CHAPARRAL-INDUCED HEPATIC INJURY

Two patients with hepatic injury after ingestion of chaparral leaf are presented. The first patient, a 71-yr-old man. developed biopsy-proven hepatitis 3 months after ingesting chaparral leaf daily. His illness resolved with discontinuation of the herb and later recurred with rechallenge. The second patient is a 42-yr-old woman who developed hepatitis 2 months after chaparral leaf ingestion and recovered completely after discontinuation of the compound. Both patients have remained well with abstinence from chaparral. These reports provide evidence of the hepatotoxicity of this herb and stress the need for awareness of the potential harm from such nonprecription remedies.     

Sarcoid involvement of the supraorbital nerve: MR and histologic findings.

We report the MR and histologic findings of neurosarcoidosis presenting as a mass involving the supraorbital nerve in a 29-year-old woman in whom this was the first manifestation of the disease. The features and associations of neurosarcoidosis and the response to treatment are discussed.     

Biochemical mis-identification of Brucella melitensis and subsequent laboratory-acquired infections.

Brucella species are mis-identified in the API 20NE system as Moraxella phenylpyruvica (profile number 1200004). Since some Brucella spp. grow readily in routine blood culture medium and may be isolated from patients without clinically obvious brucellosis, the risk of laboratory-acquired brucellosis exists. We describe two such cases.     

CNS tumours in south-western Finland: high location, high incidence

The Department of Paediatrics at the University Central Hospital of Turku, Finland has 130 000 children under 17 y of age within its catchment area. We collected all 103 cases of newly diagnosed CNS tumours from the 15-y period of 1981–95. The incidence was 5. 3: 100 000, a figure twofold those usually presented. During the period 1981 -85 the incidence was lower (4) than during the subsequent 5-y periods (5. 7 and 6. 2). There were no statistical differences between the incidences of the supra- vs infratentorial brain tumours. Optic glioma was unusually common (17%, CI 13. 9–20%).