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Biomedical subjects

P Cugini

Publications and source records attributed to P Cugini.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1984

[Parametric methods applied to the standardization of gestational reference intervals for blood renin activity, aldosterone and cortisol using the transversal and longitudinal approach].

This investigation is devoted to define monthly-qualified gestational reference intervals for plasma renin, aldosterone and cortisol as derived by transverse or longitudinal approaches. Reference intervals refer to 95% confidence interval, 90% tolerance interval, the 95% predictive interval, in addition to the mean plus or minus the standard error and standard deviation. By applying both methodological approaches it has been found that plasma renin and aldosterone exhibit a progressive gestational increase. By contrast, cortisol shows an initial increase and thereafter stays on the same values. Statistical analysis revealed the transversally--and longitudinally--derived reference intervals to be not statistically different. Because of such a similarity, laboratory medicine can interchangeably use both kinds of reference intervals for estimating the normality of plasma renin, aldosterone and cortisol values in a single case of pregnancy. This interchangeability of values leads to simplify the methodology for measuring plasma renin and aldosterone in pregnancy since it is not necessary to standardize the gestational nomograms for renin-sodium and/or aldosterone-sodium relationship. This is a real way to reduce the costs and to optimize the compliance in the monitoring of pregnancy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Circadian as well as circannual rhythms of circulating aldosterone have decreased amplitude in aging women.

Age differences in the characteristics of the circadian rhythm in circulating radioimmunoassayable aldosterone were studied on nine 20 to 26 year-old and ten 70 to 78 year-old women and ten 23 to 26 year old and ten 70 to 80 year old men in Würzburg, West Germany. These diurnally active-nocturnally resting subjects were sampled every 3 hours for 15 hours. A classical analysis of variance and a multivariate analysis of rhythm characteristics revealed major effects of age exerted on the circadian aldosterone amplitude in women (p = 0.003) but not in concomitantly sampled men. These observations complement the study of circadian and circannual rhythms in 8 young adults (15-21 years), 10 mature adults (29-36 years) and 10 post-menopausal (44-59 years) North American women, sampled at 100 minute intervals for 24 hours, once in each season, and document that the adrenocortical aldosterone-producing system remains rhythmic with at least two frequencies up to the late decades of human life, although in women it may be characterized by a reduction in the extent of spectral change after 70 years of age.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

[Differential aspects of the dynamics of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system in obesity with and without hypertension and in essential arterial hypertension].

This report describes the impulsive function of the RAAS investigated in obese and non-obese hypertensives as compared to obese and non-obese normotensives. The aim of the investigation was to clarify whether or not the hypertensive vascular disease accompanying the ponderal excess can be regarded as a well-defined pathophysiologic entity. Data obtained showed that the behavior of the RAAS in hypertensive obese patients is quite different from that of non-obese hypertensives and obese normotensives. Such a difference implies that hypertension of obese people is a biochemically distinguishable entity. This observation corroborates the concept that the clinical association of obesity-hypertension might be regarded as a syndrome with a proper nosographic dignity.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Hypertension in licorice abuse. A case report.

We describe the case of a young woman affected by systemic high blood pressure, in whom the clinical history and laboratory data (hypokalaemia, low plasma renin activity and negligible aldosterone levels) were consistent with the hypothesis of liquorice-induced hypertension. After six months of abstinence from liquorice, all laboratory data returned to normal levels, but blood pressure remained elevated. This unusual persistence of liquorice-induced hypertension supports the hypothesis that liquorice facilitated the phenotypic development of a hypertensive state in a patient with a family history positive for that disease.

Female↗
PubMed1982

Effect of ageing on circadian rhythms of plasma renin and aldosterone in mesor-hypertensive women.

This study investigated the changes in circadian rhythms of plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma aldosterone (PA) which occur in essential mesor-hypertensive women, increasing in age. Systemic blood samples were taken throughout a 12 h period from both mesor-hypertensive women and clinically healthy women (control). The women in each group were either post-menopausal or had normal menstrual cycles. A cosinor method of temporal series was the analysis employed to compute the properties of PRA and PA circadian rhythms. The clearest effect of ageing, recorded in essential mesor-hypertensive women, is a decrease in circadian mesor of PRA cycle (P = 0.002). The age-related changes in clinically healthy women appear to be more extensive and involve a decrease for both mesor (P less than 0.001) and amplitude (P = 0.007) of PRA circadian rhythm. These disparities are convincing evidence for a non-physiological decline of the RAAS rhythmic function in the aged essential mesor-hypertensive women. The lack of an age-associated decrease in circadian PRA amplitude merits and pathophysiological and clinical investigation because it is a possible risk factor for post-menopausal, essential mesor-hypertensive women.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Methodologically critical interactions of circadian rhythm, sex, and aging characterize serum aldosterone and the female adrenopause.

