ABSTRACT
Neurological manifestations, secondary to perfusion problems, vasogenic edema or small infarcts, are common in thrombotic purpura. Moreover, they are the first symptoms of the disease in 50% of patients. We report a 50 year-old woman who presented with focal intermittent neurological signs with aphasia and right hemiparesis, who then developed progressive impairment of consciousness with stupor and generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Despite the severe neurological impairment, first neuroimaging studies were normal. A second magnetic resonance imaging showed small cortical infarcts, that were visible only with the technique of diffusion weighted imaging. The standard electroencephalograms showed focal left temporal slowing and low voltage first and then diffuse slowing accordind to the clinical condition of the patients. She was treated with plasmapheresis and had a partial neurological recovery at the fifth day, but died at the twelfth day of therapy .
Subject(s)
Female , Humans , Middle Aged , Brain Infarction/etiology , Purpura, Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic/complications , Brain Infarction/diagnosis , Electroencephalography , Fatal Outcome , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Purpura, Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic/diagnosis , Purpura, Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic/therapy , Tomography, X-Ray ComputedABSTRACT
Background:Multiple myeloma is rarely curable. Advances in high dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation have improved overall survival and event-free disease periods, but relapses are inevitable. Aim: To report our experience with AT in multiple myeloma, between 1994 and 2003. Material and Methods: Retrospective analysis of 20 patients (12 women), with a mean age of 51.1 years. VAD (vincristine, doxorubicin and dexamethasone) was used as initial therapy in 19 patients. High dose cyclophosphamide (11 patients) and variations of VAD regimen (7) associated with granulocyte colony stimulating factor were used for peripheral-blood stem cell harvest. The conditioning regimen consisted of melphalan 200 mg/m2 followed by the reinfusion of peripheral-blood stem cells 24 hours later. The median number of CD34 cells infused was 3,3x106/kg. Three patients were subjected to a second auto graft and one to a non-myeloablative transplant. Mean follow up was 35.5 months. Results: Mucositis and febrile neutropenia were common complications. The median number of days for neutrophyl engraftment was 9 (range 8-11) and for platelets, 10 (range 7-13). No patient died. Complete remission was obtained in 60% (12/20), progession-free survival was 30 months and overall median survival, 47 months. Conclusions: The AT with high-dose melphalan is a safe procedure in our hospital, without mortality and engraftment in all the patients. Complete remission and progression free survival were similar to those reported abroad but the overall median survival was lower.
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Multiple Myeloma/therapy , Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation , Transplantation Conditioning , Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use , Combined Modality Therapy , Disease-Free Survival , Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor/therapeutic use , Retrospective Studies , Transplantation, Autologous , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
Background: Pregnancy is a physiological hypercoagulable state with an increased incidence of thromboembolic phenomena. There is an increase in the concentrations of most clotting factors, a decrease in concentration of some of the natural anticoagulants and reduced fibrinolytic activity. Changes in PS levels have also been reported. Aim: To establish referral range values of functional PS and free PS antigen, during the second (2nd T) and third trimester (3rd T) of normal gestation. Patients and methods: Forty one normal pregnant women were included in our study, 20 during the 2nd T (22-24 weeks) and 21 during the 3rd T (29-38 weeks). Functional PS was measured by a clot based test and free PS antigen by ELISA. Results: Free PS Antigen was 65.8±18.3% during the 2nd T and 62.3±16.5% during the 3rd T. The figures for normal controls were 106±6.5%. Functional PS was 43.8±13.3 and 25.9±14.6% during the 2nd T and 3rd T, respectively. The figures for normal controls were 97±24% (p <0.001 compared with pregnant women). Free PS antigen did not change from the 2nd to the 3rd T (p=NS), however functional PS fell significantly from the 2nd to the 3rd T (p <0.001) and was significantly lower than free PS antigen in both trimesters (p <0.001). Conclusions: Pregnancy is associated to a decrease in PS. This abnormality is more pronounced for functional PS than free PS antigen and functional PS falls progressively during pregnancy. These assays should not be used to screen for PS deficiency during pregnancy because they could lead to a misdiagnosis.
