Clasificación, diagnóstico y tratamiento de los trastornos miccionales en la infancia / Classification, diagnosis and treatment of urinary disorders in childhood

La disfunción vesical o disfunción del tracto urinario inferior(DTUI), traducción literal del inglés de Lower urinary Tract Disfunction (LUTD) puede ser causa del 40% de las consultas en pediatría. Estos trastornos suponen una alteración en cualquiera de las fases del ciclo miccional y pueden responder a causas neurológicas, anatómicas o funcionales. Es muy importante realizar una adecuada historia clínica que nos permita conocer al paciente de manera global de manera que podamos lograr un correcto diagnóstico de la causa de la disfunción y así poder realizar un tratamiento dirigido. La evaluación de la mayoría de los niños con disfunción vesical puede limitarse a una anamnesis exhaustiva, un examen físico y pruebas no invasivas, como un análisis de orina y un urocultivo. En niños seleccionados, una evaluación más extensa incluye estudios de imagen urológicos, mediciones del flujo urinario y determinación del residuo postmiccional. En cuanto a las herramientas terapéuticas, partiremos de pautas higiénico-dietéticas básicas y de aplicación global a las que podremos asociar terapia conductual, farmacológica, fisioterápica o quirúrgica, siempre de manera individualizada.(AU)

Vesical disfunction or Lower urinary Tract Dysfunction (LUTD), can be the cause of 40% of pediatric consultations. Dysfunctions of the lower urinary tract involve an alteration in any of the phases of the voiding cycle and may respond to neurological, anatomical or functional causes. It is very important to take an adequate clinical history that allows us to know the patient globally so that we can achieve a correct diagnosis of the cause of the lower urinary tract dysfunction and thus be able to carry out targeted treatments. The evaluation for most children with bladder dysfunction can be limited to a thorough history, physical examination, and noninvasive testing, such as a urinalysis and urine culture. In selected children, more extensive evaluation includes urologic imaging studies, measurements of urinary flow, and post-void residual determination. As for therapeutic tools, we will start from basic hygienic-dietary guidelines of global application to which we can associate behavioral, pharmacological, physiotherapy or surgical therapy, always in an individualized manner.(AU)

Childbirth with epidural analgesia in a pregnant woman with hypokalemic periodic paralysis.

Familial hypokalaemic periodic paralysis (FHPP) is an uncommon genetic disease characterized by muscle weakness associated with hypokalaemia. Episodes are precipitated by drugs, stress, metabolic diseases, hypothermia or infection. We report the case of a 38-year-old pregnant women with FHPP who underwent epidural analgesia for labour. Pregnant women with FHPP require multidisciplinary management involving an anaesthesiologist, a gynaecologist and a paediatrician. It is important to maintain normothermia, prevent hyperventilation, monitor electrolytes, avoid glucose infusions and medications that cause hypokalaemia, and administer potassium supplements when required. Locoregional techniques should be preferred over general anaesthesia. Early epidural analgesia reduces the risk of pain that could trigger an episode of FHPP. In the case of general anaesthesia, drugs that can cause malignant hyperthermia should be avoided, and short-acting non-depolarizing neuromuscular blockers with blockade-depth monitoring should be used.

Parto con analgesia epidural en una gestante con parálisis periódica hipocaliémica / Childbirth with epidural analgesia in a pregnant woman with hypokalemic periodic paralysis

La parálisis hipocaliémica periódica familiar (PHPF) es una rara entidad genética que causa episodios de debilidad muscular con hipopotasemia precipitados por fármacos, estrés, alteraciones metabólicas, hipotermia o infecciones. En este artículo se describe el caso de una gestante de 38 años con PHPF en periodo activo de parto con evolución favorable con analgesia epidural. La PHPF en la gestante requiere un manejo multidisciplinar entre anestesia, ginecología y pediatría. Está indicado mantener la normotermia, prevenir la hiperventilación, monitorizar los iones en sangre, evitar las soluciones glucosadas y las medicaciones que produzcan descensos de la calcemia, aportando suplementos de potasio cuando se precise. Se prefieren las técnicas locorregionales a la anestesia general, siendo conveniente la analgesia epidural precoz en el parto para reducir el riesgo de crisis precipitadas por el dolor. En la anestesia general conviene evitar fármacos precipitantes de la hipertermia maligna y utilizar BNMND de acción corta con monitorización neuromuscular.(AU)

