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Biomedical subjects

W H Hu

Publications and source records attributed to W H Hu.

83 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Plasma homovanillic acid levels and subtyping of schizophrenia.

Plasma levels of homovanillic acid (HVA), a major metabolite of dopamine, were measured in a group of 24 schizophrenic inpatients before and during 6 weeks of haloperidol (HAL) treatment. Steady-state plasma HAL levels were measured in parallel with plasma HVA. Differential plasma HVA responses to HAL treatment were found between good and poor outcome patients. The two groups did not differ significantly in plasma HAL levels. Two hypothetical subtypes of schizophrenia are proposed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Acute and chronic effects of haloperidol on plasma and brain homovanillic acid in the rat.

The effects of acute and chronic administration of haloperidol on homovanillic acid (HVA) in plasma and the brain were examined in the rat. Acute haloperidol treatment (1 mg/kg) resulted in highly significant elevations in HVA within 30 min and produced a maximal increase of HVA in 3-6 hr in both plasma and the whole brain. The response of brain HVA to increasing doses (0.05-30 mg/kg) of haloperidol showed an inverted U pattern. Plasma HVA showed a very flat response to lower doses (less than or equal to 5 mg/kg) of haloperidol and a dramatically elevated one to higher doses (greater than or equal to 10 mg/kg). Haloperidol produced a parallel increase in plasma and brain HVA at lower doses (less than or equal to 2 mg/kg) only. After chronic administration of haloperidol for up to 28 days, the response of HVA in plasma correlated mainly with, but tolerated later than, those in the whole brain and the olfactory tubercle.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

[Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) with dermatomyositis--an analysis of 30 cases].

Dermatomyositis with malignant tumor is rare in China. The incidence reported abroad was about 7-34%. Before 1982, only 51 cases were collected from the Chinese medical literatures comprising 20.3% (51/251) of patients with dermatomyositis. In 40 (78%) out of 51 patients with co-existing dermatomyositis and malignant tumors, it was NPC. During the period of 1964-1982, in Zhongshan Medical College Tumor Hospital, 30 cases (0.023%) of dermatomyositis complicated with NPC were collected from 127,900 cancer patients. In the 30 cases, 21 (70%) were over the age of 40. In Guangdong province, dermatomyositis with NPC was most frequent in cases of dermatomyositis with malignant tumor (40/44, 91%). The symptom of dermatomyositis occurred prior to that of NPC by eight months. Its disappearance was positively correlated to that of the tumor. The downward invasion of lymph nodes was dominant in dermatomyositis with NPC (28/30, 93.4%). The 5 year survival rate of dermatomyositis with NPC treated by radiation was 16.7% (4/24) which was lower than that of patients without dermatomyositis in the same period.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A clinical study of schizophrenic suicides. 42 cases in Taiwan.

A clinical study of 25 male and 17 female schizophrenic suicides is presented. Jumping from a height was the most common method used. The 42 suicidal schizophrenics in Taiwan were compared with both 84 sex- and age-matched and 60 5-year illness course non-suicidal schizophrenic control groups. The suicidal schizophrenics were not significantly different from the non-suicidal counterparts of both control groups with regard to age, sex, ethnicity, religion, educational background, the presence of suicide cases in the family history, and the presence of insight, but were significantly different in characteristics of a history of previous suicide attempts, presence of psychotic symptoms during their final month, depression during their final month, a history of depression, a history of previous psychiatric hospitalizations, and the number of hospitalizations. We discuss the findings from this study and others in the literature in the context of the different clinical and socio-cultural backgrounds of these Taiwanese schizophrenic suicides.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Expression and clinical significance of antinuclear antibody in hepatitis C virus infection.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of antinuclear antibody (ANA) has been documented in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. We attempted to determine the titer and to characterize the patterns and clinical significance of ANA in HCV infection. STUDY: Forty-eight consecutive patients with positive anti-HCV antibody and positive HCV RNA were included in this study. Sera from patients were tested for ANA and anti-smooth muscle antibody by indirect immunofluorescence. Serum aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, alpha-fetoprotein, and cryoglobulin levels also were determined. RESULTS: Eleven (23%) of 48 HCV-infected patients were positive for ANA. Antinuclear antibody revealed speckled pattern in 10 (91%) of the 11 ANA-positive HCV-infected patients. Twenty (54%) of 37 ANA-negative HCV-infected patients had detectable pattern with equivocal titer (titer <1.5). The ANA pattern was speckled in all 20 patients. Hepatitis C virus-infected patients with positive ANA were older than the HCV-infected patients with negative ANA (62.90 +/- 11.05 years vs. 56.46 +/- 14.94 years, respectively; p < 0.1). Serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (39.36 +/- 14.98 IU/L vs. 30.70 +/- 23.15 IU/L, p < 0.05), alkaline phosphatase (189.00 +/- 75.63 IU/L vs. 122.41 +/- 40.88 IU/L, p < 0.01), and alpha-fetoprotein (47.72 +/- 80.47 pg/dL vs. 7.00 +/- 8.28 pg/dL, p < 0.01) were higher in ANA-positive HCV-infected patients than in ANA-negative HCV-infected patients, respectively. There were no significant differences in gender, alanine aminotransferase, anti-smooth muscle antibody, or cryoglobulin between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Antinuclear antibody was present in 11 (23%) of 48 patients with HCV infection in our study. Speckled pattern is the major expression pattern of ANA in HCV infection. Antinuclear antibody-positive HCV-infected patients have significantly higher serum aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and alpha-fetoprotein levels than ANA-negative HCV-infected patients.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Visceral perception in functional gastro-intestinal disorders: disease marker or epiphenomenon?

The pathophysiology of functional gastro-intestinal disorders remains unclear. A relatively new approach to these disorders has been the study of visceral sensory perception. A decreased pain threshold to intraluminal balloon distension has been demonstrated in patients with irritable bowel syndrome, functional dyspepsia, and non-cardiac chest pain. This altered visceral sensitivity does not appear to extend to somatic sensation; patients have generally had normal sensory thresholds to various stimuli applied to the skin. It is uncertain whether altered gut sensation represents a primary event in the pathogenesis of disease or simply a disease marker. In this review, we examine the evidence of altered visceral sensation and discuss the implications for patient management and drug therapy.

Chest Pain↗