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Biomedical subjects

P Hofman

Publications and source records attributed to P Hofman.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

[Acute toxoplasmic pancreatitis. An unusual cause of death in AIDS].

We report a case of an acute toxoplasmic pancreatitis that led to the death of an AIDS patient. Aetiological diagnosis was performed by the post mortem histological examination. On haematein-eosin staining, toxoplasmic cysts and pseudocysts were noted in the pancreatic acini. Immunohistochemical study using anti-Toxoplasma gondii polyclonal antibodies showed free parasitic forms or tachyzoites in the necrotic areas. Toxoplasmic cysts without any inflammatory reaction were observed in the lungs. In the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, involvement of the pancreas by toxoplasmosis is very rare and associated with a multivisceral dissemination. Even if this diagnosis is exceptional, acute toxoplasmic pancreatitis must be considered in an AIDS patient when the other causes of pancreatitis, as drugs or infectious diseases, have been eliminated.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[Rochalimaea henselae infection. Febrile pancytopenia and hepatic peliosis in a patient with HIV infection].

A case of Rochalimaea henselae infection in an AIDS patient is reported. The R. henselae infection was revealed by febrile pancytopenia associated with liver and spleen enlargement. The diagnosis was made on the finding at histology of hepatic peliosis lesions. Within these lesions Warthin Starry staining displayed bacilli that were identified as R. henselae. This case shows that all HIV-infected patients with these symptoms might be infected with this organism.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Toxoplasma cystitis associated with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Ante-mortem diagnosis of vesical toxoplasmosis in a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), was made by cystoscopic examination and biopsy of the bladder. Vesical biopsies can be helpful in determining appropriate therapy for AIDS patients with urinary tract involvement/disease.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Pathological features of intestinal microsporidiosis in HIV positive patients. A report of 13 new cases.

Enterocytozoon bieneusi is a microsporidian parasite found only in the enterocytes of the small bowel of HIV positive patients, producing chronic diarrhea and malabsorption. Since January 1990, we have seen the 13 first Mediterranean cases, diagnosed on duodenal pinch biopsy samples. Diarrhea was the major symptom in all instances, and E. bieneusi was the sole identified pathogen in 6 cases. The diagnosis was made on HES or Giemsa-stained paraffin sections and on Giemsa-stained smears (9 cases). In 3 cases, the parasite was also found on ileal biopsies, but was never encountered in the colonic mucosa. In all patients, transmission electron microscopy of the duodenal mucosa was used, and it confirmed the diagnosis of intestinal microsporidiosis. No instance with negative optic examination had evidence of an infection by E. bieneusi with electron microscopy. Due to the small size of the spores, routine fecal parasitological diagnosis is still a difficult procedure, but it is possible that greater experience may avoid many of today's invasive investigations. Cytologic and histologic routine examination of paraffin sections of the distal duodenal or ileal mucosae is a reliable method to diagnose intestinal microsporidiosis in HIV-positive patients with diarrhea.

Animals↗

Extracerebral toxoplasmosis in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Although Toxoplasma gondii frequently causes lesions of the central nervous system in AIDS, the exact incidence of extracerebral toxoplasmosis in these immunodepressed patients remains difficult to determine. Isolation of the parasite outside the central nervous system is rarely performed ante mortem, and most diagnoses of extracerebral toxoplasmosis are made post mortem. This article describes 23 cases of extracerebral toxoplasmosis diagnosed between 1987 and 1991 in an autopsy series of 170 patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Ante mortem diagnosis of extracerebral involvement was affirmed in 4 of these 23 patients by identification of trophozoites in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (2 cases), a surgical pulmonary biopsy specimen, and a bladder biopsy. Clinical and paraclinical findings suggested cardiac involvement in 4 other patients. Post mortem examination demonstrated disseminated toxoplasmosis in 18 cases and extracerebral monovisceral involvement in 5 cases. Extracerebral toxoplasmosis was directly responsible for the death of 6 patients. The most frequent extracerebral sites of Toxoplasma gondii involvement were the heart (21/23 cases; 91%), the lungs (14/23 cases; 61%) and the pancreas (6/23 cases; 26%). The tissular consequences of toxoplasmic involvement varied considerably, from formation of pseudocysts or cysts without any surrounding inflammatory reaction to necrotic lesions rich in neutrophilic polynuclear cells containing numerous free parasites. Immunoperoxidase study using antitoxoplasmic antibodies contributed to the diagnosis of 8 extracerebral localizations. Electron microscopy examination of a surgical lung biopsy and myocardial specimens (2 cases) demonstrated the ultrastructural characteristics of Toxoplasma gondii trophozoites.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Cutaneous spindle-cell pseudotumors due to Mycobacterium gordonae and Leishmania infantum. An immunophenotypic study.

