Comparison of intravenous glucagon and dextrose in treatment of severe hypoglycemia in an accident and emergency department.

Hypoglycemia is a serious problem in insulin-treated diabetic patients. In this study the efficacy of intravenous glucagon (1 mg) was compared with that of intravenous dextrose (25 g) in the treatment of hypoglycemia in insulin-treated patients attending an accident and emergency department. In addition, the prevailing glycemic control of these patients was compared with patients routinely attending a diabetic outpatient clinic. Both intravenous glucagon and dextrose were effective in the treatment of hypoglycemic coma. There was a difference in the glycemic profile after intravenous glucagon compared with intravenous dextrose, and recovery of a normal level of consciousness after glucagon was slower than after dextrose (6.5 vs. 4.0 min, respectively; P less than .001), although the average duration of hypoglycemic coma was 1.4 h. The glucagon- and dextrose-treated groups had significantly lower HbA1 than comparable patients routinely attending the clinic (9.5 +/- 0.8 vs. 12.0 +/- 3.8%, respectively; P less than .001). In view of the ease of administration and the small risk of vascular and extravascular complications, intravenous glucagon appears to be a useful alternative to intravenous dextrose in the treatment of severe hypoglycemia.

Relationship of skin thickness to duration of diabetes, glycemic control, and diabetic complications in male IDDM patients.

Skin thickness is primarily determined by collagen content and is increased in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). We measured skin thickness in 66 IDDM patients aged 24-38 yr and investigated whether it correlated with long-term glycemic control and the presence of certain diabetic complications. With univariate analysis, skin thickness was increased and significantly related to duration of diabetes (P less than .001), previous glycemic control (P less than .001), retinopathy (P less than .001), cheiroarthropathy (P less than .001), and vibration-perception threshold (P less than .05). There was a negative correlation between forced expiratory volume at 1 s (P less than .05) and vital capacity (P less than .05) with duration of diabetes. Neither skin thickness nor ankle arteriomedial wall calcification correlated with abnormal autonomic function tests. When corrected for duration of diabetes, there was a weak correlation between skin thickness and glycemic control (P less than .05) but no correlation with retinopathy, cheiroarthropathy, and vibration-perception threshold. This study confirms that there are widespread connective tissue changes in diabetes mellitus, although the biochemistry needs further elucidation.

Relationships of plasma viscosity, coagulation and fibrinolysis to coronary risk factors and angina.

Plasma viscosity, molecular markers of activated coagulation and fibrinolysis (fibrinopeptides A and B beta 15-42), coagulation factors (fibrinogen and factor VII) and antiplasmins were measured in 529 men aged 35-54 years and related to new angina pectoris (n = 117) and to coronary risk factors in controls without angina (n = 412). Five major risk factors (cigarette-smoking, blood pressure, cholesterol, triglyceride and body mass index) were each associated with increases in plasma viscosity, coagulation factors, and imbalance of coagulation over fibrinolysis (increased ratio of fibrinopeptide A/fibrinopeptide B beta 15-42). Increased viscosity and fibrinogen in smokers were partly reversed in ex-smokers, but the imbalance of coagulation and fibrinolysis persisted. Cholesterol and triglyceride were also associated with increased antiplasmin activity. In men with angina, only fibrinogen was elevated compared to controls. We suggest that increased plasma viscosity and an imbalance of coagulation over fibrinolysis may be mechanisms by which known risk factors promote arterial thrombosis, but are not present in stable angina.

Edinburgh Artery Study: prevalence of asymptomatic and symptomatic peripheral arterial disease in the general population.

