Medicine
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Comparative Study Observational Study
Detection of common diarrhea-causing pathogens in Northern Taiwan by multiplex polymerase chain reaction.
Conventional methods for identifying gastroenteritis pathogens are time consuming, more likely to result in a false-negative, rely on personnel with diagnostic expertise, and are dependent on the specimen status. Alternatively, molecular diagnostic methods permit the rapid, simultaneous detection of multiple pathogens with high sensitivity and specificity. The present study compared conventional methods with the Luminex xTAG Gastrointestinal Pathogen Panel (xTAG GPP) for the diagnosis of infectious gastroenteritis in northern Taiwan. ⋯ Of which, 82.6% were from pediatric patients. Because the detection rates using multiplex PCR are higher than conventional methods, and some pediatric pathogens could only be detected by multiplex PCR, this approach may be useful in rapidly diagnosing diarrheal disease in children and facilitating treatment initiation. Further studies are necessary to determine if multiplex PCR improves patient outcomes and reduces costs.
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Simultaneous presentation of peripheral infiltrates, which can be easily misidentified as satellite lesions, is rarely observed in patients with acute infectious keratitis. ⋯ Clinicians should thus remain aware of the risk for co-occurring non-infectious, immune-related keratitis, as treatment for infectious keratitis may induce significant aggravation of non-infectious keratitis.
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We describe the unique case of a child with pneumonia presenting with acute scoliosis and abdominal pain, without any typical features of the disease. A 10-year-old girl presented to the emergency department on 3 consecutive days with right-sided abdominal pain. There were no associated features, in particular, no fevers or respiratory symptoms. ⋯ Despite treatment, the parapneumonic effusion enlarged rapidly and she developed respiratory distress, necessitating transfer to a tertiary centre. The diagnosis of pneumonia can be challenging because of a lack of respiratory signs, the masking of systemic features by antipyretic effects of first-line analgesics, and a high rate of false-negative chest radiographs. The development of acute scoliosis should lead the clinician to strongly consider pneumonia in such circumstances.
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Case Reports
Buried umbilicus with inflammation due to retained rubber foreign body after liposuction: A case report.
Liposuction is one of the most widely performed aesthetic surgeries. It is mainly used for the correction of deep and superficial fat accumulations and remodeling of the body contour. ⋯ Retained surgical foreign body can clinically manifest as acute reaction, such as an inflammatory response, infection, or abscess within days or weeks after the operation. Patients may complain of pain and discomfort, even months or years after the procedure.Our patient had suffered from delayed inflammation due to retained surgical foreign body after liposuction surgery. We emphasize the need for excellent communication within the surgical team to prevent the incidence of retained surgical bodies.
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Sepsis is the systemic response to infection manifested as hyperthermia or hypothermia, tachycardia, tachypnea, and shock. This condition represents a major life-threatening factor in all age groups, particularly in neonatal period. The present study aimed to examine the results of blood, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and urine culture tests in suspected neonatal sepsis cases in northwestern Iran. ⋯ In this study, coagulase-negative staphylococcus and Staphylococcus aureus represented the most common bacteria isolated from blood with 37.31% and 12.43%, respectively. Fungi (38.5%) and Klebsiella (28.20%) were the most common microorganic urine isolates. The results suggested that only a small percentage of suspected neonatal sepsis cases had positive blood and/or urine cultures (12.17%) and that coagulase-negative staphylococcus (CoNS) and S aureus were highly prevalent in positive blood cultures, whereas fungi and Klebsiella were the most common microorganisms found in positive urine cultures.