[Measles re-emerging in the Ústí Region]. / Návrat spalnicek do Ústeckého kraje.

A report is given of a measles outbreak in healthcare workers and the general population that occurred in February to March in Ústí nad Labem. The source of infection was a man with a history of travel to India. The outbreak was primarily observed in the patients contacts and then spread widely to healthcare workers of the Masaryk Hospital in Ústí nad Labem. The outbreak further reached the general population including family contacts of the patients. By the end of March 2014, 171 measles cases were reported, 68 (39.8%) of which in healthcare workers. Cases we confirmed by laboratory analysis of IgM antibodies and IgG antibody dynamics and, possibly, by R-PCR. In addition to standard preventive anti-epidemic measures, the healthcare workers of the Masaryk Hospital were vaccinated with an extra dose of the Priorix vaccine. Measles cases were most often reported in the population born in 1970-1980. This age group was the target population for an extra dose of the Priorix vaccine. General recommendations have been formulated based on the experience from the outbreak.

[Levels of vitamins A, E and C in serum and gastric juice in relation to gastric mucosa and occurrence of Helicobacter pylori]. / Hladiny vitaminu A, E a C v séru a zaludecní st'áve ve vztahu k zaludecní sliznici a výskytu Helicobacter pylori.

Colonization of the gastric mucosa with Helicobacter pylori H.p. reduces the vitamin C concentration of gastric juice. Eradication of H.p. within four weeks after completed treatment does not exert a significant effect on changes in the concentration of vitamins A, E and C in gastric juice or serum. Despite this after eradication a rising trend of vitamin E in gastric juice was recorded. Substitution of vitamin C and E in gastritis associated with colonization with H.p. has a favourable effect and may reduce the risk of malignization.

Humoral response in patients with chronic heart failure.

AIM: Correlation of five humoral markers with laboratory, echocardiographic and right heart catheterization parameters in patients with chronic heart failure. STUDY POPULATION: 29 patients, heart failure NYHA II and III, ejection fraction below 40% with coronary artery disease or dilated cardiomyopathy. METHODS: evaluation of thromboxane, prostaglandin F (PGF), tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha, endothelin-1 and big endothelin rest levels and their correlation with: (1) laboratory parameters: Sodium, urea, creatinine, fibrinogen, (2) chest X-ray: cardiothoracic index (CTI), pulmonary congestion, (3) right heart catheterization parameters at rest, hand-grip and bicycle ergometry: mean pulmonary artery pressure (AP), wedge pressure (WP), systemic and pulmonary vascular resistance (SVR, PVR) and cardiac index (CI), (4) echocardiographic parameters at rest, hand-grip and bicycle ergometry: end-diastolic volume (EDV), end-systolic volume (ESV), ejection fraction (EF), mitral flow E/A, filling period of left ventricle and time of duration of mitral regurgitation. RESULTS: No correlation was found between thromboxane, prostaglandin F and tumor necrosis factor alpha with the above mentioned parameters. Endothelin-1 level correlated with E/A, PVR and MPA at rest and at hand-grip. Big endothelin level correlated with EDV and ESV, AP, WP and SVR at rest and at both types of exercise. The highest correlation was between big endothelin and rest AP (r=0.79), rest WP (r=0.78) and CTI (r=0.58), all P<0.01. CONCLUSIONS: Big endothelin and partly endothelin-1 levels showed a close correlation with some parameters used for the evaluation of chronic heart failure severity.

[Determination of mefenoxalone in substances, tablets and biological materials]. / Stanovení mefenoxalonu v substanci, tabletách a biologickém materiálu.

For the determination of mefenoxalon in substance, tablets and biological material (blood plasma), four variants were worked out. The first of them is based on the substitution of the benzene ring with bromine with the use of an excess of bromine, which is determined ionometrically. The second variant is based on direct titration of the hydrolytic product mefenoxalon, 3-(2-methoxyphenoxy)-2-hydroxypropylamine, with the use of the ion-selective electrode of the coated-wire type with a volumetric solution of tetraphenyl-borsodium. The third variant utilizes direct measurements of UV spectra of mefenoxalon in a solution of dichlorethane. The fourth variant consists in its fluorimetric measurement in a solution of dichlorethane, or ethylacetate. A detailed discussion of advantages and disadvantages of all above-mentioned variants of determination is presented.

