Progression of clinical tuberculosis is associated with a Th2 immune response signature in combination with elevated levels of SOCS3

In this study, we explored the local cytokine/chemokine profiles in patients with active pulmonary or pleural tuberculosis (TB) using multiplex protein analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage and pleural fluid samples. Despite increased pro-inflammation compared to the uninfected controls; there was no up-regulation of IFN-γ or the T cell chemoattractant CCL5 in the lung of patients with pulmonary TB. Instead, elevated levels of IL-4 and CCL4 were associated with high mycobacteria-specific IgG titres as well as SOCS3 (suppressors of cytokine signaling) mRNA and progression of moderate-to-severe disease. Contrary, IL-4, CCL4 and SOCS3 remained low in patients with extrapulmonary pleural TB, while IFN-γ, CCL5 and SOCS1 were up-regulated. Both SOCS molecules were induced in human macrophages infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis in vitro. The Th2 immune response signature found in patients with progressive pulmonary TB could result from inappropriate cytokine/chemokine responses and excessive SOCS3 expression that may represent potential targets for clinical TB management.     

纤支镜肺泡灌洗在COPD机械通气患者中的临床应用

目的探讨纤支镜支气管肺泡灌洗(BAL)在COPD机械通气患者中的应用效果与安全性。方法选取在我院住院COPD患者90例,分为观察组和对照组,在综合治疗的基础上观察组给予纤支镜BAL,对照组给予普通灌洗,比较两者的治疗效果及安全性。结果观察组在气道阻力、机械通气时间、脱机成功率及抗生素应用时间方面明显优于对照组,(P<0.05)。观察组PaO2、PaCO2指标明显优于对照组,(P<0.05)。操作中有2例出现轻度的一过性低氧血症,1例发生窦性心动过速,未发生严重心律失常及血压明显下降等。结论 BAL技术操作较简单,创伤小,可反复进行,在COPD的诊疗中能明确病原菌并指导治疗,改善有效通气,具有很大的应用价值。     

支气管肺泡灌洗抢救重症肺炎并呼吸衰竭的临床研究

目的探讨支气管肺泡灌洗抢救重症肺炎并呼吸衰竭的临床价值。方法将37例患者随机分为灌洗组和非灌洗组,灌洗组18例在常规治疗基础上加支气管肺泡灌洗,非灌洗组19例采用常规治疗,观察两组病例的治疗效果。结果治疗48h和72h后灌洗组的PaO2和氧合指数(PaO2/FiO2)明显高于非灌洗组(P<0.01),PaCO2明显低于非灌洗组(P<0.01);灌洗组总有效率为88.8%,非灌洗组为47.4%,两组比较差异有显著性(P<0.01)。结论支气管肺泡灌洗抢救重症肺炎并呼吸衰竭,可减少使用有创机械通气,疗效确切,有较高的临床价值。     

Recognition of intoxication by alcohol counselors

Recent studies have found that police officers, bartenders, social drinkers, and trained interviewers are often unable to recognize when others are intoxicated. The present two studies were conducted to evaluate: (a) the recognition ability of alcohol counselors compared to mental health counselors, and (b) the recognition ability of less-experienced versus more-experienced alcohol counselors. Subjects viewed four videotapes of a 21-year-old male engaged in simulated counseling interviews after he was given drinks containing alcohol to achive one of four target Blood Alcohol Level (BAL) goals: .00%, .05%, .10%, .15%. Results indicated that alcohol counselors were not uniformly more accurate than mental health therapists, nor were more-experienced alcohol counselors uniformly more accurate than less-experienced alcohol councelors at recognizing intoxication or estimating BAL. In addition, subjects generally understimated the target's sober-intoxicated status and BAL when he was given alcohol, but almost every subject recognized that the target was at least moderately intoxicated when his BAL was .15%.     

Fungal infections in solid organ transplantation: An update on diagnosis and treatment

Invasive fungal infections constitute an important cause of morbidity and mortality in solid organ transplantation recipients. Since solid organ transplantation is an effective therapy for many patients with end-stage organ failure, prevention and treatment of fungal infections are of vital importance. Diagnosis and management of these infections, however, remain difficult due to the variety of clinical symptoms in addition to the lack of accurate diagnostic methods. The use of fungal biomarkers can lead to an increased diagnostic accuracy, resulting in improved clinical outcomes. The evidence for optimal prophylactic approaches remains inconclusive, which results in considerable variation in the administration of prophylaxis. The implementation of a standard protocol for prophylaxis remains difficult as previous treatment regimens, which can alter the distribution of different pathogens, affect the outcome of antifungal susceptibility testing. Furthermore, the increasing use of antifungals also contributes to incremental costs and the risk of development of drug resistance. This review will highlight risk factors, clinical manifestations and timing of fungal infections and will focus predominately on the current evidence for diagnosis and management of fungal infections.     

肺泡蛋白沉着症的临床和影像学分析

目的：探讨肺泡蛋白沉着症（PAP）的临床、影像特点以及诊断。材料和方法：对15例经纤维支气管镜活检或开胸活检病理及肺泡灌洗证实的原发性肺泡蛋白沉着症患者的胸片和CT表现进行回顾性分析。并比较全肺灌洗治疗前、后胸部影像与动脉血气、肺功能及临床表现间的关系。结果：PAP胸部影像表现呈多样化,可归纳为：地图样表现、碎石路样表现、肺实变表现、肺水肿样表现及肺间质纤维化样表现等。但肺部阴影相对稳定（即短期内如无感染,胸部阴影不会发生显著变化）,胸部影像与临床症状常不平衡。结论：肺部影像可以充分显示肺泡蛋白沉着症的特点,也是随访观察临床疗效和预后转归的最重要指标之一。临床和影像相结合可以有效确诊本病。