Adenovirus (AdV) infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). To evaluate the use of molecular AdV testing in HSCT at our institution and identify risk factors for AdV viremia and disease, we performed a retrospective cohort study of all HSCT recipients who had undergone AdV polymerase chain reaction testing over a 2-year period. Two cohorts were identified: cohort 1, comprising patients testing positive for AdV (n = 7) and cohort 2, comprising patients testing negative (n = 36). Overall patient characteristics were not statistically significantly different between the 2 cohorts. A comparison of cohort 1 and cohort 2 identified the following medication exposures as risk factors influencing AdV status: preparatory regimens using fludarabine (relative risk [RR], 8.73; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.18-64.27; P = .006), melphalan (RR, 3.47; 95% CI, 0.76-15.94: P = .08), and/or cyclophosphamide (RR, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.02-1.4; P = .05), and GVHD prophylaxis with methylprednisone (RR, 3.73; 95% CI, 1.01-13.9; P = .04). AdV-positive patients had higher grades of GVHD and higher rates of GVHD of the gastrointestinal tract (RR, 4; 95% CI, 1.18-13.5; P = .03) compared with AdV-negative patients. Four of the 7 AdV-positive patients had concomitant clinical manifestations of disease, including pneumonia, diarrhea, and/or disseminated disease. Clinical outcomes in symptomatic patients included resolution of disease in 2 patients and death in 2 patients. All 7 AdV-positive patients received antiviral therapy, including 1 patient with severe disseminated disease that resolved after administration of liposomal cidofovir. Our study at a large pediatric HSCT center provides important preliminary data for the development of a prospective trial destined to identify specific HCST patient subpopulations that might benefit most from molecular screening and early preemptive therapy.

Objective: To analyze the association of baseline biomarker data with cross sectional lung function and subsequent decline in lung function in HIV-positive persons.

Low birth weight is linked to hypertension, chronic kidney disease and even end stage renal disease. We hypothesized that living kidney donors born with lower birth weight may be at increased risk of hypertension, albuminuria or reduced GFR beyond what is typical following uninephrectomy. 257 living kidney donors who donated at the University of Minnesota between 1967 and 2005 underwent iohexol GFR and urinary albumin excretion measurements. Predictors of iohexol GFR <60 ml/min/1.73m2, albuminuria and hypertension were examined using logistic regression. Predictors examined include age at GFR measurement, time since donation, BMI, gender, serum creatinine level (at donation and GFR measurement), systolic and diastolic blood pressure, race, and birth weight. The latter was obtained through self-report and verified through birth certificates and family members. Older age, higher BMI, and time from donation were associated with reduced GFR. Older age and higher BMI were also associated with hypertension. Birth weight was not associated with GFR <60 ml/min/1.73m2: OR=0.70, 95% CI (0.28, 1.74, p=0.45) or hypertension: OR=0.92, 95% CI (0.46, 1.84), p=0.82 but was associated with albuminuria: OR=0.37, 95% CI (0.15, 0.92), p=0.03. This data further strengthens the link between low birth weight and potential adverse renal outcomes.

Study objective-The aim was to test whether cataract is associated with higher lifetime exposure to sunlight, and whether antioxidants protect against cataract.Design-This was a cross sectional survey of eye disease, with assessment of antioxidant status in a subgroup.Setting-Hong Kong fishing communities in 1989.Participants-685 men and women aged 55 to 74 years old were included in the study, of whom 367 (54%) attended hospital for detailed examination.Measurements and main results-At a mobile clinic visual acuity and lens opacities were assessed, and using a questionnaire, occupational history and lifetime exposure to sunlight. At hospital ophthalmic measurements were repeated and blood was taken for measurement of plasma vitamin C, vitamin E, and total carotenoids, and red cell activities of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and catalase. Higher grades of cataract (particularly nuclear cataract) tended to be more common in subjects with the most sun exposure, although not to the point of statistical significance. In contrast to earlier studies, no association was found with antioxidant status.Conclusions-The findings give some support to the hypothesis that sunlight causes cataract. The absence of a relation to antioxidant status may be because blood levels of antioxidants at one point in time do not adequately reflect a subject's past metabolic state, and particularly the past activity of antioxidants in the lens.