Are oxybutynin and trospium efficacious in the treatment of detrusor overactivity in spinal cord injury patients?

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the efficacy of anticholinergic agents in the treatment of neurogenic overactive bladder (NOAB) and neurogenic detrusor overactivity (NDO) in spinal cord injury (SCI) patients on clean intermittent catheterisation (CIC). METHODS: Chronic suprasacral SCI patients on CIC presenting with at least one urinary leakage a day were included. Urodynamics and voiding diaries were performed at baseline and 1 month follow-up. In case of NDO at baseline, an anticholinergic drug was prescribed. RESULTS: The 231 SCI patients presented with one to five urinary leakages per day (mean 2.1). Urodynamics showed NDO in all patients. A new anticholinergic treatment was started in all, either in monotherapy (134 patients) or in association with the existing anticholinergic drug (oxybutynin+trospium bitherapy, 97 patients). The mean maximum bladder capacity significantly increased from 225 to 441 ml, and the mean involuntary detrusor contractions (IDC) significantly decreased from 67 to 41 cm H2O. Only 75 SCI patients (32%) were fully continent. However, 25 out of these 75 patients showed persistent NDO, with amplitudes of IDC above 40 cm H2O in 12 patients. Incontinence was still found in 156 SCI patients (67%), with an average of 1,2 leakages a day. In 100 patients, amplitudes of IDC remained above 40 cm H2O. There was no statistical difference between patients on anticholinergic monotherapy or bitherapy at follow-up. CONCLUSION: Anticholinergic treatment is not always satisfactory in terms of control of NDO and rarely allows full continence. Urodynamic follow-up is mandatory in all patients, even in those showing clinical continence.

[Evaluation of the management of erectile and ejaculatory dysfunction in a series of 90 patients with spinal cord injuries]. / Évaluation du traitement des dysfonctions érectiles et éjaculatoires dans une série de 90 blessés médullaires.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the erectile dysfunction and ejaculatory on patients injured in conus medullaris (CMI) and the efficacy of treatment. METHODS: Ninety patients with injured conus medullaris underwent a retrospective and monocentric study. They have all an assessment of erectile dysfunction and ejaculatory by the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-15) and a clinic scenario. We evaluated the erection by a clinical scoring scale (Shrameck). Seventy-seven out of 90 (85.55%) had therapeutic tests to restore erection: prostaglandin (PGE1), phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5) and Papaverine. Seventy-four out of 90 (82.22%) underwent a penile stimulation tests (VM) more or less associated with Midodrine(®) (alpha mimetic) to cause ejaculation with a systematic search of spermatozoa in urine. Data were entered and analyzed using Microsoft Office Excel. RESULTS: Ninety patients with a complete lesion of the sacral metameres (S2S3S4) were included. They were responding to PGE1, PDE5, respectively 81.63% and 30.76%. The association VM/Midodrine(®) improves ejaculation in 52.63% of cases. Orgasm is absent in all our CMI. CONCLUSION: In this series of BCM patients, we observed a good efficacy of PGE1 and PDE 5 on erection. We also observed positive results of vibromassage and alpha-agonists on ejaculation.

[Functional surgery of upper limb in tetraplegics since 50 years]. / Evolution de la prise en charge chirurgicale du membre supérieur tétraplégique depuis 50 ans.

OBJECTIVE: Development of upper limb functional surgery in tetraplegics in the last 50 years. METHODS: The literature review relating to the years 1950-2002 was carried out with 3 data bases: Medline, Pascal, Embase. This review also involved a thorough study of non-indexed references. RESULTS: A large number of surgical procedures are described. Two priorities are stressed by the authors: safety of these procedures and duration of postoperative immobilization. CONCLUSION: This review of literature shows that the prospects for restoring upper limb function in tetraplegics are greater than ever, offering a larger number of patients the possibility to increase their independence in daily life. Functional surgery remains, nevertheless, demanding in terms of length of immobilization and presupposes requiring a multidisciplinary approach requiring rehabilitation teams to be up to date with surgical procedures.

[Foot entrapment syndromes]. / Syndromes canalaires du pied.

Foot's entrapment syndromes are frequent and often ignored cause of pain. Many clinical descriptions are presented, but diagnostic and therapeutic proceeding is univocal, depending upon to find the conflictual zone (Tinel's sign, electrophysiology, infiltrate test) and to pay attention to the different etiologic factors (static troubles, traumatism, foot/shoe conflict...).

[Chemical neurolysis using alcohol (alcoholization) in the treatment of spasticity in the hemiplegic]. / Neurolyse chimique à l'alcool (alcoolisation) dans le traitement de la spasticité chez l'hémiplégique.

