Epidural ropivacaine 7.5 mg/ml for elective Caesarean section: a double-blind comparison of efficacy and tolerability with bupivacaine 5 mg/ml.

Background: Ropivacaine is a new local anaesthetic drug known to be less cardiotoxic than bupivacaine. The aims of this comparative study with bupivacaine were to evaluate efficacy, safety and tolerability for the mother and the neonate when using ropivacaine 7.5 mg/ml for epidural anaesthesia for elective Caesarean section.

Fetal heart rate decelerations and umbilical cord blood gas values.

Although fetal heart rate (FHR) monitoring is widely used for fetal surveillance, there is still disagreement about the value of cardiotocography and the interpretation of FHR patterns. We addressed this in a prospective study in which umbilical cord blood gas and pH values at the time of cesarean section were related to different FHR patterns classified prior to surgery. The patient population consisted of 56 pregnant women with singleton fetuses of gestational age between 37 and 43 weeks.

[HELLP syndrome--4 case reports].

HELLP-syndrome (H - haemolysis, EL - elevated liver enzymes, LP - low platelet count) is a serious complication of pregnancy. It can be considered as a variant of severe preeclampsia, where haemolysis, hepatic damage (elevated liver enzymes) and thrombocytopenia (low platelets) are all present. Four case reports of HELLP-syndrome are described.

The Cronkhite-Canada syndrome. Case report.

Polyps of the stomach, duodenum, colon and rectum were found in a 53-year-old man, who had severe diarrhoea, heavy protein loss from the gastrointestinal tract and shedding of hair and nails. The patient died after 9 months of treatment with drugs and periodic intravenous nutrition.

Postoperative pain relief with high-dose epidural buprenorphine: a double-blind study.

Forty-five patients scheduled for major abdominal or intrathoracic surgery were assigned at random to two different groups. One group received 0.3 mg and the other 0.

Effect of pirenzepine and antacids on postprandial intragastric pH.

Peptic ulcer treatment with high dose regimens of antacids may be inconvenient and unpleasant, and the risk of side effects should not be neglected. Anticholinergics are claimed to accentuate and prolong the effect of antacids on intragastric acidity. In the study the effect on postprandial intragastric pH of a moderate dose of antacids in combination with pirenzepine was compared with that of a double dose of antacids in six healthy subjects, to see whether the dose of antacids could be reduced when given in combination with an antimuscarinic compound.

The Christiansen hip prosthesis preliminary results.

The combined endo- and total hip prosthesis of Christiansen is described. In this prosthesis an articular connection, or trunnion bearing, is introduced between the head and stem components in order to reduce friction at the acetabular joint. The stem portions of both prostheses are identical.