Familial hypokalaemic periodic paralysis (FHPP) is an uncommon genetic disease characterized by muscle weakness associated with hypokalaemia. Episodes are precipitated by drugs, stress, metabolic diseases, hypothermia or infection. We report the case of a 38-year-old pregnant women with FHPP who underwent epidural analgesia for labour. Pregnant women with FHPP require multidisciplinary management involving an anaesthesiologist, a gynaecologist and a paediatrician. It is important to maintain normothermia, prevent hyperventilation, monitor electrolytes, avoid glucose infusions and medications that cause hypokalaemia, and administer potassium supplements when required. Locoregional techniques should be preferred over general anaesthesia. Early epidural analgesia reduces the risk of pain that could trigger an episode of FHPP. In the case of general anaesthesia, drugs that can cause malignant hyperthermia should be avoided, and short-acting non-depolarizing neuromuscular blockers with blockade-depth monitoring should be used.(AU)

Éxito del tratamiento conservador de la fimosis, ¿la pauta de aplicación de corticoide tópico influye? / Success of conservative treatment of phimosis, does the topical corticosteroid application regime influence this?

Introducción. Actualmente no existe una pauta de aplicación única establecida para el tratamiento tópico corticoideo de la fimosis. Nos planteamos comparar la efectividad de dos de las pautas más utilizadas, así como la importancia de otros factores en el éxito del tratamiento conservador. Material y métodos. Estudio analítico de tipo cohortes retrospectivas, incluyendo niños con fimosis no complicada a los que se instauró dos pautas distintas de aplicación de corticoide tópico (con periodo de descanso y con dosis descendente). Se estudió el resultado final circuncisión o curación en base a la pauta y a otros factores epidemiológicos. Resultados. Se incluyeron 159 niños con edad media de 6 años. La pauta con descanso se aplicó en el 57,9% de los pacientes con una adherencia del 93,4% y una tasa de curación del 83,7%, frente al 79,1% de grupo con pauta descendente (diferencia no significativa). Se observó un mayor riesgo de circuncisión en pacientes con tratamiento tópico previo y con prepucio cicatricial y un papel protector de la adherencia al tratamiento. La presencia de balanitis previa o el grado de fimosis no se asocian con mayor fracaso del tratamiento. Conclusiones. Las pautas de aplicación estudiadas no presentan diferencias significativas en la tasa de curación. No obstante, la adherencia es mayor con la pauta con descanso por lo que parece recomendable. Las balanitis y el grado alto de fimosis no serían contraindicación inicial del tratamiento conservador (AU)

Introduction. Currently there is no single application guideline established for the topical corticosteroid treatment of phimosis. We set out to compare the effectiveness of two of the most widely used guidelines, as well as the importance of other factors in the success of conservative treatment. Material and methods. Retrospective cohort-type analytical study, including children with uncomplicated phimosis who received two different regimens of topical corticosteroid application (with a rest period and a descending dose). The final result of circumcision or cure was studied based on the guideline and other epidemiological factors. Results. 159 children with a mean age of 6 years were included. The regimen with rest was applied in 57.9% of the patients with an adherence of 93.4% and a cure rate of 83.7%, compared to 79.1% in the group with a descending regimen (non-significant difference). An increased risk of circumcision was observed in patients with previous topical treatment and with scarred foreskin and a protective role of adherence to treatment. The presence of previous balanitis or the degree of phimosis is not associated with greater treatment failure. Conclusions. The application guidelines studied do not show significant differences in the cure rate. However, adherence is greater with the rest pattern, so it seems advisable. Balanitis and a high degree of phimosis would not be an initial contraindication to conservative treatment (AU)

Childbirth with epidural analgesia in a pregnant woman with hypokalemic periodic paralysis. / Parto con analgesia epidural en una gestante con parálisis periódica hipocaliémica.

