The authors present the case of a young woman with newly diagnosed Takayasu’s arteritis. This woman, with arterial hypertension, was investigated for the unspecific symptoms at the beginning. Afterwards, the transthoracic echocardiography showed dysfunction of the left ventricle and the abdominal sonography showed a stenosis of the right renal artery. PET/CT scan showed chronic modification after inflammatory processes on the wall of the thoracic and abdominal aorta. This case report should be instructive to other clinicians and refers to the necessity to remember this rare disease in our country too., Lucie Horáková, Radek Pudil, Zbyněk Hrnčíř, Jaroslav Vižďa, and Literatura 8
Cíl studie: Metabolismus železa musí být velmi pečlivě regulován. Klíčovým systémovým regulátorem je peptidový hormon hepcidin, který způsobuje “uzamčení” železa uvnitř buňky; to pak nemůže být utilizováno. Dialyzovaní pacienti často trpí anémií, která je způsobena mnoha faktory, mj. stavem mikrozánětu a také zřejmě zvýšenou retencí hepcidinu v důsledku snížené glomerulární filtrace. Naším cílem bylo popsat vztahy mezi hepcidinem a dalšími parametry metabolismu železa, zánětu a erytropoezy u těchto pacientů. Typ studie: Observační Název a sídlo pracoviště: Ústav klinické biochemie a hematologie LF UK a FN v Plzni, Alej Svobody 80, 304 60 Plzeň Materiál a metody: Do studie bylo zařazeno 164 chronicky dialyzovaných pacientů (věk 66 ± 13, 25 - 92 let; 101 mužů a 63 žen) a 37 zdravých kontrol (věk 55 ± 20, 21 - 92 let; 16 mužů a 21 žen), u kterých byl stanoven jejich kompletní krevní obraz, parametry metabolismu železa, zánětu a výživy. Výsledky: Koncentrace železa, transferrinu a hemoglobinu byla významně nižší u dialyzovaných pacientů (p<0,0001), naopak ferritin (p<0,0001), solubilní transferrinové receptory(p<0,05), hepcidin (p=0,0003), CRP a IL-6 (p<0,0001) byly u těchto pacientů významně vyšší než u zdravých kontrol. Hepcidin slabě koreloval pozitivně s CRP a ferritinem a negativně s transferrinem u dialyzovaných pacientů, u zdravých kontrol nebyla nalezena žádná korelace hepcidinu s ostatními parametry. Závěr: Zdá se, že vliv zánětu na hladiny hepcidinu není u hemodialyzovaných pacientů zcela zásadní a na jeho koncentraci se podílí i jiné faktory, např. jeho retence., Objective: Peptide hormone hepcidin is a key systemic regulator of the iron metabolism. Hepcidin binds to the iron cell exporter ferroportin so iron is kept in the cells unavailable for erythropoiesis. The synthesis of hepcidin is up-regulated by high iron stores and inflammation. Dialyzed patients have very often impaired iron management – they suffer from anemia, which is caused by many factors including the state of micro inflammation and hepcidin retention due to decreased glomerular filtration rate. Our aim was to describe the relationship of hepcidin and other parameters of iron metabolism, erythropoiesis and inflammation. Design: Observation Settings: Institute of Clinical Biochemistry and Hematology, Charles University Hospital in Pilsen, Alej Svobody 80, 304 60 Plzeň Material and Methods: Complete blood cell count, iron, ferritin, transferrin, CRP, albumin, creatinine, hepcidin, soluble transferrin receptors (sTfR) and IL-6 were measured in samples from 164 patients included in chronic hemodialysis program (age 66 ± 13, 25 - 92 years), 63 women and 101 men and 37 control healthy volunteers (age 55 ± 20, 21 - 92 years), 21 women and 16 men. Results: Iron, transferrin and hemoglobin were significantly lower in the patients group (p<0.0001) while ferritin (p<0.0001), sTfR (p<0.05), hepcidin (p=0.0003), CRP and IL-6 (p<0.0001) were significantly higher in the patients group. Hepcidin weakly positively correlated with CRP and ferritin and weakly negatively correlated with transferrin in hemodialyzed patients. No correlation of hepcidin with other biochemical parameters in controls was found. Conclusion: It seems that the influence of inflammation on hepcidin levels in hemodialyzed patients is not crucial and other factors including its retention in end-stage renal disease participate., T. Sedláčková, J. Racek, J. Eiselt, L. Kielberger, L. Malánová, and Literatura 10
Only a few cases of pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) in Cushing’s syndrome have been published in the literature so far. In the majority of these patients, the pneumonia occurred after reduction of the hypercortisolism with medicamentous treatment. We report two cases of PCP during conservative treatment of hypercortisolism. We describe clinical, imaging and laboratory findings in two patients and review published cases of pneumocystits pneumonia in Cushing’s syndrome. A 60-year-old woman and 20-year-old man with Cushing’s syndrome due to ectopic ACTH syndrome were treated at our department. Both developed pneumocystis pneumonia early after treatment with ketoconazole and ethomidate bromide had been introduced and the levels of cortisol rapidly decreased. PCP prophylaxis in patients with high cortisolemia should be started before treatment of hypercortisolism in current practice. Gradual lowering of plasma cortisol should also reduce the risk of infection by Pneumocystis jiroveci., Filip Gabalec, Alžběta Zavřelová, Eduard Havel, Jaroslav Cerman, jr., Jakub Radocha, Ioannis Svilias, Jan Čáp, and Literatura 10