Inflammation-mediator blockers may be weapons against sepsis syndrome

Article Abstract:

Sepsis syndrome, also called septic shock, is an inflammatory response to infections by endotoxin-producing bacteria that results in organ damage in 50 percent of cases and, depending on the patient population studied, death in 20 to 90 percent of cases. The lungs are the major organ affected by this disease, and 150,000 persons per year develop adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), with a fatality rate of 50 to 70 percent. Treatment for sepsis syndrome includes intravenous fluid replacement, antibiotics to treat the underlying infection, and mechanical ventilation. Sepsis results from the release of several factors involved in the inflammatory process; it causes damage to cells lining the blood vessels and lungs and alters blood vessel permeability. Antibodies, which are specialized proteins that inactivate foreign invading substances, may be able to block the bacterial endotoxins that trigger severe sepsis. One study showed that antibodies to endotoxins were effective in decreasing death due to sepsis only in patients who were not yet in shock. Prostaglandins, a group of fatty acids produced by arachidonic acid metabolism, are thought to play a role in tissue injury associated with sepsis syndrome. Studies have shown that prevention of prostaglandin production by ibuprofen improves symptoms in patients already in shock. Several substances are currently being studied for their ability to prevent the action of other mediators involved in the inflammatory process of septic shock. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Prevention, Development and progression, Inflammation, Acute respiratory distress syndrome, Adult respiratory distress syndrome

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Desert Storm: medical airlift was ready

Article Abstract:

Normally, the US military's aeromedical evacuation system can move 250 to 300 patients per day to specialized medical facilities. But the military expected heavy casualties during the Persian Gulf war, and contingency plans were activated to expand the system so that up to 1,500 patients per day could be moved. Because casualties were light, the Military Airlift Command (MAC), based at Scott Air Force Base in southern Illinois, was not required to demonstrate the system's maximum capability. During peacetime, preparedness is maintained by transporting military personnel and their families who need specialized care to larger military facilities, and by offering assistance in times of civilian disasters. When a doctor determines that a patient must be transported, the Armed Services Medical Regulating Office (ASMRO), a joint service agency, is notified. A computerized system, the Defense Medical Regulating Information System (DMRIS), matches the patient with an available bed at an appropriate treatment facility, preferably one nearest the patient's home. The patient is assigned a priority, and the route is planned to take into account intermediate stops on the way to and from the hospital. During the crisis in the Persian Gulf, MAC had to move only about 5,000 patients in addition to its normal workload. Very few of these cases were the result of enemy-inflicted wounds. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Health aspects, Usage, Wars, Armies, War, Persian Gulf War, 1991, editorial, United States. Air Force. Military Airlift Command

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Advances in islet cell transplantation: is science closer to a diabetes cure?

Article Abstract:

Successful transplantation of pancreatic islet cells has been achieved in two patients with insulin-dependent diabetes. In the first patient, temporary freedom from taking insulin lasted more two weeks, and at the time this article was published, the second patient still had insulin independence. Researchers from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri are unsure of the potential duration of the temporary cure, since they cannot tell how long the transplanted cells will survive. A long-term goal is to successfully transplant islet cells from animals, such as pigs, into diabetic patients, in order to solve the human donor supply problem. Additional medical centers may soon perform islet cell transplantation; however, researchers are limiting their clinical trials to diabetic patients who are dependent on insulin and who have had, or will receive, a kidney transplant and begin treatment with immunosuppressant agents. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Care and treatment, Innovations, Type 1 diabetes, Transplantation of organs, tissues, etc., Organ transplantation, Tissue transplantation, Transplantation, Pancreatic beta cells, Pancreatic beta cell transplantation

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