Lessons to be learned from a complicated case of rhino-cerebral mucormycosis in a renal allograft recipient

Fungal infections still represent a serious complication after organ transplantation. Early diagnosis and aggressive treatment are crucial. Because of the many diagnostic problems involved, we present a case of mucormycosis--primarily affecting the paranasal sinuses with later intracranial extension--in a highly immunized recipient of a third renal transplant. Although fungal infection was suspected from various imaging techniques, only the detection of typical fungal hyphae in the infected tissue was diagnostic. Neither the blood tests and cerebrospinal fluid examinations performed nor cultures from maxillary sinus fluid were of any diagnostic help. Surgical debridement from a transnasal as well as an intracranial approach and systemic amphotericin B together with the discontinuation of immunosuppression after removal of the rejected graft were able to save the patient. This case stresses the importance of early diagnosis that can only be made from tissue biopsies and allows appropriate timely treatment.     

Relationship between resting alpha activity and the ERPs obtained during a highly demanding selective attention task.

In spite of previous reports on the relationship between ongoing EEG and ERPs, there remains a lack of agreement on the nature of their nexuses. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between resting EEG and the ERP components in two groups of healthy subjects with different levels of performance in a highly demanding selective visual attention task. Young adults were classified according to the amount of their correct responses in the task, into high (HP; averaged hits (AH): 86%) and low performance groups (LP; AH: 59%). EEG was recorded during rest, prior to task performance and absolute (AP) and relative power (RP), as well as inter- (rTER) and intrahemispheric (rTRA) correlation were calculated. ERPs during task performance were also obtained and their amplitude and latency measures were assessed. Results showed that individuals with better behavioral performance had a higher synchronization between both hemispheres during rest as well as higher amplitude and shorter latencies of N2 and P3. Principal Component Analysis revealed that alpha2 AP and RP were inversely related to P2 and N2 latency. Higher values of alpha1 and alpha2 rTER were clustered with higher P3 amplitude and shorter reaction time. In conclusion, the differences in the cortical organization of HP and LP at rest (EEG) seem to be associated to the way the brain reacts during information processing (ERPs).     

Correlates of depressive symptoms among Latino and Non-Latino White adolescents: Findings from the 2003 California Health Interview Survey

Background  

The prevalence of depression is increasing not only among adults, but also among adolescents. Several risk factors for depression in youth have been identified, including female gender, increasing age, lower socio-economic status, and Latino ethnic background. The literature is divided regarding the role of acculturation as risk factor among Latino youth. We analyzed the correlates of depressive symptoms among Latino and Non-Latino White adolescents residing in California with a special focus on acculturation.     

Effects of mailed preoperative instructions on learning and anxiety

This study sought to contrast mailing a booklet to accomplish preoperative instruction with teaching performed by nurses after hospital admission. Sixty-six patients were studied in a 700-bed medical center and were assigned to three teaching groups and a control group which did not receive teaching. The researcher compared the four groups preoperatively after admission to determine the patients' knowledge and ability to perform surgical exercises, as well as their anxiety levels.

Findings were that patients who received a booklet by mail preadmission learned surgical exercises equally well compared to patients taught postadmission, and mastered significantly more exercise behaviors than those receiving no instruction. No statistical difference in anxiety level was found among groups. One may infer that mailing preadmission material should be considered as an effective teaching mode and alternative to postadmission instruction.     

Age-specific cerebral perfusion in 4- to 15-year-old children: a high-resolution brain SPET study using 99mTc-ECD

