[Association between folate intake and breast cancer risk among Tehrani women: a case-control study]

Dietary folate deficiency may contribute to tumorogenesis in many sorts of malignancies. By considering the increasing incidence rate of breast cancer in Iran, this study was conducted to investigate the association between dietary folate intake and breast cancer risk. In this case-control study, 177 patients with breast cancer and 169 control subjects with no family history of malignancy were recruited from hospitals affiliated to Shahid-Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran. Standard questionnaires were used to collect data on demographic characteristics, physical activity, and food frequency consumption for the previous year. Total daily energy and folate intakes were estimated using the Nutritionist IV software. No statistically significant correlation was observed between daily dietary intake of folate and breast cancer risk in the sample population. However, the results showed a significant inverse association between daily intake of dietary folate and risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women [OR=0.17; 95%CI: 0.035-0.88]. Increases in the strata of daily folate intakes were associated with decreasing trends of ORs in postmenopausal breast cancer risk [P[for trend] =0.036], where the OR of folate intake at the 2[nd] tertile was 0.26 [95%CI: 0.05-1.22] and at the 3[rd] tertile was 0.17 [95%CI: 0.035-0.88]. Based on the findings, folate intake was not correlated with breast cancer risk in the total sample population, whereas higher intakes of folate was inversely associated with postmenopausal breast cancer risk

[Assessing predicting factors in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease [NAFLD] in type 2 diabetes]

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease [NAFLD] is a relatively prevalent disorder with many suspected risk factors. The aim of this study was to assess the association between the suspected risk factors with the presence of NAFLD according to the ultrasonographic criteria in type II diabetic patients. The study was performed on 76 type 2 diabetic patients attending consecutively to endocrine clinic. Negative history of alcohol use and hepatitis Band C were our basic inclusion criteria. All candidates underwent thorough clinical and biochemical assays consist of height, weight, waist circumference, fasting blood sugar, HbA1c, triglyceride, total cholesterol, HDL and LDL, liver trans-aminases, alkaline phosphatase, thyroid function tests, serum iron and total iron binding capacity and liver sonography to detect the presence [stage I to III] or absence of steatosis. The score of metabolic syndrome was determined according to the latest ATP III criteria. Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficients and logistic regression were used to assess the relationship between suspected risk factors and the presence of NAFLD. Forty-nine patients [64.4%] were female. The mean age [+/-standard deviation] was 59.7+/-8.8 years. The mean BMI in patients with and without NAFLD were 29.4+/-4.5 and 24.8+/-3.8kg/m[2], respectively [p<0.001]. Prevalence of NAFLD was significantly higher among patients with metabolic syndrome [89% vs. 43%, p<0.05]. Age [r=-0.24, p<0.05], waist circumference [r=0.27, p<0.05] and triglyceride [r=0.28, p<0.05] had significant correlation with steatosis. However, in logistic regression analysis, only BMI [for each 5 unit increment] was independently associated with the presence of NAFLD [OR=4.25, 95% CI: 1.7-10.9, p<0.05]. In type 2 diabetic patients, only BMI had a significant role in predicting NAFLD. It seems that other metabolic factors will not give any additional information for predicting NAFLD

[Erect esophageal transit scintigraphy, manometry, and barium swallow in assessment of patients with achalasia before and after balloon dilation]

Achalasia is a motility disorder of unknown etiology. Diagnostic techniques include Barium esophagram, simple and widely available, radionuclide transit/emptying scintigraphy, a low-cost procedures, easy to perform and widely available, well tolerated and require minimum cooperation by patients and esophageal manometry that continues to be used widely in clinical practices, primarily because of its perceived value. Aim of this study was to compare methods of manometry, barium swallow and scintigraphy before and after pneumatic dilation. 17 patients with achalasia of cardia were evaluated both symptomatically and objectively [esophageal manometry, timed barium esophagram, and scintigraphic emptying Index] before treating them with pneumatic dilation and after. The degree of patient symptom