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A Vargas

Publications and source records attributed to A Vargas.

100 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

[Ursodeoxycholic acid treatment shortens the course of cholestasis in two patients with benign recurrent intrahepatic cholestasis].

INTRODUCTION: Benign recurrent intrahepatic cholestasis (BRIC) is a rare autosomal-crecessive or sporadic disorder, characterized by repeated episodes of unexplained cholestasis followed by prolonged asymptomatic periods. CASE REPORT: We present two male patients aged 12 and 15 years old who initially presented cholestasis and who had no family history of liver or biliary disease. Typically, alkaline phosphatase and bilirubin levels were elevated, with a slight increase in transaminases and gamma-glutamyltransferase. In both patients biliary tract disease was ruled out by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and magnetic resonance cholangiography while no significant abnormalities of the liver parenchyma were found on liver biopsy. Early treatment with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) reduced the duration of the cholestasis episode compared with that of other episodes in which the patient had received other treatment or the treatment was late (1 or 2 months vs 4 months in patient 1 and 1-3 months vs 5 months in patient 2, respectively). DISCUSSION: Consensus is lacking on the treatment of BRIC although several treatment have been used. UDCA could be effective in increasing bile acid secretion and in reducing serum bilirubin levels. In the two patients described, the initial dosage was 15 mg/kg/day, which was subsequently maintained at 6 mg/kg/day, which was subsequently maintained 6 mg/kg/day until biochemical parameters returned to normal. Nevertheless, larger studies are required to confirm that UDA shortens episodes of cholestasis in BRIC.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Predictors of glycemic control in children with type 1 diabetes: the importance of race.

Diabetes is a common cause of kidney failure and blindness among young adults, particularly of African-American descent. Since glycemic control is a predictor of diabetes complications, we evaluated the impact of multiple factors including a special multidisciplinary management program on glycosylated hemoglobin in children with Type 1 diabetes. Data was collected from pediatric diabetes clinics in New Orleans, LA and Baltimore, MD. In New Orleans, hemoglobin A(1c) was higher in African-American patients 12. 5+/-3.3% (n=71) vs. 10.7+/-2.1% (n=80) in Caucasian children, p<0. 0001. Longer duration of diabetes was also associated with higher hemoglobin A(1c) in both races. The effect of race on hemoglobin A(1c) was independent of the influence of sex, insurance status, body mass index (BMI) z-score, and number of clinic visits. Covariate analysis with mean blood glucose levels indicated that higher hemoglobin A(1c) was attributable to higher mean blood glucose levels in African-American children. From the Baltimore data, a multidisciplinary intervention program led to improved total glycosylated hemoglobin for Caucasian patients but not for African-American children. Poorer glycemic control of African-American children is likely to predispose them to a higher likelihood of developing microvascular complications as they mature. Standard hospital-based multidisciplinary programming for diabetes management may have limited effectiveness in improving glycemic control of African-American children with diabetes. Innovative intervention programs are needed for these high-risk patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Emboli in bulls killed in Spanish traditional bullfighting.

The finding of brain tissue fragments in blood and lungs of cattle stunned in slaughterhouses has raised concerns about food safety in the context of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy epidemic. In the present study, the possible occurrence of brain tissue emboli in animals killed in traditional Spanish bullfighting was investigated. Thorough histological analysis of multiple possible target organs was carried out in 434 bulls. No evidence of brain tissue embolism was obtained, but emboli from diverse sources were detected in pulmonary and hepatic tissue of a significant number of animals. These emboli seem to have been caused by the use of a long sword, which extensively disrupts intra-thoracic and intra-abdominal organs and vascular structures.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Quantitative relationship between salivary level of Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans in children with Down's syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: The actual work intends to establish a correlation between quantitative counts for Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans in the saliva of patients with Down syndrome (DS), and in mentally deficient (MD) patients, with respect to a normal group (C ). DESIGN OF THE STUDY: This study was performed in 166 children (49 DS, 60MD and 57C), whose saliva samples were grown on TYCSB agar and Sabouraud agar. Subsequently, microbiological analysis, scanning electron microscopy and aggregation assays were made. The results were statistically evaluated using the variance analysis (ANOVA) and the Student "t" test for unpaired data. RESULTS: A correlation of 0.45 was found for group C, 0.55 in DS patients and 0.37 in MD patients, when comparing counts of S. mutans and C. albicans in saliva. Scanning electron microscopy analysis showed coaggregation between S. mutans and C. albicans and this was confirmed by in vitro experiments of S. mutans and C. albicans made on nitrocellulose filters. CONCLUSIONS: This kind of association between bacteria and fungi contributes to justify a pathogenic synergy among several microorganisms, as well as some infectious local or systemic manifestations, depending on the immunity status of the patient.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Simplified correction factor for the calculation of heart ventricle volume by angiography].

To measure cardiac volumes from the cineventriculographic silhouette, a calibration factor (fc) is needed to correct the X rays' distorsion and amplification. In the past, several methods have been described in order to obtain this fc, whose determination is often trouble-some, and time consuming, because of the necessity of planimetry, and calibration grid use. In this paper, we describe a method to calculate the fc: after RAO left ventriculography was obtained, a metalic sphere, whose diameter is well known, is filmed at the same incidence and distance of the left ventricle from the X ray tube and image intensifier. A good correlation was found when ventricular volumes estimated by the sphere, plannimetry of a grid, and ellipsoid axes measuring methods were compared (p less than 0.01). Methodology of the three procedures is being discussed and sphere method is recommended, because it avoids the grid use or planimetry performance and because it makes easier the fc determination.

Angiocardiography↗