[Hemin treatment in a case of porphyria variegata].

Hemin is known as an interesting drug in the treatment of acute attacks of porphyria: this was verified in a case of porphyria variegata. Furthermore, bimestrial perfusion of 500 mg of hemin prevented new biological and clinical deterioration. If confirmed, this schedule would represent a major progress in the management of porphyria variegata.

[Myasthenia gravis and thymectomy. Report of forty cases (author's transl)].

Forty operated cases of myasthenia gravis correspond to 14 thymomas, 18 hyperplasias and 8 vestigial thymus : 3 stages, I, 28 stages, II, 6 stages III, 3 stages IV. For vestigial thymus and moderate hyperplasias, cervicotomy was used in 11 cases. Surgery allowed 15 remissions, 12 ameliorations, 11 failures, aggravations and late deaths, and 2 post-operative deaths (one of them avoidable).

[Serum lipase assay for clinical use. Critical study (author's transl)].

An accurate, quick, and reproducible method to assay serum lipase activity allowed a parallel study of lipase and amylase in 147 patients. Lipase appeared very specific of pancreatic distress. In acute pancreatitis its increase was constant, frank, quick and lasting.

[A rapid and simple method for the qualitative and quantitative determination of hexapropymate in biological fluids and organs (author's transl)].

The method is based mainly on the extraction of the substance by a small volume of organic solvent from an alkaline medium containing a fairly important amount of inorganic salt. The extract is then subjected to thin layer and/or gas chromatography. The authors present also the relative frequency that they met on hexapropymate intoxications together with the concentrations in blood obtained in cases accompanied with deep coma.