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Biomedical subjects

S K Sood

Publications and source records attributed to S K Sood.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Duration of tick attachment as a predictor of the risk of Lyme disease in an area in which Lyme disease is endemic.

Animal studies have shown an exponential increase in the risk of Borrelia burgdorferi infection after 48-72 h of deer tick attachment. Persons with tick bites were prospectively studied to determine if those with prolonged tick attachment constitute a high-risk group for infection. Ticks were identified, measured for engorgement, and assayed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for B. burgdorferi DNA. Duration of attachment was determined from the scutal index of engorgement. Of 316 submissions, 229 were deer ticks; 14% were positive by PCR. Paired sera and an intact tick for determination of duration of attachment were available for 105 subjects (109 bites). There were 4 human cases (3.7% of bites) of B. burgdorferi infection. The incidence was significantly higher for duration of attachment > or =72 h than for <72 h: 3 (20%) of 15 vs. 1 (1.1%) of 94 (P = .008; odds ratio, 23.3; 95% confidence interval, 2.2-242). PCR was an unreliable predictor of infection. Tick identification and measurement of engorgement can be used to identify a small, high-risk subset of persons who may benefit from antibiotic prophylaxis.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Temporal study of immunoglobin M seroreactivity to Borrelia burgdorferi in patients treated for Lyme borreliosis.

Forty-six patients with late Lyme disease who were considered improved or cured following treatment were monitored by immunoglobin M (IgM) immunoblotting (mean monitoring period, 27.6 months). There was a persistent IgM response in 32 (97%) of 33 initially positive patients. All but three showed a consistent number, type, and intensity of IgM bands over the entire follow-up period. IgM immunoblotting may not be useful for monitoring the response to treatment of Lyme borreliosis.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Lyme disease: recognition, management, and prevention in the primary care setting.

UNLABELLED: This activity is designed for practitioners who see patients with tick bites, Lyme disease, or suspected Lyme disease in their practice, whether or not the practitioner is in an endemic area for Lyme disease. GOAL: To help primary care practitioners recognize and treat Lyme disease and provide preventive counseling. OBJECTIVES: 1. Be familiar with the terminology used for the causative agent of Lyme disease, its tick vector and reservoirs in nature, and where the disease is endemic. 2. Know the features of the common, characteristic clinical forms of Lyme disease. 3. Appreciate the uses and limitations of laboratory testing for this infection. 4. Understand early antibiotic treatment of Lyme disease, the management of a tick bite, and preventive measures.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1997

ESR and iron status in pregnancy.

ESR (Westergen) correlated significantly with the iron status (as measured by Hb concentration, haematocrit, red cell count, MCH, P/H ratio, serum iron, TIBC and percent saturation of transferrin) in a group of pregnant women (PW) at term. Serum ferritin correlated negatively with the ESR but the correlation was not statistically significant. Serum ferritin levels of < 50 micrograms/L were present in 9 (34.6%) PW with ESR > or = 50 mm 1st hour and 5 (19.2%) PW with ESR < 50 mm 1st hour. The mean ESR in PW was 55.7 (+/- 22.9) and was > or = 50 mm 1st hour in 50% and < 75 mm 1st hour in 82.7%. The difference in the mean ESR in anaemic and nonanaemic PW was highly significant (p < 0.001), 87.5% anaemic PW with serum ferritin > 50 micrograms/L had ESR > or = 50 mm 1st hour, suggesting the possible effect of chronic infection in raising ferritin levels in these PW.

Blood Sedimentation↗
PubMed1996

Immunity to Haemophilus influenzae type b polysaccharide capsule after vaccination with the complete series of oligosaccharide CRM197 conjugate vaccine in infants with human immunodeficiency virus infection.

We evaluated immunity to Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) in 18 human immunodeficiency virus-infected infants who were vaccinated with a complete series of Hib conjugate vaccine. Four months after the primary series, the geometric mean anticapsular antibody concentration in 11 children was 0.40 microgram/ml. There were no significant differences in CD4+ cell counts or in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention disease classification according to the presence of immunity to Hib. Four months after the booster dose, the geometric mean anticapsular antibody concentration in the 18 children was 0.82 microgram/ml. Children with immunity were more likely than children lacking immunity to have higher CD4+ cell counts and mild human immunodeficiency virus-related disease. The majority of the anticapsular antibody concentrations were lower than in healthy children.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1996

Gemella morbillorum as a cause of septic shock.

The gram-positive bacterium Gemella morbillorum has been recovered from patients with endocarditis but has rarely been associated with acute fulminant infections. We describe two children with a rapid onset of septic shock, which was fatal in one, following infection with this organism. G. morbillorum is a commensal organism of the upper respiratory tract; it gained access to the bloodstreams in these patients, and bacteremia occurred. A clinical drawback is that the initial colonial morphology of this organism leads to presumptive identification as a viridans streptococcus, an organism not commonly associated with septic shock syndrome. Resistance of G. morbillorum to penicillin appears to be common; therefore, initial empirical combination therapy (a beta-lactam agent and an aminoglycoside) or vancomycin treatment should be considered.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1996

Serum transferrin receptor levels in the evaluation of iron deficiency in the neonate.

Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is a major global problem. Early onset of iron deficiency in developing countries makes it imperative to identify iron deficiency in neonates. Most conventional laboratory parameters of iron status fail to distinguish neonates with iron deficient erythropoiesis. Serum transferrin receptor (STFR) levels are a recent sensitive measure of iron deficiency and the present study was carried out to evaluate the usefulness of cord serum transferrin receptors in identifying iron deficient erythropoiesis in neonates. A complete hemogram, red cell indices, iron profile: serum iron (SI), percent transferrin saturation (TS%) and serum ferritin (SF) was carried out in 100 full-term neonates and their mothers at parturition. Cord and maternal STFR levels were estimated using a sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique. Anemic women had a significantly lower SI, their TS% and high STFR levels suggesting that iron deficiency was responsible for the anemia. In the neonates of iron deficient mothers, cord SI, TS% and cord ferritin were not significantly different from those of neonates born to non-anemic mothers. Cord STFR level correlated well with hemoglobin (Hb) and laboratory parameters of iron status, and its level was significantly higher in neonates born to anemic mothers than in those born to non-anemic mothers. It was the only laboratory parameter to differentiate between neonates born to anemic and non-anemic mothers. Therefore, STFR is a sensitive index of iron status in neonates and identifies neonates with iron deficient erythropoiesis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Immunoglobulin M immunoblot for diagnosis of Borrelia burgdorferi infection in patients with acute facial palsy.

We used immunoblotting to improve the specificity of the serologic diagnosis of Lyme borreliosis in cases of acute facial palsy. Twelve of 15 patients (80%) with suspected Lyme borreliosis, versus 0 of 10 controls, were positive by immunoglobulin M immunoblotting of acute-phase sera and 3 were negative, including 2 with borderline enzyme immunoassay results. Immunoglobulin M immunoblotting is a useful test to confirm Borrelia burgdorferi infection in patients with acute facial palsy and a positive enzyme immunoassay result.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1995

Interpretation of immunoblot in pediatric Lyme arthritis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the pattern of bands present on an immunoblot (Western blot) in children with Lyme arthritis. METHODS: Sera from 20 children with Lyme arthritis from an endemic area were assayed, and the results compared with those obtained in 162 control sera from the same area. The study was retrospective, serum bank based. RESULTS: Eighty-seven percent of control sera revealed no bands on immunoblot, and all had < or = 4 bands. All Lyme arthritis sera revealed > or = 5 bands (mean 8.4, range 5-13 bands). Bands of molecular weight 25, 28, 39, 47, 50, and 93 kDa were seen in patients and not in controls. There was no correlation between duration of arthritis or activity of arthritis at presentation and number of bands present. CONCLUSION: Criteria were derived for a positive immunoblot based on the number and molecular weights of bands seen in our laboratory. These are the presence of 5 or more bands, of which at least one is an apparently specific band (25, 28, 39, 47, 50, or 93 kDa). Results of immunoblot are useful to confirm clinically suspected Lyme arthritis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Effect of maternal iron deficiency anaemia on foetal outcome.

One hundred and two pregnant women and their neonates were examined to evaluate the effect of maternal haemoglobin concentration (Hb. conc) and iron deficiency anaemia on the placental weight and the foetal outcome. Haematological and serum ferritin values were determined. It was observed that 34.3% of the pregnant women were anaemic. Maternal Hb conc. and serum ferritin showed a highly significant correlation (r = 0.40, p < 0.001) indicating that iron deficiency was the most important cause of anaemia amongst them. The maternal Hb conc. showed a significant correlation with placental weight (p < 0.05), birth weight (p < 0.01), Apgar score (p < 0.001) and birth asphyxia. Maternal serum ferritin also correlated positively with cord ferritin (p < 0.001). The study did not reveal any association between high Hb and adverse foetal outcome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Immunity to Haemophilus influenzae type b polysaccharide capsule in children with human immunodeficiency virus infection immunized with a single dose of Haemophilus vaccine.

We studied immunity to Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) polysaccharide capsule in 19 children infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) immunized with a single dose of a Hib vaccine at a mean age of 28 months (range, 15 to 56 months). Four to eighty-five months after immunization, only 7 children (37%) were immune. There were no significant differences in the HIV classification of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, type of conjugate vaccine, age at vaccination or serologic testing, time from vaccination to antibody determination, and CD4 cell counts between children with and those without immunity.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1994

Erythrocyte T-activation: clinical importance & recognition by a simple routine technique.

Erythrocyte T-activation is reported in association with bacterial infections. Although it is an unfrequent phenomenon, it has been reported in cases of septicaemia and necrotizing enterocolitis. It is important to recognize these cases as, transfusion of blood & blood products and lead to haemolytic--transfusion reactions. Here we report a case of T-activation detected during routine immunohaematological procedure in the blood transfusion laboratory. This also emphasizes the role of a routine, cost-effective test to diagnose cases of T-activation.

Antigens, Tumor-Associated, Carbohydrate↗
PubMed1993

Positive serology for Lyme borreliosis in patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis in a Lyme borreliosis endemic area: analysis by immunoblot.

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) and the arthritis of Lyme borreliosis in children can mimic each other. As false positive reactions are frequent in ELISA for Lyme borreliosis, they cannot be used reliably to make the distinction. Ninety-nine children diagnosed as having JRA at a children's hospital in an endemic area were evaluated by ELISA and immunoblot for antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi. Sera from 9% were positive by ELISA, 5 of which showed bands on immunoblot. None met criteria for positive immunoblot. The antigenic basis of false positive ELISA was most frequently a reactivity to both 21 and 41 kDa. Analysis by immunoblot can help to definitively exclude Lyme borreliosis in children presenting with JRA in an endemic area.

Adolescent↗