[Blepharochalasis or Fuchs syndrome in young subjects. 2 cases].
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Adolescent↗
Biomedical subjects
M Weber
Publications and source records attributed to M Weber.
Evidence for magnetic-field-dependent electric-field gradients in Bi from muon-spin-relaxation measurements.
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Journal Article↗
[Acute cervical syndrome in chondrocalcinosis. 3 elderly patients with calcifications of the transverse atlantis ligament].
Articular chondrocalcinosis, or pseudogout, is characterized by the deposition of calcium pyrophosphate dehydrate (CPPD) crystals. Vertebral involvement in CPPD crystal deposition disease is known and includes in particular the ligamentum flavum, the posterior longitudinal ligament and the intervertebral disc. We report on 3 elderly patients with peracute cervical syndrome. Plain radiographs showed the usual degenerations. Computerized tomography scans revealed a calcified transverse atlas ligament. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate was elevated. Plain radiographs showed chondrocalcinosis of the hands and knees. The symptoms subsided after 2 days' therapy with antiinflammatory drugs. We conclude that chondrocalcinosis may often be an undetected cause of acute cervical vertebral pain in the elderly patient.
Aged↗
[Clinical examination of the shoulder].
As a consequence of the capacious mobility and great strain, the glenohumeral joint happens to be a frequent site of tenderness or pain. The physician is used to consider the differential diagnosis of "shoulder-arm-pain". Unfortunately he is hardly ever capable to practise himself the special techniques required for the examination of the glenohumeral joint. By a precise clinical examination the exact anatomical localisation of the painful structure can be found in almost every case.
Humans↗
Chemical lithiation of 2H-TaS2: A single-atom Monte Carlo simulation.
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Journal Article↗
Evaluation of labetalol in elderly patients with essential hypertension.
Labetalol was evaluated in a multicenter, placebo-controlled study of elderly patients (greater than or equal to 60 years) with mild to moderate essential hypertension. After a placebo-washout period, doses were titrated from 100 mg BID to a maximum of 400 mg BID over a 6-week period. Once blood pressure control (standing diastolic blood pressure [SDBP] less than 90 mm Hg and greater than or equal to 10 mm Hg reduction from baseline) was achieved or the maximum allowable dosage had been given, the dosage remained the same until the end of the study. The titration phase was followed by a 4-week maintenance period. Blood pressure control was achieved in 37/54 (69%) of the patients who were treated with labetalol compared with 21/58 (36%) of the patients who received placebo (P less than .001). Twenty-nine (78%) of those controlled on labetalol responded to doses of 200 mg or less BID, and there was no significant difference between groups with respect to orthostatic blood pressure changes. Adverse experiences were generally mild and occurred with similar frequency in the labetalol and placebo groups; six patients who received labetalol and five who received placebo withdrew from the study due to adverse experiences, but in only one case (labetalol) was the adverse experience considered drug-related. In summary, labetalol effectively and safely lowered diastolic blood pressure in the elderly without producing significant orthostatic changes.
Aged↗
[Clinical and radiologic legal assessment of spinal injuries using the segmental principle].
Cat scanning of the traumatized spine led to an approved classification of different types of lesions. Its application is important--not only for therapeutic reasons but also for the judgement of the end results. The classification enables the definition of a remaining instability (radiological and clinical) and is useful for the evaluation of the prognosis according to the structural changes within the motion segments. The conventional way of appreciating working capacity is no longer satisfying considering the improved diagnostic tools and the increasing frequency of various deformities, instability and even ankylosis and their combinations. As in the evaluation of peripheral joint function a concept is proposed, which is based on the structural changes in the motion segments and their motility. According to the kind and amount of deformity and instability the segment value is multiplicated with factors 1 to 6. The number of involved segments is added to obtain the definite range of working capacity. The concept is practicable in all parts of the vertebral column and allows a differentiated judgement within the usual percentages.
Disability Evaluation↗
c-mos proto-oncogene product is partly degraded after release from meiotic arrest and persists during interphase in mouse zygotes.
Recently, it has been shown that the product of the c-mos proto-oncogene is a component of cytostatic factor, an activity present in unfertilized eggs from vertebrates that arrests the cell cycle in metaphase of the second meiotic division (metaphase II) possibly by stabilizing maturation-promoting factor (MPF). We have studied the behavior of the c-mos product in metaphase II mouse oocytes and soon after activation. The amount of c-mos in the oocyte was still very high after second polar body extrusion, when cyclin B has been degraded and MPF activity had decreased dramatically. Degradation of c-mos takes place later, during the G1 phase of the first cell cycle and a residual amount of c-mos is detectable during the first zygotic interphase. Our data show that the degradation of c-mos is not involved in the release from the metaphase arrest.
Animals↗
Reversal of benzodiazepine intoxication by flumazenil.
