BackgroundEarly recognition of infectious processes in neutropenic patients is hampered by the fact that these processes may have dissimilar and non-specific clinical presentations. CD64 is a neutrophil surface marker that is not expressed in non-sensitized neutrophils. When the neutrophil is exposed to tumor necrosis factor-alpha it is activated and is measured via the CD64 index.MethodsThis paper evaluated the relationship between the index value of CD64 on the first day of febrile neutropenia and a positive blood culture. The correlations with white blood count, C-reactive protein and erythrocyte sedimentation rate were also evaluated. This case–control, prospective, diagnostic study included 64 episodes of neutropenia. Case group (n = 14) comprised positive blood cultures, and the control group (n = 50), negative blood cultures.ResultsThe median rates of CD64 were 2.1 (σ ± 3.9) in the case group and 1.76 (σ ± 5.02) in the control group. There was no correlation between the value of the CD64 index and blood cultures. The CD64 index was also not correlated with C-reactive protein positivity. Furthermore, the CD64 index was not able to predict blood culture positivity. The sensitivity was 64.3%, the specificity was 42%, the positive predictive value was 23.7% and the negative predictive value was 80%. For C-reactive protein, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 71.4%, 32%, 22.7%, and 80%, respectively.ConclusionThe CD64 index is not suitable for predicting the positivity of blood cultures in this specific population of patients with febrile neutropenia.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio and the presence of signs of arthrosis in both hips in patients followed at this medical center.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional, retrospective study through the analysis of medical records and database review of patients over 18 years of age with hip arthrosis, followed at the outpatient clinic of this hospital.ResultsRegarding the analysis of the Mann–Whitney test to correlate the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio and laterality, a bi-lateral test result of p = 0.036 was obtained, thus demonstrating a significant difference between the observed groups. When we analyzed the absolute values of neutrophils and lymphocytes, the authors obtained results of p = 0.14 and p = 0.24. Therefore, it was not possible to observe statistically significant differences between the absolute values in the two groups.ConclusionConsidering the interactions between the inflammatory mechanisms in osteoarthritis and the fact that the interaction between neutrophils and lymphocytes has differences in relation to the laterality of the coxarthrosis, it is hypothesized that the inflammatory etiology of unilateral and bilateral osteoarthritis could have different dynamics. However, more in-depth studies with flow cytometry are needed to assess the possible impact of these differences in the inflammatory mechanisms observed in this study.

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<span class="texto">São descritos os efeitos in vivo do Praziquantel e Oxamniquine combinados com a Vitamina-A na autofagocitose de células sinusoidais hepáticas em camundongos infectados com S. mansoni.</span>

Para determinar a freqüência de detecção de metaplasia tubária endocervical (MTE) em esfregaços citológicos cérvico-vaginais, foram revistos retrospectivamente 450 escolhidos ao acaso de 2.371 esfregaços cérvicovaginais Pap, sem anormalidades glandulares no primeiro exame — 150 de mulheres usando dispositivo intra-uterino (DIU); 150 de mulheres esterilizadas por laqueadura tubária bilateral (LTB); e 150 de mulheres usando nenhum ou outros métodos contraceptivos. MTE foi constatada em 16,7% das pacientes usando DIU; 70,1% das pacientes submetidas a LTB; e 49,0% das pacientes do último grupo. Células glandulares atípicas em citologia cervical são um problema tanto para clínicos quanto para patologistas. O diagnóstico diferencial de anormalidades glandulares endocervicais, incluindo MTE, é discutido.