Abdominal cerebrospinal fluid pseudocyst due to infection with enterococcus faecalis. A case report.

Abdominal cerebrospinal fluid pseudocyst is a rare complication of ventriculo-peritoneal shunt occurring as a result of non-absorption of cerebrospinal fluid from the abdominal cavity due to inflammation. Usual presentations include abdominal symptoms; abdominal distention, pain, nausea, vomiting and symptoms of raised intracranial pressure like headache due to shunt dysfunction. The diagnosis may be delayed in severely handicapped patients due to poor communicability, multiple associated complications or co-morbidities. Radiological modalities are used for diagnosis as well as treatment.

The metabolic syndrome: useful concept or clinical tool? Report of a WHO Expert Consultation.

This article presents the conclusions of a WHO Expert Consultation that evaluated the utility of the 'metabolic syndrome' concept in relation to four key areas: pathophysiology, epidemiology, clinical work and public health. The metabolic syndrome is a concept that focuses attention on complex multifactorial health problems. While it may be considered useful as an educational concept, it has limited practical utility as a diagnostic or management tool. Further efforts to redefine it are inappropriate in the light of current knowledge and understanding, and there is limited utility in epidemiological studies in which different definitions of the metabolic syndrome are compared. Metabolic syndrome is a pre-morbid condition rather than a clinical diagnosis, and should thus exclude individuals with established diabetes or known cardiovascular disease (CVD). Future research should focus on: (1) further elucidation of common metabolic pathways underlying the development of diabetes and CVD, including those clustering within the metabolic syndrome; (2) early-life determinants of metabolic risk; (3) developing and evaluating context-specific strategies for identifying and reducing CVD and diabetes risk, based on available resources; and (4) developing and evaluating population-based prevention strategies.

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis: unusual imaging appearance. A case report.

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) has widely varied clinical and radiological manifestations ranging from asymptomatic minimal brain oedema to severe haemorrhagic infarcts associated with focal deficits, coma and even death. Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis presenting with lobar or subdural hematomas are rare and the cause may easily be overlooked. We present a case of CVST with an atypical radiological picture of intra-arenchymal, subdural and subarachnoid haemorrhage.

Isolated bilateral pyramidal tract lesions? An unusual case of demyelination following trauma. A case report.

This paper describes the case of a young woman who developed quadriparesis due to isolated bilateral pyramidal tract lesions suggestive of demyelination following trauma.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Balo's Concentric Sclerosis. A Case Report.

Concentric high signal intensity zones on T2-weighted magnetic resonance images of brain strongly suggest Balo's concentric sclerosis (BCS), a rare but recognized variant of multiple sclerosis. Differentiating BCS from multiple sclerosis or neoplasm can be difficult clinically. The pathognomonic MRI appearance can dramatically influence the course of the disease, allowing earlier diagnosis and therapy of the disease which was once considered to have an invariably fulminant and fatal course.

Bilateral subdural hemorrhage following lumbar puncture in a case of suspected meningitis. A case report.

Intracranial subdural hemorrhage is a rare complication of lumbar puncture. Caudal traction and tear of the subdural veins due to negative pressure caused by leakage of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) following lumbar puncture (LP) is the mechanism. Prolonged headache or neurological symptoms following LP should warrant cross-sectional imaging to rule out subdural hemorrhage as it can be fatal. We report a case of subdural hemorrhage following LP in a patient with suspected meningitis and communicating hydrocephalus.

Pituitary apoplexy: a rare cause of cerebral infarction. A case report.

Pituitary apoplexy is usually the result of hemorrhagic infarction in pituitary adenoma. The clinical presentation of pituitary apoplexy varies widely and includes asymptomatic hemorrhage, classical pituitary apoplexy and even sudden death. Few cases of cerebral infarction associated with pituitary apoplexy have been reported in the literature. Pituitary apoplexy can cause narrowing of intracranial vessels by mechanical obstruction due to mass effect or by vasospasm resulting in cerebral ischemia. We report a case of pituitary apoplexy associated with cerebral infarction and the putative mechanisms.

