Management of hyperthyroidism due to Graves' disease: a retrospective analysis of 1,000 inpatient cards.

There are three different modalities to treat hyperthyroidism due to Grave's disease: anti-thyroid drugs (ATD), radioiodine and surgery, each of them having its own advantages and disadvantages. The option for one of the three therapeutical approaches has both subjective and objective components. In Europe, a screening on the therapeutical options in Graves' disease was performed at the European Thyroid Association (ETA) initiative, being based on a questionnaire.

Effects of radioiodine therapy in hyperthyroidism (thyroid function, thyroid volume, Graves' ophtalmopathy, thyrotoxic heart disease).

The study group consisted of 135 hyperthyroid patients--128 with Graves' disease and 7 with toxic multinodular goiter. A single dose of radioiodine was given in 110 cases (81.48%), two doses in 22 patients (16.

Redox capacity of the pineal gland in rats. Effect of castration.

The day/night cycle-induced effects, and the effect of castration on pineal oxidative potential in rats, were studied herein. Experiments were made in adult and castrated Wistar rats kept under normal light conditions during winter (on December and January). Castration was performed 72 hrs before sacrification.

An improvement of the endocrine diagnosis by high-performance liquid chromatography.

The assessment of catecholamines (NE, E), essential metabolites (VMA, HVA) and serotonergic metabolite 5HIIA in urine by HPLC with UV detection is of interest for clinical diagnosis concerning HTA, pheochromocytoma, neuroblastoma, carcinoid syndrome, hypotension, etc. In the same urine sample one can detect (following preliminary steps) by HPLC the above--mentioned biochemical parameters with good reproducibility and sensitivity.

The negative impact of oxidative stress in chronic cardiac failure and coronary heart disease calls for a new pathophysiologic and therapeutic approach.

Oxidative stress, when associated with ECG aspects of "coronary disease", indicates an accelerated course of atherosclerosis in the onset phase (by cellular involvement, migration, proliferation, etc.) and an additional thrombogenic risk in the "ischemic disease" phase, when associated with chronic cardiac failure, it indicates a progressive form with "replacement fibrosis". The therapy that reduces the oxidative stress can slow down the physiopathologic process, and clinically improves the patients' condition and prognosis.

The paradoxical sleep-cerebral maturation relationship.

Cerebral maturation (CM) is a complex genetically determined process which consists of four stages (neuritogenesis, synaptogenesis, elimination of the abnormal synapses and myelinization), all modulated or fine-tuned by endo- or exogenous factors, among which the paradoxical sleep (PS) is the most important. In the present review it is stated by direct and indirect evidence that PS is the only state of vigilance compatible with such a modulation of the CM. Many results from literature as well as our data give strong support in demonstrating that PS is involved in all four stages of the CM.

Iodine-enriched milk in goiter endemics.

Researches carried out at Cîmpulung-Lereşti-Lăicăi from the north of the Argeş County demonstrated an environmental iodine-deficiency that caused thyroid hypofunction in animals and, consequently, a decrease in the iodine level in the products of animal origin. Administration of KI, KIO3 or of sea weeds powder in the cows nutrition corrected the thyroid function, the quantitative increase in milk production and enrichment of milk in iodine.

A retrospective study on the treatment and evolution of Graves' ophthalmopathy.

Although Graves' ophthalmopathy (GO) seems to be unanimously considered as an autoimmune disease, its pathogenesis is still unknown. That is why the different therapeutical formulas led to ambiguous results. We think that a critical retrospective analysis on our therapeutical possibilities in GO will help us to become aware of our limits in treating this pathology.

Total and free amino acids in the "Crinofizin" pineal extract.

In order to establish the chemical nature of Crinofizin, a protidic extract obtained from bovine pineal, the amino acids content was analysed using two analytic programs: one for biologic fluids, the other for protein hydrolysates. The results showed that the pineal extract contains besides the common protein amino acids reported earlier, others, rare in proteins, such as hydroxyproline, hydroxylysine and 1-methylhistidine as well as non-protein amino acids. From among the latter, the alpha-aminoadipic acid, beta- alanine, O-cysteine, are found only in a bound form, and are detected only by hydrolysis.

The role of free radicals in normal and pathologic cell proliferation.

Oxygen, while essential for life, is at the same time involved in the toxic effects of exposure to ionizing radiations, U.V. and a variety of chemical substances.

Therapeutic methods in endocrinology. General considerations.

The integrative character of the endocrine system and its regulation ways generate and motivate the specificity of endocrine therapy. The latter tries, by its methods and means, to restore hormonal homeostasis, to imitate the biologic rhythms of secretion, to respond to the stress needs, in fact it ensures the dynamics of the normal integration of an individual in the daily life with all its changes. This requirement is ensured by the methods of stimulation and suppression, hormonal substitution or depression of hormone bio-synthesis, blockade of enzymatic activation or desensitivation of the receptors to the hormonal message, etc.

