Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

T Mountokalakis

Publications and source records attributed to T Mountokalakis.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Eosinophilia in patients undergoing regular hemodialysis.

The prevalence of eosinophilia (eosinophil counts greater than 400/mm3) in 69 patients undergoing regular hemodialysis for one to 80 months was estimated as 52,2%, in a random examination. On the other hand, a retrospective chart review of 30 patients hemodialyzed at one unit between 1973 and 1981 showed that 14 of them developed either recurrent of continuous eosinophilia, while 16 never had elevated eosinophil counts over a period of 21 to 72 months. In the whole group of 30 patients, mean eosinophil count increased progressively during the first two years of hemodialysis treatment and remained unchanged thereafter. All cases of eosinophilia were observed between the years 1977 and 1981 i.e., at least two years after a change in the type of dialyzers used at this unit.

Adolescent↗

Serum zinc levels and urinary zinc excretion in patients with bronchogenic carcinoma. Effects of tumor resection.

Low serum zinc levels and high urinary zinc excretion were found in 25 patients with bronchogenic carcinoma. Twenty of them underwent successful removal of the tumor by lobectomy or pneumonectomy; in the other 5 patients surgical exploration revealed unresectable pulmonary lesions. The latter had significantly lower serum zinc and higher urinary zinc levels than the patients in whom surgical removal of the tumor could be performed. Tumor resection was followed by restoration of serum and urinary zinc to normal. In contrast, in the inoperable patients a further decrease in serum zinc and no significant change in urinary zinc excretion were noted 15 days after thoracic exploration. In both patient groups a significant negative correlation existed between preoperatively obtained values of serum and urinary zinc. Hypozincemia in patients with bronchogenic carcinoma may result from an increase in urinary zinc losses, probably related to a decrease in zinc binding to plasma proteins. Determination of serum and urinary zinc may be useful in evaluating the prognosis of primary lung cancer.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Effect of somatostatin on renal water handling in the dog.

When somatostatin was infused into the left renal artery of anaesthetized, hydropenic dogs in doses ranging from 1 to 10 micrograms/min, it produced an increased flow of a more dilute urine from the ipsilateral kidney. Similar infusions in dogs undergoing a maximal water diuresis had no effect. If aqueous antidiuretic hormone (ADH) was administered intravenously into water-loaded dogs prior to the intraarterial infusion of somatostatin, this latter peptide was able to produce an augmented flow of a more dilute urine from the ipsilateral kidney. If the left kidney was made to excrete a concentrated urine in the face of maximal water loading by restricting arterial perfusion, then the infusion of somatostatin had no effect on urinary dilution, though this peptide could increase water excretion in hydropenic dogs when the left kidney was similarly restricted as to arterial inflow. In dogs undergoing a water diuresis that were given cyclic AMP (4 mg/min) into the left renal artery, a decrease in ipsilateral water excretion was observed. The subsequent infusion of somatostatin produced no urinary dilution. We conclude that somatostatin increases renal water excretion by antagonizing the ADH effect on the renal tubule, and that this event probably occurs at a pre-cAMP site within the cell.

Animals↗

Differential effect of surgical injury and thermal burn on zinc metabolism in man.

Serum, erythrocyte and urinary zinc were serially measured during the early ten days following major surgery or thermal burns in 18 and 8 patients, respectively. Serum zinc gradually decreased and erythrocyte and urinary zinc increased during the first three postoperative or post-burn days. Thereafter, both serum and erythrocyte zinc gradually returned to preoperative levels in the patients subjected to surgery, while serum zinc continued to fall progressively despite a rapid restoration of erythrocyte zinc to control values, in the burned patients. It is suggested that in contrast to the early postoperative or post-burn hypozincemia, which may be attributed to a redistribution of zinc from plasma to tissue, continued decrease in serum zinc following thermal burns may indicate a mobilization of zinc to the burn site and eventually result in significant zinc depletion.

Adolescent↗

Effect of combined administration of furosemide and aspirin on urinary urate excretion in man.

