The recommended classification is unchanged from the 2003 and 2007 ESH/ESC guidelines. Hypertension is defined as values >/=140 mmHg systolic blood pressure (SBP) and/or >/=90 mmHg diastolic blood pressure (DBP), based on the evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that in patients with these blood pressure (BP) values treatment-induced BP reductions are beneficial.
Continue reading “Definitions and Classification of Office Blood Pressure Levels (2013 ESH/ESC)”
New criteria for the use of ultrasonography to assess prenatal viability, introduced by the Society of Radiologists in Ultrasound, will help ensure obstetricians are not too hasty in determining that an embryo has ceased developing.
Continue reading “Diagnostic Criteria for Nonviable Pregnancy Early in the First Trimester”
Although the use of resuscitation fluids is one of the most common interventions in medicine, no currently available resuscitation fluid can be considered to be ideal. In light of recent high quality evidence, a reappraisal of how resuscitation fluids are used in acutely ill patients is now required. The selection, timing, and doses of intravenous fluids should be evaluated as carefully as they are in the case of any other intravenous drug, with the aim of maximizing efficacy and minimizing iatrogenic toxicity.
Continue reading “Recommendations for Fluid Resuscitation in Acutely Ill Patients”
Synucleinopathies, with and without dementia, encompass a wide range of diseases including Parkinson’s disease, multiple system atrophy, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder, and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). DLB is a neurodegenerative disorder resulting in slowly progressive and unrelenting dementia until death.
Continue reading “Diagnostic Criteria for Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB)”
Cryoglobulinemia is usually classified into three subgroups according to Ig composition: type I cryoglobulinemia is composed of only one isotype or subclass of immunoglobulin. Both type II and type III mixed cryoglobulins are immune complexes composed of polyclonal IgGs, the autoantigens, and mono- or polyclonal IgMs, respectively; the IgMs are the corresponding autoantibodies with rheumatoid factor (RF) activity.
Continue reading “Classification and Clinico-Pathological Characteristics of Different Cryoglobulinemias”
Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) encompasses a spectrum of injury, ranging from simple steatosis to frank cirrhosis.
Continue reading “Typical Laboratory Abnormalities in Alcoholic Liver Disease (ALD)”
The autosomal recessive inherited primary hyperoxalurias types I, II and III are caused by defects in glyoxylate metabolism that lead to the endogenous overproduction of oxalate.
Continue reading “Features and Treatment of the Inherited Primary Hyperoxalurias”
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways that is characterized by variable narrowing of the airways and symptoms of intermittent dyspnea, wheezing, and nighttime or early-morning coughing.
Continue reading “Criteria for the Diagnosis of Asthma”
Primary infection with varicella–zoster virus (VZV) results in chickenpox, characterized by viremia with a diffuse rash and seeding of multiple sensory ganglia, where the virus establishes lifelong latency. Herpes zoster is caused by reactivation of latent VZV in cranial-nerve or dorsal-root ganglia, with spread of the virus along the sensory nerve to the dermatome.
Continue reading “Indications for Antiviral Treatment in Patients with Herpes Zoster”
Initially used for the treatment of immunodeficiencies, intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIg) have increasingly been used as immunomodulatory agent in autoimmune and inflammatory disorders. The mode of action of IVIg is enigmatic, probably involving Fc-dependent and/or F(ab’)2-dependent non-exclusive mechanisms of action. IVIg broadly interacts with the different components of the immune system: cytokines, complement, Fc receptors and several cell surface immunocompetent molecules. IVIg also has an impact on effector functions of immune cells. These mechanisms of action of IVIg reflect the importance of natural antibodies in the maintenance of immune homeostasis.
Continue reading “Intravenous Immune Globulin in Autoimmune and Inflammatory Diseases”
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