Early-onset anemia after kidney transplantation is an independent factor for graft loss: a multicenter, observational cohort study.

Background: The association of anemia with outcomes after renal transplantation (RT) is unclear.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study that included patients who received a RT in Spain in 2007. We collected data on anemia (hemoglobin [Hb] <11 g/dL and/or erythropoietic agents and/or transfusion in the previous month) as well as transplantation and clinical data during follow-up.

A multicentre study on high-frequency ultrasound evaluation of the skin and joints in patients with psoriatic arthritis treated with infliximab.

Objectives: Our objective was to describe the ultrasound features of patients with PsA in joints and skin and their changes after treatment with infliximab.

Methods: Eight hospitals recruited PsA active patients. Clinical (joint count for pain, TJC, and swelling, SJC, pain VAS, ESR, C-reactive protein and PASI) and US variables (plaque thickness, PD signal of dermal lesions, synovitis, erosions, and PD signal, assessed by 4-category ordinal scales) were independently recorded at baseline and 4, 12 and 24-week after starting treatment with infliximab.

Diagnosis, management, and outcomes of patients with syncope and bundle branch block.

Aims: Although patients with syncope and bundle branch block (BBB) are at high risk of developing atrio-ventricular block, syncope may be due to other aetiologies. We performed a prospective, observational study of the clinical outcomes of patients with syncope and BBB following a systematic diagnostic approach.

Methods And Results: Patients with ≥1 syncope in the last 6 months, with QRS duration ≥120 ms, were prospectively studied following a three-phase diagnostic strategy: Phase I, initial evaluation; Phase II, electrophysiological study (EPS); and Phase III, insertion of an implantable loop recorder (ILR).

Bilateral testicular germ cell tumours: a single hospital experience.

Background: The incidence of testicular germ cell tumours (TGCT) is increasing and the improvement in survival may lead to an increased incidence of bilateral tumours. We examined the incidence, prognosis, clinical and histological characteristics, treatment and outcome of patients with bilateral TGCTs based on 15 years of experience from a single institution.

Material And Methods: We reviewed the charts from all patients treated for a testicular tumour germ cell at Hospital Vall d'Hebron in Barcelona, Spain.

Osteopontin provides early proliferative drive and may be dependent upon aberrant c-myc signalling in murine intestinal tumours.

Osteopontin is thought to play an important role in tumour metastasis. In a previous expression profiling study of murine intestinal adenomas, we found that Opn was up-regulated. We also found beta-catenin binding motifs in the Opn promoter implying that, contrary to current beliefs, induction of Opn may occur during early tumourigenesis.

Fat and aging: a tale of two tissues.

The thrifty aged hypothesis (TAH) holds that aging is a "saving program", a set of strategies all of them focused to reduce energy consumption in the post-reproductive age. Aged adults remove fewer energy resources from the environment, and the remaining fuel can be profitably used by offspring. Thus, from an evolutionary point of view, the variable submitted to natural selection would be the amount of energy removed by post-reproductive individuals from the environment, favoring "reduced energy extraction" (REE) strategies.

[Open versus laparoscopic pyeloplasty: review of our series and description of our laparoscopic pyeloplasty procedure].

Introduction And Objectives: Pyeloplasty has always been the treatment of choice for ureteropelvic junction obstruction at our center, where a laparoscopic approach has been used in the last 4 years to perform this procedure. Results of open pyeloplasty (OP) and laparoscopic pyeloplasty (LP) performed at our center in the past 8 years are compared, and our laparoscopic procedure is described.

Materials And Methods: Pyeloplasties performed at our center from June 2000 to June 2008 were retrospectively reviewed.

Metastasis of amelanotic melanoma of unknown origin in the parotid gland.

We report a rare case of metastasis of an amelanotic melanoma of the parotid gland. To our knowledge this is the first report of a metastasis of an amelanotic melanoma in a parotid lymph node. Superficial parotidectomy with no other complementary treatment controlled the tumour.

[Fecal control system Flexi-Seal FMS].

Fecal incontinence in a bedridden patient is a common problem which upsets the patient's well-being. Besides the discomfort and the hygienic problem which this situation cause, complications related to these can arise. Recently a fecal derivation system called Flexi-Seal FMS has appeared on the market; this system is destined to control fecal incontinence in a bedridden patient.

