BACKGROUND Eosinophilic myositis/perimyositis (EM/P) are a group of rare idiopathic muscle disorders associated with eosinophilia. OBJECTIVE We describe the frequency and spectrum of cutaneous manifestations in EM/P and compare them with the idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES). METHODS We review the literature on EM/P and describe an additional case associated with angioedema. RES...

Cell-mediated immunity was examined in 45 patients with bronchial asthma by observing the delayed cutaneous reaction to purified protein derivative (PPD) and Candida albicans (C. albicans). The delayed skin reaction to PPD showed a decrease with age starting between 50 and 59 years old. The delayed reaction to PPD decreased more prominently with aging, being significantly depressed in the patie...

Based on induration of less than 10 mm at 48 and 72 hours, 49 of 200 (25 percent) patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis failed to respond to intermediate (5TU) strength PPD. Distribution of reactors vs nonreactors was similar with regard to sex but not race, with more white subjects proving to be nonreactive. Additional comparisons between the two groups revealed significantly higher valu...

INTRODUCTION Tuberculosis affected about 8.5 million patients in 2011. Numerous efforts are needed to reduce the pool of individuals with latent TB infection (LTBI). The aim of the study was to describe a tuberculin skin testing (TST) survey carried out in Albania to estimate the LTBI burden; furthermore, knowledge of TB was evaluated through an ad hoc questionnaire. METHODOLOGY A TST survey ...

Stiff skin syndrome is a rare scleroderma-like disorder of unknown etiology characterized by stone-hard indurations of skin, mild hypertrichosis and limited joint mobility. No effective treatment has yet been found. Exercises and rehabilitative therapy are important in maintaining the patient's quality of life. The authors present a case of a two-year-old boy with progressive skin hardening sin...

OBJECTIVE To determine the prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) and the risk of infection in patients with chronic kidney disease treated at a hemodialysis center. METHODS We included 307 patients with chronic kidney disease undergoing hemodialysis at the Mineiro Institute of Nephrology, located in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. All of the patients were submitted to tubercu...

Forty patients with histologically confirmed neoplastic diseases were treated with the methanol extraction residue of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (MER). Thirty-six received concomitant chemotherapy. MER was initially given intradermally twice a month, 1 week apart, at a dose of 200 mug into each of five sites draining different lymph node-bearing areas on the anterior body surface. Thirty-seven pa...

BACKGROUND In February 2009, a high school student was diagnosed with sputum-smear positive pulmonary tuberculosis (TB). One year later, 2 other students in the same grade developed sputum-smear positive TB. METHODS We used tuberculin skin testing (TST), chest radiography, sputum smear, and symptomatology for case identification. We defined latent TB infection (LTBI) as a TST induration of 15...

The interferon gamma (IFN-γ) release assays (IGRAs) are the best method of detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. However, reports on IGRAs results obtained during and right after the treatment of tuberculosis (TB) have presented differing results. Some studies have shown declining responses, whereas other reports described persistent, fluctuating, or increasing responses. We postulate...

BACKGROUND Tuberculin skin testing is simple and relatively inexpensive, but the specificity of PPD is affected by BCG vaccination. OBJECTIVE Determine optimal dose and specificity of recombinant ESAT-6 and CFP-10 (C-Tb) produced in Lactococcus lactis for diagnosis of M. tuberculosis infection. METHODS In a dose finding phase I trial 0.01 or 0.1 µg preserved and unpreserved C-Tb was injecte...