Anteroposterior distance between the tibial tuberosity and trochlear groove in patients with patellar instability

BackgroundOur objective was to describe a measurement to assess sagittal tibial tuberosity (TT)–trochlear groove (TG) distance and to compare this between asymptomatic (control) patients and patients with symptomatic patellar instability.MethodsWe compared static CT images of 22 fully extended knees of patients with symptomatic patellar instability with images of 22 asymptomatic knees. TT–TG distance was measured to quantify lateralization of the TT, and anteroposterior TT–TG distance was used to quantify the sagittal distance between these two points. Lateral trochlear inclination, sulcus angle, and trochlear depth were measured. Groups were compared using paired t tests (alpha = 0.05). Correlations of anteroposterior TT–TG distance with lateral trochlear inclination, sulcus angle, and trochlear depth were assessed using linear and multivariate regression.ResultsMean TT–TG distances were 19.9 ± 4.4 mm (symptomatic) and 16.8 ± 5.5 mm (control) (mean ± std deviation) (P = 0.002). Mean anteroposterior TT–TG distances were 8.3 ± 7.8 mm (symptomatic) and ? 0.5 ± 4.6 mm (control) (P < 0.0001). The symptomatic group had greater measurements of trochlear dysplasia, with lower lateral trochlear inclination, greater sulcus angle, and lower trochlear depth (all P < 0.0001). Anteroposterior TT–TG distance and trochlear depth were strongly negatively correlated (r = 0.62, R² = 0.39, P < 0.0001).ConclusionsIn asymptomatic patients, the anteroposterior TT–TG distance was ? 0.5 mm, indicating that the TG and TT were nearly in the same coronal plane. In patients with symptomatic patellar instability, the TG was almost nine millimeters anterior, and this distance correlated with measurements of trochlear dysplasia.Level of evidenceIII, case control study.     

Genetic diversity of rabies virus in different host species and geographic regions of Zambia and Zimbabwe

Virus Genes - Rabies is endemic in Zambia and Zimbabwe. The previously investigated strains of rabies virus in central Zambia belong to the Africa 1b lineage, with similar circulating virus strains...     

Mantle Cell Lymphomas Lack Expression of p27kip1, a Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor

p27^Kip1 is a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor that regulates the decision to enter S phase or withdraw from the cell cycle. In resting cells, the level of p27^Kip1 provides an inhibitory threshold above which G1 cyclin D/E/cyclin-dependent kinases accumulate before activation; however, in cycling cells, p27^Kip1 protein is sequestered by high levels of active cyclin D/cyclin-dependent kinase 4 complexes. As a group, the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors have been proposed to act as tumor suppressor genes, and several members have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a variety of human cancers. We examined p27^Kip1 expression in 116 non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas including 50 cases of MCL (40 typical and 10 blastic variants), 21 follicular lymphomas, 20 diffuse large B-cell lymphomas, 16 chronic lymphocytic leukemias, 8 marginal zone B-cell lymphomas, and 1 splenic marginal zone lymphoma, and correlated its expression with that of the proliferation marker Ki67 (MiB1) and with p53. p27^Kip1gene structure was analyzed by Southern blot in the group of MCLs. In all cases of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma other than MCL, p27^Kip1 expression was inversely related to the proliferation index as measured by Ki67. In contrast, in typical MCL, p27^Kip1 expression was negative in 35 of 40 (88%) cases, irrespective of the proliferative rate (median 15%; range 2 to 90%). Paradoxically, in the blastic variant of MCL, 8 of 10 (80%) cases showed expression of p27^Kip1, despite a high proliferation rate (median 60%; range 32 to 100%). However, the staining in most of the cases was less intense than in the reactive T lymphocytes. Deletions of p27^Kip1gene were not found in any of the 25 cases examined. p53 expression was found in 15 of 50 cases of MCL: 7 of 10 (70%) in the blastic variant and 8 of 40 (20%) in the typical MCL (70% vs. 20%, P < 0.0045). These results demonstrate that MCLs, in contrast to other non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas and normal lymphoid tissue, fail to correlate p27^Kip1 expression with the proliferation rate. This peculiar uncoupling of p27^Kip1 protein expression from the proliferation rate may be related to the high levels of cyclin D1 expressed in MCL and is likely to have profound effects on cell cycle regulation and contribute to the pathogenesis of MCL.     

