BACKGROUND Although cigarette smoking is known to lead to widespread augmentation of sympathetic nervous system activity, little is known about the effects of smoking on directly measured human sympathetic activity and its reflex control. METHODS AND RESULTS We studied the acute effects of smoking two research-grade cigarettes on muscle sympathetic nerve activity and on arterial baroreflex-me...

The Valsalva maneuver is frequently used to test autonomic function. Previous work demonstrated that the blood pressure decrease during the Valsalva maneuver relates to thoracic hypovolemia, which may preclude pressure recovery during phase II, even with normal resting peripheral vasoconstriction. We hypothesized that increased regional blood volume, specifically splanchnic hypervolemia, accoun...

BACKGROUND Ventilation during neonatal resuscitation is typically initiated with a face mask, but may be ineffective due to leak or obstruction. OBJECTIVE To compare leak using three methods of mask hold. METHODS Medical and nursing staff regularly involved in neonatal resuscitation used the three holds (two-point, two-handed, spider) on a manikin in a random order to apply positive pressur...

Introduction: Endoscopic repair is considered the treatment of choice in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) rhinorrhea. The aim of our study was to analyze the etiopathogenesis of CSF rhinorrhea, the outcome of treatment and the causes of failure in a developing-country setting.   Materials and Methods: A retrospective review of patients treated with endoscopic repair for CSF rhinorrhea at a tertiary ca...

BACKGROUND During noninvasive ventilation (NIV), leak around the mask may cause inadequate ventilatory support or patient-ventilator asynchrony such as auto-triggering. Some NIV ventilators may be better than others at compensating for leak. METHODS We bench studied 3 NIV ventilators (Vision, Carina, and Trilogy100) and 2 ICU ventilators (Puritan Bennett 840 and Evita XL) to assess how they ...

Background A high resolution real-time phase-contrast MRI flow technique was used to measure flow dynamics in the ascending aorta as well as superior vena cava. MRI technique based on undersampled radial fast low-angle shot acquisitions with phase-sensitive image reconstructions by regularized nonlinear inversion. Normal flow values as well as flow measurements during physiologic stress tests l...

Lifting of a heavy weight may lead to "blackout" and occasionally also to cerebral hemorrhage, indicating pronounced consequences for the blood flow through the brain. We hypothesized that especially strenuous respiratory straining (a Valsalva-like maneuver) associated with intense static exercise would lead to a precipitous rise in mean arterial and central venous pressures and, in turn, influ...

Arterial pulse pressure response during the strain phase of the Valsalva maneuver has been proposed as a clinical tool for the diagnosis of left heart failure, whereas responses of subjects with preserved systolic function have been poorly documented. We studied the relationship between the aortic pulse amplitude ratio (i.e., minimum/maximum pulse pressure) during the strain phase of the Valsal...

PURPOSE The transobturator adjustable tape (TOA) allows adjustment of tension after surgical intervention, thus permitting correction of postoperative incontinence or obstruction. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of TOA versus transobturator tape (TOT) for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence with intrinsic sphincter deficiency (ISD). MATERIALS AND METHODS ...

Aims. The aim of the study was to compare endotracheal intubation with i-gel and LMA (laryngeal mask airway) supreme supraglottic airway devices in orbital osteosynthesis surgery. Methods. 134 patients undergoing orbital plasty after fracture were enrolled in our study and were randomized into three groups: 43 in the endotracheal intubation group, 42 in the LMA-Supreme group, and 49 patients w...