Tumor pardo multifocal como manifestación del hiperparatiroidismo primario por adenoma paratiroideo asociado a carcinoma papilar de tiroides / Brown tumor of the pelvis associated with hyperparathyroidism

Background: Brown tumors of bones are an uncommon manifestation of hyperparathyroidism. Case report: We report a 35 years old male presenting with pain and paresis of the left superior limb. Part of his humerus was excised due to a diagnosis of a giant cell tumor. He was admitted again to the hospital due to pelvic pain, malaise and constipation. A right cervical nodule was found. Laboratory evaluation confirmed the presence of a hyperparathyroidism. The biopsy of the pelvic lesion disclosed a brown tumor. The patient was subjected to a parathyroidectomy and the pathological study of the surgical piece showed a right parathyroid adenoma and a right thyroid papillary micro carcinoma. In the postoperative period the patient had a hungry bone syndrome, which was adequately treated.

Introducción: La paratohormona es una hormona encargada de la homeostasis del calcio, el hiperparatiroidismo es una patología con manifestaciones renales y óseas, el Tumor Pardo es una rara presentación de esta enfermedad. Caso clínico: Hombre de 35 años con dolor y paresia en extremidad superior izquierda, fue resecado parte del húmero por un diagnóstico de Tumor de Células Gigantes; reingresa con dolor pélvico derecho, malestar general, astenia y estreñimiento. Se descubre un nódulo cervical derecho e hipersensibilidad en la pelvis derecha. Los exámenes de laboratorio muestran hiperparatiroidismo; la biopsia de la lesión pélvica es diagnóstica de Tumor Pardo, encontrándose además una hipercaptación paratiroidea derecha. Operado, el diagnóstico histopatológico fue: Adenoma paratiroideo derecho y un micro carcinoma papilar tiroideo; en el post-operatorio desarrolló un Síndrome de Bone Hunger, el cual fue superado y dado de alta. Discusión y conclusiones: El Tumor Pardo no es una verdadera neoplasia; producido por intensa actividad osteoclástica, tiene características histológicas y radiológicas inespecíficas y su diagnóstico se realiza por datos clínicos y bioquímicos. El hiperparatiroidismo puede llevar a la formación de Tumores Pardos; se sugiere realizar estudios de la glándula tiroides en pacientes con hiperparatiroidismo.

Psoriasis en el embarazo: qué sabemos hoy de las terapias delpasado y del futuro? / Psoriasis in pregnancy: what do we know today about the therapies of the past and the future?

La psoriasis es una enfermedad sistémica que puede ocurrir de múltiples formas durante el embarazo, con severidad variable, incluso con formas que amenazan la vida. Las variantes severas se han asociado a mayores riesgos maternos y fetales, y la mayor parte de los tratamientos tópicos y sistémicos disponibles están contraindicados durante el embarazo por el riesgo de toxicidad fetal. Los tratamientos de primera línea son los emolientes y los corticoides tópicos de baja-moderada potencia y en casos severos la fototerapia nbUVB es el tratamiento de elección. En pacientes con formas muy severas y refractarias otras alternativas de tratamiento son la ciclosporina, los corticoides sistémicos y los agentes biológicos, especialmente los anti-TNF-α, sin embargo, la información disponible sobre el uso de estas moléculas en embarazadas es muy limitada, y sólo deberían considerarse en casos muy seleccionados. El impétigo herpetiforme es una forma propia de psoriasis pustular severa durante el embarazo y las principales alternativas terapéuticas son la inducción del parto o el uso de corticoides sistémicos.

Psoriasis is a systemic disease that can be present during pregnancy in different clinical forms and variable severity; some forms can be life threatening. Severe clinical forms are associated with greater maternal and fetal risks, and topical and systemic treatments available are mainly contraindicated during pregnancy because of fetal toxicity risks. First line treatments are emollients and low-medium potency topical steroids; in severe cases nUVB phototherapy is the preferred treatment. In patients with more severe and recalcitrant clinical forms cyclosporine, systemic steroids and biologics agents specially anti-TNF-α are the options. Nevertheless the available information of the use of these treatments in pregnant women is limited and these drugs should be considered only in very special cases. Herpetiformis impetigo is a proper form of severe pustular psoriasis in pregnancy and the treatments for this entity should be delivery induction or systemic steroids.

