Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-10-25eCollection Date: 2024-09-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000269
Bruna Silva, Catarina A Pereira, Catarina Cidade-Rodrigues, Catarina Chaves, Alexandra Araújo, Ana Saavedra, Cláudia Machado, Mariana Martinho, Vânia Gomes, Margarida Almeida, Filipe M Cunha
{"title":"Adrenal insufficiency as a cause of hypertransaminasemia and hyperferritinemia: case report and review of the literature.","authors":"Bruna Silva, Catarina A Pereira, Catarina Cidade-Rodrigues, Catarina Chaves, Alexandra Araújo, Ana Saavedra, Cláudia Machado, Mariana Martinho, Vânia Gomes, Margarida Almeida, Filipe M Cunha","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000269","DOIUrl":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000269","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 5","pages":"269"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11500775/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142514322","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-10-16eCollection Date: 2024-09-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000267
Jane Mendonca, Archith Boloor, Matthew A Manoj, Tanya Singh, Tulio L Correa
{"title":"Whole blood viscosity and its association with the presence and severity of hearing loss and other microangiopathies in Indian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.","authors":"Jane Mendonca, Archith Boloor, Matthew A Manoj, Tanya Singh, Tulio L Correa","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000267","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000267","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background/aims: </strong>Although studies correlating idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) to whole blood viscosity (WBV) have been conducted, no such study has been done in diabetic patients in whom WBV is said to be altered. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the potential association between calculated WBV and the presence and severity of SNHL and other microangiopathies in Indian patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional study was carried out in the Kasturba Medical College (KMC) group of hospitals among individuals who were older than 18 years and had T2DM. The included patients underwent pure-tone audiometry, ophthalmoscopy, monofilament test, and routine blood investigations for diabetes. WBV was derived using hematocrit and total protein with a validated formula.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the total 60 participants, 73.3% had SNHL, which was predominantly bilateral and moderate. There was a statistically significant association between glycemic control and the degree of SNHL. The associations between SNHL and HbA1C levels and random plasma glucose were both statistically significant (<i>P</i> = .001). The statistical association between WBV and the degree of SNHL was not significant (<i>P</i> = .056). Although higher mean blood viscosity was noted in individuals with diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy than those without, the associations between blood viscosity and the presence of retinopathy, neuropathy, and nephropathy were not statistically significant (<i>P</i> = .238, <i>P</i> = .621, and <i>P</i> = .656; respectively). Finally, the associations between WBV and glycemic control were also not significant (<i>P</i> = .652 for random plasma glucose and <i>P</i> = .928 for HbA1C).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study concludes that SNHL is highly prevalent in diabetes, and poor glycemic control is associated with its worsening. Elevations in WBV, if present, are not affected by poor glycemic control and do not appear to significantly contribute to the development of complications of the microvasculature in T2DM.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 5","pages":"267"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11473063/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142482650","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-10-14eCollection Date: 2024-09-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000268
Leonor Naia, Márcio Tavares, Catarina Ferreira, Sofia Fonseca, Henrique Coelho
{"title":"Primary vitreoretinal lymphoma masquerading as refractory uveitis-just go with the flow.","authors":"Leonor Naia, Márcio Tavares, Catarina Ferreira, Sofia Fonseca, Henrique Coelho","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000268","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000268","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 5","pages":"268"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11469907/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142482649","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-10-14eCollection Date: 2024-09-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000266
Ana M Meireles, Leonardo M Moço, Cláudia S Moreira, Gil P Brás, Ana E Santo, Mário Mariz
{"title":"NEWS, NEWS2, and qSOFA accuracy in predicting sepsis-related mortality in acute myeloid leukemia: a retrospective single-center analysis.","authors":"Ana M Meireles, Leonardo M Moço, Cláudia S Moreira, Gil P Brás, Ana E Santo, Mário Mariz","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000266","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000266","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) treated with intensive chemotherapy carries a high risk of severe infection. The development of reliable assessment tools to promptly identify patients at risk of developing critical illness is essential to prevent delays in intensive care unit (ICU) admission. This study evaluated the accuracy of quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score, National Early Warning Score (NEWS), and NEWS2 score in predicting ICU admission and sepsis-related mortality in this population. A retrospective analysis was conducted, including 365 episodes of febrile neutropenia in 126 patients. The results showed that all three scores-qSOFA, NEWS, and NEWS2-demonstrated good accuracy for all outcomes, with area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve values for sepsis-related mortality of 0.812, 0.858, and 0.848, respectively. In addition, the scores exhibited excellent accuracy in predicting ICU admission and the composite outcome of ICU admission or sepsis-related mortality. To our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate the accuracy of NEWS in a population of patients with AML who did not undergo stem cell transplantation. These findings suggest that NEWS and NEWS2 are effective tools for identifying patients with AML at high risk of clinical deterioration during febrile neutropenia, supporting their use in clinical practice.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 5","pages":"266"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11469889/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142482648","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-08-09eCollection Date: 2024-07-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000263
