Postnatal lung growth after repair of diaphragmatic hernia.

The lungs of two patients who died eight months and 64 months after repair of a left-sided diaphragmatic hernia on the first day of life were examined. Lung volumes were appropriate for the size of the children, and the ratio of right lung volume to left lung volume was also normal in both patients. The lungs, however, were grossly abnormal with evidence of enlargement and destruction of respiratory tissue.

Cytotoxic enterotoxin produced by Aeromonas hydrophila: relationship of toxigenic isolates to diarrheal disease.

Ninety-six Aeromonas hydrophila isolates were tested for cytotoxin and hemolysin production. Sixty-six (69%) of the isolates were both cytotoxic and hemolytic, whereas the rest produced neither cytotoxin nor hemolysin. No evidence of a separate cytotonic activity could be found in any of the isolates.

The use of simple image analysers in lung morphometry.

We have used several commercially available image analysers to measure the inter-alveolar wall distance on histologic sections of animal and human lungs. Inter- and intra-observer variations using these machines are small, and very similar results are obtained using different machines. The recorded result depends on the magnification used since higher resolution produces more intercepts.

Cebocephaly in an infant with trisomy 18.

An infant who died in the perinatal period with the unusual association of trisomy 18 and cebocephaly is described. It is suggested that this association may be more common than is generally recognised because the majority of such infants are stillborn or live only briefly and often do not have chromosome studies performed.

Alveolar multiplication in the contralateral lung after unilateral pneumonectomy in the rabbit.

Four weeks after left pneumonectomy in 10-week-old rabbits, the right lung increased in weight and volume to match the weight and volume of both lungs in control and sham-operated rabbits. Alveolar multiplication occurred in the right lung of the pneumonectomized animals resulting in approximately 60 per cent more alveoli than in the right lung of the control or sham-operated animals. Alveolar size was the same in all animals.

Encephalitis after administration of live measles vaccine.

In a previously well child with no evidence of pre-existing immunologic defect a fatal encephalitis developed 10 days after administration of measles vaccine. There was pathologic evidence of an early viral encephalitis characterized by perivascular mononulcear infiltrates. Although the virus was not recovered, the diagnosis of a measles virus infection and encephalitis is supported by the postmortem findings of Warthin-Finkeldey cells in lymphoid tissues, an intranuclear inclusion in the brain and histologic changes of encephalitis.

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia and lung rupture in hyaline membrane disease: influence of continuous distending pressure.

Review of 158 patients with hyaline membrane disease was undertaken. The introduction of artificial ventilation with a positive end-expiratory pressure (IPPB and PEEP) has doubled the prevalence of pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum and interstitial emphysema from 20.7% to 39.