RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPAA) suppression is the most common and dangerous, although often unrecognized and untreated, side effect of glucocorticoid administration. The risk and duration depend both on patient and treatment characteristics. High-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) currently represents the gold standard method to evaluate the metabolism of endogenous and exogenous steroids. OBJECTIVE: To assess prevalence, severity, and duration of HPAA suppression subsequent to the injection of two steroids with equivalent potency but different pharmacokinetics. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Single-blind randomized case-control pilot study. Forty patients (22 F; age 48.7 ± 7.2 years) with shoulder calcific tendinopathy received an intrabursal injection of 40 mg of 6α-methylprednisolone acetate (MA) or triamcinolone acetonide (TA). Just before (T0) and after 1 (T1), 7 (T2), 15 (T3), 30 (T4) and 45 (T5) days, we assessed morning blood cortisol and ACTH by RIA, and 24-h urinary levels of MA, TA and free cortisol by HPLC-MS/MS. RESULTS: HPAA function was normal at baseline. At T1, all patients presented HPAA suppression reaching the lowest cortisol, ACTH and UFC levels, that were similar between groups. At T2, mean cortisol remained lower than at baseline (p < 0.0001) in the TA group. In both groups, mean cortisol and ACTH levels progressively normalized, suggesting HPA recovery, except for three patients in the MA and two in the TA group. UFC levels remained lower than normal (p < 0.0001) up to T5, despite the disappearance of exogenous GCs. No patient developed manifestations of hypocortisolism. CONCLUSIONS: A single 40-mg intrabursal injection of MA or TA is sufficient to suppresses HPAA up to 45 days. Although typically asymptomatic, patients should be instructed to recognize and report symptoms suggestive for hypocortisolism, to provide prompt diagnosis, and eventually, treatment, thus avoiding severe complications.
Asunto(s)
Insuficiencia Suprarrenal/patología , Calcinosis/tratamiento farmacológico , Glucocorticoides/efectos adversos , Sistema Hipotálamo-Hipofisario/patología , Artropatías/tratamiento farmacológico , Sistema Hipófiso-Suprarrenal/patología , Articulación del Hombro/patología , Tendinopatía/tratamiento farmacológico , Enfermedades Vasculares/tratamiento farmacológico , Insuficiencia Suprarrenal/inducido químicamente , Biomarcadores/análisis , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Glucocorticoides/administración & dosificación , Humanos , Sistema Hipotálamo-Hipofisario/efectos de los fármacos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Proyectos Piloto , Sistema Hipófiso-Suprarrenal/efectos de los fármacos , Pronóstico , Método Simple CiegoRESUMEN
For the definitive treatment of lagophthalmos and satisfactory rehabilitation of the affected eye, different surgical strategies have been proposed, including static or dynamic procedures. Although some of these can have good results, lid loading is now the most common technique for treating paralytic long-term lagophthalmos. Among the different types of loading, the use of a platinum chain is preferred to the use of a standard gold weight because platinum has a higher density than gold and is also more biocompatible. In this paper authors retrospectively analyzed 43 patients with regards to functional and cosmetic results. Questionnaires were also employed to assess changes and improvements in the patients' quality of life. Analysis of the excellent results achieved confirmed that platinum chain lid loading should be considered as a first-line treatment for paralytic lagophthalmos rehabilitation. It is a simple, reliable, and effective technique that significantly improves the health-related quality of life of patients.
