[Intraocular ferritin production due to an iron-containing intraocular foreign body]. / Synthèse intraoculaire de ferritine suite à un corps étranger intraoculaire ferrique.

INTRODUCTION: Ocular siderosis is a rare but severe complication of open globe trauma with intraocular retention of a metallic foreign body. CASE STUDY: We report a case of recurrent uveitis in a 37-year-old patient. The ophthalmic examination revealed poor vision in the left eye, lid edema, limbal scleromalacia, hyphema and severe ocular hypertension. Orbital CT showed the presence of a radio-opaque IOFB between the crystalline lens and vitreous body. An aqueous humor sample was obtained for iron and ferritin levels. The results came back 100 and 2000 times higher, respectively, than the serum reference values. DISCUSSION: The very high iron content is the result of a sustained release from the metallic INFB and is responsible for ocular siderosis in our patient. The extremely high ferritin level would be the result of in situ synthesis by the various cells of the ocular structures in order to preserve the components of the eye. Measurement of these two levels would improve the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of metallic IOFBs.

[Cryoglobulinemia type I and ischemic strokes]. / Cryoglobulinémie de type I engendrant un accident vasculaire cérébral ischémique.

INTRODUCTION: Cryoglobulins are immunoglobulins that persist in the serum, precipitate at the cold temperature and resolubilise when rewarmed. There are three categories, the type I, II and III, with neurological symptoms. Those are dominated by peripheral neuropathy, the central nervous system is generally saved. We reported the case of a cryoglobulinemia of the type I having generated a ischemic cerebrovascular accident (CVA), a seldom described situation. CASE REPORT: A 62 years old man, without noteworthy past. He allowed for was occurred the functional impotence of the left hemicorp with a discrete left hemiparesis. The cerebral IRM has evoked subacute ischemic cerebrovascular accident. The cardiovascular check-up was normal. The Horton disease was isolated after biopsy of the left temporal artery. The biological check-up objectified indices in favor of a cryoglobulinemia, this one was identified and classified type I. A monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) was associated to him. DISCUSSION: The cutaneous, articular and renal manifestations are the most frequent complications of the cryoglobulinemia, the neurological complications are described, but with a less degree and are dominated by peripheral neuropathy. The attack of the central nervous system remains exceptional and is seen primarily with type I. Its correct assumption of responsibility requires to identify the cryoglobulinemic etiology. Association type I cryoglobulinemia and monoclonal gammapathy reinforced the chances for a central attack. CONCLUSION: In front of all CVA, it would be judicious to seek a cryoglobulin systematically. A hemopathy is often associated to type I, a electrophoretic exploration of serum proteins is not to be neglected to seek a possible origin of the cryoglobulinemia.

[Hyperphosphatemia: an extremely rare cause of angioid streaks]. / L'hyperphosphatémie : une cause rarissime de stries angioïdes.

Angioid streaks are rare lesions of the fundus. They correspond to cracks in the Bruch membrane, which risk choroid neovessel emergence over time. We present the case of a 52-year-old diabetic patient who consulted for a macular syndrome of the left eye. The clinical examination revealed diffuse, bilateral nerve fibers with myelin, but particularly bilateral angioid streaks, complicated on the left by a juxtamacular choroid neovessel. The etiologic assessment revealed idiopathic hyperphosphatemia. We use this observation to discuss the originality of the case, the pathogenic assumption of its etiology, emphasizing the therapeutic difficulties.

Nutritional intervention study with argan oil in man: effects on lipids and apolipoproteins.

AIM: To evaluate whether the consumption of virgin argan oil (VAO) is associated with a change in serum lipids and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease in healthy Moroccans. METHODS: Sixty volunteers consumed butter (25 g/day) during 2 weeks (stabilization period) and were randomly divided into two groups: the treatment group received 25 g/day of VAO during 3 weeks (intervention period), and the control group received 25 g/day of extra virgin olive oil (EVO). Throughout the study, weight, blood pressure, and daily food intake were measured. Serum total cholesterol and low- and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and apolipoproteins A-I and B were measured at the end of each diet period. RESULTS: Analysis of food intake showed that the daily diet is isocaloric for the butter regimen (2,537 +/- 244 kcal/day) as well as for the VAO and EVO regimens (2,561+/- 246 and 2,560 +/- 253 kcal/day, respectively). Analysis of the lipid intake showed a reduction in saturated fatty acids with VAO and EVO regimens (27 +/- 1.4 and 26.4 +/- 3.4%, respectively) as compared with the stabilization period (41.6 +/- 2.4%). The analysis of serum lipids showed a significant increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein A-I in both VAO group (8.4%, p = 0.012, and 5.2%, p = 0.027, respectively) and EVO group (17.3%, p = 0.001, and 5.9%, p = 0.036, respectively). However, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein B (13.8%, p = 0.037, and 7.8%, p = 0.039, respectively) decreased significantly only in EVO group as compared with the stabilization period, while triglycerides decreased significantly by 17.5% (p = 0.039) only in VAO group. CONCLUSION: These results confirm the cholesterol-lowering effect of EVO and show for the first time the triglyceride-lowering effect of VAO in men.

[Apolipoprotein E polymorphism in a Moroccan population: allele frequency and relation to plasma lipid concentrations]. / Polymorphisme de l'apolipoprotéine E dans une population marocaine: fréquence allélique et relation avec les paramétres lipidiques plasmatiques.

To date, no data are available on relationship between apolipoprotein E (apo E) polymorphism and lipid levels in Moroccan population. The present work reports an apo E polymorphism repartition in Moroccan population and relationship between this polymorphism and the levels of plasma cholesterol, triglycerides, apo A1, B and E. Blood samples from 168 healthy Moroccan individuals from Rabat area (90 men and 78 women), aged from 20 to 50 years (32 9 years), were analysed for serum apo E, A1 and B, triglycerides, and total cholesterol. In parallel, genotyping by means of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) was performed. The apo E allelic frequencies were 11% for epsilon4, 84% for epsilon3 and 5% for epsilon2. There were correlation between apo E alleles and serum lipid concentrations, E2/E3 carriers had significantly higher level of apo E than E3/E3, and E4/E3 carriers had significantly higher total cholesterol apo B and triglycerides than E3/E3 and E2/E3 carriers. The total cholesterol and apo B concentrations are significantly higher in women than in men but the triglycerides are lower. The apo A1 concentration is independent of both sex and apo E genotype. Thus, the results demonstrate an influence of apo E alleles on serum cholesterol, triglycerides, apo E and apo B concentrations among healthy Moroccan.