Arginine-vasotocin (AVT)--a pineal hormone in mammals.

Covering more than 30 years of studying the pineal peptide hormones physiology, this study largely discusses the main personal research as well as international literature indirectly or directly supporting the idea that the nonapeptide hormone arginine-vasotocin (AVT) is a pineal hormone in mammals. After a short review of the problem, the data are structured in two chapters: one including all the indirect arguments, i.e.

Epidemiological surveillance of iodine deficiency in Romania by urinary iodine determinations in children aged 6-16 years from 30 counties.

Epidemiologic studies on school-children aged 6-16 years along 1978-1980 and in 1986, according to the WHO classification revealed the persistence of endemic goiter even in high incidence in some areas. Following UNICEF WHO recommendations, a new epidemiologic study was initiated in 30 counties for assessing urinary iodine through the spot urine sample method, which has widely been accepted as a satisfactory index of iodine intake. The urine samples were collected from lots of 100-200 children aged 6-16 years within each district.

Melatonin involvement in oxidative processes.

The fact that the pineal gland, by its melatonin (MT) production, responds to environmental light variations (the day-night cycle), being also a modulator of the body adaptation to these conditions, may lead to the assumption of its involvement in the body oxidative processes. The redox capacity of melatonin was followed-up in vitro by the chemiluminescence phenomenon. The system generating chemiluminescence as well as free radicals was made up of luminol and H2O2.

Cardiothyreosis.

In the present study: (a) physiopathology, (b) clinics, and (c) therapy of cardiothyreosis are discussed. (a) The hyperkinetic syndrome, the earliest clinical sign in thyrotoxicosis (vasodilatation, increase in inotropism, automatism, etc.), is mediated by a two-fold increase in the number of beta-receptors, and supported by an adequate synthesis of ATP and creatinphosphate (CP) in the young and, to a lesser extent, in the elderly.

Study on the evolution of endemic goiter in Romania.

In population studies on children carried out in 1978-1979 as well as in 1986 we reported the persistence of endemic goiter. This made us extend our study onto other populational categories, namely: a) adults and children from five villages of 500-1500 inhabitants from known endemic areas; goiter was encountered in a high percentage: 41% and 52.5% and prevailed above the age of 50.

Purification and physico-chemical characterization of the antigonadotropic fractions obtained by ultrafiltration from the pineal extract.

In order to isolate the antigonadotropic factor from a pineal extract prepared from bovine pineals the authors first applied ultrafiltration, which yielded three fractions: F1 greater than 10 kDa, 1 kDa less than less than F2 less than 10 kDa, and F3 less than 1 kDa. Examination of the biologic activity showed that only F1 and F2 have a statistically significant antigonadotropic activity. Ion exchange chromatography of F1 yielded two subfractions: one, F11, which was not retained, and another one, F12, which was retained by the exchanger.

Trisomy 4p--a new case of congenital myxedema.

The clinical and cytogenetic data of a female patient with trisomy of the 4p ter: 4p 12 segment are presented. Family history showed that the mother is the bearer of a balanced translocation between chromosomes 4 and 5.

Circadian, weekly, and seasonal variations in cardiac mortality, blood pressure, and catecholamine excretion.

Time of occurrence of cardiac death due to arrhythmia, heart failure, or acute myocardial infarction was recorded in 86 elderly subjects, belonging to a group in whom circadian and circannual rhythms in blood pressure and urinary catecholamine excretion had been studied previously. All patients were retired, with no work responsibilities, and lived--closely-supervised in a home for the aged--on a routine that provided little differences between weekdays and weekends. Cardiac mortality showed a circadian variation, with a peak in the early morning hours, coinciding with the circadian peak in systolic and diastolic blood pressures.

The development of a radioimmunoassay system for testosterone (T) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Part 3. The preparation of radioiodinated testosterone.

A two step-method was applied for the preparation of a tracer adequate for a radioimmunoassay (RIA) system for testosterone. Histamine was radioiodinated by the Chloramine-T method and then coupled to testosterone-3-carboxymethyl-oxime (T-3-CMO) derivative. After purification by TLC, the steroid tracer was stable in ethanol for at least four months.

The development of a radioimmunoassay system for testosterone (T) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Part 2. The preparation of antisera to T.

Testosterone-3-O-carboxymethyl-oxime derivative was synthetized and coupled to bovine serum albumin (BSA). The T-3-CMO-BSA conjugate homogenized with Freund's adjuvant used as immunogen was injected multiple sites in rabbits. The antisera collected were characterized in a radioimmunological system, separation with dextran-charcoal using 125I-Testosterone as tracer.