Spasticity is a source of disability for the hemiplegic patient. It leads to various disorders influencing the quality of gait: at the lower limb varus equinus foot deformity, toe-claw and/or hip adduction with adductors spasticity. At the upper limb, flexion deformity of the wrist and the hand makes grasp and grip ineffective and spasticity of the Pectoralis Major muscle is considered as a main cause of sympathetic dystrophy. Neurolysis with alcohol injection in the nerve trunk or at the motor point destroys the gamma fibers and reduces spasticity, without impairing motor command. The effects on spasticity, motricity, and deformity of 33 chemical neurolysis with alcohol are analysed with a six months follow-up (27 hemiplegic patients, 28 to 62 years old, mean = 54.5). The authors have used 60% alcohol concentration. Sciatic nerve injection significantly reduces triceps spasticity (7/11), improves the range motion of the ankle, and allows the patient to take off the ankle device. Those fair results are still present at the fourth month after injection. Similar results are reported after injection of the obturator nerve for hip adduction deformity (2/3), median nerve injection for wrist and hand deformity (6/6). Pectoralis Major injection in the motor point is effective for 10 of the 13 cases, preventing sympathetic reflex dystrophy or contributing to its dramatic improvement.

[A misdiagnosed disorder: syndrome of the musculocutaneous nerve of the foot]. / Une pathologie méconnue: le syndrome du nerf musculo-cutané au pied.

The syndrome of the pedal dorsal cutaneous nerve (described by one of us in 1979) is caused by irritation of the nerve in its course at the dorsum pedis. This is a rather frequent syndrome, often overlooked. It is manifested by a distinct association of atypical pain at the dorsum pedis and in the foot. After a review of 10 cases and a literature survey, the authors describe the characteristic signs of this syndrome. There are many factors at the origin of this pathology: static deformities (pes cavus anterior, valgus calcaneus, hallux valgus), local trauma or repeated microtrauma (ill sitting shoe). The diagnosis is essentially clinical, based on a positive Tinel sign along the course of the nerve and on the result of a trial infiltration of the region. The treatment is initially conservative with correction of deformities, adaptation of shoes, and local infiltration with corticosteroids. The neurolysis (performed in 4 cases because of persistent pain), showed dystrophic fibrosis. Such histologic lesions are an argument for considering entrapment as a potential cause of the syndrome.

[Musculo-cutaneous nerve syndrome in the foot. Apropos of 10 cases]. / Le syndrome du nerf musculo-cutané au pied. A propos de 10 observations.

In 10 cases, the authors describe the musculo-cutaneous nerve syndrome in the foot. It involves pain and paresthesias located on the dorsal aspect of the foot, occurring after local trauma or repeated microtraumas (ill fitted shoes), promoted by a static disorder (anterior hollow foot, calcaneal valgus). The diagnosis is essentially clinical, based on the presence of a Tinel sign on the dorsum of the foot and on the infiltration test. The treatment consists in the combination of local measures and steroid infiltration. Neurolysis is only indicated in case of failure of the medical treatment (4 cases). Then, it always proves to be effective.

Efficacy of the calcium antagonist isradipine in angina pectoris.

Thirty-six patients with chronic, stable angina pectoris were studied during 2-week treatment periods in which they received, in a randomized double-blind, crossover study, a new calcium entry blocking agent, isradipine, 7.5 mg three times daily or placebo. Antianginal efficacy was determined by treadmill exercise testing carried out 3 and 9 hours after drug administration on the final day of each treatment period. During placebo therapy, treadmill exercise time to the onset of angina (P1) and to the development of moderate angina (P2) was similar at 3 and 9 hours and similar to the placebo run-in period. During isradipine therapy, treadmill exercise time 3 hours after dosing was greater than with placebo therapy (P1 312 +/- 23.0 vs. 267 +/- 19.5 seconds, p less than 0.001; P2 410 +/- 20.2 vs. 355 +/- 18.8 seconds, p less than 0.002). Nine hours after drug administration, the results of exercise testing were similar to placebo.

Course of angina 1 to 12 years after aortocoronary bypass surgery related to changes in grafts and native coronary arteries.

