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Biomedical subjects

N Laufer

Publications and source records attributed to N Laufer.

At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources

Potentially deleterious effect of cornstarch glove powder in tubal reconstructive surgery.

Even with the most painstaking techniques, cornstarch granules used as surgical glove powder are deposited in the abdominal cavity during laparotomy. In tubal reconstructive surgery, aimed at the elimination of fibrous adhesions, this deposition may have undesirable consequences. After a successful operation, starch particles introduced in the abdominal cavity may result in the formation of new adhesions. It is therefore desirable to develop an alternative, completely nonreactive, glove powder.

Fallopian Tubes↗

Prolactin in seminal plasma of infertile men.

Twenty-one fertile and 103 infertile patients with oligospermia, azoospermia, impaired sperm motility and hypogonadism were evaluated for prolactin concentrations in serum, seminal plasma and split seminal plasma of two fractions. Prolactin concentration in the seminal plasma was two to three times higher than serum prolactin levels in fertile and infertile men. Prolactin concentration of the fraction 2 of the split ejaculate was higher than that of the fraction 1 and of the serum. Excessive high levels of serum prolactin and/or seminal plasma were found only among infertile patients with oligo- and azoospermia, impaired motility and hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Prolactin is selectively accumulated in fraction 2 of the split ejaculate and affects the constituents of the seminal vesicular fluid, and excessive high prolactin concentrations of either seminal plasma or serum may be associated with male infertility.

Humans↗

The influence fo traumatic splenectomy on the volume of human platelets.

A rise in the blood platelet count and volume occurred in 11 patients following traumatic splenectomy. The pattern of the volume distribution, however, remained unchanged. This indicates an increased rate of platelet production, with the newly formed cells substantially larger than their preoperative counterparts, and can be interpreted in terms of a humoral factor of splenic origin that is able to exert its control over the bone marrow. The stable shape of the volume distribution, despite splenectomy, suggests the presence of an organ other than the spleen that is capable of maintaining the normal age distribution in the peripheral circulation, and the liver is proposed as a possible candidate for this role. The evidence, so far, has been circumstantial and further investigation will be required before definite conclusions can be drawn.

Blood Platelets↗

Size and size distribution of subfertile human spermatozoa.

An improved apparatus for measuring the electrical size (shape factor times volume) of particles based on the Coulter counter principle was used to characterize 110 subfertile semen specimens; size distributions were attainable in the 97 cases with a count above 1 x 10(6) spermatozoa/ml. The typical size distribution was unimodal and positively skewed. Spermatozoa maintained a constant profile during their passage through the orifice of the sizing apparatus, with an effective shape factor of 1.28. Two groups of cells were found. The larger one consisted of 68 specimens with a modal volume of 18.1 +/- 2.0 cu micron and a cell count of 27.5 +/- 9.2 x 10(6) spermatozoa/ml (mean +/- 1 SD). The smaller group contained 29 cases and had a modal volume of 6.6 +/- 0.9 cu micron and a count of 10.2 +/- 7.8 x 10(6). Samples with cell counts below 10 x 10(6) spermatozoa/ml tended to have low modal volumes (less than one-half the normal), but those above showed no particular trend.

Cell Count↗

A new infusion flow stabilizer.

A new intravenous flow stabilizer (IFS) for keeping constant infusion rates was evaluated and found to be precise and easy to use. The IFS enables precise intravenous treatment while relieving the nursing staff of the frequent checking and readjustment that are required with the intravenous sets in current use.

Humans↗

Paget's disease of the breast.

Twenty-nine histologically verified cases of Paget's disease of the breast treated at the Hadassah University Hospital in the years 1949-1972 were followed up and analyzed. Dividing this material into two groups according to the presence or absence of a palpable breast tumor revealed significant difference in behavior and survival. Patients with a breast mass (34%) had a 50% axillary lymph node involvement and behaved as with any other ordinary breast cancer, with a 5-year survival rate of 40% and a 10-year survival rate of 33%. Patients with no palpable breast mass (66%) had only a 10.5% lymph node involvement, the 5-year survival rate being 94% and the 10-year survival rate being 91%. Delay in diagnosis seems to play no significant factor in survival rates and outcome. We believe radical mastectomy to be the treatment of choice in all cases of Paget's disease of the breast.

