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Biomedical subjects

O Zamir

Publications and source records attributed to O Zamir.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Spontaneous perforation of the stomach in the neonate.

Three full-term female neonates developed gastric perforation during their first week of life. All three experienced severe postnatal asphyxia and improved following resuscitation. A linear perforation located in the prepyloric area was found in these patients. Direct closure was successfully performed in all three neonates. Asphyxia seems to be a major predisposing factor in neonatal gastric perforations. Focal gastric ischaemia and acid peptic activity may play part in the pathogenesis in these cases.

Female↗

Lung resection for bronchiectasis in children.

Twenty children with bronchiectasis underwent pulmonary resections during an 8-year period. All patients suffered from significant symptoms that did not respond to medical treatment and had localised disease. In 7 patients bronchiectasis developed following foreign body aspiration and in two the aetiology was cystic fibrosis and immune deficiency, respectively. The lower lobes were most commonly involved. Atelectasis of the remaining ipsilateral lung was the most common postoperative complication occurring in four patients. One patient required reoperation for recurrent symptoms. Fifteen out of 18 patients who underwent curative resections were asymptomatic in the longterm follow-up. It is concluded that for children with significant symptoms due to localised bronchiectasis that fails to respond to medical treatment, resection of the affected lobes is indicated.

Adolescent↗

Wide local excision as an alternative treatment for periampullary carcinoma.

Wide excision of periampullary carcinoma is associated with low operative morbidity and mortality, but its effect on long-term survival, compared with that of pancreaticoduodenal resection, is controversial. Five patients with periampullary carcinoma were treated with wide local excision as a definitive procedure. There was no operative death, and four patients survived for two or more years following the operation. These patients are presented and the literature is reviewed.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Localized pseudomembranous colitis simulating carcinoma of the cecum.

A 76-yr-old woman complained of right lower quadrant abdominal pain, nausea, and fever. There was no history of antibiotic therapy or preceding diarrhea. At laparotomy, a cecal lesion simulating a tumor was found with an otherwise normal colon. Right hemicolectomy was performed. Pathological examination showed pseudomembranous colitis confined to the cecum. It is suggested that pseudomembranous colitis unrelated to prior exposure to antimicrobial agents can occur without diarrhea, and may be a localized process mimicking colonic carcinoma.

Aged↗

Nerve mediated responses to drugs and electrical stimulation in aganglionic muscle segments in Hirschsprung's disease.

The activity of isolated muscle strips from normal and aganglionic human large bowel was studied in vitro. The intrinsic nerves were stimulated electrically and by nicotinic agonists. The ganglionic preparations displayed a strong inhibitory response due to the release of both norepinephrine and a noncholinergic, nonadrenergic inhibitory neurotransmitter. In the aganglionic strips (obtained from patients with Hirschsprung's disease), nerve activation tended to evoke contraction, apparently due to enhancement in the release of acetylcholine. At the same time, the release of norepinephrine appeared to be less than normal. A particularly interesting finding in the aganglionic muscle strips was the presence of a substantial inhibitory response due to the release of a noncholinergic, nonadrenergic substance. These results provide further evidence for the importance of the innervation of the aganglionic segment in Hirschsprung's disease.

Child↗

Bilateral congenital posterolateral diaphragmatic hernia.

A female neonate with bilateral congenital posterolateral diaphragmatic hernia is presented. The correct diagnosis was established only after repair of the left hemidiaphragm. Repair of the right hemidiaphragm failed to prevent a downhill course with progressive respiratory failure which led to her death. This extremely rare anomaly is discussed in view of the complex embryological development of the diaphragm.

Diaphragm↗

Strangulated congenital diaphragmatic hernia in infants.

Two previously healthy children, 7 and 12 months old, respectively, presented with respiratory distress and severe sepsis. Chest x-rays were suggestive of inflammatory disease of the left lung. At operation, necrotic bowel was found to be herniated through a left congenital posterolateral diaphragmatic hernia. These patients illustrate the difficulty in establishing the diagnosis of strangulated congenital diaphragmatic hernia and the grave consequences when operation is delayed.

Age Factors↗

Corrosive injury to the stomach due to acid ingestion.

Ingestion of acid often causes severe damage to the stomach. Ingestion of alkali, however, usually injures the esophagus and spares the stomach. Early complications of acid ingestion, e.g., massive gastric hemorrhage or perforation, are unusual. The absence of severe symptoms in most patients soon after ingestion of acid is often misleading. Gastric outlet obstruction is a common late result and may develop following an asymptomatic interval. The authors' experience with three patients with severe complications following ingestion of acid is presented. The initial treatment, as well as the surgical management, are discussed.

Adult↗

Hindgut duplication. Report of a patient with long-term follow-up.

A girl with a rare congenital malformation consisting of duplication of the urinary and genital tracts as well as of the entire colon, terminating in double rectogenital fistulas, is presented. Because of a small-capacity urinary bladder on one side and an atonic neurogenic bladder on the other side, urinary diversion was necessary. A preliminary diverting colostomy of the duplicated transverse colon was followed by anoplasty of one anus. Later on, the duplicated proximal colostomy was anastomosed to the one distal colon leading to the rectum with anoplasty. The treatment of this complex anomaly is described.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

Physiological and pharmacological studies of the internal anal sphincter in the rat.

The rectoanal reflex in the rat consists of relaxation followed by contraction of the internal anal sphincter (IAS). Beta-adrenergic drugs produce prolonged relaxation of the IAS, where alpha-agonists cause brief relaxation followed by contraction. Muscarinic cholinergic drugs contract the IAS. ATP and related purines produce relaxation which is blocked by theophylline. The reflex persists during adregeneric, cholinergic, and purinergic block. The potassium-blocker apamin prevents the relaxation induced by rectal distension. This suggests that the reflex is not mediated by adrenergic, cholinergic, or purinergic transmitters. Blocking potassium conductance was apparently the only way to eliminate this reflex.

Acetylcholine↗

Nonfunctional paraganglioma of the pancreas.

A patient with nonfunctional paraganglioma situated adjacent to the pancreas is presented. The clinical picture, the laboratory studies, as well as the gross appearance of the tumor and a frozen section at operation were not diagnostic. Internal drainage of the cystic tumor, assumed to be a pseudocyst of the pancreas, was done. Excision was performed when the diagnosis was histologically and ultrastructurally established. The microscopic and the electron microscopic features of this rare neoplasm are discussed. Excision of the tumor is recommended as the treatment of choice because of the malignant potential that does not correlate well with the histological appearance.

Humans↗

Splenoportography--a reappraisal.

Seventy-five percutaneous splenoportographies and splenic pulp pressure measurements were performed in 70 patients. This procedure was done routinely during the preoperative investigation of patients with bleeding esophageal varices. Splenoportagraphy was also performed for evaluation of patients with portal hypertension of an obscure etiology, and for follow-up study after portosystemic shunt procedures, where the spleen had been preserved. There were no complications related to the procedure. Splenoportography is a simple and safe diagnostic tool. The information obtained is important for planning an operation to relieve portal hypertension. It may also help in the postoperative evaluation of the patency of certain types of shunt procedures.

Child↗