A Conundrum of Severe Hypokalaemic Quadriparesis, Acute Kidney Injury, and Lung Involvement as the Initial Presentation of Catastrophic Primary Sjögren's Syndrome: Is it a New Entity? A Case Report.

Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is a systemic chronic autoimmune disorder that classically affects the exocrine glands. Only 15% of the patients with primary SS (pSS) develop extraglandular symptoms involving the lungs, kidneys, joints, nervous system, and skin. Hypokalaemic paralysis is a rare presentation. The most common cause of hypokalaemia is distal renal tubular acidosis. The prevalence of clinically significant lung involvement in pSS is 9-20 %. Primary SS is an indolent disease leading to increased morbidity and poor quality of life. We present a case of a 40-year-old female with severe hypokalaemic paralysis, tubulointerstitial nephritis, and lung involvement as the initial presentation of catastrophic pSS without sicca symptoms. The course of hospitalisation was complicated by ventilator-associated pneumonia. She was managed with broad spectrum antibiotics, five sessions of plasma exchange and alternate-day haemodialysis followed by oral glucocorticoids and intravenous cyclophosphamide. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of catastrophic presentation of pSS with a favourable outcome.

An Unusual Cause of Fever, Bilateral Ear Discharge, Lung Nodules, and Polyuria in a Young Male Post Coronavirus Disease 19.

We present a case of a young male with pyrexia of unknown origin, bilateral ear discharge, lung nodules and polyuria within four weeks of recovering from a moderate Coronavirus disease-19 infection. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of post- Coronavirus disease-19 Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis with overlapping large vessel vasculitis with a favorable outcome.

Cold autoimmune hemolytic anemia with myelodysplastic syndrome: Not just an "Open and Shut case".

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDSs) are clonal hematopoietic stem cell neoplasms characterized by bone marrow failure leading to ineffective hematopoiesis, dyspoiesis, and cytopenias with a risk of progression to acute leukemia. Immunological syndromes have been reported to occur along with MDS in literature. However, cold autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) has rarely been reported in association with MDS. Herein, we report a case of an elderly male who presented with fever and cytopenias. He was being treated as a case of megaloblastic anemia in the past with no response to therapy. At present admission, the peripheral blood smear examination revealed red cell agglutination, thrombocytopenia with 4% blasts. Cold agglutinin disease was confirmed by a thermal agglutination test and bone marrow evaluation showed adequate megakaryocytes with 10% blasts; consistent with the diagnosis of MDS with excess blasts (MDS-EB2). Cytogenetic studies revealed multiple abnormalities. This report is being discussed in view of its rarity of presentation of cold AIHA with MDS.

Simultaneous Occurrence of Nephrolithiasis, Fanconi Syndrome, and Nephro-osteopathy in a Patient on First-line Antiretroviral Therapy - A Case Report.

Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate is part of the first-line antiretroviral therapy and can lead to Fanconi syndrome, acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, and reduced bone mineral density. We report the first case of simultaneous occurrence of nephrolithiasis, urolithiasis, Fanconi syndrome, and bone fracture in a 54-year-old lady who presented with pain and inability to bear weight on the right lower limb following a trivial fall. She was diagnosed with human immunodeficiency infection in the year 2000 and was on tenofovir, lamivudine, and efavirenz for the past 6 years. On evaluation, she had azotemia, glycosuria, proteinuria, normal anion gap metabolic acidosis, multiple renal stones, and a proximal ureteric calculus causing right-sided hydroureteronephrosis. The patient developed sepsis following the double "J" stenting procedure. She was managed with intravenous bicarbonate therapy and the substitution of tenofovir to abacavir with a favorable outcome.

Fever of Unknown Origin and Hepatitis as the Initial Presentation of Anti-MDA-5 Positive Dermatomyositis: A Case Report.

Petersdorf and Beeson first defined fever of unknown origin (FUO) in 1961, and subsequently, over the next 60 years, the definition of FUO has changed considerably. In the western world, non-infectious inflammatory diseases are the most common cause of FUO; however, in developing countries, infections remain the leading cause of FUO. Dermatomyositis (DM) is an autoimmune inflammatory disease of unknown aetiology which mainly affects skin and muscles. Anti-melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (MDA-5) positive DM generally presents with classical cutaneous manifestations, early interstitial lung disease, and patients generally do not have clinical features of muscle involvement. We present a case of a 39-year-old male who presented with FUO and hepatitis and was diagnosed as clinically amyopathic DM after two weeks of admission. Subsequently, he was found to have a high titre of Anti-MDA-5 antibody. This is the first case of Anti-MDA-5 positive DM presenting as FUO and hepatitis with a favourable outcome to the best of our knowledge.

