A case report of suspect ginseng allergy.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Viroj Wiwanitkit.
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Toxocara species are most common roundworms of Canidae and Felidae. Human toxocariasis develops by ingesting of embryonated eggs in contaminated soil. There is no previous report of Toxocara contamination in the soil samples from the public areas in Bangkok. For this reason our study have been carried out to examine the frequency of Toxocara eggs in public yards in Bangkok, Thailand. A total of 175 sand and clay samples were collected and examined for parasite eggs. According to this study, Toxocara eggs were detected from 10 (5.71%) of 175 soil samples. The high rate of contamination in this study implies the importance of the control of this possible zoonotic disease: control of abandon of dogs and cats, is still necessary.
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CONTEXT: Hymenolepis diminuta infection is a very rare cestode infection. Until present, fewer than 500 cases have been observed worldwide. OBJECTIVE: The author performed a literature review on the reports of H diminuta in Thailand in order to summarize the characteristics of this infection among Thai patients. DESIGN: This study was designed as a descriptive retrospective study. A literature review of the papers concerning H diminuta infections in Thailand was performed. RESULTS: According to this study, there have been at least 6 reports in the literature of 10 individual cases of H diminuta infection, of which 1 case was lethal. Of 4 cases that documented patients' age, the ages ranged from 20 months to 55 years. Of 5 cases that documented patients' sex, 3 were males and 2 were females. Most (9/10) were asymptomatic; however, there was 1 inpatient case, concomitant with metastatic cholangiocarcinoma. Antiparasitic drugs were prescribed in 3 cases: niclosamide in 2 cases and praziquantel in 1 case. The 2 patients receiving niclosamide passed the parasites after treatment. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the H diminuta infection is a rare cestode infection that is sporadically reported in Thailand. The diagnosis of H diminuta infection is usually by accident during a field survey. The prognosis outcome is usually good, and the treatment does not appear to affect outcome, as there is good survival without treatment.
Liver abscess and hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection are two significant tropical gastrointestinal disorders. The concurrence between these two disorders yields poor prognosis, which then often leads to the need for intensive care. The aim of this study was to investigate the causal pathogens of liver abscess in HBV carriers. This retrospective case review was conducted on 35 Thai hospitalized HBV carriers who had diagnosis of liver abscess. A high rate of amoebic liver abscess in this series (37.1%) was demonstrated; Gram-negative aerobes were the major abscess pathogens. The causative pathogens of HBV carriers were similar to those in the overall patient population with abscess. The treatment plan for liver abscess in the general population can also be applied to HBV carriers.
CONTEXT: Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) is a very rare but deadly infection of the central nervous system. Since the disease was first identified in 1965, fewer than 200 cases have been observed worldwide. OBJECTIVE: The author performed a literature review of the reports of PAM in Thailand in order to study the clinical summary of PAM among Thai patients. DESIGN: This study was designed as a descriptive retrospective study. A literature review of the papers concerning PAM in Thailand was performed. RESULTS: According to this study, there have been at least 12 reports of PAM in Thailand, of which 2 cases were nonlethal. The mean age was 15.2 +/- 16.1 years with a male:female ratio of about 2:1. History of risk behaviors such as suffocation of surface water during swimming was demonstrated in 6 cases. Also, 2 interesting cases involved possible water contact according to the Thai tradition and culture. Concerning the patients' clinical features, fever, headache, impaired consciousness, and stiff neck were seen in all cases. However, some unusual presentations such as intermittent abdominal pain and convulsion were also seen in this series. Similar to worldwide findings, most cases occurred during the summer months. Most of the cases involved young males from rural provinces in various regions of Thailand. Concerning the laboratory investigation, the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) profile presented the polymorphonuclear (PMN) pleomorphic with hypoglycorhachia pattern. Trophozoite could be identified in all but 2 cases in this series. CONCLUSION: PAM is sporadically reported in Thailand but remains a public health issue. The clinical diagnosis of PAM is usually difficult as many clinicians are unfamiliar with the disease. The prognosis outcome is usually grave although broad medications are prescribed.
