The hepatitis B immunization programme in Singapore

A voluntary immunization programme to prevent perinatal transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in Singapore was implemented on 1 October 1985 as an integral component of the national childhood immunization programme. Up to April 1988, a total of 68,845 mothers who attended government maternal and child health clinics were screened for the disease. Of these, 2432 (3.5%) were positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and 904 (1.3%) for hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg). Virtually all the babies born to carrier mothers completed the full immunization schedule; and in addition, those of HBeAg-positive mothers were given a dose of hepatitis B immunoglobulin at birth. The hepatitis B immunization programme was extended on 1 September 1987 to cover all newborns. About 90% of the 15,943 babies delivered in government institutions from September 1987 to April 1988 were immunized at birth, with the subsequent doses being administered at maternal and child health clinics at 4-6 weeks and 5 months later. More than 85% of the children given the full course of plasma-derived and yeast-derived hepatitis B vaccine from birth continued to have protective antibody to HBV two years after immunization. The programme is being closely monitored to assess the duration of immunity and the need for booster doses, while seronegative adults are also being encouraged to be vaccinated.     

An algorithm for the treatment of pain in advanced cancer

An algorithm is presented that has been developed over the past three years to provide pain relief in advanced cancer. The hospital records of 92 patients were reviewed to evaluate the validity of the algorithm. The algorithm is as follows: the 24 hour oral consumption of opioids was converted to sustained release morphine. If ineffective usually over 360 mg daily the total 24 hour oral dose was divided by 6 to convert to I.V. If this was ineffective, usually over 10 mg/hr of morphine, the intravenous dose was divided by 10 and infused epidurally. Local anesthetic was added for plexus involvement. After four days, the patient was weaned from local anesthetic solution. If sharp pain or pain to movement persisted, 6% phenol in 1 to 2 ml aliquots was injected every 8-12 hours to a total of 5-8 ml. While the conversion from intravenous to epidural morphine was 10:1 that from epidural to intravenous was only 1:3. Intravenous dose converts directly to the subcutaneous. The conversion from intravenous to oral is 1:3. There view showed that the dosages at which the conversions were made varied considerably. The reasons for the wide variation are presented. In summary the algorithm is a good practical guide for treatment of cancer pain.     

Potential problem with fluorescence polarization immunoassay cross-reactivity to vancomycin degradation product CDP-1: its detection in sera of renally impaired patients

During the development of a homogeneous immunoassay for the antibiotic vancomycin, we observed in certain patient samples a quantitation difference between the enzyme multiplied immunoassay technique (EMIT) method and the comparison method, fluorescence polarization immunoassay (FPIA). This prompted us to evaluate the integrity of vancomycin in samples from renally impaired patients. Since it has been reported in the scientific literature that vancomycin degrades into an antibiotically inactive crystalline degradation product (CDP-1) in vitro, we developed high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) methods to determine whether CDP-1 is present in patient sera. HPLC and LC/MS analysis on samples from renally impaired patients positively identified CDP-1 in fresh samples. Next, we tested the cross-reactivity of three currently available vancomycin immunoassays, radioimmunoassay (RIA) FPIA, and EMIT, to CDP-1 prepared in our laboratory. Our data suggest that CDP-1 is recognized by FPIA and RIA, both polyclonal antibody-based methods, but not by EMIT, which uses a monoclonal antibody.     

Risk factors for placental abruption in a socio-economically disadvantaged region.

OBJECTIVE: This study was undertaken in order to determine the risk factors for pregnancies complicated by placental abruption in a socio-economically disadvantaged region in metropolitan Adelaide. METHODS: This was a retrospective case-control study including all singleton pregnancies resulting in placental abruption between 2001 and 2005. RESULTS: The overall incidence of placental abruption was 1.0%; the overall perinatal mortality among the births with abruption was 13%. Univariate analyses showed the following significant risk factors for placental abruption: preterm pre-labor rupture of the membranes (PRE-PROM; odds ratio (OR) 4.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.52-15.08), non-compliance with antenatal care (OR 2.93, 95% CI 1.06-8.90), severe intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), and elevated homocysteine levels (OR 45.55, 95% CI 7.05-458.93). Severe IUGR was significantly more common in the abruption group compared with the control group (p = 0.032). In the multivariate analysis, PRE-PROM remained a significant independent risk factor for placental abruption. Marijuana use, domestic violence, and mental health problems were more common (borderline significance) in the abruption group. Smoking and preeclampsia were not found to be associated with placental abruption in this study. CONCLUSIONS: In this high-risk population, PRE-PROM and elevated homocysteine levels appear to represent the major risk factors for placental abruption.     

Acute post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis followed shortly by acute rheumatic fever

A 16 year old girl with post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis developed acute rheumatic fever 19 days afterwards. Previous publications on concurrent post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis and acute rheumatic fever are reviewed.     

