INTRODUÇÃO: O câncer de próstata é a segunda causa de morte relacionada ao câncer nos Estados Unidos e no Brasil. Sua incidência tem aumentado significativamente após a década de 90 devido a implantação de programas de rastreamento pelo PSA, que embora seja considerado um método sensível para identificar os pacientes com risco para o câncer de próstata, sua especificidade é considerada baixa. O objetivo foi desenvolver e validar nomogramas para estimar a probabilidade de câncer de próstata e câncer de próstata indolente em pacientes submetidos a um rastreamento oportunístico. MÉTODOS: Trata-se de um estudo observacional transversal baseado em uma coorte de pacientes atendidos pela Unidade Móvel de Prevenção e biopsiados no Departamento de Radiologia do Hospital de Câncer de Barretos entre janeiro de 2004 e dezembro de 2007. Os dados clínicos e patológicos foram coletados dos prontuários dos pacientes, seguindo uma ficha de coleta padronizada previamente elaborada e digitada em banco de dados no Software IBM® SPSS® Statistics 20.0.1 for Windows para posterior análise. Análises de regressão logística binária foram realizadas para avaliar o modo como cada um dos fatores em combinação permitiria supor a presença de câncer de próstata. RESULTADOS: Dos 1.639 pacientes que foram encaminhados para o Hospital de Câncer de Barretos para a realização da biópsia prostática, 553 (42,1%) tiveram confirmação histopatológica de adenocarcinoma prostático. Os tumores indolentes foram encontrados em 66 (5,0%) dos casos positivos. As análises de regressão logística forneceram uma área sob a curva ROC de 0,737 (IC 95% = 0,678 a 0,796) para predição do câncer de próstata e de 0,696 (IC 95% = 0,591 a 0,802) para predição de câncer de próstata indolente. CONCLUSÃO: Os modelos construídos apresentaram poder de predição razoável considerando-se os eventos estudados / BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancerrelated death in the United States and in Brazil. Its incidence has increased significantly after the 90\'s due to the implementation of PSA screening programs, despite being considered a sensitive method to identify patients at risk of prostate cancer, its specificity is considered low. The aim was to develop and validate nomograms to estimate the probability of prostate cancer and indolent prostate cancer in patients undergoing opportunistic screening. METHODS: This was a cross sectional observational study based on a cohort of patients seen at the Prevention Mobile Unit and biopsied in the Radiology Department of the Barretos Cancer Hospital between January 2004 and December 2007. The clinical and pathological data were collected from patient charts, following a standardized collection form previously completed and entered into the database in IBM® SPSS® Software Statistics 20.0.1 for Windows for further analysis. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed in order to assess how each factor in combination would predict the presence of prostate cancer. RESULTS: Out of the 1,639 patients who were referred to the Barretos Cancer Hospital for prostate biopsy, 553 (42.1%) had histopathological confirmation of prostatic adenocarcinoma. Indolent tumors were found in 66 (5.0%) of the positive cases. The logistic regression analyses provided an area under the ROC curve of 0.737 (95% CI = 0.678 to 0.796) for prediction of prostate cancer and 0.696 (95% CI = 0.591 to 0.802) for the prediction of indolent prostate cancer. CONCLUSION: The constructed models showed a reasonable predictive power, considering the events studied

OBJECTIVE: Metamemory is integral for strategizing about memory intentions. This study investigated the prospective memory (PM) deficit in Parkinson's disease (PD) from a metamemory viewpoint, with the aim of examining whether metamemory deficits might contribute to PM deficits in PD. METHOD: Sixteen patients with PD and 16 healthy older adult controls completed a time-based PM task (initiating a key press at two specified times during an ongoing task), and an event-based PM task (initiating a key press in response to animal words during an ongoing task). To measure metamemory participants were asked to predict and postdict their memory performance before and after completing the tasks, as well as complete a self-report questionnaire regarding their everyday memory function. RESULTS: The PD group had no impairment, relative to controls, on the event-based task, but had prospective (initiating the key press) and retrospective (recalling the instructions) impairments on the time-based task. The PD group also had metamemory impairments on the time-based task; they were inaccurate at predicting their performance before doing the task but, became accurate when making postdictions. This suggests impaired metamemory knowledge but preserved metamemory monitoring. There were no group differences regarding PD patients' self-reported PM performance on the questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: These results reinforce previous findings that PM impairments in PD are dependent on task type. Several accounts of PM failures in time-based tasks are presented, in particular, ways in which mnemonic and metacognitive deficits may contribute to the difficulties observed on the time-based task.