Validity of the BodyGem calorimeter and prediction equations for the assessment of resting energy expenditure in overweight and obese Saudi males

To assess the accuracy of resting energy expenditure [REE] measurement in a sample of overweight and obese Saudi males, using the BodyGem device [BG] with whole room calorimetry [WRC] as a reference, and to evaluate the accuracy of predictive equations. Thirty-eight subjects [mean +/- SD, age 26.8 +/- 3.7 years, body mass index 31.0 +/- 4.8] were recruited during the period from 5 February 2007 to 28 March 2008. Resting energy expenditure was measured using a WRC and BG device, and also calculated using 7 prediction equations. Mean differences, bias, percent of bias [%bias], accurate estimation, underestimation and overestimation were calculated. Repeated measures with the BG were not significantly different [accurate prediction: 81.6%;%bias 1.1 +/- 6.3, p>0.24] with limits of agreement ranging from +242 to-200 kcal. Resting energy expenditure measured by BG was significantly less than WRC values [accurate prediction: 47.4%;%bias: 11.0 +/- 14.6, p=0.0001] with unacceptably wide limits of agreement. Harris-Benedict, Schofield and World Health Organization equations were the most accurate, estimating REE within 10% of measured REE, but none seem appropriate to predict the REE of individuals. There was a poor agreement between the REE measured by WRC compared to BG or predictive equations. The BG assessed REE accurately in 47.4% of the subjects on an individual level

Performance of body mass index in predicting diabetes and hypertension in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia

Body mass index [BMI] is the most widely used measure to define obesity and predict its complications, such as diabetes and hypertension, but its accuracy and usefulness in Saudi subjects is unknown. This study aimed to assess the validity of standard BMI cut-point values in the Saudi population. 197 681 adults participated in a cross-sectional study to detect diabetes and hypertension in the Saudi Eastern province in 2004/2005, with blood pressure, fasting blood sugar, height and weight measurements taken. Sensitivities, specificities, areas under the curves, predictive values, likelihood ratios, false positive, false negatives and total misclassification ratios were calculated for various BMI values determined from receiver operating characteristic [ROC] curves. The significance of the association between risk factors and BMI was assessed using regression analysis. For the definition of overweight, ROC curve analysis suggested optimal BMI cut-offs of 28.50 to 29.50 in men and 30.50 to 31.50 in women, but the levels of sensitivity and specificity were too low to be of clinical value and the overall misclassification was unacceptably high across all the selected BMI values [>0.80]. The relationship between BMI and the presence of diabetes and/or hypertension was not improved when a BMI of 25 was used. Using regression analyses, the odds ratios for hypertension and/or diabetes increased significantly from BMI values as low as 21-23 with no improvement in the diagnostic performance of BMI at these cutoffs. In Saudi population, there is an increased risk of diabetes and hypertension relative to BMI, starting at a BMI as low as 21 but overall there is no cutoff BMI level with high predictive value for the development of these chronic diseases, including the WHO definition of obesity at BMI of 30

calcified intraarticular mass in a man with severe shoulder osteoarthritis: what are the implications?

