Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

S Y So

Publications and source records attributed to S Y So.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

A case of invasive penicilliosis in Hong Kong with immunologic evaluation.

A 53-yr-old Chinese sailor developed prolonged pyrexia with unresolved lobar pneumonia, cervical lymphadenopathy, generalized subcutaneous abscesses, and pericardial effusion. Penicillium marneffei was isolated from pericardial fluid and subcutaneous pus and was demonstrated on histologic sections of lymph nodes and lung tissue. The penicilliosis was treated successfully with amphotericin B, ketoconazole, and 5-fluorocytosine. Subsequently, he also developed other T-lymphocyte-related opportunistic infections such as disseminated cutaneous herpes zoster and chronic osteomyelitis of sternum caused by Salmonella typhimurium. He was also a chronic carrier of cytomegalovirus. Further investigations showed that he had persistent depression of T-lymphocyte function and enhancement of B-lymphocyte activity, the cause of which was undetermined.

Abscess↗
PubMed1985

Respiratory problems in myasthenia gravis.

We evaluated our experience involving 27 patients with myasthenia gravis with particular reference to the various respiratory problems encountered. These included restriction of ventilation, respiratory tract infections, aspiration due to bulbar weakness, respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation, and post-thymectomy pulmonary complications.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1984

First report of septicaemic melioidosis in Hong Kong.

Septicaemia due to Pseudomonas pseudomallei was found in five patients; it complicated pneumonia in three. Four patients were old and had diabetes mellitus; the fifth patient, though young, was immunocompromised by steroid therapy. The clinical features were indistinguishable from those of other Gram-negative septicaemia. Four of the patients died. This was the first report of septicaemic melioidosis in Hong Kong where the disease might be endemic. Soil sampling and serological survey gave further supporting evidence. Early treatment using a bactericidal anti-Pseudomonal cephalosporin, such as ceftazidime, was suggested for this life-threatening infection.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Blue bodies in cytology specimens in a case of pulmonary talcosis.

Unusual extracellular birefringent laminated ovoid structures are seen in bronchial brushing, aspiration, and washing specimens in a 28-year-old woman who had histologic evidence of pulmonary talcosis. Energy dispersive x-ray analysis and microchemical studies have identified them to be calcium carbonate. These structures are known as pulmonary blue bodies and are seen mainly in histologic paraffin sections. Their occurrence in cytologic preparations and association with talcosis have not been reported.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Clinical features of bronchogenic carcinoma in Hong Kong. Review of 480 patients.

A retrospective study was made of 480 Chinese patients with proven bronchogenic carcinoma, the top cancer in Hong Kong. The male-to-female sex ratio was low (1.9:1) and the female mortality rate ranked amongst the world's highest. The four major histologic types accounted for 87% of the cases: 39% epidermoid, 12% small cell anaplastic, 29% adenocarcinoma, and 7% large cell anaplastic. History of smoking was associated with epidermoid and small cell anaplastic carcinoma only. The commonest symptoms were anorexia and malaise (67%) and cough (51%). Overall our patients presented late and only 30 (6%) had curative surgery. The relatively rare occurrence of deep vein thrombosis (0.7%) is in keeping with the known low incidence of venous thrombosis in Chinese. Adenocarcinoma was a distinct group characterized by its preponderance in females (43%), lack of association with smoking habit (61% female cases being nonsmokers), high frequency of neurologic manifestation (21%) and clinical, roentgenographic, and bronchoscopic features of a predominantly centrally situated tumor. Possible etiologic factors for the high and still increasing incidence of adenocarcinoma are discussed.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1983

Can hypertransfusion attenuate myelosuppression associated with combination chemotherapy in patients with inoperable bronchogenic carcinoma? A report of a randomised, controlled study.

Based on the concept of "stem-cell competition," hypertransfusion has been shown to attenuate the leucopenia associated with chemotherapy in children with leukemia. We conducted a randomized, controlled study of hypertransfusion in 25 patients with inoperable lung cancer who received combination chemotherapy consisting of methotrexate, adriamycin, cyclophosphamide, and CCNU (Lomustine) (MACC scheme). Twelve patients in the hypertransfusion group were given red cell transfusion to a hemoglobin value greater than or equal to 17 gm/dl prior to each chemotherapy cycle. The two groups of patients were comparable in age, cell type, extent of disease, performance status, and initial hemoglobin level and blood counts. The mean fall in granulocyte count was greater for control group (3.76 X 10(9)/liter) than for hypertransfusion group (3.27 X 10(9)/liter), and the mean fall in platelet count was greater for control group (53.84 X 10(9)/liter) than for hypertransfusion group (35.83 X 10(9)/liter), although the differences did not reach statistical significance (p greater than 0.05) partly because our MACC scheme was probably not sufficiently myelosuppressive to bring about a difference in the two groups. Granulocytopenia-associated infections were infrequent in both groups: two episodes in 37 cycles of chemotherapy in the hypertransfusion group and three episodes in 43 cycles in the control group. Hypertransfusion was simple and safe, and the encouraging trend towards less marked myelosuppression in our hypertransfused group would warrant further studies using more intensive and myelosuppressive combination chemotherapy regimens.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Response to oral corticosteroids in chronic airflow obstruction.

