Association of Early Kidney Allograft Failure with Preformed IgA Antibodies to β2-Glycoprotein I

In the current immunosuppressive therapy era, vessel thrombosis is the most common cause of early graft loss after renal transplantation. The prevalence of IgA anti–β₂-glycoprotein I antibodies (IgA-aB2GPI-ab) in patients on dialysis is elevated (>30%), and these antibodies correlate with mortality and cardiovascular morbidity. To evaluate the effect of IgA-aB2GPI-ab in patients with transplants, we followed all patients transplanted from 2000 to 2002 in the Hospital 12 de Octubre prospectively for 10 years. Presence of IgA-aB2GPI-ab in pretransplant serum was examined retrospectively. Of 269 patients, 89 patients were positive for IgA-aB2GPI-ab (33%; group 1), and the remaining patients were negative (67%; group 2). Graft loss at 6 months post-transplant was significantly higher in group 1 (10 of 89 versus 3 of 180 patients in group 2; P=0.002). The most frequent cause of graft loss was thrombosis of the vessels, which was observed only in group 1 (8 of 10 versus 0 of 3 patients in group 2; P=0.04). Multivariate analysis showed that the presence of IgA-aB2GPI-ab was an independent risk factor for early graft loss (P=0.04) and delayed graft function (P=0.04). There were no significant differences regarding patient survival between the two groups. Graft survival was similar in both groups after 6 months. In conclusion, patients with pretransplant IgA-aB2GPI-ab have a high risk of early graft loss caused by thrombosis and a high risk of delayed graft function. Therefore, pretransplant IgA-aB2GPI-ab may have a detrimental effect on early clinical outcomes after renal transplantation.     

Efectividad de un nuevo modelo de derivación telefónica compartida entre atención primaria y atención hospitalaria

Aim

The purpose of this study is to find out whether telephone referral from Primary Health Care to Internal Medicine Consult manages to reduce waiting days as compared to traditional referral. This study also aims to know how acceptable is the telephone referral to general practitioners and their patients.

Volume et profil de consommation d’alcool des élèves et des camarades scolaires comme prédicteurs de l’agression et de la victimisation: une analyse multiniveaux auprès d’adolescents suisses

Volume and profile of alcohol consumption among students and classmates as predictors of aggression and victimization: a multilevel analysis among Swiss adolescents

Objective:  

To test the effects of the volume of alcohol consumption and drinking patterns on alcohol-related aggression and victimization, both at the individual and class levels.     

Fruits and vegetables moderate lipid cardiovascular risk factor in hypertensive patients

Hyperlipidemia is a major risk factor in etiology of cardiovascular disease. Previous studies have shown association between vegetarian diet and low total serum cholesterol as well as LDL-cholesterol which is a pointer to low risk of cardiovascular disease. Dietary fiber, antioxidants and other classes of nutrients have been reported to ameliorate cardiovascular risk factors. Fruits and vegetables being rich sources of fiber and antioxidants have been the focus in intervention studies. The current work reports the effect local fruits and vegetables on cardiovascular risk factors in African hypertensive subjects in an 8 week study. Though there was no significant difference in the Body Mass Index and HDL-cholesterol at the end of the eighth week, there were significant reductions (P < 0.05) in serum triglycerides (125.87 ± 6.0 to108.27 ± 5.49 mgdL^-1); total serum cholesterol (226.60 ± 6.15 to 179.20 ± 5.78) and LDL-cholesterol (135.69 ± 5.56 to 93.07 ± 7.18 mgdL^-1). We concluded that consumption of combination of local fruits and vegetables may reduce the incidence of cardiovascular risk factors in Africans.     

PINK1 mutations in sporadic early-onset Parkinson's disease.

Pathogenic PINK1 mutations have been described in PARK6-linked Parkinson's disease (PD) patients of Asian origin. However, data on the frequency of PINK1 mutations in sporadic early-onset Parkinson's disease (EOPD) Asian patients are lacking. The objectives of this study were to report the frequency of PINK1 mutations of sporadic EOPD in an Asian cohort comprising of ethnic Chinese, Malays, and Indians, and to highlight a PINK1-positive patient who presented with restless legs symptoms. Eighty consecutive sporadic EOPD patients from the movement disorder clinics of two major tertiary institutions in the country were included. We performed sequence analysis of all the coding and exon-intron junctions of the PINK1 using specific primer sets. In addition, we genotyped polymorphisms detected from the analysis in a group of sporadic PD patients and controls. Three different mutations (two homozygous nonsense and one heterozygous missense) in the putative kinase domain were found in three patients, giving a 3.7% frequency of PINK1 mutations in our EOPD cohort. All the mutations were absent in 200 healthy controls. One patient with a novel homozygous nonsense PINK1 mutation presented unusually with restless legs symptoms. Separately, analysis of the frequency of four PINK1 polymorphisms in a group of sporadic PD and controls did not reveal any significant differences. We highlight a 3.7% frequency of PINK1 mutations in an Asian cohort (ethnic Chinese, Malay, and Indian) of EOPD. The phenotypic spectrum associated with PINK1-positive patients may be wider than previously reported. Polymorphisms of PINK1 do not appear to modulate risk of PD in our population.     

调整给药时间减轻顺铂肾毒性的研究

目的　观察不同给药时间对顺铂肾毒性的影响。　方法　 1 6例癌症患者分为两组各 8例 ,分别在上午 1 0时或下午 8时静滴 6 0mg m2 顺铂 ,3～ 4周后作第 2周期化疗时交换给药时间 ,以尿 β2 微球蛋白浓度作为肾小管功能改变的指标。　结果　治疗前两组的尿 β2 微球蛋白浓度均在 2 0 0 μg L以下。治疗后 ,上午 1 0时给药组的尿β2 微球蛋白浓度在第 1周期为 4 96± 6 6 μg L ,第 2周期为 5 0 4± 74 μg L ,下午 8时给药组分别为 2 77± 4 3μg L(t=3.6 6 ,P <0 .0 1 )和 2 83± 39μg L(t=3.6 3,P <0 .0 1 )。 　结论　不同时间给药对顺铂的肾毒性有显著影响 ,下午 8时给药可明显减轻顺铂的肾毒性。     

谷胱苷肽S转移酶在口腔鳞癌中的表达

目的　研究异型增生程度不同的口腔白斑和不同分级的鳞癌中谷胱苷肽S转移酶π(GST π)的表达 ,探讨GST π在口腔鳞癌发生发展中的作用。　方法　采用免疫S -P法 ,对 5 4例轻、中、重度异型增生 ,4 7例高、中、低分化的口腔鳞癌 ,7例口腔粘膜上皮单纯增生患者组织进行GST π检测。　结果　口腔粘膜上皮单纯增生组织中未见GST π的表达 ,轻、中、重度异型增生病例中的GST π阳性率分别为4 7.8%、5 2 .9%和 6 4 .2 % ,高于单纯增生组 (P <0 .0 1) ;高分化鳞癌GST π阳性率为 6 4 .7% ,中、低分化鳞癌组分别为 2 8.5 %及 2 2 .2 % ,中、低分化鳞癌组表达均低于高分化鳞癌组及异型增生组 (P <0 .0 5 )。　结论　GST π表达的变化与口腔鳞癌早期的发生发展密切相关