Effect of nedocromil sodium on exercise-induced bronchoconstriction exacerbated by inhalation of cold air.

This double-blind placebo-crossover study examined the effect of nedocromil sodium, 4 mg aerosol 30 min before challenge, on exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) in cold air conditions. Twenty-one asthmatic patients (15-28 years), with methacholine PC20 < or = 8 mg/ml in the absence of significant allergen exposure, were randomized to active and placebo therapy on separate study days. Pulmonary function, measured up to 20 min after exercise, showed significantly less deterioration with nedocromil sodium, which effectively halved the maximum percentage decline in forced expiratory volume in the first second.

[Asthma and mountain air].

Geilomo hospital for children with asthma and allergy is situated 800 m above sea level in a non-polluted area in the central part of Norway. 31 children who were admitted to this hospital from different parts of Norway (mostly from the main cities) were studied for six weeks. They underwent physical training and daily measurements were taken of lung function and the effect of bronchodilators.

Doping and athletes--prevention and counseling.

Doping in sports is an old problem. Development of modern techniques has made doping control possible for all drugs listed on the International Olympic Committee's list. A survey is given of the preventive measures ( antidoping ) that have been carried out in Norway since 1976.

Menstrual dysfunction in Norwegian top athletes.

Of 301 Norwegian female top athletes, all members of the national team in 27 different sports, who were approached with a questionnaire about menstrual function, 278 (92.4%) responded. Ninety-nine of the respondents who used oral contraceptives were excluded.

Asthma and physical activity.

Physical activity regularly leads to a decline in lung function in children and adolescents with asthma. This decline is a consequence of what is known as exercise-induced asthma (EIA), and can be determined and graded with the help of lung function tests before and after submaximal workloads on the ergometer cycle or the treadmill. Typical EIA appears in asthmatic individuals with entirely normal lung function before the effort, but EIA may also become clinically manifest with exercise in patients who have a subclinical degree of obstruction.

Physical activity in children and adolescents in relation to growth and development.

Physical activity during the growth period appears to be necessary for normal growth and development of the skeleton, musculature and oxygen-carrying organs. Compared with the adult, the child (in relation to body size) has poor maximal strength and low anaerobic capacity. Muscular endurance and aerobic performance are more comparable to what is found in adults, but even as regards these qualities the child is immature and not on the same level as the adult.

Fat cell size and lipid content of subcutaneous tissue in congenital generalized lipodystrophy.

Fat cell size and lipid composition of subcutaneous tissue from 3 patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy have been measured before and after treatment with either pimozide, fenfluramine or hypophysectomy. The fat cell volume before treatment ranged between 9.8 x 10(4) and 17.

Decreased binding of insulin to its receptor in patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy.

Patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy are extremely insulin resistant. To ascertain whether this resistance is due to an insulin receptor defect, we tested four young patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy and seven healthy persons of comparable age for the binding of 125I insulin to mononuclear leukocytes isolated from peripheral blood. Mononuclear leukocytes from patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy bound significantly less insulin than cells from normal subjects (P less than 0.

Lipodystrophic diabetes treated with fenfluramine.

Congenital generalized lipodystrophy is considered to be a diencephalic syndrome with disturbance of hypothalamic transmitters. After puberty and arrest of growth the patients develop a serious untreatable diabetes mellitus. One of our patients, a girl 15 years of age, developed a lipodystrophic diabetes with fasting blood glucose levels above 300 mg/100 ml, increased serum insulin with insulin resistance, and hyperlipidaemia.

A new well-characterized, purified allergen preparation from timothy pollen. I. Chemical properties.

A purified allergen preparation, Timothy N, from timothy pollen (Phleum pratense) was characterized with respect to chemical properties in comparison with a commercially available crude extract, Timothy O, from the same pollen material. In Timothy N about 94% of the protein and 99% of both hexoses and pentoses were removed during the purification. Timothy N contains a limited number of proteins with molecular weights of about 15,000 and 30,000.

Studies in congenital generalized lipodystrophy. IV. Effect of muscular exercise on carbohydrate and fat metabolism including plasma levels of IRI and HGH.

Two patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy have been studied at rest, and during and after long-term exercise at different carefully measured work loads. The two patients represented different stages of diabetes development. Both patients derived most of their energy used during muscular exercise from carbohydrate, and comparatively little from fat.

Studies in congenital generalized lipodystrophy. VI. Suppressible and non-suppressible insulin-like activities of plasma.

1. Suppressible and non-suppressible insulin-like activities (ILA) of plasma from 3 patients with congenital generalized lipodystrophy have been studied, employing isolated fat cells from rat epididymal adipose tissue. 2.