Asunto(s)
Materiales Biocompatibles/química , Enfermedades de los Párpados/cirugía , Párpados/cirugía , Platino (Metal)/química , Prótesis e Implantes , Implantación de Prótesis , Adulto , Anciano , Parpadeo/fisiología , Cicatriz/patología , Disección/métodos , Estética , Parálisis Facial/cirugía , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Queratitis/cirugía , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Satisfacción del Paciente , Calidad de Vida , Estudios Retrospectivos , Técnicas de Sutura , Lágrimas/metabolismo , Visión Ocular/fisiología , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
ß(2) -agonists are often abused in cattle breeding because of their effects on animal growth and meat properties. The use of ß(2) -agonists as growth promoters is forbidden in the European Union (Council Directive 96/23/EC classifies them into group A of Annex I), due to their toxicity and carcinogenic properties, as for anabolic steroids, which are often administered in combination with ß(2) -agonists, to promote the storage of proteins and increase muscle size. A unique confirmatory liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the quantitative detection of 13 ß(2) -agonists and anabolic steroids plus the qualitative identification of other three analytes in bovine hair was developed and validated, according to Decision 2002/657/CE. Hair samples were washed with dichloromethane, digested within a NaOH solution and subjected to liquid-liquid extraction. The analysis was performed by high performance liquid chromatography coupled to a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer operating in the selected reaction monitoring mode. The absence of matrix interferents, together with good repeatability of both retention times and relative abundances of diagnostic transitions, allowed the correct identification of all analytes. The quantitative calibrations obtained from spiked blank hair samples proved linear in the range tested. CCα and CCß ranged from 0.5 ng/g to 30 ng/g. Intralaboratory reproducibility (CV%) ranged between 5.0 and 17.7 and trueness between 96% ± 7% and 105% ± 8%. The applicability of the method to real positive samples was demonstrated for both ß(2) -agonists and anabolic steroids. 17α-boldenone was found in most (70%) hair samples obtained from untreated animals, supporting the hypothesis of endogenous production of this steroid.
RESUMEN
Prednisolone is a synthetic corticosteroid acting on both hydrosaline balance and metabolism that is liable to fraudulent administration to meat-producing animals for growth-promoting purposes. Its use outside strict therapeutic control and prescription is banned by the European legislation, but official controls are hampered by its negligible direct excretion into the urinary matrix. Recent studies reported on a potential endogenous origin of prednisolone in animals subjected to stressful conditions, accounting for its occasional detection in control urines. The objective of the present study was the identification and quantification of prednisolone urinary metabolites to be used as illicit treatment biomarkers in place of the parent drug. An LC-MS/MS screening was conducted on urine samples collected from a bullock intramuscularly administered with prednisolone acetate by using a therapeutic protocol (2 × 0.52 mg kg(-1) at 48-hour interval). Four prednisolone metabolites were identified: 20ß-dihydroprednisolone, 20α-dihydroprednisolone, 6ß-hydroxyprednisolone and 20ß-dihydroprednisone; the first was detected at relatively high concentrations. An existing quantitative LC-MS/MS method was expanded and revalidated to include these metabolites. The new analytical method proved sensitive (LODs: 0.35-0.42 ng mL(-1)) and specific and was applied to urine samples collected from eight beef cattle subjected to low-dosage oral administration of prednisolone acetate for a 35-day period, as in standard growth-promoting treatments. 20ß-Dihydroprednisolone was detected in all urine samples collected during the treatment, at relatively high concentration (1.2-27 ng mL(-1)), whereas the prednisolone concentration was virtually negligible (<0.7 ng mL(-1)). 20ß-Dihydroprednisolone was no longer present in almost all samples collected 6 days after the end of the treatment, but trace amounts of this metabolite were found in two urine samples from control animals. 20ß-Dihydroprednisolone is proposed as an effective biomarker to test illegal growth-promoting treatments with prednisolone in meat cattle, alternatively to the parent drug.
Asunto(s)
Prednisolona/metabolismo , Animales , Bovinos , Cromatografía Liquida , Límite de Detección , Espectrometría de Masas en TándemRESUMEN
Prednisolone is a synthetic glucocorticoid widely employed in bovine clinical practice that may also be used illegally as a growth promoter. Recent in vitro and in vivo studies lend support to the hypothesis that prednisolone could be synthesised from cortisol in untreated cattle subjected to stressful events. To verify such a hypothesis, a field survey was conducted on urine samples collected from 131 guaranteed untreated cows and analysed for the presence of prednisolone and prednisone - in some instances also for cortisol and cortisone - with a validated LC/MS-MS method. None of the examined samples exhibited either prednisolone levels higher than the CCα limit (around 0.70 µg l⻹) or prednisone, being therefore officially compliant for both analytes. Trace amounts of prednisolone, approximately estimated in the range 0.1-0.3 µg l⻹ were found in only seven samples from cows also showing urinary cortisol and cortisone levels higher than those detected in negative specimens, as the result of a probable stress condition.
