Sj?gren's syndrome: a stepwise approach to the use of diagnostic tests.

One hundred and forty two patients (62 with definite Sjögren''s syndrome, 24 with probable Sjögren''s syndrome, and 56 in whom Sjögren''s syndrome was finally ruled out) were studied. Schirmer''s test and rose bengal staining for the diagnosis of keratoconjunctivitis sicca and salivary scintigraphy and a labial biopsy sample for the diagnosis of xerostomaia were studied in all patients. Rose bengal staining showed high specificity (98%) but low sensitivity (55%). All patients with positive rose bengal staining results had associated xerostomia. In the rose bengal staining positive patients, scintigraphy had 100% specificity. A labial biopsy sample showed high sensitivity in the rose bengal staining, salivary scintigraphy positive group, and high specificity in the rose bengal staining positive, salivary scintigraphy negative group. In patients with negative rose bengal staining, salivary scintigraphy showed 96% specificity and 36% sensitivity. A labial biopsy sample had a sensitivity and specificity greater than 90% in rose bengal staining negative patients. Only 29 biopsy samples were needed to achieve a diagnosis of Sjögren''s syndrome in 142 patients (20%). Hence the suggested approach may make it unnecessary to take biopsy samples in approximately 80% of patients with suspected Sjögren''s syndrome. Using the stepwise approach of first rose bengal staining, then salivary scintigraphy, and eventually a labial biopsy sample in patients with suspected Sjögren''s syndrome, the diagnosis is relatively simple.     

胆囊周围脓肿的超声表现

目的探讨超声影像技术在胆囊周围脓肿（简称囊周脓肿）诊断中的价值。方法使用彩色多普勒超声诊断仪,对经临床证实的囊周脓肿的63例行各种切面扫查。详细观察胆囊炎性改变情况,囊周脓肿的大小、形态、范围及回声情况,脓肿与毗邻组织脏器间的关系等,将异常所见摄片记录。结果 63例中接受手术治疗45例,术中发现与囊周组织均有不同程度的粘连。囊周脓肿术前超声诊断与手术所见基本符合率100%（34/34）,脓肿对囊周组织器官的炎性粘连、包裹,超声判定与术后诊断基本符合率为82.35%（28/34）。结论超声对囊周脓肿具有较高诊断价值。     

Bacterial Pancarditis with Myocardial Abscess: Successful Surgical Intervention in a 14-Month-Old Boy

A 14-month-old boy with a structurally normal heart presented with signs of cardiac tamponade caused by purulent pericarditis. During his hospital stay, mitral and tricuspid valve endocarditis developed, and a ventricular septal abscess expanded despite appropriate, prolonged antibiotic therapy for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The day before scheduled surgical correction, the abscess ruptured, creating a septal aneurysm. Surgical intervention resulted in an excellent outcome. Throughout the patient''s 67-day hospitalization, the use of echocardiography was crucial in monitoring and diagnosis.In addition to reporting this case, we discuss our diagnostic and treatment considerations. To our knowledge, this is only the 4th report of S. aureus bacterial pancarditis with myocardial abscess.     

Aortic Valve Endocarditis Complicated by ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction

Infective endocarditis complicated by abscess formation and coronary artery compression is a rare clinical event with a high mortality rate, and diagnosis requires a heightened degree of suspicion. We present the clinical, angiographic, and echocardiographic features of a 73-year-old woman who presented with dyspnea and was found to have right coronary artery compression that was secondary to abscess formation resulting from diffuse infectious endocarditis. We discuss the patient''s case and briefly review the relevant medical literature. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of abscess formation involving a native aortic valve and the right coronary artery.     

Pituitary abscess: Report of four cases and review of literature

Pituitary abscess is a rare disorder and its presenting manfestations are non-specific therefore, the diagnosis is usually made either postoperatively or at postmortem. We describe four such cases seen over a period of 10 years. All the patients presented with fever, systemic signs of toxaemia and endocrine dysfunctions. Two of them had pre-existing pituitary pathology. A preoperative diagnosis of pituitary abscess was considered in all in view of characteristic MR findings. Three patients underwent transsphenoidal drainage of abscess, whereas the remaining one succumbed to sepsis and was diagnosed at necropsy. Offending organisms including Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter and Staphylococcus were isolated in three cases respectively. During follow-up for 4 years, 2 patients are doing well, one had a recurrent abscess after 1 year and required redo-surgery.     

Vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 and alpha 4 and beta 1 integrins in lymphocyte aggregates in Sj?gren's syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis.

