Cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) is a degenerative disease of the spine that occurs mainly in the elderly, along with age-related changes in the spine. It has a varied presentation, from nonspecific paraesthesia and neck pain to hemiplegia and paraplegia, even quadriplegia, due to the compression of the cervical spine or nerves in the spinal canal or foramina. The diagnosis is often delayed, and cases may present as acute worsening and even hemiplegia mimicking stroke following trauma or neck manipulation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEssential thrombocythemia (ET) is a myeloproliferative neoplasm involving the clonal proliferation of platelets. It is Philadelphia negative and is associated with Janus kinase 2 (JAK2), calreticulin (CALR), or myeloproliferative leukemia virus oncogene (MPL) mutations. The resultant platelets have quantitative and qualitative defects, making them more sticky and prone to thromboembolism.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImmunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) is a fibroinflammatory autoimmune disease characterized by tissue infiltration by dense lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate composed of T cells, activated B-cells, and plasma cells expressing IgG4 and has varied presentations with similar histopathology. It can involve visceral organs, glands, aorta, lymph nodes, and retroperitoneal tissue. In our case, a 68-year-old male with a past history of Hodgkin's lymphoma and in remission presented for investigation of polyclonal gammopathy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPneumoconiosis is an occupational disease found in workers with environmental exposure to organic and inorganic dust, as in mining, sandblasting, pottery, stone masonry, and farming. The inflammatory response of the lung to respirable dust causes the formation of macules, nodules, and fibrosis, and higher silica content in inhaled dust is associated with increased fibrosis. Mixed dust pneumoconiosis (MDP) is characterized by exposure to dust containing 10-20% silica, and its lung imaging show irregular opacities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction is a gram-positive, non-sporing, facultative anaerobe. It is a common cause of nosocomial infections in the United States. Enterococcal bacteremia is primarily a nosocomial infection in the medical intensive care unit (ICU), with a preference for elderly patients with multiple comorbidities.
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