Early diagnosis and prediction of severity in acute pancreatitis using the urine trypsinogen-2 dipstick test:A prospective study

AIM： To evaluate the use of the trypsinogen-2 dipstick （Actim Pancreatitis） test for early diagnosis and prediction of severity in acute pancreatitis （AP）. METHODS： Ninety-two patients with AP were included in this study. The control group was 25 patients who had acute abdominal pain from non-pancreatic causes. Urine trypsinogen-2 dipstick test （UTDT） and conventional diagnostic tests were performed in all patients. Patients were divided by the Atlanta classification into two groups as having mild or severe pancreatitis. RESULTS： UTDT was positive in 87 （94.6%） of the AP patients and in two （8%） controls （P 〈 0.05）. Positive UTDT was found in 61 （92.4%） of 66 （71.7%） patients with mild pancreatitis and in all （100%） of the 26 （28.3%） with severe pancreatitis （P 〉 0.05）. UTDT positivity lasted longer in severe pancreatitis compared with that in mild pancreatitis （6.2 ＋ 2.5 d vs 2.0 ＋ 1.43 d, P 〈 0.05）. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value （NPV）, positive likelihood ratio （PLR） and negative likelihood ratio （NLR） of UTDT were 91%, 72%, 96.6%, 70.4%, 3.4 and 0.1, respectively. CONCLUSION： UTDT is a simple, rapid and reliable method for use on admission. It has high specificity and low NLR for early diagnosis and prediction of severity in AP. However, its relatively low NPV does not allow trypsinogen-2 dipstick test to be a stand-alone tool for diagnosis of acute pancreatitis; the use of other conventional diagnostic tools remains a requirement.

Value of a new stick-type rapid urine test for the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection in the Vietnamese population

AIM: To assess the value of a new test for the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection, Rapirun®H. pylori Antibody Stick (Rapirun® Stick), in a Vietnamese population.

Role of urine studies in asymptomatic febrile neutropenic patients presenting to the emergency department

BACKGROUND: The role of urine studies in the detection of urinary tract infection(UTI) in febrile neutropenic patients with urinary symptoms(having a urinary catheter or having a positive urine analysis) is inarguable. However, the evidence is scarce regarding the indication for urine studies in asymptomatic(i.e., without urinary symptoms) patients with febrile neutropenia(FN) presenting to the emergency department(ED). The aim of this study is to evaluate the need for obtaining urine studies in asymptomatic febrile neutropenic patients.METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study conducted on adult cancer patients who presented to the ED with FN and had no urinary symptoms. We included all ED presentations of eligible patients between January 2013 and September 2018. Student's t-test and Wilcoxon rank-sum test were used for continuous data, while Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were used for categorical data. Participants were divided into two groups based on their urine culture(UC) results: negative and positive UCs. Two cut-offs were used for positive UC results: ≥10~5 cfu/m L and ≥10~4 cfu/m L.RESULTS: We included 284 patients in our study. The age of our patient population was 48.5±18.5 years. More than two-thirds(68.7%) of patients had severe neutropenia, while only 3.9% and 9.9% of the patients had positive UCs at ≥10~5 cfu/m L and ≥10~4 cfu/m L, respectively. UCs were expectedly positive in most patients with urinalysis(UA) abnormalities. However, 27.3% and 32.1% of patients with positive UCs at ≥10~5 cfu/m L and ≥10~4 cfu/m L respectively had a normal UA. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, the incidence of UTI in adult febrile neutropenic cancer patients who present to the ED without urinary symptoms is low. Consequently, routine urine testing may not be warranted in this population, as it adds unnecessary financial burdens on the patients and delays timely management.

Can the Urine Dipstick Test Be an Alternative in the Screening of Urinary Tract Infections for Inpatients in the Context of a Low-Income Country?