Asunto(s)
Bovinos/fisiología , Glucocorticoides/orina , Sustancias de Crecimiento/orina , Prednisolona/orina , Prednisona/orina , Estrés Fisiológico , Estrés Psicológico/orina , Animales , Cromatografía Líquida de Alta Presión/veterinaria , Cortisona/orina , Femenino , Glucocorticoides/química , Glucocorticoides/metabolismo , Sustancias de Crecimiento/química , Sustancias de Crecimiento/metabolismo , Hidrocortisona/metabolismo , Hidrocortisona/orina , Italia , Estructura Molecular , Prednisolona/química , Prednisolona/metabolismo , Prednisona/química , Prednisona/metabolismo , Estrés Psicológico/metabolismo , Espectrometría de Masas en Tándem/veterinariaRESUMEN
Trismus is a common postoperative complication for patients operated on for cancer of the masticator space, infratemporal fossa, or pterygomaxillary fossa, particularly those who need radiotherapy. When other techniques have failed, free tissue transfer should be considered as an option in young patients who have previously been treated for oral cancer. We report our experience with the free anterolateral thigh musculocutaneous flap in two children.
Asunto(s)
Colgajos Tisulares Libres , Neoplasias de Cabeza y Cuello/terapia , Músculo Esquelético/trasplante , Trasplante de Piel/métodos , Trismo/cirugía , Adolescente , Quimioterapia Adyuvante/efectos adversos , Cicatriz/etiología , Fibrosis , Humanos , Masculino , Neoplasias Mandibulares/radioterapia , Neoplasias Mandibulares/cirugía , Complicaciones Posoperatorias , Radioterapia Adyuvante/efectos adversos , Rango del Movimiento Articular/fisiología , Procedimientos de Cirugía Plástica/métodos , Rabdomiosarcoma/radioterapia , Rabdomiosarcoma/cirugía , MusloRESUMEN
17beta-Estradiol is one of the most powerful sex steroids illegally used in bovine production. The objective of this study was to evaluate the application and the specificity of the RIKILT yeast estrogen bioassay (REA) for the detection of molecules with estrogenic activities in the urine of calves experimentally treated with anabolics. Four groups of six calves each received an injection of 17beta-estradiol intramuscularly (group B), androsterone and gliburide (group A), and testosterone (group C) molecules at different dosage for 40 days. Group D was the control. The ability of the REA test to detect estrogenic activity in urine samples from all animals was assessed. All estrogen-treated animals (group B) showed as being positive up to 7 days after administration of the highest dosage of 17beta-estradiol, while the other three groups showed as being negative. The identity of estrogenic molecules in the urine of group B (17beta-estradiol, 17alpha-estradiol) was confirmed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). This is the first time the REA test has been applied to detect 17beta-estradiol in the urine of calves treated with the hormone in vivo. The technique may offer an advantageous laboratory method for the veterinary surveillance of illegal steroid use.
