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Biomedical subjects

M S Scotta

Publications and source records attributed to M S Scotta.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1997

Bone mineralization and body composition in young patients with celiac disease.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to establish whether body composition in patients with celiac disease is normal and influenced by the age at diagnosis or by the duration of the gluten free diet. METHODS: A group of 66 children with celiac disease and 76 healthy controls were studied by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. We compared celiac patients with the control group, and within the celiac disease group, we compared patients with different age at diagnosis (28 diagnosed in the first 24 months vs 38 later) and with different duration of the diet (16 in gluten free diet for less than 12 months, 11 for less than 24 months, and 39 for more than 24 months). RESULTS: Overall we did not find any significant difference in body composition between overall celiac patients and controls. However the fat mass, the body mass index, and the spine bone mineral density values in late diagnosed celiac patients were significantly lower than in early diagnosed patients (significance values were p < 0.009; p < 0.002; p < 0.002, respectively). Patients on diet for less than 12 months showed significantly lower bone mineral content and density than those on diet for more than 24 months (significance values were, respectively, p < 0.011 and p < 0.022). Spine mineral density was the only parameter significantly influenced both by age at diagnosis (p < 0.03) and duration of gluten free diet (p < 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Only an early diagnosis of celiac disease in pediatric age and a strict gluten free diet, lasting more than 12 months, allow celiac patients to reach a normal mineralization.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed1993

[The Schönlein-Henoch syndrome with severe multisystemic involvement].

A case of Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP) characterized by several unusual complications and exceedingly prolonged course is reported. A 6-year-old boy, hospitalized with a typical clinical picture of HSP, developed after a few days a severe gastrointestinal vasculitis leading to digestive hemorrhages and food intolerance. The treatment included continuous gastrointestinal infusion, parenteral nutrition, and corticosteroids during the exacerbations of symptoms. Intestinal ultrasonography showed diffuse submucous edema and widespread mural hematomas; hydrops of the gallbladder and edematous swelling of the pancreas were also detected. A gastro-duodenoscopy revealed diffuse and severe mucosal vasculitis with ulcers and petechial lesions. One week after admission the occurrence of weight gain, hyponatremia, and hypoprotidemia in the absence of proteinuria suggested a protein-losing enteropathy. The elevation of serum and urine amylases was consistent with pancreatic involvement. The course was characterized by recurrent exacerbations of gastrointestinal manifestations; symptoms subsided slowly to such a degree that oral feeding could be gradually restarted only seven weeks after admission. The use of high-frequency intestinal ultrasonography proved useful and sensitive in monitoring the evolution of intestinal involvement. During hospitalization the child complained of acute painful scrotal swelling. Ultrasonography showed scrotal hemorrhage and testicular swelling but no signs of testicular torsion, thus helping to avoid surgical exploration. In the recovery phase the child complained of colicky abdominal pain with vomiting. A plain abdominal roentgenogram showed bilateral staghorn pelvic urolithiasis. This finding was confirmed by an intravenous pyelography which also revealed a bilateral pyeloureteritis with edema of the ureteral wall and partial stenosis of the lumen.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1992

Recurrent juvenile dermatomyositis and cutaneous necrotizing arteritis with molecular mimicry between streptococcal type 5 M protein and human skeletal myosin.

An adult patient had a syndrome associating the features of juvenile dermatomyositis and cutaneous polyarteritis nodosa that followed a cyclic course from childhood; recurrences were always associated with a rise of serum antistreptococcal antibodies. Regions of homology between streptococcal type 5 M protein and skeletal myosin were found. These findings suggest that streptococcal infection, possibly through a molecular mimicry mechanism, played a role in the pathogenesis of the disease in our patient.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1990

Exocrine pancreatic function in children and adolescents with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Exocrine pancreatic function was evaluated in 21 diabetic children on the basis of a p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) test and a determination of fasting serum amylase, pancreatic isoamylase, lipase, trypsin and elastase levels. Fecal chymotrypsin was also measured. Compared to the controls, the diabetic children had significantly lower levels of trypsin (P less than 0.001) and elastase (P less than 0.02). Fecal chymotrypsin appeared to be significantly lower (P less than 0.01) in diabetic children than in controls but in all patients fecal chymotrypsin values registered above the limit considered to be normal. No significant correlation was observed between pancreatic enzyme concentrations, serum and urinary PABA values, and chronologic age, HbA1 and insulin requirement. Only for serum PABA a significant negative correlation with duration of disease (P less than 0.01) has been observed. These data show that exocrine pancreatic function may be abnormal in children with IDDM.

4-Aminobenzoic Acid↗
PubMed1989

Nosocomial outbreak of infant rotavirus diarrhea due to the appearance of a new serotype 4 strain.

