The evolution of the ventilatory ratio is a prognostic factor in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 ARDS patients

Background: Mortality due to COVID-19 is high, especially in patients requiring mechanical ventilation. The purpose of the study is to investigate associations between mortality and variables measured during the first three days of mechanical ventilation in patients with COVID-19 intubated at ICU admission. Methods: Multicenter, observational, cohort study includes consecutive patients with COVID-19 admitted to 44 Spanish ICUs between February 25 and July 31, 2020, who required intubation at ICU admission and mechanical ventilation for more than three days. We collected demographic and clinical data prior to admission; information about clinical evolution at days 1 and 3 of mechanical ventilation; and outcomes. Results: Of the 2,095 patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU, 1,118 (53.3%) were intubated at day 1 and remained under mechanical ventilation at day three. From days 1 to 3, PaO2/FiO2 increased from 115.6 [80.0-171.2] to 180.0 [135.4-227.9] mmHg and the ventilatory ratio from 1.73 [1.33-2.25] to 1.96 [1.61-2.40]. In-hospital mortality was 38.7%. A higher increase between ICU admission and day 3 in the ventilatory ratio (OR 1.04 [CI 1.01-1.07], p = 0.030) and creatinine levels (OR 1.05 [CI 1.01-1.09], p = 0.005) and a lower increase in platelet counts (OR 0.96 [CI 0.93-1.00], p = 0.037) were independently associated with a higher risk of death. No association between mortality and the PaO2/FiO2 variation was observed (OR 0.99 [CI 0.95 to 1.02], p = 0.47). Conclusions: Higher ventilatory ratio and its increase at day 3 is associated with mortality in patients with COVID-19 receiving mechanical ventilation at ICU admission. No association was found in the PaO2/FiO2 variation

Cutaneous lymphomas: part II: other cutaneous lymphomas

Los linfomas cutáneos primarios de células T distintos de la micosis fungoide, el síndrome de Sézary y los procesos linfoproliferativos cutáneos positivos para CD30 son poco frecuentes, representan menos del 5% de todos los linfomas cutáneos; generalmente se caracterizan por un fenotipo citotóxico y habitualmente presentan un comportamiento clínico agresivo. A menudo, los pacientes presentan o desarrollan enfermedad extracutánea poco después del diagnóstico. El manejo comúnmente incluye un enfoque multidisciplinario, se debe considerar un tratamiento sistémico intensivo y un trasplante de médula ósea. Los linfomas cutáneos primarios de células B representan aproximadamente el 30% de los linfomas cutáneos primarios. Incluyen un grupo heterogéneo de entidades con diferentes características clinicopatológicas y evolutivas. Suelen presentarse como pápulas, nódulos o tumores de coloración variable (rojo-violeta), solitarios o múltiples, que aparecen ocasionalmente agrupados o como lesiones generalizadas multifocales en el tronco, la cabeza o las extremidades. Se pueden distinguir 3grupos bien definidos: el linfoma cutáneo primario de células del centro del folicular y el linfoma cutáneo primario de células de la zona marginal, que siguen un curso clínico indolente, y el linfoma difuso cutáneo primario de células B grandes del tipo de las piernas, de curso agresivo

Genetics abnormalities with clinical impact in primary cutaneous lymphomas

Primary cutaneous lymphomas comprise a heterogeneous group of extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) that arise from skin resident lymphoid cells and are manifested by specific lymphomatous cutaneous lesions with no evidence of extracutaneous disease at the time of diagnosis. They may originate from mature T-lymphocytes (70% of all cases), mature B-lymphocytes (25-30%) or, rarely, NK cells. Cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCL) comprise a heterogeneous group of T-cell malignancies including Mycosis Fungoides (MF) the most frequent subtype, accounting for approximately half of CTCL, and Sézary syndrome (SS), which is an erythrodermic and leukemic subtype characterized by significant blood involvement. The mutational landscape of MF and SS by NGS include recurrent genomic alterations in the TCR signaling effectors (i.e., PLCG1), the NF-κB elements (i.e., CARD11), DNA damage/repair elements (TP53 or ATM), JAK/STAT pathway elements or epigenetic modifiers (DNMT3). Genomic copy number variations appeared to be more prevalent than somatic mutations. Other CTCL subtypes such as primary cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma also harbor genetic alterations of the JAK/STAT pathway in up to 50% of cases. Recently, primary cutaneous aggressive epidermotropic T-cell lymphoma, a rare fatal subtype, was found to contain a specific profile of JAK2 rearrangements. Other aggressive cytotoxic CTCL (primary cutaneous γδ T-cell lymphomas) also show genetic alterations in the JAK/STAT pathway in a large proportion of patients. Thus, CTCL patients have a heterogeneous genetic/transcriptional and epigenetic background, and there is no uniform treatment for these patients. In this scenario, a pathway-based personalized management is required. Cutaneous B-cell lymphoma (CBCL) subtypes present a variable genetic profile. The genetic heterogeneity parallels the multiple types of specialized B-cells and their specific tissue distribution. Particularly, many recurrent hotspot and damaging mutations in primary cutaneous diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the leg type, involving MYD88 gene, or BCL6 and MYC translocations and BLIMP1 or CDKN2A deletions are useful for diagnostic and prognostic purposes for this aggressive subtype from other indolent CBCL forms

Cutaneous lymphomas . Part I: mycosis fungoides, Sézary syndrome, and CD30 + cutaneous lymphoproliferative disorders

