Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0039730 (thalassemia)
 10,305 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Over the past 28 years, 39 patients with Moyamoya disease or syndrome defined as spontaneous occlusion of the circle of Willis with extensive basal collateral vessels have been treated by the author in Canada and the USA. All patients presented with clinical or radiologic evidence of hemorrhage (23) or ischemia and infarction (16). A total of 12 patients had associated cerebral aneurysms and seven of these patients with aneurysms presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage. The patients ages ranged from 5 to 47 years. Of these 58% were female. The patients racial origin included North American Indian, Innuit, East Indian/Pakistani, Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Malayasian, Hispanic, African American and Caucasian. Familial clustering was seen in North American Indian, Innuit and Caucasian patients. Associated disorders (tuberculosis, pharyngitis, thalassemia, fibromuscular hyperplasia, polycystic kidney, sickle cell trait and hypertension) were common in these patients, as was the use of tobacco, alcohol and in the adult females, oral contraceptives. It may be concluded from this series that the etiology of Moyamoya disease or syndrome is probably multifactorial, but that some racial and familial groups are more susceptible. Furthermore, in that the clinical and angiographic features are identical, the separation between Moyamoya disease and syndrome may not be helpful in understanding the etiology and pathophysiology of this disorder.
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PMID:Risk factors of moyamoya disease in Canada and the USA. 940 4

Cerebral infarction is a frequent, severe complication of sickle cell anaemia. During childhood, most strokes are due to infarction with the majority resulting from occlusion of the large cerebral arteries. Risk factors include transient ischaemic attacks, acute chest syndrome, severe anaemia and elevated blood pressure. Less certain is the association with leucocytosis, or protection provided by alpha-thalassaemia or fetal haemoglobin. Children who have one stroke are at significant risk for having subsequent events that can be substantially reduced by maintaining haemoglobin S below 30%. It has not yet been possible to identify individuals for whom transfusion can be safely stopped. Haemosiderosis is a consequence of intensive and long term transfusion therapy, which requires chelation with deferoxamine. Iron accumulation can be minimised using erythrocytapheresis but this is technically difficult in children, expensive and results in increased donor exposure. In addition to lesions associated with strokes, an additional 17% of patients can be shown to have clinically silent cerebral infarcts. Although these are termed 'silent', those affected have mild neuropsychological deficits. Their relationship to stroke or risk for recurrence is unknown. Transfusion therapy has been shown to provide primary stroke prevention for children who have elevated cerebral artery velocity. Finally, intracranial haemorrhages, more commonly found in adults, also affect children. Subarachnoid haemorrhage is frequently found to result from cerebral artery aneurysms. A condition that mimics the moyamoya syndrome radiographically, as well as for its risk of haemorrhage, can be found in children with partly occluded cerebral arteries either as a result of stroke or silent infarct.
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PMID:Stroke in children with sickle cell anaemia: aetiology and treatment. 1143 87

Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) is rarely seen in patients with thalassemia. A seven-year-old male, known case of beta-thalassemia major, on irregular packed cell transfusions (elsewhere) and non-compliant with chelation therapy, presented with congestive cardiac failure (Hb-3 gm/dl). He received three packed red cell transfusions over 7 days (cumulative volume 40 cc/kg). On the 9th day, he developed projectile vomiting and two episodes of generalized tonic-clonic convulsions with altered sensorium. He had exaggerated deep tendon reflexes and extensor plantars. CT-scan of brain revealed bilateral acute frontal hematoma with diffuse subarachnoid hemorrhage (frontal and parietal). Coagulation profile was normal. CT-angiography of brain showed diffuse focal areas of reduced caliber of anterior cerebral, middle cerebral, and basilar and internal carotid arteries (likely to be a spasmodic reaction to subarachnoid hemorrhage). He required mechanical ventilation for 4 days and conservative management for the hemorrhage. However, on the 18th day, he developed one episode of generalized tonic-clonic convulsion and his sensorium deteriorated further (without any new ICH) and required repeat mechanical ventilation for 12 days. On the 28th day, he was noticed to have quadriplegia (while on a ventilator). Nerve conduction study (42nd day) revealed severe motor axonal neuropathy (suggesting critical illness polyneuropathy). He improved with physiotherapy and could sit upright and speak sentences at discharge (59th day). The child recovered completely after 3 months. It is wise not to transfuse more than 20 cc/kg of packed red cell volume during each admission and not more than once in a week (exception being congestive cardiac failure) for thalassemia patients.
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PMID:Beta-thalassemia major complicated by intracranial hemorrhage and critical illness polyneuropathy. 3131 77