A mobile system for the treatment of accidental hypothermia with extracorporeal circulation.

When deep accidental hypothermia causes circulatory failure, the best chance of survival is treatment with extracorporeal circulation (ECC) and warming of the blood. This may be difficult to achieve if the patient is first admitted to a hospital without a department of thoracic surgery. Our aim was to test a lightweight mobile system for ECC.

A simple technique for predicting maintenance dosage of warfarin--is it better than empirical dosing?

In a prospective, randomised trial the clinical utility of a predictive warfarin maintenance dosing technique was compared with the more commonly employed empirical dosing method. A preliminary study in 35 patients established the applied technique for predicting the maintenance dosage of warfarin from the prothrombin activity on Day 4 of initial standardised warfarin administration. Forty-three patients admitted with venous thrombotic disease were investigated.

The effect of a diet rich in brussels sprouts on warfarin pharmacokinetics.

Ten healthy subjects were given 20 mg of warfarin orally before, and after a daily intake of 400 g of brussels sprouts for 2 weeks. The brussels sprouts diet stimulated warfarin disposal as evidenced by a 29% increase in mean elimination rate constant, accompanied by a 27% increase in metabolic clearance rate and a 16% decrease in plasma AUC. It is concluded that a high intake of brussels sprouts, a cruciferous vegetable, accelerates warfarin disposal, and thereby might contribute to less anticoagulation.