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Biomedical subjects

A Marruchella

Publications and source records attributed to A Marruchella.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2002

Eotaxin and CCR3 are up-regulated in exacerbations of chronic bronchitis.

BACKGROUND: Eosinophils and T lymphocytes represent constant features in the airways of subjects with exacerbated chronic bronchitis. Eotaxin is the most potent and selective eosinophil chemoattractant which can also attracts lymphocytes. The aim of the study was to evaluate the expression of eotaxin and its receptor, CCR3, in bronchial airways during exacerbation of chronic bronchitis. METHODS: By immunohistochemistry we studied eotaxin and CCR3 expression in the lamina propria of 14 subjects with acute exacerbation of chronic bronchitis. 20 asthmatics, and 8 healthy subjects. We determined the cell types expressing the CCR3 receptor by colocalization experiments. We finally studied the relationship between eotaxin and CCR3 and eosinophils and T lymphocytes. RESULTS: The number of eotaxin+ and CCR3+ cells was significantly higher in exacerbated chronic bronchitis (P<0.003 and P<0.002) and asthma (P<0.002 and P<0.0001) when compared to healthy subjects. CCR3 was mainly expressed by eosinophils and to a lesser extent by CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes. In exacerbated chronic bronchitis the number of CCR3+ cells was strongly correlated to the number of eosinophils (P<0.0002. r=0.85) and to the number of CD4+ lymphocytes (P<0.05, r=0.57). CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that eotaxin and CCR3 are up-regulated and could be involved in the eosinophil and CD4+ lymphocyte recruitment into the airways which occur during acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Reliability of bronchoalveolar lavage in the routine clinical assessment of patients with sarcoidosis. A retrospective analysis.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to evaluate the reliability of bronchoalveolar lavage in the routine clinical assessment of patients with sarcoidosis. METHODS STUDY DESIGN: retrospective analysis. SETTING: 2 Divisions of Respiratory Medicine, both in the context of a public general hospital (Ospedale Morelli, Sondalo, Italy and Ospedale Civile, Piacenza, Italy). PATIENTS: 89 patients with definitely diagnosed diffuse infiltrative lung disease, who underwent bronchoalveolar lavage as part of their initial diagnostic work-up in the period 1991-2001. Fifty-one of them had biopsy-proven sarcoidosis. Diagnostic procedures were: transbronchial lung biopsy (n=26), bronchial biopsy (n=11), skin biopsy (n=6), surgical lung biopsy (n=4), superficial lymph node biopsy (n=3), mediastinal lymph node biopsy (n=1). In 38 patients various interstitial lung diseases were diagnosed, according to established criteria. MEASURES: we compared the percentage of BAL lymphocytes and CD4/CD8 ratio in the 2 groups. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value of BAL parameters were calculated with a cut-off value of 28% for BAL lymphocytes and 3.5 for CD4/CD8 ratio. RESULTS: The percentage of lymphocytes was similar in the 2 groups (p=0.19); CD4/CD8 ratio was 5.7+/-4.9 in sarcoidosis and 2.0+/-3.3 in the other patients (p=0.0001). BAL CD4/CD8 ratio in sarcoidosis had sensitivity 58%, specificity 86%, positive predictive value 85%, negative predictive value 61%. CONCLUSIONS: BAL has a low sensitivity in patients with sarcoidosis; CD4/CD8 ratio >or=3.5 strongly suggests sarcoidosis but is not specific enough if considered alone.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Association between chronic lymphocytic leukemia and sarcoidosis: clinical value of bronchoalveolar lavage.

We report a case of sarcoidosis, occurred in a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) shortly following the completion of initial chemotherapy, who relapsed shortly after a second course. Since bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) demonstrated a predominance of CD4+ lymphocytes, it largely excluded spread of the malignant disorder to the lung, and strongly suggested that sarcoidosis was the cause of the pulmonary infiltrates. This diagnosis was confirmed by the finding of non-caseating granuloma on transbronchial lung biopsy.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1998

Diffuse alveolar damage in a patient treated with gemcitabine.

We present a case of diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) that occurred in a male aged 68 yrs treated with gemcitabine, a novel antineoplastic agent, that was given for hepatic relapse of a previously resected non-small cell lung cancer. The patient developed acute respiratory failure after the sixth drug dose, and died 4 days after admission. Autopsy revealed a pattern of DAD. No evidence of infection or other specific aetiologies could be found. To our knowledge, only three cases of pulmonary toxicity resulting from treatment with gemcitabine have been published; two of them were fatal and postmortem examination revealed a pattern consistent with acute respiratory distress syndrome. A careful survey may determine the incidence of pulmonary toxicity of this new drug in the future.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

Cefepime versus ceftazidime in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infections.

The objective of the study was to compare the safety and efficacy of cefepime and ceftazidime in the treatment of community acquired lower respiratory tract infections of moderate intensity. Eighty-six patients were randomized at a 2:1 ratio to receive respectively cefepime 1 g b.i.d. or ceftazidime 1 g t.i.d. The drugs were well tolerated and the occurrence of adverse events in each group was comparable. The rates of satisfactory clinical response were 96% (49/51) for cefepime and 89% (24/27) for ceftazidime. A total of 73 pathogens were isolated and pathogen eradication rates were 98% and 96% respectively for the cefepime and ceftazidime treatment groups. In conclusion, the data confirmed that cefepime could be a good alternative to ceftazidime.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

Pulmonary edema and acute hypercapnic respiratory failure treated with bi-level nasal-CPAP: case report.

Noninvasive mechanical ventilation has been suggested for the treatment of patients with respiratory failure. We describe the case of a patient affected by bilateral cystic bronchiectasis and acute hypercapnic respiratory failure, due to a cardiogenic pulmonary edema, successfully treated with bi-level nasal-CPAP. This report suggests that in some cases noninvasive ventilatory support may mean avoiding tracheal intubation, even with critically ill patients.

Acute Disease↗