RESUMO
In the years 2000 and 2001, we sampled ticks in order to establish the distribution of Ixodes ricinus in the province of Belluno; 5987 tick samples from 244 sites throughout the province were gathered, by dragging for a 5-min period. In 40 sites, seasonal variations and cycle stages of the parasites were studied at monthly intervals from March to September. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was used to identify the tick-infected sites. Of 1931 individual ticks, 8.23% were positive for Borrelia burgdorferi, 4.4% were positive for Ehrlichia, 1.6% were positive for Rickettsia, and 1.6% were positive for Babesia. The co-presence of Borrelia and Ehrlichia (1.2%) and Babesia (0.5%), Borrelia, Ehrlichia and Rickettsia (0.1%) was also found.
Assuntos
Vetores Aracnídeos/microbiologia , Vetores Aracnídeos/parasitologia , Ixodes/microbiologia , Ixodes/parasitologia , Doenças Transmitidas por Carrapatos/microbiologia , Doenças Transmitidas por Carrapatos/parasitologia , Anaplasma phagocytophilum/genética , Anaplasma phagocytophilum/isolamento & purificação , Animais , Babesia/genética , Babesia/isolamento & purificação , Borrelia burgdorferi/genética , Borrelia burgdorferi/isolamento & purificação , Primers do DNA/química , DNA Bacteriano/isolamento & purificação , DNA de Protozoário/isolamento & purificação , Feminino , Itália/epidemiologia , Masculino , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase/métodos , Prevalência , Rickettsia/genética , Rickettsia/isolamento & purificação , Estações do Ano , Doenças Transmitidas por Carrapatos/epidemiologiaRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Several tests have been proposed for evaluating dyspeptic symptoms and their relationship to the underlying gastric disease. Serum pepsinogens and gastrin-17 are known to be useful biomarkers for the detection of gastric pathologies. AIM: To evaluate the capability of screening dyspeptic patients in the primary care by analyses of serum pepsinogens I (sPGI) and II (sPGII), gastrin-17 (sG-17) and the IgG anti-Helicobacter pylori antibodies (IgG-Hp). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Three hundred and sixty-two consecutive patients with dyspeptic symptoms (208 females, mean age 50.6 +/- 16 years, range 18-88 years) referred by general practitioners for upper gastrointestinal endoscopy were enrolled. A blood sample was taken from each subject for IgG-Hp, sPGI, sPGII and sG-17 analyses. RESULTS: Two hundred and eighty-seven patients had a complete screening; of these, 132 resulted positive for Hp infection. Patients with atrophic chronic gastritis showed significantly lower serum pepsinogen I levels and sPGI/sPGII ratio than patients with non-atrophic chronic gastritis. Moreover, by calculating the values of sPGI by sG-17 and sG-17 by sPGII/sPGI, subjects with atrophic chronic gastritis could be distinguished from those with non-atrophic chronic gastritis and from those with normal mucosa, respectively. sG-17 levels were found to be a useful biomarker for the detection of antral atrophic gastritis, while the combination of sPGI, the sPGI/sPGII ratio and sG-17 was found effective in identifying corpus atrophy. CONCLUSION: A panel composed of PGI, PGII, G-17 and IgG-Hp could be used as a first approach in the 'test and scope' and/or 'test and treat' strategy in the primary care management of dyspeptic patients.
Assuntos
Anticorpos Antibacterianos/análise , Dispepsia/sangue , Gastrinas/sangue , Gastrite/diagnóstico , Helicobacter pylori/imunologia , Pepsinogênio A/sangue , Pepsinogênio C/sangue , Adulto , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Doença Crônica , Dispepsia/etiologia , Feminino , Gastrite/complicações , Gastrite/microbiologia , Gastroscopia , Humanos , Imunoglobulina G/imunologia , Masculino , Programas de Rastreamento , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Atenção Primária à SaúdeRESUMO
An open prospective study was carried out in 82 consecutive patients undergoing resective surgery for esophageal cancer from January 1995 to July 1996. Antimicrobial prophylaxis was done using a single dose of ceftriaxone (2 g i.v.) given at the induction of anesthesia in combination with metronidazole (0.5 g i.v.). Two further doses of metronidazole were administered 8 and 16 hours postoperatively. Fourteen patients (17%) experienced postoperative infections. This study, even though open and non-comparative, confirms that ceftriaxone given as a single-dose plus metronidazole provides adequate prophylaxis and significant cost-savings in comparison with multiple-dose prophylactic regimens in patients undergoing major surgery for esophageal cancer. Furthermore, the single-dose regimen reduces the workload for the nursing staff, the risk of side effects, and the possibility of selecting resistant strains.
Assuntos
Antibioticoprofilaxia , Ceftriaxona/uso terapêutico , Neoplasias Esofágicas/cirurgia , Metronidazol/uso terapêutico , Infecção da Ferida Cirúrgica/prevenção & controle , Adulto , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Antibioticoprofilaxia/economia , Bacteriúria/prevenção & controle , Ceftriaxona/administração & dosagem , Esquema de Medicação , Feminino , Humanos , Infusões Intravenosas , Itália , Masculino , Metronidazol/administração & dosagem , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Estudos Prospectivos , Infecções Respiratórias/prevenção & controle , Resultado do TratamentoRESUMO
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is an uncommon and potentially severe illness. TBE virus is transmitted to the humans by an infected tick and it spreads to the central nervous system determining various clinical pictures. A case in which TBE virus caused an encephalomyelitis with quadriplegia and respiratory insufficiency that persist one year after the diagnosis, is reported. Such a clinical manifestation of TBE has never been described in Italy till now.