European journal of internal medicine
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Periodontitis is a chronic, infectious, insidious disease of the tooth-supporting structures that causes a general inflammatory response. The aims of this study were to determine whether periodontitis is associated with endothelial dysfunction leading to cardiovascular events and whether proper management of periodontal disease would improve endothelial function and prevent cardiovascular events in the future. ⋯ Periodontitis may be an insidious cause of endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular events. Treating periodontitis can improve endothelial function and be an important preventive tool for cardiovascular disease.
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Dengue fever (DF) is one of the world's emerging infectious diseases. The steady increase in European tourists, as well as soldiers serving on peacekeeping duties, in endemic areas, coupled with the present resurgence of dengue, raises the risk of exposure for a large number of European travellers. Significant numbers of travellers have, in fact, developed DF. ⋯ Of concern is the potential for a dengue outbreak in a previously dengue-free country through imported cases. Another major concern is the potential area of dengue transmission, due to spread of its vectors through sizeable parts of southern Europe. In addition to the risk of haemorrhagic fever in returning tourists, the introduction of DF by returning travellers, whether they have symptoms or are unaffected by signs and symptoms of the disease, poses a threat to health systems in Europe.
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Lung cancer is the most frequent cause of cancer deaths in the western world today. In our case, we present the history of a 62-year-old man with the diagnosis of the uncommon complication of an acute gastric pneumatosis following his palliative chemotherapy. This rare condition was first described more than 100 years ago and has since been described in several distinctive clinical settings. To our knowledge, we present the first case of chemotherapy-related pneumatosis exclusively limited to the stomach wall but involving the portal veins and the spleen.
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Rhabdomyolysis is defined as a pathological condition of skeletal muscle cell damage leading to the release of toxic intracellular material into the blood circulation. Its major causes include trauma, ischemia, drugs, toxins, metabolic disorders, and infections. ⋯ Clinically, the syndrome presents with severe muscular pain, weakness and myoglobinuria. Increased myoglobin and creatine phosphokinase as a consequence of muscular cell death are the major laboratory findings, which, in combination with the clinical presentation, lead the clinician to the final diagnosis of the syndrome.
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Eur. J. Intern. Med. · Mar 2007
A comparative study of an ambulatory blood pressure measuring device and a wrist blood pressure monitor with a position sensor versus a mercury sphygmomanometer.
Self-measurements of blood pressure (BP) and 24-hour BP measurements are better predictors of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity than office BP measurements. The objective of this study was to compare the accuracy and precision of a wrist BP monitor with a position sensor (Omron 637IT) and of an ambulatory BP measuring monitor (ABPM; Nissei DS-250) with a mercury sphygmomanometer. ⋯ The wrist BP monitor produced results consistent with those of the mercury sphygmomanometer when both were compared with the results of the ABPM. As BP measurement with these devices is a practical and repeatable method, they can be used instead of ABPM in the diagnosis and monitoring of hypertension. However, there is a need for further comparative studies.