[Postoperative acute pancreatitis (PAP). Direct personal experience]

Eight different cases of APP observed after intervents made near the pancreas (partial gastrectomy for ulcer, papillosphincteroplasty, DCP) are presented. The clinical stage, the therapeutic attempts, the results are studied. The clinical stage, the therapeutic attempts, the results are studied. In order to value the role of the pancreatic trauma in causing the APP the Authors have checked in addition 14 cases in which a direct action on the pancreas was present. In these cases noticeable amylasemic increases have not been observed except one cases of APP after DCP. Hypothesizing the role of a duodenal hyperpressure in causing the reflux of duodenal juice into the Wirsung then in causing an APP, the Authors report the results obtained after the introduction of a catheter into the duodenum in order to make it empty untily the renewal of peristalsis, during the papillosphincteroplasty and partial gastrectomy for ulcer. The Authors suggest that the duodenal emptying could be a method to prevent the APP. The prevention by the usually adopted drugs as aprotininum and glucagonum was ineffective, as well as other surgical techniques. High mortality: 5 cases on 8.

[Study of postoperative amylasemia. Its diagnostic value in postoperative acute pancreatitis (PAP)]

A study of the postoperative amylasemia levels on 375 different intervents is presented. Three different behaviours have been observed: 1) in 44 cases there has been a rapid increase of the amylasemia gone on for less than 4 days without any clinical sign of pancreatitis; 2) in 6 cases the increase, sometimes less marked than the previous cases, developed and continued for longer time, showing oscillations with a slow return to the normality. At the same time there was a slow recovery in the general conditions; the cause of that has been interpreted as a pancreatic affection; 3) in 8 cases the amylasemia increase developed for many days with large and long oscillation and clinical signs of APP. The opinion of Authors is that the APP is characterised by amylasemia increases presenting large oscillations life times exceeding 4 days, and that they are joined with clinical signs of pancreatitis (pain, sickness, hypotension, ec.). The study of the amylasemia plotting is considered to be a rather good method to emphasize a pancreatic disease.

Effects of pulsed electric fields on rat liver homogenate paramagnetic species

Rat liver homogenate has been submitted to pulsed electric fields at different intensities and exposition times. Among the paramagnetic species present in the samples only the mitochondria free radical is affected by pulsation, as revealed by electron spin resonance spectroscopy. In parallel a variation in the respiratory activity of mitochondria is registered.

Regulation of the mitochondrial anabolism at low concentrations of thyroid hormones and by some of their structural analogues

The Authors demonstrate that the in vitro stimulation of mitochondrial RNA synthesis produced by thyroid hormones takes place also at physiological levels, equal to those held in the liver cells of experimental animals. Two groups of male rats have been used: normal control animals (N) and animals surgically thyroidectomized on the 25th day of life (T). The animals were fed and kept in standard conditions and killed on the 85th day of life. The purification of mitochondrial samples and the determination of the mitochondrial RNA synthesis were carried out as previously described. The results suggest that the in vitro stimulation of mitocondrial RNA synthesis is already significant at the concentration of lnM. The trends are qualitatively comparable for either N or T animals. The structural analogues TRIAC (3,5,3'-triiodothyroacetic acid) and TRIPROP (3,5,3'-triiodothyropropionica acid) exhibit a clearly stimulatory effect on samples of N animals, while on samples of T animals is significant only for the first analogue. Similar trends are also observed on ADP/O ratio.

[A new method for determination of ATPase activity in tissue homogenates]

Authors describe a new method to determine Mg2+ and Na+K+ATPase activity on extremely small samples of tissue homogenates. They use specific inhibitors to discern between the two activities and a sensitive colorimetric method to dose Pi released from ATP, Lower limit of sensitivity is about 0,0100 micromoles of Pi/mg proteins/hour.