Los linfomas cutáneos primarios son un grupo heterogéneo de procesos linfoproliferativos malignos que se manifiestan inicialmente en la piel sin evidencia de afectación extracutánea en el momento del diagnóstico y que presentan una baja incidencia (7-10 casos×106 personas/año). Se dividen en linfomas cutáneos derivados de linfocitos T (70-85%) y de células B (15-30%). El reconocimiento de la idiosincrasia de los linfomas cutáneos primarios por parte de hematólogos y oncólogos es cada vez mayor, como queda reflejado en la última actualización de la clasificación de la Organización Mundial de la Salud, si bien todavía quedan matices o peculiaridades a considerar en su manejo que obligan a los dermatólogos a seguir trabajando para una plena integración de las diferentes situaciones clínicas que nos plantean en futuras revisiones de la clasificación de las neoplasias linfoides. El diagnóstico de un linfoma cutáneo primario se establece en base a los hallazgos clínicos, histopatológicos, inmunofenotípicos y genotípicos (demostración de monoclonalidad linfoide T o B) de las lesiones cutáneas y en el resultado de las distintas exploraciones complementarias destinadas a descartar una afectación extracutánea

Cutaneous lymphoma international consortium study of outcome in advanced stages of mycosis fungoides and Sézary Syndrome: effect of specific prognostic markers on survival and development of a prognostic model.

PURPOSE: Advanced-stage mycosis fungoides (MF; stage IIB to IV) and Sézary syndrome (SS) are aggressive lymphomas with a median survival of 1 to 5 years. Clinical management is stage based; however, there is wide range of outcome within stages. Published prognostic studies in MF/SS have been single-center trials. Because of the rarity of MF/SS, only a large collaboration would power a study to identify independent prognostic markers./nPATIENTS AND METHODS: Literature review identified the following 10 candidate markers: stage, age, sex, cutaneous histologic features of folliculotropism, CD30 positivity, proliferation index, large-cell transformation, WBC/lymphocyte count, serum lactate dehydrogenase, and identical T-cell clone in blood and skin. Data were collected at specialist centers on patients diagnosed with advanced-stage MF/SS from 2007. Each parameter recorded at diagnosis was tested against overall survival (OS). RESULTS: Staging data on 1,275 patients with advanced MF/SS from 29 international sites were included for survival analysis. The median OS was 63 months, with 2- and 5-year survival rates of 77% and 52%, respectively. The median OS for patients with stage IIB disease was 68 months, but patients diagnosed with stage III disease had slightly improved survival compared with patients with stage IIB, although patients diagnosed with stage IV disease had significantly worse survival (48 months for stage IVA and 33 months for stage IVB). Of the 10 variables tested, four (stage IV, age > 60 years, large-cell transformation, and increased lactate dehydrogenase) were independent prognostic markers for a worse survival. Combining these four factors in a prognostic index model identified the following three risk groups across stages with significantly different 5-year survival rates: low risk (68%), intermediate risk (44%), and high risk (28%). CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this study includes the largest cohort of patients with advanced-stage MF/SS and identifies markers with independent prognostic value, which, used together in a prognostic index, may be useful to stratify advanced-stage patients

Wound infection by Pantoea agglomerans after penetrating plant injury

Data de publicació electrònica: 24-02-2021Pantoea agglomerans is a ubiquitous gram-negative bacterium that has been linked to skin and joint infections secondary to plant injuries. Herein we report a 58-year-old woman who presented with 2 erythematous nodules with purulent discharge on the anterior aspect of the right leg that developed after a penetrating plant injury. The patient was initially treated with amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, cloxacillin and clindamycin without improvement. P. agglomerans was isolated from both exudate and skin biopsy cultures. Healing of the lesions was achieved after the spontaneous release of a retained plant fragment and treatment with cotrimoxazole. Identification of P. agglomerans in persistent exudative lesions should alert the clinician regarding a possible previous plant injury and retained vegetal fragments. Conventional antibiotic treatment and the extraction of retained foreign bodies usually lead to complete resolution

Primary cutaneous lymphoma registry of the Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (AEDV). Data for the first 5 years

Background and objective: primary cutaneous lymphomas (PCL) are uncommon. Observations based on the first year of data from the Spanish Registry of Primary Cutaneous Lymphomas (RELCP, in its Spanish abbreviation) of the Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (AEDV) were published in February 2018. This report covers RELCP data for the first 5 years. Patients and methods: RELCP data were collected prospectively and included diagnosis, treatments, tests, and the current status of patients. We compiled descriptive statistics of the data registered during the first 5 years. Results: information on 2020 patients treated at 33 Spanish hospitals had been included in the RELCP by December 2021. Fifty-nine percent of the patients were men; the mean age was 62.2 years. The lymphomas were grouped into 4 large diagnostic categories: mycosis fungoides/Sézary syndrome, 1112 patients (55%); primary B-cell cutaneous lymphoma, 547 patients (27.1%); primary CD30+lymphoproliferative disorders, 222 patients (11%), and other T-cell lymphomas, 116 patients (5.8%). Nearly 75% of the tumors were registered in stage I. After treatment, 43.5% achieved complete remission and 27% were stable at the time of writing. Treatments prescribed were topical corticosteroids (1369 [67.8%]), phototherapy (890 patients [44.1%]), surgery (412 patients [20.4%]), and radiotherapy (384 patients [19%]). Conclusion: the characteristics of cutaneous lymphomas in Spain are similar to those reported for other series. The large size of the RELCP registry at 5 years has allowed us to give more precise descriptive statistics than in the first year. This registry facilitates the clinical research of the AEDV's lymphoma interest group, which has already published articles based on the RELCP data