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Medicine Jun 2023Burns are one of the most debilitating injuries in the world and one of the major causes of accidental disability and death among children. Severe burns can result in... (Review)
Review
RATIONALE
Burns are one of the most debilitating injuries in the world and one of the major causes of accidental disability and death among children. Severe burns can result in irreversible brain damage, placing patients at high risk of brain failure and high mortality. Therefore, timely diagnosis and treatment of burn encephalopathy are crucial for improving prognosis. In recent years, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) has been increasingly used to improve the prognosis of patients with burns. Here, we report a case of ECMO treatment in a child with burns and review the relevant literature.
PATIENT CONCERNS
A 7-year-old boy with a modified Baux score of 24 presented with asphyxia, loss of consciousness, refractory hypoxemia, and malignant arrhythmia after smoke inhalation for 1 day. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed a large amount of black carbon-like substances aspirated from the trachea.
DIAGNOSES
Considering that the boy inhaled a large amount of smoke, the clinical manifestation was unclear consciousness, laboratory examination revealed continuous low blood oxygen saturation, and bronchoscopy revealed a large amount of black carbon-like substances in the trachea, thereby leading to the diagnosis of asphyxia, inhalation pneumonia, burn encephalopathy, multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, and malignant arrhythmia. In addition, pulmonary edema and carbon monoxide poisoning are caused by chemical agents, gas fumes, and vapors.
INTERVENTIONS
The boy's blood oxygen saturation and blood circulation remained unstable despite various ventilation methods and medications, thus we decided to use ECMO. After 8 days of ECMO support, the patient was successfully weaned from the machine.
OUTCOMES
Under the application of ECMO, the respiratory and circulatory systems significantly improved. Nevertheless, due to the progressive brain injury caused by burns and the poor prognosis, the parents ceased all treatment and the boy passed away.
LESSONS
This case report demonstrates that brain edema and herniation can arise as phenotypes of burn encephalopathy, which is a challenge to treat in children. Children with confirmed or suspected burn encephalopathy should undergo diagnostic tests completed as soon as possible to confirm the diagnosis. After receiving ECMO treatment, the respiratory and circulatory systems of the burn victims reported significantly improved. Hence, ECMO is a viable alternative for supporting patients with burns.
Topics: Humans; Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation; Asphyxia; Respiratory Distress Syndrome; Burns; Smoke; Brain Diseases
PubMed: 37327291
DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000034029 -
Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology Apr 2022Although cannabis may worsen nausea and vomiting for patients with gastroparesis, it may also be an effective treatment for gastroparesis-related abdominal pain. Given...
BACKGROUND
Although cannabis may worsen nausea and vomiting for patients with gastroparesis, it may also be an effective treatment for gastroparesis-related abdominal pain. Given conflicting data and a lack of current epidemiological evidence, we aimed to investigate the association of cannabis use on relevant clinical outcomes among hospitalized patients with gastroparesis.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Patients with a diagnosis of gastroparesis were reviewed from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database between 2008 and 2014. Gastroparesis was identified by International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes with patients classified based on a diagnosis of cannabis use disorder. Demographics, comorbidities, socioeconomic status, and outcomes were compared between cohorts using χ2 and analysis of variance. Logistic regression was then performed and annual trends also evaluated.
RESULTS
A total of 1,473,363 patients with gastroparesis were analyzed [n=33,085 (2.25%) of patients with concomitant cannabis use disorder]. Patients with gastroparesis and cannabis use disorder were more likely to be younger and male gender compared with nonusers (36.7±18.8 vs. 51.9±16.8; P<0.001 and 52.9% vs. 33.5%; P<0.001, respectively). Race/ethnicity was different between groups (P<0.001). Cannabis users had a lower median household income and were more likely to have Medicaid payor status (all P<0.001). Controlling for confounders, length of stay, and mortality were significantly decreased for patients with gastroparesis and cannabis use (all P<0.001).
CONCLUSION
While patients with gastroparesis and cannabis use disorder were younger, with a lower socioeconomic status, and disproportionately affected by psychiatric diagnoses, these patients had better hospitalization outcomes, including decreased length of stay and improved in-hospital mortality.
