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J M de Diego

Publications and source records attributed to J M de Diego.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

[Pyomyositis in Zamora].

BACKGROUND: Pyomyositis is a purulent infection involving the skeletal muscle. Although it was initially described in tropical countries, is it ever more frequently found in warm climates. METHODS: A review of the clinical histories of the admission of patients in the Internal and Infectious Medicine Units over the period from May 1992 to April 1994 (1818 admissions) was carried out analyzing those in whom the diagnosis was of pyomyositis. This diagnosis was performed by clinical data and radiologic and microbiologic confirmation. RESULTS: Five patients diagnosed with pyomyositis were found. Of the five cases, four were men with ages ranging from 27 to 64 years. In most of the cases more than one muscle group was involved and only two cases showed predisposing factors (history of injury and DM). The existence of abscesses was shown by echography in 3 cases and by CAT in 2 cases. Staphylococcus aureus was the most frequently isolated microorganism. The five patients underwent medical treatment and surgical treatment was also performed in 2 achieving satisfactory evolution. CONCLUSIONS: Imaging techniques (echography and CAT) effectively contribute to the diagnosis of pyomyositis. Medical treatment, associated with surgery in some cases, achieved satisfactory evolution. The incidence of pyomyositis is probably greater than what has been recognized to date.

Adult↗

Evaluation of the clinical usefulness of APACHE II and SAPS systems in the initial prognostic classification of acute pancreatitis: a multicenter study.

The clinical usefulness of the APACHE II and SAPS systems in the early prognostic classification of patients with acute pancreatitis has been evaluated in a prospective multicenter study. We aimed to identify early those patients with acute pancreatitis who should be monitored closely to expedite the detection and treatment of complications. One hundred eighty-two patients with acute pancreatitis were included; 28 were classified as severe, having developed at least one major complication of the disease. The scores obtained through the APACHE II and SAPS systems in these severe cases were significantly higher than the scores in the mild cases of acute pancreatitis (p < 0.001). The sensitivity of these systems in the prognostic classification of acute pancreatitis was 70.4% for APACHE II and 66.7% for SAPS, and the specificity was 79.1% for both. When applying APACHE II and SAPS systems in the early phase of acute pancreatitis, the possibility of misdiagnosing the severity exists, thus limiting the application of these systems in the initial assessment of prognostic classification. In conclusion, APACHE II and SAPS systems are of limited clinical utility in the early prognostic evaluation of acute pancreatitis because of their low positive predictive value.

Acute Disease↗

Clinical usefulness of polymorphonuclear elastase in predicting the severity of acute pancreatitis: results of a multicentre study.

The usefulness and clinical applicability of quantitative plasma polymorphonuclear elastase determinations in the diagnosis of the severity of acute pancreatitis was analysed in a multicentre study and was compared with the usual prognostic systems of Ranson and Osborne et al. The study comprised 182 patients, 154 with a mild episode of acute pancreatitis and 28 with a severe episode, defined by the development of major complications or a fatal outcome. In the severe cases neutrophilic elastase reached significantly higher values than in mild cases (P less than 0.001) by the time the patient was admitted (2-12 h after the onset of the disease), reflecting considerable leucocyte activation. The sensitivity and specificity of this test are therefore greater than 90 per cent, with a positive severity predictive value of almost 80 per cent at the time of admission and 97 per cent after 24 h, and a negative predictive value of approximately 98 per cent. In addition to requiring 48 h for evaluation, the usual prognostic systems show a sensitivity of 77-85 per cent, a specificity of 70-77 per cent, a positive predictive value of 40-48 per cent, and a negative predictive value of 92-95 per cent, clearly lower than those obtained with leucocyte elastase. Polymorphonuclear elastase is therefore a very early and reliable marker in the diagnosis of the severity of acute pancreatitis, in addition to being easily adaptable to the routine of any hospital laboratory.

Acute Disease↗