Borrelia burgdorferi antibodies in outdoor and indoor workers in south-west Sweden.

Two hundred and fifty-three farmers and forest workers and 249 clerks from south-west Sweden were recruited to a cross-sectional seroprevalence study to find out if individuals working outdoors are more prone to acquire Borrelia burgdorferi infection than indoor workers and to find undiagnosed cases of Lyme borreliosis. The participants answered a questionnaire and blood specimens were collected to estimate the prevalence of antibodies to B. burgdorferi in each group.

Cerebellar aspergilloma.

A cerebellar aspergilloma simulating brain tumour in a 48-year-old woman with alveolar proteinosis is described. The course of the disease was recurrent. Despite neurosurgery, ventricular drainage, amphotericin B, flucytosine and other antifungal agents, the disease was ultimately fatal.

Clinical evaluation of lysis-centrifugation technique and a biphasic bottle system for blood culture.

The lysis centrifugation technique (Isolator, DuPont) for blood culture was compared with a system with biphasic medium in bottles. The Isolator was filled with 10 ml of blood once. One aerobic and one anaerobic bottle were injected 3 times with 2.

Random locomotion in dark-field microscopy of single granulocytes from venous blood, tissue and exudate. Methodological considerations and clinical applications.

The random locomotion of granulocytes was studied in dark-field microscopy, and a standardized procedure for the classification of granulocytes into rapid-moving, (RM), slow-moving (SM) and non-moving (NM) cells was developed. When granulocytes from blood donors were tested, 54% were RM, 21% SM and 25% NM with variation between repeated tests, acceptable for a semiquantitative method. When the test was applied in 124 patients with infectious and inflammatory diseases and hematological malignancies, a significantly higher number of NM blood cells was found in patients with septicemia and pneumonia.

Disseminated aspergillosis treated with amphotericin B and surgery in a boy with chronic granulomatous disease.

A case of systemic infection caused by Aspergillus fumigatus in a seven-year-old boy suffering from chronic granulomatous disease is described. The fungus had infiltrated his lungs, his left foot and the popliteal and inguinal lymph nodes. Amphotericin B, 1 mg/kg daily, was given for three months via a central venous catheter, Progressive anaemia made amputation of his left leg necessary.

Intrauterine infection by non-capsulated Haemophilus influenzae in a case of maternal immunodeficiency.

A 29-year-old woman with an upper respiratory tract infection due to Haemophilus influenzae, gave birth to a premature infant who died after 3 h. The mother's strain was non-capsulated, as were the strains cultured from the infant's blood, lungs, nose, and throat. Antigen analyses revealed, however, that the strains were not identical.

Counterimmunoelectrophoresis of sputum and blood for the diagnosis of chest infections caused by pneumococci or Haemophilus influenzae.

In 107 patients with lower respiratory tract infections, counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIE) of blood and sputum, bacterial cultures of blood, sputum and nasopharyngeal secretion, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for antibody determination were performed, with special reference to pneumococci and Haemophilus influenzae. For pneumococci CIE of sputum was superior to culture especially in antibiotic-treated patients. The clinical significance of a positive CIE of sputum was supported by close correlation to significant antibody increase.

Chronic granulomatous disease in three siblings.

A family of 7 persons is described in which one male and two female siblings have chronic granulomatous disease (CGD). The CGD diagnosis was established by histories of recurring infections, typical histopathology, deficient nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) reduction and deficient neutrophil killing of Staphylococcus aureus. Noteworthy infections were liver abscesses, pneumonia, pleurisy, lymphadenitis, skin pustules, urinary tract infection and dental abscesses.

The significance of serum-sensitive bacilli in gram-negative bacteremia.

Clinical findings from 76 patients (median age 67 years) with gram-negative bacteremia were analysed and related to the sensitivity of the blood isolates to the bactericidal activity of normal human serum. 28 strains (37%) were resistant, an equal number intermediately sensitive and 20 markedly sensitive (26%). No correlation was found between serum sensitivity and origin of the bacteremia, presence of fever or blood granulocyte count.

Antibacterial effect of biological dressings in the treatment of infected wounds.

Human cadaver split skin preserved in a special transport medium (Histocon; Histo-Lab. Ltd., Göteborg, Sweden) and porcine split skin (Skintec; Genetic Lab.

Serum myeloperoxidase and lactoferrin in neutropenia.

Radioimmunosorbent assays for determination of serum content of the neutrophil proteins myeloperoxidase and lactoferrin are described. Serial studies were performed in patients with neutropenia. In 2 cases of cyclic neutropenia the myeloperoxidase level showed slight variations within the normal range during the cycle while lactoferrin displayed a clear correlation with neutrophil counts.

Interaction between cephaloridine and furosemide in man.

The effect of a moderate oral dose of furosemide (80 mg daily) on the serum half-life of cephaloridine was studied. In 14 patients not previously treated with diuretics this dose was found to prolong the half-life significantly. A corresponding decrease of the half-life of cephaloridine was observed when furosemide was withdrawn from 2 patients who were treated with diuretics at admission to hospital.

In vitro studies of antimicrobial effects of biological dressings. A comparison of the effect of human cadaver split skin grafts; irradiated and deep frozen porcine split skin; and fresh split skin from living humans and pigs.

The in-vitro antimicrobial effect of certain biological dressings was analysed. Glass basins lined with inverted human or pig skin treated and stored in various ways were inoculated with Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. Glass basins served as controls.