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Query: UMLS:C0018681 (headache)
 56,091 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

2 cases reports are described of patients with renal artery stenosis who presented with hypertensive encephalopathy, normal blood pressures having been recorded within the previous 6 months while taking oral contraceptives (OCs). A 27-year-old woman, admitted to the hospital following 2 grand mal fits, had suffered from increasing headaches, nausea, and vomiting over the previous month. Her blood pressure had been elevated at 160/110 mmHg 1 week prior to admission but had been normal over previous 11 years while taking OCs (various formulations of combined estrogen and progestogen) which she had stopped taking 2 months previously. She was a nonsmoker. Her blood pressure was controlled with atenolol, nifedipine, and bendrofluazide, and her conscious level returned to normal with no further fits. An intravenous urogram revealed a small left kidney with a delayed nephrogram, and subsequent arteriography showed bilateral medial fibromuscular dysplasia with a narrow stenosis of the left renal artery. Attempted balloon angioplasty was unsuccessful due to arterial spasm. 4 months after presentation she became pregnant. Blood pressure was controlled with methyl dopa during pregnancy which progressed uneventfully to full term. In the 2nd case, a 19-year old girl became confused and suffered a grand mal convulsion. She had complained of headaches over the previous 3 days. Her blood pressure had been normal over the previous 6 months while taking Logynon (phased formulation of ethinylestradiol and levonorgestrel). She was a nonsmoker. On admission to the hospital, she suffered further generalized convulsions. Despite control of her convulsions with intravenous chlormethiazole, her blood pressure rose to 220/140 mmHg, and this was controlled with intravenous hydralazine and propranolol. The following day she was conscious and was changed to oral therapy. A renogram and DMSA scan showed normal sized kidneys, but there was evidence of decreased blood flow to the left kidney with an increased transit time. Renal arteriography showed a stenosis of the left renal artery, typical of intimal fibromuscular dysplasia, which was dilated by balloon angioplasty. Anti-hypertensive medication was withdrawn postoperatively, and her blood pressure has remained well controlled. In both of the cases the onset of hypertension was rapid with encephalopathy being the presenting feature. Hypertensive encephalopathy is well recognized as a presenting feature of renal transplant artery stenosis but not in cases of native renal artery stenosis. 1 of the patients had stopped using OCs 2 months before presentation, suggesting that although there may have been an association between OC use and the development of fibromuscular dysplasia, it could not be implicated in the mode of presentation.
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PMID:Encephalopathy in renovascular hypertension associated with the use of oral contraceptives. 311 27

1. We report two cases of acute mercury vapour intoxication in humans. The mercury vapour was released from smelting alloys (gold-mercury amalgam). The alloy was apparently contaminated with an unknown amount of mercury. 2. Within half an hour of the incident, the victims began having moderate headache, nausea, lumbar pain and shortness of breath at rest. The patients were treated with BAL (2,3 dimercaptopropanol), followed by DMSA (2,3 dimercaptosuccinic acid). 3. Serial measurements of mercury metal in plasma and in urine were made for ten days. 4. The results suggest that in spite of the treatment, relatively high concentrations of mercury remain in the plasma for a very long time, and this could be explained by the progressive release of mercury from red blood cells and tissues after oxidation. However, BAL and DMSA did not seem to be the most efficient antidotes. They reduce the plasma inorganic mercury uptake at concentrations of < 50 micrograms I-1.
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PMID:Elemental mercury vapour toxicity: treatment and levels in plasma and urine. 771 4