incidence of verbal body fracture of dorsal spine in 5-years postmenopausal women

In this study, the incidence of vertebral body fracture of the dorsal spine was studied in 50 5-year postmenopausal women. Biochemical laboratory investigations related to bone metabolism, such as serum calcium and phosphorus, serum alkaline phosphatase and ESR, were measured. Plain lateral radiographs of the dorsal spine were taken for all patients as well as the measurement of bone mass with dual photon absorptiometry. The incidence of vertebral body fractures in 5-year postmenopausal women was 2%

CT scan of brain in systemic lupus erythematosus patients

Sixteen female SLE patients with an age ranging between 25 and 40 years were included in this study. Neuropsychiatric manifestations were found in 32.2% of the 16 SLE patients. There were impaired memory and concentration [one case], monoparesis and aphasia [one case], dizziness [one case], headache [three cases], psychosis [one case] and depression [one case]. CT scan endings of the brain were abnormal in 25% of the SLE patients and it revealed areas of microinfarction in temporal, parietal or frontal lobes. CT scan of the brain is helpful to detect the brain involvement in SLE patients

Role of C.T scan inearly detection of sacroiliitis and prognosis of patients with reactive arthritis [ReA]

The aim of this work was to study the role of CT in early sacroiliitis and to detect changes in the patients four months after treatment with a short course of antibiotics, thus pointed out to the prognosis of patients with ReA. Thirty patients with ReA were included in this study. Complete history, clinical examination, plain X-ray of sacroiliac [SI] joint [AP view of pelvis] and CT scan of SI joint before and after antibiotic therapy [minocycline capsules, 100 mg/twice daily for four weeks] in CT proven sacroiliitis were done. The clinical findings included inflammatory low back ache in 93% of the patients with typical characteristics such as morning back stiffness, heel tenderness in 70%, inflamed joint of knee [asymmetrical] in 76.6%, urethritis in 26.6% and eye inflammation in 26.6% mainly as conjunctivitis. CT scan of SI joint before treatment showed erosions and narrowing in 26.6% of patients with reactive arthritis. CT scan findings of SI joints after four months of treatment showed the same bone erosions and narrowing in patients with reactive arthritis who already had previous findings. CT scan is superior to radiography in the imaging of early bone changes

Diastolic function abnormalities in rheumatoid arthritis; an echocardiographic study

The aim of this study was to evaluate left ventricular-filling in patients with rheumatoid arthritis [RA], analyzing transmitral flow and pulmonary venous flow, with special regard to disease duration. Forty-five patients affected by RA according to ARA criteria were selected, without evidence of cardiac disease, and compared with matched control subjects. All patients and control group were submitted to M-mode, two- dimensional Doppler and color Doppler [continuous and pulsed wave] echocardiography. Transmitral flow [E/A ratio], pulmonary venous flow [S/D ratio], IVRT and DT. In RA patients, left ventricular filling abnormalities were found to be characterized by a reduced E/A ratio. It was concluded that RA patients, in the absence of clinical evidence of heart disease, show LV diastolic dysfunction characterized by impaired E/A and S/D ratio. The relation with the disease duration suggests a sub-clinical myocardial involvement