Repeated measurements of mite and pet allergen levels in house dust over a time period of 8 years

BACKGROUND: Studies of the association between indoor allergen exposure and the development of allergic diseases have often measured allergen exposure at one point in time. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the variability of house dust mite (Der p 1, Der f 1) and cat (Fel d 1) allergen in Dutch homes over a period of 8 years. METHODS: Data were obtained in the Dutch PIAMA birth cohort study. Dust from the child's mattress, the parents' mattress and the living room floor was collected at four points in time, when the child was 3 months, 4, 6 and 8 years old. Dust samples were analysed for Der p 1, Der f 1 and Fel d 1 by sandwich enzyme immuno assay. RESULTS: Mite allergen concentrations for the child's mattress, the parents' mattress and the living room floor were moderately correlated between time-points. Agreement was better for cat allergen. For Der p 1 and Der f 1 on the child's mattress, the within-home variance was close to or smaller than the between-home variance in most cases. For Fel d 1, the within-home variance was almost always smaller than the between-home variance. Results were similar for allergen levels expressed per gram of dust and allergen levels expressed per square metre of the sampled surface. Variance ratios were smaller when samples were taken at shorter time intervals than at longer time intervals. CONCLUSION: Over a period of 4 years, mite and cat allergens measured in house dust are sufficiently stable to use single measurements with confidence in epidemiological studies. The within-home variance was larger when samples were taken 8 years apart so that over such long periods, repetition of sampling is recommended.     

Reactivation of dormant lumbar methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis after 12 years.

The adequate treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) osteomyelitis has intrigued clinicians for some time. As the resistance of these pathogens, coupled with the increase in community-acquired cases, continues steadily to rise, clinicians are finding it useful to employ multi-modal approaches for efficacious treatment. The authors present a single case report of a patient with recurrent MRSA osteomyelitis, lumbar paraspinal and epidural abscess. He was found to have decreased muscle strength and was hyporeflexic in the involved extremity. Serum testing demonstrated MRSA bacteremia. Neuroimaging studies revealed evidence of paraspinal abscess and a presumed herniated nucleus pulposus at the L5/S1 interspace with significant nerve root compromise. Despite antimicrobials, his symptoms persisted, necessitating surgical exploration. At surgery, paraspinal and epidural abscesses were encountered and debrided; however, no herniated disc was visualized. This case demonstrates the diagnostic and therapeutic dilemmas with which these lesions present. We postulate that the MRSA osteomyelitis/discitis pathogens were walled off in the disc space and subsequently inoculated the soft tissues with ensuing bacteremia. We concur that antimicrobial treatment should be the first line of therapy for these patients; however, surgical debridements and cautious spinal instrumentation should be employed where appropriate.     

Ecology of a Southern Ohio stream receiving fly ash pond discharge: Changes from acid mine drainage conditions

Prior to 1975, Stingy Run was a third-order tributary of Kyger Creek, which empties into the Ohio River at Mile 260 (Gallia County, Ohio). Both streams drained strip mine refuse areas and physicochemical measurements indicated acidicmine drainage conditions (e.g., low pH). A depauperate macroinvertebrate community, dominated by a few acid-tolerant taxa, was found in both streams and no fishes were collected. In 1974, Stingy Run was impounded to form a fly ash pond which contains fly ash sluiced from Ohio Power Company's General James M. Gavin coal-fired power plant. Physicochemical and biological sampling during 1975–1986 indicated marked changes in the aquatic ecology of Stingy Run between 1) pre-impoundment and post-impoundment conditions; and 2) effluent pH control treatments after impoundment. Fly ash discharge eliminated acidicmine drainage characteristics in Stingy Run and lower Kyger Creek. After impoundment, net spinning caddisflies and a few dipteran taxa dominated the Stingy Run benthic community, reflecting changes in functional niches likely due to improved habitat and greater food availability. Replacement of acid feed by CO₂ injection for effluent pH control and changes in ash pond chemistry occurred concomitant with elimination of a substrate floc; increased species richness and densities of invertebrates were subsequently observed. In Stingy Run, species richness and diversity of fishes increased from 1983 to 1986, reflecting improved water quality and increased benthic production after impoundment. Many of these fishes are opportunistic feeders on drifting insects.     

Reflex sympathetic dystrophy of the left hand and motor impairments of the unaffected right hand: impaired central motor processing?

