Etiological spectrum, clinico-radiological profile and treatment outcomes of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis - A prospective study from Northwest India.

OBJECTIVES: To study etiological, clinical and radiological profile and treatment outcomes in patients of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM). METHODS: This was a prospective study conducted at Dr. S.N. medical college, Jodhpur, India, of patients presenting with LETM between March 2018 to March 2020. RESULTS: Our study included 32 patients (median age 32 years, female to male ratio of 2.5: 1). Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOsd) was the most common diagnosis affecting 14 patients followed by 5 patients of idiopathic myelitis, 4 patients of para-infectious myelitis, 3 patients of multiple sclerosis (MS), 3 patients of acute demyelinating encephalomyelitis (ADEM) and 1 patient each of myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody disease, sarcoidosis and mixed connective tissue disorder (MCTD). All the patients of NMOsd were positive for aquaporin 4 (AQP4) antibody. Spinal MRI showed central pattern of involvement in NMOsd and eccentric pattern of involvement in MS. All the patients of para-infectious myelitis were varicella myelitis. Twenty-eight (87.5%) patients had good clinical recovery at 6 months. CONCLUSION: Although, LETM is classically associated with NMOsd, it can have multiple etiologies. Identifying the etiology is important for long term treatment and prognosis which varies according to the disease. Patients in our study presented with relapses and severe disease but had good clinical recovery with treatment.

Effect of intergenerational educational mobility on health of Indian women.

This study aims to analyse the relationship between intergenerational educational mobility and the overall health of the Indian women. It uses a nationally representative survey, India Human Development Survey (IHDS) 2011-12, and logistic regressions to study this relationship. The sample comprises of women aged 45 years and older. We find that the women experiencing upward intergenerational educational mobility (vis-a-vis their mothers) have significantly higher chances of experiencing good overall health compared to the women who are having same or lesser level of education as that of their mothers. Besides, women suffering from short term or major morbidity have remarkably lower chances of having overall good health. Also, women from rural India have significantly lesser chances of having overall good health as compared to that of urban areas. Further, Muslim women have lesser chances of having overall good health as that of women from other religious categories. Moreover, there is a significant variation in the overall health of women as we move from the eastern region to the western region of India.

Multiple intracranial hemorrhages in pregnancy: A common autoimmune etiology.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disorder, primarily affect female in fertile age. Pregnancy in SLE female is a high-risk situation which can adversely affect maternal-fetal dyad. SLE can flare during pregnancy or in postpartum period. We describe a case of a young pregnant female who presented because of right hemiparesis due multiple hemorrhages in the brain. The first presentation of the SLE with multiple intracranial hemorrhages in pregnancy, preceding the other characteristic clinical symptoms is rare. Here, we high lighten the major neurological issues and maternal-fetal dyad issues in SLE pregnancy and treatment strategies for management of SLE in pregnancy.

Stuck with pancytopenia in dengue fever: Evoke for hemophagocytic syndrome.

The hemophagocytic syndrome is an atypical and rare manifestation of dengue fever (DF). We describe a 15-year-old girl developing DF associated hemophagocytic syndrome who responded with supportive treatment.

IL-5 in the plasma-cell-dominant Castleman disease: a nosological entity.

A 40-year-old male presented with a history of low-grade fever, weight loss, night sweats and breathlessness of 3 months duration. On examination, the patient had freely mobile lump in left lumbar region. The lump was surgically excised. Histological examination and immunohistochemistry of the specimen were consistent with the diagnosis of plasma cell variant of the Castleman disease. The patient had polyclonal hypergammaglobulinemia, anemia, eosinophilia and elevated interleukin (IL)-6 level. The level of IL-5 was not measured; however, the presence of eosinophilia indirectly suggests an increased IL-5 level. He obtained complete remission after resection of lump and 20 months of surgery had no signs and symptoms of diseases recurrence with normal hematological parameters. We discuss the role of IL-5 in the pathophysiology of the Castleman disease along with dysregulated overproduction of IL-6.

Trefoils: An unexplored natural protective shield of oral cavity.

The new mammalian growth factor peptide family consists of three peptides, TFF1, TFF2, and TFF3, which are secreted mainly from mucous epithelia with mucus gel. The predominant secretion of trefoil factor (TFF) occurs from gastric mucosal lining, small and large intestine, oral mucosal cells, and salivary glands. Research regarding trefoil factors is an immerging aspect in the dental field. The mucosal healing and restitution function describes about its novel role in case of chronic inflammatory conditions, but its expression from different tissue at different pathological condition shows its importance in immune response. At present, TFF expression has been detected from the severe periodontal diseased tissue samples. Future research from mild to moderate chronic periodontal diseased condition should be carried out to assess the protective response of TFF in gingival tissues. In future, assessment of TFF levels and its expression in oral mucosal tissues and oral secretions, such as saliva and gingival crevicular fluid, will provide a negative biomarker for chronic periodontal diseases and a novel therapeutic agent in oral mucosal healing.

Spontaneous Soft Tissue Haematomas- A Rare Presentation of Chronic Myeloid Leukemic (CML).

Spontaneous soft tissue haematomas are rarely found in haematological malignancies. Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative disorder which rarely present with thrombo-haemorrhagic phenomenon. It is a malignant clonal disorder of pleuripotent stem cells that results in increase in myeloid, erythroid and platelets cells in peripheral blood and marked myeloid hyperplasia in bone marrow. It is characterized by the presence of Philadelphia chromosome (Ph) with BCR - ABL 1 fusion gene. This gene is responsible for the formation of 210 KDa chimeric proteins with enhanced tyrosine kinase activity which leads to the abnormal bone marrow cell proliferation and to the clinical and morphologic manifestations of leukemia. Cutaneous and mucous membrane bleeding is common in CML whereas bleeding in deep soft tissue is rarely found because of qualitative and quantitative platelet abnormalities. Here, we report a case of CML (BCR-ABL rearrangement positive) who presented with large haematoma in the anterior as well as posterior compartment of left thigh and treated successfully with hydroxyurea and imatinib.