Topics: Analgesics; Cannabis; Gastroparesis; Humans; Income; Inpatients; Length of Stay; Male; Marijuana Abuse; Substance-Related Disorders; Treatment Outcome; United States
PubMed: 33780213
DOI: 10.1097/MCG.0000000000001526 -
Concurrence of cat-scratch disease and paradoxical tuberculosis-IRIS lymphadenopathy: a case report.BMC Infectious Diseases Mar 2022Mycobacterial infections can cause significant morbidity when cellular immunity is compromised. Patients with AIDS can be affected directly from infection or through...
BACKGROUND
Mycobacterial infections can cause significant morbidity when cellular immunity is compromised. Patients with AIDS can be affected directly from infection or through mycobacterial IRIS, especially if they are previously untreated for HIV. Herein a case of tuberculous lymphadenitis is reported, which primarily responded to antimicrobials but complicated by IRIS and cat-scratch disease at a later course.
CASE PRESENTATION
A 23-year-old man, intravenous drug user with untreated HIV and HCV infection presented with fever and painful cervical lymphadenopathy. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was isolated from PCR and culture of ultrasound-guided lymph node aspirate and a four-drug anti-TB regimen was subsequently administered, leading to complete resolution of clinical and laboratory abnormalities. Given the patient's CD4 count (67 cells per mm), antiretroviral treatment started seven weeks after TB treatment initiation. Within the first month of ART fever recurred along with cervical lymph node inflammation. Paradoxical IRIS was considered as the most probable diagnosis but workup expanded, revealing acute Bartonella infection. A posteriori, the patient remembered being scratched by a stray cat two weeks before his new symptoms started. Doxycycline and corticosteroid monotherapy failed to resolve symptoms, whereas a combination of doxycycline for 3 months and methylprednisolone with long-term tapering led to negative follow-up Bartonella antibodies and complete clinical and biochemical response, without recurrence.
CONCLUSIONS
Co-infection with TB and Bartonella presenting with lymphadenitis is unusual. Cat-scratch disease can be a rare clinical presentation of Bartonella infection in patients with AIDS, but coexistence of bartonellosis and paradoxical IRIS has never been reported before. However, physicians treating people living with HIV should be aware of this potential concurrence. Early testing for Bartonella infection could be offered in patients with TB and HIV co-infection in case of acute deterioration or partial response to treatment, especially if they have a history of cat exposure, since clinical picture can be indistinguishable.
Topics: Animals; Cat-Scratch Disease; Cats; HIV Infections; Humans; Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome; Lymphadenopathy; Substance Abuse, Intravenous; Tuberculosis, Lymph Node
PubMed: 35241027
DOI: 10.1186/s12879-022-07170-3 -
Heliyon Feb 2024We speculated that increased blood-plasma levels of Substance P may serve as an indicator of glottal incompetence, which is usually indicated by reduced maximum...
We speculated that increased blood-plasma levels of Substance P may serve as an indicator of glottal incompetence, which is usually indicated by reduced maximum phonation time. We performed an initial study to test the plausibility of this hypothesis. Patients with dysphonia caused by glottal incompetence were asked to perform vocal exercises for six months to reduce glottal incompetence and we compared the plasma concentration of Substance P before and after the vocal exercise to detect correlation between maximum phonation time and plasma concentration of Substance P. Based on the results, we further hypothesized that patients exhibiting dysphonia with maximum phonation time less than 14 s, in particular less than 10 sec, caused by glottal incompetence may have increased plasma concentration of Substance P with the results of elevated thresholds of cough reflex associated with subclinical aspiration in airways. Further study is needed on patients with decreased Substance P levels, with low scores on Activities of Daily Living and who are hospitalized with aspiration pneumonia.
PubMed: 38375315
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e25751 -
Indian Journal of Pathology &... Feb 2024Crystallizing galactocele is an uncommon condition that produces a viscous, chalky substance on fine needle aspiration cytology. (FNAC). Both the diagnosis and the...