No / In recent years, different genes and proteins have been highlighted as potential biomarkers for psoriasis, one of the most common inflammatory skin diseases worldwide. However, most of these markers are not only psoriasis-specific but also found in other inflammatory disorders. We performed an unsupervised cluster analysis of gene expression profiles in 150 psoriasis patients and other inflammatory skin diseases (atopic dermatitis, lichen planus, contact eczema, and healthy controls). We identified a cluster of IL-17/tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha)-associated genes specifically expressed in psoriasis, among which IL-36gamma was the most outstanding marker. In subsequent immunohistological analyses, IL-36gamma was confirmed to be expressed in psoriasis lesions only. IL-36gamma peripheral blood serum levels were found to be closely associated with disease activity, and they decreased after anti-TNFalpha-treatment. Furthermore, IL-36gamma immunohistochemistry was found to be a helpful marker in the histological differential diagnosis between psoriasis and eczema in diagnostically challenging cases. These features highlight IL-36gamma as a valuable biomarker in psoriasis patients, both for diagnostic purposes and measurement of disease activity during the clinical course. Furthermore, IL-36gamma might also provide a future drug target, because of its potential amplifier role in TNFalpha- and IL-17 pathways in psoriatic skin inflammation. / Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) to JW (WE-4428), the René Touraine Foundation (for AD), and the PTJ reference number 0306v12 as part of the Technology and Innovation Program (TIP) North-Rhine Westphalia (gene expression analyses)

Shelters often make euthanasia or adoption decisions based on the results of FeLV-FIV point-of-care tests but given the low estimated prevalence of these diseases and imperfect test performance, this might not be a good practice because of diagnostic error. The objectives of this study were to determine the true prevalence of FeLV and FIV in apparently healthy and sick shelter cats in Mississippi, estimate predictive value of the Zoetis Witness FeLV-FIV Rapid ImmunoMigration test results at the estimated true prevalences through Bayesian latent class modeling, and formulate testing recommendations for shelters. One chapter will review the literature on FeLV and FIV. The bulk of this thesis will focus on determining the true prevalence of retroviral infection in Mississippi shelter cat populations. The last chapter will use Bayesian modeling to estimate test performance and predictive value of test results in healthy and sick shelter cat populations.

In this paper, we investigate how controlled changes to image properties and orientation affect eye movements for repeated viewings of images of natural scenes. We make changes to images by manipulating low-level image content (such as luminance or chromaticity) and/or inverting the image. We measure the effects of these manipulations on human scanpaths (the spatial and chronological path of fixations), additionally comparing these effects to those predicted by a widely used saliency model (L. Itti & C. Koch, 2000). Firstly we find that repeated viewing of a natural image does not significantly modify the previously known repeatability (S. A. Brandt & L. W. Stark, 1997; D. Noton & L. Stark, 1971) of scanpaths. Secondly we find that manipulating image features does not necessarily change the repeatability of scanpaths, but the removal of luminance information has a measurable effect. We also find that image inversion appears to affect scene perception and recognition and may alter fixation selection (although we only find an effect on scanpaths with the additional removal of luminance information). Additionally we confirm that visual saliency as defined by L. Itti and C. Koch's (2000) model is a poor predictor of real observer scanpaths and does not predict the small effects of our image manipulations on scanpaths.

Pendant les trente dernières années, le taux d'incidence du cancer de la thyroïde chez l'homme et la femme a considérablement augmenté partout dans le monde. Cependant, on estime que d'ici à 2019 le cancer de la thyroïde deviendra le troisième cancer le plus répandu chez les femmes dans tous les groupes d'âge en raison de la tendance d’augmentation plus dramatique chez elles. En général, il n'y a aucune raison claire qui explique l'augmentation mondiale de l'incidence du cancer de la thyroïde et il est émis l'hypothèse que cette recrudescence de l'incidence a une étiologie multifactorielle. Bien qu'il soit clair que le progrès technique des modalités de l’imagerie diagnostique telle que l'échographie peut amener à une augmentation du taux de détection du cancer de la thyroïde secondaire au sur-diagnostic des maladies sous-cliniques, il existe des preuves fortes indiquant une vraie augmentation du cancer de la thyroïde. La cartographie cervicale échographique préopératoire est un outil important dans l'algorithme diagnostic du cancer de la thyroïde. Elle aide à identifier l’étendue des métastases ganglionnaires cervicales afin de guider la dissection chirurgicale anticipée. La dissection chirurgicale du cou orientée selon les compartiments anatomiques et guidée par la cartographie cervicale échographique peut amener à une réduction des risques des complications postopératoires et des récidives tumorales locorégionales. Nous avons effectué une analyse qualitative et quantitative de la cartographie cervicale échographique afin d'évaluer la fiabilité diagnostique de ce test. Nos résultats ont démontré une valeur prédictive positive assez élevée de cette modalité diagnostique ainsi q’une association quantitative forte entre les données de la cartographie échographique et les résultats de l’histopathologie. Nous suggérons que l’utilisation de la cartographie cervicale échographique cible les patients présentant un risque plus important d’une maladie persistante / récidivante. / Over the last 30 years, the incidence rate of thyroid cancer has drastically increased in both genders all over the world. However, due to a more dramatic pattern in females, it is estimated that by 2019 it will become the third most prevalent cancer in women of all ages. Overall, there are no clear reasons behind the worldwide increase in thyroid cancer incidence and it is hypothesized that this upsurge has a multifactorial etiology. Despite the fact that recent advances in imaging modalities such as ultrasound can lead to thyroid cancer overdiagnosis by improving the detection rate for subclinical disease, there is strong evidence indicating a true increase in the occurrence of thyroid cancer as well. Preoperative ultrasound cervical mapping, an important tool in the diagnostic algorithm of thyroid cancer, helps to identify metastatic spread in cervical lymph nodes and guides the surgeon for subsequent surgical dissection. Compartment oriented neck dissection directed by ultrasound mapping decreases locoregional tumor recurrence and lowers the risk of postsurgical complications. We conducted a qualitative and quantitative analysis of ultrasound mapping to evaluate this test’s diagnostic reliability. Our results demonstrated that the positive predictive value of this diagnostic modality was sufficiently high and that there was a strong quantitative association between ultrasound mapping and histopathology results. We therefore recommend that ultrasound mapping be used to target patients with a higher risk of persistent or recurrent thyroid cancer.

