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Biomedical subjects

M Moroni

Publications and source records attributed to M Moroni.

At least 253 records · Page 14Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Attempt to treat acute type B hepatitis with an orally administered thymic extract (thymomodulin): preliminary results.

A double-blind trial with thymomodulin (TM) was performed in a consecutive series of 50 inpatients affected with acute type B hepatitis. Twenty-six randomly selected patients received TM (Leucotrofina, Ellem), 1 ampoule b.i.d. per os for 30 days, and 24 patients received the same amount of placebo for the same period. TM-treated patients showed accelerated AST and ALT decrease and an earlier HBsAg clearance. However, only the difference in ALT decrease was statistically significant in comparison with the controls (p less than 0.02). Before the treatment was started, lymphocyte subsets, as determined by monoclonal antibodies, showed a different pattern in the two groups despite strict randomization. Nevertheless, by the end of the trial, mean T4+/T8+ ratios were increased in the treated group, but remained unchanged in the control group. The trends in the two groups were significantly different (p less than 0.005). Further information is expected from a long-term follow-up.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

Prolonged course and relapses of acute type A hepatitis.

Sixty-nine consecutive patients with acute type A hepatitis were followed-up to establish the natural history of the disease. Illicit drug abusers were not included in this study. 19% (13/69) of the patients at 6th month, and 6% (4/69) at 12th month showed aminotransferase (ALT) values at least two folds the upper levels. The histological examinations performed in 5 of these cases suggest that persistence of abnormal ALT levels may be related to a misdiagnosed chronic liver disease preexisting the acute type A hepatitis. Three of the 69 patients had a relapsing hepatitis with two peaks of serum ALT 6-8 weeks apart. The illness resolved uneventfully in all these patients. The exclusion of exposure to liver toxins such as alcohol or drugs, as well as other known hepatitis virus infection in these cases, suggests that the two distinct episodes of hepatitis could be the result of the sequential infection of hepatitis A and non-A, non-B viruses.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

Polymorphonuclear leucocyte function during acute viral hepatitis.

Polymorphonuclear (PMN) phagocytosis was tested in three groups of 12 patients (non drug-addicts) hospitalized for acute A, B and non-A, non-B hepatitis. The same test was performed in 12 parenteral drug-addicts (P.D.A.) with non-A, non-B hepatitis, in 12 P.D.A. with type B hepatitis and in 30 P.D.A. without evidence of acute hepatitis. Percent of phagocytosis was evaluated at time of admission to hospital, at discharge and three months after the acute episode. A statistically significant reduction of phagocytosis was present in each of the non-addicts group at time of admission to hospital. At the discharge this reduction was confirmed for type B and non-A, non-B hepatitis, whereas an improvement was noted for type A hepatitis. Control tests carried out 3 months later evidenced that also in patients affected with type B and non-A, non-B hepatitis the percentages of phagocytosis had reached almost normal values. An increased percent of phagocytosis resulted from incubation of patients' PMN with normal human serum. Among drug-addicts the percentages of phagocytosis do not differ from the data recorded in non-addicts patients during the acute stage of the disease. However, three months after the acute episode, a deficit of phagocytic activity was still present in drug-addicts. These data would support the hypothesis that a serum factor impairing the PMN phagocytosis in acute hepatitis is present. Circulating immune complexes were found in the same sera. They might play an important role in inhibitory effect on neutrophils phagocytic activity.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

Acute type B hepatitis in parenteral drug-addicts (PDA): prognostic value of circulating HBsAg/IgM complexes.

Fifty-three parenteral drug-addicts with acute viral hepatitis type B were tested by a solid-phase radioimmunoassay for circulating HBsAg/IgM complexes in the acute phase and in the follow-up. Among the 47 recovered patients HBsAg/IgM complexes were either absent from the onset of the disease, or disappeared from serum within 4 weeks of admission, long before HBsAg had cleared or serum alanine aminotransferase has returned to normal. On the contrary, HBsAg/IgM complexes persisted indefinitely among the 6 patients who developed a chronic HBsAg-positive hepatitis. These results indicate that sequential serum testing for HBsAg/IgM complexes might be of value in predicting the long-term outcome of acute type B hepatitis of parenteral drug-addicts.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

[Generalized and persistent lymphadenopathy in drug addicts: clinical and epidemiological aspects].

Persistent unexplained lymphadenopathy with intermittent fever, weight loss, night sweats and malaise was observed in the period from March 1983 to April 1984 in 66 intravenous drug addicts living in Milan. A high percent of these subjects showed cellular immunity alterations, with significant decrease of total lymphocyte count (p less than 0.001) and of OKT4+ cells (percent and absolute number) (p less than 0.001) OKT8+ cells were augmented in percent, but not in absolute count. OKT4/OKT8 cell ratio were inverted, with significant reduction versus the healthy controls (p less than 0.001). IgG mean concentrations were significantly higher than the normal (p less than 0.001). Anergy or hypoergy to recall skin testing were evidenced in 58/66 patients. Cases of persistent unexplained lymphadenopathy associated with abnormalities of cellular immunity are considered as a possible prodrom of AIDS and were frequently observed in high risk populations. The occurrence of this clinical syndrome in a urban area may be premonitory of further progression to the epidemic. It will be necessary to assess whether this clinical and immunological picture will result in some of these patients in full blown acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1983

Preliminary clinical experiences with the use of immunomodulators in burns.

