Southern medical journal
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Southern medical journal · Oct 2009
The utility of repeated stool toxin testing for diagnosing Clostridium difficile colitis.
Clostridium difficile is diagnosed using the enzyme-linked immunoassay (EIA) with the specificity and sensitivity ranging from 50-90% and 70-95%, respectively. Due to the wide ranges, there is considerable confusion regarding the value of the EIA toxin test. We undertook this study to evaluate the benefit of repeat stool toxin testing.
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Southern medical journal · Oct 2009
Case ReportsAcute methotrexate neurotoxicity with choreiform movements and focal neurological deficits: a case report.
Methotrexate (MTX) is an effective antimetabolite treatment for various oncological disorders including the central nervous system involvement (CNS) in widespread leukemia and CNS lymphoma. This form of treatment has a notable toxic effect on the nervous system, and the pediatric population seems to be more vulnerable to the neurologic toxicity of this drug. ⋯ The diagnosis of acute focal symptoms from MTX treatment is especially difficult in patients who receive chemotherapy for neoplastic disorders and who may have many reasons for CNS involvement in general and parenchymal involvement in particular. We report the unusual clinical and neuro-imaging findings in a teenager with acute focal symptoms after MTX treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia.