 70% N2O, isoflurane 0.7% expired (n=23). AER were recorded before anesthesia, 5 min after surgical incision and then every 30 min until the end of surgery. A tape of either the story of the "Three Little Pigs" or the "Wizard of Oz" was played continuously between the recordings. Explicit memory was assessed postoperatively by tests of recall and recognition, and implicit memory was assessed by the frequency of story-related free associations to target words from the stories, which were solicited twice during a structured interview. RESULTS: Six patients showed explicit recall of intraoperative events: All received the opioid bolus regimen. About 7% of patients reported dreaming during anesthesia. The incidence of picking the correct story that had been presented during anesthesia averaged 49%, i.e., very close to chance level. Overall, priming occurred only at the second association tests for the opioid bolus regimen, for which the frequency of an association to the presented story among those not giving an association to the control story was 26%, which was double the frequency (13%) of an association to the control story among those not giving an association to the presented story. This was significant by McNemar's test, P=0.02. There were significant associations between awareness, priming and AER, e.g., recall was associated with higher Nb amplitudes during anesthesia and priming was associated with shorter wave latencies. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of awareness in patients anesthetized with nitrous oxide and bolus supplementation was 6%. Thus, this anesthetic technique did not reduce the risk of awareness compared with the use of nitrous oxide alone. Implicit memory occurred during nitrous oxide and bolus supplementation. Recording AER during anesthesia may help to predict awareness and implicit memory, particularly the former. The short contents of most of the dreams which were recalled could hamper future studies in this area.

Adolescent↗

Tape-recorded hypnosis instructions as adjuvant in the care of patients scheduled for third molar surgery.

UNLABELLED: As medical costs continue to escalate, there is willingness to consider the role played by nontraditional factors in health. We investigated the usefulness of tape-recorded hypnosis instruction on perioperative outcome in surgical patients in a prospective, randomized, and partially blinded study. Sixty patients scheduled for third molar surgery were studied. Patients were allocated to either an experimental group (E) or a control group (C). Group E received an audio tape to listen to daily for the immediate preoperative week, which guided the patients through a hypnotic induction and included suggestions on enhancement of perioperative well-being. Group C did not receive any tapes. The same surgeon administered local anesthesia and a standard regimen of sedation and performed the operation for all patients. The following variables were assessed 1 wk before surgery, immediately before and after surgery, and for 3 days after surgery by the indicated measurements: State anxiety by a Spielberger scale; nausea and pain by visual analog scales; number of tablets of the analgesics that were used; number of episodes of vomiting; and complications. In addition, the surgeon's assessment of ease of surgery was recorded. Two variables showed differences between the groups. First, Group C exhibited a mean increase of 11.7 points on the Spielberger scale from the screening to the presurgery period, while Group E showed only a mean increase of 5.5 points during the same period, P = 0.01. Second, the mean number of vomiting episodes was more in Group E, 1.3, than in Group C, 0.3, P = 0.02. In conclusion, anxiety was reduced before surgery by means of an audio tape containing hypnotic instructions; however, for no apparent reason, there was also an increase in the incidence of vomiting. IMPLICATIONS: We administered hypnosis instructions to patients before third molar surgery. Anxiety was reduced, but there was an increase in the incidence of vomiting. Although an easy and cost-effective method, the value of this approach remains to be established.

Adult↗

Classical conditioning during nitrous oxide treatment: influence of varying the interstimulus interval.

Classical conditioning of the rabbit nictitating membrane response (NMR) was accomplished by presenting a 75-ms tone conditioned stimulus (CS) at intervals of 0, 100, 200, 400, and 800 ms before the presentation of a 100-ms shock unconditioned stimulus. Following every four paired trials (tone followed by shock), the occurrence of conditioned responses (CRs) was tested on every fifth trial in which only tone was presented (test trials). Three doses of nitrous oxide in oxygen (0, 33, and 67%) were used during conditioning. Nitrous oxide produced dose-dependent decrements of learning. Conditioned responding was related to the interstimulus interval (ISI) by a concave-down function. The higher dose of nitrous oxide caused more decrements of learning at several ISIs compared to the other two doses, changing the shape of the curve. Trace conditioning, which was examined in the present study, was more impaired under the influence of nitrous oxide than conditioning in a previous study, which used the standard delay paradigm. Thus, the drug impairs explicit memory more than implicit memory.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

Interaction of a subanaesthetic concentration of isoflurane with midazolam: effects on responsiveness, learning and memory.

There are situations in which "light" anaesthesia combined with neuromuscular block is the only anaesthetic regimen that can be tolerated safely by the patient. Benzodiazepines have hypnotic and specific amnesic effects. Therefore, we have examined the interaction of midazolam with a subanaesthetic dose of isoflurane (0.2% end-expired concentration) in 28 healthy volunteers. Thereafter, 15 subjects received midazolam 0.03 mg kg-1 i.v. and 13 subjects received midazolam 0.06 mg kg-1 in a random, double-blind manner. Word lists were administered and response to commands was tested before and after administration of midazolam. After 1 h of recovery, memory for word lists was tested by word completion, free recall and forced choice recognition tasks. After administration of midazolam, recall and, to a lesser degree, implicit memory were absent. Recognition was also absent after administration of midazolam 0.06 mg kg-1 and at the 3-min and 15-min assessments after administration of midazolam 0.03 mg kg-1. Responsiveness was more frequent with midazolam 0.03 mg kg-1 than with 0.06 mg kg-1 and increased over time. We conclude that a larger dose of midazolam or isoflurane, or both, may be necessary to abolish responsiveness.

Adult↗

Effects of sedation with midazolam or propofol on cognition and psychomotor functions.