OBJECTIVES--Interactions between vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) and its ligand, the alpha 4/beta 1 integrin, have been shown to be important in a number of cellular events in vitro. To assess the importance of such interactions in the development of lymphocytic infiltration in diseased tissue the distribution of the two ligands has been studied immunohistochemically. METHODS--Cryostat sections of labial tissue from patients with Sjögren's syndrome, normal labial tissues, rheumatoid synovia, and normal tonsils were stained using antibodies to VCAM-1, alpha 4 and beta 1 integrin chains, and markers for T cells, B cells, macrophages, and follicular dendritic reticulum cells (FDRCs), visualised using alkaline phosphatase and fast red. RESULTS--Staining patterns for VCAM-1 and integrin chains in lymphocyte aggregates in synovial and labial tissues were similar. VCAM-1 staining was found on both vascular and ramifying dendritic cells at the centre of large T cell aggregates and in all aggregates where there was a central clustering of B cells. VCAM-1 colocalised with, but also extended beyond, staining for the FDRC marker R4/23. Staining for the alpha 4 and beta 1 integrin chains was more widespread than staining for VCAM-1, with no significant increase in staining at sites of maximum VCAM-1 staining. In tonsils VCAM-1 and R4/23 codistributed in germinal centres, but staining for the alpha 4 and beta 1 integrin chains was chiefly seen in T lymphocyte areas. CONCLUSIONS--VCAM-1 may be more important in determining the distribution of B than T lymphocytes in lymphocytic infiltration of non-lymphoid tissue. Unlike the follicles of lymphoid tissue, ectopic follicle-like structures in non-lymphoid tissues may form by immigration of B cells via VCAM-1+ vessels at the centre of T cell aggregates.     

Airway compromise during central venous cannulation in an undiagnosed tubercular retropharyngeal abscess: A case report

Central venous cannulation is often associated with complications during insertion even by expert''s hand and with the aid of ultrasound. We encountered a patient for central line insertion through the right internal jugular vein having a retropharyngeal abscess of tubercular origin. We accidentally punctured the abscess cavity leading to increased respiratory distress and subsequent need of intubation to the patient. This kind of complication during central line insertion has never been reported before. We intend to report such a case to alert everyone about the grave complications it can lead to and the methods to minimize them in the times ahead.     

Digestive complications of gallstones lost during laparoscopic cholecystectomy

IntroductionSerious complications can ensue if a gallstone is dropped into the peritoneal cavity during laparoscopic cholecystectomy and not retrieved.Case outlineA 75-year-old-man was admitted with intestinal obstruction 8 years after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Ultrasound scan and a contrast x-ray of the small bowel showed a gallstone within the small bowel lumen that CT scan had failed to identify. Laparotomy showed a Meckel''s diverticulum plus a 4×6-cm gallstone in the terminal ileum. The gallstone had penetrated into the Meckel''s diverticulum before migrating into the ileum and obstructing it.DiscussionGallstones lost during laparoscopic cholecystectomy can cause an intraperitoneal abscess. In addition, they can migrate through the anterior or posterior abdominal wall or the diaphragm and into the urinary tract or bronchus. The resulting abscess can obstruct the digestive tract or drain into the digestive tract to cause a communicating abscess. It can also drain through the abdominal wall and the digestive tract to cause an enterocutaneous fistula. Lastly, the stone can migrate into the intestine and cause gallstone ileus. Following laparoscopic cholecystectomy, patients with a lost gallstone may suffer from abdominal pain and fever within days or months. Thus, all dropped gallstones should be removed during laparoscopy.     

Platelet satellitism and phagocytosis by neutrophils: Association with antiplatelet antibodies and lymphoma

Satellitism and phagocytosis of platelets by neutrophils in EDTA anticoagulated blood have been considered in vitro phenomena without clinical significance. We observed these in a patient with acute, severe thrombocytopenic purpura who subsequently proved to have malignant lymphoma. Wide oscillations in the platelet count were noted and recurrent, severe gastrointestinal bleeding occurred even when the platelet count was normal. Platelet function was abnormal as shown by decreased platelet adhesion to glass beads, absence of a secondary wave of aggregation in response to ADP and epinephrine, and no aggregation with collagen. Suspension of control platelets in the patient's plasma induced similar aggregation defects in the control platelets. Combination chemotherapy resulted in regression of lymphadenopathy, but platelet abnormalities and bleeding persisted. Platelet satellitism and phagocytosis by neutrophils seen on peripheral blood films may be associated with true thrombocytopenia, abnormal platelet function and bleeding with an underlying systemic disease.     

Fire‐eater's lung complicated by an infectious abscess requiring surgical treatment

We describe a case of fire‐eater's pneumonia that was complicated by an infectious lung abscess with substantial haemoptysis. Conservative treatment was inadequate. Surgical resection was necessary and proved to be successful.     

