Internal medicine
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Multicenter Study
The Differences in the Epidemiology and Predictors of Death between Candidemia Acquired in Intensive Care Units and Other Hospital Settings.
The burden of candidemia is shifting from intensive care units (ICU) to non-ICU settings. This study aimed to define the differences in epidemiology and predictors of death between ICU-acquired candidemia (ICUAC) and non-ICUAC. ⋯ The Candida species and antifungal resistance profiles in patients with ICUAC were similar to non-ICUAC patients, but led to worse outcomes. The protective and risk factors for death may therefore be relevant for the clinical management of patients with candidemia in ICU and non-ICU settings.
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Review Case Reports
Two Cases of Thymic Carcinoma Initially Presenting as Bone Metastasis: A Clinical Report and the Usefulness of CD5 Immunohistochemistry for Assessing Bone Lesions.
Thymic carcinoma frequently spreads to the pleural space, regional lymph nodes, liver and lungs. However, an initial clinical presentation involving spinal or multiple bone metastases in patients with thymic carcinoma is extremely rare. ⋯ Both patients were histologically diagnosed with metastatic thymic squamous cell carcinoma based on the findings of specimens resected from the metastatic bone lesions. We herein describe the clinical courses of these cases and review the characteristics of bone metastasis of thymic carcinoma.
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Review Case Reports
Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus and Pernicious Anemia in an Elderly Japanese Patient: A Case Report and Literature Review.
We herein report the case of a 66-year-old Japanese man with acute-onset type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) accompanied by pernicious anemia. After 2 weeks of polyuria, the patient developed insulin-deficient hyperglycemia with diabetic ketoacidosis in the absence of verifiable islet-related autoantibodies and began insulin therapy in 2001. ⋯ Previous studies have reported cases of slowly progressive autoimmune T1D concomitant with pernicious anemia. The present case suggests that potential associations with organ-specific autoimmune disorders should be considered during the long-term follow-up of T1D patients, even though verifiable islet-related autoantibodies are undetectable.
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Case Reports
Hypereosinophilic obliterative bronchiolitis clinically mimicking diffuse panbronchiolitis: four-year follow-up.
A 73-year-old man with a known history of asthma presented with dyspnea, worsening wheezing and a productive cough complicated by chronic sinusitis. Chest computed tomography showed bronchial wall thickening with centrilobular nodules and ground-glass opacity in the right lower lobe. Features meeting the diagnostic criteria for diffuse panbronchiolitis (DPB) were identified, and lobectomy confirmed the presence of lung cancer. ⋯ Our initial diagnosis of DPB was subsequently changed to HOB after four years. We herein describe this case of HOB, which was initially diagnosed as DPB primarily based on high-resolution computed tomography, with a focus on the histopathology and long-term clinical course. This is the first report to document the long-term clinical course of HOB.
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Analyses of arterial blood gas parameters, including pH, HCO3- and lactate, play an important role in assessing the clinical status of patients with heart failure. In the present study, we evaluated the degree of agreement in the pH, HCO3- and lactate levels between arterial and venous blood samples according to the subset of the Forrester classification. ⋯ These data suggest that the venous pH, HCO3- and lactate levels are acceptable substitutes for arterial parameters, regardless of the cardiac hemodynamics.