Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to T Janz.
Tobacco products are potentially hazardous to children. Small oral doses may create marked toxic effects. Physicians treating children with gastrointestinal complaints, altered consciousness, and seizure with depressed respiration should seek a history of possible exposure to tobacco products, including gum used for smoking abstinence. Intoxication can be verified by a urine toxicology screen utilizing chromatography.
Although the clinical manifestations of an abnormal serum sodium concentration are uncommon, imbalances in sodium and water occur frequently. The major indications for the determination of the serum sodium are those situations in which the signs and symptoms of hyponatremia or hypernatremia are likely. In other situations, unless the determination of the sodium concentration will change the clinical management of the underlying disorder, the serum sodium is not very useful, and consequently, should not be ordered as a routine test. Laboratory tests should primarily be used to confirm clinical suspicions. The majority of disorders in which imbalances in sodium and water occur can be diagnosed on clinical grounds, irrespective of the serum sodium concentration.
The effect of decreases in plasma colloid osmotic pressure (COP) on the development of lung edema was studied in nephrotic rats. Five control animals were compared with five animals with nephrotic syndrome induced by administration of anti-rat glomerular basement membrane antibody. The COP and the left ventricular diastolic pressure (LVDP) were significantly decreased in nephrotic rats. However, no significant differences were seen in the COP - LVDP gradient, weight-to-dry lung weight ratio, or arterial oxygenation between the nephrotic and control animals. These data suggest that decreases in COP during nephrosis are not associated with accumulation of extravascular lung water.