Furosemide (20 mg) was administered intravenously to 7 healthy volunteers, before and after 4 days of oral administration of aspirin in uricosuric dosage (1 g daily). Aspirin prevented the decrease in urinary urate excretion induced by furosemide, without interfering with its natriuretic action. This finding is suggested to be the result of the opposite and independent effects of the two drugs on tubular reabsorption of urate.

Adult↗

Urinary prostaglandins in kidney disease.

Substances having the chromatographic behaviour and the bioassay properties of prostaglandins (PGE and PGF) were detected in the urine of 30 patients with kidney disease and 15 healthy subjects. The mean urinary PGE and PGF values in 15 patients with chronic glomerular disease or nephrosclerosis were significantly lower than those of 15 patients with chronic pyelonephritis and other forms of chronic interstitial nephritis, polycystic kidney disease, obstructive nephropathy or diuretic phase of acute renal failure, and of the mean PGE and PGF values found in the healthy subjects. It was suggested that in contrast to disease affecting primarily the renal medulla, chronic glomerular disease and nephrosclerosis are accompanied by a decrease of renal prostaglandin synthesis and/or release.

Glomerulonephritis↗

Hair zinc compared with plasma zinc in uremic patients before and during regular hemodialysis.

Plasma and hair zinc concentrations were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry in 34 control subjects, 20 nondialyzed uremic patients and 18 patients treated with regular hemodialysis. Plasma zinc levels were low in both nondialyzed and hemodialyzed patients. Hair zinc levels were low in the nondialyzed uremics, but at least partialy restored to normal in patients on hemodialysis. In both patient groups, hair zinc was positively correlated with plasma zinc. In the nondialyzed patients haie zinc depletion in end-stage renal disease progresses with increasing degree of renal insufficiency and tends to be reversed by regular hemodialysis.

Adult↗

Effect of inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis on the natriuresis induced by saline infusion in man.

1. The effect of oral administration of an inhibitor of prostaglandin synthetase, indomethacin, on the natriuresis induced by the infusion of sodium chloride (saline) was studied in 11 healthy volunteers. 2. The administration of indomethacin did not alter sodium excretion before saline infusion, but it resulted in a significant increase of the natriuresis after saline infusion. This increase was not accompanied by any change in post-infusion urine flow rate or free water reabsorption. 3. It is suggested that intrarenal prostaglandins might suppress the natriuretic effect of saline infusion, probably by increasing sodium reabsorption in the distal nephron.

Adolescent↗

Relationship between glomerular filtration rate and tubular reabsorption of sodium in patients with unilateral renal artery stenosis. The role of the renal prostaglandins.

In patients with renovascular hypertension, a significant decrease in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and in renal plasma flow (RPF) in the stenotic kidney was accompanied by a significant homolateral decrease in extraction of PAH(EPAH) and in net tubular reabsorption of sodium (RNa). There was a highly significant correlation between differences in RNa and differences in either GFR or RPF, while no correlation between differences in RNa and in EPAH was noted. It is suggested that the nature of the relationship between GFR and RNa is essentially the same in unilateral renal artery stenosis in man, as in acute constriction of the renal artery or the aorta in the experimental animal.

Absorption↗

Deficiency in renomedullary prostaglandin synthesis related to the evolution of essential hypertension.

Continued PG synthesis in the early stages of essential hypertension might reflect an activation of the renal antihypertensive function in respect to neurogenic and/or hormonal pression stimuli, subsequently a deficiency of renal PG synthesis related to irreversible changes with the kidney would lead to the prepoderance of a pressure mechanism, resulting to a further increase of blood pressure.

Adult↗

Changes of fractional renal clearance of magnesium after spironolactone administration in normal subjects.

Spironolactone, 200 mg/24 hours, was administered for 4 days to 18 clinically healthy subjects and 10 hospitalised patients with normal renal function. Changes of fractional renal clearance of magnesium before and after spironolactone administration were studied in the first group. Corresponding changes of the ratio of renal clearance of potassium to renal clearance of magnesium were studied in the second group. After spironolactone administration, fractional clearance of magnesium showed a statistically significant decrease in relation to its values before spironolactone administration, while the ratio clearance of potassium/clearance of magnesium showed no statistically significant change. The results suggest that spironolactone administration decreases the renal excretion of magnesium and potassium in an equivalent manner.

Adolescent↗