ABSTRACT
Intrathecal opioid administration is a well established, inexpensive and effective, widely used procedure in the elderly and has well known side effects. We report a case of an elderly woman who received small doses of intrathecal opioids (sufentanil 2.5 microg and morphine 60 microg) for gynecological surgery and thereafter developed severe neurological side effects. She required prolonged treatment with very high doses of naloxone (16 mg).
Subject(s)
Hysterectomy, Vaginal , Morphine/poisoning , Narcotics/poisoning , Aged, 80 and over , Drug Overdose , Female , Humans , Injections, Spinal , Morphine/administration & dosage , Naloxone/therapeutic use , Narcotic Antagonists/therapeutic use , Narcotics/administration & dosageABSTRACT
Faecal samples from children between 3 months and 5 yrs were investigated for the presence of methanogenic bacteria. Methanobacteria were not detected in faecal samples obtained from children under 27 months of age. At 27 months only one subject harbored methanobacteria; the number of methanobacteria hosts subsequently increased with age, with an incidence of 40% at 3 years and 60% at 5 years. The appearance of methanobacteria was not directly related to introduction of particular foods in the child's diet, which after 2 years becomes similar to that of Italian adults. These dietary changes could give rise to some physical-chemical modifications of the enteric lumen thus causing the conversion of the intestinal flora to an adult pattern and, in most subjects, the development of methanobacteria.
Subject(s)
Euryarchaeota/isolation & purification , Intestines/microbiology , Age Factors , Bacteria, Anaerobic/isolation & purification , Child , Child, Preschool , Colony Count, Microbial , Diet , Feces/microbiology , Female , Humans , Infant , MaleABSTRACT
The effect of lactulose on human intestinal methanogenic bacteria in ten subjects on lactulose therapy and ten control adults was evaluated. Methanogens were found in 90% of the population examined (9 treated subjects and 9 controls). A marked variability in methanogen number (ranging from 10(3)-10(10)/gdw) was observed in lactulose-treated subjects and in controls. Analysis of variance showed no significant difference between the two groups.
