Factors associated with psychological and behavioral functioning in people with type 2 diabetes living in France

Background  

To identify demographic and clinical factors associated with psychological and behavioral functioning (PBF) in people with type 2 diabetes living in France.     

CD10 expression by fusiform stromal cells in nasopharyngeal carcinoma correlates with tumor progression

CD10 is a cell surface zinc metalloprotease expressed through a variety of normal cell types, including lymphoid precursor cells, germinal center B lymphocytes, and some epithelial cells. Many studies showed that CD10 expression is associated with the tumor progression of a large variety of cancers, such as breast and colorectal carcinomas. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of CD10 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). The expression of CD10 was immunohistochemically examined in 47 paraffin embedded NPC biopsies from Tunisian patients compared with 16 reactional nasopharyngeal mucosas. A significant expression of CD10 was observed in stromal fusiform cells in 46.8% of NPC cases but was not in malignant and normal epithelial cells. There was no significant expression of CD10 in control group. The stromal expression of CD10 was more frequently detected in advanced clinical stage than early stage (56 vs 23%; p=0.04) and in patients older than 25 years than in patients under 25 years (56.2 vs 26.5%; p=0.05). Our study is the first in investigating CD10 expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma and showed that CD10 expression by stromal cells in this malignancy play an important role in tumor progression, particularly in older patients.This work was in part presented at the East–West Symposium on Nasopharyngeal Cancer, Toronto, Canada, June 16–18, 2005.     

Chromosome abnormalities in one thousand infertile males with nonobstructive sperm disorders

One hundred thirty-five in 1,000 (13.5%) Tunisian male infertile patients with nonobstructive spermatogenesis disorders were found to have chromosomal abnormalities.     

Ultrasound assessment of bladder wall thickness as a screening test for detrusor instability

Purpose

The aim of the current study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of transvaginal ultrasound measurement of bladder wall thickness (BWT) in diagnosis of over active bladder (OAB).

Methods

The current prospective study was conducted at Ain Shams University Maternity Hospital over 2 years. Patients presented to the urogynecology outpatient clinic with symptoms of urinary frequency, urgency, nocturia and/or urge incontinence were included in this study. The allocated patients were divided into two groups; Group 1(study group): fifty (50) patients with urodynamic diagnosis of detrusor instability (OAB) were included. Group 2 (control): fifty (50) patients with urodynamic diagnosis of stress incontinence were included. Using a transvaginal probe, BWT was measured in three sites at the thickest part of (a) the dome of the bladder (b) the trigone, and (c) the anterior wall of the bladder. An average of the three measurements was considered as the mean bladder thickness.

Results

A total of 100 patients with lower urinary symptoms were finally analyzed. There were no statistical significant differences between both groups regarding age, parity and body mass index, while there was statistically longer disease duration in group 2. Excluding urgency, there was statistical significant difference (P < 0.001) regarding lower urinary tract symptoms namely frequency, urgency incontinence, coital incontinence and nocturia. Patients in group 1 were more positive to symptoms of frequency, urgency incontinence, and nocturia, while patients in group 2 were more positive regarding coital incontinence. The thickness of trigon, dome, anterior wall and mean BWT was significantly higher in group 1 when compared to group 2. Receiver operator characteristics curve was constructed for estimating the association between mean BWT and prediction of OAB in patients with lower urinary tract symptoms. Mean BWT at 4.78 mm was considered as best cut-off value for prediction of OAB with sensitivity of 90 % and specificity of 78 %. Mean BWT was significantly associated with OAB > 4.78 mm as denoted by the significantly large area under the curve [AUC], AUC was 0.905.

Conclusion

In women with lower urinary tract symptom, transvaginal ultrasounds measured mean BWT seems to be an effective non invasive diagnostic tool for prediction of OAB.     

Poncet’s disease: A challenging cause of polyarthritis in a Moroccan patient

Background

Poncet’s disease is a reactive polyarthritis associated to active tuberculosis with excluded presence of mycobacterium in the joints and bones affected; it is an infrequent form of tuberculosis and challenging diagnosis condition with unknown pathogenesis. We report a case of Poncet’s disease in Moroccan patient to contribute data which could result in a consensus of clinical criteria.

DNA methyltransferase DNMT3b protein overexpression as a prognostic factor in patients with diffuse large B‐cell lymphomas

Diffuse large B‐cell lymphomas (DLBCL) are the most common type of aggressive lymphomas, with considerable heterogeneity in clinical presentation, molecular characteristics, and outcome. Previous studies have showed significant correlations between DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) overexpression and unfavorable prognosis in human cancers. Therefore, we investigated in this study the biological and prognostic significance of DNMT1, DNMT3a, and DNMT3b protein expression in DLBCL. DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry in 81 DLBCL cases and correlated with clinicopathological parameters. Kaplan–Meier curves were used to estimate survival rates, and the Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to evaluate the prognostic impact of DNMT expression. Our results showed that overexpression of DNMT1, DNMT3a, and DNMT3b were detected in 48%, 13%, and 45% of investigated cases, respectively. DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) and DNMT3b overexpression was significantly correlated with advanced clinical stages (P = 0.028 and P = 0.016, respectively). Moreover, concomitant expression of DNMT1 and DNMT3b was significantly correlated with resistance to treatment (P = 0.015). With regard to survival rates, although data was available only for 40 patients, DNMT3b overexpression was significantly correlated with shorter overall survival (P = 0.006) and progression‐free survival (P = 0.016). Interestingly, multivariate analysis demonstrated that DNMT3b overexpression was an independent prognostic factor for predicting shortened overall survival (P = 0.004) and progression‐free survival (P = 0.024). In conclusion, DNMT3b overexpression was identified as an independent prognostic factor for predicting shortened survival of patients with DLBCL and could be, therefore, useful in identifying patients who would benefit from aggressive therapy. (Cancer Sci 2010)     

Effects of combined stress during intense training on cellular immunity, hormones and respiratory infections

OBJECTIVES: This study was designed to determine immune and hormonal changes and their relationship with the incidence of upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) during an extremely stressful military training (3 weeks of physical conditioning followed by a 5-day combat course with energy restriction, sleep deprivation and psychological stress). METHODS: Blood samples were collected from 21 cadets (21 +/- 2 years old) before training and after the combat course for analysis of leukocyte and lymphocyte subpopulations, serum cytokines [interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-1beta and IL-10], and hormones [catecholamines, cortisol, leptin, total insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I), prolactin, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and testosterone]. Symptoms of URTI were recorded from health logs and medical examinations during training. RESULTS: After the combat course, total leukocyte and neutrophil counts were significantly increased while total lymphocytes were unchanged. In lymphocyte subsets, NK cells were reduced (p < 0.01), while CD4+ and CD19+ (B) cells were increased. Levels of IL-6 were increased (p < 0.01), while those of IL-1beta and IL-10 were unchanged. Norepinephrine and dopamine levels were increased, while those of cortisol were reduced. Levels of leptin, testosterone, prolactin and total IGF-I were reduced, while those of DHEAS were increased. The incidence of URTI increased during the training (chi(2) = 53.48, p < 0.05). After training data analysis showed a significant correlation between URTIs and NK cells (p = 0.0023). Training-induced changes in immune and hormonal parameters were correlated. CONCLUSIONS: Blood NK cell levels are related to increased respiratory infections during physical training in a multistressor environment. The training-induced decreases in immunostimulatory hormone levels may have triggered immunosuppression.