West Nile Virus: A Neglected Cause of Bell's Palsy?

The West Nile virus (WNV) is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the United States. Bell's palsy (BP) is a clinical syndrome associated with viral infections, but an association with West Nile virus (WNV) is not well-described, with only two cases reported in the literature. We present a case of a 68-year-old woman presenting with fevers and encephalopathy.

Late Recurrence of Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis Due to Candida albicans.

BACKGROUND Candida prosthetic valve endocarditis is a rare disease that is increasing in incidence with the rising rates of fungemia and increased use of intracardiac devices. Chronic antifungal prophylaxis is used after primary treatment to prevent recurrence, but the optimal duration of prophylaxis is currently unknown. This case report is of a woman with a history of mitral valve replacement due to Candida endocarditis presenting 2 years later with prosthetic valve and native aortic valve Candida albicans endocarditis.

Assessing the suitable electrical resistivity arrays for characterization of basement aquifers using numerical modeling.

Numerical modeling analysis was used to assess the suitable electrical resistivity arrays for the characterization of geological structures, including dyke, horst, graben, sub-vertical, and vertical structures. These geological structures usually make up the aquifers interested in the hydrogeological evaluation of crystalline basement terrains. Six electrode configurations, including Wenner alpha (α), Wenner beta (β), Wenner gamma (γ), Schlumberger array, dipole-dipole array, and pole-dipole array, were used to assess the geological structures for groundwater exploration.

Experimental and Density Functional Theory Studies on a Zinc(II) Coordination Polymer Constructed with 1,3,5-Benzenetricarboxylic Acid and the Derived Nanocomposites from Activated Carbon.

A coordination polymer with the composition CHOZn (ZnBTC) (BTC = benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate) was synthesized under hydrothermal conditions at 120 °C, and its crystal structure was determined using single-crystal X-ray crystallography. First-principles electronic structure investigation of the compound was carried out using the density functional theory computational approach. The highest occupied molecular orbital, the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital, the energy gap, and the global reactivity descriptors of ZnBTC were investigated in both the gas phase and the solvent phase using the implicit solvation model, while the donor-acceptor interactions were studied using natural bond orbital analyses.

Vancomycin-Induced Leukocytoclastic Vasculitis and Acute Renal Failure Due to Tubulointerstitial Nephritis.

BACKGROUND Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia and sepsis are commonly treated with intravenous vancomycin. However, vancomycin treatment is associated adverse reactions, including skin rashes and nephrotoxicity. We present a case of acute renal failure due to acute tubulointerstitial nephritis associated with a diffuse leukocytoclastic vasculitic skin eruption following intravenous vancomycin treatment.

Tuberculous Psoas Abscess and Worsening Vascular Aneurysm; All from Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) Therapy?

BACKGROUND Intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) is used in the treatment and prophylaxis of carcinoma in situ of the urinary bladder and for the prophylaxis of primary or recurrent stage Ta and T1 papillary tumors following transurethral resection. Significant systemic complications are rare but have been reported. CASE REPORT We describe this case of Mycobacterium bovis psoas abscess and worsening abdominal aortic aneurysm following BCG therapy for bladder cancer.

Clostridium perfringens meningitis, Plesiomonas shigelloides sepsis: A lethal combination.

Background: Anaerobic bacterial meningitis is rare. It is extremely unusual without a portal of entry as most cases reported have been associated with trauma or neurosurgery.

Case Report: We describe this rare case of clostridium meningitis and plesiomonas sepsis in an immunocompetent adult.

Tigecycline-related pancreatitis: a review of spontaneous adverse event reports.

Study Objective: To provide clinicians with an understanding of the comparative occurrence of tigecycline and pancreatitis, and to provide any clinically relevant characteristics that may be useful in identifying the patients at risk.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Data Source: Spontaneous reports in the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS) database generated between January 1997 and December 2010.

Stress-induced cardiomyopathy complicating severe babesiosis.

A post-menopausal lady with severe babesiosis developed a basal-type stress-induced cardiomyopathy. Left ventricular function normalized at three months. We believe this is the first reported case of stress cardiomyopathy complicating severe babesiosis.

Antihypertensive therapy in African Americans: findings from an inner-city ambulatory clinic.

African Americans bear a greater burden of hypertension. Understanding prevailing epidemiologic patterns can facilitate the implementation and successful outcome of community programs. The authors assessed practice patterns of antihypertensive drug utilization and blood pressure (BP) control in a predominantly African American population in Brooklyn, NY, from January 1 to January 31, 2008.