Familial hypokalaemic periodic paralysis (FHPP) is an uncommon genetic disease characterized by muscle weakness associated with hypokalaemia. Episodes are precipitated by drugs, stress, metabolic diseases, hypothermia or infection. We report the case of a 38-year-old pregnant women with FHPP who underwent epidural analgesia for labour. Pregnant women with FHPP require multidisciplinary management involving an anaesthesiologist, a gynaecologist and a paediatrician. It is important to maintain normothermia, prevent hyperventilation, monitor electrolytes, avoid glucose infusions and medications that cause hypokalaemia, and administer potassium supplements when required. Locoregional techniques should be preferred over general anaesthesia. Early epidural analgesia reduces the risk of pain that could trigger an episode of FHPP. In the case of general anaesthesia, drugs that can cause malignant hyperthermia should be avoided, and short-acting non-depolarizing neuromuscular blockers with blockade-depth monitoring should be used.

Tratamiento anestésico en el síndrome de Kearns-Sayre. Descripción de un caso / Anesthetic management of Kearns-Sayre syndrome. Case report

El síndrome de Kearns-Sayre constituye una miopatía mitocondrial que cursa con oftalmoplejia, retinopatía pigmentaria y alteraciones de la conducción cardiaca. Presentamos el caso de un paciente de 50 años de edad con síndrome de Kearns-Sayre intervenido de una fractura de fémur con anestesia subaracnoidea.(AU)

Kearns-Sayre syndrome is a mitochondrial myopathy characterized by ophthalmoplegia, pigmentary retinopathy and cardiac conduction abnormalities. This article describes the clinical management of a 50-year-old patient with Kearns-Sayre syndrome who underwent subarachnoid anesthesia for a traumatic femoral fracture surgery.(AU)

Yebes 40 m radio telescope and the broad band NANOCOSMOS receivers at 7 mm and 3 mm for line surveys.

CONTEXT: Yebes 40m radio telescope is the main and largest observing instrument at Yebes Observatory and it is devoted to Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) and single dish observations since 2010. It has been covering frequency bands between 2 GHz and 90 GHz in discontinuous and narrow windows in most of the cases, to match the current needs of the European VLBI Network (EVN) and the Global Millimeter VLBI Array (GMVA). AIMS: Nanocosmos project, a European Union funded synergy grant, opened the possibility to increase the instantaneous frequency coverage to observe many molecular transitions with single tunnings in single dish mode. This reduces the observing time and maximises the output from the telescope. METHODS: We present the technical specifications of the recently installed 31.5 - 50GHz (Q band) and 72 - 90.5 GHz (W band) receivers along with the main characteristics of the telescope at these frequency ranges. We have observed IRC+10216, CRL 2688 and CRL 618, which harbour a rich molecular chemistry, to demonstrate the capabilities of the new instrumentation for spectral observations in single dish mode. RESULTS: The results show the high sensitivity of the telescope in the Q band. The spectrum of IRC+10126 offers a signal to noise ratio never seen before for this source in this band. On the other hand, the spectrum normalised by the continuum flux towards CRL 618 in the W band demonstrates that the 40 m radio telescope produces comparable results to those from the IRAM 30 m radio telescope, although with a smaller sensitivity. The new receivers fulfil one of the main goals of Nanocosmos and open the possibility to study the spectrum of different astrophysical media with unprecedented sensitivity.

Anesthetic management of Kearns-Sayre syndrome. Case report. / Tratamiento anestésico en el síndrome de Kearns-Sayre. Descripción de un caso.

Kearns-Sayre syndrome is a mitochondrial myopathy characterized by ophthalmoplegia, pigmentary retinopathy and cardiac conduction abnormalities. This article describes the clinical management of a 50-year-old patient with Kearns-Sayre syndrome who underwent subarachnoid anesthesia for a traumatic femoral fracture surgery.

