Erythema multiforme after orf virus infection: a report of two cases and literature review.

Orf virus has a worldwide distribution among sheep and goats. The hypersensitivity reaction erythema multiforme (EM) is a known complication of orf infection in humans; however, its occurrence is poorly understood and has not been extensively reviewed. We present two unrelated cases of orf-associated EM, and a review of the literature, highlighting important clinical, epidemiological and immunological aspects of this condition. Orf and its associated complications can occur in rural areas, as well as urban settings, where it is less well-known, through religious or cultural practices involving animal slaughter. Obtaining a history of animal exposures from patients with lesions suspicious for orf and secondary skin eruptions can guide diagnosis and identification of the inciting immune stimulus. Determining the pathophysiology and relative contribution of host and viral factors contributing to EM and other orf-associated hypersensitivity reactions could facilitate the identification of risk factors and inform treatment decisions.

Relations among scores on Matrix Analogies Test, Draw-A-Person, and the Iowa Tests of basic skills for low socioeconomic children.

82 normal Grade 4 students of low socioeconomic status were administered the Matrix Analogies Test, Draw-A-Person Test, and the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills. The partial correlation coefficient between the Matrix Analogies Test and the Iowa Tests was .51 while that between the Draw-A-Person Test and the Iowa Tests was .30. The correlation coefficient between the Matrix Analogies Test and the Draw-A-Person Test was .32. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Long-term stability of individual WISC-R IQS of learning disabled children.

Stability of IQ for race and gender was examined by analyzing the results of two administrations over 3 years of the WISC-R for 402 learning disabled children. About 50% of the variance in Test 2 was accounted for by scores on Test 1. Frequency of positive or negative difference for each IQ from Test 1 to Test 2 was presented. Direction of change in IQ was negative for the Verbal Scale and positive for changes on the Performance Scale.

Homozygosity for a novel DTDST mutation in a child with a 'broad bone-platyspondylic' variant of diastrophic dysplasia.

Atypical or variant forms of well-known chondrodysplasias may pose diagnostic problems. We report on a girl with clinical features suggesting diastrophic dysplasia but with unusual radiographic features including severe platyspondyly, wide metaphyses, and fibular overgrowth, which are partially reminiscent of metatropic dysplasia. The diagnosis was clarified by molecular analysis of the DTDST gene, which revealed homozygosity for a previously undescribed mutation leading to a Q454P substitution in the 10th transmembrane domain of the DTDST sulfate transporter. Molecular analysis may be of particular value in such atypical cases.