In order to firstly evaluate the efficacy of flumazenil in reversing benzodiazepine-induced sedation because of drug overdose and secondly to register adverse events, 13 patients admitted to the intensive care unit because of drug intoxication, were given flumazenil intravenously to a maximum of 1.0 mg. Sedation state was scored on a modified Glasgow Coma Scale and arterial blood pressure, heart rate and arterial blood gases were recorded before and after flumazenil was given, and every 30 min for 2 h. Results showed that flumazenil reversed the sedation due to benzodiazepines effectively increasing the coma score significantly (P less than 0.005). We found no change in arterial blood pressure (apart from one patient), heart rate or arterial blood gases. Two patients gave further information about drug intake after flumazenil was given. Six patients became resedated, only one needed additional flumazenil. One patient developed a hypertensive crisis after flumazenil was given as a result of the unmasking of an untreated hypertension. Another patient aspirated gastric content to the trachea during resedation and needed respiratory support.
Adult↗
Serum androgens in intensive-care patients: correlations with clinical findings.
Serum androgen levels were studied in 100 patients (50 male) with varying degrees of severe illness, determined by Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE). Comparison with normal subjects revealed the following changes: (1) Basal dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS) values were decreased in the ill female patients (P less than 0.001) as well as in the ill males (two groups, P less than 0.01; P less than 0.05). Androstenedione values did not differ from the controls in patients of either sex. Basal testosterone levels were decreased in ill male patients (P less than 0.001), but not in females. (2) The low testosterone concentrations in the severely ill male patients correlated inversely with the APACHE score; additionally, a dependence on diagnostic categories could be demonstrated in men, since the lowest values were found in patients suffering from sepsis or liver cirrhosis. Acutely ill males had a moderately decreased testosterone, whereas chronically ill males showed a marked reduction of testosterone compared to the controls. Lowered DHEAS and androstenedione levels could be measured in chronically ill males but not in ill females. (3) 17 alpha-OH-progesterone and 17 alpha-OH-pregnenolone levels in subgroups of the patients suggested a probable enzymatic block in the delta 5-pathway of androgen biosynthesis in severe illness. The ratio of 17 alpha-OH-pregnenolone to DHEAS was significantly higher in male patients and tended to be high in ill females, whereas the ratio of 17 alpha-OH-progesterone to androstenedione showed no difference between healthy and ill subjects.
17-alpha-Hydroxypregnenolone↗
Positive and negative contractile effects of neuropeptide Y on ventricular cardiomyocytes.
The potency of neuropeptide Y (NPY) to cause negative and positive contractile responses in rat ventricular cardiomyocytes was investigated. In these cells, NPY was found to activate the transient outward K+ current (Ito) and the slow inward Ca2+ current (Isi). As reported before (H. M. Piper, B. C. Millar, and J. R. McDermott, Naunyn Schmiedeberg's Arch. Pharmacol. 340: 333-337, 1989), NPY attenuated the increase in the contractile response induced by isoprenaline (10(-7) M). This effect of NPY could be abolished by 1) the presence of the inhibitor of Ito, 4-aminopyridine (4-AP, 0.5 mM); 2) pretreatment of the cells with pertussis toxin (1 microgram/ml for 6 h); and 3) the presence of the 19-amino acid COOH-terminal fragment of NPY, NPY-(18-36) (10(-6) M). In the absence of isoprenaline, but in the presence of 4-AP, NPY exerted a stimulatory effect on the cardiomyocytes. This effect could be abolished 1) by using the inhibitor of the Isi, verapamil (10(-8) M), but not 2) by pretreatment with pertussis toxin, nor 3) by coincubation with NPY-(18-36). The results indicate that in the rat the antiadrenergic negative contractile effect of NPY results from its action on the Ito. Blockade of this current by 4-AP unmasks a positive contractile effect of NPY that is related to activation of the Isi.
4-Aminopyridine↗
Genetically identical parthenogenetic mouse embryos produced by inhibition of the first meiotic cleavage with cytochalasin D.
The microfilament inhibitor cytochalasin D inhibits extrusion of the first polar body when present during the first meiotic division of mouse oocytes; however, it does not interfere with anaphase movement of chromosomes, and thus induces the formation of tetraploid oocytes. After the separation of chromosomes in anaphase, two spindles start to assemble. However, they merge rapidly and a single meiotic spindle forms. During the transition between metaphase I and metaphase II, in the presence of cytochalasin D, a drop in histone kinase activity takes place demonstrating a transitional decrease in the activity of the maturation promoting factor. These oocytes can be activated parthenogenetically a few hours after washing out the inhibitor. After completion of the second meiotic division and extrusion of a polar body, they contain a diploid number of chromosomes. They are genetically identical to each other and to their mother. Such eggs develop to the blastocyst stage and can implant in the uteri of foster mothers. Most of these fetuses die before the 9th day of gestation, as do diploid control fetuses treated with cytochalasin D during the second meiotic division. The heterozygous state of the experimental embryos obtained after activation of eggs recovered from heterozygous females and treated with cytochalasin D during the first meiotic division was confirmed using a glucose-phosphate isomerase assay. This technique allows the production of genetic clones of parthenogenetic embryos by simple means.
