A patient with diabetes and breast cancer in whom virilization was caused by a testosterone-producing mature cystic teratoma containing a Brenner tumor.

A 74-year-old woman with impaired glucose tolerance exhibited virilization. An examination of various hormone levels showed normal pituitary hormone and adrenal hormone levels. However, the patient's blood testosterone level was remarkably high and was suspected of having caused the virilization. An abdominal computed tomography revealed a multilocular cystoma in the left ovary with the features of a mature cystic teratoma. In addition, a chest computed tomography revealed the presence of a mass in the left breast that was subsequently diagnosed as breast cancer based on the results of a biopsy. After the simultaneous surgical resection of the ovarian and breast tumors, her blood testosterone level decreased. The mature cystic teratoma containing a Brenner tumor was considered to be responsible for the high testosterone level because of the presence of androgenic enzymes. This case is extremely rare, but the case was accurately diagnosed through a comprehensive analysis.

Relationship between periodontitis and diabetes - importance of a clinical study to prove the vicious cycle.

Periodontitis is regarded to have a close relationship to diabetes mellitus. In Japan, some cohort studies have indicated that there is a significant positive association of obesity plus metabolic syndrome with periodontal diseases. As such, an increasing number of studies suggest a relationship between periodontitis and diabetes, most of which are epidemiologic association. In this review, we have summarized the possible evidence of a relationship between periodontitis and diabetes. To date, little evidence has been reported to indicate that diabetes and/or glucose intolerance has in fact had a significant cause-effect relationship with periodontal disease. In this regard, it is important to directly uncover the relation, i.e., to prove the effect of therapeutic approaches to periodontitis upon mitigation of glycemic control in diabetic patients, which would be a direct evidence of its causal nature. Therefore a study should be undertaken to this effect.

Autoimmune diabetes in HIV-infected patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy.

CONTEXT: Various autoimmune diseases, especially autoimmune thyroid disease, are known to occur in HIV-infected patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). However, no reports have described the development of autoimmune diabetes during HAART. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to investigate the clinical course of the development of autoantibodies and diabetes during HAART. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Based on their high antiislet autoantibody titers and requirement for insulin therapy, we diagnosed three HIV-infected patients with autoimmune diabetes. To clarify the relationship between the development of an autoimmune reaction against pancreatic beta-cells and recovery of CD4+ T lymphocyte (CD4) counts, we retrospectively assayed stored samples of the patients' plasma for antiglutamic acid decarboxylase antibody (GAD-Ab). RESULTS: No GAD-Ab was detected in the plasma samples of any of the three patients prior to HAART, and their CD4 counts were below 20 cells/microl at their nadir. The GAD-Ab tests became positive from 6 to 38 months after the start of HAART, and their conversion to positive followed a dramatic increase in the patients' CD4 count. Two patients developed diabetes after testing positive for GAD-Ab. Although one patient had mild diabetes prior to testing positive for GAD-Ab, the rapid worsening of glycemic control and introduction of insulin therapy almost coincided with the detection of GAD-Ab. The high magnitude of the CD4 increase during HAART and the timing of the detection of autoantibody were similar to the magnitude and timing reported in HAART-associated autoimmune thyroid disease. CONCLUSIONS: Autoimmune diabetes develops in some HIV-infected patients after immune restoration during HAART.

Body mass index, fasting plasma glucose levels, and C-peptide levels as predictors of the future insulin use in Japanese type 2 diabetic patients.

Insulin therapy represents the most effective and reliable means of achieving satisfactory glycemic control. However, few studies have evaluated the predictors of future insulin use. The purpose of this study was to investigate the predictors of future insulin use in type 2 diabetic patients. In this study, we conducted a chart review of 158 Japanese type 2 diabetic patients admitted to our hospital for stringent glycemic control. Of the 158 subjects, 92 satisfied the inclusion criteria for this study. We assessed the associations between baseline BMI, fasting plasma glucose levels (FPG) and serum and urinary C-peptide levels (sCPR and uCPR), and insulin usage at 6 months after discharge. We also computed the areas under the curve (AUCs) in receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves for each predictor to predict the future insulin use. After adjustment for gender, age, and BMI, the multivariable odds ratios (ORs) for future insulin use in the highest tertile as compared with lowest tertile were 0.12 for BMI (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.03-0.52), 17.0 for FPG (95% CI, 3.27-88.7), 0.12 for sCPR (95% CI, 0.02-0.71), and 0.03 for uCPR (95% CI, 0.00-0.24). Prediction analyses showed that the AUCs for BMI, FPG, sCPR, and uCPR were 0.73, 0.76, 0.74, and 0.78, respectively, which suggests that the predictive abilities of these predictors do not differ substantially. In conclusion, this study suggests that BMI, FPG, sCPR, and uCPR are strong predictors of the future insulin use in type 2 diabetic patients.