[Ligneous conjunctivitis]. / Conjunctivitis lignosa.

CASE REPORT: We report the case of a 3-year-old female patient with therapy refractive recurrent conjunctivitis and membrane formation of the upper eyelid. After surgical removal the histological examination showed an image compatible with ligneous conjunctivitis. A manifest serum plasminogen deficiency (22 %) supported the diagnosis. TREATMENT: The treatment with corticosteroids, heparin-containing and fresh frozen plasma (FFP) eye drops, renewed surgical ablation with perioperative intravenous FFP administration and local cyclosporine A eye drops achieved a stable condition with low disease activity. CONCLUSION: The combination of these therapy approaches has been performed here for the first time and has not been described in the literature so far.

Validation of methods for the detection and quantification of engineered nanoparticles in food.

The potential impact of nanomaterials on the environment and on human health has already triggered legislation requiring labelling of products containing nanoparticles. However, so far, no validated analytical methods for the implementation of this legislation exist. This paper outlines a generic approach for the validation of methods for detection and quantification of nanoparticles in food samples. It proposes validation of identity, selectivity, precision, working range, limit of detection and robustness, bearing in mind that each "result" must include information about the chemical identity, particle size and mass or particle number concentration. This has an impact on testing for selectivity and trueness, which also must take these aspects into consideration. Selectivity must not only be tested against matrix constituents and other nanoparticles, but it shall also be tested whether the methods apply equally well to particles of different suppliers. In trueness testing, information whether the particle size distribution has changed during analysis is required. Results are largely expected to follow normal distributions due to the expected high number of particles. An approach of estimating measurement uncertainties from the validation data is given.

Visualization and characterization of engineered nanoparticles in complex environmental and food matrices using atmospheric scanning electron microscopy.

Imaging and characterization of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) in water, soils, sediment and food matrices is very important for research into the risks of ENPs to consumers and the environment. However, these analyses pose a significant challenge as most existing techniques require some form of sample manipulation prior to imaging and characterization, which can result in changes in the ENPs in a sample and in the introduction of analytical artefacts. This study therefore explored the application of a newly designed instrument, the atmospheric scanning electron microscope (ASEM), which allows the direct characterization of ENPs in liquid matrices and which therefore overcomes some of the limitations associated with existing imaging methods. ASEM was used to characterize the size distribution of a range of ENPs in a selection of environmental and food matrices, including supernatant of natural sediment, test medium used in ecotoxicology studies, bovine serum albumin and tomato soup under atmospheric conditions. The obtained imaging results were compared to results obtained using conventional imaging by transmission electron microscope (TEM) and SEM as well as to size distribution data derived from nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA). ASEM analysis was found to be a complementary technique to existing methods that is able to visualize ENPs in complex liquid matrices and to provide ENP size information without extensive sample preparation. ASEM images can detect ENPs in liquids down to 30 nm and to a level of 1 mg L(-1) (9×10(8) particles mL(-1) , 50 nm Au ENPs). The results indicate ASEM is a highly complementary method to existing approaches for analyzing ENPs in complex media and that its use will allow those studying to study ENP behavior in situ, something that is currently extremely challenging to do.

Procalcitonin, C-reactive protein, and endotoxin after bone marrow transplantation: identification of children at high risk of morbidity and mortality from sepsis.

We prospectively evaluated the capacity of serum procalcitonin (PCT), compared with serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and endotoxin, to identify children at high risk for mortality from sepsis after BMT. Of 47 pediatric bone marrow transplantation patients studied, 22 had an uneventful course post-transplant (Group 1), 17 survived at least one septic event (Group 2), and eight died from multiorgan failure (MOF) following septic shock (Group 3). Median concentrations of PCT over the course of the study were 1.3, 15.2, and 102.8 ng/ml, respectively, in each of the three groups (P<0.002 for each comparison). Median concentrations of CRP were 91, 213, and 260 mg/l, respectively (P<0.001 for Group 1 vs Group 2 and Group 3; P=NS for Group 2 vs Group 3). Median concentrations of endotoxin were 0.21, 0.30, and 0.93 U/l, respectively (P=NS for each comparison). Median concentrations of PCT, in contrast to serum CRP and endotoxin, correlated with the severity of sepsis (8.2 ng/ml in 'sepsis' and 22.3 ng/ml in 'severe sepsis', P=0.028) and provided useful prognostic information during septic episodes.

[Procalcitonin in comparison to C-reactive protein as markers of the course of sepsis in severely immunocompromised children after bone marrow transplantation]. / Procalcitonin im Vergleich zum C-reaktiven Protein als Marker für septische Krankheitsverläufe bei schwer immunsupprimierten Kindern nach Knochenmarktransplantation.

BACKGROUND: PCT has recently drawn attention as a quite specific marker for bacterial, fungal, and parasitic origin of severe sepsis-syndrome. These specific properties could make PCT to an important tool for sepsis monitoring in severely immunocompromised children. The clinical value of PCT in comparison to CrP was investigated in children after bone marrow transplantation (BMT). METHODS: PCT was measured in the serum of 48 children (median age 12.4 years) after BMT in a prospective study. Results were correlated with the clinical findings and compared to the C-reactive protein (CrP). RESULTS: PCT showed a sensitivity for diagnosing a sepsis-syndrome of 56%, a specificity of 87%, a positive predictive value of 69%, and a negative predictive value of 80%. Regarding CrP they were 100%, 41%, 46% and 100% respectively. The relative risk to die due to sepsis-syndrome was 26.4 for PCT levels over 10 ng/ml and 4.0 for CrP levels over 200 mg/l. It could be shown furthermore that there can be a significant liberation of PCT even during hematological aplasia. CONCLUSION: (1) Measuring PCT levels in the sera of children undergoing BMT improves the possibility of diagnosing severe infection and gives an important prognostic tool. (2) Measuring PCT can be recommended if severe sepsis-syndrome is suspected and there is an additional need for differential diagnosis and prognostic evaluation.