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Biomedical subjects

A Guerrero

Publications and source records attributed to A Guerrero.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in HIV-infected patients: diagnostic yield of induced sputum and immunofluorescent stain with monoclonal antibodies.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic yield of induced sputum (IS), assessing the reliability of indirect immunofluorescent stain with monoclonal antibodies (IFMoAb) and methenamine silver (Met-Ag) and analysing factors likely to influence the sensitivity of these techniques. An analysis was prospectively carried out on IS specimens collected from 61 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients during 69 episodes of suspected Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Ultrasonic nebulizers with hypertonic 2% saline were used. IFMoAb to P. carinii and Met-Ag were performed after cytocentrifugation of the specimen. Results were compared with those of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) with/without transbronchial biopsy (TBB), performed not more than seven days after induction of sputum. P. carinii pneumonia was confirmed in 32 episodes, of which IS was diagnostic in 23. The sensitivity of the staining procedures was 69% for IFMoAb, and 28% for Met-Ag. The three episodes of P. carinii pneumonia in patients on oral chemoprophylaxis yielded negative IS results; in contrast, IS was negative in only 6 of the 29 cases not receiving chemoprophylaxis. IS is a non-aggressive procedure that diagnosed P. carinii pneumonia in 72% of our cases. The yield increased significantly when IFMoAb was used in patients not receiving oral chemoprophylaxis.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1991

[Prevalence of Chlamydia pneumoniae infection among pneumonias in a sample of Spanish hospital population].

BACKGROUND: The importance of Chlamydia pneumoniae as a cause of respiratory tract infection in humans has been shown recently. There is no data in Mediterranean countries about C. pneumoniae infection. METHODS: We tested acute and convalescent serum collected from 103 Spanish pneumoniae patients from 1979 to 1987. The microimmunofluorescent test (MIF) with C. pneumoniae and other Chlamydia antigens to exclude cross reactions was used. Serological evidence of current infection was a fourfold rise in IgG antibody titer o titer 1/6 in the IgM serum fraction in the MIF test. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 52 years (typical deviation 18, with an age range of 13 to 83) and 75% were male. Serological data of recent infection was found in four of the 103 patients and 59 had antibodies in the IgG fraction indicative of previous infection. CONCLUSIONS: These finding show that C. pneumoniae is associated with pneumonia in Spain and that there is a wide contact with this agent in the patient population with lower respiratory tract infection.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Periarticular fibrous nodules in Lyme borreliosis.

Periarticular fibrous nodules have been described in patients with late-phase acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans (ACA) in the setting of Lyme borreliosis. We report the clinical and histopathological study of two patients with periarticular fibrous nodules and with Lyme borreliosis and discuss the relationship between these nodules and ACA.

Acrodermatitis↗
PubMed1991

Community acquired pneumonia caused by Chlamydia pneumoniae strain TWAR in chronic cardiopulmonary disease in the elderly.

The role of Chlamydia pneumoniae in respiratory infections is controversial. Seroepidemiological studies in different countries have shown an incidence of around 50% of previous contact, whereas prospective studies only in the USA have detected 6-10% of C. pneumoniae in community acquired pneumonias; in a similar Swedish study no cases were detected. There have been no descriptions of this Chlamydia in Mediterranean countries. The acute antibody response indicative of recent infection is accepted if the microimmunofluorescence test shows a fourfold rise in antibody or a titer 1/6 or higher of the IgM fraction. Since the introduction of the microimmunofluorescence test in our hospital, we have detected 4 cases of pneumonia associated to TWAR antibody in a current study of 63 cases of community acquired pneumonias which required hospitalization. All 4 patients presented chronic cardiopulmonary diseases. These facts and additional seroepidemiological studies with a frequency of 53% of previous contact, show that C. pneumoniae has a nonrare etiology in Spain and could be an endemic condition.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

[Results of perineal electric stimulation in stress urinary incontinence].

The results achieved with perineal electrical stimulation in 25 patients with stress urinary incontinence of different etiology are presented herein. Overall, positive results were achieved in 52% and 28% were nonresponders. The results were positive in 66% with post-prostatectomy urinary incontinence. Before recurring to other more complicated therapeutic procedures, this treatment modality could be an alternative in the treatment of stress urinary incontinence.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

[Reflex sympathetic dystrophy. A new manifestation of Lyme disease?].