Background: Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), a prevalent bacterial infection in adults, heavily relies on cytobacteriological examination of urine (CBEU) for diagnosis. However, in resource-limited countries, accessibility to CBEU remains hindered by cost and availability. This study aims to assess the utility of the Urinary Dipstick Test (UDT) in diagnosing UTIs among hospitalized patients in the context of limited resources. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from February to May 2019, encompassing hospitalized patients who underwent CBEU at the bacteriology unit of Sour? Sanou University Hospital. UDT and CBEU were concurrently performed, and UDT’s analytical and diagnostic performance was evaluated against CBEU, considered the gold standard. Results: A total of 274 CBEU requests were registered, involving 274 patients (159 males) with a mean age of 45.8 ± 21.3 years (ranging from 1 to 90 years). UTI was confirmed in 90 patients, yielding a frequency of 32.85%. The UTI bacteriological profile was dominated by Enterobacteriaceae (75.23%), primarily Escherichia coli (60.55%). Nitrite and Leukocytes were positive in 54 (19.8%) and 157 (53.6%) of the samples tested. Among patients with confirmed UTI, Nitrite, and Leukocytes were positive in 30 (33%) and 71 (79%) patients respectively. UDT demonstrated variable performance based on nitrite and leukocyte combination: Sensitivity (57%-82%), Specificity (7%-98%), Positive Predictive Value (PPV) (43%-57%), Negative Predictive Value (NPV) (43%-67%). UDT performed slightly better in women (NPV = 88%) and inpatients without urinary catheters (NPV = 75% and PPV = 80%). Conclusion: This study underscores UDT’s potential utility in excluding UTIs among women, younger patients, and inpatients without urinary catheters, albeit with limited confidence. The UDT emerges as a complementary tool for UTI screening, particularly in resource-limited settings.

Analysis of Clinical Characteristics of Patients with Different Types of Primary Hyperuricemia

Objective:This paper aims to study the clinical characteristics of patients with different types of primary hyperuricemia(HUA).Methods:Using a retrospective research method,200 patients with primary HUA in the hospital from June 2020 to January 2023 were selected as the research objects.Patients were grouped according to the detection results of 24-hour urinary uric acid excretion(UUE)and fractional excretion of uric acid(FEUA)(renal insufficiency type,renal overload type,mixed type,and other types).The general information of patients in the four groups(gender,age,body mass index,living habits,etc.),underlying diseases(hypertension,diabetes),blood test results[uric acid(UA),creatinine(Cre)],urine test results(24-hour urine UA,24-hour urine Cre)were summarized and the differences between the groups were analyzed.Results:The 200 cases of HUA patients were divided into 54.00%with renal insufficiency type,38.50%with mixed type,6.00%with renal overload type,and 1.50%with other types.The age of patients with mixed HUA was younger than that of patients with other types,renal overload type,and renal insufficiency type,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).The UA level of patients with other types of HUA was lower than that of patients with mixed type HUA,and there was statistical significance(P<0.05).The Cre level of patients with mixed type HUA was lower than that of patients with renal insufficiency type and renal overload type,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).The 24-hour urinary UA level in patients with renal insufficiency type HUA was lower than that in patients with renal overload type and mixed type HUA,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).The 24-hour urinary Cre level of patients with other types of HUA was lower than that of patients with renal overload type and mixed HUA,the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).The estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR)level of patients with other types of HUA was lower than that of patients with mixed type HUA,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).There was no significant difference in the proportions of hypertension,diabetes,coronary heart disease,and urinary calculi among patients with renal insufficiency type,renal overload type,mixed type,and other types of HUA(P>0.05).Conclusion:The primary HUA patients are mainly of renal insufficiency type,followed by mixed type.There are significant differences in the clinical characteristics of patients with different types of HUA.Among them,patients with other types of HUA are the oldest and have the lowest uric acid levels.Patients with mixed HUA had the best renal function but the highest 24-hour urine creatinine level.This study can be used as a basis for rational selection of urate-lowering drugs for different HUA patients.

Syntheses of three terbium complexes as fluorescent probes and their application on the pH detection of routine urine test

By modifying the salicylic-acid moiety with electron-withdrawing or –donating groups, three new terbium complexes（LⅠ·Tb, LⅡ·Tb, L·（Ⅲ）Tb） based on tripodal carboxylate ligands were synthesized. Due to different pull-push electronic effects of ligands, the fluorescence intensities of these terbium complexes significantly varied, that is： LⅡ·Tb 〉L（Ⅲ）·Tb〉 LⅠ·Tb. Meanwhile, the characteristic peaks at 492 nm（5D4→7F6） and 547 nm（5 D4→7F5） showed ＂Off–On–Off＂ fluorescence response to various p H conditions,which indicated that all of them can be used as the highly sensitive pH fluorescent probes. Notably, using LⅡ·Tb with the best fluorescence performance as a probe, some patients＇ urine samples can be easily monitored through the response triggered by pH value. Therefore, LⅡ·Tb has the potential to auxiliarily diagnose some diseases in clinical practice through p H detection of routine urine test.