Intermittent claudication has been studied in cardiovascular surveys but limited information is available on asymptomatic peripheral arterial disease. The purpose of this paper is to describe the prevalence of both asymptomatic and symptomatic disease and relation to ischaemic heart disease in the Edinburgh Artery Study. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on an age-stratified sample of men and women aged 55 to 74 years selected from age-sex registers in ten general practices in the city. Arterial disease was assessed in 1592 participants by means of the WHO questionnaire on intermittent claudication and measurement of the ankle brachial systolic pressure index (ABPI) and change in ankle systolic pressure during reactive hyperaemia. The prevalence of intermittent claudication was 4.5% (95% confidence interval (CI): 3.5%-5.5%). Major asymptomatic disease causing a significant impairment of blood flow occurred in 8.0% (95% CI: 6.6%-9.4%). A further 16.6% (95% CI: 14.6%-18.5%) had criteria considered abnormal in clinical practice: 9.0% had ABPI less than 0.9 and 7.6% had reactive hyperaemia pressure reduction greater than 20%. Intermittent claudication was equally common in both sexes. The ABPI and reactive hyperaemia results suggested a slight preponderance of asymptomatic disease in males and were consistent with an increasing prevalence with age and lower social class. Mean ABPI was higher in normal men than women, and was lower in the left leg than the right suggesting a unilateral predisposition to disease. Subjects with major asymptomatic disease had more evidence of ischaemic heart disease than in the normal population (relative risk (RR) 1.6; 95% CI: 1.3-1.9).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Low plasma vitamins E and C. Increased risk of angina in Scottish men.

Cross-cultural studies suggest that low plasma antioxidant levels contribute to the high incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) in Scotland. One hundred twenty-five cases of angina without reported history were identified by a postal WHO chest pain questionnaire from a systemic population sample of 6000 Edinburgh men (35-54 years). Classical CHD risk factors (lipids, blood pressure, smoking, and relative weight), plasma vitamins, and a new independent CHD risk factor, adipose tissue linoleate, were measured in angina (n = 125) and healthy controls (n = 430). Cigarette smoking was common in angina (46% vs. 29%, p less than 0.01), and adipose tissue linoleate was lower (8.77 +/- 0.18% vs. 9.81 +/- 0.14% (p less than 0.01). Classical CHD risk factors were not different. Vitamin E/cholesterol molar ratio (micron/mM) was lower in angina than in controls: 1.58 +/- 0.03 vs. 1.66 +/- 0.02 (p less than 0.01). Plasma vitamin C was also lower in angina than in controls: 23.6 +/- 1.7 vs. 30.5 +/- 1.1 microM (p less than 0.001). The relative risk of angina for those in the lowest versus those in the highest quintile of the vitamin E/cholesterol ratio distribution was 2.2:1, irrespective of other risk factors (p less than 0.009). Adipose tissue linoleate removed the association between vitamin E and angina. The relative risk of angina for those in the lowest versus those in the highest quintile of plasma vitamin C was 2.6:1 (p less than 0.01), and the increased risk was also independent of classical risk factors, but closely related to a smoking habit. Low plasma vitamin E or adipose linoleate predisposes to angina, and smoking may increase the risk of angina by lowering plasma vitamin C levels in Scottish men.

Variability of ankle and brachial systolic pressures in the measurement of atherosclerotic peripheral arterial disease.

The aim of this study was to determine the variability of measurements of ankle and brachial systolic pressures and ankle brachial ratios in order to assess their suitability for use in epidemiological studies of arterial disease in the lower limbs. Thirty-six subjects had repeat measurements taken by four observers on two separate days using a Doppler probe and random zero sphygmomanometer. The variability in the measurement of ankle systolic pressure was comparable to that for brachial systolic pressure. The 95% confidence limits of one measurement of the ankle brachial ratio was estimated to be +/- 16%, reducing to +/- 10% for the mean of four measurements taken by two observers on two days. Analysis of variance indicated that the variability in the measurement of ankle brachial ratios attributable to observers, days, timing of measurements on the same day, and repeat measurements was considerably less than the "biological" variability between subjects and between legs. These results suggest that repeatability of the ankle brachial ratio is such that a single measurement is suitable for most epidemiological studies of atherosclerotic peripheral arterial disease.

Changes in eating attitudes during the first year of treatment for diabetes.

Eating attitudes were studied in a group of newly diagnosed insulin dependent diabetics. Thirty-two patients completed the eating attitudes test and eating disorders inventory before commencing treatment and 12 months later following routine medical management. There were significant changes in several items, some of which were predicted by virtue of the diet and weight control involved in optimum diabetic management. However, there were also changes in body image which may predispose to the development of eating disorders in this group of patients.

