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H Cock

Publications and source records attributed to H Cock.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Neuromyelitis optica (Devic's syndrome): no association with the primary mitochondrial DNA mutations found in Leber hereditary optic neuropathy.

Devic's neuromyelitis optica is a rare syndrome characterised by the combination of acute or subacute optic neuritis and transverse myelitis, in some cases considered to be a variant of multiple sclerosis. Mutations of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) associated with Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) have been identified in some patients with multiple sclerosis in whom optic neuritis is a prominent early feature. Using restriction enzyme digestion of mtDNA products amplified by the polymerase chain reaction, the primary LHON mtDNA mutations at positions 3460 bp, 11,778 bp, and 14,484 bp have been excluded in four women with Devic's neuromyelitis optica. A mutation at 4160 bp associated in some LHON families with more widespread neurological disease was also not detected. It is concluded that the primary mtDNA mutations currently associated with LHON are not responsible for the prominence of optic nerve disease in Devic's neuromyelitis optica.

Adult↗

Incidence of abdominal tuberculosis in Bangladeshi migrants in east London.

A retrospective epidemiological study of abdominal tuberculosis in a defined population in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets was conducted between January 1985 and 31 December 1989. The total population of 163,900 included a mean of 20,732 Bangladeshis. Of the 13 cases diagnosed 8 were Bangladeshi, with equal involvement of the peritoneum and intestine. The crude incidence in the Bangladeshi community was 7.7 cases/10(5)/year, which was significantly higher than that in Europeans (0.3 cases/10(5)/year, chi 2 with Yate's correction = 14.0 P < 0.001). The highest age-specific incidence was amongst those aged 16-20 years and 41-45 years. Most patients had a laparotomy or peritoneal biopsy to confirm the diagnosis. The response to therapy was good. Only 62% of cases were notified. This study confirms the importance of tuberculosis in the differential diagnosis of abdominal symptoms in Bangladeshi patients.

Adolescent↗

Notification of tuberculosis: how many cases are never reported?

BACKGROUND: Notification of tuberculosis is essential for local contact tracing and for assessing the national incidence of tuberculosis. The accuracy of notification figures is uncertain. This study examined the notification rates of all patients diagnosed as having tuberculosis at two hospitals in the East End of London over five years. METHODS: In a retrospective survey of all patients aged 16 years or more presenting with tuberculosis to the London Chest Hospital or the Royal London Hospital from 1 January 1985 to 31 December 1989, cases of tuberculosis were identified from microbiology and histology records, statutory notifications, necropsy reports, coroners' records, hospital activity data, and death certificates. Clinical data were obtained from case notes and notification was determined from the local authority notification lists. RESULTS: Six hundred and nine adult patients with tuberculosis were identified. Notes were available for 580 cases (95%), of which 426 (73%) had been notified. The proportion of cases notified varied according to the specialty of the clinician in charge of the patient at diagnosis. Patients with a past history of tuberculosis and those who died within one year were less likely to have had their tuberculosis notified. Age, race, and lack of microbial or histological confirmation of diagnosis did not influence the proportion of cases notified. One hundred and eighty five patients had smear positive sputum, but 25 of these cases (14%) were not notified. Eighty five patients who had presented with pulmonary tuberculosis did not have their disease notified; 20 (24%) had smear positive sputum. CONCLUSIONS: Many cases of tuberculosis are not notified (27%). Fourteen per cent of all sputum smear positive cases of tuberculosis were not notified, and these patients are a considerable public health risk. The true incidence of tuberculosis in the area studied is at least one third higher than current notification figures suggest.

Adolescent↗