Asunto(s)
Anabolizantes/administración & dosificación , Bioensayo/métodos , Estradiol/administración & dosificación , Estrógenos/orina , Contaminación de Alimentos/prevención & control , Animales , Bovinos , Estradiol/orina , Receptor alfa de Estrógeno/genética , Receptor alfa de Estrógeno/metabolismo , Unión Europea , Contaminación de Alimentos/análisis , Cromatografía de Gases y Espectrometría de Masas , Genes Reporteros , Proteínas Fluorescentes Verdes/genética , Proteínas Fluorescentes Verdes/metabolismo , Humanos , Masculino , Carne/análisis , Prohibitinas , Proteínas Recombinantes/genética , Proteínas Recombinantes/metabolismo , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/efectos de los fármacos , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/genética , Saccharomyces cerevisiae/metabolismoRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: To estimate mortality from lung cancer and the risk attributable to asbestos separately for asbestos cement workers and for the general (non-occupationally exposed) population in the town of Casale Monferrato, where the largest Italian asbestos cement factory had been in operation in 1907-86. According to cancer registry data, in the same town the incidence of malignant mesothelioma in the general population is about 10 times higher than in comparable Italian provinces. METHOD: Decedents from lung cancer in 1989-95 were nominally identified in the list of decedents kept at the Local Health Authority of Casale Monferrato. Workers in the asbestos cement factory have been identified with a search in the nominal list of workers and the same was done for the wives of asbestos cement workers. These lists have already been used in cohort studies. Sensitivity and specificity of the linkage procedure with occupational activity in asbestos cement production have been evaluated in a previous study. Population at risk was estimated on the basis of official figures and on the results of the cohort study of asbestos cement workers. RESULTS: 227 deaths from lung cancer were included (184 men and 43 women). Among the asbestos cement workers mortalities were 234.0 x 100,000 person-years among men and 35.5 among women. Corresponding figures in the general (non-occupationally exposed) population in Casale Monferrato were 80.6 and 18.7. The rates in the general population were not higher than in the rest of the region. Attributable risk (AR) among the asbestos cement workers (and wives) is 67.5% (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 56.8 to 78.2) for men and 51.3% (95% CI 14.9 to 87.8) among women. Population AR to occupational or paraoccupational exposure in the asbestos cement production is 18.3% (95% CI 11.1 to 25.6) among men and 10.1% (95% CI 0 to 24.6) among women. CONCLUSION: This work did not show an increase in mortality from lung cancer for the population not exposed occupationally, but a large excess was found among men and women occupationally exposed in asbestos cement production. The total burden of lung cancer due to occupational exposure to asbestos may be underestimated, as only occupational exposure in asbestos cement production was taken into consideration. Nevertheless even a single factory can be responsible for a considerable proportion of deaths from lung cancer in a population.
Asunto(s)
Asbesto Crocidolita/efectos adversos , Asbestos Serpentinas/efectos adversos , Exposición a Riesgos Ambientales/efectos adversos , Neoplasias Pulmonares/mortalidad , Enfermedades Profesionales/mortalidad , Exposición Profesional/efectos adversos , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Niño , Preescolar , Industria Procesadora y de Extracción , Femenino , Humanos , Lactante , Recién Nacido , Italia/epidemiología , Neoplasias Pulmonares/epidemiología , Neoplasias Pulmonares/etiología , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Enfermedades Profesionales/epidemiología , Enfermedades Profesionales/etiología , Vigilancia de la Población , Estudios Retrospectivos , Medición de Riesgo , Factores de RiesgoRESUMEN
The study presents mortality rates for lung cancer in the town of Casale Monferrato, where the largest Italian asbestos cement-plant was located. Cases of lung cancer dying in 1989-94 were exhaustively searched for in the register of deaths. Each case of lung cancer has been identified as ever or never employed in the factory with a linkage to the rosters of employees in the plant. Women were also identified as ever or never married to an asbestos-cement worker. The number of person-years at risk for asbestos cement workers and their wives was measured on the basis of the most recent follow-up. Mortality rates were computed separately for those exposed (workers and wives of workers) and for those with no evidence of exposure. Mortality rates for non-exposed were similar to rates in Piedmont (the region where Casale is located). The relative risk (ever exposed vs. never exposed) was 2.8 among men and 2.1 among women. Attributable risk among the exposed was 64.5% for men and 53.1% for women while among the general population it was 18.1% for men and 13.2% for women. The study confirms the dramatic effect of occupational asbestos exposure in Casale Monferrato but does not suggest an increase in lung cancer mortality among people with no occupational activity in the asbestos-cement production.