Enhancement of aspirin-induced gastric damage by cholestasis in rats.

In this study the severity of aspirin-induced gastric mucosal damage was investigated in rats with obstructive cholestasis. Cholestasis was induced by ligation and resection of the bile duct under general anesthesia. Two weeks after operation, the rats were fasted for 24 hours. Aspirin was administered orally in doses of 0, 128, 192, 266 and 335 mg/kg, and the animals were killed four hours after dosing. The dose of 266 mg/kg was chosen for a study of the time-dependency; other groups of animals were killed at time intervals of one, three, five, seven and nine hours after aspirin administration. The results showed that aspirin induces more severe gastric damage in bile duct resected rats compared with sham-operated and control animals. Salicylate levels of serums were also measured but there was no significant difference in serum salicylate levels between bile duct resected, sham-operated and control rats. It can be concluded that cholestasis can potentiate aspirin-induced gastric damage in rats.

Munchausen's syndrome and drug dependence.

A man with Munchausen's syndrome was treated for drug dependence, which allowed him to establish and sustain a bond with a hospital, but eventually brought about an ethical dilemma.

Attitudes of health care professionals towards patients who take overdoses.

The attitudes of health care professionals in Malta towards patients who take drug overdoses were studied. It was found that the intention of the overdose had a marked effect on the attitude of the health care professional towards the patients. Differences between different professionals were noted and the Maltese results were compared with those of a similar study in London.