Among 500 patients who received aortocoronary saphenous vein grafts at the Montreal heart Institute between September 1969 and August 1972, the condition in 88% of survivors with respect to angina pectoris was improved 1 year after surgery and 47% were still better after 12 years. One year after grafting, 202 patients underwent follow-up angiography; symptoms of angina had lessened in 89% who had at least one graft patent but in only 57.5% of those with all grafts occluded. This difference was still obvious 12 years after surgery. Loss of improvement decreased at a mean annual rate of 3.7%. Of the 59 angina-free patients at 1 year who had angiographic follow-up at 10 to 12 years, angina developed subsequently in 30 (51%); 25 (83%) of these were found to have obstructive changes that reduced the lumen by at least 50% in grafts or in ungrafted coronary arteries, compared with only 13 (45%) of the 29 angina-free patients who did not have angina subsequently. Improvement in the degree of angina and its recurrence after bypass surgery are closely related to graft patency and subsequent development of atherosclerosis in the grafts or in the native coronary arteries.

The relation of risk factors to the development of atherosclerosis in saphenous-vein bypass grafts and the progression of disease in the native circulation. A study 10 years after aortocoronary bypass surgery.

We examined 82 patients 10 years after saphenous-vein aortocoronary bypass surgery to determine their angiographic status and to relate those findings to the risk factors for coronary-artery disease. Of 132 grafts shown to be patent 1 year after surgery, only 50 were unaffected at 10 years. The remainder were narrowed (43) or occluded (39). Disease progression in coronary arteries without grafts was also frequent, both in vessels that were normal (15 of 32) and in those with minor stenosis (25 of 53). New lesions did not develop in 15 patients, whereas they did in 67--in the grafts, the native vessels, or both. There was no significant difference between the two groups in the incidence of hypertension, diabetes, or smoking, whereas plasma levels of very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDLs) and low-density lipoproteins (LDLs) were higher, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels were lower in those with new disease than in those without. Univariate analysis showed that plasma cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly higher at the time of surgery and at the 10-year examination in those with new lesions. Multivariate analysis indicated that among the lipoprotein indexes, levels of HDL cholesterol and plasma LDL apoprotein B best distinguished the two groups. The findings indicate that atherosclerosis in these patients was a progressive disease, frequently affecting both the grafts and the native vessels, and that the course of such disease may be related to the plasma lipoprotein levels.

Comparison of late changes in internal mammary artery and saphenous vein grafts in two consecutive series of patients 10 years after operation.

Postoperative angiographic studies were carried out at 1 month, 1 year, and 10 years in two groups of patients: 238 patients with saphenous vein (SV) grafts and 40 patients with internal mammary artery (IMA) grafts. Cumulative patency was better in IMA grafts, both at 1 year (88.5% vs 76.4%) and at 10 years (84.1% vs 52.8%). Atheromatous changes in patent grafts at 10 years were frequent in SV grafts (29/66 or 43.9%) and uncommon in IMA grafts (1/19 or 5.2%; p less than .02). Attrition rate (11.8%) during the first year in IMA grafts (representing our initial experience with IMA grafts) was comparable to that of SV grafts (15.2%) in a group of patients operated on after 2 years of experience. Therefore, early attrition rate may be related to both experience and type of conduit. Later, at 10 years, the conduit itself appears to be the dominant factor. Furthermore, patients who received IMA grafts had a better survival rate at 10 years (84.3% vs 70%) than those who underwent SV bypass grafting.

Progression of atherosclerosis in coronary arteries and bypass grafts: ten years later.

Progression of atherosclerosis in aortocoronary saphenous vein grafts is frequent and is the predominant cause of late graft closure after CABG. Only approximately 60% of grafts remain patent between 10 and 12 years after surgery. Of patent grafts, 45% show angiographic evidence of atherosclerosis between 10 and 12 years after surgery and 70% of the atherosclerotic lesions reduce the graft lumen diameter by 50% or more. Atherosclerosis of saphenous vein grafts does not appear to be related to age, sex or cigarette smoking, but is associated with abnormalities of cholesterol lipoprotein fractions. Progression of atherosclerosis in the native coronary arteries is also very significant after CABG. Progression of CAD between 10 and 12 years after surgery occurs in approximately 50% of nongrafted arteries. Between 10 and 12 years after surgery, the rate of progression of disease in nongrafted arteries is not different from that of grafted arteries with patent grafts; however, progression is more frequent in grafted arteries with occluded grafts. The rate of progression is not related to age, sex, risk factors or extent of disease at baseline coronary arteriography. Progression of preexisting stenoses is more frequent than appearance of new stenosis. Progression is related to the severity of the preexisting stenosis only in nongrafted arteries. Finally, progression is related to alterations of left ventricular function during follow-up. Because of these progressive late changes, CABG should probably remain limited to patients with incapacitating anginal symptoms or to those with severe lesions for whom surgery might enhance long-term survival, such as patients with severe left main CAD and 3-vessel CAD.

