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Biomedical subjects

J Lähdevirta

Publications and source records attributed to J Lähdevirta.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

CSF protein and cellular profiles in various stages of HIV infection related to neurological manifestations.

CSF protein and cellular profiles were studied in 28 HIV-infected patients. Twenty of them had neurological complaints, but only 6 patients had objective neurological deficits such as dementia, ocular motility disorders or polyneuropathy. The serum/CSF HIV antibody ratio was on average lowest in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) (4 patients) and highest or almost normal in lymphadenopathy syndrome (LAS) (11) and asymptomatic seropositivity (ASX) (7), while it varied between these extremes in AIDS-related complex (ARC) (6). However, low values of the ratio were also found in the HIV-infected patients free of neurological symptoms and even in one ASX patient. The CSF IgG index was elevated in all these 4 general stages of HIV infection without any significant differences between them. The CSF/serum albumin ratio was slightly increased in patients with neurological deficits, but this ratio showed no association with any other clinical factor analysed. CSF leucocytes were increased in the early stages of the disease, but later the cellular reaction subsided. HIV was isolated from post mortem brain tissue of two AIDS patients and from the CSF of one of them. The results suggest increased intrathecal virus-specific IgG synthesis, not only in patients with neurological deficits and at advanced stages of infection, but also in neurologically symptom-free subjects and at early infection. The lack of correlation between the increased virus-specific IgG synthesis within the CNS and the presence of neurological symptoms suggests that neurologically "silent" areas of brain white matter are often affected in HIV infection.

AIDS-Related Complex↗
PubMed1985

Diversity of clinical spectrum of HTLV-III infection.

In a prospective follow-up volunteer study lasting 4 to 16 months, 17 of 200 homosexual men living in Finland had antibodies to human T-lymphotrophic virus type III (HTLV-III). 1 man who initially had a low titre of HTLV-III antibodies became seronegative within 6 months without any symptoms developing, and a seronegative man became seropositive. 14 men had high titres of HTLV-III antibodies when they first joined the study and during the study titres rose in all other HTLV-III-positive men except those with AIDS. Initially 9 men were symptom-free, 3 had lymphadenopathy syndrome (LAS), 3 had AIDS-related complex (ARC), and 2 had AIDS. During follow-up LAS developed in 3 symptom-free HTLV-III positive men but none of those with LAS or ARC progressed to AIDS. Most HTLV-III-positive men, including those who were otherwise symptom-free, had mucocutaneous lesions generally associated with immune deficiency. Regardless of the symptoms, those with increasing HTLV-III antibody titres showed lowered T helper/T suppressor ratios, decreased numbers of T helper cells, and/or diminished responses to tuberculin antigen (PPD). These results suggest that the clinical spectrum of HTLV-III infection ranges from transient infection through chronic provirus state, asymptomatic virus producer state, LAS or ARC, and rarely full-blown AIDS. Cofactors probably determine the final outcome of infection in the individual.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1984

Clinical and serological diagnosis of Nephropathia epidemica, the mild type of haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.

The serological diagnosis of Nephropathia epidemica (NE), the mild European type of haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), was studied by means of an indirect immunofluorescent antibody technique (IFAT) in a large outbreak in Finland (morbidity 1.4/1000 population). Acetone-fixed sections of lung of bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus) naturally infected with Puumala virus served as antigen. Altogether 65 patients were followed serologically for up to 20 months. Serological results obtained by NE-IFAT were compared with the clinical diagnosis of NE. Of the 41 clinically accepted NE cases 40 were serologically positive. Use of the NE-IFAT serological test allowed the diagnosis to be made in seven patients for whom the clinical data were not sufficient for diagnosing NE. The antibody response in NE often appears to be slower than that against Hantaan virus. Practical recommendations are given for the clinical and serological diagnosis of the milder forms of HFRS.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome. The first cases in Finland.

