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Biomedical subjects

R B Kundsin

Publications and source records attributed to R B Kundsin.

69 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1969

Vital staining of Mycoplasma and L-forms with Chlorazol Black E.

Vital staining of Mycoplasma colonies was attempted because other dye visualization techniques kill the organisms and preclude reisolation for further studies. The lipophilic amphoteric dye Chlorazol Black E (CBE) was the most successful of 14 vital dyes tested on Mycoplasma hominis, M. pharyngis, M. fermentans, M. arthritidis, M. salivarium, M. pneumoniae, and L-forms of Staphylococcus aureus when used in 1:1,000 (w/v) saline dilution as the sterile suspension medium for inoculation of Hayflick's medium under both aerobic and microaerophilic (Fortner method) conditions. Colonies of all species stain homogeneously in the periphery and center portion, the latter being more refractive under positive phase contrast. All stained colonies were successfully subcultured. The most striking and promising result of the use of CBE as a tool for physiological study of Mycoplasma was a very significant increase in diameter of all colonies except those of M. pneumoniae grown with CBE: 1.5 x for M. hominis and 5 x for L-form S. aureus. This size increase in M. hominis is proportional to the concentration down to a 1:50,000 dilution only under microaerophilic conditions. Whether this increase in colony size is due to an increased number of cells, to larger cells, or to the adsorption of CBE on the lipid membrane is unknown at present.

Bacteriological Techniques↗
PubMed1968

Aerosols of mycoplasmas, L forms, and bacteria: comparison of particle size, viability, and lethality of ultraviolet radiation.

Aerosols of microorganisms were tested for particle size by use of an Andersen sampler. Mycoplasma aerosols had an average count median diameter (CMD) of 2.1 +/- 0.5 mu. Staphylococcus aureus L forms gave an average CMD of 4.6 +/- 1.7 mu; the diphtheroid L form, a CMD of 3.4 +/- 0.3 mu. Escherichia coli had a CMD of 5.4 +/- 2.5 mu; Neisseria sicca, 3.3 +/- 0.5 mu; N. meningitidis, 3.4 +/- 0.2 mu. S. aureus ATCC 6538, the parent strain of the L form, yielded a CMD of 3.9 +/- 1.2 mu. Candida albicans gave an average CMD of 5.9 +/- 1.4 mu. All organisms tested survived aerosolizing and could be recovered in viable form for at least 1 hr. Ultraviolet radiation at 2,537 A destroyed the bacteria and mycoplasmas instantaneously, and destroyed 87% of the L forms of S. aureus, 69% of the diphtheroid L form, and 98% of the C. albicans cells. After irradiation, viable particles of the L form and C. albicans aerosols were consistently larger, indicating that clumping led to survival. Submicron size particles were found in aerosols of all species tested except C. albicans.

Aerosols↗
PubMed1967

Strain of mycoplasma associated with human reproductive failure.

A strain of mycoplasma not previously described has been isolated from the chorion, decidua, and amnion of a patient who sustained a spontaneous abortion during the middle trimester. The fetal membranes exhibited an inflammatory reaction, but no evidence of other infectious agents, bacterial or viral, was noted. The T strain identified is not a classical mycoplasma; it differs in growth and nutritional requirements from the T strains previously characterized.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗
PubMed1966

Characterization of Mycoplasma aerosols as to viability, particle size, and lethality of ultraviolet irradiation.

Kundsin, Ruth B. (Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.). Characterization of Mycoplasma aerosols as to viability, particle size, and lethality of ultraviolet irradiation. J. Bacteriol. 91:942-944. 1966.-Viable aerosols of four strains of Mycoplasma: M. hominis II, M. pharyngis, M. pneumoniae, and an undetermined strain recovered from a lung at autopsy were dispersed, and the particle size was determined. The median diameter of the droplet nuclei ranged from 1.5 to 3.1 mu. M. pharyngis had a dieaway constant k of 0.008, indicating a survival potential of 6 hr from 10,000 colony-forming units at 23% relative humidity. Ultraviolet irradiation destroyed over 99% of the aerosols of all four strains concurrently with spraying. The particle size and viability of the droplet nuclei carrying Mycoplasma were consistent with the theory of airborne transmission of lower respiratory-tract infection.

Aerosols↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Prevalence and survival of microbial contaminants in heated nebulizers.

