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Biomedical subjects

A Moncada

Publications and source records attributed to A Moncada.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1990

Angiotropic (intravascular) large cell lymphoma. A clinicopathologic study of seven cases with unique clinical presentations.

The authors recently reported the antigenic phenotypes of three cases of so-called "malignant angioendotheliomatosis" and suggested that angiotropic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) is a more appropriate designation for this disease. The authors now report an additional seven cases of ALCL with unique clinical presentations. One patient presented with prostate enlargement, the second with lytic bone lesions and thickened nasal sinus mucosa, the third had diffuse myalgia, the fourth had dyspnea and pulmonary infiltrates, the fifth had gangrene of the lower extremities, total-body skin involvement, and pancytopenia, the sixth had a lesion of the foreskin mimicking squamous cell carcinoma, and the seventh had a mediastinal mass. In all cases histologic features were characteristic of ALCL with, in two cases, extravascular spread into soft tissue. Immunohistologic studies showed a B-cell phenotype in five cases and a T-cell phenotype in one case. Two patients received combination chemotherapy using established treatment protocol for large cell lymphoma, and remain in complete clinical remission and two patients are responding clinically to combination chemotherapy. Two patients died shortly after receiving combination chemotherapy. One patient has only recently been diagnosed as having ALCL and no long-term follow-up is available. These data indicate that, although ALCL affects predominantly the central nervous system and skin, unusual clinical presentations may occur, and patients with ALCL may respond to combination chemotherapy for large cell lymphoma.

Aged↗
PubMed1988

Personality dimensions through the schizophrenia borderline.

While the schizoid dimension of personality has often been thought to be unitary, it has recently been suggested that several dimensions may be involved. In this study two separately derived normal population personality scales from within the psychoticism domain, the Rust Inventory of Schizotypal Cognitions (RISC), a scale designed to measure the positive cognitive schizotypal dimension, and the Eysencks' P scale from within the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, were administered to a group of 608 Venezuelan university students. It was found that the RISC and the EPQ had only a small correlation of 0.12. It was concluded that at least two dimensions were involved in the schizophrenic/normal spectrum, and that the EPQ Psychoticism scale was in fact measuring a dimension of personality disorder rather than a general factor of psychoticism.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

En bloc kidney and bladder transplantation from an anencephalic donor into an adult recipient.

The visceral block, composed of both kidneys and their vascular pedicles, inferior vena cava, ureters and bladder, was removed from a 3-day-old male anencephalic donor and transplanted into a 32-year-old adult in chronic renal failure. The urinary tract was reconstructed by vesicovesicostomy for technical ease, and prevention of reflux and ureteral stenosis. Maximum urine output was 150 ml. per day and the kidney grafts were lost owing to rejection 5 months after transplantation.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Closed crush injury of the metacarpophalangeal joint.

Closed crush injuries from direct blows to the dorsum of the hand may produce significant metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint symptoms or dysfunction. We have treated 11 patients who had chronic pain and swelling, but without extensor tendon subluxation, for an average of 7.4 months. Only two responded to nonoperative treatment. The nine who had exploratory surgery had a consistent anatomic lesion that consisted of a partial, arcuate tear of the sagittal fibers. All the patients improved postoperatively. Cadaver dissections of the dorsal MCP tendon mechanism in 11 fresh specimens (44 MCP joints) demonstrated that neither partial nor complete transection of the ulnar sagittal fibers produces radial dislocation of extensor tendons. Radial sagittal fiber transections frequently produced ulnar tendon dislocation. Patients who have closed impact injuries of the MCP joints and present with longstanding pain, swelling, and limited mobility without extensor tendon migration may have sustained unrecognized partial ulnar sagittal fiber disruption. Repair of the partial sagittal fiber tear and exploration of the MCP joint is indicated.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Behcet's disease associated with HLA-B51 and DRw52 antigens in Italians.

