Hepatitis E virus infection of slaughtered healthy pigs in Brazil.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging pathogen that can be transmitted through contaminated raw or undercooked meat derived from domestic pigs. HEV infections have been documented among pig herds, pig products and environmental samples raising concern about the spread of the virus. HEV genotypes 3 and 4 are considered zoonotic and have been linked to human cases. HEV was detected in 51 of 335 bile samples (15.2%) from healthy pigs in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Phylogenetic analysis of partial sequences from ORF1 and ORF2 regions yielded discordant results, assigning isolates to subtypes 3c and 3i, respectively, suggesting intragenotypic HEV recombination.

Salivirus and aichivirus A infections in children with gastroenteritis in Brazil.

Stool samples were obtained from healthy children and children with diarrhoea in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and analysed for aichivirus A and salivirus by reverse transcription PCR. Aichivirus A was detected in 5 (0.8%) and salivirus in 10 (1.7%) of the samples obtained from children with diarrhoea. None of the healthy children tested positive for these viruses. The results demonstrate that these viruses continuously circulate in the country, although at a low frequency.

Omeprazole, clarithromycin and furazolidone for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori in patients with duodenal ulcer.

AIM: To evaluate the efficacy of omeprazole plus clarithromycin and furazolidone in Helicobacter pylori eradication and duodenal ulcer healing in Brazilian patients. METHODS: Forty H. pylori-positive patients with duodenal ulcer were randomized to receive 20 mg omeprazole o.m. or b.d. for 1 month plus 500 mg clarithromycin (b.d. ) and 200 mg furazolidone (b.d.) for 1 week. RESULTS: Three months after the end of the treatment the eradication rates were 90% by intention-to-treat analysis, and 97% by per protocol analysis. Mild side-effects were observed in 25 patients, none of whom abandoned the protocol. No difference was observed between the 20 mg and 40 mg omeprazole daily doses. Cure or significant improvement of the symptoms and of the histological alterations were observed after H. pylori eradication. CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrate that clarithromycin and furazolidone in combination with omeprazole are a good alternative for H. pylori eradication in Brazilian patients with duodenal ulcer.

Study of the liver changes occurring in preeclampsia and their possible pathogenetic connection with acute fatty liver of pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the present study was to investigate liver involvement in preeclampsia on the basis of clinical, laboratory, and histological data and to detect a possible connection with fatty liver of pregnancy by the determination of microvesicular fatty infiltration of the liver. METHODS: The authors studied the liver changes in 10 patients with preeclampsia, observing the clinical and laboratory alterations, the macroscopic liver surface features by laparoscopy, and the presence of microvesicular fatty infiltration by specific lipid staining of hepatic tissue collected by needle biopsy. RESULTS: Macroscopy of the liver surface disclosed some degree of subcapsular liver hemorrhage in all cases; however, the hemorrhage was not related to the clinical and histological severity of the disease. Microvesicular fat droplets were observed in all patients, and the intensity of the fat deposition was not related to pressor levels, laboratory alterations, or the evolution of preeclampsia. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of fatty liver infiltration in all patients studied supports the idea that preeclampsia and acute fatty liver of pregnancy could be components of the same pathologic spectrum, with a probable, but still unproved, pathogenetic connection. The deficiency of the long chain 3-hydroxyacyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase activity may be the determining factor in the evolution of the disease.