Adiponectin, insulin resistance and clinical expression of the metabolic syndrome in patients with Type 2 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Obesity and the metabolic syndrome have emerged as clinical and public health crises in many populations, but not all obese patients have the syndrome. As adipocytes produce several adipokines that modulate insulin action as well as glucose and lipid metabolism, we postulate that estimation of adipokines may be useful addition to the criteria used to identify obese individuals with the metabolic syndrome. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the determinants and associations of plasma adiponectin in relation to the metabolic syndrome in patients with Type 2 diabetes. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: General Teaching Hospital. PATIENTS: One hundred and thirty five (57 M, 78 F) patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. MEASUREMENTS: Adiponectin, leptin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), fasting plasma insulin, glucose, glycated hemoglobin and full lipid profile. Patients were classified on the basis of the degree of adiposity, insulin resistance (IR) (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR)) and the number of the American Heart Association and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute criteria of the metabolic syndrome. RESULTS: Adiponectin levels were inversely correlated with age, indices of obesity, IR and hs-CRP. Overweight/obese and non-obese insulin-sensitive patients had significantly higher (P<0.05) adiponectin levels than those with IR despite similar body mass index and waist circumference. Therefore, within each category of obesity stratification, lower adiponectin levels were associated with IR. Adiponectin showed stepwise decrease with increasing number of the criteria for diagnosis of the metabolic syndrome. Using multiple logistic regression, the odds ratio of the metabolic syndrome as predicted by adiponectin was 0.73 (95% confidence interval 0.53-0.96; P=0.04). At cutoff point of 18 ng/ml, the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of adiponectin for the metabolic syndrome were 83 and 65%, respectively, in male patients and 92 and 41%, respectively, in female patients. Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that adiponectin had significantly higher area under the curve compared with leptin, leptin:adiponectin ratio and triglycerides for the detection of the metabolic syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with Type 2 diabetes, adiponectin concentrations are closely related to IR and the components of the metabolic syndrome. Adiponectin concentration may be a useful addition to the criteria used for identifying obese subjects with the metabolic syndrome.

Perirolandic sparing and pituitary apoplexy in adult brain with global hypoxia. A case report.

Global hypoxia in adult brain usually manifests as ischemic lesions in watershed territories. Acute profound hypoxia involves the cortex especially the perirolandic area, white matter and deep grey matter. Perirolandic sparing in adult global hypoxia is not described in literature. Few cases of perirolandic sparing are described in conditions like anoxia in term infants in the post-neonatal period and hepatic encephalopathy. We report a case of global hypoxia in adult brain with perirolandic sparing and unique association with pituitary apoplexy. It is well known that the "diving reflex" redistribution of cerebral blood flow to the high metabolically active regions occurs when the hypoxic insult is prolonged and partial. The perirolandic sparing in our case could be explained by this phenomenon, wherein the patient acutely developed hypoxia, which was profound and prolonged but not prolonged enough for deep grey matter sparing.

Prevalence of metabolic syndrome among hypertensive patients attending a primary care clinic in Kuwait.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among hypertensive patients using the criteria of the National Cholesterol Education Program's Adult Treatment Panel III in a primary care health center in Kuwait. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A population of 250 Kuwaiti hypertensive patients (129 males and 121 females) over the age of 40 were screened for metabolic syndrome by determining body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, levels of fasting plasma glucose and fasting plasma lipids (serum triglycerides, total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol). The study was carried out in the Mishref Family Practice Health Center, Kuwait, from January to July 2001. RESULTS: The total number of patients who met the criteria for metabolic syndrome was 85 (34%), 55% of them were males and 45% females. Prevalence of the syndrome was 28.2% among 40- to 55-year-olds and 41.9% in those above the age of 55 years. Among the 250 hypertensive patients, type II diabetes mellitus was found in 52.8% (54% males and 46% females), impaired fasting glucose in 8% (70% males and 30% females), high plasma triglycerides in 44.8% (53% males and 47% females) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in 63.2% (54% males and 46% females). Obesity measured as BMI = 30 kg/m(2) was noted in 46% (43% males and 57% females) and increased waist circumference in 58% (44% males and 56% females). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome is high among hypertensives attending primary health care centers in Kuwait.