PURPOSE: The study compared the effects of midazolam and propofol on explicit and implicit memory, cognition, and psychomotor function in patients undergoing oral surgical procedures with local anesthesia and conscious sedation. METHODS: Twenty-eight patients were tested in a randomized, double-blind study. Patients were randomly allocated to one of two groups. One group received a bolus dose of midazolam, 0.1 mg/kg, followed by a continuous infusion of saline. The other group received a bolus dose of propofol, 1.0 mg/ kg, followed by a continuous infusion of propofol, 65 micrograms/kg/min. Subjective rating questionnaires and tapping, memory, and Digit Symbol Substitution tests were administered. Testing was done at baseline, 10 minutes after the drugs were given, 10 minutes after surgery ended and 10 minutes later. RESULTS: The midazolam and propofol groups did not differ significantly on any demographic variables. Both drugs produced mental and physical sedation, which did not become substantially attenuated during the time studied. Both tranquilization and attitudes or other feelings showed smaller drug effects than mental and physical sedation. Tapping was decreased by both drugs 10 minutes after treatment, but not postsurgery. Performance on the Digit Symbol Substitution test was below baseline levels for both drugs at 10 minutes after treatment, but only for midazolam in the postsurgery assessment; at 10 minutes after treatment, propofol was associated with poorer performance than midazolam. Immediate and delayed explicit recall were impaired by both drugs 10 minutes after treatment. Immediate and delayed recall were lower for midazolam than propofol postsurgery, but only the difference on immediate recall was significant. Implicit memory was spared by both drugs. CONCLUSIONS: Midazolam and propofol generally produced equivalent impairments, but the duration of the effects of propofol was shorter. Unlike explicit memory, implicit memory resisted impairment.

Adult↗

The interaction between nitrous oxide and isoflurane on suppression of learning: a study using classical conditioning in rabbits.

BACKGROUND: Nitrous oxide (N2O) is commonly combined with a volatile agent for administration of general anesthesia. We studied the effects of N2O and isoflurane on learning of the rabbit nictitating membrane responses (NMRs). METHODS: Classical conditioning of the NMR was accomplished by presenting a 400 ms tone conditioned stimulus before the presentation of a 100 ms shock unconditioned stimulus over 6 daily training sessions. The percentages of conditioned responses (CRs) were calculated for animals treated with 0% (n = 10), 33% (n = 11), 67% (n = 11), and 75% (n = 7) N2O and for those treated with 0% (n = 8), 0.2% (n = 7), 0.4%, (n = 13) and 0.8% (n = 9) isoflurane separately. ED-50 for suppression of learning for each drug were calculated. Percentages of CRs were calculated for treatments with combinations of 0.2% isoflurane with either 32 or 48% N2O (n = 14, for each). RESULTS: Isobolographic analysis demonstrated that the combination of the two drugs exerted no greater effect than that seen with either agent administered alone; for well-established CRs (mean of days 5 and 6), the estimated concentrations corresponding to a rate of 70% CRs were 0.31% isoflurane with no N2O, 65.3% N2O with no isoflurane, and 0.2% isoflurane combined with 32.4% N2O. CONCLUSIONS: N2O and isoflurane interact additively on suppression of learning.

Anesthetics, Inhalation↗

Nitrous oxide: sensory, motor, associative, and behavioral tolerance effects in classical conditioning of the rabbit nictitating membrane response.

Experiment 1, of a series of six experiments with the rabbit nictitating membrane response (NMR) preparation, revealed that nitrous oxide (0%, 33%, 67%) impaired acquisition of conditioned responses (CRs). Subsequent experiments indicated that nitrous oxide (N2O) had no reliable effects upon nonassociative processes (Experiment 2); impaired unconditioned response (UR) amplitude (Experiment 3); attenuated tone-conditioned stimulus (CS) intensity (Experiment 4); decremented tone-induced reflex modification of the unconditioned NMR (Experiment 5); and demonstrated no reliable evidence of behavioral tolerance (Experiment 6). It was concluded that N2O's impairment of CR acquisition was attributable to its attenuation of the intensity of tone CSs and shock USs and/or UR amplitude. These findings are consistent with the behavioral laws of conditioning: the attenuation of the intensive sensory properties of the CS and US and/or UR components of conditioning affect their ability to enter into the establishment of CS-CR connections and, therefore, the development of associative learning.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

Ketamine: acquisition and retention of classically conditioned responses during treatment with large doses.

Two experiments were conducted in rabbits to examine the effects of ketamine (0, 100, and 200 mg/kg) on the acquisition and retention of the classically conditioned nictitating membrane response (NMR). Classical conditioning of the NMR was accomplished by pairing tone and light conditioned stimuli (CS) with paraorbital shock as the unconditioned stimulus (UCS). Experiment 1 assessed the effects of the drug on acquisition and retention of conditioned responses (CR) and determined the role of previous exposure to the experimental environment. Ketamine blocked the display of CR. However, data from subsequent retention testing under nondrug conditions revealed that rabbits that had previously received 100 mg/kg ketamine learned faster than saline-treated rabbits during the acquisition phases. Rabbits that received 100 mg/kg ketamine and were placed in the experimental chambers, but not presented with stimuli during the acquisition phase, did not learn faster during the retention phase than naive rabbits. Experiment 2 controlled further for the effects of nonassociative, unlearned processes. Control groups were presented with unpaired CS and UCS training after drug administration, and subsequently received conventional acquisition sessions under nondrug conditions. Their data indicated that the ketamine group's rapid acquisition during retention testing could not be attributed to nonassociative factors. We conclude that, although it was impossible directly to observe acquisition in rabbits under the influence of ketamine, it was possible that learning occurred as manifested by "savings" in subsequent learning trials.

Animals↗