Prenatal therapy with pyrimethamine + sulfadiazine vs spiramycin to reduce placental transmission of toxoplasmosis: a multicenter, randomized trial.

Background: The efficacy of prophylaxis to prevent prenatal toxoplasmosis transmission is controversial, without any previous randomized clinical trial. In France, spiramycin is usually prescribed for maternal seroconversions. A more potent pyrimethamine + sulfadiazine regimen is used to treat congenital toxoplasmosis and is offered in some countries as prophylaxis.

Delayed Formation of a Massive Atrial Hematoma After Coronary Intervention Manifesting With an Isolated Cough: Multimodality Imaging and Outcome.

Coronary artery perforation is a relatively rare but potentially life-threatening complication of percutaneous coronary intervention because it could result in cardiac tamponade; exceptionally, distal coronary perforation could cause an acute formation of a mural hematoma, which could also prove lethal without adequate management. We report an exceptional case of a 76-year-old man in whom an important left atrial hematoma formed progressively over weeks after a planned percutaneous coronary intervention and manifested with an isolated cough. Diagnosis was made using multimodality imaging.

[Impressive extension into the right heart cavities and the inferior vena cava of renal carcinoma].

Renal carcinoma is an aggressive cancer with a high metastatic tendency. It may invade the renal vein, inferior vena cava and potentially extend in some cases to the right heart cavities. We report a case of a 71-year-old male presenting with an impressive polylobular tissular mass inside the right atrium and the right ventricle revealing an aggressive renal carcinoma extending through the inferior vena cava.

[Stress dobutamine echocardiography or resting strain rate imaging to unveil an early symptomatic diabetic cardiomyopathy?].

Diabetes mellitus has been associated with changes in the structure and function of the myocardium manifesting in the early stages of the disease as subtle systolic and diastolic dysfunction; myocardial strain imaging has recently been favored over dobutamine stress echocardiography for early detection of diabetic cardiomyopathy. We report a case of an elderly diabetic patient presenting with pulmonary edema in whom at rest echocardiographic parameters including strain rate were all within normal range, while dobutamine stress echocardiography induced a deep systolic deterioration unmasking an early-stage diabetic cardiomyopathy.

[Lead-related infective endocarditis with massive vegetation causing severe functionnal tricuspid stenosis].

Lead-related infective endocarditis with negative hemocultures constitutes a severe condition potentially associated with a pejorative prognosis. It may induce a functional tricuspid stenosis caused by an important obstructive vegetation. We report the case of an 82 year-old woman in whom the lead-related endocarditis produced massive vegetation causing a severe functional tricuspid stenosis.

Rituximab after Autologous Stem-Cell Transplantation in Mantle-Cell Lymphoma.

Background: Mantle-cell lymphoma is generally incurable. Despite high rates of complete response after initial immunochemotherapy followed by autologous stem-cell transplantation, patients have relapses. We investigated whether rituximab maintenance therapy at a dose of 375 mg per square meter of body-surface area administered every 2 months for 3 years after transplantation would prolong the duration of response.

[Gluten: Is the information available on the Internet valid?].

Background: Internet provides easy access to health information, but the quality and validity of this information vary.

Objectives: Evaluate the quality of website structures and the information provided on celiac disease (CD), gluten sensitivity (GS), and wheat allergy (WA).

Materials And Methods: The websites addressing CD, GS, and WA appearing on the first two pages of Google, Yahoo, and Bing from seven selected queries were investigated.

Thrombosis and antiphospholipid antibody syndrome during acute Q fever: A cross-sectional study.

Q fever is a neglected and potentially fatal disease. During acute Q fever, antiphospholipid antibodies are very prevalent and have been associated with fever, thrombocytopenia, acquired heart valve disease, and progression to chronic endocarditis. However, thrombosis, the main clinical criterion of the 2006 updated classification of the antiphospholipid syndrome, has not been assessed in this context.

Middle-term mortality and re-bleeding after initial diverticular bleeding: A nationwide study of 365 mostly elderly French patients.

Background And Aims: The aim of this study was to determine the mortality and re-bleeding rates, and the risk factors involved, in a cohort of patients with previous diverticular bleeding (DB).

Methods: In 2007, data on 2462 patients with lower gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding were collected prospectively at several French hospitals. We studied the follow-up of patients with DB retrospectively.

Multicenter Evaluation of Cystatin C Measurement after Assay Standardization.

Background: Since 2010, a certified reference material ERM-DA471/IFCC has been available for cystatin C (CysC). This study aimed to assess the sources of uncertainty in results for clinical samples measured using standardized assays.

Methods: This evaluation was performed in 2015 and involved 7 clinical laboratories located in France and Belgium.