Perceived stigma among the patients of coronavirus disease-19 admitted at a dedicated COVID-19 hospital in Northern India: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease-related stigma started early in the pandemic with multiple media reports highlighting the discriminatory practices toward the health-care workers, patients, and survivors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a designated COVID -19 hospital in Delhi from 22 October 20 to 21 November 20. All patients admitted to the hospital for more than 72 h were eligible for participation in the study. Anyone without a mobile phone and not able to read was excluded from the study. The data were collected using a pretested, prevalidated questionnaire. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-two (92.4%) patients answered the questionnaire. All patients were male. A total of 54 (44.26%: 95% confidence interval [CI] 35.3-53.5) COVID-19 patients blamed themselves for getting the infection, compared to 68 (55.74% 95% CI: 46.5-64.7) patients who believed that acquiring the disease was not their fault. There was a statistically significant association between feeling ashamed and blaming themselves for COVID-19 (P = 0.046). A total of 19 (15.6%) have reported that they have been told that getting COVID-19 is your fault. CONCLUSION: The stigma related to COVID - 19 needs to be tackled with multipronged strategy. In India, it is not a routine to assess mental health; however, the current pandemic has brought forward the importance of stigma and other related issues during the pandemic.

Comparative evaluation of stroke volume variation and inferior vena cava distensibility index for prediction of fluid responsiveness in mechanically ventilated patients.

Objectives: To evaluate the correlation between stroke volume variation (SVV) and inferior vena cava distensibility index (dIVC) as a marker for fluid responsiveness in mechanically ventilated hypotensive intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Methodology and Design: This study is designed as prospective observational study conducted in patients admitted to an ICU who were mechanically ventilated and experienced a hypotensive episode. Intervention: A fluid challenge of 10 mL/kg ringer's lactate was given over 20 min. Measurements: Hemodynamic parameters as well as SVV, IVCmax, IVCmin, dIVC, and cardiac output (CO), were recorded at a different time interval. An increase in ≥15% of CO was taken as fluid responsiveness. Results: Out of 67 patients, 67.2% responded to fluid challenge. Pearson's correlation graph at baseline showed a strong positive correlation between dIVC and SVV with r = 0.453, (P < 0.002). Non-responders also had a strong positive correlation (r = 0.474) at the baseline. Bland Altman's analysis of the correlation between dIVC and SVV post-fluid challenge showed a mean difference of - 4.444, with 1.49% of the values falling outside the limits of agreement (18.418 and -27.306). This difference was clinically significant. Pearson's correlation graph post-fluid challenge showed a moderately strong positive correlation between dIVC and SVV with r = 0.298 and P value = 0.047, which was statistically significant. Also, non-responders had a weak correlation as compared to the responder's group, r = 0.364 and P value = 0.095, which was not clinically significant. There was no significant difference in the trend of dIVC and SVV values between the non-surgical and surgical groups, nor was there any gender difference analyzed in the study. Conclusion: This study ascertains the positive correlation between dIVC and SVV and justifies its use in a clinical setting of hypotension suspected to be due to hypovolemia.

Olfactory Dysfunction Among Asymptomatic Patients with SARS CoV2 Infection: A Case-Control Study.

Olfactory dysfunction (hyposmia, anosmia) is a well-recognized symptom in patients with coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). Studies of olfactory dysfunction in asymptomatic patients have not been reported. We conducted a study looking for the presence of olfactory dysfunction with an objective assessment tool in asymptomatic Covid 19 and compared it with patients with mild COVID-19 and age-matched controls. We recruited 57 male patients each of Mild COVID-19, asymptomatic Covid 19, and healthy controls for the study. All participants underwent evaluation of smell threshold by Butanol Threshold test (BTT) and ability to distinguish common odors by Smell identification test. The scores of each test were recorded on a numerical scale. The participants in all three arms were matched for age, history of smoking, and pre-existing medical conditions. The mean scores of the Butanol Threshold test in Mild COVID-19, asymptomatic Covid 19 and controls were 2.95 ± 2.25 (0-7.5), 3.42 ± 2.23 (0-7.5), and 4.82 ± 1.86 (0-8), respectively. A one-way ANOVA showed a significant difference between groups (df 2, MS 53.78, F 11.94, p < 0.005). Intergroup differences using the student T-test showed significantly low BTT scores in Mild COVID-19 (p < 0.005) and asymptomatic (p < 0.005) as compared to control. BTT scores could not distinguish between asymptomatic patients and control. The smell threshold was impaired in asymptomatic Covid 19 and Mild COVID-19. Butanol Threshold Test score could not differentiate between asymptomatic Covid 19 and controls.

Uncommon simultaneous diagnosis of multiple myeloma and chronic myeloid leukaemia.

Chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) is a clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorder. The annual incidence of CML is 1.5 cases per 100,000 individuals. Multiple myeloma (MM) represents a malignant proliferation of plasma cells derived from a single clone. The co-occurrence of two rare malignancies CML and MM in the same patient is an extremely rare incident, and simultaneous diagnosis of CML and MM is reported in only five cases in the literature. A 75-year-old male presented with complaints of easy fatigability, loss of appetite and unquantifed weight loss of four months' duration. On evaluation he was found to have normocytic normochromic anaemia, leucocytosis, elevated serum-calcium concentration and azotaemia. Peripheral blood for the BCR-ABL fusion gene product was positive by flourescence in situ hybridisation (FISH). However, bone marrow biopsy revealed CD138 positive, 15% plasma cells. Thus the diagnosis of CML and MM was established. Although we can't be certain regarding the cause of CML and MM in our patient, the hypothesis that they evolved from common malignant pluripotent hematopoietic stem cells still holds. However, at the age of 75 years, it might be just due to chance.