Maria I Sousa, Emanuel Dias, Patrícia Andrade, Guilherme Macedo
{"title":"Fecal calprotectin as an inflammatory biomarker in small bowel Crohn disease.","authors":"Maria I Sousa, Emanuel Dias, Patrícia Andrade, Guilherme Macedo","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000263","DOIUrl":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000263","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE) is an essential tool for evaluation of small bowel (SB) Crohn disease (CD). Fecal calprotectin (FC) represents an important biomarker of intestinal inflammation, widely used in ulcerative colitis and CD. Our aim was to evaluate the role of FC for diagnosing inflammatory activity in patients with isolated SB CD and how it correlates with SBCE findings.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This is a retrospective study conducted in a tertiary inflammatory bowel disease referral center that included patients with SB CD who underwent SBCE between January 2017 and February 2023. FC value was obtained from the closest stool examination to SBCE.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>One hundred ninety-six patients were included: 123 were women (63%) with a mean age of 44.2 years. In the SBCE, 127 (65%) patients had a Lewis Score ≥135 and, among the 94 patients with FC >200 μg/g, 23 had LS <135, 36 had LS between 135 and 790, and 35 had LS ≥790. FC levels were predictive of endoscopic lesions in SBCE, with significant correlation between FC level and total LS (Pearson correlation coefficient 0.43, <i>P</i><.001). The sensitivity and specificity were calculated for each cut-off value being respectively 78% and 45% for FC = 100 μg/g, 69% and 59% for FC = 150 μg/g and 67% and 67% for FC = 200 μg/g.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>FC showed moderate correlation with endoscopic findings in SBCE in SB CD. It is, therefore, a reasonable marker for predicting significant inflammatory lesions in SBCE; however, none of the cut-off had a high sensitivity or specificity.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 4","pages":"263"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-08-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11309623/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141918281","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-07-24eCollection Date: 2024-07-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000261
José Guilherme Freitas, Teresa Ribeiro, Cláudia Moreira, Ilídia Moreira, José Mário Mariz
{"title":"When \"Myeloma\" is not a Myeloma: a case report of malignant bone lymphoma.","authors":"José Guilherme Freitas, Teresa Ribeiro, Cláudia Moreira, Ilídia Moreira, José Mário Mariz","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000261","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000261","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 4","pages":"261"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11265780/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141763102","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-07-11eCollection Date: 2024-07-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000262
Sofia L E Fernandes, Filipa A G de Carvalho
{"title":"Preimplantation genetic testing: A narrative review.","authors":"Sofia L E Fernandes, Filipa A G de Carvalho","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000262","DOIUrl":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000262","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) is a diagnostic procedure that has become a powerful complement to assisted reproduction techniques. PGT has numerous indications, and there is a wide range of techniques that can be used, each with advantages and limitations that should be considered before choosing the more adequate one. In this article, it is reviewed the indications for PGT, biopsy and diagnostic technologies, along with their evolution, while also broaching new emerging methods.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 4","pages":"262"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11236403/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141592343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-07-11eCollection Date: 2024-07-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000259
Francisco Santos Dias, Diana Martins Fernandes, António Cardoso-Fernandes, Adriana Silva, Carla Basílio, Nuno Gatta, Roberto Roncon-Albuquerque, José Artur Paiva
{"title":"Potential for organ donation after controlled circulatory death: a retrospective analysis.","authors":"Francisco Santos Dias, Diana Martins Fernandes, António Cardoso-Fernandes, Adriana Silva, Carla Basílio, Nuno Gatta, Roberto Roncon-Albuquerque, José Artur Paiva","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000259","DOIUrl":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000259","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Despite the discrepancy between demand and availability of organs for transplantation, controlled circulatory death donation has not been implemented in Portugal. This study aimed to estimate the potential increase in organ donation from implementing such a program.</p><p><strong>Material and methods: </strong>All deceased patients within the intensive care medicine department at Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, throughout the year 2019, were subjected to retrospective analysis. Potential gain was estimated comparing the results with the number of donors and organs collected during the same period at this hospital center. Differences in variables between groups were assessed using <i>t</i> tests for independent samples or Mann-Whitney <i>U</i> tests for continuous variables, and chi-squared tests were used for categorical variables.