Impaired Face Processing in Autism: Fact or Artifact?

Within the last 10 years, there has been an upsurge of interest in face processing abilities in autism which has generated a proliferation of new empirical demonstrations employing a variety of measuring techniques. Observably atypical social behaviors early in the development of children with autism have led to the contention that autism is a condition where the processing of social information, particularly faces, is impaired. While several empirical sources of evidence lend support to this hypothesis, others suggest that there are conditions under which autistic individuals do not differ from typically developing persons. The present paper reviews this bulk of empirical evidence, and concludes that the versatility and abilities of face processing in persons with autism have been underestimated.     

Uterine rupture: report of 41 cases

To establish the epidemiological profile, of patients who presented a uterine rupture, as well as the obstetrical follow up, the neonatal outcome and the prognosis factors. A retrospective study of 41 cases of uterine rupture treated in the maternity center of Tunis during a 5-year period. The frequency of uterine rupture was 1.38%@1000 of births. Rupture in scarred uterus was found in 58.5% of the cases against 41.5% in sain uterus. Three risk factors were statistically significant in our series: cesarian section, multiparity and high fetal weight. Uterine rupture is a medico-surgical emergency causing materno-fetal morbidity and mortality.     

Electrophysiological evidence for differential processing of numerical quantity and order in humans

It is yet unclear whether the processing of number magnitude and order rely on common or different functional processes and neural substrates. On the one hand, recent neuroimaging studies show that quantity and order coding activate the same areas in the parietal and prefrontal cortices. On the other hand, evidence from developmental and neuropsychological studies suggest dissociated mechanisms for processing quantity and order information. To clarify this issue, the present study investigated the spatio-temporal course of quantity and order coding operations using event-related potentials (ERPs). Twenty-four subjects performed a quantity task (classifying numbers as smaller or larger than 15) and an order task on the same material (classifying numbers as coming before or after 15), as well as a control order task on letters (classifying letters as coming before or after M). Behavioral results showed a classical distance effect (decreasing reaction times [RTs] with increasing distance from the standard) for all tasks. In agreement with previous electrophysiological evidence, this effect was significant on a P2 parietal component for numerical material. However, the difference between processing numbers close or far from the target appeared earlier and was larger on the left hemisphere for quantity processing, while it was delayed and bilateral for order processing. There was also a significant distance effect in all tasks on parietal sites for the following P3 component elicited by numbers, but this effect was larger on prefrontal areas for the order judgment. In conclusion, both quantity and order show similar behavioral effects, but they are associated with different spatio-temporal courses in parietal and prefrontal cortices.     

Solitary plasmacytoma of the cranial vault. Case report and review of the literature

We report a case of solitary plasmacytoma of the cranial vault. A 58-year-old man presented with a frontal soft tissue mass. X-Ray of the skull showed a lytic lesion of the frontal bone. CT scan showed the lesion extending intra and extracranially and cerebral angiography allowed embolization of afferent arteries. Complete removal of the lesion was performed without additional radiotherapy. Two years after surgery the patient is alive, and asymptomatic. Until 1997, 35 cases of solitary plasmacytoma of the cranial vault are reported, of which only five had frontal localisation. Solitary plasmacytoma of the cranial vault has a good outcome but progression towards a multiple myeloma is possible and deserves clinical and biological follow-up.     

Carcinosarcoma of the bladder: a case report

Carcinosarcoma of the urinary bladder is a uncommon tumor with characteristic histopathologic and immunohistochemical findings; his histogenesis have still not been clear; the prognosis seems to be improved by radical cystectomy and adjuvants therapies. We report a case of 47 years old women suffering from suprapubic pains, dysuria and hematuria of five months duration and had a 10 cm suprapubic mass that was found on physical examination. Radiographically, the tumor invaded the dome of the urinary bladder and causes bilateral hydronephrosis. Microscopically it was an urinary bladder carcinosarcoma. Our objective is to discuss the histogenesis, the anatomoclinical and prognosis of these rare tumors.     

Overexpression of COX-2 and LMP1 are correlated with lymph node in Tunisian NPC patients

Cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) an inducible form of COX is frequently up-regulated in many human tumours. The expression of COX-2 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and its relationship to clinicopathological features were studied in Tunisian patients. COX-2 mRNA was detected in 91% of tumour tissues. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that COX-2 protein was strongly detected in tumour cells and the staining was mainly cytoplasmic. In contrast, COX-2 mRNA and protein were very low or undetectable in normal nasopharyngeal mucosa. Our result showed a significant association of COX-2 overexpression with the lymph node involvement, however, no correlation was observed with age, tumour stage, histological type and distant metastasis. Moreover, we showed that all tumour specimens co-overexpressed COX-2 and the EBV oncoprotein LMP1 corroborating the fact that LPM1 is known to induce COX-2. Altogether, our data suggests that the COX-2 is overexpressed in NPC biopsies and that is linked to the lymph node involvement.     

Genetic variability of the P120' surface protein gene of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mycoplasma hominis</Emphasis> isolates recovered from Tunisian patients with uro-genital and infertility disorders

Background  

Among the surface antigens of Mycoplasma hominis, the P120' protein was previously shown to elicit a subtle antibody response and appears to be relatively conserved. To get better insight into the evolution of this protein, we analysed the genetic variability of its surface exposed region in 27 M. hominis isolates recovered from the genital tract of Tunisian patients with infertility disorders.     

Management of spinal cord compression caused by extramedullary hematopoiesis in beta-thalassemia

Thalassemia is a chronic hemolytic anemia, endemic around the Mediterranean basin. Extramedullary hematopoiesis (EMH) is a normal compensatory reaction that can involve many organs or tissues, including the epidural space, leading to a spinal cord compression syndrome. In almost all cases, the clinical and MR patterns are those of a lower dorsal spinal cord progressive compression secondary to an epidural expanding process. The management still remains controversial, including mainly blood transfusions, decompressive surgery and radiotherapy. We present a case of EMH in a thalassemic adolescent boy presenting with a T12 level of compression, treated successfully with blood transfusion, surgical decompression and radiotherapy.     

Hodgkin Lymphoma revealed by epidural spinal cord compression

Context: Hodgkin Lymphoma is rarely diagnosed as spinal cord compression syndrome. Caused by an epidural mass, this complication is often encountered in a late stage of the disease. We report the case of a 40-year-old man presenting with symptoms of low thoracic spinal cord compression due to an epidural tumor on the MRI.

Findings: Emergent surgery was undertaken on this patient, consisting in laminectomy and tumor resection. After surgery, pain relief and mild neurological improvement were noticed. The histological study revealed a Hodgkin Lymphoma and the patient was referred to chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Conclusion: Though chemotherapy is the gold standard treatment for Hodgkin Lymphoma, surgical spinal decompression may be required in epidural involvement of the disease. Diagnosis may be suspected in the presence of lymphadenopathy and general health decay.