Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases in Thailand: incidence, prevalence, present status and future trends

MATERIAL AND METHOD

Data on cases of COPD in 1999 were collected.

RESULTS

[table in text] The mortality rate was 0.6-3.4 per cent in OPD cases and 11-17 per cent in IPD cases. The hospital stay was 2-90 days (mean 14 days). The cost per day in the ICU of government hospitals was Bht 7,000 and in private hospitals Bht 10,000.

Bilateral chylothorax complicating massive osteolysis (Gorham's syndrome)

Chylothorax may rarely occur in osteolysis. A fatal case of bilateral chylothorax complicating massive osteolysis is described and the pathogenesis and management are discussed.

Causes of chronic diarrhea in patients with AIDS in Thailand: a prospective clinical and microbiological study

A prospective study was designed to investigate the causes of chronic diarrhea in AIDS patients in Thailand. Forty-five patients from Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Hospital were enrolled. Extensive investigations included multiple stool examinations for ova and parasites, using the stool formalin-ether concentration method, stool culture, stool acid-fast bacilli (AFB) stain, stool modified AFB stain, esophagogastroduoscopy with duodenal aspirate and biopsy, and colonoscopy with biopsy. Biopsied specimens were examined with H&E, Giemsa, Gram, Periodic acid Schiff, and AFB stains. Definitive causes were found in 29 patients (64.4%). Of these 29, 7 patients were found to habor more than 1 pathogen (15.5%). The most commonly found enteric pathogen was Cryptosporidium parvum (20.0%). Less frequently found pathogens were Mycobacterium tuberculosis (17.8%), Salmonella spp. (15.5%), Cytomegalovirus (11.1%), Mycobacterium avium intracellulare (6.6%), Strongyloides stercoralis (4.4%), Giardia lamblia (4.4%), Cryptococcus neoformans (2.2%), Histoplasma capsulatum (2.2%), Campylobacter jejun (2.2%), and Cyclospora cayetanensis (2.2%). Salmonella spp., Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Mycobacterium avium intracellulare infections were shown to be more common in Thailand than in African countries.