A Case Report of Gemella sanguinis Isolated From Blood Cultures of a Patient With Mitral Valve Prolapse / 대한임상미생물학회지

Gemella sanguinis is a gram-positive, facultatively anaerobic coccus bacterium that has rarely been reported as a cause of infective endocarditis. A 41-year-old male patient with mitral valve prolapse visited the outpatient clinic presenting with fever. Transthoracic echocardiography and transesophageal echocardiography revealed myxomatous change and vegetation of the mitral valve. We isolated G. sanguinis from the patient’s blood, cultured it in both aerobic and anaerobic blood culture bottles, and identified it using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS; bioMérieux, France) and 16s rRNA sequencing. The isolated G. sanguinis was highly susceptible to penicillin and vancomycin and intermediately susceptible to erythromycin, clindamycin, and levofloxacin. Following the American Heart Association recommendations, this highly penicillin-sensitive isolate was eradicated with ceftriaxone and gentamicin, and the patient recovered and was discharged. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case in Korea where G. sanguinis, the causative agent of endocarditis, was identified using MALDI-TOF MS and 16s rRNA sequencing and was treated with only antibiotics and without surgical valve replacement.

Clinical analysis of risk factors in refractory mycoplasma pneumonia in children

PURPOSE: Refractory Mycoplasma pneumonia (RMP) has been increasing not only in Korea but worldwide. We investigated the incidence of M. pneumonia resistant to macrolides and risk factors for RMP. METHODS: From October 2015 to May 2016, 62 pediatric patients who were admitted due to pneumonia diagnosed on the basis of chest x-ray with respiratory symptoms and positive for M. pneumoniae in polymerase chain reaction with no evidence of other bacterial or viral infections were included. Sequence analysis of the 23S rRNA gene in M. pneumoniae was performed to identify macrolide resistance. Patients with congenital anomalies, history of pulmonary disease, and unclear information on antibiotic use were excluded. RESULTS: Mutations in the 23S rRNA gene were detected in 50 of 62 patients (80.6%). Risk factors were analyzed in only 45 patients. The RMP group consisted of 26 patients (57.8%) who had fever lasting more than 5 days and deteriorating chest x-ray findings. The lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were significantly higher in the RMP group than in the non-RMP group (LDH: 300±79 U/L vs. 469±206 U/L, CRP: 4.9±4.3 mg/dL vs. 2.5±1.7 mg/dL; P = 0.04 vs. P = 0.026). In univariate analysis, the RMP group was significantly associated with 23S rRNA gene mutation, lobar pneumonia, and pleural effusion (odds ration [OR]: 10.8, 4.1, 5.3; P = 0.004, P = 0.036, P = 0.046). The presence of macrolide resistance was found to be only a significant risk factor in logistic regression (OR; 8.827; 95% confidence interval, 1.376–56.622; P = 0.022). CONCLUSION: Macrolide resistance was a significant risk factor in patients with RMP and identification of macrolide resistance might be helpful in predicting RMP and establishing target therapy for RMP.

Performance Evaluation of the HM-JACKarc Analyser for Fecal Occult Blood Test

BACKGROUND: Fecal occult blood tests have been widely used as a means of gastrointestinal bleeding and colorectal cancer screening. HM-JACKarc (Kyowa Medex Co. Ltd, Japan) is a recently introduced automated fecal occult blood test analyser, which uses latex agglutination method. We evaluated the analytical performance of HM-JACKarc. METHODS: The linearity and precision for HM-JACKarc were evaluated according to the corresponding Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute guidelines. The comparison study between HM-JACKarc and OC-SENSOR DIANA (Eiken Chemical Co. Ltd., Japan) was done with stool specimens. RESULTS: The linearity was good (R²=0.999) and the coefficients of variation of within-day precision and between-day precision were 5.2% and 4.9%, respectively, in low concentration and 2.7% each in high concentration. The concordance rate between HM-JACKarc and OCSENSOR DIANA was 99.0% (198 out of 200). CONCLUSIONS: HM-JACKarc showed excellent performance in linearity, precision, and comparison studies. Therefore, it appears to be a useful automated fecal occult blood test analyser.

Changes in Plasma Levels of Natural Anticoagulants in Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation: High Prognostic Value of Antithrombin and Protein C in Patients with Underlying Sepsis or Severe Infection

BACKGROUND: Dysfunctional natural anticoagulant systems enhance intravascular fibrin for mation in disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), and plasma levels of natural anti coagulants can be used in the diagnosis and prognosis of DIC. Herein, the diagnostic value of 4 natural anticoagulants was assessed, and the prognostic value of antithrombin and protein C were validated in a large population. METHODS: Part 1 study included 126 patients with clinically suspected DIC and estimated plasma levels of 4 candidate anticoagulant proteins: antithrombin, protein C, protein S, and protein Z. Part 2 comprised 1,846 patients, in whom plasma antithrombin and protein C levels were compared with other well-known DIC markers according to the underlying dis eases. The 28-day mortality rate was used to assess prognostic outcome. RESULTS: Antithrombin and protein C showed higher areas under the ROC curve than pro tein S and protein Z. In part 2 of the study, antithrombin and protein C levels significantly correlated with DIC score, suggesting that these factors are good indicators of DIC severity. Antithrombin and protein C showed significant prognostic power in Kaplan-Meier analyses. In patients with sepsis/severe infection, antithrombin and protein C showed higher hazard ratios than D-dimer. Platelet count showed the highest hazard ratio in patients with hemato logic malignancy. In patients with liver disease, the hazard ratio for antithrombin levels was significantly high. CONCLUSIONS: Decreased plasma anticoagulant levels reflect florid consumption of the phys iologic defense system against DIC-induced hypercoagulation. Plasma antithrombin and protein C levels are powerful prognostic markers of DIC, especially in patients with sepsis/severe infection.

