Mechanism of analgesic effect of clonidine in the treatment of dysmenorrhea.

Clonidine substantially reduces the pain and cramping of dysmenorrhea. The mechanisms for this effect may lie in increased release of analgesic opioids. It is suggested that perhaps a thromboxane synthetase inhibitor such as ginger which activates endorphin receptors may also be an effective treatment.

A straight nasal septum and right unilateral hypertrophied inferior nasal turbinate, a very rare anatomical phenomenon, in skilled language translators: relevance to anomalous dominance, brain hemisphericity and second language acquisition.

Research on second language acquisition has recently focused on the concept of brain hemisphericity. Since the nasal cycle indexes brain hemisphericity and a deviated nasal septum itself affected by structural brain dominance may prevent nasal cycling, we investigated the presence of septal deviation and inferior turbinate hypertrophy in 11 expert translators. We found that 10 of the 11 subjects demonstrated both a straight nasal septum and right unilateral inferior turbinate hypertrophy, an extremely rare anatomical phenomenon.

Implication of thromboxane in the pathogenesis of Kawasaki disease and a suggestion for using novel thromboxane synthetase inhibitors in its treatment.

Kawasaki disease, a mucocutaneous lymph node syndrome predominantly prevalent in children, presents with coronary artery aneurysms and thrombocytosis, and investigators have suggested use of anticoagulants in addition to platelet inhibiting drugs. In Kawasaki disease, hypersensitivity reactions due to antigen/antibody complexes (Arthus type III) may damage the vessel wall and induce arteritis, and antigens may be of microbial or viral origin. Since thromboxane has been implicated in the pathogenesis of Kawasaki disease, I suggest use of ginger and carbon dioxide, novel thromboxane synthetase inhibitors.

Prevalence of depression among Israeli alcoholics.

The Zung Depression Scale was given to 45 Israeli male alcoholics as diagnosed by DSM-III criteria. Eighteen subjects came from an outpatient alcohol clinic, and 27 came from an inpatient detoxification center. In this cohort, 60% of subjects were classified as having clinical depression, and major depressive disorder was found in 26% of inpatients and 17% of outpatients.

Forced unilateral nostril breathing: a technique that affects brain hemisphericity and autonomic activity.

Asymmetrical shoulder, thoracic and buttock pressure affect ipsilateral nasal resistance, autonomic tone, and hemisphericity. This factor must be taken into consideration when conducting psychological experimentation, and, in fact, may have confounded much prior research.

Predicting new effective treatments of alcohol addiction on the basis of their properties of inhibition of noradrenergic activity and/or thromboxane or on the activation of the dopamine reward system and/or beta-endorphin.

On the basis of their properties of noradrenergic and/or thromboxane inhibition, or on their activation of the dopaminergic reward system and/or beta-endorphin, the following substances or treatments are predicted to be effective in treating alcohol or drug addiction: ginger; carbon dioxide; dietary sulfur; methionine; calcium; LHRH; high intensity light; interferon; negative ions; serotonin antagonists such as methysergide and cyproheptadine; guanabenz and guenfacine; antihistamines; head-out water immersion; X-irradiation; and forced unilateral left nostril breathing.

Vasopressin inhibition via combined head-out water immersion and a prostaglandin E-1 precursor in the treatment of male reproductive failure due to chronic alcohol abuse.

Male reproductive failure and infertility are quite common in alcoholics. There are very high correlations between elevated vasopressin levels and male infertility on the one hand, and probable deficiencies of prostaglandin E1 which may raise levels of PGE2 and endorphins which, in turn, release vasopressin on the other. Since head-out water immersion rapidly decreases vasopressin levels, a suggested joint protocol of head-out water immersion and a prostaglandin E-1 precursor is proposed for male reproductive failure in alcoholics.

Physostigmine induced beta-endorphin release as a mechanism for physostigmine management of early alcohol withdrawal.

It is suggested that the mechanism involved in physostigmine management of early alcohol withdrawal may lie in physostigmine induced beta-endorphin release.

Effect of forced unilateral nostril breathing on blink rates: relevance to hemispheric lateralization of dopamine.

The involuntary blink rate is a clinical monitor of dopaminergic activity. Since there is disagreement in the literature on the relative neurochemical hemispheric asymmetry or laterality of dopamine, we studied the effects of differential forced unilateral nostril breathing on blink rate. This technique has been demonstrated to induce selective contralateral hemispheric stimulation as measured by relative increases in the EEG amplitude as well as alternating lateralization of plasma catecholamines.

Etiology of alcoholism: relevance of prenatal hormonal influences on the brain, anomalous dominance, and neurochemical and pharmacological brain asymmetry.

Because of possible prenatal hormonal influences on the brain, leading to anomalous dominance, pharmacological and neurochemical asymmetry, and consequent antisocial personality and phobic anxiety, the subject ingests ethanol for its tension-reducing properties via endorphinergic activation and the dopaminergic reward system. Due to presence of stress, and effects of anomalous dominance on ethanol metabolizing enzymes, ethanol-oxidizing systems are activated leading to high rates of ethanol elimination from the blood, and thus the decreased intensity of reaction to ethanol, leading to tolerance. Since stress can cause a decrease in the number of opiate receptors, a vicious cycle of ingesting more and more ethanol may be instituted.

Inhibiting noradrenergic overactivity by inhibition of thromboxane and concomitant activation of opiate receptors via dietary means.

A yin-yang hypothesis is presented linking noradrenergic activity, thromboxane, melatonin, left hemisphere functioning, and cyclic AMP on the one hand, and dopamine, beta-endorphin, calcium, right hemisphere functioning, and cyclic GMP on the other. It is further suggested that there is a yoking of NA, TXA2, serotonin and melatonin in the left hemisphere, and a similar yoking of DA, BE, calcium and cGMP in the right. Evidence is presented to support the hypothesis that each element (NA, TXA2, etc.

An animal analogue of forced unilateral nostril breathing: relevance for physiology and pharmacology.

Since forced unilateral nostril breathing activates the contralateral brain hemisphere, an animal analogue of this technique could be provided by methylmethacrylate gluing large plastic pellets in either the right or left nostrils in a group of rats. A large number of physiological, pharmacological, and immunological parameters may be differentially affected.

Negative correlation of cigarette smoking and dysmenorrhea: reduced prostaglandin synthesis due to beta-endorphin, nicotine, or acrolein antagonism.

It is suggested that the mechanism for decreased incidence of dysmenorrhea in female cigarette smokers may lie in the possible inhibition of algesic prostaglandins smoking induced stimulation of beta-endorphin, nicotine, or acrolein.

Changes in intraocular pressure induced by differential forced unilateral nostril breathing, a technique that affects both brain hemisphericity and autonomic activity. A pilot study.

There is evidence of the central regulation of intraocular pressure, and it has been suggested that vagal tone might be elevated in glaucoma simplex. The nasal cycle, the simultaneous congestion-decongestion response in the nasal cavities, reflects the dynamic lateralization of the autonomic nervous system. Since this lateralization presents with sympathetic activity induced by left brain hemisphere stimulation and parasympathetic activity induced by right hemisphere stimulation, forced unilateral nostril breathing (FUNB) has recently been demonstrated to induce selective contralateral hemispheric stimulation as measured by relative increases in EEG amplitude in the contralateral hemisphere as well as alternating lateralization of plasma catecholamines.