Systematic review of methods to diagnose infection in foot ulcers in diabetes.

AIM: To undertake a systematic review of the diagnostic performance of clinical examination, sample acquisition and sample analysis in infected foot ulcers in diabetes. METHODS: Nineteen electronic databases plus other sources were searched. To be included, studies had to fulfil the following criteria: (i) compare a method of clinical assessment, sample collection or sample analysis with a reference standard; (ii) recruit diabetic individuals with foot ulcers; (ii) present 2 x 2 diagnostic data. Studies were critically appraised using a 12-item checklist. RESULTS: Three eligible studies were identified, one each on clinical examination, sample collection and sample analysis. For all three, study groups were heterogeneous with respect to wound type and a small proportion of participants had foot ulcers due to diabetes. No studies identified an optimum reference standard. Other methodological problems included non-blind interpretation of tests and the time lag between index and reference tests. Individual signs or symptoms of infection did not prove to be useful tests when assessed against punch biopsy as the reference standard. The wound swab did not perform well when assessed against tissue biopsy. Semiquantitative analysis of wound swab might be a useful alternative to quantitative analysis. The limitations of these findings and their impact on recommendations from relevant clinical guidelines are discussed. CONCLUSION: Given the importance of this topic, it is surprising that only three eligible studies were identified. It was not possible to describe the optimal methods of diagnosing infection in diabetic patients with foot ulceration from the evidence identified in this systematic review.     

Alveolar hydatid disease of the liver: Brief review and spectrum of adjacent organ invasion

The purpose of this study is to show the spectrum of adjacent organ invasion and to make a brief review of hepatic alveolar hydatid disease (AHD), using CT and MR imaging. We retrospectively reviewed CT and MR images of three patients with various adjacent organ invasions surgically and histologically proven to be AHD. Local invasion to right kidney and adrenal, right hemidiaphragm and lung were detected in one patient, right adrenal in another patient and gall bladder, duodenum, gastric wall and pancreas invasion in the other. AHD may rarely extend to the gall bladder, stomach, duodenum, pancreas, right adrenal and kidney, diaphragm, pleura and lung. The extension of the disease outside the liver is usually encountered in patients with large, peripherally located masses in the advanced stage of the disease.     

小儿腮腺炎并发中枢神经系统感染52例临床分析

目的:探讨小儿腮腺炎并发中枢神经系统感染的临床特点.方法:对52例小儿腮腺炎并发中枢神经系统感染的临床资料进行回顾性总结分析.结果:3～7月份为小儿腮腺炎并发中枢神经系统感染的发病高峰季节(92.31%).发病年龄以6～12岁为主(82.69%),多发生于腮腺肿痛3天以上伴有持续发热者(78.85%),少数患者同时有其它脏器的损害,一般治疗疗效较好.结论:腮腺炎极易并发中枢神经系统感染,年长儿发生率高,应推广接种流腮活疫苗降低发病率.     

Intracranial actinomycosis in juvenile patients Case report and review of the literature

A case of actinomycotic brain infection in a juvenile patient is described. Cases of actinomycosis affecting the head and neck are rare, particularly in juvenile patients. In this case complete resolution of the infection was achieved by means of surgical treatment and prolonged antibiotic therapy. The authors emphasize the importance of a combined approach for treatment of this unusual brain infection and stress the difficulties involved in the diagnosis of this pathology. Received: 3 November 1997     

Congenital endophthalmitis following maternal shellfish ingestion

Purpose: To highlight an unusual organism causing a unilateral endophthalmitis by transplacental spread.
Method: We report a case of Plesiomonas shigelloides endophthalmitis, presenting in a newborn, with co-existing septicaemia and meningitis. There was a significant maternal history of diarrhoea associated with the ingestion of oysters 2 weeks prior to delivery.
Result: The endophthalmitis was treated with parenteral antibiotics and topical mydriatics with complete resolution, although subsequent assessment of the affected eye suggests a poor visual outcome.
Conclusion: Endophthalmitis in the newborn is an unusual clinical finding and usually presents with other manifestations of bacteraemia. Plesiomonas shigelloides is fortunately an infrequent cause of neonatal infection, but is associated with a high degree of morbidity and mortality. We postulate that this neonate acquired P. shigelloides via the transplacental route, and suggest that this organism be included in the list of 'other' causes of transplacental infection that has been abbreviated to 'O' in the acronym TORCH.     

