Hepatitis B: report of prevalence and access to healthcare among Chinese residents in Sheffield UK.

Unlabelled: Overall prevalence of hepatitis B (HBV) in the UK is low. However, among migrants from endemic areas, prevalence has been shown to be high. Furthermore, timely diagnosis and/or referral are required prevent serious health consequences through early institution of treatment.

Functional T-cell deficiency in adolescents who experience serogroup C meningococcal disease despite receiving the meningococcal serogroup C conjugate vaccine.

Some individuals have experienced meningococcal disease despite receiving the meningococcal serogroup C conjugate (MCC) vaccine in adolescence. We sought to determine whether this is due to subclinical functional B- or T-cell immunodeficiency. Of 53 vaccine failures identified by enhanced surveillance of England and Wales from 1999 to 2004, 15 received MCC vaccine in adolescence, 9 of whom were recruited 2 to 6 years following convalescence from meningococcal disease.

The treatment of varicella-zoster virus infection and its complications.

Background: Varicella, zoster and their complications remain important causes of morbidity and mortality in a population containing increasing numbers of elderly or immunocompromised individuals.

Objective: To review varicella-zoster virus pathogenesis and current therapeutic options.

Methods: The English-language literature related to varicella-zoster virus, its associated diseases, complications and treatments was identified using the Pubmed search engine, examination of reference lists of reviewed articles and the authors' personal knowledge.

Clinical features of viral meningitis in adults: significant differences in cerebrospinal fluid findings among herpes simplex virus, varicella zoster virus, and enterovirus infections.

Background: In this retrospective study, our objective was to review the epidemiology of viral meningitis and to compare clinical features associated with enterovirus, herpes simplex virus (HSV), and varicella zoster virus (VZV) infections in immunocompetent adults.

Methods: Data on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples submitted to the Trust Virology Laboratory (Sheffield, UK) from April 2004 through April 2007 were reviewed. Notes on immunocompetent adults who were polymerase chain reaction (PCR) positive for enterovirus, HSV type 2, or VZV and who had presented to local clinical departments were scrutinized (4 patients were positive for HSV type 1 and did not meet the inclusion criteria).

Recommendations for the management of herpes zoster.

The objective of this article is to provide evidence-based recommendations for the management of patients with herpes zoster (HZ) that take into account clinical efficacy, adverse effects, impact on quality of life, and costs of treatment. Systematic literature reviews, published randomized clinical trials, existing guidelines, and the authors' clinical and research experience relevant to the management of patients with HZ were reviewed at a consensus meeting. The results of controlled trials and the clinical experience of the authors support the use of acyclovir, brivudin (where available), famciclovir, and valacyclovir as first-line antiviral therapy for the treatment of patients with HZ.

Clearance of hepatitis C virus is not associated with single nucleotide polymorphisms in the IL-1, -6, or -10 genes.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) commonly causes a chronic infection, but a minority of patients are able to clear the virus and do not run the risk of developing HCV-induced organ damage. Genetic associations between immunoregulatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-1, -6, and -10 with clinical features of HCV, including virus clearance, have been inconsistent. We determined cytokine genotypes in 606 patients who had serologic evidence of HCV exposure, 190 (18%) of whom were consistently negative for HCV RNA, indicating successful virus clearance.

A randomised, controlled, triple-blind trial of the efficacy of homeopathic treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome.

Objective: There is no management regime for chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) that has been found to be universally beneficial and no treatment can be considered a "cure". Patients with CFS may use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Our aim was to evaluate homeopathic treatment in reducing subjective symptoms of CFS.

Group G streptococcal bacteraemia: an opportunistic infection associated with immune senescence.

The number of cases of group G streptococcal bacteraemia reported worldwide is increasing. Twenty-six cases of group G streptococcal bacteraemia were identified during a 70-month period at a single university teaching hospital in Sheffield, UK. These cases represented 20% of all bacteraemias due to beta-hemolytic Streptococci, a higher proportion than previously reported.