Serum ferritin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase and hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (HBD) were studied during 21 vaso-occlusive crises in 12 adults with sickle cell disease (11 SS, 1 S beta degrees). The patients comprised three groups: those who had been untransfused (4), those who had received occasional exchange transfusion in crisis (3), and those who had been multiply ...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether serum sialic acid concentration may be used to predict short and long term cardiovascular mortality. DESIGN Prospective study on all men and women who had their serum sialic acid concentration measured as part of a general health survey in 1964 or in 1965. All were followed up for an average of 20.5 years. SETTING Geographical part of the county of Värmland, S...

Heart Disease To the Editor: The independent prognostic significance of fasting triglyceride concentration is currently debated. The article by Sharrett et al1 reports the impact of several lipid parameters on the subsequent occurrence of coronary heart disease in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study, in which a large middle-aged population free from coronary heart disease at baseline ...

Four hundred and eighteen measurements of serum ionised calcium, total calcium, and protein concentrations were made from 47 normal volunteers, 104 patients with chronic renal failure (33 being treated conservatively and 71 with regular haemodialysis), and 83 renal transplant recipients. The serum ionised calcium concentration was measured with an Orion SS-20 meter and calculated from the total...

Drug addiction is a complex problem which leads to many somatic, psychic and social diseases. It is accompanied by the disturbed metabolism of various macro and micronutrients. The aim of this study was to assess serum magnesium concentration in drug-addicted patients and analyze whether Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection and methadone treatment affect the level of serum magnesium in ...

A SIGNIFICANT elevation in plasma magnesium concentration in a small series of schizophrenic and depressive patients has recently been reported by Cade (1). These levels were said to be further elevated by treatment. The present study, as part of a study of blood from schizophrenic patients (2, 3), was undertaken to determine if these observations represented a general phenomenon among schizoph...

Using the ELISA technique to estimate serum antibodies against tetanus toxin, seven neonates with clinical tetanus were found to have antibody levels 4-13 times higher than the presumed minimum protective level of 0.01 IU/ml. All but one of their mothers had been vaccinated with tetanus toxoid in pregnancy. In two other neonates, whose mothers had received multiple booster doses of toxoid durin...

Both synthetic and catabolic processes determine the serum gamma-globulin level. The rate of gamma-globulin synthesis appears to be the primary factor determining the amount of serum gamma-globulin. Increase of gamma-globulin synthesis (as may occur following immunization or development of plasma cell tumor) elevates the serum gamma-globulin level. This, in turn, accelerates the fractional rate...

The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between indium exposure concentration in the respirable dust fraction (In-E) and indium in serum (In-S) in workers. Methods: A total of 39 workers were studied. The study subjects were categorized into 3 groups, namely, smelting workers (n=7), ITO workers (n=6) in an ITO grinding plant, and other workers (n=26). In-E and In-S ranged from 0.00...

We measured serum carnitine in groups of patients with various diseases. The concentration was frequently above normal in patients with renal insufficiency. The clinical significance of such an increase in renal insufficiency may be analogous to that of increases in urea nitrogen, creatinine, or uric acid in the serum.