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1 - Article; Ligart project aimed to propose a new generation of artificial ligament which can be considered as "bioactive" and "biointegrable" destined to be used in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction surgery of patients with knee ACL rupture frequently related to contact and pivoting sports. Such bioactive ligament will allow preventing hostile host response due to the presence of a bioactive polymer grafted on its surface. The LARS prosthetic ligament made of poly (ethylene terephtalate) is chemically grafted by a "bioactive" and "biomimetic" polymer, which will allow masking the synthetic origin of the material and controlling collagen secretion. fibroblasts proliferation and inflammatory response. The bioactive ligament can be considered as "biointegrated", i.e. integrated by the living system: it induces controlled fibroblast cell proliferation and colonization along the PET fibres of the joint part of the prosthetic ligament, ensure and/or steady appropriate mechanical behaviour of the ligament which can be compared to that of the biological ACL, decrease the inflammatory response and prevent acute synovites extensively described in the case of the first generation of synthetic ligament. Fifty-six sheep divided in two series devoted to the evaluation of (1) the biological response (histology, molecular biology, SEM) and (2) the biomechanical behaviour were implanted with bioactive polymer grafted or commercial ACL for 3 or 12 months. Results show that the grafting of PET ligament by the bioactive polymer sensitively improves the biological response at 3 and 12 months. Preclinical study in clog has started and experiments on human are scheduled in the next future.

Here, we present an analysis of clinical and biological data from 15 infantile visceral leishmaniasis recorded between 1985 and 1992 in the French department of Alpes-Maritimes. The association of fever, splenomegalia, tricytopenia remains the most constant and predictive of diagnosis (90% of cases). Bone marrow smear affirms diagnosis in 93% of cases. Leishmania infantum MON-1 is the causative agent. Except for one case of advanced stade with severe hepatic lesions and one case of clinical resistance to Glucantime, prognosis is favourable under treatment with antimony derivatives. The long term results for children considered cured after initial treatment is satisfactory. In the department, the number of cases of combined ages has increased regularly since 1985. The number of infantile forms has increased but now represents nevertheless no more than 28% of total cases. On the other hand, cases are increasing in adults and 40% of those adult cases are in HIV positive patients.

A survey carried out by questionnaire was performed among parents accompanying their children to the emergency department of the Lenval's children hospital in order to determine their opinion on the quality of the reception and care. The questionnaire was distributed to 2,382 parents. A total of 719 questionnaires (30.2%) were returned. A large majority of the parents (99%) expressed their satisfaction with the care and reception in the emergency department. The necessary improvements following this survey concern the duration of waiting prior to the consultation and the quality of the reception in the radiological and admittance departments; it is hoped that the radiological and admittance areas will be included within the emergency department, in the future.

Authors report one case of HENOCH-SCHONLEIN syndrome particular by the association of two serious complications of good prognosis: neurological signs with coma and necrosing enteritis necessitating an intestinal resection of 60 cm of small bowel.

Since January 1986, the authors have examined twenty infant HIV positives. In two cases specially, some serious and precocious ophthalmic lesions have been found : an ophthalmic zona appeared at the age of three months, a cytomegalovirus retinitis diagnosed at the age of six months. From this series, the particularities of the HIV infection by maternal-fetal transmission are discussed.

A new case of Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome is reported. Clinical, ophthalmological, hematological and dermatological explorations are all described in detail, with emphasis placed on the risks of non-recognition of the syndrome. The ocular albinism is associated with a cutaneous syndrome of highly variable expression and a thrombopathy generally without frank clinical consequence. The quasi spontaneous meningeal hemorrhage noted in this case is unusual. Literature data on this syndrome is reviewed and its main features are described.