We report two patients with AIDS who had cutaneous spindle-cell pseudotumors caused by Leishmania infantum in one instance and by an atypical mycobacterium in the other. The lesions mimicked neoplasms with predominantly spindled macrophages, similar to those seen in the histoid variant of leprosy. This histoid reaction is known to be related to mycobacteria. To our knowledge, this is the first case of histoid reaction due to leishmania. In both cases, the histiocytic cells were positive for vimentin and desmin but negative for alpha-smooth muscle. In addition, the immunostaining by lysosyme and alpha 1 antitrypsin was positive in both and in one the S-100 protein was positive. This reaction suggests dual myofibroblast and histiocytic differentiation.

Adult↗

Quantification of lacrimal function after D-shaped field irradiation for retinoblastoma.

To study the quantitative effects of megavoltage external beam irradiation in a D-shaped field in patients with retinoblastoma, biomicroscopy was performed in 61 patients and tear function tests (Schirmer-lactoferrin and lysozyme tests) on 45 eyes in 34 irradiated patients. The results were compared with those obtained in 25 non-irradiated control eyes. The Schirmer test was significantly diminished (p < 0.001) in irradiated eyes, as were the lactoferrin and lysozyme values (p < 0.001). A mild to severe keratitis was found in 17 of the 61 patients (28%). A significant correlation (p < 0.005) was found between the severe keratitis and the mean Schirmer values; the mean lactoferrin and lysozyme values were diminished in all patients but did not correlate significantly with the corneal abnormalities. These quantitative data, obtained in patients treated for retinoblastoma, affirm the qualitative data found in patients irradiated for other reasons such as orbital or sinus tumours. Irradiation for retinoblastoma is not a harmless treatment and serious late side effects have to be considered.

Adolescent↗

Prevalence of toxoplasma myocarditis in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of cardiac toxoplasmosis in a series of 182 necropsies performed between 1987 and 1991 on patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), to correlate this prevalence with the ante mortem diagnosis of cardiac involvement, and to assess the role of such cardiac lesions in the immediate cause of death. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Complete necropsies of 182 HIV-infected patients (48 women, 134 men) were performed consecutively between 1987 and 1991. Risk factors, identified in 174 cases, included drug abuse (111/182), homosexuality (51/182), and blood transfusions (12/182). 16 samples were systematically obtained from each heart for histological study. If trophozoites or lymphocytic myocarditis were seen, immunohistochemical investigations were carried out with polyclonal antibodies for Toxoplasma gondii. An ultrastructural study was performed in four patients with toxoplasma myocarditis. Myocardial lesions were defined by the Dallas classification. Clinical data (and information on electrocardiograms and echocardiograms) were obtained from medical records. RESULTS: Cardiac toxoplasmosis was diagnosed at necropsy in 21 (12%) patients. Cardiac lesions were associated with toxoplasmic encephalitis in 18 patients and were solitary in three patients. Acute diffuse myocarditis was present in 6/21, rare foci of myocarditis were seen in 8/21, and intramyocytic toxoplasmic cysts without any inflammatory reaction or necrosis were seen in 4/21. Anti-toxoplasma immunolabelling showed cardiac toxoplasmosis in three patients with lymphocytic myocarditis. Particles with the ultrastructural characteristics of Toxoplasma gondii trophozoites were seen in four cases. Six patients had presented with cardiac symptoms, confirmed by electrocardiographic and echocardiographic abnormalities during their disease course, and their cardiac lesions were directly responsible for the death. CONCLUSION: Cardiac toxoplasmosis was common in this necropsy series of HIV-infected patients. Cardiac toxoplasmosis had been suspected clinically in four patients. Myocardial lesions were generally asymptomatic and were not discovered until necropsy. Solitary cardiac involvement was not uncommon reflecting parasite reactivation at a myocardial site. The incidence of cardiac toxoplasmosis in this group of immunodepressed subjects from an area with a high prevalence of this parasitic disease justifies regular follow up of such patients by electrocardiography and echocardiography as well as immediate administration of anti-toxoplasma treatment should sudden heart failure occur.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

