[Cardiovascular Prevention: Acceptance of Enhanced Occupational Health Care]. / Kardiovaskuläre Prävention ­ Akzeptanz einer erweiterten betrieblichen Vorsorge.

BACKGROUND: To date, prevention efforts of company medical officers and general practitioners are largely independent of each other. In a comprehensive model of healthcare management including both sets of doctors, the company doctor should determine the risk of cardiovascular disease in the employees of the company. In case increased risk is detected, there should be exchange of information between the 2 professional groups so that common preventive interventions can be decided upon. AIM: The aim of this pilot study was to determine how well cardiovascular risk assessment is accepted by employees of a midsize company and where prevention is needed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a company with 660 employees, risk analysis was conducted among staff in the context of regular preventive measures. In addition to risk factors, primary care, agreement with an interdisciplinary exchange of information and motivation for health promotion activities were investigated. RESULTS: 204 employees (4 females only) were examined. The average age of the participants was 42.9±10.3 years. In 27% (n=55), an increased overall risk was present. Employees with risk requiring medical intervention were under the care of primary care physician and most of them (70%) agreed to the transfer of information to these physicians. In the survey itself, employees showed sufficient motivation (VAS 6.4±2.8) for workplace health promotion. CONCLUSION: The examined company agreed to implementing further health promoting activities. Due to demographic changes, new concepts for effective prevention are needed. The high acceptance of the proposed prevention framework should motivate implementation of this concept. As a next step, studies must be conducted to examine the effectiveness of screening for risk carried out by company medical officers.

Solitons for the rotating reduced Maxwell-Bloch equations with anisotropy.

For the reduced Maxwell-Bloch equations with two components of polarization and with an anisotropic dipole moment we establish a hierarchy of soliton solutions by use of Bäcklund transformations. The -soliton formulas are given in terms of Vandermonde-like determinants. Differences in the respective solution manifolds for the so-called self-induced transparency (SIT) equations and three types of reduced Maxwell-Bloch equations are pointed out.

[Cardiomyopathy in idiopathic hemochromatosis. Diagnostic possibilities using proton spin tomography]. / Kardiomyopathie bei idiopathischer Hämochromatose. Diagnostische Möglichkeiten mit der Kernspintomographie.

In idiopathic hemochromatosis, there is progressive deposition of iron in parenchymatous organs owing to a defect in iron absorption the nature of which is not so far known. This can result in cardiomyopathy with heart failure and arrhythmia which are refractory to therapy. Nuclear magnetic resonance tomography is a specific imaging technique for early detection of myocardial iron deposits. With quantitative determination of the T2 relaxation time of the myocardium, a progress control under venesection therapy is possible above and beyond diagnostics.

Pharmacokinetics of isosorbide-5-mononitrate after oral and intravenous administration in patients with liver cirrhosis: first results.

The pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of IS-5-MN after single-dose oral and intravenous application were investigated over 24 h in three patients with liver cirrhosis and compared with normal subjects. The analysis of IS-5-MN in plasma was carried out using a gas-chromatographic method with electron capture detection. A two-compartment open model was taken as a basis for the calculations of the plasma concentration curves and the pharmacokinetic parameters. First results show that plasma concentrations after intravenous administration in the patient group were not higher than in the control group. After oral administration the peak concentrations of IS-5-MN were also no higher, nor did they occur earlier, in patients with liver cirrhosis than in the normal subjects. Our data also show the same complete absolute bioavailability of IS-5-MN in the patient group as in normal subjects, and the same elimination half-life of the plasma concentration response curve. We saw no influence of typical comedication, i.e., cimetidine or spironolactone on pharmacokinetic parameters in the group of liver patients.

Assay for cyclo-, seco- and pentobarbital by multiple ion detection: kinetics after a single dose.

A sensitive assay for the determination of four different barbiturates: butabarbital, cyclobarbital, pentobarbital and secobarbital is described. The barbiturates are determined quantitatively by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) as their dimethylated derivatives. The sensitivity of this simple procedure is limited to 10 x 10(-6) g/l for cyclo- and secobarbital and 1 x 10(-6) g/l for pentobarbital in plasma. The assay has been used to measure the kinetics of pentobarbital over 6 days after a single 50 mg dose of the sodium salt, and over 3 days for one combined preparation of 25 mg cyclobarbital-calcium and 75 mg secobarbital-sodium. The corresponding barbiturate levels in saliva were determined by the same assay.