Intravenous gamma globulin for treatment of chronic idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura in children.

A prospective and descriptive study was carried out in 17 children with chronic ITP. Five-day course of Intraglobin (400 mg/kg/d x 5) was given intravenously to 10 children with the age of 4-16 years (5 males and 5 females). Two-day course of Venoglobulin-I (1 g/kg/d x 2) was given intravenously to 7 children with the age of 3-15 years (3 males and 4 females). Intraglobin and Venoglobulin-I were effective in treating children with chronic ITP. All of the patients had transient increased in their platelet counts during the first 2 weeks. The two-day course of Venoglobulin-I was superior to the five-day course of Intraglobin. Mild adverse effects were observed in a greater percentage of patients treated by Venoglobulin-I than in patients treated by Intraglobin. Intravenous immunoglobulin was one of the choices of treatment in children with chronic ITP, but the cost of immunoglobulin or gamma globulin is quiet high.

Molecular basis of beta-thalassemia in Thai Muslim patients in the the south of Thailand.

Among a sample of 29 unrelated Thai Muslim children, a total of 37 beta thalassemia genes was identified and 33 out of 37 mutations (89%) were characterized giving 6 different mutations. Four mutations [IVS-1 nt 5 (G-C), codon 19 (A-G), codons 41/42 (-CTTT) and IVS-1 nt 1 (G-T)] account for 86%. IVS-1 nt 5 (G-C) is the most common mutation found in Thai Muslim patients. Thai Muslim patients share the four most common mutations with Malays.

Acarboxy prothrombin (PIVKA-II) in cord plasma in the south of Thailand.

Acarboxy prothrombin or PIVKA-II (protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist-II) was used to determine the presence of vitamin deficiency in newborn infants. Of 230 cord blood samples assayed by using ELISA method, 34.8 per cent were positive for PIVKA-II 0.13-17 AU/ml. The positive rate for PIVKA-II was greater in infants of primigravida (50.7%) than in those of multigravida (27.9%). All infants received prophylactic vitamin K, and no infant with positive PIVKA-II in cord blood subsequently had clinical bleeding. Because of the high prevalence of vitamin K deficiency in newborn infants in the South of Thailand, all newborn infants should receive prophylactic vitamin K at birth.