[Sociodemographic, clinical and ultrasound characterization of thyroid nodule pathology and its association with malignancy in a Colombian high-complexity center]. / Caracterización sociodemográfica, clínica y ecográfica de la enfermedad de nódulos tiroideos y su relación con la malignidad en un centro de alta complejidad colombiano.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Thyroid nodules are among the most frequent conditions, with a 10% risk of malignancy. The objective is to describe the frequency of demographic, clinical, and ultrasonographic characteristics of thyroid nodule pathology in adults and to explore the relationship with tumor malignancy. METHODS: An analytical, retrospective cross-sectional study in adults with thyroid nodules and nodular fine-needle aspiration performed in adult patients from a Colombian reference center between 2009-2019. Data were obtained from the clinical history, descriptive measures of the patient's demographic, clinical, and ultrasound variables were estimated, and their relationship with the malignancy of the tumor was explored. RESULTS: A total of 445 patients and 515 nodules were included. The median age was 55 years (IQR 44-64), 86.8% of women, and 54.8% had a single lesion. Percentages of 80.2 and 19.8 were benign and malignant nodules, with a median of 15.7mm (IQR 11-25) and 12.7mm (IQR 8.5-18.3), respectively (p<0.001). Hypothyroidism and levothyroxine consumption were higher in those with malignant nodules (p<0.001). The echographic characteristics were statistically different between the nodules. In the malignant ones, there was a higher frequency of solid composition, hypoechogenicity, and irregular margins. In contrast, in the benign ones, the absence of echogenic focus stood out (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: The ultrasound characteristics are essential to define the risk of malignancy of a thyroid nodule. Therefore, considering the most frequent ones can help in the most appropriate approach to primary care.

Enfoque diagnóstico y terapéutico del paciente con obesidad / Diagnostic and treatment approach of obese patient / Enfoque Diagnóstico E Terapêutico Do Paciente Com Obesidade

La obesidad es un problema de salud pública, con prevalencia creciente en todo el mundo, que acarrea una importante morbimortalidad, lo cual ha llevado a su reconocimiento como entidad nosológica independiente. Colombia no escapa a esta situación y reporta una prevalencia de adultos obesos del 51.2% en 2010. Varios elementos influyen en el comportamiento epidemiológico del sobrepeso y la obesidad: aspectos genéticos, étnicos, metabólicos, ambientales, políticos y rasgos socioculturales, entre otros. La asociación de la obesidad con múltiples patologías es cada vez más evidente, no sólo porque aumenta de forma considerable el riesgo cardiovascular, sino, también, porque causa afecciones pulmonares, gastrointestinales y osteoarticulares. A la fecha, el índice de masa corporal es el parámetro que permiten la definición y clasificación del sobrepeso y la obesidad. Medidas alternas, como la circunferencia abdominal, se han planteado como predictores de morbilidad independientes. Teniendo en cuenta la alta prevalencia de la obesidad y la imprecisión de los métodos clasificatorios para estimar el riesgo cardiovascular e identificar el paciente candidato a tratamiento, es una decisión clínica importante. El enfoque terapéutico del paciente con obesidad debe dirigirse a la intervención de los factores de riesgo modificables y está basado fundamentalmente en los cambios en el estilo de vida, complementado con la farmacoterapia en algunos pacientes, sin desconocer la opción quirúrgica en pacientes que cumplan ciertos criterios. Sin embargo, sólo será la prevención multidimensional lo que combatirá la conversión de la obesidad en una verdadera pandemia.

Obesity is a public health issue with growing prevalence worldwide, which leads to morbi-mortality and has given rise to its recognition as an independent nosological entity. Colombia reports a prevalence of obese adults of 51.2% in 2010. Several elements influence the epidemiology of overweight and obesity including genetic, ethnic, metabolic, environmental, political, and social aspects, amongst many others. The association of obesity with multiple pathologies is more evident as time goes by, not only because it increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, but because it also causes pulmonary, gastrointestinal, and osteoarticular disorders. To date, body mass index is the parameter used to determine and classify overweight and obesity. Alternative measurements, such as waist circumference, have been proposed as independent predictors of morbility. Considering the high prevalence of obesity and the poor precision of the classification methods to estimate cardiovascular risk, it is an important clinical decision to identify the patient who is candidate for treatment. The therapeutic approach in obese patients should focus on correcting the modifiable risk factors, and is fundamentally based on making changes in life style, which may be complemented with medication and surgery in certain patients. However, only multidisciplinary prevention will effectively avert obesity from becoming pandemic.