Sixteen Chinese patients with chronic fixed airflow obstruction (mean age 62.5 years; mean forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) of 0.85 litres, and mean ratio FEV1/forced vital capacity (FVC) of 0.45) entered a randomized double-blind crossover trial comparing prednisolone 40 mg orally daily for 2 weeks with placebo. Nine of the 16 patients (56%) had an increase in FEV1 of 15% or more after prednisolone. Compared with placebo, prednisolone significantly improved objective measurements (mean FEV1 by 21.4%, mean FVC by 11.9%, mean daily peak expiratory flow rate by 22.6%), subjective measurement (mean dyspnoea score by 16%) and exercise performance assessed by the distance walked in 12 minutes (12MD, by 5.5%). Objective improvements in FEV1 and PEFR were correlated with subjective upgrading of the dyspnoea score, but were not paralleled by an improvement in 12MD. Changes in FVC correlated with neither. FEV1 was thus the best index of objective measurement. The following characteristics were examined for reliability in predicting steroid responsiveness: variability of symptoms, wheezing score, prick skin test positivity, initial bronchodilator response, peripheral blood and sputum eosinophilia, and serum and sputum immunoglobulin E (IgE) level. None was found to be useful. A therapeutic trial of oral corticosteroid should be considered in patients with chronic fixed airflow obstruction on an individual basis.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1983

Antibiotic susceptibility of pneumococci and Haemophilus influenzae isolated from patients with acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis: prevalence of tetracycline-resistant strains in Hong Kong.

The susceptibility of 119 respiratory isolates of Haemophilus influenzae and 87 respiratory isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae to various antibiotics was tested by means of an agar dilution method and an inoculum size of 10(3) colony forming units (c.f.u.). The antibiotics tested included penicillin/ampicillin, erythromycin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol and four third-generation cephalosporins, cefotaxime, cefoperazone, ceftriaxone and moxalactam. Fifty-eight per cent of the pneumococcal strains and 23 per cent of the H. influenzae strains tested were found resistant to tetracycline (MICs = 4-128 mg/l and 4-64 mg/l, respectively). None of the isolates tested was resistant to erythromycin or chloramphenicol. Three per cent of Haemophilus strains tested were beta-lactamase producing and thus resistant to ampicillin (MICs = 2-8 mg/l), while none of the pneumococcal strains tested was penicillin-resistant. Three of the newer third-generation cephalosporins--cefotaxime, cefoperazone and ceftriaxone--were highly active against both H. influenzae and Str. pneumoniae while moxalactam, though also active, was comparatively less effective.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1983

Successful treatment of melioidosis caused by a multiresistant strain in an immunocompromised host with third generation cephalosporins.

A 32-yr-old woman with active systemic lupus erythematosus receiving prednisone and azathioprine developed lung abscesses of the right lower lobe caused by Pseudomonas pseudomallei, which was resistant concomitantly to chloramphenicol, co-trimoxazole, and tetracycline, but highly sensitive to a new cephalosporin, ceftazidime. Melioidosis was treated successfully with lobectomy and parenteral ceftazidime, which was given for 2 months without major side effects. Ceftazidime, being bactericidal, may be more promising for the eradication of P. pseudomallei, especially in immunocompromised hosts. This was also the first reported case of melioidosis in Hong Kong, where the disease might be endemic, as 4 more cases were found later.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Bronchorrhea. A presenting feature of active endobronchial tuberculosis.

A 32-year-old woman presented with a one-month history of bronchorrhea (500 ml daily). She had normal findings on chest roentgenogram, and negative results for malignant cells and acid-fast bacilli in the sputum. Fiberoptic bronchoscopic examination, however, showed subtotal obliteration of left main bronchus due to active tuberculosis. The protean manifestations of endobronchial tuberculosis and its association with bronchorrhea are stressed.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

First report of asbestos-related diseases in Hong Kong.

There has been no report of malignant mesothelioma or asbestosis in Hong Kong despite the rapid growth of industry in the past few decades. Three patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma and one patient with asbestosis and small cell carcinoma of the lung are reported. All four patients were Chinese in Hong Kong and had a history of occupational exposure to asbestos. Although there is no mining of asbestos in Hong Kong, her rapid industrialization in the past few decades has led to a large population of asbestos-exposed workers in industry. The average annual consumption of crude asbestos (import minus re-export) has grown ten-fold in the past decade to 1.090 tonnes in 1978-79, and the number of workers handling asbestos products was estimated to be 20.000 in 1979. The problem of asbestos related diseases has however been little considered and further epidemiologic studies are warranted.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Fibreoptic bronchoscopy in the diagnosis of bronchial cancer: comparison of washings, brushings and biopsies in central and peripheral tumours.

Fibreoptic bronchoscopic cytodiagnosis by washings and brushings and histodiagnosis by forceps biopsy were studied in 484 Chinese patients with bronchial carcinoma. When the tumour was bronchoscopically visible, the yields of the three procedures were: washings 76%, brushings 74% and biopsy 82%, giving a total yield of 94%. For peripheral bronchoscopically non-visible tumour, the yields were 52%, 52% and 61% respectively, making a total yield of 86%. Bronchial washings and brushings were important complementary procedures to biopsy and provided the exclusive diagnosis in 12% of the central and 25% of the peripheral tumours. The cytologic cell typing accuracy is 92% for epidermoid carcinoma, 87% for small cell carcinoma, 83% for adenocarcinoma and only 38% for large cell carcinoma. The accuracy of cell-typing of the two bronchial cytodiagnostic methods was comparable in central tumours, but higher with brushings in peripheral tumours.

Adult↗