The effect of endoscopic laser therapy on survival in patients with squamous-cell carcinoma of the esophagus. Further experience.

Although endoscopic laser therapy is effective for symptom palliation in esophageal cancer, few studies have investigated its effect on survival. We previously reported a 300% improvement in survival in 10 patients with squamous-cell carcinoma of the esophagus after endoscopic Nd:YAG laser energy. We now report a study to determine if the survival advantage persisted after treating an additional 26 patients.

Role of kallikrein-kinin system in pathogenesis of bacterial cell wall-induced inflammation.

The plasma kallikrein-kinin system is activated in Gram-negative sepsis and typhoid fever, two diseases in which bacterial products have been shown to initiate inflammation. Because a single intraperitoneal injection of bacterial cell wall peptidoglycan-polysaccharide polymers from group A steptococci (PG-APS) into a Lewis rat produces a syndrome of relapsing polyarthritis and anemia, we investigated changes in the role of the kallikrein-kinin system in this model of inflammation. Coagulation studies after injection of PG-APS revealed an immediate and persistent decrease in prekallikrein levels.