Nephrotic syndrome in a mother and her infant: relationship with cytomegalovirus infection

This case report describes infantile nephrotic syndrome (NS) in a baby girl with a clinically severe cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Culture of the baby's urine was positive for CMV and IgM anti-CMV antibodies were detected. After an unsuccessful course of corticosteroids, gancyclovir treatment was started and a remission of cutaneous, pulmonary, and renal symptoms was achieved. As the mother also developed NS at the end of pregnancy, a common etiology could be postulated, although there were no signs of recent CMV infection in the mother, only anti-CMV IgG. The relationship between CMV infection and glomerular disease is still unclear: NS may represent another manifestation of CMV disease.     

Susceptibility to ketoconazole of Candida albicans strains from sequentially followed HIV-1 patients with recurrent oral candidosis

The MIC values of the antifungal drug ketoconazole were evaluated on 66 Candida albicans strains. These strains were isolated from 26 HIV-1 infected patients with oral recurrent candidosis. Each episode of oral candidosis observed in these patients was orally treated with ketoconazole (200 mg/day) until the clinical disappearance of the lesions. The most frequent MIC values were 20 micrograms/ml and 10 micrograms/ml, observed in 37 and 19 isolates respectively. Only strains from five patients showed changes in their susceptibility to ketoconazole. This fact could indicate that a different strain causes the subsequent reappearance of the oral lesions, rather than the drug selecting resistant fungal strains. Our results stress the role of host characteristics in the occurrence of candidal infections, pointing to the progressing failure of the immunological response as the most important factor responsible for the recurrence of oral candidosis during HIV-1 infection.     

甲磺酸帕珠沙星注射液治疗急性细菌性感染有效性和安全性的多中心临床研究

目的评价甲磺酸帕珠沙星注射液治疗急性细菌性呼吸系统、泌尿生殖系统感染的有效性、安全性。方法采用随机单盲平行对照多中心试验方法。选择急性细菌性呼吸系统、泌尿生殖系统感染患者213例，可评价病例209例，随机编人试验组或对照组。试验组101例．每日1次给予甲磺酸帕珠沙星注射液300mg，iv，gtt，bid；对照组108例，每日1次给予加替沙星注射液200mg，iv，gtt，bid。疗程7～10d。结果甲磺酸帕珠沙星组、加替沙星组有效率分别为94．06％（95／101）和90．74％（98／108）；痊愈率分别为67．33％（68／101）和70．37％（76／108）；细菌清除率分别为94．62％（88／93）和93．62％（88／94）；不良反应发生率分别为7，69％（8／104）和5．50％（6／109）。两组有效性、安全性相似（P〉0．05）。结论甲磺酸帕珠沙星注射液治疗急性细菌性呼吸系统、泌尿生殖系统感染有效、安全，与加替沙星相当。     

Naturally occuring antibodies against nerve growth factor in human and rabbit sera: comparison between control and herpes simplex virus-infected patients

Antibodies against nerve growth factor (NGF) in sera were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), by their isolation after passage of sera through NGF immunoadsorbent columns and by their specificity to bind and immunoprecipitate mouse NGF as well as to stain by immunohistochemical methods cellular sites of NGF synthesis. Increased levels of anti-NGF antibodies were found in sera of herpes simplex virus (HSV)-infected patients but not in HSV-inoculated rabbits. As HSV latency is known to be promoted by NGF in vitro, these results may suggest that anti-NGF antibodies modulate the cytokine function of NGF and thus might play a role in HSV infection. The biological function of circulating antibodies against NGF, in general, is now open to future investigation.