Search results for " Levels"
showing 10 items of 483 documents
Reference interval determination for N-terminal-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP): A study in blood donors
2005
We assessed reference values in a group of apparently healthy blood donors. A total of 1980 blood donors was recruited and tested for the presence of NT-proBNP using a newly developed electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA) method. NT-proBNP clustered in all blood donors below the age of 50 years and an upper limit of normal (ULN) was found to be 84 pg/ml for males and 146 pg/ml for females. Mean NT-proBNP values increased with increasing age which was due to an increasing number of individuals exceeding the ULN. Age- and gender-appropriate NT-proBNP levels decreased with increasing hemoglobin levels. Hemoglobin but not creatinine levels influenced the NT-proBNP concentration in this c…
Cytokine serum profile in a group of Sicilian Nonagenarians
2011
The aim of our study was to evaluate the possibility of using multiplex analysis of the cytokine profile as a marker for successful aging by comparing cytokine plasmatic levels of a group of Sicilian nonagenarians with those of young controls. We analyzed a panel of 17 cytokines, comprehensive of haematopoietic factors T helper 1 (Th1), Th2, inflammation regulatory cytokines, and chemokines. The assay was carried out using the Luminex system. Interleukin (IL)-6 levels (p = 0.01) were increased in nonagenarians, whereas no modifications of other proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines were observed. Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and IL-2 levels are unmodified, suggesting a substantial mainte…
Evaluation of the clonidine-suppression test in the diagnosis of pheochromocytoma
1988
In this study we examined the preoperative value of the clonidine-suppression test in 15 patients with surgically proved pheochromocytomas. The result of the clonidine-suppression test was pathological (epinephrine plus norepinephrine above 500 ng/l 3 h after clonidine) in 10 of 15 patients (66%). These patients had relatively large tumors and higher basal norepinephrine plasma levels. Out of the 5 cases without a pathological clonidine test 4 had normal basal plasma catecholamine levels with the result that the clonidine test could not be properly applied and 1 case produced a false negative result. These 5 cases generally had smaller tumors and lower plasma catecholamine levels. Two of th…
Urinary levels of enniatin B and its phase I metabolites: First human pilot biomonitoring study
2018
Abstract Enniatins (Enns) are mycotoxins produced by Fusarium spp. and are widely distributed contaminants of cereals and derivate products. Among the different identified enniatins, Enn B is the most relevant analogue in cereals in Europe. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate for the first time the occurrence of Enn B and Enn B phase I metabolites in 300 human urine samples throughout an ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS) methodology. Three different sample preparation procedures were evaluated and salting-out liquid-liquid extraction showed satisfactory validation results. Enn B was quantified in 83.7% of sa…
Glutathione and glutathione peroxidase in sputum samples of adult patients with cystic fibrosis
2004
AbstractBackground: Reduced glutathione (GSH) is a major antioxidant in the lung. In cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, extracellular GSH levels of lower airways, obtained by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), were reported to be lower than non-CF individuals. Methods: Upper airway secretions of stable adult CF patients (29 spontaneous and 13 induced sputum) and non-CF individuals (14 healthy and 12 asthmatics; all induced sputum) were analyzed for total glutathione (i.e. the sum of reduced, GSH, and oxidized, GSSG, forms), GSH and GSSG levels by enzymatic kinetic assay. Results: In CF, both spontaneous and induced sputum samples were comparable in total glutathione levels which were surprisingly hi…
Adult exposures from MDCT including multiphase studies: first Italian nationwide survey.
2014
To evaluate the radiation dose in routine multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) examinations in Italian population.This was a retrospective multicentre study included 5,668 patients from 65 radiology departments who had undergone common CT protocols: head, chest, abdomen, chest–abdomen–pelvis (CAP), spine and cardiac. Data included patient characteristics, CT parameters, volumetric CT dose index (CTDIvol) and dose length product (DLP) for each CT acquisition phase. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and a multi-regression analysis was used to outline the main factors affecting exposure.The 75th percentiles of CTDIvol (mGy) and DLP (mGy cm) for whole head were 69 mGy and 1,312 mGy cm…
Insulin-like growth factor 1 and pressure load in hypertensive patients
1996
To verify the effect of a pressure load on the production of Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF1) in essential hypertensives, we studied 15 patients and 8 normotensive controls before and during orthostatism. Upright standing was characterized both in normals and in hypertensives by significant higher rate-pressure product [RPP = systolic blood pressure (mm Hg) x heart rate (beats/min)]. Proportional increases of RPP were significantly related to IGF1 values at the end of orthostatism and to proportional increases of IGF1 in hypertensive group but not in normotensive one. Our results confirm that IGF1 plasma levels in hypertensive patients are related to pressure load.
Erectile dysfunction is associated with low total serum testosterone levels and impaired flow-mediated vasodilation in intermediate risk men accordin…
2015
Background: The role erectile dysfunction (ED) coupled with low testosterone levels as early markers of atherosclerosis is not well understood. Objectives: To analyze the relationship between serum testosterone levels with both ED and brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD), in a primary prevention sample of men. Methods: We enrolled 802 asymptomatic, intermediate CV risk patients, according to the Framingham Risk Score, aged 40e80 years, who underwent the ultrasound examination of FMD, the evaluation of ED and the assessment of total serum testosterone levels. Results: Testosterone levels correlated both with FMD (r ¼ 0.85; p < 0.0001) and IIEF-5 score (rs ¼ 0.65; p < 0.0001…
Dose-response relationships and plasma concentrations of digitalis glycosides in man.
1978
An inter-individual, randomized, double-blind study of digitoxin (Dt) and β-acetyl digoxin (D) was performed in 120 healthy male volunteers. Groups of 10 persons each received orally D 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 or 0.6 mg and Dt 0.04, 0.08, 0.12, or 0.16 mg daily for 7 days; Loading doses were given for the first three days. Plasma levels were measured with an86Rb-erythrocyte assay 24 h after the last dose. ECG, carotid artery pulse and phonocardiogram were recorded prior to (b) and 24 h after (a) the last dose. QTc, amplitude of T-waves in V2 to V6, electromechanical systole (QS2c) and left ventricular ejection time (LVETc) were measured. The differences between a and b (Δ-values) reflect …
Behaviour of nitric oxide metabolites in unprofessional athletes before and after a cardiopulmonary test.
2010
Physical training causes an increase in nitric oxide (NO) production [2, 3, 8, 9] and this datum explains the link between exercise and endothelium and seems to demonstrate how regular training upregulates eNOS expression, although it is not sure if this upregulation is due to shear stress or metabolic factors [3]. However, it must be underlined that besides to be directly influenced by exogenous NO, erythrocytes express a functional NOS [5, 6, 11, 13] that raises the circulation NO pool. The literature data describe that an 8-week exercise training induced an increase in plasma levels of NO metabolites (NOx), that persisted four weeks after interruption of training [8]. A similar trend was…