We report here on the first two patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in Finland. The first patient, a 37-year-old man, had Kaposi's sarcoma and the other, a 26-year-old man, had pneumonia due to Pneumocystis carinii. Both patients were homosexuals and showed a marked defect in cell-mediated immunity consistent with the definition of AIDS. Both patients were found in a screening survey of homosexual men in Helsinki.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1982

Polyarteritis confined to lower extremities.

A 32-year-old woman is described with polyarteritic changes concentrated to the calves. The disease has manifested itself in several acute episodes with swelling and pain in the calves, following symptomless phases. The response of to corticosteroid therapy has been good. Biopsy of the gastrocnemius muscle revealed peculiar multiple layers of intense NADH-tetrazolium reductase activity resembling annual rings in muscle fibers, a finding which has not been described earlier.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Circulating immune complexes, immunoconglutinins, and rheumatoid factors in nephropathia epidemica.

Circulating immune complexes (CICs), immunoconglutinins, and antiglobulins were studied in nephropathia epidemica, an acute infectious hemorrhagic fever occurring in Finland and Scandinavia. Sixty-one serum specimens from 18 serologically confirmed patients were collected between day -5 and day 230 from the onset of fever. Five CIC tests, three immunoconglutinin tests, and various other tests were used to characterize the disease immunologically. CICs were found in all patients. The percentage detection of positive cases varied in the tests from 100% to 22%. A marked stimulation of levels of the IgM class of immunoglobulins were observed. Antiglobulin tests were positive for all of the patients. No correlation between the test results and the clinical severity of the disease could be found. Of special interest was the delay in the rise of CIC levels compared with the chromologic pattern of the clinical course. In some patients a prolonged appearance of CICs for eight months was observed.

Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic↗
PubMed1980

Nephropathia epidemica: detection of antigen in bank voles and serologic diagnosis of human infection.

An indirect immunofluorescence test for detection of serum antibodies specific for nephropathia epidemica (NE) has been developed with use of acetone-fixed cryostat sections of the lungs of bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus) that had been trapped from the NE-endemic area in Finland as antigen. NE antigen was detected as distinct fluorescence in the cytoplasm of alveolar and macrophage-like cells. The 16 patients studied included typical cases from an endemic area, cases from a family outbreak, and cases in a laboratory staff which had had close contact with infected bank voles. Antibodies reacting with antigen in the lung sections developed in all of the patients but they were not found in the preimmune sera of the patients, in the sera of patients with other renal diseases, or in the sera of healthy individuals, with the exception of a member of the laboratory staff who had lived in the endemic area for 20 years. No specific IgM antibodies to NE could be detected. The rise in titer of antibodies to NE was characteristically prolonged, and elevated antibody levels persisted for many years.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

Aetiological relation between Korean haemorrhagic fever and nephropathia epidemica.

A close aetiological relation between Korean haemorrhagic fever and nephropathia epidemica of Scandinavia has often been suggested because of similarities in their clinical picture and epidemiology. This relation has now been confirmed serologically; raised titres of antibody to Korean haemorrhagic fever agent and seroconversions have been found by the indirect fluorescent-antibody technique in 20 patients with nephropathia epidemica.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1979

Electron microscopy of nephropathia epidemica cell nuclei in kidney biopsies.

Ultrastructural changes in cell nuclei were studied in kidney biopsies from 18 patients suffering from Nephropathia epidemica. Three patients showed small nuclear particles in a large aggregate in a few cells of the distal tubule. The particles had a diameter of about 30 nm and their occurrence was not associated with intravenous glucose infusions. Large light nuclear bodies were numerous in the nuclei of both interstitial and tubular cells. Many showed strands of darker material about 35 nm in diameter at their center. Nuclear vesicles with varying amounts of membrane debris were seen in both tubular and interstitial cells. Occasional interstitial lymphocytes showed abnormal margination of chromatin. Of the changes observed the small nuclear particles are not found in kidney biopsies in other conditions and it is possible that they are aggregates of viral protein.

Cell Nucleus↗