Advances in the management of diabetic neuropathy.

The authors review current advances in the therapy of diabetic neuropathy. The role of glycemic control and management of cardiovascular risk factors in the prevention and treatment of neuropathic complications are discussed. As further options of pathogenetically oriented treatment, recent knowledge on benfotiamine and alpha-lipoic acid is comprehensively reviewed. Alpha-lipoic acid is a powerful antioxidant and clinical trials have proven its efficacy in ameliorating neuropathic signs and symptoms. Benfotiamine acts via the activation of transketolase and thereby inhibits alternative pathways triggered by uncontrolled glucose influx in the cells comprising polyol, hexosamine, protein-kinase-C pathways and formation of advanced glycation end products. Beyond additional forms of causal treatment, choices of symptomatic treatment will be summarized. The latter is mostly represented by the anticonvulsive agents pregabalin and gabapentin as well as duloxetine widely acknowledged as antidepressant. Finally, non-pharmacological therapeutic alternatives are summarized. The authors conclude that combination therapy should be more often suggested to our patients; especially the combination of pathogenetic and symptomatic agents.

Is the treatment of Hodgkin's disease detrimental to the parathyroid gland?

The thyroid gland is often injured by supradiaphragmatic irradiation for Hodgkin's lymphoma. The aim of the present study was to examine whether the parathyroid gland gets injured by the treatment for Hodgkin's disease. Calcium, phosphorus and parathormone levels of 143 patients with primary treatment for Hodgkin's disease and in complete remission for 2 years were measured as well as the presence of antiparathyroid antibody in patients having antithyroid antibody. Out of the 143 patients studied, 104 received neck irradiation (with or without chemotherapy); among them laboratory alterations were observed in 7 cases. 39 patients received only chemotherapy; 3 of them had alterations. In contrast to the injury of the thyroid gland, no damage to the parathyroid glands associated with the treatment for Hodgkin's disease was noted. It has been concluded that the use of high-dose external radiotherapy does not mean a higher risk as regards the parathyroid gland but further follow-up studies of the patients may result in the revelation of the development of parathyroid lesions.

[Familial adenomatous polyposis coli--case report]. / A familiaris adenomatosus polyposisról egy eset kapcsán.

The authors report the case of a young 35 year-old male patient, investigated due to thrombocytosis for three years. First the diagnosis of chronic myeloproliferative disease was made. The diagnosis of familial adenomatous polyposis was only evident in advanced stage of the disease. Upper abdominal US, abdominal CT, double-contrast barium enema examination and colonoscopy proved advanced synchronous colorectal cancers (sigmoid and descending colon) with liver metastases along with polyposis throughout the whole large bowel. Days after the diagnosis was made the patients condition deteriorated rapidly and he died with septic symptoms suggesting bowel perforation and pneumonia. Beside the case report the authors try to give a short overview of the current literature of relatively rare but potentially fatal hereditary colon cancer syndromes to awake the attention of the clinicians to investigate more cautiously the background of unexplained clinical-laboratory signs in young adults.