Rapidly progressive osteoarthritis in the shoulder in the elderly is often associated with chronic rotator cuff calcifications and damage and with apatite crystals identifiable in the joint fluid. The key roles of the crystals and rotator cuff lesions although suspected have been disputed. We describe a 57-year-old man with severe degenerative changes at the right shoulder and other joints. A calcified mass 2-cm in length was found on radiographs medially in relation to the proximal humeral diaphysis. At arthroscopy, the mass was confirmed to be in the joint and due to calcified synovium. Biopsy revealed synovium with apatite like crystal clumps in this mass. Calcium pyrophosphate crystals were also found but in the cartilage only. This case with the apatite crystals only in synovium and with destructive arthritis without a complete rotator cuff tear raise the possibility that synovium as a primary site for apatite deposition might be important in the destructive arthritis. Management of this patient like many with rotator cuff tear arthropathy has been difficult. Rapidly destructive osteoarthritis at the shoulder, much like that in the patient reported here, has been described under a variety of terms that suggest implications for pathogenesis. Neer et al used the term cuff tear arthropathy to describe glenohumeral degenerative arthritis and a rotator cuff tear in twenty-six patients who had required a total shoulder replacement.[1] McCarty et al described 4 elderly women with destructive arthropathy of the shoulder, large effusions, apatite crystals present in the joint effusions and massive tears of the rotator cuffs and coined the term Milwaukee shoulder syndrome.[2],[3],[4]. Dieppe et al suggested the terms apatite-associated destructive arthritis and idiopathic destructive arthritis.[5] Calcifications have been noted in the rotator cuff structures but have not been reported in the joint or synovium.[3] We describe a patient with a similar destructive arthropathy, who had a calcified mass about 2-cm in length in the right shoulder, well visible by X-ray and arthroscopy, that was localized to synovium at arthroscopy. Since this patient did not have prominent rotator cuff disease, our case suggests that intraarticular crystals can be associated with difficult to manage progressive shoulder osteoarthritis without a prominent primary rotator cuff cause

Conocimientos y hábitos de exposición solar de la población chilena / Sun exposure behaviors and knowledge among Chileans

Background: Ultraviolet light exposure has a pathogenic effect on the development of skin cancer, whose prevalence increases worldwide. In Chile and the rest of the world, preventive educational campaigns are carried out to change high risk sun exposure behaviors. Aim: To study the behavior of the Chilean population towards skin cancer prevention and to identify erroneous preventive practices and concepts. Material and methods: A survey containing 17 questions about sun exposure behaviors, photoprotective measures and knowledge about ultraviolet radiation and skin cancer was used. It was applied during January and February 2004, to 1,143 subjects (mean age 30 years, 409 males), taking vacations in beach resorts in Chile. Results: The hours of higher sun exposure ranged from 12 AM to 4 PM. Thirty seven percent of subjects were exposed more than 2 hours during this high risk lapse. Women and subjects aged less than 25 years were those with the riskiest behaviors. Fifty four percent used some type of photoprotection and 50% used ocular protection. Seventy percent used creams with sun screen and 74% used a sun protection factor higher than 15. Seventy percent applied the sun screen as recommended. Thirty eight percent had at least one sun burn in the last two years. More than 90% of subjects were aware of the relationship between sun exposure and skin cancer but 60% did not know the hours of higher ultraviolet radiation. The information about sun exposure was obtained from television in 57% of surveyed individuals. Conclusions: More educational campaigns about the risk of sun exposure are needed to reduce risky behaviors in the Chilean population.

A history of surgery for congenital heart disease in Papua New Guinea

@#Cardiothoracic surgery in Papua New Guinea (PNG) was somewhat ad hoc prior to 1956 but later settled into an arrangement in which visiting teams from overseas selected mostly adult patients for a limited range of closed heart operations to be done locally or overseas. In 1978 the late Professor John Biddulph was instrumental in facilitating a more formal arrangement with the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital whereby patients were selected by a visiting cardiologist on an annual basis to be transferred to Sydney for cardiac surgery. This subsequently developed into a predominantly paediatric program based at the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children in Sydney, which successfully ran until 1992. In 1993 a program began, based at the Sydney Adventist Hospital, in which a voluntary cardiac team has been visiting annually to perform both open and closed heart surgery. This program has proved to be very successful with a high output and a low mortality. Despite this long history of surgery for congenital heart disease in PNG, no definite long-term plans have eventuated. Because the financial situation of the country does not allow for a major cardiothoracic unit, the current arrangement whereby noninvasive investigation and some closed surgery are performed at Port Moresby General Hospital is appropriate for the foreseeable future.