Human neutrophil peptides sputum levels in symptomatic smokers and COPD patients.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Human Neutrophil Peptides (HNP) are major neutrophils' products which may contribute to the airway inflammation and lung remodelling during chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). We aimed to assess whether HNP sputum concentrations could be used as indicators of airway inflammation and progression towards pulmonary functional impairment, and correlate with the degree of airways obstruction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We measured, by ELISA tests, HNP concentrations from 37 symptomatic smokers and 34 COPD patients. All participants underwent pulmonary function tests. Sputum samples were collected at the enrolment, and 6 months after smoking cessation. Differences between groups and correlation coefficients between variables were determined using non parametric tests. RESULTS: Sputum HNP concentrations were higher in COPD patients as compared to symptomatic smokers (14 +/- 1.5 microg/ml vs 1.6 +/- 0.4 microg/ml; p < 0.0001). Among COPD patients HNP concentrations were higher in individuals with severe obstruction than in patients with mild to moderate COPD (19.9 +/- 2.3 microg/ml vs 10.3 +/- 0.8 microg/ml, p = 0.003). A negative correlation was observed between HNP levels and FEV1 (rho = -0.38, p = 0.02), and FEV1/FVC (rho = -0.42, p = 0.01). No differences were found in HNP levels before and after 6 months of smoking withdrawal (1.1 microg/ml +/- 0.3 vs 1.1 microg/ml +/- 0.3 for symptomatic smokers, p = 0.9, and 14.4 microg/ml +/- 1 vs 16 microg/ml +/- 1.1 for COPD, p = 0.6). DISCUSSION: Sputum levels of HNP may represent a marker of severity of functional impairment in COPD. Our data support the hypothesis that HNP may have a role in smoking- and COPD-related lung inflammation.

Resolución intra-quirúrgica de osteotomía sagital bilateral de rama mandibular desfavorable en paciente con látero-desviación: estado del arte de casos reportados / Intra-operative resolution of unfavorable bilateral mandibular sagittal ramus osteotomy in a patient with lateral deviation

Objetivos: 1) presentar un caso clínico de fractura de rama ascendente mandibular luego de realizar laosteotomía sagital bilateral y su correspondiente resolución 2) Determinar a través de una Revisión Bibliográfica si la presencia de terceros molares incrementa o no el índice de fracturas desfavorables al momentode la osteotomía sagital de rama.Materiales y método: 1) Se presenta un caso clínico de fractura de rama ascendente mandibular luego deosteotomía sagital de rama en una mujer de 24 años, quien presenta un tercer molar normalmente erupcio-nado, la resolución de dicha complicación y controles a distancia. 2) En una búsqueda realizada en Pubmedy Medline, limitada para artículos clínicos de los últimos 20 años y con un numero mayor a 100 osteotomías, se dividió a los pacientes en 2 grupos: Grupo 1 (con tercer molar presente) n= 898 osteotomías y Grupo 2 (tercer molar ausente) n=1217 osteotomías.Se analizaron Índices de fractura durante la osteotomía con presencia o no del tercer molar, ubicación dela fractura según sea el segmento proximal o distal, según el sexo y según sean mandíbulas prognáticas oretrognáticas. Conclusiones: 1) La presencia del tercer molar al momento de la osteotomía no incrementa el índice de fracturas p: 0,98. 2) A mayor experiencia del cirujano, menor índice de fracturas. 3) En ausencia del tercermolar, la fractura del segmento proximal es más frecuente que la del distal p: 0,0089. 4) En presencia del tercermolar son más frecuentes las fracturas distales p: 0,012. 5) Son más frecuentes las fracturas en mandíbulasretrognáticas que las prognáticas.Caso clínico: 1) Se lograron los objetivos planteados en el VTQ. 2) El cóndilo izquierdo se encuentra remo-delado, en función. No se observan alteraciónes en los movimientos de apertura y cierre mandibular, ni tam-poco desviación de las líneas medias dentarias superior e inferior en apertura y cierre

Osler-Rendu-Weber syndrome: congenital arteriovenous intrapulmonary fistula treated using a percutaneous Amplatzer plug.

Pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas (PAVFs) are rare vascular malformations (PAVMs) of the lung that could lead to severe hypoxiemia due to right-to-left intrapulmonary shunts. They may occur as isolated entities or associated with Osler-Rendu-Weber syndrome or hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). We report a case of a 70 years old woman with Rendu-Osler-Weber disease and a large arteriovenous malformation involving the left pulmonary artery. We describe the successful transcatheter occlusion of the PAVF using an Amplatzer vascular plug. This work is an attempt to focus the attention on pulmonary arteriovenous malformations and on percutaneous treatment as an alternative to surgery, that consists of a conservative lung resection.

Sarcoidosis of the breast: a rare case report and a review.

Sarcoidosis is an idiopathic systemic inflammatory granulomatous disorder comprised of epithelioid and multinucleated giant cells with little necrosis. It usually invades the lungs with fibrosis and may also involve lymph nodes, skin, liver, spleen, eyes, phalangeal bones, and parotid glands. Breast involvement is extremely rare, but, when present, it could be confused with a benign or, more important, a malignant neoplasm. We have reported a case of sarcoidosis of the breast in a 51 years old woman with systemic manifestations of sarcoidosis (arthralgias and uveitis) associated with a breast mass and with a clinical history of fibrocystic mastopathy. A chest X-ray and a Computed Tomography (CT), with raised serum levels of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE), were compatible with a diagnosis of sarcoidosis. The mammography and ultrasonogram showed a solitary little nodular lesion localized in the breast. A breast cancer in a patient with sarcoidosis? To answer this question, the patient performed breast surgery under general anaesthesia and bioptic microscopic examination showed a typical sarcoid granuloma.

Histomorphometric study of bone healing around laminar implants in experimental diabetes.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of experimental diabetes on the healing period leading to osseointegration. Wistar rats were injected with a single dose of streptozotocin (STZ); body weight and food intake were assessed every 48 hours. On days 2, 12, 26, and 42 post-STZ, glucemia, plasma hemoglobin, and urea were determined. Twelve days post-STZ, a titanium laminar implant was placed in the right tibia of each rat. Two groups of 20 rats each were killed on days 14 and 30 postimplantation, respectively. Results (ANOVA test) showed STZ-treated rats to have 1) a significant decrease in body weight; 2) an increase in food intake; 3) normal hemoglobin and plasma urea values; 4) a significant increase in glucemia; and 5) a decrease in tibiae length. Microscopic evaluation 14 days postimplantation revealed the presence of woven bone, and, at 30 days, laminar bone was in contact with the implant. Our findings show that, in this model of periimplant bone repair and under the experimental conditions stated herein, STZ-induced diabetes retards periimplant bone healing.

Myxoma in childhood: an analysis of 10 cases.

PURPOSE: The object of this study was to present a series of myxoma in children and to evaluate possible differences between young and adults patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All tumors of patients under 16 years of age (10 cases), were separated from the 80 myxomas found in the Oral Pathology Laboratory, Faculty of Odontology, Buenos Aires University, and were analyzed in terms of clinical data, radiographic image, histopathology, treatment, and evolution. RESULTS: Myxoma in childhood represented 12.5% of the 80 cases in our series. The mean age was 11.6 years. Six patients were boys and four were girls. Both jaws were affected equally, predominantly in the premolar-molar region. Eighty percent of the tumors were larger than 2 cm. Only one case was clinically diagnosed as myxoma. Radiologically the most frequent image was unilocular with cortical expansion and tooth displacement. Histologically seven cases were diagnosed as myxoma and three as fibromyxoma. Treatment involved surgical resection in most cases. Two patients showed recurrence within the first year after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: The frequency of myxoma in childhood may be higher than that of other aggressive odontogenic tumors, although some literature refers to this tumor as very uncommon in children. Clinically this tumor may not always be taken into account in the differential diagnosis of intraosseous radiolucencies in young patients. The histologic appearance is similar in young and adult patients, but myxoma in children may be larger. It was not possible to correlate the histologic type of myxoma and the age of the patients.