Efficiency of cold passover and heated humidification under continuous positive airway pressure.

Cold passover and heated humidifiers are employed for the prevention of side-effects associated with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment. However, to date, it has not been possible to separately measure the humidity of inspired and expired air. The aim of this study was to compare the relative humidity of the inspired air and the water loss during respiration between cold passover and heated humidifiers under CPAP.

Pregnancy-related changes of carnitine and acylcarnitine concentrations of plasma and erythrocytes.

Total-, free-, and acylcarnitine concentrations were determined in whole blood, plasma, and red blood cells of 88 women during pregnancy. Already in the 12th week of gestation the mean whole blood carnitine level was significantly (p < 0.01) lower than those of the controls.

[Ambroxol versus betamethasone for the promotion of antepartum lung maturity in pathological pregnancies].

Although glucocorticoids have been universally implemented to stimulate fetal lung maturity, their effectiveness and side effects are still widely contested. In search of alternative drugs a double-blind study was conducted between June 1981 and June 1984 comparing betamethasone, a conventional corticoid, and ambroxol, a bromhexine metabolite for efficacy and tolerance in prenatal prevention of the respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants and full-term neonates. The therapeutic efficacies of betamethasone and ambroxol for this indication proved to be comparable.

[The value of cytoreductive second-look surgery in advanced epithelial ovarian carcinoma].

40 patients with advanced epithelial ovarian carcinoma were investigated to evaluate the influence of further cytoreduction during second-look surgery on survival after termination of first-line polychemotherapy containing cisplatinum. Radical tumorectomy with no macroscopic residual tumor mass was achieved in 27.5% of cases; in 52.

[The value of surgical staging in the early stages of ovarian carcinoma].

The value of surgery in early ovarian cancer was assessed in a retrospective analysis of prognostic factors in all 222 patients with primary stage I epithelial ovarian carcinoma treated in this department between 1975 and 1987. Only cellular differentiation grade (p less than 0.03) and surgical procedure - total abdominal hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy +/- omentectomy vs.

[Prognostic significance of the onset of infection in newborn infants].

Between September 86 and May 87 we reviewed the case histories of 25 newborns (gestational age: 33-41 weeks, birth weight: 1280-3600 g) with septicaemia proved by positive blood cultures. Two groups are formed: Group A: onset of sepsis within the first 48 hours of life (10 newborns), group B: onset of sepsis after 48 hours of life (15 newborns). No differences in gestational age and birth weight were found between the groups.

[Carnitine in therapy of placental insufficiency--initial experiences].

Carnitine (3-hydroxy and 4-trimethylaminobutyrate) present in all living cells, plays an important role in the oxidation of fatty acids. It is known that high dose carnitine activates surfactant synthesis. Given to women with imminent premature delivery, its benefit on the post natal period is proved.

[Carnitine levels in pregnancy].

Carnitine (trimethylamino-hydroxy butyric acid) is present in all living cells. It is necessary for the transport of fatty acids into mitochondria and for other metabolic functions of the cell. Studies in various animal species have demonstrated a transfer of carnitine from the mother to the fetus during pregnancy.

C-reactive protein: an early marker for neonatal bacterial infection due to prolonged rupture of amniotic membranes and/or amnionitis.

The C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration was determined in 25 infants whose mothers had presented with prolonged rupture of amniotic membranes (PROM) and/or amnionitis. CRP was positive (i.e.

[Value of postoperative irradiation of cases of cervix cancer of histologic stage I/b with extensive infiltration (stage I/c)].

The separation of FIGO stage I b cervical carcinoma into a new histological stage I b1 and a stage I c (deep infiltration confined to the cervix) leads to an essential difference in therapeutic results. 5-year survival of 152 cases consigned to the new stage I b1 was 92%, whereas that of 95 cases of the new stage I c was only 77%. Hence, 5-year survival of stage I c patients is lower than of FIGO stage II a (83%).

[Prognosis of primary radiotherapy of cervix cancer in younger females].

Between 1970 and 1979 202 women of 40 years of age or younger were treated for invasive cervical cancer at the 1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the University of Vienna. 77 patients received primary irradiation therapy (radium and cobalt-60), 125 underwent surgery. These cases were compared with 1586 patients of all ages who received primary radiation therapy.

[Value of chorionic biopsy in routine clinical diagnosis].

To test the advantages and risks of chorionic villi sampling, a method still new in prenatal diagnosis, 100 patients were examined. Most of the biopsies were taken in the 8th week of pregnancy. A soft catheter with a flexible mandrin was introduced transcervically to the chorion frondosum guided by ultrasound.

[Amniotic AFP concentration in pregnancies with numerical chromosome aberrations].

Amniotic fluid alpha-fetoprotein concentration were measured in 360 normal pregnancies between 15 and 23 weeks gestation. Taking into account the effect of gestational age the mean and SD were calculated, confirming the physiological decrease in AFP levels at the beginning of the second trimester. By comparison 25 pregnancies with trisomic states (23 trisomy 21, 2 trisomy 18) showed AFP levels below the control mean in 19 cases.

[Labor induction with 3 mg of prostaglandin E2 vaginal tablets. A renaissance of programmed labor? Results of a prospective randomized study].

Vaginal application of tablets containing prostaglandin at term in pregnant women with a favorable cervical score is a very efficacious method of induction of labour. Due to the motility of the women they consider this method of induction as almost natural. We, therefore, aimed at discussing the optimal procedure in low-risk pregnancies at due date, by means of a prospective randomised trial.

[Postoperative radiotherapy of epithelial ovarian cancers].

The importance of postoperative radiotherapy in patients with epithelial ovarian carcinomas was examined critically by means of our own results and the experiences published in international literature. 220 (36.2%) patients out of 608, whose inner genital tract could at least be partially removed, survived after irradiation therapy only without any chemotherapy.