La Revue de médecine interne
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Ten to 15% of common variable immunodeficiencies (CVID) develop auto-immune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) and immune thrombocytopenia (ITP). Treatment is based on immunosuppressants, which produce blocking effects in the CVID. Our objective was to assess their risk-benefit ratio in these immunocompromised patients. ⋯ The presence of CVID does not mean that it is necessary to give up on corticosteroids as a first-line treatment and rituximab as a second-line treatment for AIHA and ITP, but it should be in addition to immunoglobulin replacement. A splenectomy should be reserved as a third-line treatment.
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Review Case Reports
[Mesenteric lymph node cavitation in celiac disease: Report of four cases and literature review].
Mesenteric lymph node cavitation is an exceptional complication of celiac disease. We report four original observations of this syndrome, completed by a literature review. ⋯ The severity of this complication deserves to be known and should lead to its research in celiac patients, especially in cases diagnosed in adulthood or in case of refractory disease.
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Apart from myeloma, primary prophylaxis of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in ambulatory cancer patients treated with chemotherapy is underused, despite its proven benefit for pancreatic cancer and to a lesser extent for lung cancer. This prophylaxis has been showed to be effective for myeloma, pancreas but in absolute numbers these cancers lead to a few venous thromboembolic events. ⋯ So, stratification of risk of VTE in cancer patients could be considered from a clinical and molecular point of view and result in a tailored prophylaxis. This "personalized medicine" that is currently used for the anti-tumor treatment of many cancers and hematological malignancies, could lead to a more effective prophylaxis of VTE in cancer patients.
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The diagnosis of pulmonary embolism (PE) is nowadays based on the sequential use of several diagnostic tests rather than on a single test. These diagnostic strategies are safe and have been prospectively validated. The first step after identifying patients with suspicion of PE is to establish the pre-test clinical probability. ⋯ Finally, some novel diagnostic tests seem promising. For example, V/Q SPECT has arisen as a highly accurate test and a potential alternative to CTPA. However, prospective management outcome studies are still lacking and are warranted before its implementation in routine clinical practice.
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Functional somatic syndromes are frequent in general and specialized medicine practices. Several treatments can be useful. ⋯ Simply explained with practical examples, the Bayesian model in particular provides some insights into the underlying cognitive mechanisms of functional somatic syndromes and their treatments. Advantages of this approach are twofold: it is consistent with current scientific knowledge and it can facilitate the physician-patient relationship.