High-dose VP-16 with intermediate-dose cytosine arabinoside in the treatment of relapsed acute nonlymphocytic leukemia

Summary In a study of 11 adult patients with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia (ANLL), infusion therapy with high-dose VP-16 and intermediate-dose cytosine arabinoside was administered. Response was assessed with reference to bone marrow aspirations performed on days 1; 12, 13, or 14; and 21 of treatment. All 7 of the patients with ANLL in relapse achieved marrow hypoplasia, and 3 of them achieved complete response. LFTs were elevated in most patients but no evidence of hepatocellular necrosis was observed. It is concluded that the value of VP-16 in ANLL may have been underestimated in the past because of inadequate dosing.Abbreviations ANLL acute nonlymphocytic leukemia - CGL chronic granulocytic leukemia - DNR daunorubicin - VNC vincristine - ID Ara-C, intermediate-dose Ara-C (500 mg/m² for 12 doses) - HD Ara-C, high-dose Ara-C (3 g/m² for 12 doses) - SGGT serum glutamic transaminase - LDH lactic dehydrogenase - SGOT serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase     

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy and spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage. Report of a sporadic case in a young Chinese.

A 49-year-old Chinese male with spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage due to cerebral amyloid angiopathy is presented. This is the first case reported in the Chinese population, and the youngest patient described without a family history or associated mental disorder.     

Interleukin-2 treatment potentiates induction of oral tolerance in a murine model of autoimmunity.

The present study addresses the feasibility of potentiating oral tolerance by immunomanipulation, using the murine model of experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU) induced by immunization with the retinal antigen interphotoreceptor retinoid binding protein (IRBP). Three feedings of 0.2 mg IRBP every other day before immunization did not protect against EAU, whereas a similar regimen of five doses was protective. However, supplementing the nonprotective 3x regimen with as little as one injection of 1,000 U of human recombinant interleukin-2 (IL-2) resulted in disease suppression that was equal to that of the protective 5x regimen. The protective effect was maintained across a range of IL-2 doses and times of administration; none of the IL-2 regimens tested resulted in disease enhancement. Peyer's Patch cells of 3x-fed and IL-2-treated mice showed greatly increased production of TGF-beta, IL-4, and IL-10 compared with animals given the nonprotective 3x regimen and to animals given the protective 5x regimen. We propose that IL-2 treatment enhances protection from EAU at least in part by stimulating production of antiinflammatory cytokines by regulatory cells in Payer's Patches. Moreover, the observed lymphokine production patterns suggest that whereas protection induced by the 3x + IL-2 regimen is likely to involve antiinflammatory cytokines, protection induced by the 5x regimen might involve anergy or deletion of the uveitogenic T cells. These results could have practical implications for use of IL-2 as a safe and effective way of potentiating oral tolerance.     

Adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation using extended right lobe grafts.

OBJECTIVE: The authors report their experience with living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) using extended right lobe grafts for adult patients under high-urgency situations. SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: The efficacy of LDLT in the treatment of children has been established. The major limitation of adult-to-adult LDLT is the adequacy of the graft size. A left lobe graft from a relatively small volunteer donor will not meet the metabolic demand of a larger recipient. METHODS: From May 1996 to November 1996, seven LDLTs, using extended right lobe grafts, were performed under high-urgency situations. All recipients were in intensive care units before transplantation with five having acute renal failure, three on mechanical ventilation, and all with hepatic encephalopathy. The median body weight for the donors and recipients was 58 kg (range, 41-84 kg) and 65 kg (range, 53-90 kg), respectively. The body weights of four donors were less than those of the corresponding recipients, and the lowest donor-to-recipient body weight ratio was 0.62:1. The extended right lobe graft was chosen because the left lobe volume was <40% of the ideal liver mass of the recipient. RESULTS: Median blood loss for the donors was 900 mL (range, 700-1600 mL) and hospital stay was 19 days (range, 8-22 days). Homologous blood transfusion was not required. Two donors had complications (one incisional hernia and one bile duct stricture) requiring reoperation after discharge. All were well with normal liver function 5 to 10 months after surgery. The graft weight ranged from 490 g to 1140 g. All grafts showed immediate function with normalization of prothrombin time and recovery of conscious state of the recipients. There was no vascular complication, but six recipients required reoperation. One recipient died of systemic candidiasis 16 days after transplantation and 6 (86%) were alive with the original graft at a median follow-up of 6.5 months (range, 5-10 months). CONCLUSIONS: When performed by a team with experience in hepatectomy and transplantation, LDLT, using an extended right lobe graft, can achieve superior results. The technique extends the success of LDLT from pediatric recipients to adult recipients and opens a new donor pool for adults to receive a timely graft of adequate function.