Animals↗
Determination of the molecular structure of the human free secretory component.
Here, we present the experimental data, leading to determination of the primary structure, the linkage of the carbohydrates and the arrangements of the disulfide bonds of the human free secretory component. Methods of protein chemistry were used. The protein can be divided into five homology regions and is a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily.
Amino Acid Sequence↗
Preventing Staphylococcus aureus infection during chronic peritoneal dialysis.
In the interest of studying the prevention of chronic peritoneal dialysis infections, serial studies of the bacterial epidemiology in peritonitis and of antibiotic prophylaxis, respectively, were carried out. For 18 months, prospective evaluation of catheter exist site cultures, performed at the time patients developed acute peritonitis, showed that Staphylococcus aureus peritonitis was associated with concordant S. aureus at the exist site in 85% of cases, significantly more frequent than that for other organisms (P less than 0.02). Furthermore, active inflammation along with concordant culture results at the exit site characterized more than 60% of S. aureus peritonitis cases, also significantly more than that for other organisms (P less than 0.01). Over the ensuing 2 yr, patients beginning chronic peritoneal dialysis with a new percutaneously placed catheter were prospectively entered into a randomized, controlled trial of long-term antibiotic prophylaxis with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxasole. Patients receiving prophylaxis tended to have fewer episodes of peritonitis; however, the lower rate of peritonitis reached statistical significance only comparing patients who were S. aureus carriers at entry into the study to patients who were not S. aureus carriers. In particular, the prophylaxis trial seemed to reduce the specific incidence of S. aureus peritonitis overall, with S. aureus appearing in only 2 of 28 total peritonitis episodes among treated patients as compared with 11 of 37 total episodes among non-treated patients (P less than 0.01). Further analysis of the time to first peritonitis suggests that the effect of prophylaxis was most prominent during the first 3 months of therapy (P less than 0.02) rather than later in the course of treatment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Actuarial Analysis↗
Efferent gating of human auditory attentional processes.
Brainstem evoked potentials were measured while subjects reduced either frontalis or lips/throat activity in response to visual information regarding EMG activity while attending to dichotically presented click stimuli. An inhibition of left ear activity occurred at the level of the cochlear nucleus (Wave 1) during articulatory muscle activity, suggesting that the right ear advantage is related to active inhibition of ipsilateral auditory pathways. Contralateral central inhibition of disattended information at the level of the brainstem (Wave 5) was also implicated. A neurophysiological model accounting for both attenuation of irrelevant stimuli and vigilance for high priority information is proposed.
Adult↗
Full recovery after a chloroquine suicide attempt.
The nonfatal case of a 20 year-old woman who ingested 6 grams of chloroquine in a suicide attempt is reported. After initial ventricular fibrillation, she rapidly developed a pulmonary edema with cardiogenic shock. She was successfully treated with diazepam, epinephrine, dobutamine and mechanical ventilation. Plasma chloroquine levels showed an initial peak of 36 micrograms/mL. The patient was discharged fully recovered after 19 days. The interaction between chloroquine and diazepam is discussed, as is the need for careful management of epinephrine therapy.
Adult↗
[Stimulation of continuing self education for pediatricians using questions with choice of responses].
During a 15-month period a trial program of continuing self medical education for pediatricians in the province of Quebec was performed by sending out 5 questionnaires, each containing 10 multiple choice questions related to new, controversial, or changing medical subjects. Appropriate responses, relevant references and commentaries, were added to each questionnaire. At the end of the trial period another questionnaire was sent to all pediatricians in order to determine their opinion on the program. The majority gave a favorable response, encouraging its continuation.
Education, Medical, Continuing↗
Regulation of neurotransmitter synthesis: from neuron to gene.
We are interested in the molecular mechanisms of the regulation of neurotransmitter related gene expression by neurotrophic factors and neuronal activity. Previous work has shown that conditioned medium of muscle cells induces choline acetyltransferase (CAT) activity and represses tyrosine hydroxylase, dopamine-beta-hydroxylase and aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AADC) activities in cultured sympathetic neurons. Here, we show that a new muscle-derived cell line secretes two factors which induce CAT activity in spinal cord cultures; one of those is related to LIF, a CAT inducing factor for sympathetic neurons. Preliminary data are presented on the structure of the human AADC and CAT genes. Putative promoter regions have been coupled to reporter genes; transient transfection experiments will allow us to determine the promoter elements responsible for the regulation by neurotrophic factors. We also summarize the distribution of AADC-immunoreactive cells in rat and cat brain, which will be used as a reference for the study of the specificity of expression of AADC promoter in transgenic mice.
Animals↗