[Reactive airway dysfunction syndrome. Clinical case]. / Síndrome de disfunción reactiva de las vías respiratorias. Caso clínico.

The reactive airway dysfunction syndrome (RADS) is a type of occupational asthma without any period of latency and induced by irritants of low molecular weight. It is a clinical illness diagnosed with scarce information of prevalence in our medical service, that is why it receives a deficient treatment with more morbidity. A clinical case of a 60 year old patient is reported with a sudden, intense and long exposure to clorhidric acid and the consequent development of RADS. We performed a complete study of her signs and symptoms as well as some diagnostic tests, such as respiratory function tests and a positive test to the clorhidric acid. Once the diagnosis was confirmed, the patient was treated with high doses of corticosteroids and bronchodilators of long action for a period of three months. She had complete remission of symptoms, with normal respiratory tests and return to her every day work activities. It is important to consider that this illness in patients with respiratory symptoms and exposed to irritants should receive an appropriate treatment, which makes a better prognosis of it.

[Direct method for osmotic pressure measurement (author's transl)]. / Técnica de medición directa de la presión oncótica.

A new dynamic method to measure osmotic pressure was presented. The method is easy and with only a 1.8% degree of error. All determinations were done with an osmometer, equipped with three small chambers of methyl metacrilate and dialyser membranes. The central area had two capillaries: one for measuring and the other for changing dynamic pressure. The data from different albumin concentrations were satisfactory, and they agreed with published results from others. The present results indicate that osmotic pressure is an exponential function of albumin concentration.