[Early and progressing alcohol cardiomyopathy].

The subjects of the study were 10 young men who had taken about 40 g of alcohol (group 1) and 26 ones who had taken more than 80 g (group 2) one day before the hospitalization. Heart changes on days 3, 4, and 5 after the alcohol intake were studied using ECG, radiography, and ultrasonography; some functional tests reflecting hepatic and renal condition were performed as well. No changes were found in group 1, while certain functional ECG changes were revealed in group 2 patients; these changes were associated with acute toxic alcohol myocardial dystrophy. Group 3 consisted of subjects aged 53 +/- 1 years who had been taking 120 to 160 g of alcohol a week systematically for not less than 5 to 8 years. These subjects displayed signs of mental depression and progressing alcohol toxic cardiomyopathy (constant atrial fibrillation, cardiac blockade, cardial enlargement, and signs of circulatory insufficiency). Four subjects died as a result of alcohol abuse.

[Arterial hypertension: problems of maintenance therapy].

AIM: To study hypotensive reactions in patients taking hypotensive drugs and to specify peculiarities of blood pressure elevation in patients with a long history of taking hypotensive drugs, especially atenolol. MATERIAL AND METHODS: ECG, ultrasound investigation, chest x-ray, cholesterol, lipoprotein, urea, creatinine assays, tests for serum transaminase and transpeptidase activity were made in 200 patients with essential hypertension of the 1-3 degree (110 males, 90 females, age 30-80 years) to elucidate effects of 24-h and prolonged administration of peripheral vasodilators, diuretics, beta-adrenoblockers. The following drugs were given: nitroglycerin (sublingually, 0.0005 g--3 tablets or intraveous drops), lasix (40 mg), anaprilin (0.04-0.12 g per os), verapamil (0.04 g) or nifedipine (0.01 g 3 times a day), enap or diroton (per os, once a day). Blood pressure was measured each 3-4 hours in the first 24 hours. CONCLUSIONS: Hypotensive drugs can normalize blood pressure and control it for a long time but their effect has some specific features. In hypertension of the 2-3 degree, beta-blockers are more effective than blockers of Ca channels, ACE, diuretics and nitroglycerin. Hypertensive patients on beta-adrenergic drugs maintenance have sometimes hypertensive crises which should be managed with nitroglycerin, ACE drugs (enap, as a rule) and diuretics (less frequently).

[Pain sensitivity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis]. / Bolevaia chuvstvitel'nost' u bol'nykh revmatoidnym artritom.

The paper deals with specific characteristics of pain sensitivity, types of anxiety disorders in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and their correlation.

[The erythrocyte antioxidant system in chronic liver diseases]. / Antioksidantnaia sistema éritrotsitov pri khronicheskikh zabolevaniiakh pecheni.

Changes in the antioxidant system of red blood cells may be recorded in chronic liver diseases (persistent and active hepatitis, liver cirrhosis): activation of superoxide dismutase and glutathione reductase, diminution of the activity of total and membrane-bound catalase, of the content of reduced glutathione. In liver cirrhosis, the activity of glutathione peroxidase decreases. The changes in the antioxidant system are accompanied by the reduction of the content of total and membrane-bound protein sulfhydryl groups.

[Comparative characteristics of adenosine triphosphatase activity in the erythrocytes of patients with acute and chronic liver diseases, chronic cholecystitis and in HBs antigen carriers]. / Sravnitel'naia kharakteristika aktivnosti adenozintrifosfataz éritrotsitov u bol'nykh ostrymi i khronicheskimi zabolevaniiami pecheni, khronicheskim kholetsistitom i nositelei HBs-antigena.

A decrease in sodium, potassium and anion (HCO3)-activated erythrocyte ATPases is noted in patients with acute viral hepatitides A and B, chronic persisting hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, chronic cholecystitis and in HBs-antigen carriers, the reduction of HCO8-ATPase being more noticeable. A degree of expression of the above changes depends on the severity of a pathological process in the liver. The most serious changes are noted in liver cirrhosis. In this disease calcium ATPase activity is also on a decrease. Erythrocyte ATPase activity is lowered in chronic cholecystitis to a lesser degree. In patients with chronic persisting hepatitis and liver cirrhosis erythrocyte ATPase activity slightly increases, however it remains significantly lowered as compared to the control level. The determination of erythrocyte ATPase activity can be used for assessment of the status of patients with acute and chronic liver diseases.

[Clinical significance of echography in the diagnosis of portal circulatory disorders]. / Klinicheskoe znachenie ékhografii v diagnostike narushenii portal'nogo krovoobrashcheniia.

Forty-one patients with the endoscopically diagnosed varicose veins of the esophagus and stomach were examined. The echograms of 32 patients with liver cirrhosis showed the impoverishment of the vascular pattern of the liver parenchyma, dilatation of the portal, superior mesenterial and splenic veins, enlargement of the coronary vein of the stomach, uncovered gastroesophageal and splenorenal collaterals, the umbilical vein, and increase in the size and echogenicity of the spleen. In 5 patients with neoplastic and in 4 patients with inflammatory occlusion of the main veins of the portal system, the normal or high-contrast vascular pattern of the liver parenchyma, no signs of the recanalization of the umbilical vein attested to the absence of any correlation between portal hypertension and liver diseases.

[Choleretic test in the ultrasonic diagnosis of cholelithiasis]. / Kholereticheskii test v ul'trazvukovoi diagnostike kholelitiaza.

The authors provide the results of repeated echography of the gall bladder after the use of choleretics in cases presenting difficulties for echographic diagnosis of concrements inside the organ. Describe the technique of making the choleretic test, define indications and contraindications as to its use. Ultrasonic exploration of the gall bladder after choleretic intake raises the accuracy of echographic diagnosis of cholelithiasis, reduces the time required for echocholecystography, helps make differential diagnosis of the gall bladder diseases.

[Echotomographic diagnosis of pancreatic diseases in patients with chronic noncalculous cholecystitis]. / Ekhotomograficheskaia diagnostika zabolevanii podzheludochnoi zhelezy u bol'nykh s khronicheskim nekal'kuleznym kholetsistitom.

The authors describe the methods and results of echotomographic examination of the pancreas in 148 patients with exacerbation of chronic non-calculous cholecystitis. 58.8% of the patients showed moderately pronounced alterations in the pancreas occurring in the form of small-focal tissue indurations of moderate intensity, and irregularity of the external contours, with the organ size remaining within normal. The signs of the diffuse induration of the pancreas, enlargement of its anteroposterior size, excess contrast of Wirsung's duct were detected in 14.8% of patients, mostly in severe inflammatory processes in the biliary tract (35.5%).