Prognosis in cystic fibrosis treated with continuous flucloxacillin from the neonatal period.

All newborn infants in East Anglia are screened for cystic fibrosis by blood immunoreactive trypsin assay at 7 days. Thirty eight infants with cystic fibrosis were randomised to treatment with either continuous oral flucloxacillin 250 mg/day (group P, n = 18) or with episodic antimicrobials as clinically indicated (group E, n = 20). Their progress was monitored from diagnosis to 24 months by a nurse coordinator who visited all infants regularly, at home and in hospital, to collect anthropometric, dietary, clinical, and microbiological data.

Cystic fibrosis identified by neonatal screening: incidence, genotype, and early natural history.

The incidence of cystic fibrosis over the last 10 years in East Anglia (a region of the United Kingdom with a population of 2.1 million) has halved. This has happened during the establishment of a neonatal screening programme, which has enabled early diagnosis, genetic counselling, and lately the option of prenatal diagnosis in subsequent pregnancies.

Twenty years of sodium cromoglycate treatment: a short review.

Sodium cromoglycate (Intal) was first synthesized from khellin, a naturally occurring plant chromone, by Roger Altounyan and his colleagues in 1965. It was introduced as a therapeutic agent in 1968 and marked a new era in the management of asthma. Numerous studies on the use of sodium cromoglycate in the treatment of asthma have since been published.

Home treatment of pulmonary infection in cystic fibrosis.

The concept of home care therapy for acute respiratory exacerbations in cystic fibrosis (CF) has been developed in a number of treatment centers during the last few years. Objective and prospective clinical observations have demonstrated that home care therapy is as effective as structured hospital treatments in improving pulmonary function and body weight in patients with CF. Moreover, the medical, social, and financial benefits of home care suggest that such an approach to the management should be developed further in order to improve the quality of life of patients with CF.

Does monotherapy of pulmonary infections in cystic fibrosis lead to early development of resistant strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa?

We report the development of ceftazidime-resistant strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a small population of cystic fibrosis patients who had ceftazidime monotherapy over a 5-year period as clinically indicated. The background rate of less than 30% of patients with a ceftazidime-resistant strain of P. aeruginosa in their sputum each month is similar to the resistance rate to other anti-pseudomonas antibiotics that have seldom been used here.

Improved sweat test method for the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis.

We describe a new technique of collecting sweat for measurement of osmolality and sodium concentrations. Eighty two subjects were studied--39 controls and 43 patients with cystic fibrosis. Adequate amounts of sweat were obtained in 81 subjects and sweat was analysed for both osmolality and sodium concentrations in 73 subjects.

Screening for cystic fibrosis by died blood spot trypsin assay.

Immunoreactive trypsin was measured in dried blood specimens from 14,000 infants. A second test was performed in 0 . 2% of the population in whom blood trypsin levels were greater than 80 ng/ml.

Sensitive trypsin assay for dried-blood specimens as a screening procedure for early detection of cystic fibrosis.

An immunoreactive-trypsin assay uses small dried-blood spots (diameter 1.25 mm) and is therefore suitable for incorporation in established neonatal screening schemes. Blood specimens from neonates with cystic fibrosis had trypsin levels greater than those in control subjects, thus confirming earlier findings.

Half life of theophylline in the preterm baby with apnoeic attacks.

Plasma theophylline levels were measured by an enzyme immunoassay method in 6 preterm babies. The method gave accurate and rapid results. The study showed a considerably prolonged half life of an oral preparation.

Cefuroxime plasma and CSF levels in children with meningitis.

Cefuroxime (25 mg/kg) given intravenously every four hours to 7 children with bacterial meningitis resulted in satisfactory therapeutic blood and CSF levels. All children made a full recovery and side effects were absent.