Crystallizing galactocele is an uncommon condition that produces a viscous, chalky substance on fine needle aspiration cytology. (FNAC). Both the diagnosis and the management of this illness include the use of FNAC. Here, we discuss the case of a 25-year-old nursing woman who experienced left breast edema lump for two years. The upper outer quadrant of the leftt breast was involved by the hard, small, non-tender, and movable enlargement. The lesion's FNAC produced a thick, milky, and chalky substance. Numerous semi-transparent crystals of various sizes and shapes with angulated edges could be seen in cytological smears against a background of granular and amorphous proteinaceous material. A diagnosis of crystallizing galactocele was made on the basis of the patient's clinical history of lactation and characteristic cytological findings. Due to the rarity of this condition-to the best of our knowledge, less than ten cases of crystallizing galactocele have been documented in medical literature.
PubMed: 38427758
DOI: 10.4103/ijpm.ijpm_278_23 -
PloS One 2019Human bocavirus (HBoV) is a member of the genus Bocavirus, family Parvoviridae, and subfamily Parvovirus and was first identified in nasopharyngeal aspirates of Swedish...
Human bocavirus (HBoV) is a member of the genus Bocavirus, family Parvoviridae, and subfamily Parvovirus and was first identified in nasopharyngeal aspirates of Swedish children with acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) in 2005. It is the causative agent of nasopharyngeal aspirate disease and death in children. The HboV genomic structure is a linear single-stranded DNA (ssDNA). Its clinical pathogenic characteristics have been extensively studied, however, at present the molecular mechanism underlying the pathogenesis of HBoV infection is not completely clear. In this study, a total of 293 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) between ARTI cases and healthy plasma samples were characterized using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ)-coupled bioinformatics analysis, among which 148 were up-regulated and 135 were down-regulated. Gene Ontology (GO) and Cluster of Orthologous Groups of proteins (COG) annotated an enrichment of DEPs in complement activation and biological processes like immunity, inflammation, signal transduction, substance synthesis, and metabolism. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis enriched DEPs mainly in the Wnt signaling pathway (ko04310), PPAR signaling pathway (ko03320), intestinal immune network for IgA production (ko04672), complement and coagulation cascades (ko04610), Toll-like receptor signaling pathway (ko04620) and B cell receptor signaling pathway (ko04662). Further, expression levels of three candidate proteins (upregulated PPP2R1A and CUL1, and downregulated CETP) were validated using western blotting. Our investigation is the first analysis of the proteomic profile of HBoV-infected ARTI cases using the iTRAQ approach, providing a foundation for a better molecular understanding of the pathogenesis of ARTI in children.
Topics: Blood Proteins; Chromatography, Liquid; Computational Biology; Female; Gene Ontology; Host-Pathogen Interactions; Human bocavirus; Humans; Male; Parvoviridae Infections; Proteome; Proteomics; Reproducibility of Results; Tandem Mass Spectrometry
PubMed: 31751365
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225261 -
JAMA Network Open Sep 2019Male youth in lower-resource neighborhoods bear a disproportionate burden of violence involvement, but little is known about clusters of specific violence-related...
IMPORTANCE
Male youth in lower-resource neighborhoods bear a disproportionate burden of violence involvement, but little is known about clusters of specific violence-related behaviors to inform cross-cutting interventions that address multiple forms of violence.
OBJECTIVE
To examine associations between adult support and patterns of violence and risk or protective behavior co-occurrence among male youths in urban neighborhoods.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
Cross-sectional analysis of baseline and end-of-program data from a recently completed cluster-randomized sexual violence prevention trial across 20 lower-resource neighborhoods. Participants were male youths, aged 13 to 19 years, enrolled at youth-serving community agencies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from July 27, 2015, to June 5, 2017. Data were analyzed from July 1, 2018, to February 28, 2019.
EXPOSURES
Social support and natural mentoring, as defined by validated survey measures.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Validated survey measures (youth violence, bullying, sexual and dating violence, history of exposure to violence and related adversities, substance use, school engagement, and future orientation) were assessed for detailed co-occurrence patterns using hierarchical clustering, dendrograms, and heatmaps across prespecified domains. Wilcoxon rank sum tests and logistic regression models examined associations between adult support and violence involvement.
