Heterogeneity in amount of growth factors secreted by platelets in platelet-rich plasma samples from alopecia patients

Platelet α-granules release growth factors (GFs) that promote healing and tissue regeneration. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is shown to be beneficial in treating alopecia, and however, clinical response can be inconsistent. Due to several fold enrichment of platelets secreting large quantities of GFs following PRP injections, heterogeneity in amounts of GFs secreted by platelets may contribute to inconsistent clinical responses. Herein, we evaluated factors that could potentially contribute to heterogeneous secretion of GFs by platelets. We measured platelet secretion of transforming growth factor beta1 (TGFβ1), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-BB), epidermal growth factor (EGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and fibroblast growth factor (FGF2) in aliquots of de-identified PRP samples from female patients undergoing therapy in the hair disease clinic. Although secretion of GFs by platelets was comparable in PRP samples of patients with non-cicatricial and cicatricial alopecia, a Shapiro-Wilk test for normal distribution indicated significant variability across all patient samples. The amount of GF secreted by platelets was comparable when PRP prepared from two FDA-cleared devices with distinct techniques were compared. We provide evidence of platelets secreting heterogeneous amounts of GFs within each sample as high and low secretion of random factors could be simultaneously detected. These results suggest inherent heterogeneity in secretion of GFs by platelets in patient samples that are not influenced by the device used to prepare PRP. Since some GFs could have antagonistic effects on hair growth, a balance between amounts of growth promoting and inhibiting factors may be crucial in determining clinical response to PRP therapy.     

MRI技术对高原人群颅脑脱髓鞘疾病回顾性研究

目的研究高原地区,脱髓鞘疾病与中老年人疾病等因素的关系。方法对我院所有接受过磁共振头部扫描的病人进行评估,确诊出40位脱髓鞘疾病患者,并对大脑7个部位的脱髓鞘疾病按严重性分4级打分,统计临床数据,最后运用统计学方法分析其相关性。结果在40例患者中,出现在大脑半球、放射冠、半卵圆中心和脑室前后角的脑白质损伤频率最多,分别占总量的50%、67.5%、77.5%和87.5%。脑白质损伤患者的平均年龄为47.1岁,这比世界其他地区都有明显的提前。男性患者将近是女性患者的3倍(29∶11)。年龄、慢性高原红细胞增多症、收缩压、脑梗塞与脑白质损伤正相关(P<0.05)。结论对于高海拔地区,有效控制高原心血管疾病的发生对于减少颅脑脱髓鞘疾病的发生具有重要意义。     

Vaccine-associated paralytic poliomyelitis in a patient with MHC class II deficiency.

Vaccine-associated paralytic poliomyelitis (VAPP) is a rare complication of oral polio vaccine. We describe a fatal case of VAPP in an 8-month-old boy with Major Histocompatibility Class II deficiency. The isolated poliovirus was a Sabin type 2-type 1 recombinant that showed 1.4% VP1 divergence from Sabin type 2.     

Nonpancreatic Pancreatic Panniculitis: An Incidental Finding in Individuals without Pancreatic Disease? A Case Series and Review of the Literature

Pancreatic panniculitis occurs in up to three percent of all patients with pancreatic disease. This cutaneous eruption, as implied by the name, is almost exclusively encountered in the context of pancreatic disorders, such as pancreatitis or pancreatic carcinoma. We report three cases in which histopathologic examination demonstrated hallmarks of pancreatic panniculitis occurring in patients without any history or evidence of pancreatic disorder. These nonpancreatic pancreatic panniculitis eruptions might be underreported in the literature.     

Localized Bullous Pemphigoid Following Orthopedic Surgery

Bullous pemphigoid is an autoimmune condition whereby the immune system forms antibodies that target the skin, resulting in the formation of blisters in a generalized and symmetric pattern. Localized bullous pemphigoid can occur in special circumstances. Here, we describe two patients that developed localized bullous pemphigoid in one lower extremity following orthopedic surgery. We propose that underlying edema following orthopedic surgery is a potential trigger for localized bullous pemphigoid.     

