Biomedical subjects

I Gasser

Publications and source records attributed to I Gasser.

41 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Amniotic fluid glucose and cytokines values in the early diagnosis of amniotic infection in patients with preterm labor and intact membranes.

OBJECTIVE: Our goal was to compare sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of glucose and cytokines [interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)] in amniotic fluid (AF) to detect an AF-positive culture. METHODS: Amniocentesis was performed on 113 patients with preterm labour (PTL) and intact membranes. Fluid was cultured for aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, and for mycoplasmas. AF analysis included cytokines and glucose determinations. RESULTS: The prevalence of positive AF cultures was 11.5% (13/113). Anaerobic bacteria were isolated in 9 patients (69.2%). The glucose <16 mg/dl and cytokines values; IL-1 >640 pg/ml, IL-6 >55,000 pg/ml, IL-8 >1,000 pg/ml, TNF >672 pg/ml, were significantly correlated (P < 0.01) with AF culture result. Glucose had a sensitivity of 69.2% and a specificity of 96% for the prediction of positive AF culture. The sensitivity and specificity of the cytokines ranged from 61.5-53.4% and 79.8-8.99%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In the diagnosis of the AF-positive culture, glucose <16 mg/dl is more sensitive than cytokines.

Amniocentesis↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Bilateral mammary abscess and uveitis caused by Brucella melitensis--report of a case.

Soft tissue locations of Brucella are a rare finding. We report the isolation of Brucella melitensis from a suspected breast tumour of a woman who also showed signs of uveitis. Three weeks after surgical drainage and despite antimicrobial therapy a new abscess developed on the other breast whose culture also yielded Brucella. As observed, unusual localization of brucellosis without previous penetrating injury may be the only manifestation of chronic infection.

Abscess↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Primary meningococcal conjunctivitis: report of 21 patients and review.

Neisseria meningitidis is an uncommon cause of acute bacterial conjunctivitis. Twenty-one cases of primary meningococcal conjunctivitis (PMC) are reported herein and 63 cases published in the literature since 1899 are reviewed. In the 84 cases of PMC available for analysis, the male-to-female ratio was 1.76:1; nine of the patients were neonates, 55 were children, and 20 were adults. Conjunctivitis was unilateral in 66.3% of the patients. Gram stain of conjunctival exudate disclosed gram-negative diplococci in all cases in which it was done. Culture of the conjunctival exudate yielded N. meningitidis in all cases, and 44% of the isolated meningococci belonged to serogroup B. Ocular complications, which occurred in 15.5% of the patients, most frequently were corneal ulcers. Systemic meningococcal disease developed in 17.8% of the patients; the overall mortality was 13.3% for patients with PMC complicated by systemic disease. Development of systemic disease was significantly more frequent in patients receiving only topical therapy than in those treated with systemic therapy (31.71% vs. 2.38%; P = .001). Gram-negative diplococci observed in conjunctival exudate are an indication for systemic antibiotic therapy because of the risk of systemic complications associated with the use of topical therapy alone. When properly treated, patients with PMC have a favorable prognosis.

Child, Preschool↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Comparative in vitro antifungal activity of amphotericin B lipid complex, amphotericin B and fluconazole.

Amphotericin B (AMB) is considered the gold standard in the treatment of serious systemic mycoses in spite of its nephrotoxicity and adverse effects. Association with lipids enables larger doses of AMB to be given with a longer t((1/2)) and C(max), without the toxic effects at lower concentrations. Liposome-encapsulated AMB shows a lower affinity for mammalian cells and improves V(d), thus decreasing toxicity. Amphotericin B lipid complex (ABLC) is an AMB formulation associated with a biodegradable phospholipid matrix (5% molar) from which the drug is released by cell phospholipases. ABLC is recommended for serious mycoses refractory to conventional antifungal therapy or when AMB is contraindicated. We compared the in vitro antifungal activity of ABLC, AMB and fluconazole (FLZ) against 328 strains of clinically significant opportunistic fungi using a microdilution method (NCCLS, M-27A). 64.9% of the yeasts were inhibited by MIC of ABLC </= AMB resulting in a similar or slightly superior efficacy compared to AMB when tested against Candida albicans, C. glabrata, C. guilliermondii, C. parapsilosis and C. tropicalis. Effectiveness against C. krusei was lower for ABLC (5.99 microg/ml for ABLC, 1.58 microg/ml for AMB). However, for Aspergillus fumigatus, the activities of AMB and ABLC were 1.62 and 2.46 microg/ml, respectively; A. niger 0.72 microg/ml, 0.76 microg/ml (ABLC and AMB, respectively); A. clavatus, A. candidus, A. tenuissima, A. corymbifera and Exophiala jeanselmei, Scedosporium spp. and Miceliophtora spp. showed a low susceptibility to both AMB formulations. ABLC is a useful alternative to AMB or FLZ for the treatment of severe fungal infections, due to the broad spectrum of antifungal actions observed in this study.

Amphotericin B↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Listeriosis in the adult. Clinical, epidemiological, and therapeutic considerations based on a series of 26 cases].

The clinico-epidemiological characteristics and therapy in 26 patients with infection produced by Listeria monocytogenes were reported. In 14 cases there was a primary bacteremia and in 12 patients there was a meningeal involvement. In 22 patients a previous disease was detected. Chronic immunosuppressor therapy was present in 13 cases. The most common symptom was the fever associated with meningeal syndrome, decreased consciousness and or focal neurologic involvement in cases with meningitis. In 76.9% of the patients the form of presentation was acute. Cerebrospinal fluid examination revealed an increased number of cells with a predominance of polymorphonuclear elements. Ampicillin and penicillin either single or associated with aminoglycosides were the most used antibiotics. The overall mortality was 30.8%.

Adolescent↗