Nine 20- to 26-year-old and ten 70- to 78-year-old diurnally active, nocturnally resting women in Würzburg, Federal Republic of Germany, gave blood at 0700, 1000, 1300, 1600, 1900, and 2200 for radioimmunoassay of aldosterone. Single and population-mean cosinors were applied. A multivariate analysis of circadian rhythm characteristics revealed effects of age on the amplitude (p = .003) but not the mesor of aldosterone in women (i.e., the age effect could only be detected at certain circadian times but not at others). No change with age was found for concomitantly sampled men. Statistically significant interactions among circadian time, age, and sex (p = .001) establish the adrenocorticopause in women and suggest that it may occur earlier in women than in men, in keeping with similar results on serum cortisol in the same subjects. This phenomenon awaits scrutiny from the viewpoint of its bearing on longevity and life quality. These results also indicate the importance of assessing chronobiological characteristics.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Inactive and active renins, aldosterone and cortisol in puerpera and newborn.

Eleven primiparae (aged from 20 to 31 years) have been sampled at the time of partum and throughout the puerperium for simultaneous determinations of plasma levels of inactive (prorenin) and active (PRA) renins, aldosterone (PA) and cortisol (PC). Biodata have been compared to time-qualified values obtained in non-pregnant adult women (aged from 17 to 37 years). Pregnant women show peripartum levels of prorenin, PRA, PA and PC significantly higher than the time-qualified reference intervals. Gestational increment is meanly of 3-4 times for prorenin, of 5-8 times for PRA, of 17-19 times for PA, of 4-5 times for PC. Puerperal levels of PRA, PA and PC show a progressive decline while those of prorenin suddenly fall and then remain quite stable. Neonatal levels of prorenin, PRA, PA and PC are higher than normal. Neonates show levels of prorenin, PRA, PA and PC, respectively equal, increased equal and decreased when compared to mothers. The different equipment of hormonal levels in mother and newborn leads to suggest a selective role of the placenta as a filter.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

[Circadian rhythm of temperature, heart rate and blood pressure in normal rats and hypothyroid rats].

We explored the circadian variation of core temperature, heart rate and blood pressure in hypothyroid and euthyroid male Sprague-Dawley rats. A circadian rhythm was quantified by the population mean-cosinor method for the core temperature of both hypothyroid and intact rats, whereas for the blood pressure and heart rate values a circadian rhythm was validated by rejection of the zero-amplitude assumption only in the hypothyroid rats. Whether hypothyroid rats adjust to new schedules at a rate different from euthyroid animals is an inference from these studies awaiting scrutiny.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Ageing and circadian rhythm of plasma renin and aldosterone.

Five men and 8 women, 60-69 yr of age, and 4 men and 5 women, 17-37 yr of age, volunteered for this exploration of possible age-related changes in circadian-rhythm (CR) characteristics of radioimmunoassayable plasma renin (PRA) and aldosterone (PA). Blood was drawn at 06.00, 08.00, 12.00, 18.00, 20.00 and 24.00 from recumbent subjects on a habitual sodium intake of 120-140 mEq/24 h. Time-qualified data of PRA and PA, fitted by a 24-h cosine curve, were summarized by a population mean-cosinor method. Circadian characteristics were compared by a multivariate analysis using Hotelling's t2 test. Rhythmometry reveals in the elderly women a lower mesor (P less than 0.001) and amplitude (P = 0.036) of the CR in PRA and a higher mesor and amplitude (P = 0.021 and P = 0.020, respectively) of the PA-CR. The PRA acrophase is delayed (P less than 0.001) in the elderly women (04.40 vs. 08.04) while the timing of the PA acrophase is similar in the age groups of women compared (05.52 vs. 05.20). These differences found in women were not observed in the smaller groups of men. The seventh decade of life may be characterized by an internal circadian desynchronization between the major components of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. A sex-dependent amplification of the extent of circadian variation in aldosterone may precede a decrease in the circadian amplitude occurring during the eighth decade of life, as a sign of the adrenopause in women.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

Circadian rhythms of plasma renin, aldosterone and cortisol on habitual and low dietary sodium intake.

To examine the effects of reducing sodium intake upon the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS), 5 healthy men and 5 healthy women, 17-37 years old, living under standardized conditions, were sampled around the clock, once on habitual and once on restricted sodium intake. Plasma renin activity (PRA), aldosterone (PA) and cortisol (PC) were determined by radioimmunoassay. All three variables were found to exhibit a statistically significant circadian rhythm, both on habitual and restricted salt intake. After salt restriction, an increase in midline-estimating statistic of rhythm (mesor) of PRA and PA, but not of PC, was observed. The acrophase (an estimate of the time of high values) for PC lagged behind that for PRA and PA. This difference in acrophase was of specially high statistical significance when subjects were on a sodium-restricted diet. These results demonstrate the importance of inferential statistical so-called rhythmometric methods: parameters such as the acrophase can also be used for the assessment of novel effects and for a quantification in time. The derivation of confidence intervals for each rhythm parameter allows one to verify that a given variable exhibits values bracketing an average not only between a higher and a lower, but also between an earlier and a later limit. Changes that may involve only the acrophase, such as a lead or lag, as here noted, are then detected and are of factual as well as methodological interest.

Adolescent↗