Case Report: A case of TAFRO syndrome with severe and prolonged thrombocytopenia: diagnostic pitfalls.

Thrombocytopenia, anasarca, myelofibrosis, renal dysfunction, and organomegaly (TAFRO) syndrome is a rare condition with diverse clinical and pathological characteristics related to multi-organ damage. We report a case of TAFRO syndrome complicated by immune thrombocytopenia with prolonged fever and thrombocytopenia for several weeks. A 61-year-old man was transferred with sepsis caused by Enterococcus faecalis, and developed disseminated intravascular coagulation. Antibiotics treatment was initiated: however, low-grade fever and thrombocytopenia persisted despite the adequate antimicrobial treatment. Systemic edema, pleural effusion, and ascites had developed before hospitalization, and renal and liver function had deteriorated, resulting in progressive multi-organ damage. Prednisolone 40 mg/day was initiated based on the assumption of a condition in which excessive production of inflammatory cytokines would lead to systemic deterioration and fatal organ damage. Subsequently, the fever resolved, and renal function began to normalize. However, thrombocytopenia did not show much recovery trend after Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy and initiation of thrombopoietin receptor agonists. Bone marrow biopsy results showed normal bone marrow with no malignant findings. Alternatively, significant clinical signs met the diagnostic criteria for TAFRO syndrome, and a renal biopsy revealed thrombotic microangiopathy, which is also reasonable for renal involvement in TAFRO syndrome. The use of cyclosporine remarkably corrected the thrombocytopenia. We considered this a case of TAFRO syndrome that developed after sepsis with disseminated intravascular coagulation and performed the differential diagnosis of prolonged thrombocytopenia and excluded it. Although TAFRO syndrome is a unique disease concept, diagnostic criteria may consist of nonspecific elements such as generalized edema, thrombocytopenia, persistent fever, and elevated inflammatory response, and there are many differential conditions to exclude, requiring caution in diagnosing TAFRO syndrome.

[A case of Churg-Strauss syndrome undergoing cesarean section].

A 37-year-old woman with Churg-Strauss syndrome underwent cesarean section under combined spinal-epidural anesthesia. Churg-Strauss syndrome is a rare diffuse vasculitis accompanied by severe asthma. Anesthesia was performed uneventfully, but there were several issues of concern regarding the perioperative management of this syndrome.

Cyclosporin A reduces delayed motor neuron death after spinal cord ischemia in rabbits.

BACKGROUND: Spinal cord ischemia has varied etiologies, and in some cases, may develop into paraplegia. This is attributable to the vulnerability of spinal motor neurons to ischemia. We evaluated the potential of the immunosuppressant cyclosporin A for treatment of spinal motor neuron damage caused by ischemia. METHODS: Twenty-eight rabbits were randomized into four groups of 7 animals each: group A (cyclosporin A not administered), group B (2.5 mg/kg cyclosporin A), group C (25 mg/kg cyclosporin A), and group S (sham-operated). The spinal cord ischemia model was created by a 15-minute occlusion of the aorta just caudal to a renal artery with a balloon catheter. Administration of cyclosporin A began 30 minutes after restoration of blood flow. The spinal cords were removed after 7-day monitoring of neurologic function. Pathology specimens were prepared, and after staining them with hematoxylin-eosin, viable motor neurons in the ventral spinal cord were counted under light microscopy. RESULTS: At 7 days after reperfusion, recovery of motor function was seen at varying degrees in groups B and C, whereas all animals in group A continued to exhibit paraplegia. In group C, most of the animals recovered to the baseline level, before creation of the ischemia model. A significant difference in numbers of viable neurons was found in group A (cell count, 10.1 +/- 4.7) and group C (cell count, 22.2 +/- 8.0) (p < 0.05). Higher numbers of viable motor neurons corresponded to a greater recovery of motor function. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that cyclosporin A administration is effective against neuronal damage caused by spinal cord ischemia.

Comparison of the placental transfer of halothane, enflurane, sevoflurane, and isoflurane during cesarean section.

The concentrations of placental transfer of halothane (H), enflurane (E), sevoflurane (S), and isoflurane (I) were measured in 46 patients during cesarean section. The mean inhalation times of H (0.5%), E (1%), S (0.8%), and I (0.6%) were 13 min 27 s, 13 min 49s, 13 min 20s, and 8 min 8s, respectively. The mean concentrations in the maternal artery (MA) were 5.2mg·dl-1 in H, 12.3 mg·dl-1 in E, 5.2mg·dl-1 in S, and 2.4mg·dl-1 in I. The concentration ratio between the MA and the fetal umbilical vein (UV) was 0.44 for H, 0.49 for E, and 0.38 for S, and these ratios were not significantly different for these anesthetics. Although the concentration ratio for I (0.27) was significantly lower than those of the other three anesthetics, the UV:MA ratio was calculated to be 0.4 for an inhalation time 13 min. Our result, therefore, suggests that if the inhalation times were equal, the ratios of placental transfer would not differ among these four inhalational anesthetics. The Apgar scores in these four groups were not different from that in the group given only 66% nitrous oxide in oxygen as anesthetic (N2O group). The cardiovascular changes induced by skin incision were bigger in the N2O group than in the other groups. The use of a low concentration of H, E, S, or I is, therefore, suggested to be a useful and acceptable anesthetic method for cesarean section.