The remarkable progress achieved in control of infections in burned patients has significantly increased survival rates. Nevertheless, septic complications are still the leading cause of death in these patients. The immunologic disturbances present after severe burns certainly play a key role in susceptibility to infection, and in particular the impairments of the phagocytic system warrant major investigative efforts in order to increase host defenses. Determination of phagocytic and microbicidal capacity of neutrophils from burned patients evidenced a marked functional impairment of these cells. The alterations recorded were partly due to intrinsic (cellular) defects, and partly to extrinsic (serum) defects. Indeed, opsonic factors are known to be reduced in these patients, but also phagocytosis-inhibiting factors such as immunocomplexes have been detected in the patients we have studied. Administration of the immunomodulating agents methysoprinol and timostimoline were found to be effective in partially restoring neutrophil function. Rational immunotherapy in burned patients will consist of replacement of humoral mediators, clearance of inhibitory factors and stimulation of the cellular effectors of immunity.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗
PubMed1981

The colonization of Streptococcus faecium in human intestinal tract after oral administration.

The colonizing ability of Streptococcus faecium strain SF 68 at different levels of the gastrointestinal tract was assessed in ten patients. They were orally treated with a preparation containing the bacteria in lyophilized form for three days. During an abdominal surgical operation a sample of bacterial content of jejunum, ileum and colon was taken and cultured. The Streptococcus faecium was detected in all treated patients in a quite high concentration compared to the counts of both aerobic and anaerobic germs. These data confirms the rapid growth of SF 68 after oral administration in the gastrointestinal human tract.

Humans↗
PubMed1979

Short-term antibiotic prophylaxis of mixed infections during hysterectomy.

Surgical procedures on contaminated tissues, such as hysterectomy with opened vagina, are frequently followed by local or systemic infections. It seems that a prolonged antibiotic prophylaxis is not justified because of possible induction of resistant mutants or dysmicrobisms. The administration of antibiotics only in a short pre- and postsurgical period appears to be more rational. We have carried out a controlled clinical trial with the aim of evaluating the efficacy of this prophylactic practice. One hundred forty-five patients submitted to vaginal and two hundred seventy-five to abdominal hysterectomy entered this study (started September 1977). All patients received local nitrofurantoin treatment and were then subdivided into four randomized groups: control group, groups treated with thiamphenicol, cephazolin, thiamphenicol plus cephazolin, respectively. Each antibiotic was administered in the dose of 1 gm one hour before and five and 12 hours after surgery. Antibiotics were chosen taking into consideration the usual vaginal microbial flora, notoriously mixed (aerobic and anaerobic). The three treated groups presented a significant decrease in the incidence and severity of infectious complications. The use of antibiotics in the postoperative period resulted in significantly reduced morbidity in the treated groups. Thiamphenicol appears to be the most effective drug. Bacteriological studies showed that local treatment of the vagina decreased the bacteria charge, but never brought about sterilization.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Viminol analgesic activity in elderly patients with chronic pain: a controlled evaluation, using self-rating questionnaires.

The analgesic effects of single oral doses of viminol (70 mg), of viminol (70 mg) combined with chlordiazepoxide (10 mg) and of chlordiazepoxide (10 mg) were compared in 41 outpatients with chronic pain mostly due to neoplasms. Alone, or combined with chlordiazepoxide, viminol proved significantly more effective than chlordiazepoxide; No difference in analgestic effect was observed between viminol combined with chlordiazepoxide and viminol alone. The use of self-administered questionnaires was found particularly convenient for study of analgesics in outpatients.

Aged↗
PubMed1976

[Demonstration of a granulocyte defect in aged persons correlated with the presence of autoantibodies].

Assessment of PMN leukocyte function and search for autoantibodies were performed in 36 aged human subjects (more than 60 years of age) and in 15 younger controls (40 to 60 years of age). Autoantibodies were found in 15 of the 36 aged subjects, and in none of the controls. Leukocyte function defects were therefore correlated to old age and to markers of autoimmunity. Phagocytosis of bacteria was significantly impaired in both groups of old-aged subjects, irrespective to the presence or absence of autoimmunity. Intracellular killing of bacteria was shown to be normal in all the examined subjects. Nitroblue tetrazolium reduction by resting and latex-stimulated leukocytes was significantly impaired only in the group of old-aged subjects with autoimmunity. These leukocyte function defects are similar to those already described in human autoimmune diseases -- particularly S.I.E. -- and confirm the possible association between P.M.N. dysfunction and autoimmunity.

Adult↗