Can CSF spectrophotometry for "Xanthochromia" be used to detect leaking subarachnoid aneurysms in patients with sickle cell anemia with negative MRI or CT angiogram despite hyperbilirubinemia?

CSF (Cerebrospinal Fluid) xanthochromia by spectroscopy should not be dismissed in the context of hyperbilirubinemia in a patient with sickle cell anemia. Xanthochromia detected by spectrophotometry offers a vital clue that further invasive diagnosis is required.

Biochemical consequences of bariatric surgery for extreme clinical obesity.

Obesity, defined as a body mass index over 30 kg/m(2) for adults, poses a major healthcare challenge with important economic, personal and social consequences. Although public health measures, lifestyle change and pharmacological therapies have an important role in the management of obesity, patients with established morbid obesity (body mass index over 40 kg/m(2)) may also require bariatric surgery. Bariatric or metabolic surgery is associated with effective and enduring weight loss but is also known to improve glucose homeostasis, blood pressure and dyslipidaemia. Patients who have bariatric surgery need lifelong clinical follow-up to identify and prevent nutritional deficiencies and other complications. Clinical biochemistry laboratories have an important role in the nutritional assessment of obese patients and in the identification of complications following bariatric surgery. The aim of this article is to review the different bariatric procedures available and to summarize their complications, especially nutrient deficiencies and those of particular relevance to clinical biochemistry laboratories.

Severe hypo-alpha-lipoproteinemia during treatment with rosiglitazone.

Thiazolidinedione drugs are in widespread use for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In addition to improving insulin sensitivity, they generally result in a modest elevation of plasma HDL cholesterol. We report three patients, all of whom had preexisting diabetic dyslipidemia, who showed a profound reduction in plasma HDL cholesterol and apolipoprotein AI levels soon after the initiation of rosiglitazone therapy. In all three patients, HDL cholesterol levels returned to normal following drug withdrawal. The fact that this phenomenon was not seen in >1,400 patients studied in clinical trials indicates that it is likely to be rare and idiosyncratic. Until the frequency of this adverse reaction is clearer, it would seem advisable to ensure that plasma HDL cholesterol is documented before and rechecked after commencement of thiazolidinedione therapy.