Adult↗

Volume and shape of normal human spermatozoa.

An improved apparatus for measuring the electrical size of particles, developed in this laboratory and based on the principle of the Coulter counter, is used to size human spermatozoa. The typical size distribution is unimodel, with a skew to the right. The actual quantity determined by the measuring system is electrical size (i.e., shape factor X volume); in order to extract the volume, it is necessary to obtain an independence measure of particle shape. This is done by estimating the relative contributions of each part of the spermatozoon, and gives a weighted value for the shape factor of 1.28. The mean value of spermatozoa from 25 normal human seminal fluid specimens is found to be 17.4+/-1.46 cu micronm and the modal volume, 15.2+/-1.27 cu micronm. These values are compared with data reported in the literature after correcting the latter for the effects of particle shape. Zaponin does not affect the cell volume distributions, even when used in high concentrations, provided measurements are carried out within the hour.

Biometry↗

Hormonal response to exogenous luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone and thyrotropin-releasing hormone in pregnancy and puerperium.

Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) and thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) were injected into five women in the last month of pregnancy and three women in the postpartum period. In seven of the women, follicle-stimualating hormone (FSH) levels were at the limit of sensitivity of the assay and there was no response to LH-RH. One postpartum subject tested three weeks after delivery did show an FSH response to LH-RH. The thyrotropin response to TRH was within normal limits. When compared with control subjects, the pregnant and puerperal women had elevated basal levels of prolactin and an exaggerated response to TRH. Growth hormone levels were low and there was an inconsistent response to the administration of the releasing hormones. These results indicate that in pregnancy the thyrotroph and lactotroph are responsive to stimulation, whereas the gonadotroph is suppressed.

Adult↗

Fetal heart rate and fetal movements.

Fetal Heart Rate (F.H.R.) in association with fetal movement was evaluated in 141 normal and pathological pregnancies. In the normal cases only 31% showed an acceleration of F.H.R. in association with fetal movement. The majority of the normal cases, 62%, did not demonstrate changes in F.H.R. in association with fetal movement. In the pathological pregnancies there were no characteristic changes in F.H.R. associated with fetal movement. It appears that F.H.R. acceleration associated with fetal movement cannot be used as an index for fetal well being.

Female↗

Breast cancer arising in surgical scars.

Twelve women who developed breast cancer at the site of old surgical scars in the breast are presented. Six had had former breast biopsies, 3 drainage of breast abscesses, and 3 developed breast cancer in old thoracotomy scars transversing the breast. The combination of trauma as an oncogen and scar tissue as a functional and immunological locus minoris resistentia seems to play a major role in the development of breast cancer in this group of patients. The associaton of breast cancer, scar, and trauma would not be coincidental. Increased attention drawn to this entity may lead to a rise in the number of cases diagnosed among patients with breast scars after biopsies, abscesses, trauma, or foreign body implantation.

Abscess↗

The influence of cardiopulmonary bypass on the size of human platelets.

Large and small platelets are present in the bloodstream in nearly equal proportions and comprise about 30 per cent of the normal platelet population. The assumption that cardiopulmonary bypass may alter this platelet population distribution was investigated. Platelet volume distribution curves during and after cardiopulmonary bypass were examined in 12 patients undergoing various intracardiac operation by an electronic particle-sizing apparatus based on the Coulter counter. Mean platelet volume (MPV) was 8.6 +/- 0.7 cubic microns prior to cardiopulmonary bypass. Ten minutes after commencement of cardiopulmonary bypass the MPV decreased to 85 per cent of control levels. A further decrease, reaching a plateau at 75 per cent of prebypass MPV, was reached after 50 minutes on bypass. MPV returned to 87 per cent of prebypass levels 2 hours after discontinuation of cardiopulmonary bypass. Since it is known that platelet count is markedly reduced on cardiopulmonary bypass, a simultaneous 25 per cent decrease in MPV can be explained only by a highly selective disappearance of the large platelets from the circulation. As the larger platelets are younger and functionally more potent than the smaller ones, the selective disappearance of large platelets may thus provide an explanation for the observed alteration in platelet adhesiveness caused by cardiopulmonary bypass.

Blood Cell Count↗