Background:
Conus schistosomiasis is an extremely rare entity in which patients present with a wide range of neurological symptoms such as low back pain, paresthesia, fever, myalgia, paraparesis, and paraplegia. This neglected tropical parasitic disease causes significant neurological morbidity. The migration of parasitic worms and their eggs into the central nervous system can lead to profound and life-altering disabilities. Early, accurate diagnosis, and treatment can lead to the complete resolution of symptoms.
Case Description:
A 5-year-old boy from South Sudan presented with complaints of sudden onset, progressive bilateral lower limb weakness for the past month, inability to walk or stand without assistance, and urinary incontinence. Magnetic resonance imaging spine showed an irregular enhancing lesion within the conus. The various possibilities, such as Astrocytoma, and granulomatous disorders were considered. However, a biopsy revealed the lesion to be Conus schistosomiasis, a rare condition with only a few cases reported in children. Typical clinicoradiological presentation and the treatment paradigm have been discussed in this manuscript. Appropriate management of this lesion can avert surgical intervention needed for either a diagnosis or treatment.
Conclusion:
This case report aims to emphasize the importance of considering schistosomiasis as an important differential diagnosis of a conus intramedullary lesion, especially in patients from tropical endemic countries. The neurological recovery in this infestation is directly related to early diagnosis and treatment. Therefore, it is essential to recognize this entity, as early detection and management would result in significant neurological improvement without undergoing surgery.
Aim and objective: The study aims to illustrate how laws of nature govern man and his machine and aid laboratory medicine specialists to revisit basics of good clinical laboratory practices (GCLP) without which none of the modern tools of quality including sigma, lean, 5S, etc., would bring improvement in the quality of performance of a clinical laboratory and add on to patients' safety. Background: The culture, tradition of India is deep-rooted in its history and heritage, which are governed by laws of nature. The modern era of healthcare has evidenced magnanimous evolution in terms of technological revolution wherein machines equipped with artificial intelligence would in near future take center stage in the field of clinical laboratory medicine. To whatever heights evolution might climb, in terms of technology, it has to obey laws of nature which, in simple terms, means GCLP. Case description: We experimented with a study of the impact of five elements of nature on specific analytes' performance in the VITROS 5600 integrated testing platform. Performance characteristics of these analytes were analyzed and we have tried to explore the outcome of this study through five case scenarios wherein we have attempted to invigilate whether the basic elements of nature play a significant role in the quality of results produced by a testing system. Conclusion: Hence, it is a need of the hour to focus on the fundamentals of clinical laboratory medicine which stand as pillars of quality and contribute to patient safety. Clinical significance: There is a constant surge in the number of clinical laboratories globally, moving toward technological advancements. But the basic ingredients for achieving the ultimate goal-the quality of the result and patient safety lies deep in form of panchabooth, which are five key essential elements that govern the laws of nature including man and his environment (testing environment) in the field of laboratory medicine.
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