RESULTS
Among 866 participants, the mean (SD) age was 15.5 (1.6) years and 632 participants (77.5%) identified as African American. All 866 participants completed baseline surveys and 577 completed end-of-program surveys. Seven clusters of risk and protective behaviors emerged: (1) school engagement; (2) career and future aspirations; (3) substance use and bullying exposure; (4) exposure to violence and related adversities, sexual violence exposure, peer delinquency, and gang involvement; (5) sexual violence, youth violence, and bullying perpetration; (6) dating abuse perpetration; and (7) physical or sexual partner violence perpetration. The strongest association cluster occurred among sexual violence perpetration behaviors. Youth with high social support engaged in significantly fewer of the 40 prespecified risk behaviors (high social support median [interquartile range], 8 [5-12] behaviors vs low social support median [interquartile range], 10 [6-14] behaviors; mean difference, 1.64 behaviors; 95% CI, 0.63-2.64 behaviors; P = .004). High social support and natural mentoring were both inversely associated with gang involvement (social support: odds ratio [OR], 0.39; 95% CI, 0.22-0.71; and natural mentoring: OR, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.25-0.76) and sexual violence exposure (social support: OR, 0.39; 95% CI, 0.24-0.64; and natural mentoring: OR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.39-0.98).
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
These findings suggest that co-occurrence of risk and protective behaviors differ significantly among youth with vs without adult support. Violence prevention interventions designed to leverage adult support should address broader co-occurrence patterns.
Topics: Adolescent; Aspirations, Psychological; Bullying; Cross-Sectional Studies; Exposure to Violence; Humans; Intimate Partner Violence; Male; Mentoring; Protective Factors; Risk-Taking; Schools; Sex Offenses; Social Support; Substance-Related Disorders; Urban Population; Violence; Young Adult
PubMed: 31517967
DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.11375 -
BMC Medical Education Nov 2022The medical degree is a long and challenging program, not just academically, but regarding the expectations engrained in the culture of medical education. The recent...
A longitudinal cohort study observed increasing perfectionism and declining resilience, ambiguity tolerance and calling during medical school which is not explained by student personality.
BACKGROUND
The medical degree is a long and challenging program, not just academically, but regarding the expectations engrained in the culture of medical education. The recent proliferation of literature on the poor mental well-being among students suggests a dilemma that often lays the onus on students to improve their health. The link between personality and vulnerability to psychological distress is acknowledged. This longitudinal study looked at personality in 1-year and changes in levels of certain psychological traits, as proxy indicators of well-being, in 4-year. We aimed to determine to what extent changes in psychological traits over time may be attributed to personality.
METHODS
Medical students completed surveys at the start (1-year: baseline) and finish (4-year: follow-up) of their medical degree (N = 154). Temperament and character personality, Perfectionism-Concern over mistakes (CoM), Ambiguity Tolerance, Resilience, Calling to medicine, and demographic variables were measured. Paired t-tests compared changes in psychological traits from baseline to follow-up. Linear regression examined whether personality at baseline would predict levels of psychological traits at follow-up.
RESULTS
The temperament and character profile of the sample was as expected, and congruent with previous studies, which describe a mature personality. Over four years, levels of Perfectionism-CoM significantly increased, while Resilience, Ambiguity Tolerance and Calling to medicine decreased. Harm Avoidance, Persistence, Self-Directedness and Cooperativeness at baseline significantly predicted levels of these traits at follow-up, but effect sizes were weak. Correlations were in the expected direction and weak.
CONCLUSIONS
Most commencing medical students, including this cohort, have mature personalities with an industrious temperament and an adaptable character. Yet over four years of medicine, Ambiguity Tolerance, Resilience and Calling declined while Perfectionism-CoM, already elevated at baseline, continued to increase to the final year. Of concern is the increased perfectionism that is strongly associated with poor mental health and psychological distress. The findings suggest a closer look at the entirety of the education environment and how its culture, including secondary school and the medical school admissions processes may influence these trends in students. As medical educators we should question why the pathway to medicine places such unhealthy pressure on students who aspire to be doctors.
Topics: Humans; Perfectionism; Longitudinal Studies; Schools, Medical; Personality; Students, Medical
PubMed: 36371205
DOI: 10.1186/s12909-022-03850-5 -
Human Genetics May 2020ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters constitute a superfamily of 48 structurally similar membrane transporters that mediate the ATP-dependent cellular export of a...
ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters constitute a superfamily of 48 structurally similar membrane transporters that mediate the ATP-dependent cellular export of a plethora of endogenous and xenobiotic substances. Importantly, genetic variants in ABC genes that affect gene function have clinically important effects on drug disposition and can be predictors of the risk of adverse drug reactions and efficacy of chemotherapeutics, calcium channel blockers, and protease inhibitors. Furthermore, loss-of-function of ABC transporters is associated with a variety of congenital disorders. Despite their clinical importance, information about the frequencies and global distribution of functionally relevant ABC variants is limited and little is known about the overall genetic complexity of this important gene family. Here, we systematically mapped the genetic landscape of the entire human ABC superfamily using Next-Generation Sequencing data from 138,632 individuals across seven major populations. Overall, we identified 62,793 exonic variants, 98.5% of which were rare. By integrating five computational prediction algorithms with structural mapping approaches using experimentally determined crystal structures, we found that the functional ABC variability is extensive and highly population-specific. Every individual harbored between 9.3 and 13.9 deleterious ABC variants, 76% of which were found only in a single population. Carrier rates of pathogenic variants in ABC transporter genes associated with autosomal recessive congenital diseases, such as cystic fibrosis or pseudoxanthoma elasticum, closely mirrored the corresponding population-specific disease prevalence, thus providing a novel resource for rare disease epidemiology. Combined, we provide the most comprehensive, systematic, and consolidated overview of ethnogeographic ABC transporter variability with important implications for personalized medicine, clinical genetics, and precision public health.
Topics: ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters; Ethnicity; Evolution, Molecular; Geography; Humans; Multigene Family; Pneumonia, Aspiration; Polymorphism, Genetic
PubMed: 32206879
DOI: 10.1007/s00439-020-02150-6 -
Journal of Animal Science Jul 2022Extremes in body condition reduce fertility and overall productivity in beef cattle herds, due in part to altered systemic metabolic conditions that influence the...
Extremes in body condition reduce fertility and overall productivity in beef cattle herds, due in part to altered systemic metabolic conditions that influence the intrafollicular and uterine environment. Follicular fluid and serum metabolome profiles are influenced by body composition in women and dairy cattle; however, such information is lacking in beef cattle. We hypothesized that body condition score (BCS)-related alterations in the metabolome of preovulatory follicular fluid and serum may influence oocyte maturation while impacting the oviductal or uterine environment. Therefore, we performed a study with the objective to determine the relationship between BCS and the metabolome of follicular fluid and serum in lactating beef cattle. We synchronized the development of a preovulatory follicle in 130 cows of varying BCS. We collected blood and performed transvaginal follicle aspirations to collect follicular fluid from the preovulatory follicle ~18 h after gonadotropin-releasing hormone administration to stimulate the preovulatory gonadotropin surge. We then selected follicular fluid and serum samples from cows with BCS 4 (Thin; n = 14), BCS 6 (Moderate; n = 18), or BCS >8 (Obese; n = 14) for ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry. We identified differences in the follicular fluid or serum of thin, moderate, and obese animals based on multiple linear regression. MetaboAnalyst 5.0 was used for enrichment analysis of significant metabolites. We identified 38 metabolites in follicular fluid and 49 metabolites in serum. There were no significant differences in follicular fluid metabolite content among BCS classifications. There were 5, 22, and 1 serum metabolites differentially abundant between thin-obese, moderate-thin, and moderate-obese classifications, respectively (false discovery rate [FDR] < 0.10). These metabolites were enriched in multiple processes including "arginine biosynthesis," "arginine/proline metabolism," and "D-glutamine/D-glutamate metabolism" (FDR < 0.04). Pathways enriched with serum metabolites associated with BCS indicate potentially increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) in serum of thin cows. ROS crossing the blood follicular barrier may negatively impact the oocyte during oocyte maturation and contribute to the reduced pregnancy rates observed in thin beef cows.
Topics: Animals; Arginine; Cattle; Cattle Diseases; Female; Follicular Fluid; Humans; Lactation; Metabolome; Obesity; Pregnancy; Reactive Oxygen Species
PubMed: 35772755
DOI: 10.1093/jas/skac152