[Physical rehabilitation in mastectomized women]

The paper highlights the importance of rehabilitation programmes for women subjected to radical mastectomy. Within the Milan National Tumour Institute, the activity promoted by the antalgic and Rehabilitation Department concerning some 700 patients per annum takes in 3 phases: information; prevention; treatment of the disease. After thorough psychological and medical observation of the patient, all available treatment methods are deployed on conditions which present in the form of hypomobility of the homolateral extremity, lymphangitis, lymphoedema and possibly neurological damage to the brachial plexus. The results of this rehabilitation programme have meant a notable reduction in the forms and have led to rapid return to society.

Modification of nucleic acid levels per mitochondrion induced by thyroidectomy or triiodothyronine administration

The authors have determined the liver mitochondrial population (number of mitochondria/nucleus) in young rats, which has been thyroidectomized (T) or thyroidectomized and subsequently treated with triiodothyronine (T3). They have observed that thyroidectomy decreased such a population to 72.3% with respect to the normal one, while the T3 administration (at the dose of 10 mug/100 g body weight every second day, from day 50 to day 60 of age) restored the mitochondria number to 81.8% of normal ones. The average levels of proteins per mitochondrion were 8.90 X 10(-13) g in the liver of normal 60-day-old rats. This content was doubled in T rats of the same age while the levels of nucleic acids or the nucleic acid polymerase activities per mitochondrion were enhanced, notwithstanding that the specific values (referred to mg mitochondrial protein) decreased. The T3 administration severely lowered the content of protein per mitochondrion, and this may indicate that thyroid hormones control the normal assemblage of mitochondrial protein.

DNA synthesis in isolated mitochondria: effect of thyroidectomy and of triiodothyronine administration in vivo

The incorporation was studied of labelled deoxy-ribonucleosides triphosphates into acid-insoluble material by isolated liver mitochondria, obtained from either normal young male rats, or thyroidectomized at weaning, or thyroidectomized and then treated with triiodothyronine (T3). The incorporation extents in normal animals decreased with the age starting from the weaning until the 210th day. Thyroidectomy reduced the incorporation extent to about 70% of the values observed in normal animals. During the T3 treatment of thyroidectomized rats a sharp increase of incorporation was observed one day after the first administration, followed by a decrease from the 1st to the 3rd day; successively the incorporation extent remained unchanged until the 12th day. Finally, evidence was provided that T3 doses used were thyreomimetic and definitely lower than the thyreotoxic ones.

Effect of thyroidectomy and in vivo administration of triiodothyronine on DNA synthesis in isolated mitochondria

The experimental conditions were studied which allow hormonal levels to affect the incorporation of labelled deoxyribonucleosides triphosphates (dNTP's) into mitochondrial DNA by isolated liver mitochondria, obtained either from thyroidectomized young male rats (T) or from animals of the same age thyroidectomized and then treated with triiodothyronine (T + T3). It was demonstrated that: (a) extramitochondrial DNA, on which extramitochondrial DNA polymerase may act, was absent; (b) the permeability to dNTP's, the thymidine kinase activity, the energy supply, and the nuclease activities were unaffected by hormonal conditions; (c) the bacterial contaminations contribute for only 1% to incorporation. The characterization of incorporation product showed that: (a) such product was indeed DNA, as it was DNase-degradable for about 90%; (b) the labelled DNA was indeed mitochondrial DNA, as a 10 minutes preincubation with acriflavine or ethydium bromide (Eth. Br.) inhibited the synthesis by 90%.

Indoprofen, a new analgesic and anti-inflammatory drug in cancer pain

Evaluation of the analgesic activity of indoprofen was carried out in patients with cancer pain under double-blind conditions and compared with aspirin and placebo. A randomized experimental design was followed. Single oral doses were given of the test drug (100 and 200 mg), aspirin (600 and 1,000 mg), and placebo. For measuring analgesia, 5-point pain intensity and pain relief semiquantitative scales were used. Potency ratio between drugs was calculated on SPID (sum of pain intensity differences) and TOTPAR (total pain relief) and resulted in 10.3 by combination of estimates. In a group of only 24 patients, the data supported the following conclusions: indoprofen at 100 and 200 mg single doses is effective in relieving cancer pain; it displays a dose-related analgesic effect comparable to that of aspirin with only one-tenth the dose.