Clin Lab
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It has been thought that neurotrophins have metabotrophic effects and take part in the carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. The aim of the present study is to examine the levels of neurotrophins in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and whether the levels are linked to the components of metabolic syndrome. ⋯ We thought that the changes in the serum neurotrophic factor levels were associated with metabolic syndrome components in T2DM.
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Serum S100B was suggested to be elevated after brain damage in previous studies. Nowadays, increasing evidence has revealed S100B was also elevated in other tissue traumas outside the brain such as bone fracture and acute coronary syndrome. The aim of this study is to investigate whether the level of serum S100B is associated with haemorrhagic shock (HS), as well as multiple organ failure (MOF) and mortality in patients with HS. ⋯ Elevated levels of serum S100B could be considered as an independent predicting marker of the presence and outcome of HS.
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We evaluated the essential assay characteristics of the newly developed, fully automated Kryptor Copeptin assay including the assay performances and the clinical implications in parallel with the dosage of the cardiac Troponin I (cTnI) in patients presenting to the Emergency Department with chest pain with or without ECG abnormalities. ⋯ The combination of negative troponin and negative copeptin (< quantification limit) could improve rapid sorting of ACS patients in an emergency. The Copeptin Kryptor assay is a useful diagnosis tool to rule out ACS and might be further enhanced by the recent development of sensitive troponins.
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Comparative Study
Analytic performance of bacteriuria and leukocyturia obtained by UriSed in culture positive urinary tract infections.
Urine analysis is one of the most common tests for assessing urinary-tract infections, which are the most frequently occurring infectious diseases in community populations. Urine culture is still the 'gold standard' for the detection of urinary tract infection, however, it is time- and labor-intensive and and has a high number of unnecessary cultures. The aim of this study was to evaluate the analytical and diagnostic performance of a new urinalysis system LabUMat with UriSed (77 Elektronika, Budapest, Hungary) in comparison to urine culture as the reference method. ⋯ When screening with the UriSed for community-acquired urinary tract infection, a cut-off value of 85 bacteria/microL and 13 WBCs/microL should be adopted. Diagnostic performance of UriSed is satisfactory and use of this instrument is a reliable method for screening out a major part of the culture negative samples. It would improve the efficiency of microbiology laboratory, and unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions could be reduced.
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Cardiac troponins are the most sensitive and specific biochemical markers of myocardial injury and with the new high-sensitivity troponin methods very minor injuries of the heart muscle can be detected. The introduction of high-sensitivity assays has facilitated reference range adjustments and a revised cut-off point for myocardial infarction (MI) due to an improved performance in the lower concentration range. The objective of this study was to investigate whether implementing a high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) assay with subsequent lowering of the cut-off point changed the hospital evaluation and diagnosis of acute non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) in a general hospital population. ⋯ More patients were diagnosed with NSTEMI and underwent coronary angiography after introducing the hs-cTnT assay. At the same time there was an increase in the frequency of coronary angiograms without signs of CAD, and fewer had significant dynamic cTnT concentration changes.