Serum C-reactive protein and white blood cell level as markers of successful percutaneous drainage of acute sterile peripancreatic fluid collection.

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous drainage is not a widely used therapeutic method recently for evacuating peripancreatic sterile fluid collections in patients with severe acute pancreatitis.However, many clinical studies have proved its positive effects. AIM: We tested the changes in serum laboratory parameters:C-reactive protein (CRP), complement factor 3-4 (C 3-4),tumor necrosis factor a (TNF-a), amylase, lipase and white blood cell (WBC) count in patients treated by percutaneous drainage. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 10 patients with severe acute pancreatitis with peripancreatic fluid collection were monitored.Laboratory parameters and the amount of drained fluid were measured on the 1st, 5th and 10th day. Statistical analysis was performed by using Statistica for Windows (Version 7.0)software. P values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: We found significant positive correlation between the CRP and WBC serum level and volumes of the drained fluid. We used these parameters as markers of successful percutaneous drainage in case of patients with severe acute pancreatitis complicated with sterile peripancreatic fluid.There was no significant change in the levels of C 3-4,tumor necrosis factor-Î+-, amylase and lipase. CONCLUSIONS: Monitoring of serum CRP and WBC levels maybe recommended for follow up after percutaneous drainage of peripancreatic fluid. ABBREVIATIONS: CRP: C-reactive Protein TNFÎ+-: Tumour Necrosis Factor a, C3-4: Complement 3-4 WBC: White Blood Cell CT: Computed Tomography.

A prospective randomized clinical trial of vincristine versus human intravenous immunoglobulin for acute adjunctive management of presumptive primary immune-mediated thrombocytopenia in dogs.

BACKGROUND: Dogs with immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (ITP) are at risk of hemorrhage when platelet count is <50,000/µL. Treatment with vincristine (VINC) or human intravenous immunoglobulin (hIVIG) decreases platelet recovery time compared with treatment with corticosteroids alone. OBJECTIVES: To compare the effect of hIVIG versus VINC on platelet recovery in dogs with ITP. METHODS: Prospective, randomized study. Twenty dogs with idiopathic ITP (platelet count <16,000/µL) were enrolled. All dogs were treated with corticosteroids. Dogs were randomly assigned to receive a single dose of hIVIG (0.5 g/kg) or VINC (0.02 mg/kg). Outcome measures were platelet recovery time, duration of hospitalization, and survival to discharge. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in age, sex, weight, or initial platelet count between dogs treated with hIVIG (n = 10) and dogs treated with VINC (n = 10). Median platelet recovery time for both groups was 2.5 days (P = .51). Median hospitalization time for all dogs that survived to discharge was 4 days and not different between groups (P = .29). Seven of 10 dogs in the hIVIG group and 10 of 10 in the VINC group survived to discharge. Survival analysis did not identify any significant difference between the groups at discharge, 6 months, and 1 year after entry into the study. No adverse effects were reported in either group. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Vincristine should be the first-line adjunctive treatment for the acute management of canine ITP because of lower cost and ease of administration compared with human intravenous immunoglobulin (hIVIG).

Relative deficiency in CpG dinucleotides is a widespread but not unique feature of Gammaherpesvirinae genomes.

Since methylcytosine is relatively unstable, a deficiency of CpG dinucleotides and accumulation of mutations that manifest as TpG (and its complement CpA) is a diagnostic feature of higher eukaryotic DNA sequences subjected to methylation by DNA (cytosine-5) methyltransferases. Latent viral genomes may also be affected by DNA methylation in their host cells. We calculated, therefore, frequencies of dinucleotides in 20 completely sequenced herpesvirus genomes. We found a relative deficiency of CpG dinucleotides and a surplus of TpG + CpA dinucleotides in all lymphotropic gammaherpesvirus genomes except for two strains of rhesus rhadinovirus. DNAs of two strains of human herpesvirus 7, a betaherpesvirus targeting helper T cells, and equine herpesvirus 4, an alphaherpesvirus residing in the lymphoreticular system, also had a moderate CpG deficiency and TpG + CpA surplus. In contrast, most members of Alpha-, and Betaherpesvirinae subfamilies contained a relative surplus of CpG dinucleotides in their DNAs. Our data are consistent with the idea that methylated latent genomes are involved, after reactivation and productive replication, in the natural transmission cycle of most members of Gammaherpesvirinae and certain lymphotropic members of Alpha- and Betaherpesvirinae.

Genetic subtypes of HIV type 1 in Hungary.

We examined the diversity of HIV-1 subtypes in 11 adults from Hungary, using the heteroduplex mobility assay (HMA) and DNA sequencing. HMA results showed that HIV-1 gp120 sequences from 10 patients were of subtype B, whereas 1 patient, infected in Africa, carried a subtype C strain. DNA sequencing confirmed the HMA results and revealed a high intrasubtype diversity in the C2V3 region of env in different clade B isolates, which suggests multiple introduction of subtype B to Hungary. This study shows that subtype B is the predominant HIV-1 clade in Hungary.