Aplastic crisis as a complication of congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type II.

A transient aplastic crisis (TAC) is a well-known complication in all types of chronic hemolytic anemia but only 2 cases of such an event were described in congenital dyserythropoietic anemias (CDAs). Here, we report a third case, and by retrospective chart review of 78 cases we found evidence of TAC in 8 further patients with CDA II, with serological evidence of previous human parvovirus B19 (B19V) infection in all but one. Although B19V infection results in TAC in only a minority of patients with CDA, physicians responsible for these patients should be aware of such a potentially life-threatening complication. Testing for B19V-specific IgG is recommended in patients with CDA to estimate the risk of a possible future aplastic crisis.

[Comparative assessment of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and blood pressure measurement by the patient at home]. / Vergleichende Untersuchungen zwischen ambulantem 24h-Blutdruckmonitoring (ABPM) und Heimblutdruckmessungen.

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) over 24 hours was compared to two blood pressure measurements taken in the morning by the 22 test persons themselves. ABPM was carried out at the beginning and the end of the study using a spacelabs SL 90207 apparatus. A semiautomatic sphygmomanometer was used for self-measurements (Visomat OZ 2). Monitored systolic and diastolic 24 hour values and the mean 24 hour value were on the average slightly higher than the self-measured pressures. Both methods yielded almost constant values over the test period. The mean of self-measured systolic and diastolic values from the second measurement over the entire two week period was significantly lower than the initially registered values (p < 0.001). Therefore a high correlation (r = 0.88, p < 0.001) was found between the mean systolic value of the second self-measurement with the mean ABPM 24 hour value; the corresponding correlation for the first measurement with ABPM was lower (r = 0.84, p < 0.01). The correlation of the diastolic values with ABPM was also lower (r = 0.70, p < 0.01). These results show that ABPM and self-measurements in the morning differ only slightly. The use and reliability of semiautomatic blood pressure measuring devices provide a practicable and economic alternative to ABPM.