Search results for "45"

Progression of coronary artery calcification and cardiac events in patients with chronic renal disease not receiving dialysis

2011

We tested for the presence of coronary calcifications in patients with chronic renal disease not on dialysis and studied its progression in 181 consecutive non-dialyzed patients who were followed for a median of 745 days. Coronary calcifications (calcium score) were tallied in Agatston units by computed tomography, and the patients were stratified into two groups by their baseline calcium score (100 U or less and over 100 U). Survival was measured by baseline calcium score and its progression. Cardiac death and myocardial infarction occurred in 29 patients and were significantly more frequent in those patients with calcium scores over 100 U (hazard ratio of 4.11). With a calcium score of 10…

The Factorial Structure of the Outcome Questionnaire-45: A Study with an Italian Sample.

2008

In this article, the authors study the factorial structure of the Italian translation of the Outcome Questionnaire 45 (OQ-45) in a sample of college students (n = 522) and psychiatric outpatients (n = 301). The relative goodness of fit of six competing models of the OQ-45 was examined using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Specifically, the study examined the relative fit of the most frequently presented models in the literature and three alternative models. Results of the CFA provided support for the four factor bi-level solution, suggesting that the OQ-45 is a multidimensional instrument that contains one general factor and multiple unique subscale factors.

Minimally invasive video-assisted thyroidectomy: four-year experience of a single team in a General Surgery Unit.

2013

Minimally invasive video-assisted thyroidectomy (MIVAT) is a surgical technique that has showed increasingly good results, particularly in endocrine surgery centers. The aim of this prospective, non-randomized study was to evaluate feasibility, advantages and critical aspects of MIVAT in a general surgery unit.Two hundred twenty-four patients underwent total thyroidectomy for benign thyroid disease from May, 2008 to April, 2011. They were divided into two groups: one underwent conventional thyroidectomy (CT), and the other underwent MIVAT. The inclusion criteria were thyroid volume ≤35 mL and main nodule size ≤35 mm. For each patient, socio-demographic variables, hospitalization data and ou…

Interest of genotyping and phenotyping of drug-metabolizing enzymes for the interpretation of biological monitoring of exposure to styrene

2002

In the field of occupational and/or environmental toxicology, the measurement of specific metabolites in urine may serve to assess exposure to the parent compounds (biological monitoring of exposure). Styrene is one of the chemicals for which biological monitoring programs have been validated and implemented in environmental and occupational medicine. However, inter-individual differences in the urinary excretion exist both for the main end-products (mandelic acid and phenylglyoxylic acid) and for its specific mercapturic acids (phenylhydroxyethylmercapturic acids, PHEMA). This limits to a certain extent the use of these metabolites for an accurate assessment of styrene exposure. In a group…

Automated Determination of Dextromethorphan and Its Main Metabolites in Human Plasma by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography and Column Switching

1996

An automated column-switching technique coupled to isocratic high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection was developed for simultaneous determination of dextromethorphan and its three major metabolites, dextrorphan, hydroxymorphinan, and methoxymorphinan. After cleavage of conjugates by incubation with glucuronidasearylsulfatase at 37 degrees C for 15 h, plasma samples were injected directly into the HPLC system. Dextromethorphan and metabolites were retained on a cleanup column (10 x 4.6 mm internal diameter [ID]) filled with cyanopropyl (CN) material (Hypersil CPS, 10-microns article size) while interfering proteins and lipids were washed to waste. After colu…

Functional assessment of the quality of human hepatocyte preparations for cell transplantation.

2008

Hepatocyte transplantation is an alternative therapy to orthotopic liver transplantation for the treatment of liver diseases. Good quality freshly isolated or cryopreserved human hepatocytes are needed for clinical transplantation. However, isolation, cryopreservation, and thawing processes can seriously impair hepatocyte viability and functionality. The aim of the present study was to develop a fast and sensitive procedure to estimate the quality of hepatocyte preparations prior to clinical cell infusion. To this end, cell viability, attachment efficiency, and metabolic competence (urea synthesis and drug-metabolizing P450 activities) were selected as objective criteria. Viability of hepat…

[Validity of the use of penbutolol in essential arterial hypertension].

1990

Thirty patients suffering from WHO I-II class slight-moderate essential arterial hypertension were treated with a beta-blocker (Penbutolol) alone and once a day to assess its antihypertensive effectiveness and its affect on heart frequency, lipid metabolism and kidney function. The drug proved highly effective in reducing P.A.S. and P.A.D. values and no negative influence was documented on lipid metabolism, kidney function or heart frequency.

Obesity, hypertension and atherosclerosis

1993

Hypertension and obesity are associated with an increased risk of clinical cardiovascular complications due to atherosclerosis. Moreover has been reported that hypertension may predispose to atheroma development. In the present review some common aspects to hypertension and atherosclerosis including smooth muscle cell proliferation, endothelial damage and intervention of growth factors have been analyzed. Additional data have to be provided to explain if the connections between hypertension and atherosclerosis could be considered two effects with one unknown cause. In addition some aspects related to obesity and atherosclerosis have been dissected. In particular we have reported our results…

[Effects of ACE inhibition with enalapril on the renal function of patients with essential arterial hypertension].

1987

Different prevalence of some indices of cardiac and vascular impairment in normal weight and obese patients with essential arterial hypertension

1989

Certain physiopathological features that differentiate essential arterial hypertension in normal weight and obese patients are recalled. The results of a retrospective study carried out in 293 hypertensive patients admitted to the Clinic in recent years are reported with a view to evaluating the prevalence of certain parameters (ischaemic cardiopathy, left ventricular hypertrophy, renal, vasculo-cerebral and retinal impairment) in patients subdivided into two groups: normal weight and obese. The study showed in the first group a higher prevalence of signs of ischaemic cardiopathy; in the second a higher prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy. This difference is accentuated in the subgro…