Lena Andersson

The healing process of anastomoses of the colon

In spite of modern suture materials and different techniques in colonic anastomoses after resection, leakage is still the most feared complication in colonic surgery. In female pigs of Swedish land breed, standardized 5-cm long colonic resection was performed 10 cm above the peritoneal deflection, usign either a single layer of Gambee-stitches (n=6, Vicryl® 4-0), two-layer interrupted stitches (n=6, Vicryl® 4-0) or the intraluminal stapling device (n=6, ILS Ethicon®). After one week, the animals were sacrificed and an anastomotic index was calculated usingin vitro x-ray. Also, anastomotic circulation (calculated by the microsphere technique), breaking strength, and histologic evaluation were performed. All animals survived and no leakage was observed. The time to perform, the anastomosis was significantly shorter (P<0.05) for the stapling device compared with the manual techniques used. The anastomotic index was lower (P<0.05) for two rows (0.24) compared with Gambee-stitches (0.38) or stapler anastomoses (0.37). There were no differences in blood flow among the three groups and no differences in breaking strength. Macroscopic investigation revealed mucosal defects in two of the stapled anastomoses and histologic investigation showed small areas of necrosis. The stapling device did not induce any inflammatory reaction. On the other hand, a severe inflammatory reaction was seen when using conventional suture materials. In conclusion, this study shows that a single row of Gambee-stitches is equal to the ILS stapling device when performing colonic anastomoses and these two methods seem to be superior to the two-layer technique.

Pharmacokinetics, Tissue Distribution and Metabolism of Intravenously Administered Digalactosyldiacylglycerol and Monogalactosyldiacylglycerol in the Rat

AbstractA bilayer forming galactolipid, digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGalDG) has been identified as a tool with suitable physicochemichal properties for pharmaceutical formulation work. One possible application is as a carrier for liposome entrapped drugs for intravenous administration. The fate of intravenously administered galactolipids is not known. In this study liposomal dispersions of galactolipids, containing [3H]fatty acid labelled DGalDG or monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGalDG) were injected intravenously in the rat and the disappearance from blood and uptake by tissues were examined. The T1/2 of [3H]DGalDG in plasma was 3 to 5 minutes. Of the tissues examined (liver, spleen, kidneys, lung, heart, stomach, upper and lower small intestine and colon), the liver contained the highest radioactivity per g tissue after both 15 min. and 4 h. Autoradiographic examinations after 15 min, 1 h and 4 h showed that the uptake of radiolabeled DGalDG and MGalDG occurred mainly to the hepatocytes. Less than 6 % of...

Tracers for aerosol ventilation scintigraphy: Tc-99m versus In-113m

Abstract113mIn has been proposed as a suitable tracer for aerosol ventilation scintigraphy in combination with 99mTc pulmonary perfusion scintigraphy. The high energy (393 keV) of113mIn allows it to be detected in the presence of 99mTc, but degrades the spatial resolution which can be achieved. We have compared the resolution obtained with 99mTc and 113mIn in phantom experiments and in aerosol ventilation scans in 14 patients with airways disease. The resolution at the distances from the collimator encountered in lung scintigraphy was 10–20 mm for 99mTc and 15–40 mm for 113mIn. Aerosol ventilation images were abnormal in all patients. The 99mTc images showed peripheral defects and frequently central hot spots reflecting increased local aerosol deposition. In the 113mIn images, the lower resolution had a smoothing effect, the central hot spots were less striking, and the distribution of activity appeared more uniform, some detail was lost in the periphery. It is suggested that 113mIn is useful for ventilation scintigraphy in the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism, but that 99mTc is the tracer of choice if aerosol ventilation scintigraphy is used to study airways disease.

Biokinetics and dosimetry for 195Au, evaluated in an animal model

The use of the generator produced radionuclide 195mAu, half life 30 s, has become feasible for several different investigations, e.g. cardiac studies. To assess the absorbed dose from the long lived radionuclide 195Au (the daughter of 195mAu, half life 183 days), a biodistribution study of 195Au was performed in animals. Seven rabbits were injected with eluate from a 195mHg-195mAu generator and the retention and the biodistribution of the long lived gold isotope was investigated. The activity was localized mainly in the liver and the kidneys. Transforming the data to man resulted in an absorbed dose from 195Au from 1 elution (approximately 925 MBq 195mAu) of 2.2 mGy to the kidney and 1.3 mGy to the liver and an effective dose equivalent of 0.26 mSv. The total effective dose equivalent from all radionuclides in the eluate (195mAu, 195Au, 195mHg and 195Hg), was estimated to be 0.65 mSv for a single injection (925 MBq 195mAu).

Beneficial Effect of Hepatic Arterialization on Hypogonadism in Male Rats with Portacaval Shunt

The effect of portacaval shunt (PCS) with and without hepatic arterialization (HA) upon the liver morphology, hemodynamics, and in relation to testicular weight, histology, and plasma sex steroid levels has been investigated in male rats. PCS rats showed a significant decrease in hepatic blood flow, body and liver weights, together with signs of severe hypogonadism. In contrast, in HA rats the increment in liver blood flow was associated with higher body and liver weights. In spite of total portal blood shunting, a beneficial effect on testicular morphology and an increase in plasma testosterone level were observed. In respect to plasma estradiol levels the intergroup differences could not be evaluated due to large individual variations. This was probably caused by the presence of cross-reactive plasma component(s) masking the level of endogenous estrogen. It is concluded that portosystemic shunting is not of primary importance in the etiology of PCS-related hypogonadism in the male.