Snezana Vujosevic

Relationship between 25-hydroxyvitamin D and newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.

Objective: The aim of the study was to determine a correlation between the level of 25-hydroxivitamin D (25-OHD) and the incidence of diabetes. Subjects and Methods: In this prospective observational study, 97 (out of an initial 100) Caucasian women with osteoporosis (OS) were monitored for 2 years for the incidence of diabetes. Logistic regression analysis was used to establish an association with and prognostic value of vitamin D for the onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus, as well as insulin resistance, body mass index (BMI), total cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the development of diabetes. The serum level of 25-OHD was measured using immunochemiluminescence in March and April 2011. Results: Of the 97 patients (mean age 51.64 ± 5.86 years, range 36.0-73.0), 21 (21.65%) were diagnosed with diabetes during the observational period. The study showed that the 22 patients with low levels of vitamin D were more susceptible to diabetes (odds ratio = 0.958). The cut-off value of vitamin D using a receiver operating characteristic curve was 62.36 nmol/l with a sensitivity of 39.5% and a specificity of 90.5%. With an increase in BMI and triglyceride levels, women were, respectively, 1,591 and 2,821 times more likely to get diabetes than those without an increase. Conclusion: This study showed that the patients with postmenopausal OS and hypovitaminosis D, besides a high BMI, elevated triglyceride levels and insulin resistance, had an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

An extensive precipitation of calcium in subcutaneous tissue in patient with juvenile dermatomyositis

Calcinosis cutis reffers to a group of disorders in which calcium deposits are being formed in the skin. Depending on the pathophysiologic mechanisms, calcinosis cutis has been classified as metastatic, dystrophic, idiopathic, or iatrogenic (1). In connective tissue diseases, calcinosis is mostly of the dystrophic type and it seems to be a localized process rather than an imbalance of calcium homeostasis (2). Juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) is a systemic, autoimmune inflammatory muscle disorder and a small vessel vasculopathy that affects children younger than 18 years, primarily the skin and the skeletal muscles (3). Calcinosis cutis occurs in 20-40% of patients with JDM (4). Some severe cases may be associated with advanced calcinosis but the exact mechanism that leads to their development and spreading remains unclear.