150 specimens from suspected herpes simplex genital and skin lesions were received in virus transport medium. They were inoculated into Hep-2 cell monolayers, examined for the presence of virus by cytopathic effect (CPE), direct immunoperoxidase (DIP) and direct immunofluorescence (DIF). Of 39 (26.0%) virus-positive specimens by CPE, 37 (24.7%) were HSV-positive by DIP and 36 (24.0%) by DIF staining. DIP staining had a sensitivity of 100%, specificity of 99.1%, positive predictive value of 97.3% and negative predictive value of 100% in relation to DIF as a standard test. Of 39 specimens positive by CPE, only 25.6% were HSV-positive within 24 h post-inoculation compared to 94% HSV-positive by DIP and DIF staining at the same time.
A total of 101 entomological specimens recovered from human cadavers were processed and studied. Analysis of the data indicated that about 95% of these specimens were maggots of flies. Maggots of the blowfly Chrysomya (Family: Calliphoridae) especially Ch. rufifacis and Ch. megacephala were predominantly found in 77 cases (76.2%) while larvae of several other flies of the genera Sarcophaga, Calliphora, Lucilia and hermetia were also recovered. It was notable that Musca domestica or other related flies were not found in all these specimens. The age of these larvae was useful in the determination of the minimum time lapsed after death. However, more biological studies on animal carcases should be conducted for more accurate determinations. Methods of collection, preservation and despatching of specimens were also discussed.
Tatumella ptyseos, the type species for the genus Tatumella, is a newly established member of the Family Enterobacteriaceae. It is a Gram-negative, oxidase negative, fermentative rod that grows on Mac Conkey agar. This first isolate was obtained from the blood culture of a neonate having neonatal jaundice with presumed sepsis. The organism was in vitro sensitive to Gentamicin, Chloramphenicol, Cotrimoxazole and Ampicillin. The patient was treated with Ampicillin and Gentamicin and recovered uneventfully.
An 18-year-old Malay lady was treated with high dose steroids for three and a half years for idiopathic thrombocytopaenic purpura. At 21 years, after a series of relapses, a splenectomy was carried out. In addition, two nodules at the hilum of the spleen were also removed. Histological examination of these nodules revealed features of Kaposi's sarcoma. Kaposi's sarcoma resulting from immunosuppression by corticosteroids is rare. Our patient is the first such case reported in Malaysia.