Anton’s syndrome due to a giant anterior fossa meningioma. The problem of routine use of advanced diagnostic imaging in psychiatric care

Summary We present a case of blindness and Anton’s syndrome in a psychiatric patient with late diagnosis of a giant frontal meningioma. The criteria for advanced diagnostic imaging in the psychiatric population are discussed. We conclude that MR or CT scan is indicated in psychiatric in-patients who fail to improve with standard psychiatric treatment. This strategy should be submitted to a cost-benefit analysis.     

WHAT KIND OF BENEFIT DO WE EXPECT FOR PERORAL PANCREATOSCOPY IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF INTRADUCTAL PAPILLARY MUCINOUS TUMOR OF THE PANCREAS?

Intraductal papillary mucinous tumor (IPMT) of the pancreas is characterized by slow growth and a relatively favorable prognosis, however, invasive cancer originating in an IPMT is associated with a poor prognosis. Although various parameters in imaging modalities have been advocated to differentiate between benign IPMN and malignant ones, it is not easy to obtain definite diagnosis based on these parameters. Peroral pancreatoscopy (POPS) allows a clear and direct visualization of the pancreatic duct, providing useful information regarding tumor nature in IPMT. The authors have studied the usefulness of POPS in the diagnosis of IPMT. Nevertheless, its usefulness is not necessarily widely accepted and the significance of POPS is still controversial. In this review, the authors intended to address the diagnostic value of POPS and to clarify its role in the diagnosis of IPMT. The authors think treatment of IPMT can be improved by introducing POPS because the determination of surgical procedure as well as the area of resection based on the preoperative diagnosis of the involvement of the main pancreatic duct and branch duct is inevitable.     

Sensitivity and specificity of a self-administered questionnaire for familial screening of adult-onset dystonia.

We developed a self-administered questionnaire for screening the most common adult-onset dystonias. It was tested in 90 first-degree relatives of 22 adult-onset dystonia patients, yielding 79% sensitivity and 94% specificity. Simulation of a case-finding procedure based on serial application of the questionnaire and clinical examination of both subjects screening positive and subjects screening negative who had < 8 years of schooling increased sensitivity to 95% and specificity to 100%. This questionnaire may be an important screening resource for familial aggregation studies to be used in the context of a complex case-finding procedure.     

The multiform and variable patterns of onset of orofacial granulomatosis

BACKGROUND: The recurrent chronic orofacial swelling caused by orofacial granulomatosis (OFG) can cause significant cosmetic and functional problems but can be prevented if the disease is diagnosed early and promptly treated. Although the enlargement of the lips is described to be the most common presenting complaint, the clinical onset of OFG may be characterized by minor associated mucosal and neurological manifestations, making early diagnosis very difficult or, sometimes, merely presumable. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical manifestations of 19 patients with OFG, who were examined at our institution between 1998 and 2002, in order to determine their initial manifestations and presenting symptoms. RESULTS: A total of 10 patients showed classical recurrent enlargement of the lips (six lower; four upper) as presenting symptom. In the other nine patients, OFG onset was characterized by transient unilateral facial nerve palsy (two cases), intraoral manifestations (two cases), recurrent swelling of the periorbital area (two cases), of the chin (one case), of the zygomatic area (one case), and of the cheeks (one case). CONCLUSION: Our data underlined that OFG onset could be frequently characterized by widely variable, multiform, and temporary clinical findings. Involvement of atypical sites of the orofacial region and presence of single minor manifestations may occur as presenting symptoms, often preceding the development of traditional clinical findings.     

Spinocerebellar ataxia types 2 and 3 segregating simultaneously in a single family.

Spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) types 2 and 3 are autosomal-dominant neurodegenerative disorders caused by mutations in two different genes. We identified mutations for SCA2 and SCA3 segregating simultaneously in a single Brazilian family. The index patient had SCA2, whereas her two second-degree cousins had SCA3. Disease was more rapidly progressive in the SCA2 patient, who presented severe brainstem and pancerebellar atrophy, as opposed to the two SCA3 patients, who had only mild cerebellar vermian atrophy. In such situations, molecular confirmation of all patients may avoid misdiagnosis of SCA subtypes and eventual errors in predictive testing of unaffected family members.     

创伤性迟发性颅内血肿的诊断和治疗

目的 探讨创伤性、迟发性颅内血肿的早期诊断和治疗的临床效果。方法 对22例病人的发病年龄、性别、伤因、早期诊断和治疗效果进行了回顾性分析。经过2—6个月，按GOS评定治疗效果。结果 良好者12例，中残者5例，重残者1例，植物生存者1例，死亡者3例，死亡率为14％。结论 早期诊断和治疗本病对于提高治愈率和降低死亡率至关重要，早期手术治疗本病，乃是多数病人首选的治疗方法。     

Primary malignant melanoma of the bladder

Primary malignant melanomma of bladder is extremely rare: 18 cases are reported to date. An 82 year-old man underwent trans-urethral resection of bladder for a bleeding tumor of the posterior wall. Histological diagnosis was melanoma of the bladder. There was no history of previous or regressed cutaneous malignant melanoma. Margins of the bladder lesion contained atypical melanocytes similar to those commonly seen in the periphery of primary mucous membrane lesions. Clinical studies and radiological examinations were negative for other primary site of melanoma. The patient had a bladder recurrence that was consistent with primary tumor and died of widespread disease 9 months after diagnosis.     

MPO和NAT2基因多态性与成人急性白血病易感性

目的研究髓过氧化物酶（MPO）和N-乙酰基转移酶2（NAT2）基因多态性与成人急性白血病易感性的关系.方法用1∶1配对病例-对照研究方法,收集成人急性白血病患者和对照各139例,应用聚合酶链-内切酶片段（PCR-RFLP）方法分析病例组和对照组MPO和NAT2的基因多态性,比较不同基因型与成人急性白血病易感性.结果 MPO-463A等位基因分布频率病例组低于对照组,MPO（G-463A）各基因型在病例组与对照组中的分布差异有统计学意义（χ^2=7.026,P〈0.05,OR=0.505,95%CI=0.325～0.847）.NAT2乙酰化表型频率在病例组与对照组的分布差异无统计学意义（χ^2=2.260,P〉0.05）;但NAT2＊5 481T等位基因和NAT2＊6 590A等位基因分布频率病例组高于对照组（P〈0.05）.结论 MPO与成人急性白血病易感性相关,携带MPO（G-463A）突变基因型（GA/AA）个体可降低白血病的发病风险;NAT2乙酰化表型可能与白血病的易感性无关,但NAT2＊5（C481T）、NAT2＊6（G590A）单核苷酸突变频率病例组明显高于对照组.     

Do children with primary nocturnal enuresis have a retarded bone age? A cross‐sectional study

OBJECTIVE: Nocturnal enuresis is a common pediatric problem, the etiology of which is unclear. In recent years, various studies have been published stating that children with nocturnal enuresis exhibit growth and skeletal maturation retardation. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, we included 27 patients (16 boys, 11 girls) between the ages of 6 and 14 years who had presented with primary nocturnal enuresis (PNE) complaints. We included in the evaluation 19 healthy subjects (12 boys, 7 girls), who were the siblings of the children with PNE, as the control group. RESULTS: The patients in both groups were similar in chronological age, bone age, height and weight, with no significant difference between groups (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: The two groups in our study consisted of the same genetic background. Thus, our results were found to be different from the previous studies. We have concluded that there is no direct relationship between enuresis nocturnal and skeletal maturation.