Over a 2-year period, 600 cultures of fluid in heated nebulizers in use by patients in the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital were performed. The most commonly isolated microorganisms were Pseudomonas and Alcaligenes species. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was never isolated. Three types of heated nebulizers were in use, and their contamination rate was significantly different (45 percent, 21 percent, and 8 percent, respectively; p less than 0.001). In the course of the study, the overall contamination rate decreased from 47 percent to 10 percent. This was mainly due to elmination of the type of heated nebulizer that was most prone to contamination. Five types of currently available large-reservoir nebulizers were inculated with various organisms and growth patterns studied. The various nebulizing equiment differed in its ability to inhibit or eliminate microbial growth; 1 of the heated nebulizers appeared to enhance growth of some of the inoculated bacteria.

Acinetobacter↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Acyclovir treatment of twelve unexplained infertile couples.

Because of recently published research showing herpes antibodies in the endometria of patients who had aborted, as well as evidence of subacute inflammation of the endometria, 17 couples suffering from long-standing totally unexplained infertility (except for persistent subacute inflammation of the endometrial were given acyclovir over a period of six menstrual cycles. Five of these couples did not complete the treatment protocol. Of the 12 couples who did, 5 became pregnant, with successful pregnancies. Two of the five had posttreatment endometrial biopsies that were negative, and both became pregnant subsequently. In contrast to their past histories, there were no spontaneous abortions.

Acyclovir↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Mycoplasma, chlamydia, Epstein-Barr, herpes I and II, and AIDS infections among 100 consecutive infertile female patients and husbands: diagnosis, treatment, and results.

One hundred consecutive infertile patients were studied to determine the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among middle and upper income patients, most of whom were referred as longstanding failures by other physicians. There were no cases of syphilis, gonorrhea, or AIDS found among these patients. One patient was pregnant when first seen, and was eliminated. Genital mycoplasmas were cultured from 64 wives. Antibodies for past or recent infection with Chlamydia were present in only 23. Antibodies to Epstein-Barr virus and to herpes II were found in 92 and 65, respectively. If only the mycoplasmas, Chlamydia, and herpes II are considered possible causes of human infertility, only 7 of the 99 couples showed no evidence of ever having had any of these three infections. Edometrial histology was positive for the changes associated with Mycoplasma infection in 47 of the 86 patients biopsied. Of the 39 with negative biopsies, 24 yielded positive cultures for Mycoplasma. Hence, only 15 of the 99 patients were negative for Mycoplasma by both culture and/or endometrial histology. Treatment with the antibiotic of choice, as indicated by sensitivity testing of all Mycoplasma-positive cultures, was an important factor in producing 43 pregnancies during the first year of study. Two of these were ectopic; 11 were spontaneous abortions, with one of these women now pregnant again and in mid-trimester; 28 have delivered healthy babies; and two are still pregnant and doing well.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Microwave thawing of frozen parenteral solutions.

A commercially available microwave oven modified for use at medication stations throughout hospitals allows timely thawing of frozen parenteral solutions. The inherent problems of safety and uniform heating have been overcome, thus making possible the preparation, storage, and distribution of admixtures on a regional basis and ensuring the integrity of the product. Most parenteral medications are not degraded by microwave energy, and thawing by microwave energy permits timely administration and allows coordination of medication for a series of patients.

Equipment and Supplies, Hospital↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The operating room and the ultraviolet environment.

Clean surgical wounds may be contaminated from three separate sources: endogenously from the patient himself; exogenously from direct contamination by unsterile instruments, drapes, gowns, hands, or gloves; and by bacteria settling from that final common pathway, the air over the operative field. The advent of total joint replacement precipitated a renewed consciousness in the orthopedic community of the disastrous consequences a wound infection can have upon the orthopedic patient. Deep infection around a total joint replacement can convert a procedure with a 95 percent probability of success to a total disaster, leaving the patient worse than prior to operation. Most orthopedists use at least two accepted methods of preventing deep wound infection in the postoperative period: the application of topical antibiotics during surgery, and the intravenous infusion of systemic antibiotics during and after surgery for a brief period. In addition, many orthopedic surgeons are operating in clean air rooms with body exhaust systems; others are operating in an ultraviolet environment. Orthopedic surgery in the ultraviolet environment has been used at the brigham hospitals since 1973. The infection rate has dropped from 3.8 percent to 1.04 percent in a series of 2000 patients. However, inconveniences and hazards have been experienced in the use of ultraviolet radiation in the operating room.

Air Microbiology↗