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Other Clinical Characteristics (other + clinical_characteristic)
Selected AbstractsPrevalence of antiphospholipid antibodies in Chilean patients with rheumatoid arthritisJOURNAL OF CLINICAL LABORATORY ANALYSIS, Issue 5 2006Iván Palomo Abstract Antiphospholipid (aPL) antibodies found in patients with autoimmune diseases are also detected in those with inflammatory diseases. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of these antibodies in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and to evaluate the association of these antibodies with thrombosis and/or other clinical characteristics of this inflammatory disorder. Eighty-four patients with RA and 82 normal controls were studied. Anticardiolipin (aCL), anti-,2 glycoprotein I (anti-,2GPI), and antiprothrombin (aPT) antibodies and the lupus anticoagulant (LA) activity were determined. Seven out of 84 (8.3%) patients were positive for aCL, six out of 84 (7.2%) for anti-,2GPI, and six out of 84 (7.2%) for aPT, while in controls the overall prevalence of aPL antibodies was 3.6% (3 out of 82). All patients and controls were LA negative. There was no correlation between the presence of aPL with thrombosis and/or other clinical features of the antiphospholipid syndrome. We found aPL antibodies in 19.1% (16 out of 84) of the patients with rheumatoid arthritis and this prevalence was statistically higher than in normal controls (P<0.003). In this study, the presence of aPL antibodies was not associated with the development of thrombosis and/or thrombocytopenia. Whether the presence of aPL antibodies implies an increased risk for thrombosis and atherosclerosis in these patients should be studied further. J. Clin. Lab. Anal. 20:190,194, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Original article: Predictors of response to bronchial allergen challenge in 5- to 6-year-old atopic childrenALLERGY, Issue 4 2007T. A. Douglas Background:, The relationship between atopy and bronchial allergy in young children is not completely understood. Objective:, To examine the association between response to bronchial allergen challenge, immune markers of atopy and other clinical characteristics in 5- to 6-year-old children. Methods:, Children with positive skin test (SPT) to aeroallergen, together with a proportion of SPT negative children (as controls), were recruited from a birth cohort of 198 children at high risk of developing atopic disease and underwent allergen challenge. Results:, Thirty-seven children (26 atopic and 11 SPT negative), median age 74.5 months, were challenged: 31 with house dust mite and six with grass allergen. Only atopic children responded to challenge: n = 12/26 (46%). Wheal size [odds ratio (OR) 2.5 (1.2,5.3), P = 0.01], allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) [OR 3.4 (1.23,9.61), P = 0.02], total IgE [OR 8.6 (1.1,68.7), P = 0.04], current wheeze [OR 12 (1.7,81.7), P = 0.006] and persistent eczema [OR 11.0 (1.7,68.3), P = 0.006] emerged as the strongest independent predictors of response to allergen challenge. Prediction of response to allergen challenge was significantly improved when immune markers of atopy, and in particular wheal size, were combined with clinical characteristics. Conclusion:, The relationship between atopy and bronchial allergy is quantitative at this age. There may be potential to create more powerful indicators of the presence of respiratory allergy in young children when immunological markers of atopy are considered quantitatively and when combined with clinical history of coexistent allergic disease. [source] Geropsychiatric consultation in a general hospital in TaiwanPSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, Issue 3 2005YEONG-YUH JUANG md Abstract, The aim of this study was to characterize clinically significant issues in a psychiatric consultation service for geriatric inpatients in a general hospital in Taiwan. This was a case-control study. During a 5-month period, 100 geriatric (age ,65 years) inpatients consecutively referred for consultation-liaison psychiatric service from non-psychiatric departments formed the study group. Another 100 medical inpatients, also referred for consultation-liaison to the psychiatric service, but aged 17,50, formed the control (non-geriatric) group. The diagnosis, demography, reason for referral, symptomatology, and other clinical characteristics were determined by consensus between two psychiatrists. Psychiatric diagnosis was made according to criteria in the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The geropsychiatric consultation rate was 0.9%. Geriatric patients constituted 20.1% of all psychiatric referrals. Common reasons for referral of geriatric inpatients were confusion (32%), depression (17%), disturbing behaviors (14%), and psychosis (14%). The most common psychiatric disorder among geriatric patients was an organic mental disorder (79%), followed by a depressive disorder (13%). More geriatric patients suffered from cancers and cerebrovascular diseases than non-geriatric patients. The geriatric group was more likely to have multiple physical illnesses. Organic mental disorder and depressive disorders are the most common psychiatric diagnoses in the geropsychiatric consultation service of the authors. In the authors' experience, both psychotropic medication treatment and psychosocial intervention are important in geropsychiatric consultation. [source] MUM1/IRF4 Expression Is an Unfavorable Prognostic Factor in B-Cell Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)/Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma (SLL)CANCER SCIENCE, Issue 6 2002Masato Ito B-Cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL)/small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) consists of heterogeneous diseases that are distinguished by morphological, immunophenotypic and molecular features. MUM1 (multiple myeloma oncogene 1) is a protooncogene that is deregulated as a result of (6;14)(p25;q32) chromosomal translocation in multiple myeloma, and is also expressed in a variety of malignant lymphoma entities. We examined the expression of MUM1 in B-CLL/SLL, and found that 2 of 4 B-CLL-derived cell lines and 14 of 29 patients' specimens expressed MUM1 by immunohistochemical analysis. MUM1 expression was not associated with CD38 expression, somatic hypermutation of immunoglobulin heavy chain gene variable region (IgVH), or any other clinical characteristics of the patients. Interestingly, the patients who were positive for MUM1 showed shorter overall survival tunes than those who were negative for MUM1 (50% survival: 22 months vs. 82 months) (P=0.0008, log-rank test). Multivariate analysis by Cox's proportional-hazards regression model showed that MUM1 expression and unmutated IgVH status were independent unfavorable prognostic factors in patients with B-CLL/SLL. These findings suggest that MUM1 expression is a useful prognostic factor in B-CLL/SLL. The biological role and mechanism of action of MUM1 in B-CLL/SLL need to be clarified for the development of therapies for patients with the poor prognostic subtype. [source] |