The incidence and outcome of AKI in patients with sepsis in the emergency department applying different definitions of AKI and sepsis.

Background: Sepsis is often accompanied with acute kidney injury (AKI). The incidence of AKI in patients visiting the emergency department (ED) with sepsis according to the new SOFA criteria is not exactly known, because the definition of sepsis has changed and many definitions of AKI exist. Given the important consequences of early recognition of AKI in sepsis, our aim was to assess the epidemiology of sepsis-associated AKI using different AKI definitions (RIFLE, AKIN, AKIB, delta check, and KDIGO) for the different sepsis classifications (SIRS, qSOFA, and SOFA).

Robert Koch, malaria pioneer.

The role of Robert Koch in the early discoveries of the malaria lifecycle and the complex of diseases, the development of immunity, quinine prophylaxis and the mosquito theory has fallen into oblivion. As a mature and famous hygienist, Koch had travelled the Old World, where malaria was endemic. His first studies took place in Tanganyika, German East Africa (now Tanzania) in 1898 and thereafter in Italy and the East Asian archipelago.

[A man with bulging eyes].

Graves' orbitopathy may cause multiple symptoms, such as proptosis, redness or inflammation of the conjunctiva, excessive tearing, swelling of the eyelids and pain. Smoking, male gender and old age are significant risk factors for a more severe and active disease.

Progressive kidney failure in chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia: don't forget lysozyme damage.

Kidney failure is common in haematologic malignancies. However, the nephrotoxic effect of lysozyme is seldom recognized. We present a 78-year-old male with chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia who developed progressive kidney failure due to increased production of lysozyme.

Evidence and strategies for malaria prevention and control: a historical analysis.

Public health strategies for malaria in endemic countries aim to prevent transmission of the disease and control the vector. This historical analysis considers the strategies for vector control developed during the first four decades of the twentieth century. In 1925, policies and technological advances were debated internationally for the first time after the outbreak of malaria in Europe which followed World War I.

Living Donor Kidney Transplantation in Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome: A Case Series.

Background: The development of complement inhibitors has greatly improved the outcome of patients with atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS), making kidney transplantation a more feasible option. Although prophylactic eculizumab therapy may prevent recurrent disease after transplantation, its necessity for all transplant recipients is debated.

Study Design: A case series.

The impact of renal protection clinics on prescription of and adherence to cardioprotective drug therapy in chronic kidney disease patients.

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of follow-up in renal protection clinics on the prescription of and adherence to cardioprotective drugs in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). We studied stage 4 and 5 CKD patients who initiated follow-up in three renal protection clinics. The prescription pattern of antihypertensive agents (AHA) and lipid-lowering agents (LLAs) was measured as the percentage of patients who are prescribed the agents of interest at a given time.

Cost-effectiveness of eculizumab treatment after kidney transplantation in patients with atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome.

Background: Kidney transplantation in patients with atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome (aHUS) is frequently complicated by recurrence of aHUS, often resulting in graft loss. Eculizumab prophylaxis prevents recurrence, improving graft survival. An alternative treatment strategy has been proposed where eculizumab is administered upon recurrence.

[Hypernatremia caused by treatment with GHB obtained via a doctor's prescription].

In the last few years, gamma hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) has been used increasingly as a party drug; this has led to a marked increase in the number of requests for professional help with the treatment of GHB addiction. Pharmaceutical GHB (sodium oxybate, the sodium-salt of GHB), registered for cataplexia in narcolepsy patients, is used off-label to treat the withdrawal symptoms associated with GHB addiction. Pharmaceutical GHB has a high sodium load.

A Multicenter Study of the Predictive Value of Crescents in IgA Nephropathy.

The Oxford Classification of IgA nephropathy does not account for glomerular crescents. However, studies that reported no independent predictive role of crescents on renal outcomes excluded individuals with severe renal insufficiency. In a large IgA nephropathy cohort pooled from four retrospective studies, we addressed crescents as a predictor of renal outcomes and determined whether the fraction of crescent-containing glomeruli associates with survival from either a ≥50% decline in eGFR or ESRD (combined event) adjusting for covariates used in the original Oxford study.

[Treatment of syphilis with malaria or heat].

Until the end of the Second World War, syphilis was a common sexually transmitted infection. This stigmatising infectious disease caused mental decline, paralysis and eventually death. The history of syphilis was given public attention because of 'malaria therapy', which had been applied from the First World War onwards in patients with paralytic dementia.

Tonsillectomy in a European Cohort of 1,147 Patients with IgA Nephropathy.

Background: Tonsillectomy has been considered a treatment for IgA nephropathy (IgAN). It is aimed at removing a source of pathogens, reducing mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue and decreasing polymeric IgA synthesis. However, its beneficial effect is still controversial.

Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 1β-Associated Kidney Disease: More than Renal Cysts and Diabetes.

Hepatocyte nuclear factor 1β (HNF1β)-associated disease is a recently recognized clinical entity with a variable multisystem phenotype. Early reports described an association between HNF1B mutations and maturity-onset diabetes of the young. These patients often presented with renal cysts and renal function decline that preceded the diabetes, hence it was initially referred to as renal cysts and diabetes syndrome.

Strategies to increase living kidney donation: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Living kidney transplantation (LKT) offers the best medical outcomes for organ recipients. Historically, our centre had a low rate of LKT. In 2009, in an effort to increase living organ donation (LOD), a dedicated team was created.

[Cryptococcal meningitis].

Immunocompromised patients are at increased risk of disseminated cryptococcal infection, often presenting as a primary respiratory infection with yeast cells originating from bird excreta. Because Cryptococcus neoformans has a tropism for cerebrospinal fluid, most patients suffer from meningitis or meningoencephalitis. Symptoms of cryptococcal meningitis are non-specific: headache, fever, nausea, or altered mental state and behaviour.