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Iron deficiency anaemia and the thalassemia syndromes, a group of disorders resulting from inherited abnormality of globin chain production, are common causes of anaemia in Thailand, and in the Far East in general. Monitoring erythropoiesis in these patient is very important in evaluating the disease and the response to treatment. Recently, our group has just reported the feasibility in using serum erythropoietin (EPO) for monitoring purposes in thalassemia and demonstrated that the determination of serum EPO can be an alternative choice in the follow up of these conditions. This study reports a cost effectiveness analysis comparing the recently reported radioimmunoassay (RIA) for serum EPO determination and the previously used tool, the reticulocyte count. The study reports a higher detection rate for ineffective erythropoiesis when using serum EPO determination, however, the increased sensitivity is at balanced by a higher unit cost. In this analysis, the cost effectiveness for serum EPO and reticulocyte are 208.33 and 50 baht/detection, respectively. () Therefore, the reticulocyte count is more cost effective and is recommended for routine usage in our current medico-economic setting.
Benzene is a colorless poisonous liquid with a sweet odor. At present, it is documented as a known inducer of leukemia. Potential metabolic mechanisms underlying the hemopoietic toxicity of benzene include bioactivation of phenolic metabolites of benzene by myeloperoxidases in bone marrow, which results in hydroquinolone, a major leukemogen. There is no previous correlative study between the level of phenol, urine benzene metabolite, and the myeloperoxidase index (MPXI). Here, the correlation between the urine phenol and MPXI were studied in 24 Thai subjects occupationally exposed to benzene. Of interest, the regression analysis show no significant correlation between urine phenol level and MPXI (r = -0.05, P = 0.81).
In laboratory medicine, the two main general aims are good service and good quality. Presently, external reviews and the accreditation of medical laboratories involve more than the mere assessment of conformance with standards for organizational processes. ISO series have been widely applied for clinical laboratory for recent years. ISO 15189 is the new quality system in the laboratory. It can be applied to coagulation study. Based on this system, the harmonization and standardization of coagulation laboratories are expected.
BACKGROUND: Skin disease is one health problem among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive patients. Several dermatological findings in HIV-infected patients have been investigated. In this study, the skin lesions of 120 HIV-infected patients with different CD4 count statuses in Bangkok, Thailand, are studied. METHODS: This study was performed as a cross-sectional descriptive study. All subjects had a complete physical examination to detect their dermatological disorders and carried out the necessary diagnostic procedures by consultation with the dermatologist. RESULTS: Eighty percent of all patients were observed to have one or more skin disorders. Xerosis (73.33%) and oral candidiasis (54.17%) were the most common skin disorders, followed by seborrheic dermatitis (46.67%), pruritic papular eruption (36.67%), oral hairy leucoplakia (12.50%), folliculitis (11.67%), herpes zoster (9.17%), and alopecia (6.67%). CONCLUSION: Although the pattern of cutaneous lesions was comparable with previous reports, the strikingly lower prevalence of skin tumor and drug eruption was reviewed. Patients with advanced HIV infection were found to have significantly more skin disorders than those with early stage HIV.
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Dengue infection is a major public health problem, affecting children in the Southeast Asia region. In Thailand, the dengue hemorrhagic fever is still a major infectious disease among the children with up to two to three epidemics per year. Hemoconcentration accompanied by platelet depletion are the predominant laboratory signs of dengue hemorrhagic fever. Findings from 23 hospitalized patients with dengue hemorrhafic fever in a small outbreak in a provincial hospital in Thailand are reported. The question if hematocrit and platelet determination on admission can predict shock in hospitalized children with dengue hemorrhagic fever was studied. The data from the discharge summary of these patients were studied, focusing on the admission hematology laboratory data. Regression analysis was used to test the correlation between the admission hematology laboratory data (hematocrit, white blood cell count, and platelet) and the focused outcome (shock or no shock). Of these 23 patients, shock did not develop in 19, and shock developed in four. There was no significant difference in admission hematology laboratory data between both groups (p < 0.05). The regression analysis revealed no significant correlation between the studied hematology laboratory data and the focused outcome (p > 0.05). It means that the three studied investigations on admission cannot predict shock in our hospitalized dengue hemorrhagic cases. From this study, it can imply that closed monitoring of dengue hemorrhagic patients is necessary. The general practitioner cannot rely on the admission hematology laboratory data to predict shock in these patients. Additionally, it might confirm that, although dengue infection can be fatal, with proper supportive treatment, especially hospitalization and hydration for severe cases, the outcome is very good.
