Dietary calcium lowers the risk of nephrolithiasis due to a decreased absorption of dietary oxalate that is bound by intestinal calcium. The aim of the present study was to evaluate oxaluria in normocalciuric and hypercalciuric lithiasic patients under different calcium intake. Fifty patients (26 females and 24 males, 41 ± 10 years old), whose 4-day dietary records revealed a regular low calcium intake (≤500 mg/ day), received an oral calcium load (1 g/day) for 7 days. A 24-h urine was obtained before and after load and according to the calciuria under both diets, patients were considered as normocalciuric (NC, N = 15), diet-dependent hypercalciuric (DDHC, N = 9) or diet-independent hypercalciuric (DIHC, N = 26). On regular diet, mean oxaluria was 30 ± 14 mg/24 h for all patients. The 7-day calcium load induced a significant decrease in mean oxaluria compared to the regular diet in NC and DIHC (20 ± 12 vs 26 ± 7 and 27 ± 18 vs 32 ± 15 mg/24 h, respectively, P<0.05) but not in DDHC patients (22 ± 10 vs 23 ± 5 mg/ 24 h). The lack of an oxalate decrease among DDHC patients after the calcium load might have been due to higher calcium absorption under higher calcium supply, with a consequent lower amount of calcium left in the intestine to bind with oxalate. These data suggest that a longlasting regular calcium consumption <500 mg was not associated with high oxaluria and that a subpopulation of hypercalciuric patients who presented a higher intestinal calcium absorption (DDHC) tended to hyperabsorb oxalate as well, so that oxaluria did not change under different calcium intake.

Bupropion is an atypical antidepressant with a unique aminoketone structure similar to amphetamines. A narrow therapeutic margin is evident from observational studies that show seizure activity with doses of 400-600 mg or higher. A 38-year old woman took an overdose of 6 grams of bupropion with 110 grams of alcohol. She presented to the Emergency Department with agitation, visual hallucinations and myoclonus of the upper limbs; eyes spontaneously open with isochoric and light reactive pupils with horizontal nystagmus; afebrile, normotensive (121/63 mm Hg) and tachycardic (120 beats/minute). The electrocardiogram revealed a sinus tachycardia with prolonged QT interval (QT/QTc: 0.46/ 0.537) and a QRS complex length in the upper limit of normal. Arterial blood gases revealed metabolic acidosis (pH = 7.16) with increased anion-gap (value=18). She developed mal epilepticus needing thiopental induced coma and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission. She suffered prolonged symptoms including seizures before fully recovering. The narrow therapeutic range and the increasing use in the treatment of smoking cessation boosted the number of intentional and unintentional poisoning by this drug. Previous reports of Mendonça et al.; IJMPCR, 3(2): 38-43, 2015; Article no.IJMPCR.2015.033 39 bupropion overdose almost all involve the immediate release formulation. There are some reports of overdose with sustained-release formulation, but there is limited information on its spectrum of toxicity. Case Report

Early malignant syphilis is an uncommon form of secondary syphilis and characterized by pleomorphic multiple round-to-oval papules, some with necrosis, and associated with systemic signs and symptoms. Usually seen in immunosuppressed patients, mainly those infected with HIV, it can also be observed in immunocompetent patients. We report a case in a young healthy woman with the characteristic features of the disease and with favourable skin lesion evolution after appropriate treatment with penicillin.

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Autoimmune diseases (AID) have been associated with a variety of lymphoproliferative disorders. Multiple myeloma (MM), one of the most common haematologic malignancies characterized by clonal proliferation of bone marrow plasma cells, has been associated with a range of autoimmune disorders. In this report, we described a case study of a patient admitted to our Internal Medicine Department for a bone marrow biopsy and myelogram due to a monoclonal peak observed by his general practitioner. However, at admission he presented typical giant cell arteritis (GCA) complaints, suggesting the coexistence of both diseases. The possible pathogenesis, as found in the literature, explaining the association will be discussed.