The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of doxapram on the rates of spontaneous and neostigmine-induced recovery from neuromuscular block with vecuronium and atracurium. Following intravenous injection of either vecuronium (40 patients) or atracurium (40 patients), recovery index (RI) was measured without administering either doxapram or neostigmine (Group 1), or after administration of a combination of neostigmine 40 ug/kg and doxapram 1 mg/kg (Group 2), neostigmine 40 ug/kg (Group 3) or doxapram 1 mg/kg (Group 4) when twitch tension returned to 25% block of train of four response, each of the four group had 10 patients. The results were such that RI was significantly prolonged after vecuronium in the presence of doxapram compared with Group 1 (13.5 min vs 8.2 min). There was no significant difference in the RI after atracurium in the presence of doxapram compared with Group 1 (7.0 min vs 7.1 min). There was rapid recovery which was significant when neostigmine was administered with or without doxapram (2.4 min vs 2.3 min respectively after vecuronium; 2.3 min vs 2.4 min respectively after atracurium). The authors conclude that administration of doxapram in situation where neuromuscular block with vecuronium is not adequately antagonized does not contribute to rapid recovery from neuromuscular block.
Atracurium* ; Doxapram* ; Humans ; Injections, Intravenous ; Neostigmine ; Neuromuscular Blockade ; Vecuronium Bromide*

OBJECTIVES: This study is aimed to quantify the complex dynamics of beat-to-beat fetal heart rate(FHR) fluctuations by using approximate entropy(ApEn) which is a recently developed mathematical formula quantifying regularity and also to determine the differences between normal fetuses and growth retarded fetuses. BACKGROUND: Recently, some measures of heart rate variability and nonlinear "complexity" of heart rate dynamics have been used as indicators fetal well-being. Approximate entropy is a new mathematical approach and formula to quantify regularity in data. It has been shown to provide new information in fetal heart rate analysis. Because growth retarded fetus accounts for a significant increase in perinatal morbidity and mortality, than normal fetus, we postulated that there existed important differences between normal fetuses and growth retarded fetuses. METHODS: We analyzed FHR tracings for 40 minutes, and approximately 5,000 points in normal fetuses(n=315) and growth retarded fetuses(n=76). The overall "complexity" of each FHR time series was quantified by its approximate entropy, measure of regularity derived from nonlinear dynamics, "chaos theory". RESULTS: Mean baseline FHR increased in growth retarded fetuses than normal fetuses. And the FHR ApEn significantly decreased in growth retarded fetuses(ApEn=0.623) compared to that of the normal fetuses(ApEn=0.868) throughout all gestational ages(p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The ApEn of FHR decreased in growth retarded fetuses throughout all gestational ages. These findings indicated that decreased ApEn values of FHR are associated with sickness and the greater perinatal morbidity risks. Therefore ApEn quantifies subtle changes in FHR regularity and promises for new information in FHR analysis.
Entropy* ; Female ; Fetal Heart* ; Fetus* ; Gestational Age ; Heart Rate ; Heart Rate, Fetal* ; Mortality ; Nonlinear Dynamics ; Pregnancy

Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome (WHS) is a malformation associated with a hemizygous deletion of the distal short arm of chromosome 4. Herein we report a fetal autopsy case of WHS. A male fetus was therapeutically aborted at 17(+0) weeks gestational age, due to complex anomaly and intrauterine growth retardation, which were found in prenatal ultrasonography. His birth weight was 65 g. Mild craniofacial dysmorphism, club feet, bilateral renal hypoplasia, edematous neck, and left diaphragmatic hernia of Bochdalek were found on gross examination. On GTG-banding, the fetus revealed 46,XY,add(4p) karyotype and the mother revealed 46,XX,t(4;18)(p16;q21.1), with normal karyotype of the father. Array comparative genomic hybridization performed on the autopsied lung tissue revealed loss of 4p16.2-->4pter and gain of 18q21.1-->18qter, suggesting 46,XY,der(4)t(4;18)(p16.2;q21.1)mat of fetal karyotype. This suggested deletion of 4p, compatible with WHS inherited from the mal-segregation of a maternal translocation t(4;18)(p16.2;21.1). Therefore, our fetus was both genotypically and phenotypically compatible with WHS.
Arm ; Autopsy ; Birth Weight ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 4 ; Comparative Genomic Hybridization ; Fathers ; Fetal Growth Retardation ; Fetus ; Foot ; Gestational Age ; Hernia, Diaphragmatic ; Humans ; Karyotype ; Karyotyping ; Lung ; Male ; Mothers ; Neck ; Ultrasonography, Prenatal ; Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome

Tumor necrosis factor-n (TNF - alpha) involved in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis and contribute to the degeneration of oligodendrocytes as well as neurons. TNF - alpha is produced by miocroglia and astrocytes, which also produce hormones and cytokines that influence its biological activity. Astrocytes, the major glial cells in the CNS, are capable of producing TNF - alpha at both the mRNA and protein levels in response to interleukine-1 (IL-1) or TNF - alpha. Two immunosuppressive cytokines, transforming growth factor - beta (TGF - beta) and IL-10, have been shown to influence glial cell function. TGF - beta can modulate the activity of glial cells by inhibiting interferon-gamma (IFN - gamma) induced expression of class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules on astrocytes and microglia. To explore the role of astrocytes in the production of TNF - alpha, astrocytes were pretreated with IL-10 or TGF - beta and then stimulated with IL-1p to determine their effects on TNF - alpha production. The secretion of TNF - alpha by human fetal astrocytes was markedly inhibited by TGF - beta at a low concentration. In contrast IL-10 had no effect on TNF - alpha mRNA level. These results show that TGF - beta may regulate the expression of TNF - alpha in activated human fetal astrocytes.
Astrocytes* ; Cytokines ; Gene Expression* ; Humans* ; Interferon-gamma ; Interleukin-10 ; Major Histocompatibility Complex ; Microglia ; Multiple Sclerosis ; Necrosis ; Neuroglia ; Neurons ; Oligodendroglia ; RNA, Messenger ; Transforming Growth Factors

No Abstract Available.
Astrocytes* ; Humans*

No abstract available.
Astrocytes* ; Humans*

No abstract available.
Astrocytes* ; Gene Expression* ; Humans* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction*

OBJECTIVE: To relieve stress and pain during labor is most important issue in obstetrical care. The purposes of this study were to verify the effects of aromatherapy on labor process, labor pain, labor stress response and neonatal status of primipara. METHODS: This study was a randomized, repeated measures over time, pretest-posttest design. The subjects were forty eight primipara with single gestation, full term, uncomplicated pregnancies. As the treatment, the experimental group took an aromatherapy massage with aromatherapy oil (1.5% dilution essential oil of clary sage, geranium, jasmine, and rose) on the back at every two hours. The control group took general obstetric care. Baseline data including general and obstetric characteristics, plasma beta-endorphin, serum cortisol were obtained at the onset of labor. As resulting variables, length of labor, use of oxytocin, labor pain, use of analgesics, plasma beta-endorphin, serum cortisol, pulse rate, blood pressure, umbilical cord arterial blood pH, Apgar score were measured. Collecting Data were analyzed by t-test, x2 test, repeated measures of ANOVA with SPSS program. RESULTS: As a results, the length of decerelation phase of the experimental group was significantly shorter than the control group. No significant group effects were found, but significant time effects were found for labor pain, plasma beta-endorphin, serum cortisol, pulse rate and blood pressure. There were no significant differences in other variables between two groups. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that aromatherapy during labor could be effective in decreasing labor length. But, any other effects of aromatherapy did not be verified.
Analgesics ; Apgar Score ; Aromatherapy* ; beta-Endorphin ; Blood Pressure ; Female ; Geranium ; Heart Rate ; Hydrocortisone ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Jasminum ; Labor Pain* ; Massage ; Oxytocin ; Plasma ; Pregnancy ; Umbilical Cord

No abstract available.
Body Weight* ; Diet* ; Exercise Therapy* ; Humans

No abstract available.