[Acute Staphylococcus aureus myocarditis in AIDS. 2 cases].

The authors report two cases of acute myocarditis due to Staphylococcus aureus in patients with AIDS. There was no history of opportunist infections in either case but the CD4 lymphocyte levels were very low. The myocarditis caused acute cardiac failure and death. Histological examination showed microabscesses filled with Gram positive cocci throughout the myocardium. Bacteriological studies identified the Staphylococcus aureus. Staphylococcus aureus myocarditis without endocardial or pericardial involvement is very rare. It is the result of septic emboli in the cardiac microcirculation. Bacterial myocarditis has rarely been diagnosed in HIV positive patients. Both our cases featured severe cell-mediated immunodeficiency without associated neutropaenia. The decreased bactericidal activity of the neutrophil polynuclears and/or a deficit in the immunity mediated by the B-cell lymphocytes in AIDS could explain the lethal septic complications observed in our two cases.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[A difficult diagnosis: pelvic-abdominal actinomycosis abscess].

A laparotomy for hysterectomy was performed in a 46-year-old nulliparous woman who had worn an intra-uterine sterilization device for 8 years. The patient was in poor general health and had had abdominal pain and repeated episodes of fever over the preceding 3 months. An abscess of the abdominal muscle was found peroperatively. No perforations of the small or large intestine were observed. The pathology examination yielded the diagnosis of Actinomycosis. Actinomyces israeli is the most frequency observed Actinomycae in humans. It is a saprophyte organism of the intestinal flora, not usually found in the vagina and observed in 3.5% of cervical swabs of patients wearing an intra-uterine device (Gupta bodies). The frequency increases with the duration of insertion and the pathogenicity appears when the immune responses are deficient and/or when a cofactor is involved. Treatment relies on surgical exeresis and prolonged antibiotics (penicillin G or macrolides). Hyperbar treatment is sometimes used.

Abdominal Muscles↗

[Histological aspects of mycotic infections in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)].

After some general epidemiological data concerning mycoses occurring during the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), the role of the pathologist in the diagnosis of mycotic diseases is reviewed. Histological methods and criteria allowing fungal identification in tissues are described. Changes in the inflammatory reaction in contact with mycoses arising in these immunodeficient hosts are reported. The various mycoses observed in HIV positive patients are then reviewed as well as their morphological features and their various sites.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[Kaposi sarcoma of the lungs in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Thoracic radiography and scanning].

Twenty-four patients with AIDS presenting with Kaposi's sarcoma of the lung were retrospectively studied to assess the merits of thoracic radiographs and of CT for the diagnosis of this disease. Evidence for Kaposi's sarcoma of the lung was given by a characteristic fiberendoscopic appearance in 10 cases and by the histologic diagnosis in 14 cases. All patients had chest radiographs and 14 patients a concomitant thoracic CT study. Chest radiographs showed perihilar opacities in 18 patients, nodules in 8, mediastinal and/or hilar adenopathies in 2 and pleural effusion in 16. Comparison of the patients who had had thoracic radiographs and a CT scan showed better detection of adenopathies, described in 2 cases on chest radiographs and 7 on CT scans, and of nodules, detected in 5 cases on chest radiographs and 6 on CT scans. In 12 patients with perihilar opacities on thoracic radiographs, CT provided a better view of the peribronchovascular distribution of these opaque areas. In 1 patient, CT showed peribronchovascular thickening while radiographs were normal. In 1 patient, both examinations were normal. This study emphasizes the merits of thoracic radiographs and, even more, of CT for the diagnosis of Kaposi's sarcoma of the lung. Peribronchovascular thickening appears to be a characteristic sign that is well analyzed with computed tomography. Since histological evidence of Kaposi's sarcoma is rarely obtained because of the aggressive nature of biopsies in such patients, CT has an important role for the diagnosis of this condition.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[Bacillary angiomatosis of the oral cavity in AIDS. A differential diagnosis of mucosal Kaposi's sarcoma].

