The American journal of the medical sciences
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A 62-year-old woman with medical history of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, coronaropathy, neurosarcoidosis, s/p craniotomy (brain mass resection) presented with worsening headaches, generalized weakness, vomiting, and hyporexia over two weeks. Brain MRI showed worsening of the known right cavernous sinus mass, vasculitis panel was negative. Patient received IV steroids; during hospitalization, she had a syncopal episode, CT Head was normal, EKG showed new T-wave inversion with troponin elevation. ⋯ Ischemic signs in her right toes prompted an aortogram showing arterial obstructions in the RLE, necessitating SFA stent placement, and clopidogrel. IV cyclophosphamide was added without additional vascular complications. This case illustrates neurosarcoidosis complicated by systemic vasculitis of medium-large vessels, responding to aggressive immunosuppression with glucocorticoids and cytotoxic agents.
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Nodular scleroderma is a rare variant of systemic sclerosis (SSc) characterized by fleshy, indurated nodules commonly distributed over the upper and lower extremities and in the trunk. Most scientific publications of the nodular and keloid variants of scleroderma use the terms interchangeably. However, nodular scleroderma has been recently differentiated from keloid forms. ⋯ However, a very low frequency of pulmonary hypertension was found in these patients. Although immunosuppressive or antifibrotic treatment may improve skin thickening and organ involvement, the characteristic nodules are refractory to treatment with these agents. This is the first review, to our knowledge, characterizing the nodular phenotype in patients with SSc.
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Review Case Reports
Cryptosporidium-induced acute kidney injury in a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.
Cryptosporidium is a pathogen that can cause infectious enteritis especially in immunocompromised patients. Acute kidney injury, electrolyte imbalance, and acid-base disorders may occur as a result of high volumes of intestinal fluid loss, which has not been previously reported to be a common manifestation of cryptosporidiosis. ⋯ We report a unique case of cryptosporidiosis in a 33-year-old male patient with acute kidney injury and profound hypokalemia, hyponatremia, hypocalcemia, hypophosphatemia, hypomagnesemia, and metabolic acidosis. Following the initiation of antiretroviral therapy to human immunodeficiency virus, the patient's symptoms improved and he recovered fully from kidney injury and electrolyte imbalance, highlighting the importance of early antiretroviral therapy.
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Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Utility of fractional excretion of urea in acute kidney injury with comparison to fractional excretion of sodium: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Differentiating between intrinsic and prerenal acute kidney injury (AKI) presents a challenge. Here, we assessed the performance of the fractional excretion of urea (FEUrea) and compared it to the fractional excretion of sodium (FENa) in distinguishing intrinsic from prerenal AKI. ⋯ FEUrea has limited utility in differentiating intrinsic from prerenal AKI. FEUrea does not provide a superior alternative to FENa, even in patients receiving diuretics.
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Review Case Reports
A case of heat stroke with significantly elevated troponin and dynamic ECG changes: Myocardial infarction or Myocardial injury?
We described an 82-year-old man who was taken to our emergency department after being found unconscious. His electrocardiogram (ECG) showed ST-segment elevation in leads V4-V6 and cardiac troponin I (cTnI) was abnormally elevated. In addition to ECG and cTnI changes, this patient was combined with unconsciousness, high fever, abnormal liver function, acute renal failure, and rhabdomyolysis. ⋯ Ca-IMR was 260 mmHg*s/m in the left circumflex artery, indicating the presence of coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD). After several days of treatment, the patient recovered from multiple organ damage. Therefore, ECG and troponin results should be interpreted carefully in patients with high fever and coma during high temperature seasons.