Host biomarkers for early identification of severe imported Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

BACKGROUND: Severe imported P. falciparum malaria is a source of morbi-mortality in non-endemic regions. WHO criteria don't accurately classify patients at risk of complications. There is a need to evaluate new tools such as biomarkers to better identify patients with severe imported malaria. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted in Barcelona, from January 2011-January 2021. Adult patients with microbiologically confirmed P. falciparum malaria were classified according to WHO criteria. Patients with imported non-malarial fevers were included as controls. In each group, angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1), angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2), soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells (sTREM-1), C-reactive protein (CRP) and platelets were measured and their concentrations were compared between groups. New groups were made with a modified WHO severity classification and biomarkers' performance was evaluated using multiple imputation models. RESULTS: 131 participants were included: 52 severe malaria, 30 uncomplicated malaria and 49 non-malarial fever cases. All biomarkers except sTREM-1 showed significant differences between groups. Using the modified WHO severity classification, Ang-2 and CRP presented the best AUROC; 0.79 (95%CI 0.64-0.94) and 0.80(95%CI 0.67-0.93). A model combining CRP and Ang-2 showed the best AUROC, of 0.84(95%CI 0.68-0.99), with the highest sensitivity and specificity: 84.6%(95%CI 58.9-98.1) and 77.4% (95%CI 65.9-87.7), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of Ang-2 and CRP may be a reliable tool for the early identification of severe imported malaria. The use of a rapid prognostic test including the mentioned biomarkers could optimize imported malaria management, with the potential to decrease the rate of complications and hospitalizations in patients with imported malaria.

Experience with the use of siltuximab in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

OBJECTIVE: The study aims to describe characteristics and clinical outcome of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection that received siltuximab according to a protocol that aimed to early block the activity of IL-6 to avoid the progression of the inflammatory flare. METHODS: Retrospective review of the first 31 patients with SARS-CoV-2 treated with siltuximab, in Hospital Clinic of Barcelona or Hospital Universitario Salamanca, from March to April 2020 with positive polymerase-chain reaction (PCR) from a nasopharyngeal swab. RESULTS: The cohort included 31 cases that received siltuximab with a median (IQR) age of 62 (56-71) and 71% were males. The most frequent comorbidity was hypertension (48%). The median dose of siltuximab was 800 mg ranging between 785 and 900 mg. 7 patients received siltuximab as a salvage therapy after one dose of tocilizumab. At the end of the study, a total of 26 (83.9) patients had been discharged alive and the mortality rate was 16.1% but only 1 out of 24 that received siltuximab as a first line option (4%). CONCLUSIONS: Siltuximab is a well-tolerated alternative to tocilizumab when administered as a first line option in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia within the first 10 days from symptoms onset and high C-reactive protein.

Una forma excepcional de presentación de LES / An exceptional presentation of SLE

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[Fever and recurrent bacteremia as presentation form of secondary aortoenteric fistula]. / Fiebre y bacteriemia recurrente como forma de presentación de una fístula aortoentérica secundaria.

Secondary aortoenteric fistula is a rare complication, although very severe, of aortic revascularization surgery. The major cause is usually infection of the prosthetic material, which may happen short or long after the intervention. The most frequent forms of presentation are digestive hemorrhage, abdominal pain or unpleasantness, shock or other symptoms associated to the compression of adjacent structures. However, as in the present case, symptoms of systemic infection may be the only manifestation, with absence of local signs. This is why a high degree of clinical suspicion is needed. The most useful complementary techniques are computerized tomography, oral endoscopy and, probably, magnetic resonance, along with gammagraphy of indium-marked leukocytes. Therapy must combine long-term systemic antibiotherapy and resection of all infected material, with reconstruction of the vascular continuity following a route far away from the infected area.

[Is the biopsy of the temporal artery necessary? A study of 204 biopsies]. / Es necesaria la biopsia de la arteria temporal? Estudio de 204 biopsias.

Due to the controversy on the need of performing temporal artery biopsies for the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis (GCA), we have reviewed 204 biopsies of temporal arteries as well as the clinical histories of the 190 patients. Patients without local manifestations were excluded from this study. From the 173 remaining patients, 54 presented a diagnostic biopsy of GCA. The 119 patients with a negative biopsy were divided into different groups according to the final diagnosis. From our data we could not find a clinical pattern which could permit the prediction of biopsy positiveness. We could not find either any clinical entity in the nondiagnostic group which would permit to exclude a diagnosis before performing the biopsy. We consider that the biopsy of the temporal artery can not be avoided nowadays and that it represents the only decisive diagnostic method of GCA.