Galectina-3 como biomarcador de riesgo de daño renal agudo en pacientes con insuficiencia cardiaca descompensada / Galectina-3 as a biomarker of acute kidney injury risk in patients with decompensated heart failure

Introducción: En descompensaciones por insuficiencia cardiaca (IC), tanto el daño renal agudo (DRA) como los niveles elevados de galectina-3 (Gal-3) se han asociado con una peor evolución. Los niveles plasmáticos de Gal-3 se ven influidos por la función renal; sin embargo, el posible papel de la Gal-3 como predictor de DRA no está establecido. Métodos: Se midieron las concentraciones de Gal-3 al ingreso en 175 pacientes hospitalizados por IC y se registró la aparición de DRA según los criterios analíticos RIFLE. Resultados: Durante el ingreso, 44 pacientes (25,1%) desarrollaron DRA, aunque solo 14 (8%) correspondían a los estadios más avanzados, siendo en estos los niveles de Gal-3 al ingreso significativamente mayores, permaneciendo como predictor de DRA tras el ajuste multivariado por otras variables predictoras y por función renal basal. Conclusiones: Los valores elevados de Gal-3 al ingreso se asocian a mayor riesgo de DRA durante la hospitalización por IC descompensada

Introduction: In decompensated heart failure (HF), both acute kidney injury (AKI) and high Galectina-3 (Gal-3) levels have been associated with poorer outcomes. Plasma Gal-3 levels are affected by renal function; however, the potential role of Gal-3 as a predictor of AKI has not been established. Methods: We measured Gal-3 concentrations at admission for 175 patients hospitalised for HF and recorded the onset of AKI according to the Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss and End-stage kidney disease (RIFLE) analytical criteria. Results: During hospitalisation, 44 patients (25.1%) developed AKI, although only 14 (8%) corresponded to more advanced stages. These 14 patients had significantly higher Gal-3 levels at admission, which remained a predictor of AKI after the multivariate adjustment by other predictors and by baseline renal function. Conclusions: High Gal-3 levels at admission are associated with a higher risk of AKI during hospitalisation for decompensated HF

Information on nosocomial infections in the mainstream media: an opinion document.

This paper seeks to explore the reasons for the low impact of nosocomial infection in the mainstream media and the responsibilities of physicians and journalists in terms of this situation. To this end, a small group of 13 experts met for round-table discussions, including physicians with expertise in nosocomial infection, medical lawsuits and ethics, as well as journalists from major mainstream Spanish media outlets. The various participants were asked a series of questions prior to the meeting, which were answered in writing by one of the speakers and discussed during the meeting by the whole group, the aim being to obtain consensual conclusions for each of them. The document was subsequently reviewed, edited and forwarded to all co-authors for their agreement. The opinions expressed are the personal opinions of the participants and not necessarily those of the institutions in which they work or with which they collaborate.

Galectina-3 as a biomarker of acute kidney injury risk in patients with decompensated heart failure. / Galectina-3 como biomarcador de riesgo de daño renal agudo en pacientes con insuficiencia cardiaca descompensada.

INTRODUCTION: In decompensated heart failure (HF), both acute kidney injury (AKI) and high Galectina-3 (Gal-3) levels have been associated with poorer outcomes. Plasma Gal-3 levels are affected by renal function; however, the potential role of Gal-3 as a predictor of AKI has not been established. METHODS: We measured Gal-3 concentrations at admission for 175 patients hospitalised for HF and recorded the onset of AKI according to the Risk, Injury, Failure, Loss and End-stage kidney disease (RIFLE) analytical criteria. RESULTS: During hospitalisation, 44 patients (25.1%) developed AKI, although only 14 (8%) corresponded to more advanced stages. These 14 patients had significantly higher Gal-3 levels at admission, which remained a predictor of AKI after the multivariate adjustment by other predictors and by baseline renal function. CONCLUSIONS: High Gal-3 levels at admission are associated with a higher risk of AKI during hospitalisation for decompensated HF.

