Remission of Behçet's disease and keratoconjunctivitis sicca in an HIV-infected patient treated with HAART.

A 34-year-old woman presented with a 10-year history of recurrent oral and genital ulcerations and recurrent episodes of bilateral conjunctivitis associated with HIV infection. A diagnosis of Behçet's disease (BD) in association with keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) was made after exclusion of other viral and autoimmune diseases according to the international criteria for BD. This is the first reported case of a combination of BD and KCS in a patient with HIV infection in which a complete resolution was observed as a result of successful highly active antiretroviral therapy. The likelihood that a direct viral effect or HIV-induced autoimmune mechanisms act in the pathogenesis of both BD and KCS in HIV-infected patients is discussed.

Inorganic particles in bronchoalveolar lavage fluids from nonoccupationally exposed subjects.

This study comprised 30 patients who had not been exposed occupationally to dusts, but for whom a diagnosis of suspected pulmonary carcinoma had been made. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluids from these patients were analyzed by transmission electron microscopy and by energy-dispersive x-ray microanalysis in an effort to study the mineral particulate present in the alveolar region. Particles of silica, silicates, oxides, sulphates, and metal alloys were detected in various percentages in each subject. The smoking habits of two groups of patients that were defined by their bronchoalveolar lavage particulate concentrations (i.e., lower or higher than the median of the distribution) differed significantly.

Evaluation of p,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDT and polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs) levels in samples of human milk from Rome, Florence and the surrounding areas.

Sixty-five samples of human milk obtained from individual donors living in Rome and surrounding areas between 1982 and 1984, and 28 samples from Florence and surrounding areas obtained during 1985 were analyzed for residues of p,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDT and PCBs. Levels of p,p'-DDE were between 5 and 126 ppb (micrograms/kg of milk), with an average value of 45 ppb (median 34). Levels of p,p'-DDT ranged from 1 to 79 ppb, with an average value of 10 ppb (median 7). PCBs were found at levels ranging from 7 to 304 ppb, with an average value of 74 ppb (median 66). As to the p,p'-DDT, when compared to the data previously obtained in Italy during 1975-77, the present findings show a decrease of the average value and a lower incidence of samples with higher values. These effects are less pronounced for the p,p'-DDE. No relevant variation was observed in the levels of PCBs in comparison with the data obtained in Italy during 1981-82.

Validity and reliability of the Neurobehavioral Assessment Scale.

The Neurobehavioral Assessment Scale (NAS) was developed to measure the full range of behavioral functioning from fully alert to deep coma. This investigator-rated scale was evaluated in 60 patients undergoing conscious sedation for maxillofacial procedures. The results obtained on the NAS were reliable, as evidenced by high correlations between the rating of the two raters. The scale is also valid as determined by high correlations between the NAS and a standard scale, the Glasgow Coma Scale (criterion validity) and between the NAS and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (behavioral validity). The NAS clearly distinguished between two levels of sedation (heavy and light). Furthermore, the NAS appears to be better able to discriminate among the different degrees of sedation in lightly sedated patients than the Glasgow Coma Scale.