The application of an in situ karyotyping technique for mesenchymal stromal cells: a validation and comparison study with classical G-banding

The cytogenetic analysis of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) is essential for verifying the safety and stability of MSCs. An in situ technique, which uses cells grown on coverslips for karyotyping and minimizes cell manipulation, is the standard protocol for the chromosome analysis of amniotic fluids. Therefore, we applied the in situ karyotyping technique in MSCs and compared the quality of metaphases and karyotyping results with classical G-banding and chromosomal abnormalities with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Human adipose- and umbilical cord-derived MSC cell lines (American Type Culture Collection PCS-500-011, PCS-500-010) were used for evaluation. The quality of metaphases was assessed by analyzing the chromosome numbers in each metaphase, the overlaps of chromosomes and the mean length of chromosome 1. FISH was performed in the interphase nuclei of MSCs for 6q, 7q and 17q abnormalities and for the enumeration of chromosomes via oligo-FISH in adipose-derived MSCs. The number of chromosomes in each metaphase was more variable in classical G-banding. The overlap of chromosomes and the mean length of chromosome 1 as observed via in situ karyotyping were comparable to those of classical G-banding (P=0.218 and 0.674, respectively). Classical G-banding and in situ karyotyping by two personnel showed normal karyotypes for both cell lines in five passages. No numerical or structural chromosomal abnormalities were found by the interphase-FISH. In situ karyotyping showed equivalent karyotype results, and the quality of the metaphases was not inferior to classical G-banding. Thus, in situ karyotyping with minimized cell manipulation and the use of less cells would be useful for karyotyping MSCs.

Performance Evaluation of the ADAMS A1c HA-8180 Analyzer for HbA1c / 임상검사와정도관리

BACKGROUND: Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels are widely used to monitor glycemic control in diabetes mellitus patients, and various methods are used for determining HbA1c levels. The ADAMS A1c HA-8180 (Arkray, Inc., Japan) is a fully automated HbA1c analyzer based on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). METHODS: The analytical performance of the ADAMS A1c HA-8180 analyzer was evaluated on the basis of its precision, linearity, correlation with the Variant II Turbo (Bio-Rad Laboratories, USA), and agreement with the National Glycohemoglobin Standardization Program (NGSP) targets. All evaluations were performed according to Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute (CLSI) guidelines EP05, EP06, and EP09. RESULTS: Coefficients of variation (CVs) for total precision at low and high levels were 0.99% and 1.16%, respectively. The linearity was excellent with R2 = 0.99 in the range of 4.98-15.10%. Its analytical performance was well correlated with that of Variant II Turbo (r = 0.9987). The 95% confidence interval of bias between the NGSP target and the levels measured using the ADAMS A1c HA-8180 was -0.402-0.225. CONCLUSIONS: The ADAMS A1c HA-8180 showed excellent precision, linearity, correlation with Variant II Turbo, and agreement with the NGSP target. Therefore, its analytical performance is satisfactory for diagnosis and treatment monitoring of diabetes.

Diagnosis of Transfusion-Related Acute Lung Injury (TRALI) in a Heart Failure Patient / 대한수혈학회지

A 71-yr old man with known coronary heart disease complained of dyspnea and severe sweating one hour after transfusion of one unit of packed Red Blood Cells (pRBC). Although the heart failure was secondary to the remote acute myocardial infarction, except inflammatory lesion in his toes, he had remained asymptomatic for a long time. Observed as having clear lungs a few hours before transfusion, the patient suffered an acute hypoxic episode (SpO2=61%) and a resulting chest x-ray revealed bilateral pulmonary infiltrates. Confused as the cause of the acute deterioration, he was transferred to the intensive care unit and received managed lung care by mechanical ventilation as well as other conservative care methods. Two days after the acute hypoxic event there was apparent clinical improvement, and he was weaned from ventilator support. His amelioration resulted in subsequent diagnosis of Transfusion-Related Acute Lung Injury (TRALI). TRALI is underdiagnosed in patients due to its nebulous nature. Evaluating patients exhibiting symptoms of bilateral lung infiltrate after blood transfusion for TRALI, and subsequent reporting of the diagnosis results, will help reveal the actual frequency of incidence of TRALI, and prevent additional events by tracing the blood donor.

Plasmablastic plasma cell myeloma mimicking plasmablastic lymphoma / 대한혈액학회지

No abstract available.