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Biomedical subjects

P Albertazzi

Publications and source records attributed to P Albertazzi.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Sequential addition of low dose of medrogestone or medroxyprogesterone acetate to transdermal estradiol: a pilot study on their influence on the endometrium.

We evaluated bleeding pattern and endometrium following the administration of two of the most common types of progestogens used in hormone replacement therapy, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and medrogestone acetate. Twenty eight patients in spontaneous menopause were randomly allocated to two groups. Group 1 (n = 14) received 5 mg/day of of MPA and group 2 (n = 14) received 5 mg/day of medrogestone: both the progestogens were sequentially added for the last 12 days of a 21-day period of transdermal estradiol administration (50 micrograms per day). A 7-day treatment-free period completed the cycle. The study treatments were administered for 6 cycles. The endomtria were checked for their thickness by transvaginal ultrasound before starting treatment and at 6th treatment cycle (days 6-10 of the estrogen-only phase and during the period between days 8 and 12 of the progestogen addition). Endometrial biopsies were performed before starting treatment only in the patients with a positive progesterone challenge test and in all the patients at the end of the study during the addition of the progestogen. The bleeding pattern was closely monitored. MPA is accompanied by a thick endometrium with full secretory transformation in all cases. On the contrary, the same dose of medrogestone induced a consistent decrease of estrogen primed endometrium with only 4 cases of full secretory transformation. Four medrogestone-treated patients dropped out due to unscheduled bleeding. A low dose of medrogestone added to transdermal estradiol induced incomplete transformation of endometrium and oligo-amenorrhea more frequently than MPA, but it increased the chances of irregular bleeding. MPA fully transformed the endometrium: periods were thus heavier but regular. None of the patients in either group had endometrial hyperplasia.

Administration, Cutaneous↗
PubMed1995

Trazodone: a non-hormonal alternative for neurovegetative climacteric symptoms.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the treatment of choice for neurovegetative climacteric symptoms. In some women, however, HRT may either be contraindicated, or the patients themselves may prefer a non-hormonal form of treatment. Trazodone is a drug that acts a weak, but specific, inhibitor of the uptake of 3H-serotonin and is generally used for its antidepressant effects. In this study we have observed the efficacy of oral Trazodone (75 mg/day) in the treatment of the climacteric symptoms in 25 menopausal patients recruited at the Menopause Clinic of Ferrara University Hospital. The symptoms were scored from 0 to 3 according to presence and intensity. The patients were all complaining of climacteric neurovegetative symptoms (average symptom score 2.43). Symptoms scores were recorded before starting treatment and then again after 3 months. The appeared to be particularly effective on the intensity of anxiety (OR: 0.08, CI: 0-0.080), insomnia (OR: 0.15, CI: 0.02-0.71), and irritability (OR: 0.29, CI: 0.04-1.48). The intensity of hot flushes appeared reduced but was not statistically significant (OR: 0.52, CI: 0.08-1.87). However, the average total score of symptoms appearing in the Kupperman scale was reduced (-14%) after treatment. Trazodone should be kept in mind as a possible alternative to HRT. This drug can be particularly useful for those patients whose climacteric symptoms have a marked connotation of anxiety rather than for hot flushes or when HRT are contraindicated.

Anti-Anxiety Agents↗
PubMed1994

The menopausal transition: a dynamic approach to the pathogenesis of neurovegetative complaints.

In our cross-sectional study we investigated the separate influence of three main factors, namely menopausal and estrogen status, and chronological age, on ten neurovegetative climacteric complaints reported in the scale of Kupperman et al. A multivariate statistical analysis was performed by a multivariate statistical approach on 1161 untreated women seen at the Menopause Center of the Ferrara University Hospital. Ninety women (age range, 41-54 years) were premenopausal; 492 women (age range, 38-55 years) were perimenopausal with irregular periods or amenorrhea for less than 12 months; 468 women (age range, 41-69 years) had a spontaneous menopause (age range, 37-66 years); 111 had had hysterectomy with bilateral ovariectomy while still regularly menstruating. Serum estrone was used as the indicator of the patients' estrogen status. A clear positive trend was demonstrated between menopausal status and the prevalence of depression, hot flushes, insomnia and joint pain. However, only the prevalence of hot flushes amongst these four symptoms was significantly related with the climacteric estrogen decline (beta = -0.006, P = 0.001). Moreover, menopausal status appeared to influence the intensity of fatigue, hot flushes, insomnia and paresthesia. Age was found to significantly (P = 0.053) co-vary only with the intensity of the hot flushes, with a positive relation (beta = 0.092, r = 0.104, P = 0.003), whereas estrone values did not significantly co-vary with any symptom. Furthermore, while neurovegetative symptoms are largely present also in the absence of hot flushes, when these latter are present, they exacerbate both the intensity and the prevalence of all the other symptoms.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Pain relief after caesarean section: comparison of different techniques of morphine administration.

We have studied postoperative pain relief after different techniques of morphine administration given in addition to bupivacaine 15 mg during spinal anaesthesia for caesarean section. In group A, morphine was given both intravenously (10 mg) and orally (30 mg slow release MST) at the end of surgery and continued orally at 8-hourly intervals for 24 h. In group B morphine (80 microg) was given intrathecally only, with the bupivacaine. Both quality of analgesia and duration of action were better in group B, while most side-effects were more frequent in group A where a mild self limiting respiratory depression occurred in 38% of patients. Pruritus was, on the other hand, observed in 48% of patients of group B compared to 7% of the patients of group A. This study suggests that adding 80 microg of morphine to the local anaesthetic used in spinal anaesthesia for caesarean section is a simple procedure that gives excellent results in term of reliability, duration of analgesia and safety.

Journal Article↗