In search of dermatophytes – frequency and etiology of fungal infections in patients with and without diabetes mellitus

Introduction: Onychomycosis is a frequent nail disorder, accounting for up to 50% of all nail problems. Treatment of onychomycosis is expensive and requires a long time of antifungal medications. Consequently, a proper and faster diagnosis is necessary. Especially for those patients with diabetes mellitus, where onychomycosis is among the most significant predictors of foot ulcer and possible severe complications.Aim: To compare the sensitivity, specificity, and turnaround time between direct microscopy, culture, histology, and real-time PCR. In addition, to compare the frequency and etiology of onychomycosis in patients with and without DM.Materials and methods: This study included 102 patients, divided into two groups. One group consisted of patients with diabetes mellitus and the other – without diabetes. Nail samples were collected and examined by direct KOH microscopic examination, culture, histology, and real-time PCR.Results: From the 102 patients with clinical onychomycosis, positive KOH was found in 38 (37.3%). Culture – 82 out of 102 samples (80.4%) were positive for dermatophytes, yeasts, and/or NDM. Positive histology samples were 32 (41.6%). The PCR was positive in 57 (55.9%) out of the 102. We discovered that there is no significant statistical difference in the etiology of the fungal infections between the two groups.Conclusions: All mycological investigations have their place in the diagnosis of onychomycosis. Direct microscopy, culture, and histology are useful methods for clinicians to diagnose and follow up the post-treatment period. The advantages of RT-PCR include obtaining results faster and accurately identifying fungi, thus becoming more valued in the diagnosis of OM

Lack of ERG-antibody in Benign Mimickers of Prostate Cancer

Introduction: Prostate carcinoma (PC) is the second most diagnosed cancer in men worldwide. Prostate tissue in needle biopsy expresses a wide variety of architectural patterns some of which are difficult to interpret. Immunohistochemical markers, such as AMACR, p63 and 34βE12 that are currently used in diagnosing prostate cancer, are of great value, but often their interpretation is ambiguous. In 2005 Tomlins et al. identified an emerging marker, erythroblastosis E26 rearrangement gene (ERG), which is a member of the family of genes encoding erythroblast-transformation specific transcription factors (ETS) with frequent expression in PC

Comparative Characteristics of Napsin A, TTF 1 and EGFR Mutation Expression in Mucinous Lung Cell Carcinomas

Background: Invasive mucinous lung adenocarcinomas are rare and account for 2%–10% of all lung adenocarcinoma cases. It is believed that Napsin A exhibits a weaker expression in mucinous adenocarcinomas compared with TTF1, but such correlation is still poorly researched

Nonspecific granulomatous prostatitis in association with eosinophilic epithelial metaplasia and prostatic adenocarcinoma

We present the first case of nonspecific granulomatous prostatitis (NSGP) associated with both eosinophilic epithelial metaplasia (EM) in benign glands and prostatic adenocarcinoma (PCa). The patient was a 68-year old man with a history of obstructive prostatic syndrome. After a transurethral resection of the prostate, the histologic analysis revealed NSGP and PCa. EM was seen in benign peri-granulomatous secretory epithelial cells as PAS Diastase positive granular eosinophilic transformation of the apical cell cytoplasm. This unusual cell appearance closely simulated the Paneth cell-like changes found in PCa. Negative chromogranin expression and weakly positive P504S immune staining in the foci of EM, surrounded by P63 positive basal cells confirmed the benign EM - phenotype. The combination of NSGP with both EM and PCa has not been reported in medical literature so far. Some observations concerning their differential diagnosis are suggested

Diagnostic Value of ERG in Prostate Needle Biopsies Containing Minute Cancer Foci

Background: Prostate carcinoma (PC) is the second most diagnosed cancer in men population worldwide. The small amount of the tissue in prostate needle biopsy is often sufficient for the correct interpretation. Novel antibodies, as ERG, could add to the diagnostic value of IHC study in analysing difficult core biopsies