Several syndromes derived from the involvement of central and peripheral nervous system and meninges have been reported in the infection by Borrelia burgdorferi. The features of autonomic nervous system involvement have received a marginal attention. Reflex sympathetic dystrophy is an autonomic picture characterized by regional sympathetic hyperactivity which has not been associated with Lyme disease. We report a 16-year-old female with clinical, radiological and scintigraphic features consistent with reflex sympathetic dystrophy. The usual causes of this syndrome were ruled out and antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi were detected by immunofluorescence, enzyme immunoassay and Western blotting. Specific IgG and IgM levels had a progressive increase during three months. In Lyme borreliosis causes of false positives were excluded. Antigen-antibody bands were detected in increasing number during the evolution, using sonicates of B. burgdorferi and patient's sera with the Western blotting technique. Our data suggest that reflex sympathetic dystrophy is another type of nervous system involvement in the multifaceted Lyme borreliosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

[Skin manifestations of infection by Borrelia burgdorferi].

Interest in Lyme's disease is recent in Spain. We review the dermatological features of the disease caused by B. burgdorferi, its differential diagnosis and its therapy, with reference to three patients with Borrelia burgdorferi infection in whom the diagnosis was made on the basis of the dermatological picture. One patient had migratory erythema developing from the umbilical area, where he had been bitten by a tick. Another patient had arthritis of the knee and meningoradiculitis, together with multiple skin lesions. The last patient had atypical migratory erythema and concomitant arthritis.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Evidence for the activation of two different Ca2+ channels during the egg jelly-induced acrosome reaction of sea urchin sperm.

The influx of Ca2+ and its subsequent intracellular increase are required for the acrosome reaction of sea urchin sperm to occur. Spermatozoa must undergo this reaction, which is triggered by the egg jelly, in order to fertilize the egg. Here, the egg jelly-induced Ca2+ influx mechanisms have been studied in sperm loaded with FURA-2 using Mn2+ under the assumption that this divalent ion is an indicator of Ca2+ influx through Ca2+ channels. Egg jelly induced the immediate entry of Ca2+ (mixing time 1 s), however; we found that the influx of Mn2+ increased after a lag time of 5 s. Nisol-dipine (a Ca2+ channel blocker) did not block the Mn2+ influx which was inhibited by 40 mM of external [K+], low Na+, and 5 mM of tetraethylammonium (a K+ channel blocker). These conditions also inhibited the alkalinization and the acrosome reaction. The inhibition of the Mn2+ influx could be overcome by increasing internal pH (pHi) with ammonium (10 mM). On the contrary the influx of Ca2+ during the first 5 s was not inhibited by any of the conditions indicated before, except by nisoldipine. These data could be explained by the activation of two different Ca2+ channels by egg jelly. The first one being a receptor-operator Ca2+ channel that opens when the receptor for egg jelly is occupied independently of the ionic conditions. The other one could be considered as a second messenger-operated Ca2+ channel that requires at least an increase in pHi to open.

Acrosome↗
PubMed1989

t-butyl-4-hydroxyanisole as an inhibitor of tumor cell respiration.

The effect of t-butyl-4-hydroxyanisole (BHA), a widely used food antioxidant additive, on the culture growth, oxygen consumption, and redox state of some electron carriers of intact TA3 and 786A ascites tumor cells has been studied. BHA inhibited culture growth and respiration of these two tumor cell lines, by inhibiting the electron flow through the respiratory chain. Experiments to determine its site of action showed that BHA did not inhibit noticeably the electron flow through cytochrome oxidase, due to the ability of N,N,N',N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine to bypass the BHA inhibition of the respiration. Electron flow through the ubiquinone-cytochrome b-c1 complex also was unaffected by BHA; in fact, BHA failed to inhibit the oxidation of duroquinol. Spectrophotometric experiments are in accordance with studies carried out using synthetic electron donors. The redox state of NAD(P)+, determined in steady-state conditions, changed to a more reduced level, and the redox states of ubiquinone, cytochrome b, cytochromes c + c1 and cytochromes a + a3 changed to a more oxidized level. These observations suggest that the electron transport in the tumor mitochondria was inhibited by BHA at the NADH-dehydrogenase-ubiquinone level (energy-conserving site 1). These findings could explain, in part, the cytotoxic effect of BHA.

Animals↗