Outbreak of Chagas disease in Brazil: Validation of a molecular diagnostic method.

Chagas disease (CD), caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi), affects millions of people worldwide. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) have been used as tools to monitor parasitic levels in the bloodstream of individuals exposed to infection, thus enabling the monitoring of relapses and the effectiveness of therapy, for example. The aim of this study was to evaluate the TcSAT-IAM system, developed by our research group, on samples from patients with suspected Chagas disease infection. Initially, primer systems were developed for the detection of the nuclear DNA (SAT-DNA) from T. cruzi (TcSAT-IAM). The Cruzi system, predicted in the literature, and TcSAT-IAM were then evaluated in relation to their analytical sensitivity, specificity and efficiency. Afterwards, the applicability of the qPCR technique using both systems (separately) for the diagnosis of acute CD was evaluated in samples from 77 individuals exposed to the outbreak that occurred in Pernambuco-Brazil, relating the results obtained to those of the classical diagnostic methods recommended for this stage of the infection. TcSAT-IAM and Cruzi had a detection limit of 1 fg of target DNA (0,003 parasites). Thirty-eight cases were recorded, 28 by laboratory criteria and 10 by clinical and epidemiological criteria. Blood samples from 77 subjects were submitted to qPCR by both systems, reaching an agreement of 89.61% between them. After analyzes between systems and diagnostic criteria, the TcSAT-IAM showed sensitivity and specificity of 52.36% (CI 37.26-67.52) and 92.31% (CI 79.68-97.35), respectively, accuracy of 72.73% and moderate agreement. The TcSAT-IAM showed an accuracy of 72.58% and 75% in relation to parasitological and serological tests (IgM anti-T. cruzi), respectively. Therefore, quantitative PCR should be incorporated into the diagnosis of suspected acute cases of Chagas disease.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 Infection and Early Diagnosis of Macrophage Activation Syndrome: A Case Report of a 62 year old man.

A 62-year-old man presented with a history of fever, headache, anosmia, ageusia, and diarrhea for 9 days. A clinical and epidemiological diagnosis of infection with the novel coronavirus was made. After symptom refractoriness, the second step involves using human intravenous immunoglobulin. Early diagnosis of macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) involves observation of the refractory nature of clinical support treatment associated with biochemical changes to the patient's baseline characteristics, suggesting the relevance of a favorable clinical outcome of weaning from artificial life support when there is an early suspicion of a diagnosis of MAS secondary to coronavirus disease 2019 infection.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 Infection and Early Diagnosis of Macrophage Activation Syndrome: A Case Report of a 62-year-old man

ABSTRACT A 62-year-old man presented with a history of fever, headache, anosmia, ageusia, and diarrhea for 9 days. A clinical and epidemiological diagnosis of infection with the novel coronavirus was made. After symptom refractoriness, the second step involves using human intravenous immunoglobulin. Early diagnosis of macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) involves observation of the refractory nature of clinical support treatment associated with biochemical changes to the patient's baseline characteristics, suggesting the relevance of a favorable clinical outcome of weaning from artificial life support when there is an early suspicion of a diagnosis of MAS secondary to coronavirus disease 2019 infection.

Avaliação da relação neutrófilo/linfócito como indicador prognóstico em pacientes sépticos de unidades de terapia intensiva de Recife-PE / Evaluation of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio as a prognostic indicator in septic patients in intensive care units in Recife-PE

Introdução: Sepse é uma síndrome de resposta inflamatória sistêmica associada a foco infeccioso e às disfunções orgânicas. Sabe-se que, no processo infeccioso, a resposta do hospedeiro consiste no aumento do número de neutrófilos e na redução do número total de linfócitos. O índice neutrófilo/linfócito (N/L) é uma ferramenta facilmente calculável a partir do hemograma, e tem sido utilizada como indicador prognóstico em diversas condições patológicas. Esta pesquisa visa avaliar o valor prognóstico das médias da relação neutrófilo-linfócito em pacientes sépticos em unidades de terapia intensiva de Recife-PE, Brasil. Metodologia: Foram coletados de registros em prontuário eletrônico os hemogramas de admissão, do segundo dia (D2) e sétimo (D7) dias após internamento em unidades de terapia intensiva (UTI). A relação neutrófilo/linfócito foi calculada pela divisão entre os valores absolutos das contagens celulares. As médias encontradas foram comparadas com: dias de internamento em UTI, tempo de ventilação mecânica, tempo de droga vasoativa e mortalidade em 28 dias. Resultados: O valor médio da relação N/L que teve correlação com mortalidade em 28 dias foi de 14,2 no D1 (p = 0,011) e 15,9 no D7 (p < 0,001). Ao avaliar-se o risco relativo de mortalidade em 28 dias quando os subgrupos foram reunidos em pacientes sem infecção (N/L < 5) e com infecção (N/L = 5), o oddsratio em D1 foi de 12,0; e em D7 foi de 15,8. Conclusão: O valor da relação N/L na avaliação de pacientes sépticos guarda correlação com mortalidade em 28 dias, e valor médio acima de 14 aumenta consideravelmente este risco.

Introduction: Sepsis is a syndrome of systemic inflammatory response associated with infectious outbreak and organ dysfunctions. In the infectious process, the host response is known to increase the number of neutrophils and to reduce the total number of lymphocytes. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) can be easily calculated from the blood count and has been used as a prognostic indicator in several pathologic conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of NLR in septic patients in intensive care units (ICUs) in Recife-PE. Methods: Blood counts on ICU admission and on day 2 (D2) and day 7 (D7) after ICU admission were collected from electronic medical records. The NLR was calculated by dividing the absolute values of cell counts. The resulting averages were compared with length of ICU stay, duration of mechanical ventilation, duration of vasoactive drug use, and 28-day mortality. Results: The mean NLR that correlated with 28-day mortality was 14.2 on D1 (p=0.011) and 15.9 on D7 (p<0.001). In the analysis of the relative risk of 28-day mortality for the subgroups of patients without infection (NLR < 5) and with infection (NLR = 5), the odds ratio was 12.0 on D1 and 15.8 on D7. Conclusion: The value of the NLR in the evaluation of septic patients correlates with 28-day mortality, and mean values above 14 significantly increase this risk.