The ultrasound-guided fine needle aspirations were performed in order to diagnose a suspected neoplastic orinfectious diseases in 52 patients with focal liver disease. Of these, neoplastic lesions were suspected in 31patients and infectious lesions in 21 patients ultrasonically and/or clinically. The overall accuracy for bothsuspected malignant and infectious disease was 79%(41/52). The primary indication for fine needle aspiration wasto document the presense of malignancy and to avoid a diagnostic laparotomy, and to drain hepatic abscesses.Consequently we were convinced that the ultasound
Aspirations (Psychology) ; Biopsy ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Communicable Diseases ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Laparotomy ; Liver Diseases ; Liver ; Methods ; Needles ; Ultrasonography

Ultrasono-guided percutaneous catheter drainage of 28 abscesses and fluid collections was performed. In 24cases, operation was avoided and the patients were cured(24/28). Of these, 4 cases were recurred and repeatedcatheter drainage was performed. There were two failures and partial success was achieved in 2 cases; in thesepatients, operation was necessary, although the patients benefited from the percutaneous drainage. Cures andpartial successes totaled 26/28. We describe significance of the diagnostic needle aspiration, especially inpredicting the drainability of cavity contents. We review aspects of postprocedurecatheter management includingirrigation and timining of withdrawal.
Abscess ; Catheters ; Drainage ; Humans ; Needles

PURPOSE: CHF is a life threatening acute complication in ESRD populations. An intensive hemodialysis (HD) has been effective in reducing intravascular volume and in removing uremic toxin with improved systolic function. Although recent progress has identified an inflammation as an important contributor to the pathogenesis of CVD, the effect of intensive HD on inflammatory parameters and left ventricle (LV) systolic dysfunction is not clear. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of intensive HD on LV systolic function and serum cytokines levels. METHODS: Among ESRD patients who underwent dialysis and developed acute pulmonary edema due to LV systolic dysfunction were enrolled. Intensive HD consisted of daily 4 hours HD for 7 consecutive days. Data were prospectively collected and 2-D echocardiography was done before and after intensive HD. Serum levels of TNF-alpha and IL-10 were compared and lipopolysaccharide (LSP)-stimulated of these cytokines were measured. RESULTS: After intensive HD, weight and mean arterial blood pressure decreased significantly and ejection fraction (EF) increased significantly. Serum IL-10 and TNF-alpha levels decreased significantly after intensive HD. In contrast, LPS stimulated production of these cytokines increased significantly after intensive HD. The difference of CRP between after HD and before HD was negatively correlated with the difference of EF. CONCLUSION: In ESRD patients with acute LV dysfunction, intensive HD significantly improved EF and restored the immune responsiveness. These results suggest that intensive HD has the advantage of improving EF through modulating inflammation and correcting immune dysfunction in ESRD patients with acute LV dysfunction.
Arterial Pressure ; Cytokines ; Dialysis ; Echocardiography ; Heart Failure ; Heart Ventricles ; Humans ; Imidazoles ; Inflammation ; Interleukin-10 ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Nitro Compounds ; Prospective Studies ; Pulmonary Edema ; Renal Dialysis ; Stroke Volume ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

PURPOSE: Depression is associated with increased inflammation and cardiovascular disease. And in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD), depression is a common problem and cardiovascular disease is the main cause of death. The aim of this study is to investigate the association of depression with various inflammatory markers and with some cardiovascular risk factors in ESRD patients on hemodialysis METHODS: 53 patients with ESRD on maintenance hemodialysis were divided into depressive symptom (BDI> or =11) group and control (BDI < 11) group by the 21-items Becks depression inventory (BDI). We collected patients characteristics and laboratory measurements by medical records. And then, we measured the levels of IL-10 and TNF-alpha a and analyzed the genotype of IL-10 and TNF-alpha a promoter area. RESULTS: The levels of TNF-alpha, CRP and ferritin were significantly higher in depressive symptom group (p=0.001, 0.04, 0.02) and IL-10 concentration tended to be lower in depressive symptom group (p= 0.05). The prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy was higher in depressive symptom group than in the control group (44% vs 9%, p=0.01). GG genotype known as high IL-10 producer was less common in depressive symptom group than in control group (8% vs 36%, p=0.039). CONCLUSION: Increased inflammation, high left ventricular hypertrophy prevalence and low ejection fraction were observed in depressive hemodialysis patients. Further prospective study is needed to clarify the role of depression in the development of inflammation and cardiovascular disease in ESRD patients.
Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cause of Death ; Depression ; Ferritins ; Genotype ; Humans ; Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular ; Inflammation ; Interleukin-10 ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Medical Records ; Prevalence ; Renal Dialysis ; Risk Factors ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

Endostatin is released during extracellular matrix remodeling and is involved in the development of vascular pathology and cardiovascular (CV) disease. However, the role of circulating endostatin as a biomarker of vascular calcification and CV events in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD) remains unclear. Methods: A total of 372 patients undergoing HD were prospectively recruited. Plasma endostatin levels were measured at baseline, and their associations with circulating mineral bone disease (MBD) biomarkers and abdominal aortic vascular calcification scores were analyzed. The primary endpoint was defined as a composite of CV and cardiac events. Results: Plasma levels of patients in endostatin tertile 3 were significantly associated with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels and predialysis systolic blood pressure in multivariate analysis. However, endostatin levels did not correlate with circulating MBD biomarkers or vascular calcification scores. Patients in endostatin tertile 3 had a significantly higher cumulative event rate for the composite of CV events (p = 0.006). Endostatin tertile 3 was also associated with an increased cumulative rate of cardiac events (p = 0.04). In multivariate Cox regression analyses, endostatin tertile 3 was associated with a 4.37-fold risk for composite CV events and a 3.88-fold risk for cardiac events after adjusting for multiple variables. Conclusion: Higher circulating endostatin levels were independently associated with atherosclerotic risk factors but did not correlate with MBD markers or vascular calcification. Higher circulating endostatin levels were associated with a greater risk of composite CV events in patients undergoing HD, and endostatin is a biomarker that helps to determine the high risk of CV events.