Alcohol-induced pain in tuberculous adenitis.

Since its first description in Hodgkin's disease, alcohol-induced pain has subsequently been described both in other neoplasms and in various non-malignant conditions. There seems little doubt that ethyl alcohol itself is responsible, although the mechanism for producing pain remains elusive. We report a case of alcohol-induced pain in a patient with enlarged lymph nodes on the right side of the neck. This symptom led us to make a preliminary diagnosis of Hodgkin's disease, which was subsequently disproved by biopsy, and tuberculous adenitis was established. We have been able to find only one other record of alcohol-induced pain and tuberculous adenitis in a patient reported by Bastin in 1957.

Increased reactivity of laminin in the basement membranes of capillary walls in AIDS brain cortex.

To verify how the components of the capillary wall are modified in the course of AIDS we studied the brain cortex from nine cases with AIDS. Cellular and extracellular components were delineated using antibodies for laminin and collagen IV for basement membranes and glial fibrillary acidic protein for astrocyte foot processes. We found a marked increase in reactivity for laminin in the basement membranes of capillary walls and hypertrophy and hyperplasia of astrocyte foot processes around vessels, when compared to control cortical tissue. We suggest that modifications of brain capillary wall may have a role in the pathogenesis of neurological disfunction in AIDS.

[Mortality in malignant tumors of the peritoneum in Italy: search for correlations with exposure to asbestos]. / La mortalità per tumore maligno del peritoneo in Italia: ricerca di correlazioni con l'esposizione ad amianto.

In the years 1981-85, 2438 malignant neoplasms of peritoneum occurred in Italy: the crude mortality rate was 0.86 X 10(-5) per year. The standardized mortality rates of Italian provinces ranged from 0.20 to 1.86 X 10(-5) per year. Some degree of misclassification can affect the ascertainment of peritoneal tumors as a death cause. In some of the Provinces with the highest mortality rates dockyards or asbestos-cement industries are located (e.g. Genova, La Spezia; Alessandria); in other Provinces the presence of industries involving an important use of asbestos could not be ruled out.

[A case of disseminated mucormycosis]. / Osservazioni su un caso di mucormicosi disseminata.

Report of a case of disseminated mucormycosis. The Authors, after a review of the literature, report a fatal case of disseminated Mucormycosis observed in a young patient with aplastic anemia, severe neutropenia and treated with Deferoxamine.