Occult secretion of acth and bilateral adrenalectomy: sometimes the messenger has to be shot.

Cushing's syndrome due to ectopic adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) secretion is infrequent, the most frequent cause being bronchial carcinoid; nevertheless, in a considerable proportion of cases (up to 16%), the origin of ACTH secretion is not found. Treatment of Cushing's syndrome due to ectopic ACTH secretion is surgical resection of the tumor. However, surgical excision is not always feasible, either because the tumor has not been located, or because it is unresectable; in these cases the question is when to carry out a bilateral adrenalectomy.

No-reflow phenomenon in cardiac MRI: diagnosis and clinical implications.

Objective: The purposes of this study were to depict the first-pass, delayed contrast enhancement and regional myocardial wall motion abnormalities of no-reflow phenomenon MRI and to review the major mechanisms and significance of this phenomenon in the clinical setting.

Conclusion: Contrast-enhanced MRI is a useful noninvasive technique for determining the presence of microvascular obstruction. No-reflow phenomenon has important prognostic implications, and knowledge of the physiologic mechanism is important to understanding the distribution patterns of enhancement in correlation with the underlying pathologic process.

[Bladder cleansing].

Bladder cleansings are administered in order to maintain the permeability of a probe and/or to eliminate an obstruction, be it a clot, urinary sand or detritus, by means of an infusion of intravenous fluid using sterile procedures through a bladder catheter. This is a technique frequently used with patients undergoing genital-urinary surgery; it is not recommended for routine usage due to its high risk of associated infection. Bladder cleansing can be continuous by means of a permanent bladder cleansing method or intermittent by means of an open or closed system.

[A case of bilateral otohematoma].

We denominate otohematoma to the blood stock in the pinna. It occurs by the broke of pinna drilling vessels. Its origin is traumatic.

[Using a bladder catheter].

The procedure to drain a bladder consists in inserting a catheter through the urethral passage all the way to the bladder in order to open up a drainage way to the exterior, whether this drainage is temporary or permanent. This procedure is indicated in cases which require a strict control of diuresis, blood letting, or bladder surgery for sample gathering, to open up a passage to drain a bladder in cases of urinary retention, and catheterization for diagnostic purposes. This invasive procedure occurs frequently in hospitals, having a 10 to 15% incidence rate and is defined as the most prevalent cause of hospital infections.

[Polymyositis-dermatomyositis: incidence in Spain (1997-2004)].

Background And Objective: Epidemiologic studies of polymyositis-dermatomyositis incidence in Spain are lacking. The aim of the study was to determine the incidence rates of dermatomyositis-polymyositis and their distribution in our country.

Material And Method: Observational and descriptive study.

[Morphometric study of the mastoid segment of the facial nerve].

Objective: Our study emphasizes the relationship between the temporal bone structures and the mastoid portion of the facial nerve.

Material And Methods: Thirty-two temporal bones taken from adult cadavers of both sexes subjected to tympanoplastic procedure were used to make reference measures of the mastoid portion of the facial nerve. Appropriate instruments were used for measurement and statistic analysis was subsequently performed.

Occupational vocal cord dysfunction due to exposure to wood dust and xerographic toner.

Objectives: Vocal cord dysfunction is a poorly understood entity that is often misdiagnosed as asthma. Both irritant and non-irritant vocal cord dysfunction have been described. This report presents two cases of irritant vocal cord dysfunction secondary to specific environmental exposure, the first to iroko and western red cedar wood (a carpenter) and the second to xerographic printing toner (a secretary).

Long-term efficacy of octreotide in the prevention of recurrent bleeding from gastrointestinal angiodysplasia.

Objectives: Preliminary studies suggested that octreotide may be therapeutic in bleeding angiodysplasia. Our aim was to investigate the efficacy of long-term octreotide therapy in the prevention of rebleeding from gastrointestinal angiodysplasia.

Methods: A cohort of 32 patients diagnosed with bleeding from angiodysplasia was treated with octreotide 50 mu 12 h subcutaneously for a 1-2 yr period.