Prevalence of diabetes mellitus and related conditions in a south Texas Mexican American sample.

The prevalence of self-reported diabetes mellitus in a Mexican American sample population living in Hidalgo County in south Texas was examined along with risk for related sequelae. Data from a stratified random sample of 849 Mexican American men and women ages 45 and older were examined. A subsample of 193 diabetics was compared to 656 nondiabetics with respect to hospitalization, reasons for hospitalization, and other related medical conditions. The prevalence of self-reported diabetes for both men and women was 25.9%. Hospitalization rates for diabetics over a 1-year period and a 5-year period were significantly higher than nondiabetics. Hypertension, cardiac problems, amputations, kidney or urinary problems, eye problems, and joint and bone problems were significantly more common in the diabetics sample than in the nondiabetic sample. The data indicate that diabetes in Mexican Americans may be undertreated in south Texas.

[Round Table: Urticaria in relation to infections]. / Mesa Redonda: Urticaria en relación con infecciones.

OBJECTIVES: 1) To study the clinical and analytic features of infectious disease associated to urticaria in children. 2) To look into the probable etiology of the infectious disease. 3) To determine atopic predisposition and previous urticarial episodes and to rule out the involvement of antibiotics. DESIGN: Transversal and observational study. SETTING: Pediatric Allergy Outpatient Clinic of a tertiary Hospital. PATIENTS: Forty-four children, aged 1 to 12 years with acute urticaria associated to clinically infectious or febrile illness attending an Emergency Pediatric Department. INTERVENTION: Symptoms evaluation and physical examination in the seventh first days and follow over 3-6 weeks by the same physician. MEASUREMENTS: Clinical features of urticaria (duration, angioedema associated); Clinic diagnosis of illness infectious (acute respiratory infection, gastroenteritis, febrile syndrome); white blood cells count, C-reactive protein, aminotransferases (AST, ALT), L-Y-glutamyl transferase; viral culture and antigen detection: enterovirus (EV), adenovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), parainfluenza 1, 2 and 3, influenza A y B and cytomegalovirus (CMV); serological assay: CMV, enterovirus, mycoplasma pneumoniae, Epstein-Barr, parvovirus B19. RESULT: 22 children (50%) are between 1-2 years old. 40 patients (90,9%) had symptoms of respiratory tract infection and only four patients had a pneumonia. The other 4 children had a gastroenteritis. The analytic was suggestive of viral infection in 35 (79.5%) and unknown on seven patients. In 20 children (45.4%) was identified a probable infection. The viral detection was positive in 3 patients: CMV, herpes simplex 1 and influenza A. Twenty microbiological findings for seventeen patients was found by serological criterion of probable infection: enterovirus (10); parvovirus B19 (4); Epstein-Barr (3) y mycoplasma (3). Evidence of a double serologic infection was found in three patients. In comparison with a serological control group encountered that acute urticaria during a infectious disease is significantly associated (p = 0.0054) to high titer to enterovirus by complement-fixation. The urticaria was associated with angioedema in 38.6% and 9 children (20.4%) related an previous similar episode. Twenty-one (47.7%) had been treated with antibiotics before development the urticaria. All patients was given the suspected antibiotic and no patient developed any adverse reaction. CONCLUSIONS: The clinically infectious associated to urticarial rash in children, usually is a viral respiratory infections. Is more frequent at infant. In spite of antibiotic therapy is often related to development the urticaria, the subsequent challenge with the same antibiotic is good tolerated.

Pulmonary embolus in pregnant patients: survey of ventilation-perfusion imaging policies and practices.

PURPOSE: To assess the policies and practices of nuclear medicine facilities as regards ventilation-perfusion (V-P) imaging in pregnant patients suspected of having pulmonary embolus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Surveys were mailed to physician-directors of 1,000 randomly selected facilities at which nuclear imaging studies are performed. Information gathered included use of V-P imaging in pregnant patients, written policies, informed consent procedures, and modifications of standard protocols. RESULTS: Of the 1,000 surveys mailed, 327 (33%) completed surveys were returned. Of these 327 respondents, 220 (67%) reported that they perform V-P imaging in pregnant patients suspected of having pulmonary embolus. Of these 220 respondents, 115 (52%) routinely obtain informed consent, and 170 (77%) modify their standard V-P imaging protocol for pregnant patients. The most common modification (135 [79%] of 170 respondents) was reduction of the perfusion agent dose. Reported practice patterns for written policies, informed consent, and modifications did not show statistically significant trends among respondents in varying practice settings or geographic locations. CONCLUSION: Most respondents perform V-P imaging in pregnant patients suspected of having pulmonary embolus, with considerable variability in their policies and practices.

Genetic control of rat T-cell response to Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins (SE).

Rat T cells, like those of mouse and human origin, respond strongly to superantigens (SAg) derived from Staphylococcus aureus enterotoxins A and B (SEA, SEB). Lewis and ACI are high responders, whereas Brown Norway (BN) is a low responder. Congenic and back-cross rat studies indicate that the degree of responsiveness is controlled by at least one non-MHC gene. The action of these genes may reside in the antigen-presenting cells (APC), since both Sephadex G10 non-adherent BN spleen cells and purified BN T cells in the presence of Lewis APC can respond well to SE. Responses to concanavalin A (Con A) and SEA generally segregate together in back-cross rats. Surprisingly, the degree of responsiveness to Con A and SEA is not correlated with the susceptibility to experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) either in independently derived inbred rat strains or in (Lewis x BN) x BN back-cross rats.

Experimental allergic encephalomyelitis and corticosterone studies in resistant and susceptible rat strains.

In an effort to understand the role of endogenous corticosterone production on the induction of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) in rats, experiments in our study were performed using inbred rat strains that differ in basal corticosterone levels. Levels of corticosterone in serum samples were determined for LEW, WF, LER, and PVG rats, all of which had significantly lower corticosterone levels than BN or F344 rats. However, despite the twofold interstrain differences in basal concentrations, all animals tested showed considerable increases in corticosterone levels after being stressed by anesthesia. A series of determinations of steroid levels was made for LEW and BN rats during the postinflammatory periods of EAE induction; as expected, BN rats (EAE resistant) showed no change from their high basal levels, whereas LEW (EAE susceptible) showed consistent and long-lasting twofold increases in their circulating levels of corticosterone during the inflammatory process. Because the high corticosterone phenotype may be causally related to EAE resistance, [(BN x LEW) x BN]F1 backcross rats were tested for the possible coinheritance of the high corticosterone phenotype and EAE resistance. Contrary to the expectation of genetic linkage, our results demonstrate no correlation between the two genetic traits in this rat strain combination.