Neoplasia mamária em cadelas: aspectos clínico-cirúrgicos

Oncology is presenting an important role in clinical practice as a speciality in recent years in Veterinary Medicine. Mammary gland tumors are detected mainly in old and middleaged bitches that are sexually intact or spayed and the caudal abdominal and inguinal mammary glands are the most affected and they present a percentage up to 75% of malignancy. The majority of dogs with mammary neoplasms are clinically healthy at the time of diagnosis and the tumors can be identified by the owner or a professional during a routine physical examination. Cytological examination of fine needle aspirates can be performed. This procedure is easy and low cost and some criteria that may indicate malignancy are evaluated, however to obtain a definitive diagnosis is performed histopathology of the excised tissue or from biopsy. Regional lymph nodes are the first lymph node to receive lymphatic drainage from the neoplasm. They are at the highest risk of regional metastasis, while the lung is the most common site for distant metastasis. Determining the clinical stage enables the definition of the extension of the tumor. As a consequence, this allows a prognosis to be established and treatment to be planned. The type of therapy to be chosen incites controversy since there are numerous treatment options described, but the surgery is the chosen treatment. However, surgery is not always effective for malignant tumors, and recurrences may occur and in these cases, auxiliary chemotherapy treatments are used. The prognosis for animals that have mammary tumors depends on several factors, such as: size, stage, type of tumor cells and clinical behavior of the tumor, age and medical condition of the animal, and presence of metastasis. Because of this, more detailed studies are needed based on epidemiological surveys in order to provide more informations about risk factors, prevalence and follow-up after treatment of mammary... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Oxidative DNA damage in diabetic and mild gestational hyperglycemic pregnant women

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Assessment of structural cardiac abnormalities and diastolic function in women with gestational diabetes mellitus

Background: The main manifestation of hyperglycaemia during pregnancy is gestational diabetes mellitus. It can herald diabetes mellitus type 2 and its deleterious long-term effects, such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to assess diastolic function in women with gestational diabetes mellitus, one of the first signs of future cardiovascular disease.Methods: A total of 21 women with gestational diabetes mellitus and 23 healthy pregnant women (control group) between 34 and 37weeks of gestation underwent echocardiographic assessment. The diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus was made in agreement with the American Diabetes Association criteria. Echocardiographic images obtained were analysed according to the criteria of the American Society of Echocardiography. Data were analysed using Pearson correlation coefficient, analysis of variance and Student's t-test.Results: Women with gestational diabetes mellitus had higher posterior wall and interventricular septum thickness, increased left ventricular mass and left ventricular mass index, lower early diastolic annular velocity and early diastolic annular velocity/late diastolic annular velocity ratio. There was a positive correlation between left ventricular mass index and fasting glucose and pregnancy body mass index.Conclusion: Patients with gestational diabetes mellitus seem to have a different diastolic profile as well as a mildly dysfunctional pattern on echocardiogram, which may show a need for greater glycaemic control.

IRS-1 gene polymorphism and DNA damage in pregnant women with diabetes or mild gestational hyperglycemia

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Histopathological alterations in the prostates of Mongolian gerbils exposed to a high-fat diet and di-n-butyl phthalate individually or in combination

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A metastatic ovarian angiosarcoma mimicking hematologic neoplasia at diagnosis

Angiosarcomas are rare aggressive neoplasms of vascular endothelial origin with a high metastatic rate and poor prognosis. Involvement of the bone marrow by the angiosarcoma is exceedingly uncommon, and there have only been a few cases reported in the literature to date. Clinical manifestations and common laboratory findings of bone marrow involvement can mimic other more common bone marrow-replacing neoplasias such as lymphomas and acute leukemia. A definitive diagnosis is difficult to make from cytologic material, probably due to an associated bone marrow fibrosis, and requires bone marrow trephine biopsy with an immunohistochemical profile. Here we had the opportunity to study a case of metastatic angiosarcoma with positive cytologic findings and an unusual presentation that challenged its primary diagnosis.

Clinical and laboratory characteristics of pregnant women with preeclampsia versus gestational hypertension

To compare clinical and laboratory characteristics, obstetric and perinatal outcomes of patients with pre-eclampsia versus gestational hypertension. A retrospective study was carried out to analyze medical records of patients diagnosed with pre-eclampsia and gestational hypertension whose pregnancies were resolved within a period of 5 years, for a total of 419 cases. We collected clinical and laboratory data, obstetric and perinatal outcomes. Comparisons between groups were performed using the test suitable for the variable analyzed: unpaired t test, Mann-Whitney U test or χ2 test, with the level of significance set at p<0.05. Were evaluated 199 patients in the gestational hypertension group (GH) and 220 patients in the pre-eclampsia group (PE). Mean body mass index was 34.6 kg/m2 in the GH group and 32.7 kg/m2 in the PE group, with a significant difference between groups. The PE group showed higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure and higher rates of abnormal values in the laboratory tests, although the mean values were within the normal range. Cesarean section was performed in 59.1% of cases of PE and in 47.5% of the GH group; and perinatal outcomes in terms of gestational age and birth weight were significantly lower in the PE group. Women with gestational hypertension exhibit epidemiological characteristics of patients at risk for chronic diseases. Patients with pre-eclampsia present clinical and laboratory parameters of greater severity, higher rates of cesarean delivery and worse maternal and perinatal outcomes.

Greater expression of the human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G) and interleukin-17 (IL-17) in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia: analytical cross-sectional study

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Increased DNA damage is related to maternal blood glucose levels in the offspring of women with diabetes and mild gestational hyperglycemia

This study aimed at correlating maternal blood glucose levels with DNA damage levels in the offspring of women with diabetes or mild gestational hyperglycemia (MGH). Based on oral glucose tolerance test results and glycemic profiles, 56 pregnant women were allocated into 3 groups: nondiabetes, MGH, and diabetes. The offspring of these women (56 infants) were also evaluated. Maternal peripheral blood and umbilical cord blood samples were collected and processed for biochemical and DNA damage analysis by the comet assay. A positive correlation between maternal blood glucose mean and increased offspring DNA damage levels was observed. Hyperglycemia played a role in offspring DNA damage, but other diabetes-induced complications were also involved. Increased maternal blood glucose levels can lead to increased offspring DNA damage levels. Therefore, the monitoring, control, and treatment of pregnant women with diabetes and MGH are highly important to ensure a risk-free pregnancy and healthy infants.

O cuidador de paciente com neoplasia cerebral maligna primária: os desafios do cuidado

Patients with primary malignant brain tumor endure several motor and cognitive dysfunctions, demanding the presence of a caregiver even more because the time necessary for their assistance increases considerably. Usually this task is performed by a family relative, whose activities include taking care of the patient’s personal hygiene, escorting them to medical appointments, managing their money and performing their housework. All of this overwhelms the caregiver both physical and psychologically. This bibliographic research intends to analyze the role in which a caregiver plays in the quality of life of those kinds of patients, the complications of such task, the caregivers’ needs and the daily life of those terminal patients. It was used CAPES, PubMed and Google Academic databases for researching articles related to family caregivers who assisted adult patients with primary malignant brain tumor. The study concluded that being a caregiver of patients in such conditions harms one’s quality of life, with consequences such as stress, insomnia, financial problems and lack of social support. Theirs needs include: having someone to talk to about the matter, attending programs for reducing stress and increasing their knowledge about the disease. In advanced phases of the condition, the patient shows great mobility problems, aphasia and regular seizures, which end up overwhelming the caregiver. The level of quality of life found was above other types of cancer’s caregivers. Therefore, they represent a group with special needs, which should be especially handled by health professionals.