Neuropatía crural tras histerectomía abdominal: informe de un caso / Crural neuropathy after abdominal hysterectomy: A case report

Se presenta el caso de una mujer de 46 años de edad sin antecedentes de interés quien, tras una intervención de histerectomía abdominal con anestesia raquídea, presentó en el postoperatorio hipoestesia en la cara anterior del muslo, paresia cuadricipital y abolición del reflejo rotuliano, sin otras manifestaciones asociadas. Inicialmente dicho cuadro clínico fue achacado a la técnica anestésica. Sin embargo, las exploraciones complementarias posteriores llevadas a cabo con tomografía computarizada, resonancia magnética y electromiografía descartaron que la técnica anestésica fuera la responsable del cuadro clínico que presentaba la paciente, que fue diagnosticada de neuropatía femoral secundaria a la técnica quirúrgica realizada. Como resultado, la evolución del cuadro clínico fue satisfactoria. Dicha clínica cedió al cabo de 6 meses de tratamiento rehabilitador y de la administración oral de complejo vitamínico B. Como conclusión, cabe decir que: la cirugía en la parte baja del abdomen también puede producir lesiones en el nervio femoral, complicación que a veces se asume como consecuencia de las técnicas de anestesia raquídea

We present the case of a 46-year-old woman with no prior history of interest, who presented anteromedial thigh hypoesthesia, quadriceps paresis and no patellar reflex, with no other associated symptoms, after undergoing an abdominal hysterectomy. The symptoms were initially attributed to the anaesthesia. However, subsequent supplementary examinations, including a computed tomography scan, magnetic resonance imaging and an electromyogram ruled out anaesthesia as the cause of the patient's symptoms, who was diagnosed with femoral neuropathy secondary to the surgery performed. The patient's clinical progression was satisfactory, with abatement of symptoms after 6months of rehabilitation treatment and the oral administration of vitamin B complex. As a conclusion, lower abdominal surgery can also damage the femoral nerve, which is sometimes assumed to be caused by spinal anaesthesia

Long-term outcome of older patients with newly diagnosed de novo acute promyelocytic leukemia treated with ATRA plus anthracycline-based therapy.

Treatment outcome in older patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is lower compared with younger patients, mainly because of a higher induction death rate and postremission non-relapse mortality (NRM). This prompted us to design a risk- and age-adapted protocol (Programa Español de Tratamientos en Hematología (PETHEMA)/HOVON LPA2005), with dose reduction of consolidation chemotherapy. Patients aged ⩾60 years reported to the PETHEMA registry and were treated with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) plus anthracycline-based regimens according to three consecutive PETHEMA trials that were included. We compared the long-term outcomes of the LPA2005 trial with the preceding PETHEMA trials using non-age-adapted schedules (LPA96&LPA99). From 1996 to 2012, 389 older patients were registered, of whom 268 patients (69%) were eligible. Causes of ineligibility were secondary APL (19%), and unfit for chemotherapy (11%). Median age was 67 years, without relevant differences between LPA2005 and LPA96&LPA99 cohorts. Overall, 216 patients (81%) achieved complete remission with no differences between trials. The 5-year NRM, cumulative incidence of relapse, disease-free survival and overall survival in the LPA2005 vs the LPA96&99 were 5 vs 18% (P=0.15), 7 vs 12% (P=0.23), 87 vs 69% (P=0.04) and 74 vs 60% (P=0.06). A less intensive front-line regimen with ATRA and anthracycline monochemotherapy resulted in improved outcomes in older APL patients.

Adaptive Splitting Integrators for Enhancing Sampling Efficiency of Modified Hamiltonian Monte Carlo Methods in Molecular Simulation.

The modified Hamiltonian Monte Carlo (MHMC) methods, i.e., importance sampling methods that use modified Hamiltonians within a Hybrid Monte Carlo (HMC) framework, often outperform in sampling efficiency standard techniques such as molecular dynamics (MD) and HMC. The performance of MHMC may be enhanced further through the rational choice of the simulation parameters and by replacing the standard Verlet integrator with more sophisticated splitting algorithms. Unfortunately, it is not easy to identify the appropriate values of the parameters that appear in those algorithms. We propose a technique, that we call MAIA (Modified Adaptive Integration Approach), which, for a given simulation system and a given time step, automatically selects the optimal integrator within a useful family of two-stage splitting formulas. Extended MAIA (or e-MAIA) is an enhanced version of MAIA, which additionally supplies a value of the method-specific parameter that, for the problem under consideration, keeps the momentum acceptance rate at a user-desired level. The MAIA and e-MAIA algorithms have been implemented, with no computational overhead during simulations, in MultiHMC-GROMACS, a modified version of the popular software package GROMACS. Tests performed on well-known molecular models demonstrate the superiority of the suggested approaches over a range of integrators (both standard and recently developed), as well as their capacity to improve the sampling efficiency of GSHMC, a noticeable method for molecular simulation in the MHMC family. GSHMC combined with e-MAIA shows a remarkably good performance when compared to MD and HMC coupled with the appropriate adaptive integrators.

