EVALUATION OF HEPATIC FUNCTION AMONG PATIENTS UNDERGOING TOTAL HIP ARTHROPLASTY USING ENOXAPARIN.

Objective: To evaluate hepatic changes resulting from the use of enoxaparin for prophylaxis of deep vein thrombosis among patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty.

Methods: Thirty-two patients underwent elective total hip arthroplasty, using enoxaparin, and were followed up for 65 days with serial hepatic enzyme assays.

Results: Changes in laboratory parameters were found in up to 75% of the patients during the study, but the parameters normalized after suspension of the treatment.

Role of N-acetylcysteine on fibrosis and oxidative stress in cirrhotic rats.

Background: Hepatic cirrhosis is the final stage of liver dysfunction, characterized by diffuse fibrosis which is the main response to the liver injury. The inhalatory carbon tetrachloride is an effective experimental model that triggers cirrhosis and allows to obtain histological and physiological modifications similar to the one seen in humans.

Aim: To investigate the effects of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on the fibrosis and oxidative stress in the liver of cirrhotic rats, analyzing liver function tests, lipoperoxidation, activity of glutathione peroxidase enzyme, collagen quantification, histopathology, as well as the nitric oxide role.

Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole versus norfloxacin in the prophylaxis of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in cirrhosis.

Background: The prognosis of patients with chronic liver disease and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis is poor, being of great importance its prevention.

Aim: To compare the effectiveness of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole versus norfloxacin for prevention of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis in patients with cirrhosis and ascites.

Patients And Methods: Fifty seven patients with cirrhosis and ascites were evaluated between March 1999 and March 2001.

Polymorphisms of the dopamine transporter gene: influence on response to methylphenidate in attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.

Attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a very common and heterogeneous childhood-onset psychiatric disorder, affecting between 3% and 5% of school age children worldwide. Although the neurobiology of ADHD is not completely understood, imbalances in both dopaminergic and noradrenergic systems have been implicated in the origin and persistence of core symptoms, which include inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. The role of a genetic component in its etiology is strongly supported by genetic studies, and several investigations have suggested that the dopamine transporter gene (DAT1; SLC6A3 locus) may be a small-effect susceptibility gene for ADHD.

Chronic secretory otitis media: negative bacteriology.

There is disagreement on the role of bacteria in the genesis and maintenance of chronic secretory otitis media (CSOM). Extensive studies from other countries report up to 40% of middle ear cultures with bacterial growth. For the present study, material was collected from 94 ears of children with both clinical and tympanometric diagnoses of CSOM.

The effects of GABAergic drugs on grooming behaviour in the open field.

In a previous study it was demonstrated that sodium valproate, a drug that increases GABA cerebral concentrations, decreases grooming in the open field. This effect was not modified by morphine or naloxone. To provide evidence for the participation of the GABA system in the expression of grooming, other GABAergic drugs were acutely administered to rats before the test in the open field.