ABSTRACT
Acute disseminated staphylococcal disease (ADSD) constitutes a potentially fatal and alarmingly increasing disorder. We describe an unusual case of a two-and-a-half-year-old female with community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus induced septic shock complicated by osteomyelitis and deep vein thrombosis. Aggressive management with long-term antistaphylococcal therapy, anticoagulation and intensive care support was implemented with complete resolution of disseminated inflammation.
Subject(s)
Staphylococcal Infections , Female , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Severity of Illness Index , Staphylococcal Infections/diagnosis , Staphylococcal Infections/therapyABSTRACT
We present a unique case of life-threatening pneumococcal meningitis complicated by vasculitis in a fully vaccinated 4-year-old female with the heptavalent conjugate vaccine for Streptococcus pneumoniae (PCV7). Serotype 23F was isolated in both blood and cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) samples. Pulses of methylprednisolone were promptly initiated in addition to antibiotics leading to a good recovery. CSF studies and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain were used for diagnosis and monitoring the response to corticoid therapy. We report the investigations of a child with failure of PCV7 vaccine to protect against vaccine-serotype invasive disease. Use of corticosteroids and temporal association with changes in brain imaging are described for the first time in literature.
Subject(s)
Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods , Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods , Meningitis, Pneumococcal/diagnosis , Pneumococcal Vaccines/administration & dosage , Child, Preschool , Female , Heptavalent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine , Humans , Meningitis, Pneumococcal/complications , Neuroimaging/methods , Vasculitis, Central Nervous System/complicationsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Mumps is an infectious disease, occurring rarely in many countries including Greece, where approximately 50 cases are reported each year. In Crete, Greece's biggest island, an average number of four cases are reported annually. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The study population consists of all patients hospitalised because of mumps in our clinic. Clinical, laboratory and serological confirmation of the disease has been performed. RESULTS: During the tourist summer periods of 2004 and 2005, 39 patients with mumps have been hospitalized in our clinic in Crete. All patients but one were young tourists from Britain. The patients presented with parotid gland swelling and fever and some developed complications of the disease as well. CONCLUSION: The above findings are consistent with the mumps epidemic, now occurring in the UK. The disease is spreading among the Greek population as well, since six cases have been reported. This study investigates the reasons for this epidemic, focusing on the role of MMR vaccination.
Subject(s)
Disease Outbreaks , Mumps/epidemiology , Adolescent , Adult , Female , Greece/epidemiology , Humans , Male , Measles-Mumps-Rubella Vaccine/immunology , Mumps/prevention & control , United Kingdom/ethnologyABSTRACT
PRAME is expressed at low levels in normal testes and highly in solid tumor cells and hematological malignancies. The purpose of this study was to investigate PRAME expression levels in children with acute leukemia with real-time PCR analysis. Seventeen children with newly diagnosed or relapsed acute leukemia (11 ALL, 4 AML, 1 acute myeloblastic leukemia secondary to MDS, 1 ALL at relapse) and a control group of seven children were studied. Overexpression of PRAME was found in 52.9% (3 AML, 6 ALL) of the patients studied. No important correlation between PRAME expression and the patients' prognosis was observed. The above findings indicate that PRAME expression in acute leukemia does not seem to be of prognostic significance, whereas it might represent a candidate marker for the monitoring of minimal residual disease.
Subject(s)
Antigens, Neoplasm/genetics , Biomarkers, Tumor/genetics , Leukemia, Myeloid/genetics , Neoplasm, Residual/genetics , Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/genetics , Acute Disease , Adolescent , Antigens, Neoplasm/metabolism , Biomarkers, Tumor/metabolism , Child , Child, Preschool , Humans , Prognosis , RNA, Messenger , Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain ReactionABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to investigate WT1 expression levels in childhood acute leukemia. Bone marrow from 14 children with acute leukemia at diagnosis and from 7 children with solid tumors without bone marrow involvement (control group) was studied. Five of the 14 patients (35.7%), expressed high levels of WT1. Four of the five WT1 positive patients with additional adverse prognostic factors, have succumbed to their disease. The results of this study are in accordance with the fact that high levels of WT1 expression have been reported in patients with an unfavorable outcome.
Subject(s)
Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/diagnosis , Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/diagnosis , WT1 Proteins/genetics , Adolescent , Bone Marrow/pathology , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Infant , Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/genetics , Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/metabolism , Male , Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/genetics , Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/metabolism , WT1 Proteins/metabolismABSTRACT
We evaluated the effect of three carbapenems on gut colonization of mice by Candida albicans. A total of 150 Crl:CD1 (ICR) BR mice were fed chow containing C. albicans or regular chow. Both groups were subsequently treated either with one carbapenem or with normal saline for 10 days. Stool cultures to determine colonization by C. albicans were performed immediately before, at the end, and one week after the end of treatment. Candida-colonized mice that received carbapenems had substantially higher C. albicans concentrations than control animals fed C. albicans, especially if they received ertapenem. Mice fed regular chow and treated with the study antibiotics or saline did not have Candida in their stools. Candida was not detected in the internal organs of any group of mice.