Reoperation in patients with patent atherosclerotic coronary vein grafts. A different approach to a different disease.

Atherosclerotic changes are often noted in vein grafts at angiography 8 to 10 years after coronary artery grafting. Reoperation in these patients is hazardous, as manipulation of the grafts may loosen atheromatous debris and cause coronary embolization and myocardial infarction. A technique is described to avoid embolization of atheromatous material during reoperation in patients with patent atherosclerotic coronary vein grafts. This technique was carried out in six patients and compared to the standard technique of reoperation in similar patients. The incidence of complicated perioperative myocardial infarction (0/6 versus 5/12) and perioperative death (zero versus three) was lower when our new technique was used. This approach consists of minimal dissection for access to the right atrium and ascending aorta for cannulation, prompt ligation of all patent grafts at the start of cardiopulmonary bypass, cardioplegic infusion through the ascending aorta and subsequently also through newly inserted grafts using larger infusions until myocardial temperatures reach less than or equal to 15 degrees C, and single aortic clamping for distal and proximal anastomoses.

Effects of dobutamine on left ventricular performance and myocardial metabolic demands in patients with ischemic heart disease.

Sixteen patients with coronary artery disease undergoing cardiac catheterization were studied. Eleven had previous infarcts and the patients were divided into two groups: In group I were 7 patients with no left ventricular dysfunction, no increase in ventricular size, or symptoms of congestive failure; group II included 9 patients with ventricular dysfunction, increased ventricular size, and 7 of the 9 had congestive failure. Each patient underwent a continuous infusion of dobutamine from 2.5 to 10 micrograms/kg min-1 with dosage increments of 2.5 micrograms/kg at 15-minute intervals. Systemic and coronary hemodynamic measurements were obtained at the end of the 5 and 10 micrograms/kg min-1 infusion doses. Left ventricular performance improved (higher cardiac index, left ventricular stroke work index and mean systolic ejection rate, and lower left ventricular end-diastolic pressure), while heart rate, mean arterial pressure, and coronary sinus blood flow increased after dobutamine in the 16 patients. While patients in both groups had a rise in cardiac index, a reduction in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure, an unchanged mean arterial pressure and a rise in coronary blood flow, only patients in group I had a significant increase in heart rate, and only patients in group II had significant increases in left ventricular stroke work index and mean systolic ejection rate, and a significant reduction in systemic vascular resistance. Left ventricular oxygen consumption did not increase significantly in either group. However, 5 patients showed a decreased myocardial lactate extraction after 10 micrograms/kg min-1 of intravenous dobutamine, 3 from group I and 2 from group II.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Atherosclerosis and late closure of aortocoronary saphenous vein grafts: sequential angiographic studies at 2 weeks, 1 year, 5 to 7 years, and 10 to 12 years after surgery.

Sequential control angiographic examinations were performed at 2 weeks, 1 year, 5 to 7 years, and 10 to 12 years after aortocoronary saphenous vein bypass surgery in 82 unselected patients. Graft modifications consisting of wall irregularities and obstructive lesions of various severity and shapes that were found to develop after the first year were attributed to atherosclerosis. The incidence of these late changes increased from 16% during the interval between 1 year and 5 to 7 years to 36.4% during the subsequent interval between 7 and 12 years (p less than .01). These changes were not influenced by the severity of early diffuse or localized intimal hyperplasia. They were not related to classical risk factors except for low-density lipoprotein and low-density beta-lipoprotein cholesterol. Graft closure increased 2.5-fold from the interval between 1 year and 5 to 7 years to the following period between 7 and 12 years, 10.2% to 26.1% (p less than .02); thus the mean yearly attrition rate augmented from 2% to 5.3%. Late graft closure may result from early localized stenosis most likely related to improper surgical techniques, but the most frequent cause appears to be atherosclerosis. Graft patency at 10 to 12 years is 63.3%.

Usefulness of probucol in treating primary hypercholesterolemia.

Probucol (1 g per day) was administered in a double-blind crossover trial to 16 patients with familial hypercholesterolemia who had previously been tested for their response to clofibrate. Probucol led to a fall in the plasma cholesterol concentration of 15% or more (mean 20.2%) in 5 of the 12 clofibrate-resistant patients and between 8% and 15% in 3 others. The reduction was statistically significant in 7 of these 12 patients as well as in 3 of the 4 patients sensitive to clofibrate. Thus, probucol has a place in the treatment of patients with primary hypercholesterolemia who do not respond to clofibrate.