Helicobacter pylori cagA, vacA and iceA genotypes in northern Thai patients with gastric disease.

Helicobacterpylori, a common infectious bacterium, has been linked to chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer and gastric cancer. Gastric biopsy specimens were obtained from 58 northern Thai patients with gastritis, 28 with gastric ulcer, 45 with duodenal ulcer and 4 with gastric cancer. cagA, vacA s1 and iceA gene was found in 88, 98, and 89% of the specimens, respectively. For vacA, the frequency of subtype s1a, s1c and combined sla and s1c was 40, 16, and 41%, respectively. The frequency of subtype s1a/m1 and s1a/s1c/m1 was 27 and 20%, respectively. Fifty-three patients (39%) were infected with multiple vacA genotypes but there was no association with clinical outcome. cagA positive and mixed vacA s1a and s1c strains were found in significantly more cases of duodenal ulcer than gastritis (p < 0.05). For iceA, subtype iceA1 reached a frequency of 60%, whereas subtype iceA2 was only 24%.

Expression of cyclooxygenase-1 and -2 and clinicopathologic features of colorectal cancer in northern Thailand.

Two isoforms of cyclooxygenase, COX-1 and COX-2, have been identified and shown to be involved in tumorigenesis. Although, overexpression of COX-2 in human cancers has been repeatedly reported, no data have hitherto been available for Thai patients. To cast light on the role(s) of COX enzymes in the development and progression of colorectal cancers and to determine the incidence of COX-2 overexpression, the expression levels of COX-1 and COX-2 proteins using Western blot analysis in tumor tissues and adjacent normal tissues obtained from 44 Thai patients with colorectal cancer. Compared with paired normal tissues, COX-2 was overexpressed in 13 of 44 colorectal tumor tissues (29.5%). Overall, COX-2 levels in colorectal tumor specimens were significantly correlated with histological differentiation, in particular in the tumors with poor differentiation (p<0.05). In addition, overexpression of COX-2 was found more frequently in colorectal tumors with lymphatic invasion, regional lymph node metastasis and larger size, although without statistical significance. In contrast to the relatively consistent alteration in COX-2 expression, the level of COX-1 expression was quite varied in tumor tissues. Forty-eight percent of colorectal tumors exhibited a decreased level of COX-1 in comparison to normal tissues and overexpressed in 23%. Thus both isoforms may both play roles in promoting tumorigenesis. However, there was no significant relationship between the alteration of COX-1 protein levels and any pathological features of tumors.

The endoscopic diagnosis of intestinal capillariasis in a child: a case report.

A 13-year-old boy was diagnosed as having intestinal capillariasis by gastroduodenoscopy. He presented with a 10-month history of chronic abdominal pain and diarrhea. The boy had stayed in central Thailand and had eaten uncooked fish and raw shellfish. Gastroduodenoscopy showed normal jejunal mucosa although histology revealed flattened villi, crypt proliferation, acute inflammation, and eosinophilic granulomata. An egg of Capillaria philippinensis was also seen. The child was treated with mebendazole for 30 days. He had gained six kilograms by the time of his last follow-up.

Entomophthoromycosis in Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital.

OBJECTIVE: To review documented entomophthoromycosis patients at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital from 1985 to 2001. MATERIAL AND METHOD: A retrospective review was performed at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital from 1985 to 2001. Eight cases of entomophthoromycosis were found between 1988 and 1993, with five patients diagnosed as subcutaneous zygomycosis, I GI entomophthoromycosis and 2 rhinofacial zygomycosis. RESULTS: The subcutaneous zygomycosis group was composed of 5 female patients, aged 7- 77 years. They presented with a painless subcutaneous mass, which was solitary or multiple and most commonly found on the extremities. The duration of disease was between 3 months to 5 years. The cultures grew Basidiobolus ranarum. A case of GI entomophthoromycosis was seen in a 34 year old man, who presented with dyspepsia, multiple intraabodminal masses and peritonitis. Two cases of conidiobolomycosis (rhinofacial zygomycosis) were seen. These two patients were male, 26 and 39 years old, and they presented with unilateral nasal obstruction from a mass at the inferior turbinate. The cultures grew Conidiobolus coronatus. CONCLUSION: Entomophthoromycosis in the northern part of Thailand is rare. The disease should be differentially diagnosed by a chronic painless tumor. The patients in this review responded very well to the recommended therapy.