Znaczenie badania krwi pobranej z żył tarczowych górnych i dolnych w rozpoznawaniu raka tarczycy

Introduction: We aimed to determine whether levels of thyroglobulin measured in blood from the inferior-superior thyroid veins and the peripheral antecubital vein could predict the presence of thyroid carcinoma in patients undergoing surgery for thyroid diseases. Material and methods: Sixty-one patients were prospectively enrolled in the study. Levels of thyroglobulin were analysed. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive values (PPV) and negative predictive values (NPV) of these markers were investigated. Results: Twenty-six out of 61 patients (42.6%) with malignancy were diagnosed. The levels of thyroglobulin in the inferior-superior thyroid veins were higher than those in the peripheral antecubital vein (p = 0.001). The levels of thyroglobulin in the blood taken from the antecubital vein and the inferior-superior thyroid veins did not differ between benign and malignant thyroid disorders. For thyroglobulin, sensitivity was 33.3%, specificity 60.6%, PPV 27.8%, and NPV 66.7% respectively. Conclusion: Thyroglobulin levels in the antecubital vein compared to the inferior-superior thyroid veins were not significant either in benign or malignant disorders.Wstęp: Celem badania było ustalenie, czy oznaczenie stężeń tyreoglobuliny we krwi pobranej z żył tarczowych górnych i dolnych oraz z żyły przedłokciowej ma wartość prognostyczną w wykrywaniu nowotworów tarczycy u chorych poddawanych zabiegom chirurgicznym z powodu chorób tarczycy. Materiał i metody: Do tego prospektywnego badania włączono 61 chorych. Analizowano wartości stężeń tyreoglobuliny. Badano czułość, swoistość oraz wartość prognostyczną dodatnią (PPV) i ujemną (NPV) tych wskaźników. Wyniki: U 26 spośród 61 chorych (42,6%) rozpoznano chorobę nowotworową. Stężenia tyreoglobuliny w żyłach tarczowych dolnych i górnych były wyższe niż stężenia mierzone we krwi pobranej z żyły przedłokciowej (p = 0,001). Stężenia tyreoglobuliny w próbkach krwi pobranych z żyły przedłokciowej i żył tarczowych nie różniły się istotnie między osobami z łagodnymi i złośliwymi guzami tarczycy. Oznaczenie tyreoglobuliny cechowało się czułością wynoszącą 33,3%, swoistością równą 60,6%, PPV — 27,8% i NPV — 66,7%. Wnioski: Porównanie stężeń tyreoglobuliny w żyle przedłokciowej i w żyłach tarczowych górnych i dolnych nie miało istotnego znaczenia diagnostycznego w wykrywaniu zarówno zmian łagodnych, jak i złośliwych

Case report: An adolescent female with anosmic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, intellectual disability, and papillary thyroid carcinoma: heterozygous deletion of TCF12

BackgroundIsolated hypogonadotropic hypogonadism is a heterogeneous clinical entity. There is a growing list of molecular defects that are associated with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (HH). TCF12, a recently identified molecular defect, causes craniosynostosis and is suggested to be used as a biomarker for prognosis in various cancer types. Recently, TCF12 variants were shown in a cohort with HH.Case presentationA 15.3 years old female patient was referred to the endocrinology clinic for obesity. She had been gaining weight from mid-childhood. She had her first epileptic seizure at the age of 15.1 years and mildly elevated thyroid autoantibodies were detected during evaluation for etiology of seizures. She had not experienced menarche yet. She was operated for left strabismus at the age of 7 years. School performance was poor and she was receiving special education. Tanner stage of breast was 1 and pubic hair was 3. The endocrine workup revealed hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Also, the Sniffin’ Sticks test detected anosmia. Thyroid ultrasonography was performed due to the mildly elevated thyroid autoantibodies, and thyroid nodules with punctate calcifications were detected. Total thyroidectomy and central lymph node dissection were performed regarding the cytological findings of the nodules and multicentric papillary thyroid carcinoma with no lymph node metastasis was detected on pathology specimens. Regarding the phenotypic features of the patients, whole exome sequencing was performed and heterozygous deletion of exon 1 and exon 6–8 in TCF12 was detected.ConclusionHaploinsufficiency of TCF12 causes anosmic HH. Probably due to the incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity of the disease, patients could display variable phenotypic features such as intellectual disability, developmental delay, and craniosynostosis. Further description of new cases with TCF12 variations could enhance our understanding of craniosynostosis and its potential link to Kallmann syndrome associated with this gene

A miniature, lowpower , intelligent sensor node for persistent acoustic surveillance

ABSTRACT The desire for persistent, long term surveillance and covertness places severe constraints on the power consumption of a sensor node. To achieve the desired endurance while minimizing the size of the node, it is imperative to use application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) that deliver the required performance with maximal power efficiency while minimizing the amount of communication bandwidth needed. This paper reviews our ongoing effort to integrate several micropower devices for low-power wake-up detection, blind source separation and localization and pattern classification, and demonstrate the utility of the system in relevant surveillance applications. The capabilities of each module are presented in detail along with performance statistics measured during recent experiments

Constraints on the χ_(c1) versus χ_(c2) polarizations in proton-proton collisions at √s = 8 TeV

The polarizations of promptly produced χ_(c1) and χ_(c2) mesons are studied using data collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC, in proton-proton collisions at √s=8  TeV. The χ_c states are reconstructed via their radiative decays χ_c → J/ψγ, with the photons being measured through conversions to e⁺e⁻, which allows the two states to be well resolved. The polarizations are measured in the helicity frame, through the analysis of the χ_(c2) to χ_(c1) yield ratio as a function of the polar or azimuthal angle of the positive muon emitted in the J/ψ → μ⁺μ⁻ decay, in three bins of J/ψ transverse momentum. While no differences are seen between the two states in terms of azimuthal decay angle distributions, they are observed to have significantly different polar anisotropies. The measurement favors a scenario where at least one of the two states is strongly polarized along the helicity quantization axis, in agreement with nonrelativistic quantum chromodynamics predictions. This is the first measurement of significantly polarized quarkonia produced at high transverse momentum