An outbreak of acute gastroenteritis, involving 30 infants and young children aged 2 months to 4 years, took place in a pediatric ward of the University Hospital of Pavia, Northern Italy, in the period from November 9 to December 1, 1986. Out of the 14 patients examined, ten were found to shed rotavirus with stools. All strains were characterized for serotype, using a monoclonal antibody-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and for electropherotype, by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of genomic RNA. It was shown that a single serotype 4 (subtype 4A) strain spread within the ward from a primary case to seven other patients. The remaining two patients were found to be infected by a serotype 1 strain that was circulating in the same area prior to the outbreak. The clinical symptoms were unusually severe, since significant dehydration was observed in four of the eight serotype 4 rotavirus-infected children. Previous epidemiological studies had shown that since 1983 serotype 4 strains had not been circulating in Pavia, and the electropherotype of the newly circulating serotype 4 strain was different from those observed in 1981-1983. Thus, the severity of the diarrheal disease appeared to be related to the circulation of both a new serotype and a new electropherotype.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1989

Chronic gastric torsion in infancy: a revisited diagnosis.

Twenty out of 108 infants with vomiting, who underwent an upper gastrointestinal X-ray study during a period of 2 years, showed a peculiar shape and position of the stomach already described as chronic gastric torsion. We examined clinical, radiologic and laboratory findings of these 20 infants. Our results showed that chronic gastric torsion is frequently associated with gastroesophageal reflux and has a wide spectrum of symptoms, complications and nutritional abnormalities.

Female↗
PubMed1989

Diagnostic value of a lymphocyte stimulation test in cow milk protein intolerance.

In order to evaluate the diagnostic value of a lymphocyte stimulation test with casein and beta lactoglobulin in cow milk intolerance (CMI), we studied 26 patients with a diagnosis of CMI and 25 age-matched controls with intestinal diseases other than CMI. Lymphocyte stimulation test to casein (P less than .001) and beta lactoglobulin (P less than .001) was significantly higher among CMI patients. Seventeen patients were RAST positive and nine negative for whole milk proteins. No differences were found in the lymphocyte stimulation test response between RAST-positive and RAST-negative subjects. These results suggest that lymphocyte stimulation test with highly purified antigens in optimal concentrations is specific and could be useful in the diagnosis of CMI.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

A new faecal chymotrypsin method for evaluating the exocrine pancreatic function in patients with different pancreatic diseases.

Using a new colorimetric method we measured the faecal chymotrypsin in 407 subjects, divided as follows: 252 adult subjects with a normal exocrine pancreatic function as shown by duodenal intubation, 24 adult patients with a mild to moderate pancreatic insufficiency, and 26 adult patients with severe pancreatic insufficiency. In addition, 40 healthy children, 50 children with chronic diarrhoea, and 15 with cystic fibrosis were studied before and after substituting enzyme therapy. Faecal chymotrypsin was found to be useful in evaluating the degree of exocrine functional insufficiency in subjects with diseases of the pancreas that had already been clinically ascertained. The same cannot be said for its ability to provide an early diagnosis of subjects with a slight-moderate insufficiency in exocrine pancreatic function.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Role of IgE in the pathogenesis of milk allergy in infancy: reassessment by a new ELISA technique.

An ELISA technique using labelled antigen for the determination of cow's milk specific IgE in serum is described. The use of labelled antigen, rather than labelled antibody as in the RAST, permits avoidance of interference by antibodies other than IgE, such as IgG, at times responsible for a negative RAST. The results obtained with the 2 techniques in 43 infants with a positive cow's milk challenge showed a positive RAST in 28%, a positive ELISA in 35% and a positive RAST or ELISA in 42%. These findings suggest that the use of both ELISA and RAST permits in vitro diagnosis of cow's milk allergy in more patients than either test alone.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Fecal chymotrypsin: a new diagnostic test for exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in children with cystic fibrosis.

The purpose of this report is to evaluate whether a new, simple, non-invasive method for chymotrypsin measurement in stools is useful for the diagnosis of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in cystic fibrosis (CF). A hundred children aged from 2 months to 12 years were tested: 50 children had been admitted for chronic diarrhoea, 15 for cystic fibrosis and 40 acted as controls. Chymotrypsin in stools was assayed using a kinetic measurement with Succ-Ala-Ala-Pro-Phe-pNa as substrate in a simple photometric assay. In 13 of 15 children with cystic fibrosis, stool enzyme levels were always remarkably low, while all control subjects and all children not presenting cystic fibrosis had normal stool levels of chymotrypsin. Our data suggest that stool chymotrypsin measurement is a simple and reliable "tubeless" test for the evaluation of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency in children with cystic fibrosis.

Child↗