Clinical biochemistry
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Clinical biochemistry · May 2008
Comparative StudyThe levels of macrophage migration inhibitory factor as an indicator of disease activity and severity in adult-onset Still's disease.
This study investigated the levels of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) and explored the role of this pro-inflammatory cytokine in the systemic inflammation of AOSD. ⋯ These data represent the first demonstration of increased MIF expression in AOSD, and suggest that MIF may be an important marker for disease evaluation and monitoring.
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Clinical biochemistry · May 2008
Comparative StudyCystatin C could be a replacement to serum creatinine for diagnosing and monitoring kidney function in children.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a worldwide public health problem. Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is accepted as the best way to diagnose and monitor kidney function. Plasma Cystatin C (CysC) has been proposed as a better marker of GFR than serum creatinine (SCr), but it is not widely used because of some drawbacks with CysC assays. Our purpose is to determine the diagnostic accuracy of CysC and SCr for GFR estimation in children, using 99Tc-DTPA clearance (Cl(Tc)) as the reference standard. We also discuss some of the economic implications of these tests, in order to guide clinicians when to use CysC or SCr for the diagnosis or monitoring of CKD. ⋯ CysC is a very interesting option, and could be a replacement to serum creatinine for diagnosing and possibly for monitoring kidney function in children.