<p>UVOD: Hipertenzivna oboljenja u trudnoći predstavljaju heterogenu grupu bolesti koja se javljaju kod 3-8% trudnica op&scaron;te populacije. Najteže forme ovih oboljenja preeklampsija, eklampsija i HELLP sindrom su vodeći uzročnici morbiditeta i mortaliteta majke i ploda u odnosu na sve druge komplikacije u trudnoći. Etiopatogeneza ovih oboljenja je jo&scaron; uvek nedovoljno razja&scaron;njena ali se smatra da placenta ima ključnu ulogu u nastanku ovih komplikacija, odnosno da placentalna insuficijencija, koja nastaje kao posledica nedovoljne adaptacije decidualnih i intramiometrijalnih delova spiralnih arterija već u prvih nekoliko nedelja trudnoće, dovodi do redukcije utero-placentalne cirkulacije i lokalne placentalne hipoksije, &scaron;to se nepovoljno održava i na majku i na plod. U cilju razja&scaron;njenja patofiziolo&scaron;kih mehanizama nastanka hipertenzivnih oboljenja u trudnoći i pronalaska dovoljno senzitivnih makera koji bi pomogli u ranom predviđanju nastanka najtežih formi ovih oboljenja, do sada su ispitivani brojni proteini koji učestvuju u procesima stvaranja i razvoja placentalne vaskularne mreže kao &scaron;to su vaskularni endotelni faktor rasta (VEGF-A), placentalni faktor rasta (PlGF) i solubilni receptor fms-like tirozin kinaza receptor (sFlt-1). CILJ: Uporediti serumske koncentracije (sFlt-1, PlGF, VEGF-A, PAPP-a, free&szlig;hCG, glukoze, ukupnog holesterola, HDL holesterola, LDL holesterola, triglicerida, apo-AI, apoB, AST, ALT, GGT, kreatinina, ureje, mokraćne kiseline, hsCRP, Na, K, Cl, P, Mg i Ca između grupe trudnica sa preeklampsijom, hroničnom i gestacijskom hipertenzijom i kontrolne grupe trudnica u prvom trimestru trudnoće između 11 i 14. nedelje gestacije. Ispitati da li se vrednosti odabranih laboratorijskih parametara (sFlt-1, VEGF-A i PLGF) kod ispitivanih trudnica statistički značajno razlikuju u odnosu na gestacijsku nedelju u trenutku porođaja, težinu i dužinu i APGAR skor bodovanja novorođenčeta. Ispitati da li se vrednosti angiogenih proteina:sFlt-1, VEGF-A, PlGF značajno razlikuju kod ispitivanih trudnica u odnosu na broj prethodnih trudnoća i starosti trudnica. MATERIJAL I METODE: Istraživanje je sprovedeno kao prospektivno analitička studija u Kliničkom centru Vojvodine, u periodu od juna 2012. do februara 2015. godine. U istraživanje je uključeno ukupno 143 trudnice starosti od 18 &ndash; 43 godine. Sve trudnice uključene u istraživanje podeljene su na dve ispitivane i jednu kontrolnu grupu. Prvu ispitivanu grupu činilo je 43 trudnice koje su po definisanim kriterijuma razvile preeklampsiju u aktuelnoj trudnoći. Drugu ispitivanu grupu činilo je 46 trudnica kojima je dijagnostikovana ili potvrđena hronična ili gestacijska hipertenzija u aktuelnoj trudnoći. Kontrolnu grupu činilo je 54 zdravih trudnica sa verifikovanim fiziolo&scaron;kim ishodom trudnoće u terminu, bez maternalnih i fetalnih komplikacija. Prilikom regrutovanja trudnica (između 11+0 i 13+6 nedelja gestacije) za uče&scaron;će u istraživanju, uzeti su anamnestički podaci o faktorima rizika za pojavu hipertenzivnih oboljenja u trudnoći, i u okviru kliničkog i aku&scaron;erskog pregleda urađena su antropometrijska merenja, merenje krvnog pritiska, i specijalizovani ultrazvučni pregled ploda radi utvrđivanja gestacijske starosti ploda i određivanja rizika za pojavu hromozomskih anomalija ploda. Trudnicama je nakon uzimanja anamnestičkih podataka i kliničkog i aku&scaron;erskog pregleda i potpisanog pisanog pristanka pacijenta o dobrovoljnom učestvovanju u istraživanju izvađena krv radi određivanja odabranih laboratorijskih parametara. Serumske koncentracije sFlt1, VEGF-A i PIGF određivane su kvantitativnom ELISA tehnikom (R&amp;D Systems Europe Ltd. Abingdon, UK), dok su: glukoza, ukupni holesterol, HDL holesterol, LDL holesterol, trigliceridi, apo-AI I apoB, AST, ALT, GGT, kreatinin, ureja, mokraćna kiselina, hsCRP, Na, K, Cl, Mg, P, Ca određivani na automatizovanim analizatorskim sistemima. Sve trudnice su kategorisane u 2 ispitivane i kontrolnu grupu na osnovu pojave ili isključenja hipertenzivnih oboljenja u aktuelnoj trudnoći. Statistička obrada podataka urađena je u statističkom programu STATISTICA 12 (StatSoft Inc.,Tulsa, OK, USA). Podaci su predstavljeni tabelarno i grafički, nivo statističe značajnosti p, je tumačen statistički značajnim ukoliko su vrednosti p&lt;0,05. REZULTATI: Vrednosti serumskih koncentracija sFlt-1 se statistički značajno razlikuju u sve tri grupe ispitanica i značajno su vi&scaron;e u grupama sa hipertenzivnim oboljenjima u odnosu na zdravu grupu ispitanica, p&lt;0,001. Serumske koncentracije VEGF-A su značajno niže u grupi trudnica sa preeklampsijom u odnosu na zdrave trudnice kontrolne grupe (p&lt;0,001), dok se nivoi serumskih koncentracija PlGF statistički značajno razlikuju između sve tri grupe trudnica tako da su najniže vrednosti uočene u grupi sa preeklampsijom (p&lt;0,001) u odnosu na preostale dve grupe ispitanica. Nije uočeno postojanje statistički značajne razlike u nivoima PAPP-A, biohemijskih parametara (glukoze, AST, ALT, GGT kreatinina, ureje, mokraćne kiseline), lipidskih parametara (uk. holesterol, LDL, apo A-I, apo B), parametara inflamatornog (kompletna krvna slika, fibrinogen), hemostaznog (D-dimer, vWF-antigen) i elektrolitskog statusa (Na, K, Cl, P, Mg), p&gt;0,05. Nivoi free &szlig;hCG i HDL holesterola su značajno niže, dok su vrednosti hsCRP i triglicerida značajno vi&scaron;e u grupi trudnica sa preeklampsijom u odnosu na grupu bez hipertenzivnih poremećaja u trudnoći. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1 preko 865 pg/ml imaju senzitivnost od 93% i specifičnost od 81,5% u predviđanju nastanka preeklampsije, dok serumske koncentracije PlGF ispod 60 pg/ml senzitivnost od 88,4% i specifičnost od 79,6% u predviđanju pojave preeklampsije. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1, VEGF-A i PlGF ne pokazuju statistički značajnu razliku u odnosu na godine života trudnice i broja prethodnih trudnoća p&gt;0,05. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1 i PlGF se značajno razlikuju u odnosu na telesnu težinu novorođenčeta, tako da su niže vrednosti oba proteina detektovane u grupi novorođenčadi sa porođajnom težinom ispod 1500 gr. u odnosu na telesnu masu između 2800-3300 gr, p&lt;0,001. Takođe su nađene niže vrednosti sFlt-1 i PlGF u grupi trudnica koje su se porodile pre 33. nedelje gestacije u odnosu na nedelju gestacije u trenutku porođaja preko 37 nedelje gestacije, p&lt;0,001. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1 i PlGF se značajno razlikuju u odnosu na indeks telesne mase majke tako da su vi&scaron;e vrednosti sFlt-1 i niže vednosti PlGF nađene u grupi trudnica sa indeksom telesne mase ispod 25 u odnosu na grupu trudnica sa indeksom telesne mase preko 30 kg/m2, p&lt;0,001. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1 u prvom trimestru trudnoće su značajno povezane sa parametrima inflamacije (hsCRP), vrednostima dijastolnog krvnog pritiska i nivoima free &szlig;hCG. Takođe se uočava značajna povezanost koncentracije PlGF sa indeksom telesne mase, vrednostima sistolnog krvnog pritiska i koncentracijom hsCRP u prvom trimestru trudnoće. ZAKLJUČAK: Nivoi antiangiogenog proteina sFlt-1 su vi&scaron;e u grupi trudnica sa preeklampsijom u odnosu na grupu sa hroničnom i gestacijskom hipertenzijom i grupu trudnica bez hipertenzivnih poremećaja trudnoći. Nivoi proangiogenog proteina VEGF-A su značajno niže u grupi trudnica sa preeklampsijom i hroničnom i gestacijskom hipertenzijom u odnosu na grupu trudnica bez hipertenzivnih poremećaja u trudnoći. Serumske koncentracije proangiogenog proteina PlGF su niže u grupi trudnica sa preeklampsijom u odnosu na grupu sa hroničnom i gestacijskom hipertenzijom i grupu trudnica bez hipertenzivnih poremećaja trudnoći. Serumske koncentracije placentalnog proteina free &szlig;hCG i HDL holesterola su značajno niže, dok su vrednosti hsCRP i triglicerida značajno vi&scaron;e u grupi trudnica sa preeklampsijom u odnosu na grupu bez hipertenzivnih poremećaja u trudnoći. Između trudnica sa hipertenzivnim poremećajima u trudnoći i zdravih trudnica nije uočeno postojanje značajne razlike u vrednostima placentalnog proteina PAPP-A, biohemijskih parametara (glukoze, AST, ALT, GGT kreatinina, ureje, mokraćne kiseline), lipidskih parametara (uk. holesterol, LDL, apo A-I, apo B), parametara inflamatornog (kompletna krvna slika, fibrinogen), hemostaznog (D-dimer, vWF-antigen) i elektrolitskog statusa (Na, K, Cl, P, Mg). Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1 i PlGF se značajno razlikuju u odnosu na gestacijsku starost na porođaju i telesnu masu novorođenčeta i niže su kod trudnica koje su se prevremeno porodile kao i kod novorođenčati sa manjom porođajnom težinom. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1 se značajno razlikuju u odnosu telesnu dužinu i APGAR skor novorođenčeta, tako da su vi&scaron;e vrednosti sFlt-1 udružene sa većom telesnom dužinom novorođenčeta i boljim APGAR skorom. Serumske koncentracije sFlt-1, VEGF-A i PlGF se ne razlikuju značajno u odnosu na godine života trudnice i broja prethodnih trudnoća. Nivoi proteina angiogeneze sFlt-1 i PlGF predstavljaju dobre prediktore u predviđanju nastanka preeklampsije u prvom trimestru trudnoće.</p> / <p>INTRODUCTION: Hypertensive disorders in pregnancy are a heterogeneous group of diseases that occur in 3-8% of all pregnancies. The most difficult forms of these diseases: preeclampsia, eclampsia and HELLP syndrome are the leading causes of maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality in relation to all other pregnancy complications. Etiopathogenesis of these diseases is still insufficiently understood but it is thought that the placenta plays a key role in the development of these complications, and that placental insufficiency, which occurs as a result of insufficient adaptation of decidual intramiometrial and parts of the spiral arteries in the first few weeks of pregnancy, leading to a reduction of utero- placental circulation and local placental hypoxia, which adversely affects the mother and the fetus. In order to elucidate the pathophysiological mechanisms of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy and to find sufficiently sensitive makers for early prediction of the most severe forms of these diseases, so far have been investigated a number of proteins involved in the processes of creation and development of placental vascular network such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A), placental growth factor (PlGF) and soluble fms-like receptor tyrosine kinase receptor (sFlt-1). OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to compare serum concentration of sFlt-1, PlGF, VEGF-A, PAPP-A, free&szlig;hCG, glucose, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, apo-AI, apo B, AST, ALT, GGT, creatinine, urea, uric acid, hsCRP, Na, K, Cl, P, Mg and Ca between the group of pregnant women with preeclampsia, chronic and gestational hypertension and the control group of pregnant women in the first trimester of pregnancy between 11 and 14 weeks gestation. Also the aim was to examine whether the value of selected laboratory parameters (sFlt-1, VEGF-A and PlGF) differ in relation to gestational week at the time of birth, weight, length and APGAR scoring system of newborns. The aim was to examine whether the value of angiogenic proteins: sFlt-1, VEGF-A and PlGF differ significantly in relation to the number of previous pregnancies and age of the pregnant woman. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted as a prospective analytical study in the Clinical Center of Vojvodina, in the period from June 2012 to February 2015. The study included a total of 143 pregnant women aged 18 - 43 years. All pregnant women included in the study were divided into two study and one control group. The first study group consisted of 43 pregnant women who developed preeclampsia during the current pregnancy. The second study group consisted of 46 pregnant women who are newly diagnosed or confirmed chronic or gestational hypertension during the current pregnancy. The control group consisted of 54 healthy pregnant women with verified physiological outcome of pregnancy at term without maternal and fetal complications. Patients were included in the study between 11 + 0 and 13 + 6 weeks of gestation. All patients had data about risk factors for developing hypertensive disorders in pregnancy. After clinical and obstetric examination all patients underwent anthropometric measurements, measurement of blood pressure, and specialized ultrasound examination to determine precise gestational age of the fetus and to determine the risk for fetal chromosomal abnormalities. All patients signed a written consent of the patient&#39;s voluntary participation in the study. Serum levels of sFlt1, VEGF-A and PlGF were determined by quantitative ELISA (R &amp; D Systems Europe Ltd., Abingdon, UK), while glucose, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, apo-AI, apo B, AST, ALT, GGT, creatinine, urea, uric acid, hsCRP, Na, K, Cl, P, Mg, Ca were determined on automated analyzer systems. All pregnant women were categorized into 2 study and a control group on the basis of presence of hypertensive disorders in the current pregnancy. Statistical analysis was performed in 12 statistical program STATISTICA (StatSoft Inc., Tulsa, OK, USA). The data are presented in tables and graphs, the level of significance p is interpreted statistically significant if the p value was less than &lt;0.05. RESULTS: Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 are statistically significantly different in all study groups and significantly higher in the groups with hypertensive disorders compared to healthy subjects p &lt;0.001. Serum levels of VEGF-A are significantly lower in the preeclampsia group compared to healthy control group (p &lt;0.001), while the levels of serum concentration of PlGF statistically significantly different between all groups so that the lowest values are observed in the preeclampsia group (p &lt;0.001) compared to the other two study groups. There is no statistically significant differences in the levels of PAPP-A, biochemical parameters (glucose, AST, ALT, GGT creatinine, urea, uric acid), lipid parameters (total cholesterol, LDL, apo AI, apo B), inflammatory parameters (complete blood count, fibrinogen), hemostatic (D-dimer, vWF-antigen) and electrolyte status (Na, K, Cl, P, Mg, Ca), p&gt; 0.05. Levels of free &szlig;hCG and HDL cholesterol levels are significantly lower, while the value of hsCRP and triglycerides significantly higher in the group of women with preeclampsia compared to the healthy control group. Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 over 865 pg/ml have a sensitivity of 93% and specificity of 81.5% in predicting preeclampsia, while serum PlGF concentration below 60 pg/ml, a sensitivity of 88.4% and a specificity of 79.6% in predicting preeclampsia. Serum concentrations of sFlt-1, VEGF-A and PlGF do not show a statistically significant difference compared to the age of pregnant women and the number of previous pregnancies p&gt; 0.05. Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 and PlGF are significantly different in relation to the weight of the newborn, so that the lower values of both proteins are in the group of infants with birth weight below 1500 gr. in relation to the body weight between 2800-3300 gr., p &lt;0.001. There is also lower concentrations of sFlt-1 and PlGF in a group with deliveries before 33 weeks of gestation compared to the deliveries after 37 week of gestation, p &lt;0.001. Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 and PlGF are significantly different in relation to the mother&#39;s body mass index so that the lower values of sFlt-1 and PlGF are in the group of women with a body mass index below 25 in relation to a group with a body mass index over 30 kg/m2, p &lt;0.001. Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 in the first trimester of pregnancy were significantly associated with the parameters of inflammation (hsCRP), diastolic blood pressure and levels of free &szlig;hCG. It is also observed a significant correlation between PlGF with a body mass index, systolic blood pressure and hsCRP concentration in the first trimester of pregnancy. CONCLUSION: The levels of anti-angiogenic protein sFlt-1 are higher in the group of pregnant women with preeclampsia than in the group with chronic and gestational hypertension and the control healthy group. Levels of proangiogenic VEGF-A protein are significantly lower in the preeclampsia group and group with gestational and chronic hypertension compared to the control group. Serum levels of proangiogenic PlGF protein are significantly lower in the preeclampsia group than in the group with chronic and gestational hypertension and the control group. Serum concentrations of placental protein free &szlig;hCG and HDL cholesterol are significantly lower, while the value of hsCRP and triglycerides significantly higher in the preeclampsia group compared to the control group. Among pregnant women with hypertensive disorders in pregnancy and healthy pregnant women there are no significant differences in the values of placental PAPP-A protein, biochemical parameters (glucose, AST, ALT, GGT creatinine, urea, uric acid), lipid parameters (total cholesterol, LDL, apo AI, apo B), inflammatory parameters (complete blood count, fibrinogen), hemostatic (D-dimer, vWF-antigen) and electrolyte status (Na, K, Cl, P, Mg, Ca). Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 and PlGF are significantly different in relation to gestational age at delivery and newborn body weight and are lower in group with preterm delivery and newborns with lower birth weight. Serum concentrations of sFlt-1 are significantly different compared to body length and Apgar score, so that the higher values of sFlt-1 are associated with better outcome of newborns (greater body length and better APGAR score). Serum concentrations of sFlt-1, VEGF-A and PlGF are not different significantly with respect to age of pregnancy and the number of previous pregnancies. The levels of sFlt-1 and PlGF represents helpful markers in prediction of preeclampsia in the first trimester of pregnancy.</p>

Introdução: A doença tromboembólica é um distúrbio complexo multicausal com sinais e sintomas inespecíficos, confundindo-se com outras enfermidades. Devido à sua gravidade buscam-se estratégias objetivando obter um diagnóstico precoce. O teste de dosagem do dímero - D plasmático parece ser uma alternativa para exclusão do diagnóstico de tromboembolismo venoso agudo. Objetivo: Avaliar o valor do teste de dosagem de dímero - D plasmático, utilizando o método Enzyme Linked Fluorescent Assay (ELFA), na rotina diagnóstica de tromboembolismo venoso agudo. Métodos: Em 89 pacientes com sinais e sintomas sugestivos de tromboembolismo pulmonar e/ou trombose venosa profunda foram realizadas dosagens do dímero - D pela técnica ELFA no equipamento VIDAS® - BioMérieux. Foram calculados os valores da sensibilidade, especificidade, valores preditivos positivo e negativo e acurácia do teste, bem como a curva ROC da amostra estudada. Todos os pacientes foram submetidos a exame por imagem para confirmação do evento tromboembólico agudo. Foi calculado o índice kappa para analisar o resultado do teste dímero - D versus resultados de exames por imagem. Resultados: Entre os 89 pacientes estudados (média de idade 54,3 anos; 51 mulheres), 36 (40,4%) apresentaram TEV e 53 não apresentaram trombose aguda (59,6%). Entre os pacientes sem trombose aguda 15 (28,3%) apresentaram resultado de dímero - D negativo. Todos pacientes com trombose apresentaram resultado de dímero - D positivo. O teste apresentou sensibilidade de 100%; especificidade de 28,3%; valor preditivo positivo de 48,6%; valor preditivo negativo de 100% e exatidão de 57,3%. A ASC para a amostra total estudada foi igual a 0,734, indicando que o teste é um bom preditor de trombose aguda. O valor do índice kappa para a amostra total foi igual a 0,24 (p<0,001), indicando uma concordância fraca entre dímero - D e diagnóstico confirmatório de trombose. Conclusão: A dosagem do dímero - D pelo método ELFA foi capaz de excluir o diagnóstico de tromboembolismo venoso agudo nessa amostra estudada. Os resultados obtidos nessa amostra estudada permitiram concluir que o uso do teste dímero - D em pacientes com suspeita de tromboembolismo venoso revelou alta sensibilidade no diagnóstico dessa enfermidade. / Introduction: The thromboembolic disease is a multicausal complex disturb with signals and symptoms that confusing itself with other diseases. Because its gravity strategies search objecting to get a faster diagnosis. The measure plasmatic D dimer test seems to be an alternative for exclusion of the diagnostic of acute venous thromboembolism. Objectives: To evaluate the value of the measure plasmatic D dimer test, using the method Enzyme Linked Fluorescent Assay (ELFA), in the diagnostic of acute venous thromboembolism. Methods: In 89 patients with signals and symptoms suggestive of pulmonary thromboembolism and/or deep vein thrombosis had been carried through measure D dimer by technique ELFA equipment VIDAS® - BioMérieux. The values of sensibility, accuracy specificity, predictive values positive and negative and of the test had been calculated, as well as curve ROC of the sample studied. All the patients had been submitted the image exams for the confirmation of the acute thromboembolism event. It was calculated kappa ratio to compare D dimer test results with image exams results. Results: Between 89 studied patients (mean of age 54.3 years; 51 women), 36 (40.4%) they had presented and 53 had not presented acute thrombosis (59.6%). It enters the patients without acute thromboembolism 15 (28.3%) had presented resulted negative of D dimer. All patients with thrombosis had presented resulted positive of D dimer. The test presented 100% sensibility; 28.3% of specificity; positive predictive value was 48.6%; 100% of negative predictive value and accuracy value was 57.3%. The area under the curve (AUC) to total sample studied was 0.734, it was showed that the test have a good prediction to acute thrombosis. The kappa ratio value was 0.24 (p<0.001) showing a bad concordat n to thrombosis diagnostic. Conclusion: The measure of D dimer by method ELFA was able to exclude the diagnostic of acute venous thromboembolism in this sample studied. The results obtained in this sample studied let to conclude that the D dimer test in patients with suspected of acute thromboembolism presented high sensibility to diagnostic of this disease.

