Diagnosing ANCA-associated vasculitis in ANCA positive patients: A retrospective analysis on the role of clinical symptoms and the ANCA titre.

Currently no validated diagnostic system for antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) is available. Therefore, diagnosing AAV is often challenging. We aimed to identify factors that lead to a clinical diagnosis AAV in ANCA positive patients in a teaching hospital in The Netherlands.

[Benign ethnic neutropenia; an unrecognised cause of leukopenia in negroid patients].

Leukopenia has a high incidence and is usually a reason for additional testing. Benign ethnic neutropenia is a relatively common cause of neutropenia in the negroid population. It can be the cause of aberrant laboratory results in negroid patients.

Tenofovir-induced Fanconi syndrome and osteomalacia in two HIV-infected patients: role of intracellular tenofovir diphosphate levels and review of the literature.

We present 2 human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate-induced Fanconi syndrome, leading to osteomalacia. Intracellular tenofovir diphosphate levels were measured in 1 patient and were found to be very high, with plasma tenofovir levels just slightly elevated. Fibroblast growth factor-23, a phosphaturic hormone, was decreased in both patients and is therefore unlikely to have a pathophysiological role in this pathology.

Breast cancer surgery-induced immunomodulation.

Background And Objectives: Surgical procedures can cause tumor cells to disseminate into the circulatory system. Although this spread of metastatic cells will be limited by immune activity, immunosuppression tends to be the main effect resulting from surgery. The objective of this study is to assess hormonal and immunological changes induced by breast cancer surgery.