The diagnosis of bacillary angiomatosis (BA) was performed on a biopsy of a reddish nodular lesion of the gingival mucosa, in a patient seropositive for the H.I.V. It was based on the histopathological features, and by the demonstration of bacilli both on the Warthin-Starry stain and the electron microscopic study. A treatment by erythromycin was quickly effective. BA is an opportunistic infection seen essentially in patients with A.I.D.S., most often causing cutaneous involvement. The causative pathogen is Rochalimaea henselae. BA of the oral cavity is very rare. This infection can be mistaken with Kaposi sarcoma on its clinical appearance.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[Toxoplasmosis in AIDS patients. Pathoclinical study of 78 cases].

We report 78 cases of toxoplasmosis diagnosed between 1987 and 1992, from an autopsy study of 205 patients infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Of the 78 patients 22 were females (28%) and 56 males (72%). Risk factors were as follows: intravenous drug addiction (44 cases, 56%), homosexuality or bisexuality (18 cases; 36%) and multiple blood transfusions (6 cases). Cerebral toxoplasmosis (CT) was diagnosed in 73 cases (93%) and was characterized by abscesses (59 cases), diffuse encephalitic lesions (8 cases), isolated cysts without inflammation (3 cases) and hemispheric involvement with ventricular hemorrhage (3 cases). Cerebral involvement were isolated (55/78 cases; 70%) or associated with multi-visceral diffusion (18/78 cases; 23%). Isolated extracerebral localization was observed in 5 cases. The most frequent extracerebral sites were: cardiac (21 cases), pulmonary (14 cases) and pancreatic (7 cases). Immunohistochemical study with anti Toxoplasma gondii antibodies allowed to a diagnosis of extracerebral localization in 8 cases. Ultrastructural features of Toxoplasma gondii were studied on post mortem myocardial samples (2 cases) open lung biopsy (1 case) and bladder biopsy specimen (1 case). Antemortem diagnosis of cerebral toxoplasmosis was performed on CT-scan in 59/73 (80%). Antemortem diagnosis of extracerebral toxoplasmosis was performed or suspected in 8/23 cases (34%): by isolation of trophozoites in bronchoalveolar lavage (2 cases), on an open lung biopsy (1 case) and on a bladder biopsy specimen (1 case), and by clinical and echocardiographic data (4 cases). Anti-toxoplasmic serology allowed to the diagnosis of toxoplasmosis in 12/78 cases (15%) by showing high levels of IgG in the serum.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[Disseminated infection due to Scedosporium apiospermum in liver transplantation. Differential diagnosis from invasive aspergillosis].

A case of fatal disseminated infection due to Scedosporium apiospermum occurring after liver transplantation is reported. Diagnosis was made at autopsy, as numerous fungal colonies were found in the lungs, heart, brain, kidney, spleen and liver. Scedosporium apiospermum was identified in pulmonary, cerebral and myocardial specimens by Sabouraud's glucose agar cultures. Infections due to Scedosporium (S. apiospermum ou Pseudallescheria boydii) occur in immunocompromised hosts, particularly after organ transplantation, and realize severe invasive fungal infection. Scedosporiosis is much more rare than aspergillosis and can be only identified by mycological study. This diagnosis is rarely performed during life time and allows an effective treatment by imidazoles.

Aspergillosis↗