Salmonella enteritidis during pregnancy, a rare cause of septic abortion: case report and review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION Enteric fever is due to Salmonella typhy and paratyphy. The infections associated with nontyphoidal Salmonella are generally self-limited gastroenteritidis (Sànchez-Vargas et al. 2011). They consist of fever, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and an inflammatory diarrhoea. However, the elderly, infants and those with an impaired immune system due to an HIV infection, immunosuppresive agents, malignancy, organ transplant recipients or pregnancy, may have more severe infections such as transient bacteraemia, meningitis and an endovascular infection (Sànchez -Vargas et al. 2011). The most common extra-intestinal organ compromised is the lung. Other extraintestinal manifestations are meningitis, encephalopathy, endocarditis, pneumonia, empyema, abscess, urinary tract infection, osteomyelitis, cellulitis or arthritis (Sànchez -Vargas et al. 2011). We describe a recent case of Salmonella enteritis during a pregnancy leading to vertical transmission, a septic abortion and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). […

Characteristics, practices, and outcomes in a Belgian cohort of incident home hemodialysis patients: A 6-year experience.

Home hemodialysis (HHD) remains underused in patients with kidney failure. Current literature on HHD mostly originates from non-European countries, making generalization difficult. The present study describes patients' profile and practice patterns from a Belgian HHD center, and assesses patient and technique survival and complications associated with HHD. We analyzed data from all our incident patients during a 6-year period. The patient's characteristics were summarized using descriptive statistics. Transition to another therapeutic modality, estimated using a risk model with death and transplantation as competing events, episodes of respite cares and hospitalizations, and access complications were analyzed. Eighty patients (mean age: 47 years; male: 64%) met the inclusion criteria. Fifty-one percent of patients initiated dialysis with a central venous catheter (CVC) and 96% were not assisted. Arterio-venous fistula (AVF) cannulation was performed using buttonhole technique. Standard-frequent HD (47%) and short-frequent low-flow dialysate HD (34%) were mostly used at HHD initiation. Cumulative incidences of technique failure and death were 15%, 24%, and 32% at 1, 2, and 5 years. Incidence rates for respite dialysis and hospitalizations were 2.39 and 0.54 per patient-year of HHD. In comparison with AVF, incidence rate ratios of overall access complications and access-related infections for CVC were 4.3 (95% CI: 3.1-6, p < 0.01) and 4.4 (95% CI: 2.1-10, p < 0.01), respectively. Buttonhole cannulation was complicated by 0.26 (95% CI: 0.15-0.46) infections per 1000 AVF-days. This present study provides important information about patient's profile and practice patterns and safety in a cohort of 80 incident Belgian HHD patients, with encouraging techniques and patient survival

TINU-associated Fanconi syndrome: a case report and review of literature

Abstract Background Tubulo-interstitial Nephritis and Uveitis (TINU) syndrome is a rare oculo-renal inflammatory disease. Renal tubular defects are usually found, but full proximal tubular abnormalities have rarely been described. Case presentation We report the case of a 55-year old woman, native from Morocco, presenting with bilateral, non-granulomatous, anterior uveitis, mild renal insufficiency, leucocyturia and glycosuria. Further work-up showed hypophosphatemia and hyperphosphaturia, hypouricemia and hyperuricosuria, and hyper aminoaciduria, consistent with Fanconi syndrome. A kidney biopsy was obtained and showed diffuse interstitial infiltrates with tubular necrosis. The patient improved after the initiation of a corticosteroid therapy, with tapering dose. Conclusions We reviewed the literature and found nine similar cases. This association mostly occurs in adult woman, without current evidence for an ethnic predilection, unlike previously reported. The renal prognosis seems favorable after corticosteroid therapy, even in case of severe renal injury. Nonetheless mild tubular defects may persist after treatment or spontaneous remission