Effect of Black Tea and Green Tea on the Radial Pulse Spectrum in Healthy Humans.

The consumption of black tea and green tea has been shown to be beneficial for cardiovascular health. Because the chemical composition of the two teas varies widely, the purpose of the study was to investigate whether the consumption of green tea and black tea had different effects on the arterial system. Thirty-three healthy subjects received a single dose of green tea (dose = 0.05 g/kg) and black tea (dose = 0.05 g/kg) in different weeks. Radial blood pressure and radial pulse pressure were measured before and after drinking tea. The harmonic analysis was performed on radial pressure waves, and harmonics (Cns) were recorded. The results showed that both black tea and green tea consumption significantly increased the C1, C2, C6, C7, C8, C9, and C10 of the radial pressure wave. Furthermore, the results confirmed that the consumption effect of green tea on C6-C10 increase is greater than that of black tea. This report also found a subtle difference that consumption of green tea increased C4, whereas consumption of black tea increased C3. We concluded that black tea and green tea have similar patterns in higher harmonics, but with varying degrees.

Effect of black tea consumption on radial blood pulse spectrum and cognitive health.

Black tea consumption has been proven to improve endothelial function and to lower the risk of stroke and cognitive impairment. Several effects of black tea on cardiovascular system had been surveyed. However, the black tea effect on pressure pulse spectrum remains unknown. The study was aimed to investigate the influence of black tea on radial blood pressure and Pulse Spectrum. Fourteen healthy subjects received water and single doses of black tea (0.05g/Kg) in separate weeks. The radial blood pressure and pulse wave were measured and the pressure pulses were evaluated using harmonic analysis. This report confirmed that black tea consumption (dose=0.05g/Kg) significantly increased third, fifth, (P<0.1), sixth, seventh, and eighth harmonics (p<0.05) of radial pressure wave comparing to water control. We proposed that black tea may increase cerebral blood flow (CBF), which was deduced from the results and from the conclusions of previous studies. The results also showed that the harmonic components of pressure pulse could be the vascular kinetic index that assessed the hemodynamic status in each time frame before and after consumption of black tea.

Radiofrequency catheter ablation of supraventricular tachycardia in infants and toddlers.

BACKGROUND: The role of radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) of supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) in infants and toddlers is still unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: From 1993 to 2006, 27 (17 males, 10 females) of 210 patients underwent RFCA at an age less than 6 years. Indications included drug-refractory SVT or tachycardia-induced cardiomyopathy. The medical records were reviewed and the patients were interviewed regarding their current status. The 27 patients underwent RFCA at a median age of 4.4 years (8 months to 5.9 years) and a median body weight of 15 kg (6.6-30 kg). The SVT was mainly atrioventricular reentry tachycardia (15/27) and multiple mechanisms in 3. One-third of them had associated congenital heart disease, and 5 underwent RFCA using only 2-3 catheters. Immediate success rate was 92.6%, with low early (3.7%) and late recurrence (7.4%) after 5.4 +/-3.7 years follow-up. Tachycardia-induced cardiomyopathy was noted in 4 and resolved in all after RFCA. Procedure-related complications included complete atrioventricular block in 1 and Bezold-Jarisch reflex in another. No other risk factors for outcomes were noted, even with low body weight. CONCLUSIONS: The outcome of RFCA for medically refractory SVT, even associated with tachycardia-induced cardiomyopathy, in infants and toddlers is favorable.

Evaluation of pharmacokinetics of 4-borono-2-(18)F-fluoro-L-phenylalanine for boron neutron capture therapy in a glioma-bearing rat model with hyperosmolar blood-brain barrier disruption.

UNLABELLED: This study evaluated the pharmacokinetics and biodistribution of 4-borono-2-(18)F-fluoro-l-phenylalanine ((18)F-FBPA) after intracarotid injection and with blood-brain barrier disruption (BBB-D) in F98 glioma-bearing F344 rats. The pharmacokinetics of l-p-boronophenylalanine (BPA) and (18)F-FBPA following different administration routes were compared to demonstrate the optimal delivery route and the time period for thermal neutron irradiation. METHODS: F98 glioma-bearing rats were injected intravenously or intracarotidly with (18)F-FBPA and BPA and with or without mannitol-induced hyperosmotic BBB-D. The boron concentration and (18)F radioactivity in tissues were determined by invasive (inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy, gamma-counting) and noninvasive PET methods. RESULTS: The biodistributions of (18)F-FBPA and BPA in F98 glioma-bearing rats were similar after intracarotid administration with BBB-D. The accumulation of BPA and (18)F-FBPA in brain tumor and the tumor-to-ipsilateral brain ratios were the highest after intracarotid injection with BBB-D, whereas the retention of boron drugs in contralateral brains exhibited only nonsignificant differences compared with those after intracarotid injection without BBB-D and intravenous injection. The high boron concentration in brain tumor (76.6 mug/g) and the high tumor-to-ipsilateral brain ratio (6.3) may afford enough radiation doses to destroy the tumor cells while sparing the normal tissues in boron neutron capture therapy. The pharmacokinetic parameters of k(el), k(12), k(21), and V(1) for intracarotid injection of (18)F-FBPA with BBB-D derived from the open 2-compartment model are 0.0206 +/- 0.0018 min(-1), 0.0260 +/- 0.0016 min(-1), 0.0039 +/- 0.0003 min(-1), and 3.1 +/- 0.1 mL, respectively. The effect of BBB-D varied depending on the anesthetic agents used and the anesthetic conditions. A smaller degree of BBB-D and, thus, lower boron concentrations in tumor and ipsilateral brain were observed under isoflurane anesthesia than under ketamine anesthesia. The k(12)/k(21) ratio may serve as a good indication for evaluating the extent of BBB-D, tumor uptake, and tumor-to-brain ratio after intracarotid injection of boron compounds. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide important information for establishing an optimal treatment protocol when intracarotid injection with BPA after BBB-D is applied in clinical boron neutron capture therapy.