A obesidade é um problema de saúde pública, com prevalência crescente em todo mundo, que arca uma importante morbimortalidade, o qual levou a seu reconhecimento como entidade nosológica independente. A Colômbia não escapa a esta situação e reporta uma prevalência de adultos obesos de 51.2% em 2010. Vários elementos influem no comportamento epidemiológico do sobrepeso e a obesidade: aspectos genéticos, étnicos, metabólicos, ambientais, políticos e rasgos socioculturais, entre outros. A associação da obesidade com múltiplas patologias é cada vez mais evidente, não só porque aumenta de forma considerável o risco cardiovascular, senão, também, porque causa afecções pulmonares, gastrointestinais e osteoarticulares. À data, o índice de massa corporal é o parâmetro que permitem a definição e classificação do sobrepeso e a obesidade. Medidas alternas, como a circunferência abdominal, propuseram-se como preditores de morbilidade independentes. Tendo em conta a alta prevalência da obesidade e a imprecisão dos métodos classificatórios para estimar o risco cardiovascular e identificar o paciente candidato a tratamento, é uma decisão clínica importante. O enfoque terapêutico do paciente com obesidade deve dirigir-se à intervenção dos fatores de risco modificáveis e está baseado fundamentalmente nas mudanças no estilo de vida, complementado com a fármaco-terapia em alguns pacientes, sem desconhecer a opção cirúrgica em pacientes que cumpram certos critérios. No entanto, só será a prevenção multidimensional o que combaterá a conversão da obesidade numa verdadeira pandemia.

Difficulty in elucidating the male role in cervical cancer in Colombia, a high-risk area for the disease.

BACKGROUND: Epidemiologic evidence has been inconclusive in linking men's sexual behavior and genital human papillomaviruses (HPVs) with cervical cancer risk in their sexual partners in areas with a high incidence of cervical cancer. PURPOSE: This study assesses the role of men's sexual behavior and the presence of penile HPV DNA on the risk of their wives' developing cervical neoplasia in an area in Colombia with a high incidence of cervical cancer. METHODS: A total of 210 husbands of women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade III (n = 118) or invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix (n = 92) and a total of 262 husbands of women recruited as control subjects (173 and 89, respectively) were interviewed. Questionnaires included detailed information on sexual behavior. Exfoliated cells were obtained from the glans penis and from the distal urethra of the penis. The specimens were analyzed for HPV DNA by use of a polymerase chain reaction-based assay that included a generic probe and 25 type-specific probes. Serum specimens were collected and analyzed for antibodies to Chlamydia trachomatis, Treponema pallidum, herpes simplex virus type II, and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. RESULTS: Limited education (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 4.4; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.9-9.8; for no schooling versus secondary or higher education) and presence of antibodies to C. trachomatis (adjusted OR = 2.5; 95% CI = 1.5-4.4) in husbands were the only identified risk factors for cervical neoplasia in their wives. The prevalence of HPV DNA in the penis was 25.7% among husbands of case women and 18.9% among husbands of control women (adjusted OR = 1.2; 95% CI = 0.6-2.3). Neither the lifetime number of female sexual partners (adjusted OR = 1.0; 95% CI = 0.4-2.6; for > 50 partners versus one to five) nor the lifetime number of female prostitutes as sexual partners (adjusted OR = 1.2; 95% CI = 0.7-2.0; for > or = 21 prostitutes versus one to five) was associated with the risk of cervical cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Our results are compatible with the hypothesis that in the population of Cali, whose women are at high risk of developing cervical cancer, exposure to HPV among young men is a common occurrence and is mediated by contacts with large numbers of female sexual partners and prostitutes. These widespread sexual practices limit the power of case-control studies to detect significant associations between men's sexual behavior and the cervical cancer risk in their sexual partners. HPV DNA detection in the penis of adult men is a poor reflection of lifetime exposure or of etiologically relevant exposure to HPV. The role of C. trachomatis in cervical carcinogenesis deserves further investigation. IMPLICATIONS: Further research is needed to elucidate the male's role in cervical carcinogenesis in populations at high risk for cervical cancer. HPV DNA prevalence surveys and studies of the natural history of HPV in young men will be of great value.

Inter-observer variation in cytological and histological diagnoses of cervical neoplasia and its epidemiologic implication.

Inter-observer variation in cytohistological diagnosis was assessed for 1506 cervical smears and 883 histological slides from four case-control studies on cervical neoplasia. The kappa statistic among a panel of three cytopathologists was highest for diagnosis of invasive cancer (0.70 for cytology and 0.74 for histology), followed by normal/inflammatory in cytology (0.68) and CIN III in histology (0.58). There was also nearly perfect agreement between the final panel diagnoses and the original diagnoses made by local cytopathologists, except for those of CIN III. Inter-observer variation in diagnosis for CIN III was inversely associated with age, number of children (in histology) and sexual activity (in cytology). However, the odds ratios for CIN III calculated by each cytopathologist's diagnosis were not different from each other for any etiologic factor. These results indicate that the diagnoses of invasive cancer and of normal/inflammatory changes are highly reproducible and that the inter-observer variation does not have much impact on the etiologic risk estimates.

