Active Surveillance of Asymptomatic, Presymptomatic, and Oligosymptomatic SARS-CoV-2-Infected Individuals in Communities Inhabiting Closed or Semi-closed Institutions.

The high COVID-19 dissemination rate demands active surveillance to identify asymptomatic, presymptomatic, and oligosymptomatic (APO) SARS-CoV-2-infected individuals. This is of special importance in communities inhabiting closed or semi-closed institutions such as residential care homes, prisons, neuropsychiatric hospitals, etc., where risk people are in close contact.

Red blood cell aquaporin-1 expression is decreased in hereditary spherocytosis.

Aquaporin-1 (AQP1) is the membrane water channel responsible for changes in erythrocyte volume in response to the tonicity of the medium. As the aberrant distribution of proteins in hereditary spherocytosis (HS) generates deficiencies of proteins other than those codified by the mutated gene, we postulated that AQP1 expression might be impaired in spherocytes. AQP1 expression was evaluated through flow cytometry in 5 normal controls, 1 autoimmune hemolytic anemia, 10 HS (2 mild, 3 moderate, 2 severe, and 3 splenectomized), and 3 silent carriers.

[Hereditary spherocytosis. Review. Part II. Symptomatology, outcome, complications, and treatment].

Hereditary spherocytosis must always be suspected in children with anemia, hyperbilirubinemia, splenomegaly or cholelithiasis, in the asymptomatic individual with an affected relative, and in the neonate with hyperbilirubinemia with no blood group incompatibility; its early detection is key to avoid kernicterus. Follow-up of these patients is based on periodical control and supply of information on the adequate management of hemolytic or aplastic crisis, and early detection of cholelithiasis. The decision to perform splenectomy is usually associated with quality of life rather than life-threatening risk, and it should result from a consensus between patient, parents and physicians.

[Hereditary spherocytosis: Review. Part I. History, demographics, pathogenesis, and diagnosis].

Hereditary spherocytosis is the most frequent hereditary anemia excluding beta thalassemia in Argentina. Historical, demographic, genetic and pathogenic aspects of the disease are reviewed, and confirmatory laboratory tests are described. Special characteristics on the outcome of the disease in our population and prevalent protein deficiencies in our country are described.

Use of capillary blood to diagnose hereditary spherocytosis.

We studied 31 children with hemolytic anemia, or with positive family history for hereditary spherocytosis (HS), to assess the reliability of capillary blood samples for the diagnosis. HS was diagnosed in 20 patients. Cryohemolysis (CH) was positive in 94% and eosin-5'-maleimide flow cytometry in 90% of them, whereas flow cytometric osmotic fragility was positive in 94%.

Oxidative stress due to aluminum exposure induces eryptosis which is prevented by erythropoietin.

The widespread use of aluminum (Al) provides easy exposure of humans to the metal and its accumulation remains a potential problem. In vivo and in vitro assays have associated Al overload with anemia. To better understand the mechanisms by which Al affects human erythrocytes, morphological and biochemical changes were analyzed after long-term treatment using an in vitro model.

A prospective study to assess the predictive value for hereditary spherocytosis using five laboratory tests (cryohemolysis test, eosin-5'-maleimide flow cytometry, osmotic fragility test, autohemolysis test, and SDS-PAGE) on 50 hereditary spherocytosis families in Argentina.

This prospective study was carried out to assess the usefulness of five laboratory tests in the diagnosis of hereditary spherocytosis (HS), based on the correlation of erythrocyte membrane protein defects with clinical and laboratory features, and also to determine the membrane protein deficiencies detected in Argentina. Of 116 patients and their family members tested, 62 of them were diagnosed to have HS. The specificity of cryohemolysis (CH) test was 95.