BackgroundIn patients who are not amenable to surgical resection (cavernostomy), it is difficult to achieve palliation of hemoptysis from pulmonary aspergilloma. There are only 9 cases with a short follow-up that have reported the use of radiotherapy for hemoptysis in this scenario.MethodsA retrospective series of 21 patients with chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis were treated with radiotherapy (20 Gray) from 1990 to 2002. The outcome measures were the period from tuberculosis treatment to the onset of hemoptysis, hemoptysis resolution rate, change in Zubrod performance status after 30 days of the completion of radiotherapy, local failure-free survival, and overall survival.ResultsThe median time between tuberculosis treatment and the onset of hemoptysis due to aspergilloma was 9 years. After radiotherapy, general status improved and the hemoptysis resolved in all patients. During the follow-up period, 4 failures occurred, with a 5-year local failure-free survival rate of 82 % and a 5-year overall survival rate of 59 %. Of these failures, 2 patients died due to recurrence of the hemoptysis, and 2 were rescued (using cavernostomy and reirradiation). The presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (p = 0.021) and female gender (p = 0.032) were negatively associated with overall survival. None of the variables was related to local control.ConclusionsBased on these long-term data, radiotherapy is a potential option for controlling bleeding due to fungus balls. Female patients and COPD were associated with lower survival.

ABSTRACT:The frequency of envenoming in Northwest counties of the Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, from 1995 to 2000 was evaluated. Reports from the Municipal Secretariat of Health of these counties were used. The results demonstrated that, from 1997 to 1999, there was a shortage of notification, and 40 cases of envenomations caused by Bothrops snakes were registered. These cases were more common from February to October, and the lower limbs of male peasants were the mainly affected areas.

No período de outubro de 2000 a março de 2001, foram coletadas 144 amostras de poeira, por aspiração mecânica, em seis setores de dois hospitais da cidade do Rio de Janeiro: recepção, enfermaria, laboratório, cozinha, CTI e centro cirúrgico. Foram encontrados 402 artrópodes, sendo 209 (52,0 %) no hospital A (HA) e 193 (48,0 %) no hospital B (HB). Do total, 349 (86,8 %) pertenciam à Ordem Hymenoptera (Fornicidae); 20 (5,0 %), à Díptera (Culicidae); 14 (3,5 %), à Coleóptera; 5 (1,2%), à Araneida (Falsidae); 4 (1,0 %), à Zoraptera; 3 (0,8 %), à Acari (Acaridae); 3 (0,8 %), à Díptera (Drosophilidae e Sarcophagidae); 3 (0,8 %) eram larvas de Coleoptera e 1 (0,3 %) pertencia à Ordem Hemíptera (Pentatomidae). Na cozinha, o setor mais infestado, foram coletados 175 (43,5 %) artrópodes, 86 (21,4 %) na recepção, 53 (13,2 %) no CTI, 47 (11,7 %) no laboratório e 41 (10,2 %) na enfermaria. Formiga foi o artrópode dominante. Observou-se elevada similaridade entre a fauna encontrada nos hospitais, sem haver diferença significativa entre o número de artrópodes. Cada setor do hospital parece gerar diferentes pontos de atração e colonização pelos artrópodes, alguns dos quais podem servir como indicadores de qualidade no ambiente hospitalar. A presença de larvas de coleópteros, zorápteros, hemípteros, Culex quinquefasciatus e de formigas Ectatomma quadridens e Tetramorium sp. no ambiente hospitalar foi, pela primeira vez, relatada.

Cryptosporidiosis occurrence was determined in HIV+ patient assisted in the Clinic of Infect-parasitic Diseases in a hospital of Nova Iguaçu, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the period from Juy/1998 to March/1999. In order to research, seventy-five patient, carriers of diarrhea or not, were appraised. The samples of feces were collected and placed in saline solution with formaldehyde (5%). The Modified Ritchie technique was used for the oocysts research, and the smears were stained with Safranine O methylene blue. The results verified 9.33% of positive samples, with higher frequency of cases in patients of the masculine sex from 20 to 50 years old, however without significant difference. Resumo

The prevalence and clinical forms of Trypanosoma cruzi were evaluated among blood donor candidates attended at a general hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from January 1997 to April 1999. The investigation was done by means of the indirect hemagglutination test and was confirmed via ELISA. Data were collected from clinical examinations, conventional electrocardiogram, chest radiography and echocardiography. The results showed that despite Trypanosoma cruzi prevalence of 1.17% (128 patients), mainly in males aged 40 years or over, 70.8% of these patients, mainly males aged 19 to 39 years, demonstrated abnormalities that allowed the diagnosis of cardiopathy and/or esophagopathy. This once again corroborates the importance of Trypanosoma cruzi infection in urban centers. Resumo A prevalência e a manifestação das formas clinicas de