Human leukocyte antigen matching and fetal loss: results of a 10 year prospective study

The role that maternal and fetal human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes play in pregnancy is unknown, but it has been suggested that fetuses whose HLA alleles do not differ from maternal alleles (i.e. histocompatible fetuses) are more likely to be aborted than fetuses with HLA alleles that differ from maternal alleles (i.e. histoincompatible fetuses). To elucidate the role of HLA compatibility in pregnancy, we tested the hypothesis that couples who match for HLA alleles or haplotypes would have reduced fertility because only these couples could produce histocompatible fetuses. We conducted a 10 year prospective study of HLA matching and pregnancy outcome in 111 Hutterite couples, providing information on 251 pregnancies. A logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the effects of HLA matching at HLA regions and loci on pregnancy outcome (fetal loss versus delivery). Significantly increased fetal loss rates were observed among couples matching for the entire 16-locus haplotype (P = 0.002). Among the individual loci, loss rates were increased among couples matching for HLA-B (P = 0.019), HLA-C (P = 0.033) and the complement component, C4 (P = 0.043). We interpret these results as evidence that matching for the entire 16-locus haplotype and/or alleles at an HLA-B-linked locus confers significant risk for fetal loss.      

Juvenile dermatomyositis: clinical,laboratorial, histological,therapeutical and evolutive parameters of 35 patients

This study was based on a prospective and a retrospective analysis of 35 patients who met Bohan and Peter criteria for juvenile dermatomyositis diagnosis.The mean follow-up time was three years ten months. Calcinosis was present in five (14.28 %) patients, cutaneous ulcers in four (11.42%), and systemic involvement in nine (27.71%) patients. All patients presented alterations in the serum levels of muscle enzymes, and all of them were submitted to muscle biopsy as a diagnostic procedure. Nine (25.71%) patients received corticotherapy prior to and 26 (74.28%) after the muscle biopsy. Chloroquine, methotrexate, cyclosporine, cyclophosphamide and intravenous immunoglobulin were used in patients with poor response to corticotherapy. Continuation of cutaneous manifestations was observed in 4 (11.43%) patients, laboratorial activity in 1 (2.85%), cutaneous and laboratorial activities in 3 (8.57%). Ten (28.57%) patients were out of activity, and 17 (48.57%) in remission at study end-point, on March 2002. Two (5.71%) patients died.     

The prognostic value of serum lysozyme activity in acute myelogenous leukemia

Serum lysozyme activity was measured in samples from adult patients with acute leukemia, malignant tumors, and in normal adults. Twenty-eight adult patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) had significantly elevated levels of lysozyme at diagnosis, and none of the adults fell within the normal range. Thirty-two patients with AML in complete remission had lysozyme levels comparable to normal adults, whereas patients with AML in relapse (eight cases) also had abnormally high levels of lysozyme activity. Ten patients with AML in remission and off therapy also had normal lysozyme levels. Three patients with acute lymphatic leukemia had normal lysozyme levels, while one child with monomyelocytic leukemia had substantially elevated lysozyme levels before treatment. It seems that in patients in remission and with normal blood values, the serum lysozyme activity is valuable for monitoring the remission.     

Some immunologic characteristics of carcinoma of the colon and rectum.

The leukocyte migration inhibition assay was used to asses in vitro cell mediated immunity in patients with surgically staged carcinoma of colon and rectum. Tumor cells and extracts were used in both the autologous and the homologous systems. The study was doubly controlled by the use of leukocytes from normal healthy volunteers and by autologous intestinal mucosa cells and extracts. The results revealed that the leukocytes of patients were significantly sensitized to autologous tumor cells but not to homologous tumor cells or extracts when compared with the leukocytes of normal healthy volunteers. Leukocytes of patients tested with autologous tumors or mucosa showed that only those of patients with Dukes C classification were significantly sensitized to their tumors. These results would suggest that patients with Dukes C classification were highly sensitized to their tumors and that carcinomas of the colon and rectum are heterogenous tumors.