A randomized clinical trial of granulocyte transfusions for infection in acute leukemia

In a prospective, controlled, randomized study to evaluate the efficacy of filtration-leukapheresis granulocytes in granulocytopenic, febrile patients with leukemia, 19 patients received antibiotics alone, and 12 received antibiotics plus daily granulocyte transfusions from ABO-matched donors. In skin-chamber studies the granulocytes appeared at sites of inflammation for at least six hours after transfusion. Infected subjects survived longer if they received granulocytes. Differences between control and transfused patients were greatest in patients with persistent bone-marrow failure, the 21-day survival being 20 per cent in controls, and 75 per cent in transfused patients. Granulocytes appeared to have no effect on the outcome of febrile episodes in which infection was not documented, the 21-day survival being 79 per cent for controls and 88 per cent for transfused patients. The transfusion of granulocytes thus appears to offer a survival advantage to infected, persistently granulocytopenic patients.

The stability of ten antibiotics in artificial tear solutions

We determined the relative potencies of penicillin G, carbenicillin, oxacillin, cephalothin, cephaloridine, gentamicin, kanamycin, neomycin, vancomycin, and bacitracin after their addition to three commercially available 0.5% hydroxypropyl methylcellulose artificial tear solutions in plastic squeeze bottles. We found no significant loss of antibiotic activity at room temperature over a period of seven days for all antibiotics except penicillin G, cephalothin, and cephaloridine. Three of the antibiotics were insoluble in one or more of the artificial tear solutions.

[Effects of low doses of lynestrenol on endometrium and nidation (author's transl)]

In 10 women taking 0.5 mg lynestrenol for oral contraception endometrium biopsies were carried out in several consecutive cycles between the 21st and 25th day of each cycle. In addition pregnandiol excretion in the urine was measured in one of the last three treatment cycles always on the 10th and 21st day of cycle. During treatment of a characteristic, monomorphic microscopical endometrium picture was observed with hardly distinct endometrium glands and only slight decidualike transformation of cellular elements of the stroma. From these histological pictures it is concluded that oral application of 0,5 mg lynestrenol produces endometrium changes characterized by insufficient transformation so that nidation of a blastocyte becomes impossible.