[Massive intraatrial mass?].

Posterior mediastinal hematoma in a rare and potentially lethal disease and is frequently consecutive to a traumatism. We report the original case of a 88-year-old male admitted to our department for lipothymia and syncope related to a severe compression of the left atrium by an important mediastinal hematoma mimicking in transthoracic echocardiography an obstructive intraatrial mass.

[Safety of device implantation under antipatelet therapy with ticagrelor: About 20 cases].

Introduction: Management of antiplatelet therapy at the time of device implantation remains controversial. This study aimed to assess the risk of bleeding complications in patients receiving ticagrelor at the time of cardiac device surgery.

Methods: We performed a multicentre (n=4), retrospective study from January 2015 to January 2016.

[Optimization of the management of acute heart failure. New concept of fast-track].

The acute heart failure generates a very important number of hospitalizations for a high cost. A recent reflection on optimizing its management is ongoing, based on the fastest management in the emergency department, with a distinction between which patient should remain and who returns at home, and under what conditions, allowing to limit the number of hospitalizations. It will require a reorganization of emergency department and updating of decision algorithms and new guidelines of care.

[Prethrombus acute constitution during dobutamine stress echocardiography].

Although generally regarded as a safe stress modality, dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) has been associated with several well described complications. However, to our knowledge, acute constitution of thrombi during the stress test has never been described. In this report, we present the case of a 64 year-old man with a history of ischemic heart disease who underwent a preoperative DSE; during the test, we witnessed a striking acute constitution of an intense prethrombotic state with almost a formation of a highly mobile massive thrombus adjacent to the infero-apical segment spontaneously resolving few minutes after the end of the test.

[Atypical form of cor triatrium in a 59-year-old man].

Cor triatrium is a rare congenital heart disease typically diagnosed amongst very young patients. Delayed diagnosis in the elderly is much more unusual. We report the case of a 59-year-old male with unremarkable medical history in whom we have discovered, on an echocardiography performed for an exploration of transient ischemic accident with atrial fibrillation, a particular form of an isolated cor triatrium dextrum investigated with multimodality imaging.

Radiation Doses to Patients in Interventional Coronary Procedures-Estimation of Updated National Reference Levels by Dose Audit.

The objective of this study was to estimate the French national updated reference levels (RLs) for coronary angiography (CA) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) by a dose audit from a large data set of unselected procedures and in standard-sized patients. Kerma-area product (PKA), air kerma at interventional point (Ka,r), fluoroscopy time (FT), and the number of registered frames (NFs) and runs (NRs) were collected from 51 229 CAs and 42 222 PCIs performed over a 12-month period at 61 French hospitals. RLs estimated by the 75th percentile in CAs and PCIs performed in unselected patients were 36 and 78 Gy.

[Immunoglobulin G4-related lung disease: Case report and literature review].

We report the case of a 61-year-old man with a pulmonary nodule discovered while staging the metastasis of a squamous cell carcinoma. No primary cancer was found. Histological examination of the resected specimen (lingula) was in favor of IgG4-related inflammatory pseudotumor.

[Prevention of infections in adults and adolescents with systemic lupus erythematosus: Guidelines for the clinical practice based on the literature and expert opinion].

Purpose: To develop French recommendations about the management of vaccinations, the screening of cervical cancer and the prevention of pneumocystis pneumonia in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: Thirty-seven experts qualified in internal medicine, rheumatology, dermatology, nephrology and pediatrics have selected recommendations from a list of proposition based on available data from the literature. For each recommendation, the level of evidence and the level of agreement among the experts were specified.

Methotrexate Is Not Superior to Placebo for Inducing Steroid-Free Remission, but Induces Steroid-Free Clinical Remission in a Larger Proportion of Patients With Ulcerative Colitis.

Background & Aims: Parenteral methotrexate is an effective treatment for patients with Crohn's disease, but has never been adequately evaluated in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). We conducted a randomized controlled trial to determine its safety and efficacy in patients with steroid-dependent UC.

Methods: We performed a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of parenteral methotrexate (25 mg/wk) in 111 patients with corticosteroid-dependent UC at 26 medical centers in Europe from 2007 through 2013.

[Dobutamine-related coronary spasm among patients with false positive dobutamine stress echocardiography: Prevalence and predictors].

Background And Objective: Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) is being consistently used as an exercise-independent stress modality aimed at the detection of coronary artery disease (CAD) and the evaluation of myocardial ischemia. It may though occasionally induce coronary vasospasm. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the prevalence and predictors of dobutamine-related coronary spasm in patients without known CAD and false positive DSE (positive DSE but no significant coronary lesions on angiogram).