Heterogeneity and prediction of hemodynamic responses to dobutamine in patients with septic shock

OBJECTIVE: To establish the heterogeneity of hemodynamic responses to dobutamine in patients with septic shock and to identify the predictive factors of these hemodynamic responses. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING AND PATIENTS: A total of 12 patients with septic shock in a tertiary medical intensive care unit. INTERVENTIONS: A 20-min...

Neonatal Facial Coding System for Assessing Postoperative Pain in Infants: Item Reduction is Valid and Feasible

Objective: The objectives of this study were to: (1) evaluate the validity of the Neonatal Facial Coding System (NFCS) for assessment of postoperative pain and (2) explore whether the number of NFCS facial actions could be reduced for assessing postoperative pain. Design: Prospective, observational study. Patients: Thirty-seven children (0-18...

Cardiovascular instability and baroreflex activity in a patient with tetanus

In a patient with tetanus we tested the hypothesis that the hyperadrenergic cardiovascular instability might be due to impairment of the baroreceptor reflex by the tetanus toxin. Baroreflex sensitivity assessed with the phenylephrine method was found to be normal. Changes in arterial pressure correlated inversely with relative changes in plasma...

Polyunsaturated fatty acid consumption, plasma cholesterol concentration and neuroendocrine response to mental and physical task load

This study was designed to investigate the relation between fatty acid consumption, total plama cholesterol and neuroendocrine response to exposure to stress, factors thought to play a role in the development of coronary heart disease. For this purpose 32 apparently healthy male volunteers were classified on the basis of their plasma cholesterol...

Type A behaviour, borderline hyperventilation and psychological, psychosomatic and neuroendocrine responses to mental task load

Psychological, psychosomatic and neuroendocrine (in blood) responses to mental task load were investigated in relation to type A behaviour and borderline hyperventilation. For this purpose 32 apparently healthy, male volunteers were classified on the basis of their scores on the Jenkins Activity Survey (JAS) and on a questionnaire assessing...

Effect of work load on free and sulfate-conjugated plasma catecholamines, prolactin, and cortisol

The effects of maximal performance capacity and different work load intensities on the response of free and sulfate-conjugated plasma catecholamines, prolactin (PRL), and cortisol were studied in six healthy male volunteers. In a first experiment, the volunteers had to perform a step-wise incremental bicycle ergometer test to determine the onset...

Derivatization and mass spectrometric behaviour of catecholamines and their 3-O-methylated metabolites

A method has been developed for the derivatization of both catecholamines (dopamine, noradrenaline and adrenaline) and their 3-O-methylated metabolites (3-methoxytyramine, normetanephrine and metanephrine) in a single run. The compounds were first incubated with methanolic hydrochloric acid to methylate those compounds that contain a benzylic...

High-performance liquid chromatographic determination of urinary free catecholamines with electrochemical detection after prepurification on immobilized boric acid

A reliable high-performance liquid chromatographic method is presented for the determination of the urinary free catecholamines noradrenaline, adrenaline and dopamine. Urine is purified on a column of immobilized boric acid. Catecholamines are separated by ion-pair reversed phase high-performance liquid chromatography and detected...