Search results for "FN"
showing 10 items of 862 documents
Granzyme A as a potential biomarker of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and disease
2015
Cytotoxic molecules such as granulysin, perforin and granzymes produced by cytolytic T cells directly contribute to immune defense against tuberculosis (TB). In search for novel TB biomarkers, we have evaluated the levels of granzyme A in plasma obtained from QuantiFERON-TB Gold In tube (QFT-IT) assays from patients with active TB disease and subjects with latent TB infection (LTBI).Granzyme A serum levels in TB patients were significantly lower than values found in LTBI subjects even after subtraction of the unstimulated levels from the antigen-stimulated responses. The receiver operator characteristics (ROC) curve analysis comparing TB patients and LTBI groups, showed that at a cut-off va…
Serum VEGF and b-FGF profiles after tension-free or conventional hernioplasty.
2005
Angiogenesis is strongly influenced by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (b-FGF), whose production is also regulated by interferon (IFN)-gamma and interleukin (IL)-10. The aim of this study was to evaluate the modifications of serum VEGF, b-FGF, IFN-gamma and IL-10 levels in patients with inguinal hernia undergoing hernioplasty with the Lichtenstein technique (LH) using polypropylene mesh or with Bassini open conventional inguinal hernia repair (BH). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Randomly, 16 patients underwent BH, and 16 were treated with the LH technique using polypropylene mesh. Blood samples were collected 24 h prior to surgery and then 6, 24, 48 and …
Relationship between albumin excretion rate and aortic stiffness in untreated essential hypertensive patients
2004
. Objectives. To evaluate, in a group of nondiabetic essential hypertensive patients with normal renal function, the relationship between albumin excretion rate (AER) and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV), as an index of aortic stiffness. Design. Cross-sectional study. Setting. Outpatient hypertension clinic. Subjects. Seventy patients with mild-to-moderate essential hypertension, aged 42 ± 8 years, never pharmacologically treated. All subjects underwent routine laboratory tests, 24-h ambulatory blood pressure (BP) monitoring, measurement of carotid-femoral PWV, by means of a computerized method, and AER. Results. Microalbuminuric patients (AER ≥ 20 μg min−1; n = 19), when comp…
Influence of age and sex on aortic distensibility assessed by MRI in healthy subjects
2010
International audience; Abstract: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is particularly well adapted to the evaluation of aortic distensibility. The calculation of this parameter, based on the change in vessel cross-sectional area per unit change in blood pressure, requires precise delineation of the aortic wall on a series of cine-MR images. Firstly, the study consisted in validating a new automatic method to assess aortic elasticity. Secondly, aortic distensibility was studied for the ascending and descending thoracic aortas in 26 healthy subjects. Two homogeneous groups were available to evaluate the influence of sex and age (with an age limit value of 35 years). The automatic postprocessing …
Relationship of Metabolic Syndrome With Pulse Pressure in Patients With Essential Hypertension
2006
BACKGROUND: Pulse pressure is largely dependent on arterial stiffness. Recent studies have documented reduced large artery compliance in nondiabetic subjects with metabolic syndrome (MS). The aim of our study was to analyze, in a group of patients with essential hypertension and without diabetes mellitus, the influence of MS on clinic and 24-h pulse pressures. METHODS: A total of 528 hypertensive subjects, aged 18 to 72 years, who were free of cardiovascular and renal diseases were enrolled. Of the subjects, 41% had MS. In all subjects routine blood chemistry, echocardiographic examination, and 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring were performed. RESULTS: When compared with subjects wi…
Ambulatory Arterial Stiffness Index (AASI) is Unable to Estimate Arterial Stiffness of Hypertensive Subjects: Role of Nocturnal Dipping of Blood Pres…
2018
BACKGROUND: Ambulatory Arterial Stiffness Index (AASI) has been proposed as an indirect and simpler method to estimate the Arterial Stiffness (AS). AASI, calculated from a set of data collected during a 24-hours ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), is defined as 1 minus the regression slope of diastolic on systolic blood pressure (BP) values. For a given increase in diastolic BP, the increase in systolic BP is smaller in a compliant compared to a stiff artery; the stiffer the arterial tree, the closer AASI is to 1. AASI was demonstrated to predict cardiovascular mortality, cerebrovascular events and to be associated with target organ damage. Taking into account the almost complete a…
Two-stage multi-Gaussian fitting of conduit artery photoplethysmography waveform during induced unilateral hemodynamic events.
2014
Photoplethysmography (PPG) is an optical technique with high diagnostic potential, yet clinical applications remain underdeveloped. Standardization of signal recording and quantification of waveform are essential prerequisites for broader clinical use. The aim of this study was to utilize a two-stage multi-Gaussian fitting technique in order to examine the parameters of conduit artery PPG waveform recorded during increasing the unilateral regional vascular resistance (RVR). This study was conducted on 14 young and healthy volunteers; various external compressions (ECs) were performed by inflating a tight cuff at 0, 40, 80, and 200 mmHg, while registering femoral PPG (wavelength 880 nm), dia…
Measurement of the local aortic stiffness by a non-invasive bioelectrical impedance technique.
2011
International audience; Aortic stiffness measurement is well recognized as an independent predictor of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. Recently, a simple method has been proposed for the evaluation of the local aortic stiffness (AoStiff) using a non-invasive bioelectrical impedance (BI) technique. This approach relies on a novel interpretation of the arterial stiffness where AoStiff is computed from the measurement of two new BI variables: (1) the local aortic flow resistance (AoRes) exerted by the drag forces onto the flow; (2) the local aortic wall distensibility (AoDist). Herein, we propose to detail and compare these three indices with the reference pulse wave velocity (PWV) mea…
Validity criteria for the diagnosis of fatty liver by M probe-based controlled attenuation parameter.
2017
Background & Aims Controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) can be performed together with liver stiffness measurement (LSM) by transient elastography (TE) and is often used to diagnose fatty liver. We aimed to define the validity criteria of CAP. Methods CAP was measured by the M probe prior to liver biopsy in 754 consecutive patients with different liver diseases at three centers in Europe and Hong Kong (derivation cohort, n = 340; validation cohort, n = 414; 101 chronic hepatitis B, 154 chronic hepatitis C, 349 non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, 37 autoimmune hepatitis, 49 cholestatic liver disease, 64 others; 277 F3-4; age 52 ± 14; body mass index 27.2 ± 5.3 kg/m2). The primary outco…
Noninvasive peripheral vascular function and atrial fibrillation in the general population.
2019
Background Arterial stiffness is a strong predictor of atrial fibrillation in the community. Whether noninvasively measured conduit artery function and peripheral vascular reactivity are related to atrial fibrillation remains unknown. Methods and results In 15 010 individuals of the population-based Gutenberg Health Study, mean age 55 ± 11 years, 50.5% men, we determined noninvasive vascular function by flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and peripheral arterial tonometry (PAT) in relation to manifest atrial fibrillation (N = 466). Patients with atrial fibrillation exhibited a higher mean brachial artery diameter [4.81 mm (4.17, 5.33) in atrial fibrillation vs. 4.31 mm (3.67, 4.93)] and baseline p…