OBJECTIVE: To test whether central motor processing can be impaired in chronic reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD). DESIGN: Experimental 2-group analysis. SETTING: Tertiary care center in the Netherlands. PARTICIPANTS: Five patients with stage 3 RSD of the left forearm, free of symptoms and complaints in the right forearm; and 10 healthy control subjects. INTERVENTION: On a digitizer, RSD patients and controls had to draw 3 sequences of graphemes of different complexity with their (unaffected) dominant right hand. The drawing tracks were segmented in time periods between points of velocity minima of the pen tip. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Mean velocity, coefficients of variation of both length and movement time per segment, and mean intersegmental pausing time were calculated for each sequence. RESULTS: A repeated-measures analysis of variance by using the multivariate method yielded a 35% lower mean velocity (F(1,13) = 5.83, P =.031), a 110% larger segment length variability (F(1,13) = 9.72, P =.008) and a 60% larger variability of movement time per segment (F(1,13) = 5.78, P =.032) in RSD patients. No group difference was found for intersegmental pausing time or any interaction effect with the type of task. CONCLUSION: Patients with chronic RSD have a normal ability to preprogram sequential movements of their unaffected hand; but with impaired temporospatial coding and movement execution. We concluded that cortical mechanisms may be involved in motor impairments in patients with chronic RSD.     

Physiological neutrophilia of pregnancy is not associated with a rise in plasma granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF)

A patient with neutropenia and life-threatening infections secondary to T-γ lymphoproliferative disease, who did not respond to treatment with recombinant human G-CSF (filgrastim), was treated with filgrastim plus cyclosporine A (CyA). The patient achieved a good response in the absolute neutrophil count and subsequently required a dose reduction in the filgrastim. The patient was eventually discontinued from the CyA but continues on filgrastim alone. While on therapy, the large granular lymphocytes disappeared from the circulation and the beta-TCR rearrangement, which was present prior to beginning therapy, became undetectable. The patient had no significant toxicity to the CyA or the filgrastim and he has not experienced any serious infections or required hospitalization. Filgrastim has proven to be relatively nontoxic and of some benefit to patients with this disease and should probably be utilized first when treatment is necessary. However, if improvement is not observed, these findings suggest that a trial of the combination of CyA plus filgrastim may be beneficial.     

Sumatriptan nasal spray in the acute treatment of migraine in adolescents and children

About 4-10% of children and adolescents suffer from migraine. In the last few years, several studies have been performed to assess the efficacy and safety of triptans for the acute treatment of migraine in children and adolescents. Only sumatriptan nasal spray has been approved for the treatment of acute migraine with or without aura in adolescents aged 12-17 years in Europe. This review describes the results of the studies with sumatriptan nasal spray that have been performed in children and adolescents, including a study performed in the Netherlands.     

Comparative genotyping of Campylobacter jejuni by amplified fragment length polymorphism,multilocus sequence typing,and short repeat sequencing: strain diversity,host range,and recombination

Three molecular typing methods were used to study the relationships among 184 Campylobacter strains isolated from humans, cattle, and chickens. All strains were genotyped by amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) analysis, multilocus sequence typing (MLST), and sequence analysis of a genomic region with short tandem repeats designated clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPRs). MLST and AFLP analysis yielded more than 100 different profiles and patterns, respectively. These multiple-locus typing methods resulted in similar genetic clustering, indicating that both are useful in disclosing genetic relationships between Campylobacter jejuni isolates. Group separation analysis of the AFLP analysis and MLST data revealed an unexpected association between cattle and human strains, suggesting a common source of infection. Analysis of the polymorphic CRISPR region carrying short repeats allowed about two-thirds of the typeable strains to be distinguished, similar to AFLP analysis and MLST. The three methods proved to be equally powerful in identifying strains from outbreaks of human campylobacteriosis. Analysis of the MLST data showed that intra- and interspecies recombination occurs frequently and that the role of recombination in sequence variation is 50 times greater than that of mutation. Examination of strains cultured from cecum swabs revealed that individual chickens harbored multiple Campylobacter strain types and that some genotypes were found in more than one chicken. We conclude that typing of Campylobacter strains is useful for identification of outbreaks but is probably not useful for source tracing and global epidemiology because of carriage of strains of multiple types and an extremely high diversity of strains in animals.