Pregnancy in Lung Transplant Recipients

Eight female lung transplant recipients, all of whom became pregnant after transplant, were reported to the National Transplantation Pregnancy Registry from US transplant centers. Outcomes of the 8 pregnancies were 4 live births, 3 therapeutic abortions, and 1 spontaneous abortion. Three of the 4 newborns were premature, with low birth weight (< 2500 grams). Rejection during pregnancy occurred in 3 pregnancies (38%). All 8 transplant recipients reported at least 1 complication during pregnancy, including shortness of breath, rejection, and infection. Two of the 4 deliveries were by cesarean section. At follow-up, all children were developing well with no residual problems. Female lung transplant recipients may face higher risks during pregnancy than other solid organ transplant recipients.

Pregnancy in lung transplant recipients

Eight female lung transplant recipients, all of whom became pregnant after transplant, were reported to the National Transplantation Pregnancy Registry from US transplant centers. Outcomes of the 8 pregnancies were 4 live births, 3 therapeutic abortions, and 1 spontaneous abortion. Three of the 4 newborns were premature, with low birth weight (< 2500 grams). Rejection during pregnancy occurred in 3 pregnancies (38%). All 8 transplant recipients reported at least 1 complication during pregnancy, including shortness of breath, rejection, and infection. Two of the 4 deliveries were by cesarean section. At follow-up, all children were developing well with no residual problems. Female lung transplant recipients may face higher risks during pregnancy than other solid organ transplant recipients.

The auditory P 300 correlates with specific cognitive deficits in Parkinson's disease

An abnormally prolonged latency of the P 300 event-related potential has been reported in several types of dementing illnesses, including Parkinson's disease (PD). While some PD patients have dementia, a significant number of PD patients have less severe cognitive impairments. We examined the relationship between the auditory P 300 and a neuropsychological battery of 11 tasks in 43 PD patients. The quantitative relationship between the individual neuropsychological measures and the P 300 was examined using partial correlation and analysis of covariance techniques which controlled for age, education, and illness duration. The strongest correlations were between P 300 and both short-term memory and visual perception. Global cognitive deficits do not appear to relate to the abnormal P 300 responses in PD: instead, specific aspects of cognitive decline accounted for the electrophysiological abnormalities. An abnormally long or absent P 300 correlated with deficits on select cognitive tasks: those involving memory, visual perception, and abstract reasoning. The interactions between anatomical and neurochemical abnormalities in PD are discussed in light of the pattern of deficits seen in this study.

Visuospatial orientation in Parkinson's disease

Visuospatial functioning in patients with Parkinson's disease was investigated using neuropsychological measures of basic visual perception, complex perceptual discrimination, and spatial orientation. Three subgroups of patients were described: (a) those with broadly impaired visuospatial abilities, (b) those with generally intact abilities, and (c) those whose performance on a task of spatial orientation was lower than their performance on a task of complex perceptual discrimination. These subgroup differences were also concordant with three other variables: age, duration of disease, and degree of dementia. It is suggested that decreases in spatial orientation functioning in Parkinson's disease may reflect the speed of progression of this disease.

Pharmacological properties of new neuroleptic compounds

RMI 61 140, RMI 61 144 and RMI 61 280 are newly synthetized N-[8-R-dibenzo(b,f)oxepin-10-yl]-N'-methyl-piperazine-maleates which show interesting psychopharmacologic effects. This work contains the results of a study performed with these three compounds, in order to demonstrate their neuropsycholeptic activity in comparison with chloropromazine (CPZ) and chlordiazepoxide (CPD). The inhibition of motility observed in mice shows that the compounds reduce the normal spontaneous motility as well as the muscle tone. The central-depressant activity is evidenced by increased barbiturate-induced sleep and a remarkable eyelid ptosis can also be observed. Our compounds do not show any activity on electroshock just as do CPZ and CPD. As to the antipsychotic outline, our compounds show strong reduction of lethality due to amphetamine in grouped mice and a strong antiapomorphine activity. They show also an antiaggressive effect and an inhibitory activity on avoidance behaviour much stronger than CPZ. We have also found extrapyramidal effects, as catalepsy, common to many tranquillizers of the kind of the standards used by us. As for vegetative phenomena, the compounds show hypotensive dose related action ranging from moderate to strong, probably due to an a-receptor inhibition. Adrenolytic activity against lethal doses of adrenaline, antiserotonin and antihistaminic effects, as well as other actions (hypothermia, analgesia, etc.) confirm that RMI 61 140, RMI 61 144 and RMI 61 280 are endowed with pharmacologic properties similar and more potent than those of CPZ. Studies on the metabolism of brain catecholamines show that they are similar to CPZ, although with less effect on dopamine level.

New tricyclic enamine derivatives with CNS depressant properties

63 tricyclic enamine derivatives were synthetized and pharmacologically tested. Many of the screened compounds showed remarkable CNS depressant chlorpromazine-like activities. The compounds no. 9 (substituents CH3, Cl, H), 18 (substituents CH3, F, H) and 27 substituents CH3, OCH3, H) resulted the most interesting and were studied in comparison with chlorpromazine and chlordiazepoxide. They were submitted to further studies in view of trials in humans.

[Experimental analysis of some cardiovascular effects of Verapamil]

In vivo and in vitro experiments showed that Verapamil dilates the coronaries, prevents coronary spasm, produces Ca++-antagonism, offers protection against myocardial necrosis, prevents arrhythmia, reduces pressure, increases the purinergic reactivity and produces inhibition of platelet aggregation. It was devoid of competitive-adrenolytic activity in the heart and vessels. A methoxy derivative of the drug (D-600) had a negative inotropic and chronotropic action and was more hypotensive than Verapamil.

Multivariate analysis in the pharmacological evaluation of a saluretic compound

The pharmacological evaluation of the diuretic activity of a compound -- performed measuring the urinary volume and determining its electrolyte content -- may be usefully integrated by a multivariate analysis, in order to: express a general evaluation for each animal in terms of positive or negative response; evaluate the false positive responses of the control group animals and the negative responses in the treated animals on the basis of the general response. An example of application relating to a well-known saluretic, 4-chloro-N-(2-furfuryl)-5-sulfamoyl-anthranilic acid (furosemide), is reported.