Thirty-eight Italian patients with Behcet's disease, all with ocular involvement, (28 complete type and ten incomplete) were typed for HLA A,B,DR, and DQ antigens. A significant increase of HLA-B51 (p less than 0.00001) and DRw52 (p = 0.045) with no significant difference between complete and incomplete syndrome was found. The involvement of B51 antigen as the main immunogenetic factor in the disease is suggested by the high value of relative risk (RR = 16.03). However, the association with the II class antigen DRw52 (RR = 2.77) cannot be easily explained as a secondary association due to linkage disequilibria with B51.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Quantitation of hypertensive nephrosclerosis on an objective rational scale of measure in adults and children.

The development of a precise, mathematical relationship between blood pressure and renal microvascular abnormalities would be highly desirable. Such a relationship would require that abnormalities be quantitative on a rational scale. The dominant abnormality in nephrosclerosis occurs in arcuate and cortical arteries of 50 to 400 micron outer diameter. This abnormality consists of acquired inner layers of fibroplastic tissue accompanied by variable fibrosis or withering of the preexisting vessel wall. It is this pathologic variable of interest, the amount of fibroplasia, that can be measured by its thickness in a direction perpendicular to the arterial axis. A method for quantitating the fibroplasia is described. Use of this method in a series of 93 autopsies suggests two tentative conclusions. The outer diameter of 141 micron marks the size of artery in which fibroplasia best correlates with blood pressure. The linear function, mean blood pressure = 1.60 X microvascular lesions +79.7, with correlation coefficient 0.698, governs a relationship similar at all ages. This relationship can be used to compute expected blood pressure from measurements of microvascular abnormalities in kidneys obtained at autopsy. Because all ages include ages 14 to 21 years, the observations imply that the initial tissue changes of hypertensive disease occur early in life.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Evaluation of T cell subsets in Behçet's syndrome using anti-T cell monoclonal antibodies.

Several immunological abnormalities have been described in Behçet's syndrome, the multisystem disease characterized by the triad of relapsing iridocyclitis with recurrent oral and genital ulcerations. In the present study we have evaluated T cell subsets in the peripheral blood of patients suffering from Behçet's syndrome, using a panel of anti-T cell monoclonal antibodies. When compared with normal subjects, patients with Behçet's syndrome show a discrepancy between the number of T3+ cells and those forming rosettes with sheep erythrocytes, a significantly higher number of T4+ and T8+ double labelled cells, as well as of T6+ lymphocytes in the peripheral blood. The percentage of T8 T lymphocytes is increased, thus lowering the T4+/T8+ cell ratio. The results of this study indicate that a complex imbalance of T cell subsets is present in Behçet's syndrome and give a rationale for possible treatment of these patients with immunomodulators.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Reliability and validity of self-reported drug use among secondary school students].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the reliability and validity of self-reported use among secondary school students. METHOD: Validity was assessed in a representative sample of nearly 1,300 students by analyzing: a) the proportion of questions on drug use left unanswered compared with that for other questions; b) the proportion of inconsistencies between related questions; c) the proportion of questions wrongly completed; d) admision of ficticious drug use; e) the relationship between self-reported drug use and that of friends', and f) willingness to admit cannabis and ecstasy use. Reliability was analyzed using the kappa index, the proportion of specific agreement, and the intra-class correlation coefficient in a test-retest procedure in a randomized subsample of 349 students. RESULTS: The response rate to questions on drug use was high and was similar to that for more neutral questions. Only 0,3% of the secondary school students reported having used a fictitious drug. Except in the case of heroin, individual drug use was directly related to friends' perception of consumption. A very low proportion of students would not be willing to admit to use of cannabis (2%) or ecstasy (3,4%). Questions referring to drug use at some time during students' lives showed greater reliability than those referring to more recent drug use (last 12 months). The kappa indexes for drug consumption at some time during students lives ranged from 0.65 to 0.87, except for ecstasy and LSD (0.51 and 0.52 respectively). The age of first drug consumption was highly reliable (intra-class correlation coefficients ranged from 0.71 to 1). CONCLUSIONS: Except for ectasy, amphetamines and LSD, indexes of reliability and validity were generally good and similar to those obtained in other studies. These findings support the idea that information about self-reported drug use obtained through a questionnaire is reliable and valid, although the absolute prevalences of the use of some drugs should be interpreted with caution. The indicator of consumption at some time during students' lives is especially useful in studies monitoring drug use among this population.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The lactoferrin tear test in the diagnosis of Sjögren's syndrome.

