Influenza vaccination in chronic hemodialysis patients. The effect of zinc supplementation.

Since influenza increases the mortality of chronically ill patients we decided to study the effectiveness of influenza vaccination in hemodialysis (HD) patients. Nineteen HD patients aged from 20 to 60 years, on unrestricted diet and with no febrile episode, were studied. Blood samples were collected before the intramuscular injection of 0.

Reduction of CyA nephrotoxicity by nifedipine during and after experimental in situ renal preservation.

In order to evaluate the role of nifedipine in the nephrotoxic effect induced by both ischemia and CyA, 18 healthy mongrel dogs were used. The kidneys were exposed and subjected to 1 h of ischemia by clamping both renal vessels. To the renal artery of the first group of kidneys (n = 9), 300 mL of cold Euro-Collins solution, in which nifedipine (Bay a 1040-10 mg) was diluted, was infused for 15 min (nifedipine group), while 300 mL of cold Euro-Collins solution plus 10 mg of placebo (Bay a 1040-placebo) was infused to the renal artery of the second group (n = 9) of kidneys (placebo group).

Efficacy and safety of aztreonam in the treatment of patients with renal failure.

The efficacy and safety of aztreonam for treatment of gram-negative bacterial infections in patients with renal failure were evaluated in an open study. Thirty-nine patients (22-82 years old) with renal failure (chronic, 25; acute, 14) were treated for 40 severe gram-negative bacterial infections. All 41 gram-negative pathogens isolated were sensitive to aztreonam; the pathogens included Escherichia coli (12), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (8), Klebsiella species (7), Proteus species (7), Enterobacter species (5), Serratia marcescens (1), and Acinetobacter species (1).

Experimental acute and chronic vascular access through the femoral vessels: hemodynamic study in dogs.

In a side-to-side fistula between femoral artery and vein, an external "shunt" was created that simultaneously connected the distal femoral vein and the proximal femoral vein in 14 normal dogs with weight ranging from 14 to 28 kg. Blood flow and pressure alterations of different sites of this experimental model of vascular access were studied. The results showed that the degree of blood flow on these two vascular communications depends on the structural integrity of the femoral artery with adequate blood flow and blood pressure.

A pilot study of piracetam in cuprophan hemodialysis.

Twelve patients, 8 male and 4 female, aged from 26 to 70 years were studied. They were on hemodialysis (HD) 4 h three times weekly with cuprophan hollow fiber dialyzers (Gambro 120M) and dialysate containing 35 mEq/L of acetate. The study compares two random HD sessions on each patient.

Two cases of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in northern Greece.

Two cases of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome were diagnosed in woodcutters presumably exposed to wild rodents and their urine in a forest in northern Greece. The disease was characterized by acute renal insufficiency without hemorrhagic manifestations. One patient required hemodialysis, but both recovered without sequelae and developed a fourfold increase in titer of antibody to Hantaan virus, as determined by an immunofluorescence test.

The role of serum calcium on carbohydrate metabolism in severely uraemic patients.

In 25 severely uraemic patients, the relation of serum calcium levels and oral glucose tolerance test (GTT) was studied. Seventeen of the 25 patients, who had a creatinine clearance of 6.16 +/- 1.

The effect of captopril on severe renin-dependent hypertension of uraemics on regular dialysis treatment.

The renin-dependent hypertension of uraemic patients on regular dialysis treatment (RDT), resistant to conventional therapy, is a major problem. In these cases, bilateral nephrectomy is effective but carries operative risks and also the possibility of worsening the patients' anaemia. Five uraemic patients on RDT, with severe renin-dependent hypertension resistant to medical therapy were treated with the oral angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor captopril for 3 to 6 months and the effects of the drug were studied.