Subject(s)
Adolescent , Adult , Female , Humans , Pregnancy , Pregnancy Trimester, Second/blood , Pregnancy Trimester, Third/blood , Protein S/analysis , Blood Coagulation Tests , Case-Control Studies , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/standards , Prospective Studies , Protein S Deficiency/metabolism , Reference ValuesABSTRACT
La intensidad y duración de la neutropenia post quimioterapia fueron identificadas en la década del 60 como los factores de mayor relevancia predisponentes a infecciones en pacientes con cáncer. A inicios de la década del 70 se estableció un manejo estandarizado para todos los episodios de neutropenia febril (NF), consistente en hospitalización y terapia antimicrobiana intravenosa empírica, de amplio espectro, lo que se tradujo en una importante disminución de la mortalidad por infecciones bacterianas en estos pacientes. En los últimos 10 a 15 años, distintos grupos de investigadores han considerado poco beneficiosas estas estrategias estandarizadas, que proporcionan un manejo uniforme a todos los pacientes con episodios de NF, independiente de la gravedad de estos. Así, se acuñaron en la década pasada los conceptos de NF de alto y bajo riesgo, lo que ha permitido implementar estrategias terapéuticas diferenciadas según el riesgo que entrañe el episodio para cada paciente en particular. La Sociedad Chilena de Infectología ha tenido la iniciativa de proponer, en un trabajo conjunto con dos programas gubernamentales: Programa Infantil de Drogas Antineoplásicas y Programa Adulto de Drogas Antineoplásicas y la Sociedad Chilena de Hematología, un consenso de diagnóstico, manejo terapéutico y prevención de NF en adultos y niños con cáncer, considerando básicamente dos aspectos: el cambio de enfoque que esta patología ha tenido en la última década, lo que obliga a una revisión sistematizada del tema, y en segundo lugar, una población creciente de pacientes oncológicos, cada vez con mejores expectativas terapéuticas para su patología de base, lo que exige ofrecer en forma acorde un muy buen manejo de esta complicación. Entregamos este documento con una completa revisión de la literatura médica sobre epidemiología, exploración de laboratorio, categorización de riesgo, enfoque terapéutico y quimioprofilaxis, con la mayor cantidad de datos nacionales disponibles, para ofrecer al equipo de salud que atiende a estos pacientes recomendaciones basadas en evidencias, y acotadas a nuestra realidad nacional.
Subject(s)
Adult , Humans , Child , Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use , Fever/microbiology , Fever/drug therapy , Neoplasms/complications , Neoplasms/microbiology , Neoplasms/drug therapy , Neutropenia/microbiology , Neutropenia/drug therapy , Anti-Bacterial Agents/administration & dosage , Chile , Consensus Development Conferences as Topic , Evidence-Based Medicine , Cross Infection/epidemiology , Cross Infection/prevention & control , Bacterial Infections/diagnosis , Bacterial Infections/epidemiology , Bacterial Infections/drug therapy , Antibiotic Prophylaxis/standards , Severity of Illness IndexABSTRACT
A Multiple Myeloma (MM), IgG-l stage III-A was diagnosed in a 41-year-old-man. After VAD cycles IgG decreased from 7.5 to 2.4 g/dL. were mobilized with cyclophosphamide and 10 µg/Kg G-CSF. Three days after the collection of peripheral stem cell, the patient had fever, nausea, vomiting, liquid stools, shoulder and knee arthralgia and dehydration. Upper GI endoscopy showed esophageal candidiasis and ulcerative necrotic lesions both in stomach and duodenum; the biopsy confirmed necrosis. Simultaneously, the appearance of purpura with maculopapular lesions of diverse sizes appeared in the feet progressing to the limbs and trunk. Hematuria and proteinuria were also observed. Skin biopsy showed leukocytoclastic vasculitis. Renal biopsy showed focal and segmental glomerulonephritis. Serum ANCA, cryoglobulins, anti-HCV and RF were negative, and serum monoclonal IgG was 1290 mg/dL. Daily treatment with iv methylprednisolone pulses for 3 days improved skin lesions and digestive involvement. Macroscopic hematuria and proteinuria improved after two months of steroid treatment
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Adult , Multiple Myeloma/complications , IgA Vasculitis/complications , Vincristine/administration & dosage , Methylprednisolone/administration & dosage , Cyclophosphamide/administration & dosage , Multiple Myeloma/drug therapy , IgA Vasculitis/drug therapyABSTRACT
We report a 24 years old female with a superior mesenteric and portal vein thrombosis due to an antithrombin III factor deficiency, associated to oral contraceptive use and smoking. She presented with severe abdominal pain and the diagnosis was reached after surgery with a CT scan. The patient was treated with intravenous heparin and oral anticoagulation, with a good clinical and doppler endosonographic response. One month after the onset, she developed an intestinal occlusion caused by two concentric jejunal stenoses, measuring 2 and 0.7 cm in length and demonstrated with a barium jejunogram. A 35 cm intestinal resection was done and the patient recovered uneventfully. The pathological study showed granulation tissue on both stenotic zones with an ulcer near to the distal stricture, that reached the internal muscularis propria, with subserosal fibrosis. The development of segmental stenosis is a rare complication superior mesenteric vein thrombosis, that must be bore in mind