HPV types in women with normal cervical cytology.

PCR-based hybridization methods have been used to show that some women with normal cytology are carriers of HPV DNA of the types strongly related to cervical cancer. How these women should be managed remains unclear. This chapter selectively reviews reports which have estimated type-specific HPV prevalence in relation to the presence or absence of morphological signs of HPV infection. Overall, these reports indicate that among women who were identified as carriers of HPV DNA (by PCR-based methods) and who also had a normal cytological smear, the HPV type detected in the majority of instances was a high-risk viral type for cervical cancer (HPV types 16/18 = 44.7%; HPV types 31/33/35 = 8.1%; other and unknown types = 37.9%). This suggests that screening programmes which include PCR-based HPV detection could reduce the false negative rates currently reported by screening programmes based on cytology alone.

The impact of vaginal cytology on cervical cancer risks in Cali, Colombia.

The role of vaginal cytology screening in preventing invasive carcinoma of the cervix was investigated in Cali, Colombia. The history of previous participation in screening programs was obtained from 204 patients with invasive carcinoma and from 2 sets of age-matched controls: one from the same health center and one for the same neighborhood of the patient. Our results show that the risk of developing invasive carcinoma is at least 10 times greater in non-screened than in screened women.

Premalignant lesions of the cervix in women of Cali, Colombia.

A detailed histologic study was made of uterine cervices from 441 autopsy specimens from the population of Cali, Colombia. Women in this city have one of the highest registered incidence rates of cancer of the uterine cervix. The following prevalence (in percent) of lesions in adult women was found: cervicitis, 79; reserve cell hyperplasia, 14; squamous metaplasia, 41; dysplasia, 9. Contrary to expectations, no increase in prevalence of these lesions was found with age, lower socioeconomic status, or number of pregnancies. A similar study of a sample of hysterectomies performed for uterine prolapse showed approximately the same results. The findings suggest that promotional factors are more important than initiator factors in uterine cervical carcinogenesis.

Echinococcus vogeli in man, with a review of polycystic hydatid disease in Colombia and neighboring countries.

Three cases of polycystic hydatid disease (PHD) from Colombia are reported and 11 others from the region are reviewed. When cysts from two patients were fed to a dog and an ocelot about 250 mature and gravid specimens of Echinococcus vogeli and two poorly developed strobilae, respectively, were recovered. These human cases constitute the first record of the larval stage of E. vogeli, previously known only from the strobilar stage in the type host, the bush dog (Speothos venaticus). Based on the morphological characteristics of the protoscolex rostellar hooks from other PHD cases (6 Colombian, 1 Ecuadorian, and 1 Panamanian), it was concluded that all were also due to E. vogeli, rather than to E. oligarthrus as had been previously suggested. Although E. oligarthrus is or may be present in the same areas, so far no human infection due to this parasite has been confirmed. Of the 14 cases reported, 13 were pathologically proven to be PHD. Clinically, eight had an undiagnosed tumor-like mass in or near the liver, one had a subcutaneous mass in the anterior sixth intercostal space, and in two the cysts were in the chest. Two were autopsy findings. In contrast to E. multilocularis, the cysts produced by E. vogeli were found to be relatively large and filled with fluid; brood capsules and protoscolices were numerous. Focal necrosis was commonly observed but large necrotic cavities were not seen. The main natural intermediate host is the paca (Cuniculus paca); man probably obtains the infection by contamination from feces of infected hunting dogs.

Antibodies to herpesviruses in patients with cervical cancer and controls.

The indirect immunofluorescent test was used to detect antibodies to herpesviruses types 1 and 2, cytomegalovirus and EBV in sera from patients with cervical carcinoma, condyloma acuminatum and controls from Cali, Colombia, and a control group from the USA. No significant differences were found in the prevalence of antibodies to viral capsid antigens of HSV-1 and CMV among the groups studied. However, titres for HSV-2 were higher in the three groups from Cali (cervical carcinoma, condyloma and controls) than in the control groups from USA. High EBV antibody titres (VCA and early antigens) were found in the three groups from Cali. Antibodies to early antigens of CMV were detected in a sub-sample of the subjects and with higher frequency in patients with cervical cancer. The significance of these findings is discussed.