The association between atopy and asthma in a semirural area of Tanzania (East Africa)

BACKGROUND: Atopy is consistently associated with asthma, except in a study in Africa. We assessed the association between atopy and asthma in women from a semirural area of Tanzania (East Africa). METHODS: All pregnant women delivering at the district hospital during a 1-year period were recruited (n = 658, 60.6% of those selected). Asthma was investigated by a standard questionnaire and atopy by specific IgE (immunoglobulin E) antibodies to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Der p 1) and cockroach. RESULTS: The prevalence of wheezing chest was 10.7%; of asthma, 3.5%. Levels of specific IgE of >0.35 kU/l (73%) and high levels of total IgE (62% higher than 1000 kU/l) were highly prevalent. Specific IgE antibody levels in sera were not associated with asthma (3.8% of women with negative specific IgE to any antigen had asthma in comparison to 4.0% of women with positive specific IgE; odds ratio [OR] = 1.06, 0.35-3.22). Total IgE was not different between women with asthma and women without asthma (P=0.36). CONCLUSIONS: In tropical regions, the association between allergy and asthma is complex, and specific IgE reactivity to environmental allergens may not be related to asthma.     

Indium-111 labelled platelet scintigraphy can predict the immunological origin of fever in patients on dialysis carrying a non-functioning renal allograft

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of labelled platelet scintigraphy in the differential diagnosis of a prolonged febrile syndrome (PFS) in patients on dialysis carrying a non-functioning renal allograft. We prospectively performed an indium-111 mercaptopyridine-labelled platelet scan on 91 patients (54 men, 37 women; mean age 39.6±12 years). The mean duration of PFS was 35 days (range 7–122). Forty-six of the 91 patients underwent steroid therapy (2– 10 mg/day). Platelet labelling was carried out following Thakur’s method. Platelet scans were performed 48 h after reinjection of labelled platelets. The platelet uptake index (PUI) was calculated by dividing the cpm/pixel in the allograft ROI by cpm/pixel in a mirror background ROI. The final diagnosis of PFS was established depending on the outcome after treatment. In 61/91 patients the fever had an immunological origin because it disappeared after graft embolisation or transplantectomy. In 30/91 patients the PFS disappeared after antibiotic therapy (non-immunological origin). The PUI in patients with immunological PFS was 1.80±0.7, while in patients with non-immunological PFS it was 1.12±0.1 (P<0.05). When a PUI of ≥1.5 was considered as the threshold to establish PFS of immunological origin, the sensitivity of platelet scan was 76%, the specificity 100%, and the negative and positive predictive values 69% and 100%, respectively. In patients classified with immunological PFS who underwent steroid therapy, the PUI was significantly lower than in patients without steroids (P<0.05). These results suggest that ¹¹¹In-labelled platelet scintigraphy can accurately predict an immunological PFS in patients on dialysis carrying a non-functioning renal allograft. Therapy with steroids could reduce the sensitivity of ¹¹¹In-labelled platelet scintigraphy in detecting immunological PFS. Received 23 September and in revised form 3 November 1999     

Osteoporosis,densidad mineral ósea y complejo CKD-MBD (I): consideraciones diagnósticas

Osteoporosis (OP) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) independently influence bone and cardiovascular health. A considerable number of patients with CKD, especially those with stages 3a to 5D, have a significantly reduced bone mineral density leading to a high risk of fracture and a significant increase in associated morbidity and mortality. Independently of classic OP related to age and/or gender, the mechanical properties of bone are also affected by inherent risk factors for CKD (“uraemic OP”). In the first part of this review, we will analyse the general concepts regarding bone mineral density, OP and fractures, which have been largely undervalued until now by nephrologists due to the lack of evidence and diagnostic difficulties in the context of CKD. It has now been proven that a reduced bone mineral density is highly predictive of fracture risk in CKD patients, although it does not allow a distinction to be made between the causes which generate it (hyperparathyroidism, adynamic bone disease and/or senile osteoporosis, etc.). Therefore, in the second part, we will analyse the therapeutic indications in different CKD stages. In any case, the individual assessment of factors which represent a higher or lower risk of fracture, the quantification of this risk (i.e. using tools such as FRAX^®) and the potential indications for densitometry in patients with CKD could represent an important first step pending new clinical guidelines based on randomised studies which do not exclude CKD patients, all the while avoiding therapeutic nihilism in an area of growing importance.     

Mortality in Hemodialysis Patients with COVID-19, the Effect of Paricalcitol or Calcimimetics