Twenty-year review of the surgical management of perianal Crohn's disease

PURPOSE: A retrospective analysis of 48 patients treated over a 20-year period (March 1973–April 1993) was undertaken to assess the results of our practice of early surgical intervention in suppurative complications of perianal Crohn's disease. METHODS: All patients were either seen in the office within the last six months or contacted by phone. RESULTS: The average age of our patients was 30 years at initial diagnosis. Thirty-four patients (71 percent) initially presented with intestinal disease and four (8 percent) with only perianal disease. Thirteen patients (27 percent) initially presented with simultaneous intestinal and perianal disease. The various fistulas at initial presentation included 8 intersphincteric (17 percent), 14 transphincteric (29 percent), 11 complex or multiple (23 percent), 5 rectovaginal (10 percent), and 2 unclassified, for a total of 40 patients. Eight patients (17 percent) presented with only an abscess. Eighty five percent of our patients healed after their first procedure, with an average time to heal of 2.8 months. Thirteen (27 percent) patients had recurrences after initial healing of their wounds. The mean time to recurrence after healing was 5.25 years. Fifty-four percent of our recurrences (7 patients) were treated by incision and drainage of an abscess only. Seven of 13 recurrences healed after the second procedure (54 percent), and 5 of 6 healed after a third procedure (83 percent). Only seven (14 percent) of our patients underwent a proctocolectomy during the study period, through September, 1993. Our overall probability of avoiding proctectomy and healing perineal wounds of 86 percent is consistent with published literature. CONCLUSIONS: Early aggressive surgical management of suppurative complications of perianal Crohn's disease before complex management problems ensue results in a high incidence of healing and a low risk of subsequent proctectomy.     

Polymorphonuclear leukocyte function in ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease

The aim of this study was to determine whether polymorphonuclear leukocyte chemotaxis, adhesion, and electrophoretic mobility were altered in inflammatory bowel disease and whether such alterations could be related to prior ingestion of immune complexes. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes from patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease showed significantly impaired stimulated migration (P<0.05), increased adhesiveness (P<0.01 in ulcerative colitis,P<0.001 in Crohn's disease), and reduced electrophoretic mobility (P<0.02 in ulcerative colitis,P<0.001 in Crohn's disease) compared with healthy controls. The disease control of patients with rheumatoid arthritis demonstrated reduced stimulated migration (P<0.025) but normal adhesion. Preincubating normal cells in inflammatory bowel disease sera suggested that the altered migration and adhesion were due to circulating serum factors. Circulating immune complexes, detected by the C1q PEG binding assay, were present in 12.5% of patients with ulcerative colitis and 30% with Crohn's disease. Direct immunofluorescence of polymorphonuclear leukocytes suggested binding and/or ingestion of complexes in 57% of patients with ulcerative colitis, and 67% with Crohn's disease. There was a dorect correlation between positive immunofluorescence and impaired cell migration in ulcerative colitis (P<0.05), but no such relationship was found in the other parameters of polymorph function.     

Pott's disease of the cervico-occipital junction in an AIDS patient

Pott's disease of the cervical spine is relatively rare despite the fact that tuberculous spondylitis is still the most common manifestation of bone and joint infection. We describe a case, the first to our knowledge, of sub-occipital Pott's disease associated with a retropharyngeal abscess in an acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) patient. Neurological signs were the main clinical findings. The patient was successfully treated with anti-tuberculosis drugs combined with external stabilization of the spine.     

Mastocytosis and Sj?gren's syndrome.

A 61 year old man with dryness of the eyes and mouth, constitutional and musculoskeletal symptoms is described. A diagnosis of fibromyalgia with Sjögren''s syndrome was made elsewhere. Further examination, however, disclosed diffuse mast cell infiltration in several organs, including the labial accessory salivary glands.     

Successful treatment of liver abscess secondary to foreign body penetration of the alimentary tract: A case report and literature review

Hepatic abscess caused by foreign body penetration of the alimentary tract is rare.We report a case of gastric antrum penetration due to a toothpick complicated by liver abscess formation.A 41-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with the chief complaint of upper abdominal pain for 2 mo.Esophagogastroduodenoscopy performed at a local clinic revealed a toothpick penetrating the gastric antrum.Computed tomography(CT)of the abdomen at our hospital revealed a gastricforeign body embedded in the posterior wall of gastric antrum with regional phlegmon over the lesser sac and adhesion to the pancreatic body without notable vascular injury,and a hepatic abscess seven cm in diameter over the left liver lobe.Endoscopic removal of the foreign body was successfully performed without complication.The liver abscess was treated with parenteral antibiotics without drainage.The patient’s recovery was uneventful.Abdominal ultrasonography demonstrated complete resolution of the hepatic abscess six months after discharge.Relevant literature from the PubMed database was reviewed and the clinical presentations,diagnostic modalities,treatment strategies and outcomes of 88 reported cases were analyzed.The results showed that only 6 patients received conservative treatment with parenteral antibiotics,while the majority underwent either image-guided abscess drainage or laparotomy.Patients receiving abscess drainage via laparotomy had a significantly shorter length of hospitalization compared with those undergoing imageguided drainage.There was no significant difference in age between those who survived and those who died,however,the latter presented to hospitals in a more critical condition than the former.The overall mortality rate was 7.95%.     