A doença cardiovascular (DCV) é uma condição clínica comum entre pacientes (pcts) portadores de doença renal crônica (DRC) e é causa de eventos fatais observados peri transplante renal (TX). A melhor estratégia de avaliação cardiovascular em candidatos a transplante (CTR) ainda é controversa.Ignora-se se todos os pacientes devem ser submetidos a testes não-invasivos/invasivos ou se estes devem ser reservados aqueles com determinadas características clínicas, como população geral. O objetivo deste estudo foi comparar a estratificação de risco baseada em método nãoinvasivo de detecção de doença coronária com dois métodos de estratificação clínica de risco cardiovascular preconizados pela American Society of Transplantation (AST) e European Renal Association (ERA). A AST subdivide os pcts em : alto risco (idade maior ou igual a 50 anos e/ou diabete e/ou DCV clínica) e baixo risco (os demais). A ERA subdivide em: alto risco (DCV clínica), risco intermediário (diabéticos e/ou idade maior ou igual a 50 anos) e baixo risco (os demais). Nós estudamos 386 pcts com DRC em diálise enviados ao nosso serviço para avaliação cardiovascular antes da inclusão na lista de espera de TX. Foram estratificados quanto ao risco de eventos de acordo com os dois algoritmos acima e alterações na cintilografia de perfusão miocárdica (SPECT-MIBI) com dipiridamol e acompanhados até a morte, TX ou ocorrência de eventos. A estratificação clínica (RR:1,8 [IC95% 1,3 2,6- P<0,0001] e o SPECT-MIBI (RR:1,5 [IC95% 1,2-1,9-P=0,002] identificaram os pcts de maior risco de eventos cardiovasculares . Apenas os pcts ASTalto risco (RR1,4 [IC95%1,1-1,8-P=0,002] e ERA médio risco com SPECTMIBI alterado (RR:1,7 [IC95% 1,2-2,3-P=0,003] tiveram maior incidência de eventos. Os pcts de baixo risco pelos dois algorítmos de estratificação clínica (P=0,50) e do sistema ERA alto risco (RR:1,1 [IC95% 0,8-1,5-P=0,41], não se beneficiaram dos resultados do estudo não-invasivo. Concluímos que os estudos não-invasivos não devem ser utilizados em todos os CTR mas devem ser reservados aos pcts previamente identificados pela estratificação clínica de risco. Esses resultados permitem uma abordagem mais racional da avaliação pré- TX com melhor uso dos recursos econômicos escassos. / Cardiovascular (CV) disease is a common condition in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients and is the leading cause of fatal events during and after renal transplantation. The best strategy for CV evaluation and coronary risk stratification in renal transplant candidates remains controversial. Moreover, there is no consensus regarding the best strategy for detection of coronary artery disease (CAD). We still do not know if all patients should be evaluated by noninvasive testing or if this approach should be restricted to individuals with clinical evidence of CAD, as in the general population. The objective of this study was to compare CV risk stratification based on nonivasive testing for CAD with two clinical stratification methods as advanced by The American Society of Transplantation (AST) and by The European Renal Association (ERA), respectively. The AST divides patients in high risk (age50 years and/or diabetes and/or CV disease) and low risk (all others).The ERA divides : high risk (CV disease), intermediate risk (age 50 years and/or diabetes), and low risk (as above). We studied 386 CKD patients treated by hemodyalisis, to CV evaluation before being admitted to the renal transplant waiting list. All patients were stratified for the risk of future major cardiovascular events (MACE) using the clinical algorithms and also by myocardial scintigraphy (SPECT-MIBI) with dipyridamol and followedup until death, transplant or MACE. Clinical algorithms (RR:1,8 [IC95% 1,3 2,6-P<0,0001] and SPECT-MIBI(RR:1,5 [IC95% 1,2-1,9-P=0,002] identified patients at increased risk of events. The combined use of clinical stratification followed by SPECT showed that the only patients that would benefit from SPECT risk stratification were those belonging the AST-high risk (RR1,4 [IC95%1,1-1,8-P=0,002] and ERA-intermediate risk groups (RR:1,7 [IC95% 1,2-2,3-P=0,003]. In all other groups :ERA-high-risk (RR:1,1[IC95% 0,8-1,5- P=0,41] and ERA and AST-low-risk (P=0,50) SPECT did not add to the probability of events defined by clinical stratification alone. We conclude that SPECT should not be applied to all renal transplant candidates but should be restricted to those considered at a category of risk as defined by clinical algorithms. These results delineate a more rational approach to risk stratification in renal transplant candidates with a better utilization of economical resources.