This study addresses the question of whether the normal range for distribution of local cerebral blood flow (lCBF) in adults can be transferred to the 4- to 15-year-old age group. Twenty-three children (age: 4–15 years; mean 11±3 years, group I) and 10 adults (age: 27–56 years; mean 45±10 years, group II) without evidence of cerebrovascular disease or other brain diseases underwent technetium-99m ethyl cysteinate dimer single-photon emission tomography. Counts in cortical and subcortical regions of interest (ROIs) were related to those in cerebellar ROIs (= 100%). Relative cortical activity in group I exceeded that in group II, particularly in left parietal (107.6%±9.8% vs 84.1%±12.4%), left frontal (97.7%±6.7% vs 79.4%±8.9%) and left temporal areas (99.7%±7.4% vs 84.9%±10.1%) and in the cingulate cortex (112.1%±9.1% vs 95.9%±10.1%, P<0.05). Cerebral activity uptake per injected dose was inversely correlated with age in 19 children of group I (r = –0.77, P<0.001). In group I, there was also an inverse correlation between age and the relative local count density in the parietal (r = –0.42 to –0.57), frontal (r = –0.48), temporal (r = –0.42 to –0.58) and occipital cortex (r = –0.44). In these cortical regions relative counts differed when subgroups of children aged 4–10 and 11–15 years were analysed. It is concluded that there are systematic differences between 4- to 15-year-old children and adults with regard to normal lCBF. Diagnostic use of perfusion agents has to consider age-adjusted normal flow maps; normal ranges should be determined separately for the age groups 4–10 and 11–15 years. Received 23 March and in revised form 11 July 1997     

Plasmodium falciparum andP. berghei: detection of sporozoites and the circumsporozoite proteins in the saliva ofAnopheles stephensi mosquitoes

Sporozoites and free circumsporozoite (CS) protein were stained immunoenzymatically in 1-min saliva samples collected fromAnopheles stephensi mosquitoes infected with eitherPlasmodium berghei orP. falciparum. The number of sporozoites in 1-min saliva-streak samples significantly increased as the salivary gland index rose from 3+ to 4+. ForP. berghei-infected mosquitoes from which saliva had been collected before 30 days postfeed, the median sporozoite counts for 3+ and 4+ gland indexes were 4.5 and 116, respectively. ForP. falciparum-infected mosquitoes, the median counts obtained in two experiments were 4.5 and 14.5 (3+) and 97 and 107 (4+), respectively. The frequency of sporozoite detection in the saliva of mosquitoes containing <100 salivary-gland sporozoites was low (0.1), whereas that in the saliva of mosquitoes with >100 sporozoites was high (0.96). In highly infected 4+P. berghei-infected mosquitoes from which saliva had been collected after 30 days postinfection, both the volume of saliva collected and the median number of sporozoites recovered decreased significantly.     

Mortality study of asbestos cement workers

The present study describes cause-specific mortality of asbestos cement workers in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy. The cohort included workers in ten factories, most of which started operating between 1955 and 1965. Asbestos, mainly chrysotile, constituted 10%–20% of the dry component of the mixture. Crocidolite range between 5% and 50% of total asbestos. Asbestos concentrations up to 44 ff/cc were reported prior to 1975, while in recent years they have usually been below 0–1 ff/cc. The cohort included 3341 workers who had at some time been employed in the ten factories under study. Their mortality experience was compared with that of the population resident in Emilia Romagna. Vital status was ascertained at 1989. Seventy-three subjects were lost to followup (2.2%). Mortality from all causes and from all types of cancer was increased in the cohort. Malignant neoplasms of the respiratory tract showed a significant increase (SMR: 134; 90% confidence interval: 101–175; 40 observed) due to lung cancer (SMR: 124; 90% confidence interval: 91–166; 33 observed) and neoplasms of the pleura, mediastinum, and other parts of the respiratory tract (SMR: 602; 90% confidence interval 237–1267; 5 observed). The discrepancy between observed and expected mortality mainly concerned subjects with at least 20 years of employment in the factories. Five more cases of histologically confirmed mesothelioma occurred after the end of follow-up.     

Do weekly and fast-rotating shiftwork schedules differentially affect duration and quality of sleep?

 Characteristics of shiftwork schedules can have distinct impacts on workers’ sleep. This report presents comparisons of the effects of two different shiftwork schedules on duration and quality of the main sleep episodes in comparable worker populations at two different petrochemical plants. No significant differences were found for sleep duration in comparing the two plants. However, within each plant’s shift cycles, morning and night shifts showed shorter sleep durations than all other workdays and days off. Quality of sleep was perceived as lowest for night shifts of both plant schedules, and of lesser quality for weekly than for fast-rotating shifts. These results support recommendations for reducing the number of consecutive nights of shiftwork. However, before recommending any optimal shift schedule, interactions of sleep duration and quality with shift schedules need much further evaluation. Received: 18 December 1995/Accepted: 18 July 1996