Background. In COVID-19 patients, low serum vitamin D (VD) levels have been associated with severe acute respiratory failure and poor prognosis. In regular hemodialysis (HD) patients, there is VD deficiency and markedly reduced calcitriol levels, which may predispose them to worse outcomes of COVID-19 infection. Some hemodialysis patients receive treatment with drugs for secondary hyperparathyroidism, which have well known pleiotropic effects beyond mineral metabolism. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of VD status and the administration of active vitamin D medications, used to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism, on survival in a cohort of COVID-19 positive HD patients. Methods. A cross-sectional retrospective observational study was conducted from 12 March to 21 May 2020 in 288 HD patients with positive PCR for SARS-CoV2. Patients were from 52 different centers in Spain. Results. The percent of HD patients with COVID-19 was 6.1% (288 out of 4743). Mortality rate was 28.4% (81/285). Three patients were lost to follow-up. Serum 25(OH)D (calcidiol) level was 17.1 [10.6–27.5] ng/mL and was not significantly associated to mortality (OR 0.99 (0.97–1.01), p = 0.4). Patients receiving active vitamin D medications (16/94 (17%) vs. 65/191(34%), p = 0.003), including calcimimetics (4/49 (8.2%) vs. 77/236 (32.6%), p = 0.001), paricalcitol or calcimimetics (19/117 (16.2%) vs. 62/168 (36.9%); p < 0.001), and also those on both paricalcitol and calcimimetics, to treat secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPTH) (1/26 (3.8%) vs. 80/259 (30.9%), p < 0.001) showed a lower mortality rate than patients receiving no treatment with either drug. Multivariate Cox regression analysis confirmed this increased survival. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that the use of paricalcitol, calcimimetics or the combination of both, seem to be associated with the improvement of survival in HD patients with COVID-19. No correlation was found between serum VD levels and prognosis or outcomes in HD patients with COVID-19. Prospective studies and clinical trials are needed to support these findings.     

Lung cancer chemotherapy decisions in older patients: the role of patient preference and interactions with physicians

Purpose  

Lung cancer chemotherapy decisions in patients ≥70 years old are complex because of toxicity, comorbidity and the limited data on patient preferences. We examined the relationships between preferences and chemotherapy use in this group of patients.     

Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) of elderly lung cancer patients: A single-center experience

PurposeThis study investigated the association of CGA variables with function and survival in elderly lung cancer patients.Patients and methodsWe prospectively included 83 consecutive elderly patients with lung cancer who were seen at the outpatient oncology unit at the Hospital Lluis Alcanyis. The patients completed a geriatric assessment tool to measure functional status, comorbidity, cognitive function, psychological state, social support and nutritional status. The correlations of oncological and geriatric variables with survival were determined.ResultsThe median patient age was 77 years, and the mean number of comorbidities was 3. The measures of dependency were 48.2% for ADL and 69.9% for IADL. PS (p < 0.001), IADL dependency (p < 0.001), dementia (p < 0.001), depression (p < 0.001), weight loss, hypoalbuminemia, delirium and incontinence were independently associated with survival. Frail patients exhibited poorer survival (mean: 18.5 months vs. 9.1 months), but this difference was statistically not significant (p = 0.07).ConclusionsGeriatric assessment detects more information than oncological evaluation alone. Factors related to survival may assist in the classification of elderly lung cancer patients.     

Role of pre-operative imaging using 99mTc-MIBI and neck ultrasound in patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism who are candidates for subtotal parathyroidectomy

Purpose The purpose of this study was to assess whether pre-operative ^99mTc-methoxyisobutylisonitrile (MIBI) scintigraphy and neck ultrasound (US) are of value in improving the outcome of subtotal parathyroidectomy in patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism. Methods Forty-eight consecutive haemodialysis patients with severe secondary hyperparathyroidism prospectively underwent “blinded” subtotal parathyroid surgery, with 1-year follow-up to establish cure or relapse of their secondary hyperparathyroidism. Double-phase ^99mTc-MIBI scintigraphy and neck US were performed pre-operatively in all patients. When the preserved gland showed ^99mTc-MIBI uptake or an abnormal size on US, it was considered that “^99mTc-MIBI advice” and “US advice”, respectively, had not been followed. Pre-operative and follow-up parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels were obtained in all patients. All data were evaluated on a patient by patient basis. Results Four parathyroid glands were identified in each patient at primary surgery, resulting in an operative success rate of 100%. Their weight ranged from 15 to 7,300 mg (mean 1,120±900 mg). Nine of the 48 patients (19%) showed a recurrence of their secondary hyperparathyroidism. The recurrence rate was 2% (1/48) and 10% (5/48), respectively, when ^99mTc-MIBI and US advice was followed. The sensitivity, specificity, NPV and PPV for pre-operative imaging were 72%, 95%, 97% and 80% respectively for ^99mTc-MIBI, and 55%, 67%, 87% and 28% for US. Conclusion ^99mTc-MIBI scintigraphy is a reliable non-invasive exploratory tool and its preoperative use results in a significant reduction in the number of recurrences in haemodialysis patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism who are candidates for subtotal parathyroidectomy. The use of neck US did not significantly improve the results obtained with ^99mTc-MIBI alone.     

Variación de tamaño de la hiperplasia nodular focal mediante resonancia magnética

ObjectiveTo evaluate the changes in the size of focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH) during long-term magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) follow-up.Material and methodsWe reviewed 44 FNHs in 30 patients studied with MRI with at least two MRI studies at least 12 months apart. We measured the largest diameter of the lesion (in mm) in contrast-enhanced axial images and calculated the percentage of variation as the difference between the maximum diameter in the follow-up and the maximum diameter in the initial study. We defined significant variation in size as variation greater than 20%. We also analyzed predisposing hormonal factors.ResultsThe mean interval between the two imaging studies was 35 ± 2 months (range: 12-94). Most lesions (80%) remained stable during follow-up. Only 9 of the 44 lesions (20%) showed a significant variation in diameter: 7 (16%) decreased in size and 2 (4%) increased, with variations that reached the double of the initial size. The change in size was not related to pregnancy, menopause, or the use of birth control pills or corticoids.ConclusionChanges in the size of FNHs during follow-up are relatively common and should not lead to a change in the diagnosis. These variations in size seem to be independent of hormonal factors that are considered to predispose.