Anxiety can significantly explain bolus perception in the context of hypotensive esophageal motility: Results of a large multicenter study in asymptomatic individuals.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have not been able to correlate manometry findings with bolus perception. The aim of this study was to evaluate correlation of different variables, including traditional manometric variables (at diagnostic and extreme thresholds), esophageal shortening, bolus transit, automated impedance manometry (AIM) metrics and mood with bolus passage perception in a large cohort of asymptomatic individuals. METHODS: High resolution manometry (HRM) was performed in healthy individuals from nine centers. Perception was evaluated using a 5-point Likert scale. Anxiety was evaluated using Hospitalized Anxiety and Depression scale (HAD). Subgroup analysis was also performed classifying studies into normal, hypotensive, vigorous, and obstructive patterns. KEY RESULTS: One hundred fifteen studies were analyzed (69 using HRM and 46 using high resolution impedance manometry (HRIM); 3.5% swallows in 9.6% of volunteers were perceived. There was no correlation of any of the traditional HRM variables, esophageal shortening, AIM metrics nor bolus transit with perception scores. There was no HRM variable showing difference in perception when comparing normal vs extreme values (percentile 1 or 99). Anxiety but not depression was correlated with perception. Among hypotensive pattern, anxiety was a strong predictor of variance in perception (R2 up to .70). CONCLUSION AND INFERENCES: Bolus perception is less common than abnormal motility among healthy individuals. Neither esophageal motor function nor bolus dynamics evaluated with several techniques seems to explain differences in bolus perception. Different mechanisms seem to be relevant in different manometric patterns. Anxiety is a significant predictor of bolus perception in the context of hypotensive motility.

Implication of general anaesthetic and sedation techniques in temporomandibular joint disorders - a systematic review.

The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review of the literature on temporomandibular joint damage directly related to general anaesthesia and sedation. We searched MEDLINE, SCOPUS and the COCHRANE Library for titles and abstracts containing terms related to the subject. The search delimiters were analytical and descriptive studies with abstracts in Spanish, German, English or French, with no time limit. The search was updated in January 2015. Of the 398 articles found, 89 were duplicates and only 28 were of interest. Of these, 23 (82.14%) were case and case series reports, 4 (14.28%) were longitudinal studies and 1 (3.57%) was a cross-sectional study. General anaesthesia and sedation are risk factors for temporomandibular joint damage because of the drop in muscle tone caused by the drugs employed and because of airway management manoeuvres involving the joint. Joint complications have been described with spontaneous ventilation as well as with ventilation assisted by a face or laryngeal mask and with intubation. They are more frequent in women and/or patients with previous temporomandibular problems. Proper assessment is required both before and after anaesthesia or sedation in order to foresee and avoid or minimize temporomandibular complications. The data should be treated with caution, as the evidence of case and case series reports is not of a high standard and the small number of analytical studies is not entirely comparable. General anaesthesia and sedation techniques can influence the onset of temporomandibular joint disorders. More studies are needed to provide better clinical evidence.

The Chicago Classification 3.0 Results in More Normal Findings and Fewer Hypotensive Findings With No Difference in Other Diagnoses.