Successful pregnancy and live birth in woman with congenital adrenal hyperplasia: A case report

Rationale:Women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) can suffer from impaired fertility rates as a result of increased androgen secretion or impaired sex steroid production. CAH patients have lower pregnancy rate compared to normal women. Only a few cases with successful pregnancy have been reported in the literature. This report described a case of CAH with successful pregnancy and live birth.Patient concerns:A 23-year-old woman visited our endocrinology department for clitoral hypertrophy and primary amenorrhea.Diagnoses:The patient was diagnosed as CAH.Intervention:Prednisone was initially started to improve the patient''s symptoms. Then she underwent clitoral resection and vaginoplasty several months later. She continuously took the prednisolone after the operation and had been undergoing regular checkups.Outcomes:She was pregnant spontaneously without assisted reproductive technology and had a successful live birth. Her baby had shown normal external genitalia with normal karyotype and normal development up to 6 years of age.Lessons:Some mild CAH patients with certain types can achieved successful pregnancy without any assisted reproductive technology after treatment with steroid. The pregnancy rate among CAH women who wish to conceive may be much more optimistic than previous researches.     

Tuberculous liver abscess

Tuberculous liver abscess is uncommonly seen in our experience. We report a case of a 17-year-old boy who presented with typical clinical features of liver abscess, where a diagnosis of tuberculous liver abscess was made on laparotomy and biopsy of the abscess wall.     

The role of percutaneous transhepatic abscess drainage for liver abscess

To evaluate the efficacy of percutaneous transhepatic abscess drainage (PTAD) as an initial choice of treatment for liver abscess, the medical records of 28 patients with liver abscess were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were predominantly men (23 of 28) with a mean age of 59 years (range, 19—86 years). Their chief complaints were fever (86%), right hypochondralgia (32%), and jaundice (11%). Fifteen of the 28 patients (54%) had hepatobiliary and pancreatic carcinoma, and 31% had postoperative liver abscess. PTAD was performed in 23 patients and surgical drainage in 5. The overall success rate for PTAD was 83%. The success rate for PTAD for patients with multiple abscesses was 83% (5 of 6), compared with a success rate of 82% (14 of 17) for patients with solitary abscess. The prognostic factors for survival were cancer and sepsis and the mortality rate for patients with cancer was 40% (6 of 15) while the mortality rate for patients with sepsis was 56% (5 of 9). As a complication of drainage, 1 patient (4%) in the PTAD group had pleural abscess due to the transpleural puncture. Our findings support the use of PTAD as the primary treatment for liver abscess, as it is safe and effective irrespective of the number of abscesses and the patient's condition.     

Coronary anomaly in Behçet's syndrome

A 39-year-old man who was known to have Behçet's syndrome suffered an acute posterior-wall myocardial infarction. The infarction occurred 13 years after the onset of the Behçet's disease, which had been marked by recurrent chorioretinitis and thrombosis of the retinal veins of both eyes. Coronary arteriography showed occlusion of the circumflex branch and an aneurysmal fistula between the left main branch and the pulmonary artery. The other coronary vessels were normal. A search for vascular risk factors revealed only cigarette smoking. Under a non-invasive treatment regimen, no complications of the mycoardial infarction were seen. During a 2-year medical follow-up, the patient was asymptomatic and did not show any further signs of Behçet's disease activity.     

Clinical features in six patients with liver abscess caused by Streptococcus milleri]

Among 39 patients with pyogenic liver abscess who were admitted to our institute, six (15%) were infected by Streptococcus milleri (S. milleri). We investigated clinical features of these six patients. There were five males and one female, aged 43-81 years old (mean: 61). Five of the six patients had underlying illness. All patients had fever, and three of them complained of abdominal pain. Three patients had mixed infections; particularly intraoral anaerobes, Fusobacterium, were found in two of the three patients. There were no differences in clinical features between patients with S. milleri liver abscess and those with other bacterial liver abscess. In conclusion, on selecting antibiotics for the treatment of liver abscess, it is necessary to consider the S. milleri and intraoral anaerobes.