No abstract

The addition of morphine 0.2 mg to hyperbaric bupivacaine 0.5% by intrathecal injection reduced postoperative pain and analgesic use, and increased patient satisfaction following cesarean section. The combination of intrathecal injection of morphine and preventive NSAIDs can be easily administered in most hospitals, and is substantially less expensive than the new pain management technologies currently in use.

A case of acardius holosomus holocranius is presented. Ultrasound examinations, feto-amniography, and analysis of the amniotic fluid and the cystic fluid were performed.In addition, 88 cases of acardiac anomalies born in Japan were collected by reviewing the autopsy records of major institutes and literatures. Classification, incidence, epidemiology, diagnosis, management and etiology of this condition are discussed.

No abstract

Urinary concentrations of immunoreactive human epidermal growth factor (hEGF) were determined by specific homologous radioimmunoassay in 169 healthy men (aged 20–69 years), 275 healthy women (20–68 years) and 413 pregnant women (20–39 years). Relative hEGF concentrations in urine (µg/g creatinine) decreased significantly in both sexes between 24 and 64 years of age. The relative concentrations of hEGF in urine were significantly higher in women than in men at ages 20–69 years. The mean values of relative urinary hEGF concentrations in pregnant women in their twenties and thirties (30.0 ± 0.7 µg/g creatinine and 29.6 ± 1.2 µg/g creatinine) were significantly higher than those in age-matched nonpregnant women (27.3 ± 1.8 µg/g creatinine and 22.8 ± 0.7 µg/g creatinine). Among the trimesters, it was highest in the 2nd trimester of women in the twenties and thirties (33.4 ± 1.3 µg/g creatinine and 31.7 ± 1.9 µg/g creatinine). The significance of the increased urinary excretion of hEGF (µg/g creatinine) in pregnancy is not known. Further studies are required to find a source of hEGF in urine and a possible relation between increased hEGF excretion and fetoplacental growth and development.