Classic Raymond syndrome

Classic Raymond syndrome presents with abducens nerve palsy on the ipsilateral side with contralateral hemiparesis and facial nerve paralysis. A 60-year gentleman presented with deviation of left angle of mouth and right sided weakness. Examination showed that he had left sided abducens nerve palsy, with contralateral central facial paralysis and paresis. MRI of brain confirmed left pontine infarct. These findings were consistent with classic Raymond syndrome. Till now, only a few cases have been reported worldwide, this being the first case reported in South Asia. This case confirms that classic Raymond syndrome is different from the common type of Raymond syndrome in terms of sparing of coritcofacial fibers in the latter type

effect of quinine on qt interval in patients in a tertiary care hospital

To determine the frequency of patients developing QT prolongation with the use of intravenous[IV] quinine therapy in medical unit D of Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar. This cross-sectional study was conducted in Medical unit D of Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar, from 1[st] June, 2011 to 30[th] November, 2011. The study population comprised of male and female patients who tested positive for malarial parasite on peripheral blood smear. Treatment was started with intravenous quinine for a minimum duration of 3 days to a maximum duration of 5 days. Electrocardiography [ECG] was done before starting the patients on IV quinine therapy and QT interval was calculated. Repeat ECG was done 72 hours after starting the therapy. Patients were evaluated for prolongation of the QT interval after initiation of treatment with quinine. All the statistical analyses were done using statistical program SPSS version 17.0. The mean with standard deviation, frequency and percentages were reported. Significance was tested at p<0.05. Out of a total of 200 patients, only 2 female patients [1%] had a prolongation of the QT interval from their normal baseline interval before treatment. It appears that the cardio toxic effects of quinine have been overstated and that the risk of QT prolongation and fatal arrhythmias is minimal with quinine therapy. It can thus be concluded that quinine is a safe drug for the treatment of malaria with negligible cardio toxic adverse effect profile

Comparative profiling of plasma proteome from breast cancer patients reveals thrombospondin-1 and BRWD3 as serological biomarkers

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide. It is necessary to identify biomarkers for early detection, to make accurate prognoses, and to monitor for any recurrence of the cancer. In order to identify potential breast cancer biomarkers, we analyzed the plasma samples of women diagnosed with breast cancer and age-matched normal healthy women by mTRAQ-based stable isotope-labeling mass spectrometry. We identified and quantified 204 proteins including thrombospondin-1 (THBS1) and bromodomain and WD repeat-containing protein 3 (BRWD3) which were increased by more than 5-fold in breast cancer plasma. The plasma levels of the two proteins were evaluated by Western blot assay to confirm for their diagnostic value as serum markers. A 1.8-fold increase in BRWD3 was observed while comparing the plasma levels of breast cancer patients (n = 54) with age-matched normal healthy controls (n = 30), and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was 0.917. THBS1 was detected in pooled breast cancer plasma at the ratio similar to mTRAQ ratio (> 5-fold). The AUC value for THBS1 was 0.875. The increase of THBS1 was more prominent in estrogen receptor negative and progesterone receptor negative patients than receptor-positive patients. Our results are evidence of the diagnostic value of THBS1 in detecting breast cancer. Based on our findings, we suggest a proteomic method for protein identification and quantification lead to effective biomarker discovery.