PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

L Espinoza

Publications and source records attributed to L Espinoza.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1990

Serpiginous choroidopathy associated with elevated factor VIII-von Willebrand factor antigen.

Elevated Factor VIII-von Willebrand factor antigen levels are associated with vascular endothelial injury in several disorders, including scleroderma, Raynaud's phenomenon, polymyalgia rheumatica, and temporal arteritis. Eight patients with serpiginous choroidopathy were evaluated with the use of quantitative immunoelectrophoresis for Factor VIII-von Willebrand factor antigen. The serpiginous choroidopathy patients had a mean Factor VIII-von Willebrand factor activity of 226 +/- 47.3%, whereas a disease-free, age- and sex-matched control group had a mean activity of 107 +/- 28%. These findings are statistically significant (P greater than 0.005) and suggest that in some patients, serpiginous choroidopathy represents an occlusive vascular phenomenon that involves the choroidal circulation.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Hypocomplementemic vasculitis and renal involvement.

Hypocomplementic urticarial vasculitis is a disorder that not only affects the skin, but other organs as well. We are describing a patient with this rare disorder and serious renal involvement that was treated with immunosuppressive therapy with good response and stabilization of the renal function. We emphasize the fact that renal involvement can occur with this disease and that the renal involvement is of the immune-mediate type and cannot be considered as benign as thought in the past.

Complement C3↗
PubMed1975

Inherited C2 deficiency and systemic lupus erythematosus: studies on a family.

A patient is described in which an inherited defect in the synthesis of C2 complement component coexisted with the disease systemic lupus erythematosus. The family studies show evidence of the autosomal recessive nature of the inheritance of the C2 synthesis defect. Of particular interest was the finding of a great-aunt who also had homozygous C2 deficiency. This great-aunt suffered from discoid lupus erythematosus as well. The occurrence of various autoantibodies in the serum from the family members, the typing for blood groups, HL-A antigens, and some serum protein markers are reported and discussed. The C2 deficiency may be a critical defect in the host defenses to infection that predisposed to the development of autoimmune disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1975

Serum complement and immunoglobulin levels in sporadic and familial ankylosing spondylitis.

Serum levels of C4, C3, IgG, IgM and IgA were measured by immunodiffusion in age matched groups of 48 sporadically encountered patients with ankylosing spondylitis, 56 with rheumatoid arthritis and 52 normal controls. Mean levels of C4 and IgA were significantly elevated in the sera of patients with sporadic ankylosing spondylitis, in comparison to normal controls. Mean IgA levels were also significantly elevated in 11 HL-A 27 positive patients with familial spondylitis but no such elevation was found in the sera of their healthy first-degree relatives with and without HL-A 27. The results of these studies suggest that humoral immune mechanisms may be involved in the pathophysiology of ankylosing spondylitis.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Central nervous system tuberculosis in HIV-infected patients: clinical and radiographic findings.

PURPOSE: To characterize the radiographic findings on neuroimaging of 25 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive patients with proved central nervous system tuberculosis and to correlate those findings with clinical data. METHODS: Twenty-five HIV-seropositive patients with central nervous system tuberculosis were identified, and their imaging studies (CT and, in some cases, MR) and medical records were reviewed. The diagnosis of central nervous system tuberculosis was based on cerebrospinal fluid culture (n = 20), biopsy (n = 4), and/or autopsy (n = 5), with a clinical diagnosis of central nervous system tuberculosis in one additional patient. Results also were correlated with CD4 counts and chest x-ray findings. RESULTS: Nine (36%) of 25 patients demonstrated meningeal enhancement. Eleven (44%) of 25 demonstrated enhancing parenchymal lesions; 6 patients had tuberculomata, and 5 had tuberculous abscesses. Communicating hydrocephalus was present in 8 (32%) of 25, and infarction was seen in 9 (36%) of 25. Fifteen of 23 chest x-rays were suggestive of pulmonary tuberculosis. Mean CD4 count was 162. Nine (38%) of 24 patients had a history of pulmonary tuberculosis, and 5 (21%) of 24 had no history of tuberculosis or any other opportunistic infection. Overall mortality was 79%. CONCLUSION: Central nervous system tuberculosis has a very high mortality among HIV-infected patients. Because cerebrospinal fluid cultures can take 6 to 8 weeks, the neuroradiologist can play a critical role in patient treatment by suggesting the correct diagnosis based on characteristic imaging findings. Radiographic clues include multiloculated abscess, cisternal enhancement, basal ganglia infarction, and communicating hydrocephalus, which are not findings associated with the more commonly encountered central nervous system lymphoma or toxoplasma encephalitis. Central nervous system tuberculosis may be the initial presentation of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. In patients with suspected central nervous system tuberculosis, chest x-ray may provide additional support for the diagnosis of tuberculosis.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