Effect of a cognitive behavioral intervention on reducing symptom severity during chemotherapy.

PURPOSE: To describe a randomized trial of a cognitive behavioral intervention on reducing symptom severity among patients diagnosed with solid tumors and undergoing a first course of chemotherapy and to determine whether the intervention had an additive or interactive effect on symptom severity in the presence of supportive care medications. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients (N = 237) were accrued from comprehensive and community cancer centers, interviewed, and randomly assigned to either the experimental intervention (n = 118) or conventional care (n = 119). A symptom severity index, based on summed severity scores across 15 symptoms, was the primary outcome. Each patient's site of cancer, stage at diagnosis, chemotherapy protocols, and use of supportive medications were learned from medical records. RESULTS: Groups were equivalent at baseline, and attrition by characteristics by group was not different. The proportion of patients not receiving chemotherapy at 10 and 20 weeks did not differ by group. At the 10- and 20-week observations, there was a significant interaction between the experimental group and baseline symptom severity. Patients in the experimental group who entered the trial with higher symptom severity reported significantly lower severity at 10 and 20 weeks. Controlling for chemotherapy treatment status at follow-up and supportive care medications did not alter the effect of the experimental intervention. CONCLUSION: Compared with conventional care alone, the experimental intervention was effective among patients who entered the trial with higher levels of symptom severity. Age, sex, site or stage of cancer, and supportive medications did not modify the effect of this cognitive behavioral intervention on symptom severity.     

Exercise Improves Self-Reported Sexual Function Among Physically Active Adults

BackgroundSexual dysfunction is common among adults and takes a toll on quality of life for both men and women.AimTo determine whether higher levels of weekly cardiovascular exercise are protective against self-reported sexual dysfunction among men and women.MethodsWe conducted an international online, cross-sectional survey of physically active men and women between April and December 2016, assessing exercise activity categorized into sextiles of weekly metabolic equivalent-hours. Odds ratios (ORs) of sexual dysfunction for each activity sextile compared with the lowest sextile were calculated using multivariable logistic regression, controlling for age, body mass index, diabetes mellitus, tobacco/alcohol use, sport, and marital status.Main Outcome MeasuresFemale sexual dysfunction was defined as a score ≤26.55 on the Female Sexual Function Inventory and erectile dysfunction (ED) was defined as a score ≤21 on the Sexual Health Inventory for Men.Results3,906 men and 2,264 women (median age 41–45 and 31–35 years, respectively) met the inclusion criteria for the study. Men in sextiles 2–6 had reduced odds of ED compared with the reference sextile in adjusted analysis (P_trend = .03), with an OR of 0.77 (95% CI = 0.61–0.97) for sextile 4 and 0.78 (95% CI = 0.62–0.99) for sextile 6, both statistically significant. Women in higher sextiles had a reduced adjusted OR of female sexual dysfunction (P_trend = .02), which was significant in sextile 4 (OR = 0.70; 95% CI = 0.51–0.96). A similar pattern held true for orgasm dissatisfaction (P_trend < .01) and arousal difficulty (P_trend < .01) among women, with sextiles 4–6 reaching statistical significance in both.Clinical ImplicationsMen and women at risk for sexual dysfunction regardless of physical activity level may benefit by exercising more rigorously.Strengths & LimitationsStrengths include using a large international sample of participants with a wide range of physical activity levels. Limitations include the cross-sectional design, and results should be interpreted in context of the study population of physically active adults.ConclusionHigher cardiovascular exercise levels in physically active adults are inversely associated with ED by self-report in men and protective against female sexual dysfunction in women.Fergus KB, Gaither TW, Baradaran N, et al. Exercise Improves Self-Reported Sexual Function Among Physically Active Adults. J Sex Med 2019;16:1236–1245.