OBJECTIVES: High-resolution manometry (HRM) is the preferred method for the evaluation of motility disorders. Recently, an update of the diagnostic criteria (Chicago 3.0) has been published. The aim of this study was to compare the performance criteria of Chicago version 2.0 (CC2.0) vs. 3.0 (CC3.0) in a cohort of healthy volunteers and symptomatic patients. METHODS: HRM studies of asymptomatic and symptomatic individuals from several centers of Spain and Latin America were analyzed using both CC2.0 and CC3.0. The final diagnosis was grouped into hierarchical categories: obstruction (achalasia and gastro-esophageal junction obstruction), major disorders (distal esophageal spasm, absent peristalsis, and jackhammer), minor disorders (failed frequent peristalsis, weak peristalsis with small or large defects, ineffective esophageal motility, fragmented peristalsis, rapid contractile with normal latency and hypertensive peristalsis) and normal. The results were compared using McNemar's and Kappa tests. RESULTS: HRM was analyzed in 107 healthy volunteers (53.3% female; 18-69 years) and 400 symptomatic patients (58.5% female; 18-90 years). In healthy volunteers, using CC2.0 and CC3.0, obstructive disorders were diagnosed in 7.5% and 5.6%, respectively, major disorders in 1% and 2.8%, respectively, minor disorders in 25.2% and 15%, respectively, and normal in 66.4% and 76.6%, respectively. In symptomatic individuals, using CC2.0 and CC3.0, obstructive disorders were diagnosed in 11% and 11.3%, respectively, major disorders in 14% and 14%, respectively, minor disorders in 33.3% and 24.5%, respectively, and normal in 41.8% and 50.3%, respectively. In both groups of individuals, only an increase in normal and a decrease in minor findings using CC3.0 were statistically significant using McNemar's test. DISCUSSIONS: CC3.0 increases the number of normal studies when compared with CC2.0, essentially at the expense of fewer minor disorders, with no significant differences in major or obstructive disorders. As the relevance of minor disorders is questionable, our data suggest that CC3.0 increases the relevance of abnormal results.

Normal values of esophageal pressure responses to a rapid drink challenge test in healthy subjects: results of a multicenter study.

BACKGROUND: Multiple water swallow is increasingly used as a complementary challenge test in patients undergoing high-resolution manometry (HRM). Our aim was to establish the range of normal pressure responses during the rapid drink challenge test in a large population of healthy subjects. METHODS: Pressure responses to a rapid drink challenge test (100 or 200 mL of water) were prospectively analyzed in 105 healthy subjects studied in nine different hospitals from different countries. Esophageal motility was assessed in all subjects by solid-state HRM. In 18 subjects, bolus transit was analyzed using concomitant intraluminal impedance monitoring. KEY RESULTS: A virtually complete inhibition of pressure activity was observed during multiple swallow: Esophageal body pressure was above 20 mm Hg during 1 (0-8) % and above 30 mm Hg during 1 (0-5) % of the swallow period, and the pressure gradient across the esophagogastric junction was low (-1 (-7 to 4) mm Hg). At the end of multiple swallow, a postswallow contraction was evidenced in only 50% of subjects, whereas the remaining 50% had non-transmitted contractions. Bolus clearance was completed after 7 (1-30) s after the last swallow, as evidenced by multichannel intraluminal impedance. CONCLUSIONS & INFERENCES: The range of normal pressure responses to a rapid drink challenge test in health has been established in a large multicenter study. Main responses are a virtually complete inhibition of esophageal pressures with a low-pressure gradient across esophagogastric junction. This data would allow the correct differentiation between normal and disease when using this test.

Toxicity and efficacy of busulfan and fludarabine myeloablative conditioning for HLA-identical sibling allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in AML and MDS.

The safety and efficacy of a 4-day myeloablative conditioning (MAC) regimen consisting of Bu 3.2 mg/kg and fludarabine 40 mg/m(2)/day for HLA-identical sibling allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in myeloid malignancies was investigated in 133 patients (median age, 47 years; range 19-74 years) with de novo AML (60%), secondary AML (20%) or myelodysplastic syndrome (20%). All patients engrafted. Hepatic veno-occlusive disease occurred in five patients (4%), and severe toxicities, mostly mucositis, occurred in twenty-three (17%) patients. The non-relapse mortality (NRM) at 100 days was 1.5%. The incidences of acute GVHD grade 2-4 and grade 3-4 were 32 and 13%, respectively. At a median follow-up of 38 months, the cumulative incidence of chronic GVHD was 67%. The relapse incidence was 30% (27 and 31%, respectively, in patients with early- and late-stage disease), and the overall NRM was 15%. The actuarial 4-year disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were 54 and 62%, respectively. Patients aged <50 years had better outcomes compared with older patients (DFS 64 vs 42%, P=0.006; OS 73 vs 47%, P<0.001, respectively).