Cholangiocarcinoma can be detected worldwide, but is most common in tropical areas where crowded living conditions and poor sanitation exist. This infection can demonstrate a wide spectrum of clinical presentations from no complaints to arrest. Similar to the other liver diseases, the activated partial thromboplastin time abnormality can be seen in the patients with cholangiocarcinoma. The activated partial thromboplastin times among 33 Thai hospitalized patients with cholangiocarcinoma are studied. The correlation between the activated partial thromboplastin time and the other characteristics of the patients is studied. Most characteristics of the patients show no significant correlation with activated partial thromboplastin time (p > 0.05). The only two parameters that showed significant correlation are alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (p < 0.05). Because the activated partial thromboplastin times shows significant relation to AST and ALT but not to serum bilirubin and alkaline phosphatase, this might mention that the prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time seems to relate with the process of hepatic parenchyma damage than the biliary tract obstruction. Hence, as a hypothesis, the prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time might be a useful indication for excessive parenchymal involvement in cholangiocarcinoma. However, because the total number of cases in this study is rather small, a larger study to answer this question is necessary. In addition, the more systematic evaluations are required to answer the raised hypothesis.
Benzene exposure is of particular concern because of ongoing exposure to thousands of workers. Prolonged exposure can cause chronic toxicity, especially hematologic disorders. The effects of benzene on red blood cells and white blood cells have been clearly proposed; however, the effect of benzene on platelets has not been studied. The correlation between the level of trans, trans muconic acid (ttMA), a urine metabolite of benzene, and the platelet count of subjects occupationally exposed to benzene was studied. Thirty volunteers who were occupationally exposed to benzene were investigated for both urine ttMA levels and platelet parameters. According to the regression analysis, no significant correlation existed between urine ttMA level and any platelet parameters (p > 0.05). However, although there is no statistical significance, the platelet count and PCT decreased while the urine ttMA increased. In addition, using the upper normal limit ttMA level as the cutoff level, the statistically significant lower platelet count and PCT was observed in the subjects with urine ttMA higher than upper normal limit. This report is the first world report on this topic and the results from this study can provide good basic data for further understanding the effect of benzene exposure on the platelet.
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The quantitation of platelets in peripheral blood is a well-recognized tool. Recently, new indices related to erythrocytes and platelet counts have been provided by hematologic analyzers. Concerning the platelet parameter, the three important parameters are plateletcrit (PCT), mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW). The purpose of the study is to investigate these three parameters to define their expected values and the correlation with the parallel red blood cell parameters, hematocrit (HCT), mean corpuscular volumer (MCV), and red blood cell distribution width (RDW). Blood samples form 215 volunteers were analyzed for platelet parameters using Technicon H*3. The average (mean +/- SD) values obtained with expected ranges were PCT 0.24 +/- 0.05% (range, 0.23-0.24%), MPV 12.79 +/- 5.91 fL (range, 12.39-13.19 fL), and PDW 46.79 +/- 2.70% (range, 46.61-46.97%). Concerning the correlation between PCT, MPV, and RDW and their parallel red blood cell parameters, there was no significant correlation between PCT and HCT, and between MPV and MCV. However, there was a significant correlation between PDW and RDW. It seems that the anisocytosis of red blood cells and platelets might co-occur. However, these data are basic observations; further in-depth evaluation of the platelet parameters is recommended.
Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) displays potent vasoconstrictive effects, attenuation of fibrinolysis, and platelet activation and aggregation, thus possibly promoting thromboembolism (VTE). ACE gene plays important role in regulation of ACE. Because the renin/angiotensin system affects hemostasis through different mechanisms, data on the possible role of angiotensin-converting enzyme I/D polymorphism in the pathogenesis of thrombosis are interesting. Here, the reported pattern of I/D polymorphism of ACE gene from 9 Western and Asian countries was analyzed. The frequencies were analyzed using the method similar to the phylogenetic study. According to this study, the population from the same region of the world presents more similar ACE gene polymorphism pattern than that from the other regions. In addition, the significant correlation between the population ethnicity and the gene frequencies was detected in this study (chi square test, p < 0.05). The difference in pattern of I/D polymorphism of ACE gene may be important in relation to the risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in Western and Asian subjects and may be relevant in explaining differences in thromboembolism diseases in different populations.