INTRODUÇÃO: sangramento por coagulopatia é problema comum durante o transplante hepático (TH). O uso adequado da monitorização da coagulação pode reduzir a transfusão de hemocomponentes, como o Plasma Fresco Congelado (PFC). Exames Convencionais da Coagulação (ECC), tais como Tempo de Protrombina (TP) e Tempo de Tromboplastina Parcial Ativada (TTPa), são os testes mais amplamente utilizados para monitorizar a coagulação durante o TH, mas algumas limitações têm sido apontadas acerca do seu uso em pacientes cirróticos. OBJETIVO: investigar o uso de ECC como variáveis preditoras da indicação de transfusão de PFC durante o TH em pacientes cirróticos. MÉTODO: analisou-se coorte histórica de 297 transplantes hepáticos com enxertos provenientes de doadores cadáveres. Foram incluídos receptores cirróticos de uma única instituição durante nove anos (2002-2010). A infusão profilática de ácido épsilon-aminocaproico (20 mg/kg/h) e outros pré-requisitos hemostáticos foram mantidos na cirurgia. O TP [expresso na forma de Percentual de Atividade da Protrombina (TP%) e de Relação Normalizada Internacional (INR)] e o TTPa foram medidos no pré-operatório e no fim de cada fase do TH. Os participantes só receberam transfusão de PFC quando se diagnosticou coagulopatia, independentemente dos resultados dos ECC. Os pacientes foram distribuídos em dois grupos, de acordo com a ocorrência de transfusão intraoperatória de PFC. Examinou-se o comportamento dos resultados dos ECC durante a cirurgia. Analisaram-se os fatores de risco para a transfusão de PFC por análises uni e multivariada. Os resultados pós-operatórios de ambos os grupos foram comparados. A acurácia dos ECC para predizer o uso de PFC em cada fase da cirurgia foi investigada por curvas ROC. Além disso, pontos de corte dos ECC não associados à coagulopatia foram calculados para cada fase da cirurgia. RESULTADOS: a análise multivariada demonstrou que hematócrito pré-operatório (odds ratio [OR] = 0,90, P < 0,001), fibrinogênio pré-operatório (OR = 0,99, P < 0,001) e ausência de carcinoma hepatocelular (OR = 3,57, P = 0,004) foram as únicas variáveis preditoras independentes para a transfusão de PFC durante o TH. As mortalidades precoce e tardia, a permanência em UTI e a incidência de reoperações por sangramento microvascular foram semelhantes entre os grupos. Os ECC demonstraram baixa acurácia global para a predição de transfusão de PFC durante o TH (as áreas sob as curvas ROC não chegaram a 70%, independentemente do teste da coagulação e do momento da aferição). Pontos de corte de ECC com alta especificidade para a não transfusão de PFC foram determinados em cada fase do TH para TP% (39,4, 27,8 e 20,3), INR (2,14, 2,62 e 3,52) e TTPa (50,5, 80,2 e 119,5 segundos). CONCLUSÕES: os únicos preditores independentes para a transfusão de PFC durante o TH foram hematócrito pré-operatório, fibrinogênio pré-operatório e ausência de carcinoma hepatocelular. Os ECC demonstraram baixa correlação com a transfusão intraoperatória de PFC, independentemente do momento da coleta ou dos pontos de corte adotados / BACKGROUND & AIMS: Bleeding due to coagulopathy is a common problem during liver transplantation (LT). Coagulation monitoring may reduce transfusion of blood components, including Fresh Frozen Plasma (FFP). Conventional coagulation assays (CCA), like Prothrombin Time (PT) and Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time (aPTT), are the most widely employed tests to monitor coagulation during LT, but some limitations have been assigned to their use in cirrhotic patients. This study investigated the predictive value of these blood coagulation tests in predicting FFP transfusions during LT in cirrhotic patients. METHODS: This historical cohort study analyzed 297 isolated, deceased donor LTs performed in cirrhotic patients from a single institution during a nine-year period (2002 - 2010). Prophylactic infusion of epsilon-aminocaproic acid [EACA] (20 mg/kg/h) and other hemostatic requirements were maintained intraoperatively. PT [expressed as Activity Percentage (PT%) and International normalized ratio (INR)] and aPTT [expressed in seconds] were measured preoperatively and by the end of each phase of LT. Hemostatic blood components were transfused only in case of coagulopathy. Patients were divided in two groups according to intraoperative FFP transfusion: FFP group and Non-FFP group. Behavior of CCA results during LT were examined in both groups. Univariate and multivariate analyses of risk factors associated with FFP transfusion were performed. Post-operative outcomes were compared between groups. Accuracy of CCA to predict FFP transfusions was investigated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Also, alert values of CCA unassociated with coagulopathy in each phase of surgery were calculated. RESULTS: Multivariate analysis showed that preoperative hematocrit (odds ratio [OR] = 0.90, P < 0.001), preoperative fibrinogen (OR = 0.99, P < 0.001) and absence of hepatocellular carcinoma (OR = 3.57, P = 0.004) were the only significant predictors for FFP transfusion. Short- and long-term survival, ICU stay and incidence of early reoperations for bleeding were similar between the groups. CCA demonstrated poor overall accuracy for predicting FFP transfusions (area under the ROC curves did not reach 0.70, irrespective of assay and of phase of sampling). High-specificity values of CCA unassociated with coagulopathy in each of 3 phases of LT were identified for INR (2.14, 2.62 and 3.52), PT% (39.4, 27.8 and 20.3%) and aPTT (50.5, 80.2 and 119.5 seconds). CONCLUSIONS: the only significant predictors for FFP transfusion were preoperative hematocrit, preoperative fibrinogen and absence of hepatocellular carcinoma. CCA, regardless of adopted cutoffs and of time of sampling during LT, have poor correlation with intraoperative FFP transfusion