Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

W Kern

Publications and source records attributed to W Kern.

188 records · Page 11Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Low prevalence of intestinal cryptosporidiosis among immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients with and without diarrhoea in southern Germany.

1160 stool specimens, from 160 severely immunocompromised patients, from 70 adults and 180 children with acute diarrhoea and from 60 controls without diarrhoea and without evidence of immunocompromising underlying disorders, were examined for Cryptosporidium excretion. Only two children (1.1%) (one with previous contact to a straying cat and to lambs, the other without known risk) had documented intestinal cryptosporidiosis, whereas none of the symptomatic adults, immunocompromised patients or controls were found to be positive for Cryptosporidium fecal excretion. Other potential protozoal enteric pathogens among immunocompromised patients were only found in seven of 25 patients with HIV infection. We conclude that sporadic intestinal cryptosporidiosis in Southern Germany is a rare disease in humans even of younger age, but should be included in the differential diagnosis of diarrhoea in immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Bacteremia caused by Stomatococcus mucilaginosus: report of seven cases and review of the literature.

During a three-year period eight patients with blood cultures positive for Stomatococcus mucilaginosus were identified at two university hospitals. One patient without any signs of infection had a central venous catheter that was colonized with this organism, two patients had transient bacteremia without definite relationship to underlying disease, whereas the remaining five patients suffered from clinically significant infections. Of these last five patients, one had undergone prior head and neck surgery and four had hematologic malignancy with mild to severe neutropenia; two of the latter patients developed the infection subsequent to dental surgery. Besides neutropenia and mucosal damage in the oropharynx, quinolone antibacterial prophylaxis may have been an additional risk factor for the development of S. mucilaginosus bacteremia in these patients. A thorough review of the literature revealed that in addition to our findings, endocarditis and foreign body infections are further typical clinical manifestations. Although the overall antibiotic susceptibility pattern of S. mucilaginosus resembles that of streptococci, it is suggested that penicillin G may not be the drug of choice for initial therapy of particularly severe infections. S. mucilaginosus can be easily differentiated from other gram-positive bacteria when certain key criteria (e.g. adherence to agar surfaces, poor growth on Mueller-Hinton agar, presence of a capsule) as well as an array of biochemical tests, including commercially available identification systems, are applied. Our own and published data emphasize that both microbiologists and clinicians should be increasingly aware of this opportunistic pathogen.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Chronic systemic aspergillosis in a patient with acute myeloid leukemia.

Systemic aspergillosis is a well-recognized complication of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia. In this report a patient with acute myeloid leukemia is described in whom a chronic aspergillosis with systemic involvement developed after recovery from neutropenia following intensive chemotherapy and allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. The clinical features of a chronic course of systemic aspergillosis suggest a distinct clinical entity comparable to chronic systemic candidiasis.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Detection and separation of the S-adenosylmethionine-decarboxylase inhibitor SAM486A in human plasma and urine by reversed-phase ion-pairing high-performance liquid chromatography.

A reversed-phase ion-pairing high-performance liquid chromatography method for the detection and separation of SAM486A in human plasma and urine is described. Precipitation of proteins was used for plasma sample preparation. Enrichment of SAM486A on a 5 micro C18 column using 0.05 M NaH(2)PO(4) and 0.005 M pentan-sulfonic acid (pH 3.0) as eluent was followed by isocratic elution onto a 5 micro C18 analytical column using 0.01 M NaH(2)PO(4) and 0.005 M pentan-sulfonic acid (pH 3.0) as eluent. Analysis time was 23.0 +/- 0.1 min. The separation parameters were: capacacity factor = 6.21; plates/m = 15,002; peak tailing = 2.076. The method is linear between 5 ng/ml (detection limit) and 1000 ng/ml.

Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Microalbuminuria during cisplatin therapy: relation with pharmacokinetics and implications for nephroprotection.

BACKGROUND: To assess the relation of cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity to its pharmacology. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In 22 chemonaive patients (median age, 32 years) receiving 100-150 mg/m2 cisplatin for a total of 54 courses of therapy pharmacokinetics of ultra-filtrable platin were analyzed. Nephrotoxicity was sensitively assessed by nephelometric analyses of urinary marker-proteins. RESULTS: The parameters calculated for ultrafiltrable platin were (two-compartment-model): terminal half-life, 36 hours (coefficient of variation [CV], 22%); AUC, 12852 ng h/ml (33%); volume of distribution, 3531 (44%); total clearance, 285 ml/min (30%); renal clearance, 149 ml/min (23%); maximum concentration, 1720 ng/ml (66%); renal elimination, 57% of applied dose (26%). A pathological urinary excretion of albumin > 20 mg/l and alpha-1-microglobulin > 10 mg/l was detected in 39 out of 54 and 42 out of 54 cycles, respectively. The degree of albuminuria was related with urinary monoaquoplatin concentrations (p = 0.003). CONCLUSION: Nephrotoxicity of cisplatin appears to depend on the urinary monoaquoplatin concentrations which may be modulated by application of saline.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hepatic arterial infusion with oxaliplatin, folinic acid, and 5-fluorouracil in patients with hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer: role of carcino-embryonic antigen in assessment of response.

BACKGROUND: Therapy for patients with hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer (CRC) remains controversial and may be improved by regional oxaliplatin which proved to be effective when administered systemically to patients with advanced CRC. METHODS: During the current study, which aims to determine the maximum tolerated dose, the dose-limiting toxicity, and the pharmacokinetics of oxaliplatin applied as hepatic intra-arterial infusion combined with folinic acid and 5-fluorouracil in patients with hepatic metastases from CRC, serial levels of carcino-embryonic antigen were determined and their relationship to response to therapy was assessed. RESULTS: Toxicity mainly consisted of nausea, pain, mucositis, sensorial neuropathy, diarrhoea, and thrombocytopenia. The results of tumor marker analyses suggest that progressive disease may be detected early by increasing CEA levels and responsive disease may be characterized by low or decreasing values. CONCLUSIONS: Further analyses are warranted to determine the role of CEA in the assessment of response as compared to imaging techniques.

Aged↗