Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) involving the hand, especially with bone involvement, is extremely rare. We report a case of a 62-year-old man, with a 4-year history of a subclinical CLL, presenting with chronic swelling and pain over the dorsal surface of the right hand, mimicking an infectious process. There was no clinical response to broad-spectrum antibiotics and topical corticosteroid therapy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Self-inflicted burns typically result in extensive injuries requiring intensive care and attention in a specialised burn unit. Burn units should be familiar with the optimal management of self-inflicted burns, including the psychological and psychiatric treatment. This paper describes the experiences of managing these challenging injuries in a German burn centre.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In extensive burn injuries with lack of donor sites for skin grafting, the Meek technique of skin expansion can be an efficient and effective method in covering extensive wounds. The aim of this retrospective study was to present our experience with the Meek technique of grafting.
Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of patients from our burn center who underwent Meek grafting between 2012 and 2016.
Despite the development of modern intensive care and new antimicrobial agents, the mortality of patients with severe sepsis and septic shock remains high. Systemic inflammation is a consequence of activation of the innate immune system. It is characterized by the intravascular release of proinflammatory cytokines and other vasoactive mediators, with concurrent activation of innate immune cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBased on a representative case, which was treated in our center for severe burn injuries, the severity of the Waterhouse-Friderichsen syndrome and the complexity of the prolonged course of treatment are illustrated. Special attention is focused on the new treatment paradigm using the CytoSorb® adsorber.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSepsis is a well-recognized healthcare issue worldwide, ultimately resulting in significant mortality, morbidity and resource utilization during and after critical illness. In its most severe form, sepsis causes multi-organ dysfunction that produces a state of critical illness characterized by severe immune dysfunction and catabolism. Sepsis induces the activation of complement factor via 3 pathways and the release of inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-1beta (IL-1β), resulting in a systemic inflammatory response.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAdvanced glycation end products (AGEs) are stable end products of the Maillard reaction. Effects of food extracts are often initially analysed in cellular test systems and it is not clear how different cell culture conditions might influence the results. Therefore, we compared the effects of two models for AGE-rich food, bread crust and coffee extract (CE) on WI-38 human lung fibroblasts under different cell culture conditions (sub-confluent versus confluent cells, with and without serum).
View Article and Find Full Text PDF