Clinical profile and growth status in patients with cystic fibrosis: a 2-year follow up study

Background: Cystic fibrosis [CF] is a common genetic disorder chiefly characterized by respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical presentation and growth status in CF patients at the time of diagnosis and following conventional treatment

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 67 CF patients who enrolled for at least a two-year follow up period in the CF Clinic of Sarvar Pediatric Hospital. Disease diagnosis was based on a positive sweat test. Growth indicators and initial clinical presentations of patients were registered at the time of diagnosis. Weight and height was measured at each clinical visit during follow up. All patients were treated with enzyme replacement, vitamin and mineral supplements. Other medications were prescribed as clinically indicated. Statistical analyses were performed by SPSS 16.0 for MS Windows

Results: The mean age of patients was 24.9 +/- 37.7 months at the time of diagnosis, whereas it was 3.1 +/- 2.1 months at the onset of CF symptoms. At diagnosis, the majority of CF patients suffered from malnutrition, growth failure, and presented with pulmonary and gastrointestinal symptoms. After conventional and nutritional treatments, significant improvements were seen in weight and height

Conclusion: A delay in the diagnosis of CF as seen in our country causes patients to further suffer from malnutrition and growth failure in comparison to developed countries. This emphasizes the necessity of neonatal screening. The results of this study show the dramatic effects of nutritional treatment on growth status

[Evaluating the effects of Omega-3 on quality of life in children with cystic fibrosis]

Cystic fibrosis [CF] is an autosomal recessive disorder chiefly characterized by respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms. This study investigates whether omega-3 fatty acid affects quality of life in children with CF. Materials and This was a single-blind, pilot study undertaken at the Cystic Fibrosis Center of Sarvar Children Hospital, Mashhad, Iran from March 2009 until September 2009. In this study, 11 patients aged 2-12 years were assigned to ingest 3 capsules of fish oil daily for 3 months. Each capsule contained fish oil [1 gr], eicosapentaenoic acid [180 mg] and docosahexaenoic acid [120 mg]. At the beginning of the study and after the treatment period, questionnaires were used to determine the quality of life of all patients, both totally and separately, in four domains [physical [PH], emotional [EM], social [SOC] and school functioning [SCH]]. Wilcoxon test compared the scores before and after treatment intervention. p < 0.05 was considered significant. The difference in total score of the Pediatric Quality Of Life Inventory TM 4.0 Short Form [PedsQLTM 4.0 SF15] before and after intervention showed a significant improvement [p = 0.02] in addition to the physical and social domains [p = 0.01 and p = 0.04, respectively], but was not significant in the other two domains. Fish oil, as a rich source of omega-3 fatty acid could have beneficial effects on improving quality of life in these patients. Other long-term studies including more patients might better clarify omega-3 effects on children with CF

[Study of correlation of surface phospholipids fatty acid composition in high density lipoprotein with the severity of coronary artery disease after angiography]

Background and Objective: the phospholipids fatty acid content of high density lipoprotein [HDL] has recently been found to be related to several important biological functions which may serve as a risk factor for coronary artery disease [CAD]. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether fatty acid composition of HDL phospholipids correlates with the presence and severity of coronary artery disease

Materials and Methods: the study population included 117 patients with coronary artery disease which was approved by angiography. The severity of CAD was assessed by the number of arteries [1, 2 or 3] with more than 50% stenosis reported by angiography. The fatty acid composition of HDL phospholipids was determined by gas liquid chromatography. The independence of association between fatty acids and CAD were evaluated by multivariate analyses which included all of the variables associated with the severity of CAD in univariate analysis

Results: these analyses showed that the association of EPA [beta= 0.23, P<0.01] and DHA [beta= 0.17, P<0.05] with the severity of CAD was inversely and independently significant

Conclusion: some kinds of polyunsaturated HDL fatty acid contents such as EPA and DHA [omega-3 fatty acids] have adverse association with severity of CAD

[Plasma free 8-iso-PGF2alpha levels in normotensive and preeclamptic pregnancies]

Preeclampsia is a main cause of morbidity and mortality of pregnant women worldwide. Recently oxidative stress was considered as a part of pathophysiolgy of preeclamsia and 8-isc% prostaglandin F2alpha [8-iso-PGF2 alpha] is known as a marker of oxidative stress. The purpose of this study was to measure and compare plasma concentration of free 8-iso-PG F2 alpha in women with normotensive and preeclamptic pregnancies. In this descriptive-analytic study, Plasma free 8-iso-PGF2 alpha levels were measured in pregnant women with preeclamsia [n=42] and normotensive pregnant women [n=39] between 28-38 weeks of gestation. Women in two groups were matched in age, gestational age and socioeconomic statue and all women were nulligravid. Free 8-iso-PGF2 alpha levels were not significantly different in women with preeclamsia and normotensive group [17808 vs. 24288 pg/dl, NS]. Plasma free 8-iso-PGF2 alpha levels were increased in severe compared to mild preeclampsia [NS]. Neonates weight of preeclamptic mothers was significantly lower than neonates of normotensive women [p<0.0001]. Although free 8-iso-PGF2 alpha is a marker of oxidative stress in vitro, but its measurement is not valuable in clinical medicine. However, further studies in normal pregnancy and preeclampsia will be needed

[Evaluation of the morphology and anatomy of mandibular canal in panoramic radiography of patients over 25 years-old [Kerman-2008]]

Neurovascular bundle mandibular canal is one of the most important landmarks in mandible. It is necessary to know complete understanding of its topography and variations. The aim of this study was to assessment of anatomy of mandibular canal in panoramic view. In this Cross-Sectional study 394 panoramic view of patients with age 25-53 years old were selected. A data sheet containing age, sex, length and width of mandibular canal and distance of it from mandibular border line was completed. T test and Pearson and SPSS 15 soft-ware used to analyze the data. The mean age was 34.59 +/- 6.79 years. The length and the width of mandibular canal were 77.4 +/- 3.8 mm respectively. The distance between mandibular canal and borderline of mandible was 13.9 mm. there was significant differences between mental foramen to borderline of mandible. There was also significant correlation between age and sex and width of mandibular except second molar furcation area. According to these finding all dentists consider their patients' panoramic view much more carefully to avoid unwanted neurovascular bundle injuries

Endometrial cancer consisting of both adenosquamous and serous papillary cells with raised beta-hCG: a case report

A 69-year old menopause woman presented with severe vaginal bleeding lasting for 70 days. Sonographist reported a 7mm mass in uterus, however, serologic studies revealed an elevated beta-hCG level. Patient was subjected for total hysterectomy and bilateral salpingoophorectomy, during which endometrial cancer tissue consisting of both adenosquamous and serous papillary cells were noted. beta-hCG level is rarely supposed to elevate in endometrial cancer, however, its association with endometrial cancer should be further discussed