Pharyngoesophageal dysmotility in globus sensation.

Ambulatory esophageal pH monitoring, radiologic examination, endoscopy, and manometry were undertaken in 142 patients with globus. The results demonstrate that abnormal gastroesophageal reflux occurred in 23% of patients, implying that, while reflux may be responsible for globus in some patients, it is not the cause of globus sensation in the majority of individuals with this symptom. Comparing patients with globus and control subjects, there were no differences in lower esophageal sphincter pressures, esophageal body motility, or tonic upper esophageal sphincter pressures, but patients with globus exhibited higher pharyngeal and upper esophageal sphincter after-contraction pressures during deglutition. The physiological significance of this pharyngeal and upper esophageal dysmotility is not clear and it may be no more than a secondary phenomenon. Alternatively, it may contribute to the generation of globus, perhaps in combination with other physical and psychological triggers.

Increasing incidence of aortic aneurysms in England and Wales.

The numbers of patients being admitted to hospital with aortic aneurysms have increased recently. A study was carried out to try to find out whether this was a true increase in incidence or whether it could be attributable to more accurate diagnosis and better surgical techniques. From analyses of routine statistics it was found that from 1950 to 1984 age standardised mortality rose 20-fold in men to 47.1 per 100,000 population and 11-fold in women to 22.2 per 100,000 and that this was mainly due to more deaths from abdominal aneurysms. Hospital admissions of men with abdominal aneurysms were found to have increased steadily from 1968 to 1983, but the increase for women admitted did not begin until 1978. An increase in both emergency and elective admissions and only a marginal fall in deaths in hospital (from 45% to 39%) suggest that admissions for abdominal aneurysms increased across a wide range of severity of disease. It is concluded for the following reasons that the true incidence of aortic aneurysms, particularly abdominal aneurysms, has been increasing in England and Wales: the trends are not wholly compatible with advances in diagnosis and surgery, there are inconsistencies by age and sex, and increases have occurred in the number of complicated as well as uncomplicated cases.

Urethral stricture and urethritis in men in Scotland.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the incidence of urethral stricture in men in Scotland during the years 1982-1991 in relation to the changing incidence of gonococcal and non-gonococcal urethritis (NGU) over the past 20 years. DESIGN: Retrospective study of incidence of urethral stricture in Scotland. METHOD: The number of new men in whom a diagnosis of urethral stricture was made for the years 1982-1991 was obtained using the new Scottish Record Linkage system, and the number of cases of gonorrhoea and NGU was obtained from Communicable Diseases (Scotland) Unit. Age-specific rates of urethral stricture were calculated and the Poisson regression model was used to test if there was a trend of rate with age or time change. RESULTS: There was a highly significant increase in the incidence of urethral stricture with age but only a slight increase in incidence over the study period within each age group. CONCLUSION: As the interaction between age and time was not significant, it is concluded that urethritis associated with sexually transmitted organisms is an uncommon cause of urethral stricture in Scotland.

The prevalence and characteristics of dizziness in an elderly community.

A postal questionnaire was sent to 1000 subjects aged over 65 years randomly selected from the age/sex register of five group practices, 90% of subjects returning adequate information. Thirty per cent of responders reported dizziness; 27% of these had symptoms more than once per month and 37% had symptoms which lasted longer than 1 minute. Dizziness was most commonly provoked by postural change and head and neck movement. The prevalence of dizziness increased with age and was higher in women but these differences were not statistically significant. The prevalence of symptoms occurring more than once per month was significantly greater with increasing age (p = 0.0003). Dizziness was significantly associated with angina and previous myocardial infarction (p < 0.001) and antihypertensive therapy (p < 0.05) but not with current smoking, diabetes mellitus or previous stroke.

A randomized double blind cross-over trial of nifedipine in the treatment of primary Raynaud's phenomenon.