PURPOSE: To assess the sensitivity and specificity of the lactoferrin tear test (LTT) in the diagnosis of keratoconjunctivitis sicca due to Sjögren's syndrome (SS), comparing it with the other lacrimal tests and with immunological tests. METHODS: 25 patients suffering from SS (24 women and 1 man, median age 51.5 years, s.d. 16.3); control group: 20 patients with various kinds of conjunctivitis without dry eye. Tests in both groups: Schirmer I (ST), BUT, ferning test, lactoferrin immunoassay, fluorescein and Rose Bengal staining. Immunological tests: serum titers of anti-nuclear (ANA), anti-DNA, anti-ENA (SS-A, SS-B, RNP, FR) antibodies. In the patients with SS, labial salivary gland biopsy was also performed. RESULTS: LTT had a specificity of 95% and a sensitivity of 72%, compared to 85% and 64% for the Schirmer I test. The ferning test has the highest sensitivity (92%), and none of the cases positive to BUT was negative to the ferning test. The combination of LTT and ferning test gave a value of 78% compared to 70% with ST. The correlations between positive LTT and positive ANA, SS-A and labial biopsy were respectively 83%, 67% and 80%, as against 67%, 50% and 65% for the Schirmer I test. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, LTT showed very high specificity, good sensitivity particularly when combined with qualitative tear tests, and a good correlation with the immunological and bioptic tests for SS. Since it is easy to perform, in our opinion LTT can be included in the diagnostic routine for keratoconjunctivitis sicca in SS.

Antibodies, Antinuclear↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Housework, gender and health in the working population].

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the relation between domestic workload and self-perceived health status among workers and to examine whether there are gender inequalities. METHODS: The selected population were the 215 men and 106 women younger than 65 years interviewed in the Terrassa Health Survey, 1998 who had a paid work and were married or cohabiting. Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) by domestic workload, age and occupational social class with their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. RESULTS: Whereas among men domestic workload was not associated with health status, among women poor self-perceived health status was positively related to household size (aOR = 3.65; 95% IC = 1.06-12.54) and to lack of a person for doing domestic tasks (aOR = 4.43; 95% CI = 1.05-18.62). CONCLUSION: Both household characteristics and having a support for facing domestic tasks play an important role in gender health inequalities.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Clinical serological correlations in the evaluation of Sjögren's syndrome.

Fifty-six subjects (46 females and 10 males) with signs of Sjögren's Syndrome (SS) have been evaluated for clinical and serological parameters. In 12 subjects such clinical signs were associated with a definite connective tissue disease (secondary SS): Rheumatoid Arthritis (2 cases), Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (4 cases), Progressive Systemic Sclerosis (4 cases), Essential Mixed Cryoglobulinemia (2 cases). All patients underwent a lip biopsy which was evaluated according to the Chisholm-Mason scale. Six out of 56 subjects (10.7%) had a normal salivary gland with few lymphocytes (class I); 5 (10%) had a scattered lymphoid infiltrate containing less than 1 focus/4 mm2 (class II); 36 (64.3%) had one focus/4 mm2 (class III) and, finally, 9 (16%) had more than 1 focus/4 mm2 (class IV). The great majority (91%) of the patients had some abnormalities at the ophthalmological examination (Schirmer test, Break up times, van Bijsterveld score): even those with a class I lip biopsy. Xerostomia was present in 69% of the patients, xerophthalmia in 78%, arthralgias in 78%, parotid swelling in 19%, Raynaud's phenomenon in 16%, recurrent abortion in 9 patients. The prevalence of autoantibodies in the group of primary SS was high: ANA 43.2%, anti-Ha 40%, anti-Ro 12%, anti-phospholipids 52.2%, rheumatoid factor (RF) 45.7%. A decrease of lysozyme concentration in tears and saliva has been demonstrated and a correlation between level of lysozyme and lip-biopsy has been observed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