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>During 2019, 152 deaths occurred after withdrawal of life-sustaining therapies, 10 of which would have been potentially eligible for donation after controlled circulatory death. We can anticipate a potential increase of 10 prospective donors, a maximum 21% growth in yearly transplantation activity, with a greater impact on kidney transplantation. For most patients, the time between withdrawal of organ support and death surpassed 120 minutes, an outcome explained by variations in withdrawal of life-sustaining measures and insufficient clinical records, underestimating the potential for controlled circulatory arrest donation.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study effectively highlights public health benefits of controlled circulatory arrest donation. Legislation allowing donation through this method represents a social gain and enables patients who will never meet brain death criteria to donate organs as part of the end-of-life process in intensive care medicine, within a framework of complete ethical alignment.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 4","pages":"259"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11236395/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141592342","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-07-11eCollection Date: 2024-07-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000260
José António Ferraz-Gonçalves, Ana Sofia Silva, Joana Silva Reis, José Guilherme Assis, Maria Inês Matos, Paula Matias, Sérgio Alves
{"title":"How are agitated patients dealt with in internal medicine departments?","authors":"José António Ferraz-Gonçalves, Ana Sofia Silva, Joana Silva Reis, José Guilherme Assis, Maria Inês Matos, Paula Matias, Sérgio Alves","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000260","DOIUrl":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000260","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Studies on agitation in internal medicine departments are scarce, especially regarding how doctors and nurses act in these situations. The objective of this study was to clarify how agitation is dealt with in these departments.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This prospective observational study was performed in the internal medicine departments of four Portuguese hospitals. The researchers at each hospital contacted the nursing team that identifies patients who were agitated in the previous shifts. The researcher reviewed these patients' files, recording the research protocol's parameters.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>During the study period, 331 patients were observed; 177 (54%) were female, and the median age was 80 years (19-99). Episodes of agitation occurred in 69 patients (21%); of them, 44 (64%) were female, and the median age was 84 years (31-98). In the first episode of agitation, the doctor on duty was called in 49 times (71%). These doctors prescribed a new medication for the crisis in 30 cases (43%). After the crisis, the assistant doctor recorded the episode in the patient file in 41 cases (59%). According to the medical notes, after the acute phase, in only 21 patients (30%), there was an attempt to clarify the cause of agitation. The prescription after the crisis was regular medication in 32 cases (46%), rescue medication in 27 (39%), and physical restraint in 9 (13%), isolated or in various combinations.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study suggests that there is room to improve how agitated patients are managed in internal medicine departments.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 4","pages":"260"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11236411/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141592341","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Porto biomedical journalPub Date : 2024-07-11eCollection Date: 2024-07-01DOI: 10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000258
Vaitsa Giannouli, Fotios S Milienos
{"title":"Do sex and handedness influence general cognition and financial capacity in patients with aMCI and healthy older adults? Emphasis on women's performance.","authors":"Vaitsa Giannouli, Fotios S Milienos","doi":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000258","DOIUrl":"10.1097/j.pbj.0000000000000258","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>The effects of sex and handedness on financial capacity performance remain unexplored both in healthy older adults and in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The aim of this study was to study the effect of the above factors (sex, handedness, and health condition), following a factorial experimental design; hence, eight groups (each with ten individuals) with similar demographic characteristics (age and education level) were formed consisting of right/left-handed, women/men and healthy/not healthy (with a diagnosis of aMCI) older adults. Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was administered as a measure of general cognitive ability, and Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS) was used as an indicator of financial capacity; moreover, GDS-15 was used to assess depressive symptomatology. Self-reports of hand preference were also included.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Although as expected healthy men and women regardless of their handedness outperformed aMCI patients on MMSE and LCPLTAS, performance on cash transactions, bank statement management, bill payment, financial decision making, and knowledge of personal assets from LCPLTAS is significantly higher for right-handed aMCI women compared with left-handed aMCI women.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Future research should further elucidate the reasons for this left-handed female patient with aMCI profile in larger groups of patients. This is an exploratory study, and the small sample size limits the strength of conclusions; further studies on this topic are needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":74479,"journal":{"name":"Porto biomedical journal","volume":"9 4","pages":"258"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11236399/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141592340","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}