During three winter months, 23 women participated in a double blind placebo controlled cross-over clinical trial of nifedipine in the treatment of Raynaud's phenomenon. Nifedipine and placebo were given in random order for two consecutive four-week periods. The dose of nifedipine was increased from 5 mg three times daily (tds) to 15 mg tds. During the final two weeks, the median number of attacks of Raynaud's phenomenon on nifedipine was 2.3 per week compared to 5.0 on placebo (P less than 0.01). Fifteen patients gave nifedipine a higher drug evaluation score than placebo (P less than 0.01). Side-effects were experienced by 14 patients (61%) on nifedipine and by two on placebo (P = 0.005). Finger systolic pressure after digit cooling did not differ significantly at the end of each treatment period. Nifedipine is effective in primary Raynaud's phenomenon in most patients but side effects are common.

The effects of age, sex, and smoking on normal pharyngoesophageal motility.

Previous reports of normal pharyngoesophageal motility have described normal ranges in small numbers of young adults. In this study, the results of upper esophageal sphincter (UES) manometry with a microtransducer assembly in 67 healthy volunteers aged 17-77 yr have been analyzed for possible effects of age, sex, and cigarette smoking. Older subjects were found to have only marginally lower UES tonic pressures, but markedly elevated pharyngeal contraction pressures. Increasing age was associated with a reduction in duration of upper esophageal contractions and, for bread swallows, an increase in pharyngoesophageal wave velocity which may represent compensatory mechanisms for airway protection. Male subjects showed greater UES axial asymmetry than females, perhaps due to sex differences in laryngeal anatomy, whereas females had greater UES wet swallow after-contraction pressures which may be relevant to the generation of globus sensation. All results were independent of cigarette smoking. We conclude that normal values obtained in small numbers of young adults form an inadequate basis for the interpretation of UES tonic and pharyngeal contraction pressures, which are reported to be abnormal in older patients with dysphagia, and that manometric investigation of dysphagic patients requires the analysis of multiple parameters of dynamic pharyngoesophageal function.

Substance use and unsafe sex amongst homosexual men in Edinburgh.

A self-reported behaviour survey using an anonymous critical incident based questionnaire was administered by trained interviewers in 1998. Five hundred and thirty-one homosexual and bisexual men were recruited from gay bars, clubs, cafes, a sauna and 'cruising ground' in central Edinburgh. The use of alcohol and recreational drugs and details of sexual activity over the preceding three months and at the last sexual encounter were recorded. Unsafe sex was defined as anal sex without the use of a condom with a partner of unknown or different HIV status. Safer sex was defined as all other types of sex, including anal sex with a condom and anal sex without a condom with a partner whose HIV status was known to be the same. Of the questionnaires completed, 506 were suitable for analysis; 29 men (6.1%) reported anal sex with a partner of unknown or different HIV status without a condom ('unsafe sex') during their last sexual encounter. A total of 53 men (10.5%) could recall an episode of unsafe sex within the last three months. Men who had used marijuana or inhaled nitrites ('poppers') less than two hours before sex, or whose sexual partners had done so, were more likely to have unsafe sex than those who had not. Although alcohol use was more likely before sex with casual partners, the use of alcohol less than 2 hours before sex was not associated with sex being unsafe.

Constant i.v. infusions of nalbuphine or buprenorphine for pain after abdominal surgery.

A double-blind, sex-stratified, study compared the analgesic efficacy and side effects of nalbuphine 10 mg ml-1 (group N) and buprenorphine 0.15 mg ml-1 (group B) administered as a continuous infusion (0.2 ml kg-1/24 h), after abdominal surgery. Patients could request additional i.m. analgesic for pain. The study groups were well matched. The trial was stopped after 55 patients had been studied (nalbuphine 29, buprenorphine 26), because nine patients in the nalbuphine group had inadequate pain relief (P less than 0.01) shortly after surgery (mean 2.5 h). Analysis of the results on an "intention to treat" basis showed that the patients who received buprenorphine had significantly greater pain relief at 1, 3, 6 and 20 h after surgery. Patients who received buprenorphine were assessed by the physiotherapist to have less pain and better chest expansion. More additional analgesic was given to the patients receiving nalbuphine. In the patients receiving buprenorphine, the mean ventilatory rate was less (N = 19 b.p.m., B = 14 b.p.m.) (P less than 0.001) and the increase in PaCO2 was greater (N = 0.5 kPa, B = 1.1 kPa) (P less than 0.001), compared with the value before operation. Side effects were equal, and no serious adverse effects were observed in either group.

Reproducibility of reactive hyperaemia test in the measurement of peripheral arterial disease.

The reproducibility and sources of variation in ankle and brachial systolic pressures were determined for a reactive hyperaemia test used to assess peripheral arterial disease in the lower limbs. Thirty-six subjects had repeat measurements taken by four observers on two separate days using a Doppler probe and random zero sphygmomanometer. Ankle pressures were measured before and after 4 min of arterial occlusion above the knee. The 95 per cent confidence limits for a postocclusion reduction in pressure was approximately +/- 25 mmHg and for the postocclusion ankle-brachial ratio was +/- 20 per cent. The corresponding figures for the mean of four measurements taken by two observers on 2 days was approximately +/- 17 mmHg and +/- 13 per cent. In patients with vascular disease analysis of variance showed that the greatest sources of variation in the postocclusion ankle-brachial ratio were the 'biological' variations between subjects and between legs. But for postocclusion reductions in pressure, variability due to observers and repeat readings was as important as the 'biological' differences between subjects and legs. Thus, in respect of variability, the ratio may be a better parameter to detect differences between subjects.

Abnormal eating attitudes in young insulin-dependent diabetics.

All insulin-dependent diabetics between the ages of 16 and 25 years attending the diabetic clinic at the Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh, (152 women and 139 men) were asked to complete the EAT, the EDI, and the GHQ, and to provide a control subject (sibling or close friend) of similar age who would do likewise. Marked differences were found between diabetic women (but not men) and their controls in eating attitudes, in many of the psychological characteristics associated with eating disorders, and in GHQ scores. Although some of the women had classic anorexia nervosa or bulimia, others with abnormal eating attitudes did not fulfil the formal criteria. Overall, diabetics were significantly heavier than controls but the differences in eating attitudes were not eliminated by correcting for overweight. Abnormal scores were associated with high HbA1 levels and independently with retinopathy. The weight gain and psychological effects of diabetes are identified as probably of aetiological importance in the abnormal eating attitudes of young diabetic women.

Surveillance of an at risk population: assessment of postal urine cytology.

The urine postal cytology kit Urotel was assessed against our standard cytological method; 184 patients attending for routine surveillance cystourethroscopy provided free flow urine specimens. The urine cytology was reported blind. Comparison of the 2 tests showed similar specificity but significantly higher sensitivity with the Urotel kit. These kits may have a place in the surveillance of patients at high risk of recurrent tumour or those with carcinoma in situ, reducing the frequency of hospital attendance.

The importance of the time interval between insulin injection and breakfast in determining postprandial glycaemic control--a comparison between human and porcine insulin.

This study assessed the effect of the time interval between insulin injection and breakfast in determining subsequent postprandial glycaemic control and also whether this differed between highly purified porcine insulin and human insulin (crb) in six diabetic patients (age range 24-36 years, duration of diabetes greater than 10 years) usually treated with twice daily Actrapid MC and Monotard MC and with stable insulin requirements and diabetic control. On separate mornings each patient was given, after an overnight fast, their usual dose of either Actrapid MC and Monotard MC or Humulin S and Humulin Zn injected 5, 20, or 40 min before a standard breakfast. The postprandial glycaemic profile was not significantly different at any of the three time intervals with Actrapid MC and Monotard MC. However, with the human insulin the profile was significantly better at the 40 min interval than at the 5 min interval (p less than 0.05) and this was also better than any of the profiles with the porcine insulin, there being a significant difference between the two types of insulin (p less than 0.05). These findings suggest that the time interval between insulin injection and breakfast may be more important with human insulin than with porcine insulin.