Systemic consequences of non-healing skin wounds: anaemia of chronic disease.

The paper describes a case of skin wounds inflicted by automutilation in a young woman with psychic regulation disorder. Repeated local irritation and infection produced a complicated systemic disorder leading to hypochromic anaemia which failed to respond to Fe treatment. The paper discusses the mechanism of this type of anaemia which appears in literature under the heading of anaemia of chronic disease (ACD).

Application of liquid crystal thermoindicators and thermographic sheets for estimation of hygienic conditions of habitation.

One of the basic conditions, enabling the healthy living in flat houses, is the securing of thermoisolation properties of peripheral building elements. The presented study deals with the verification of thermoisolation properties by the method using the liquid crystal thermoindicators and thermographic sheets. The applied method is effective, sufficiently precise and mobile, allowing the estimation of thermoisolation properties of building elements, namely in practice.

Postirradiation changes in small intestine mucosa of piglets selectively decontaminated by peroral antibiotics.

There was performed light microscopic and morphometric comparison of changes in the intestinal mucosa structure after the irradiation of the lower part of body by radiation 60Co in a dose of 12 Gy, observed the third day after irradiation in piglets kept under conventional conditions and the fifth, the fifteenth and the twentieth days after irradiation in piglets kept under the conditions of selective decontamination by peroral antibiotics. The non-irradiated animals kept conventionally as well as under the conditions of decontamination served as controls. The estimation was performed on transverse slices of the cranial part of jejunum and of the caudal part of ileum. The slices were stained by the method hematoxylin-eosin. The drawings prepared with the help of the projective microscope Pictoval were used for measuring on the apparatus for the quantitative analysis of image MOP AM 03. A markedly lower damage of the intestinal mucosa was evidenced in piglets selectively decontaminated by peroral antibiotics. In the studied time intervals after irradiation in a dose of 12 Gy, the epithelial cover of mucosa, the crypt epithelium and the general outline of mucosa are much better maintained. The favourable effect of the selective decontamination on the maintenance and regeneration of the mucosa of jejunum and ileum is confirmed by a range of morphometric parameters.

[Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. Initial clinical experience]. / Perkutánní transluminální koronární angioplastika. První klinické zkusenosti.

Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty was performed in 20 patients with angina pectoris (16 patients with stable AP, class II-III., 4 patients with unstable AP) in the period of 1 year. There was single-vessel disease in all patients. Left ventricular function was normal as well in all patients. PTCA was successful in 16 patients (80%), in the remaining 4 patients coronary artery stenosis was not reached with balloon catheter. There were no death, Q-wave myocardial infarction or emergency bypass surgery. Transient ischemic changes on ECG has been found in 2 patients (10%). All patients with successful PTCA were symptomatically improved in period of 1-12 months, in one half of them this improvement was confirmed with stress ECG. Control coronary angiography was made in 2 patients until now, restenosis was not found.

Degradation of colour temperature characteristic of thermographic sheets of Czechoslovak provenance provoked by UV radiation.

The presented study deals with the changes of thermooptic qualities of thermographic sheet, provoked by UV irradiation. The thermographic sheets of inland provenance produced by are possible to use in medical coloured surface thermography. The method adapted for measuring gives quite reproducible results and for its relative simplicity it is convenient for medical workplaces where the surface thermography and the UV radiation sources are in use. The knowledge of degradation influence of UV irradiation on the sheets could be useful in any medical workplaces engaged with thermography.

Time degradation of chromatic temperature characteristics thermographic sheets applied in actual Czechoslovak medical practice.

The study deals with time degradation changes of chromatic temperature characteristics and chromatically active temperature intervals of LC thermochromic sheets of inland provenance. The method applied is relatively simple, gives quite reproducible results and can be utilized for verification of chromatic temperature characteristics of thermographic sheets in medical establishments. As far as the application of thermographic LC sheets in medicine is concerned, the results obtained in this study describe the time degradation of the most important thermooptic quality of thermochromic sheets of Czechoslovak origin, applied in surface thermography.