Search

In addition to the well-known activities of TRH (stimulation of respiration, antidepressant action, increase of motility, antishock action, therapeutic effects against ataxia, and so forth), some new properties were established. TRH was found (1) to stimulate the contractility of lymph vessels in ultra-low doses and to be useful in the treatment of acute pancreatitis; (2) to normalize cerebral circulation in rats and neonates after asphyxia; (3) to improve the electrophysiological parameters of the retina and pigmented epithelium in rats and man, to exert a long-term positive influence on the health status of patients suffering from senile retinal macular dystrophy; (4) to potentiate the analgesic effect of low doses of morphine in a definite range of doses (analog PR-546). It is of paramount importance that most of the indicated activities of TRH may hold promise for clinical application.

Echographic assessment of the renal structure and size was carried out in 39 healthy full-term babies during the first five days of their lives. Renal echograms of the examined newborns were characterized by highly echogenic cortical layer, ++hypo-echogenic central sinus, and unechogenic pyramids well imaged against the background of the cortical layer. A drastic increase of the echogenicity of some pyramids (3-5) was seen in 4 newborns on days 2-3 of life, not involving impairments of renal function. No differences in the sizes of the left and right kidneys, kidneys in boys and girls, or kidneys in various days of life were detected. To compare renal size of the newborns with other anthropometric parameters, renal volume should be correlated to body surface size. The data on renal size in healthy newborns may be used as reference values for newborns of the first week of life.

Dynamic Doppler scanning studies of brain blood flow were carried out in 78 healthy newborns in the first days of their lives. The measurements were carried out in the internal carotid, basilar , anterior, median, and posterior cerebral arteries at the age of 30 min, 2 h, 1, 2, 3, and 4 days. Vascular resistance of brain vessels was assessed and the resistance index estimated. This index was found to increase by the second hour of life (p less than 0.001) in the anterior, median, and internal carotid arteries, whereas no noticeable changes in this index value were recorded in the basilar and posterior cerebral arteries. The resistance index reduced in all the examined arteries starting from the end of the first day of life. Parallel with these studies, arterial pressure was measured in all the examinees by the oscillographic method, and found reduced by the second hour of life. This permitted a conclusion on the reduction of the brain blood flow by the second hour of life and its elevation starting from the second day of life. Pulsed Dopplerography method is noninvasive, highly informative, and holds good promise for studies of the brain blood flow in the newborns.

The authors assess potentialities of ultrasonic scanning of the brain (neurosonography) in the diagnosis of infectious brain injuries. The data obtained have demonstrated a high information content of the method in recognition of purulent meningitis complications and advisability of the use of neurosonography in neonates with suspected specific intrauterine infection.

The method of UV-irradiated autoblood reinfusion was used in intensive care of 25 premature babies with pyoinflammatory diseases. On the second day after reinfusion 17 babies showed an improvement of infectious intoxication, decreased level of antigenemia, liquor purification, leukocyte blood count normalization and decreased levels of total bilirubin, residual nitrogen and urea. Within 5 days after the reinfusion the activation of antioxidant blood system and reparative processes was observed. No complications were noted. The effect was not achieved in 8 babies, 6 of which died.