Misoprostol in the treatment of chronic refractory constipation: results of a long-term open label trial.

Background: Misoprostol is known to be effective in stimulating intestinal transit both in healthy individuals and in patients with chronic constipation when evaluated in short-term trials. The aim of this study was to determine the utility of misoprostol in the long-term management of patients with chronic refractory constipation.

Methods: Eighteen patients were offered misoprostol (600-2400 microg/day) as adjunctive therapy in an open-ended, non-blinded trial.

Colonic motor activity in women during sleep.

The relationship between colonic motility, sleep, and arousals from sleep has never been studied in women and only once in men. The purpose of this study was to determine how sleep and arousals from sleep affected colonic motility in women during the follicular phase of their menstrual cycle. We monitored sleep and segmental colonic motility in six healthy women during the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle.

The international autoimmune hepatitis score in chronic hepatitis C.

Clinical and laboratory findings of autoimmunity are common in chronic hepatitis C. Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), a disease of unknown cause, has been defined by use of the International Autoimmune Hepatitis Group Score (AIH score), which quantifies clinical and laboratory parameters. To further validate the specificity of the International AIH score and investigate the similarities between hepatitis C and AIH, we measured the International Autoimmune Hepatitis Group Score in patients with well-defined chronic hepatitis C.

Renin response to graded haemorrhage in conscious rats.

1. A haemorrhage volume/plasma renin activity (PRA) response relationship was established for five levels of acute haemorrhage ranging from 1.5 to 15 ml/kg in conscious rats.

Renin, ACTH, and aldosterone during acute hypercapnia and hypoxia in conscious rats.

The control of aldosterone secretion may be altered during acute changes in arterial blood gases. We studied the blood gas, plasma electrolyte, renin (PRA), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), and aldosterone (ALDO) responses to acute hypercapnia (4 and 8% CO2), acute hypocapnic hypoxia (10% O2), acute severe normocapnic hypoxia (7% O2-4% CO2), and acute hypercapnic hypoxia (7% O2-8% CO2) in conscious, cannulated Long-Evans rats. Normoxia resulted in normal levels of PRA (6.