ABSTRACT
Working length determination is a fundamental step in the endodontic treatment of primary and permanent teeth. Radiography is most commonly used for this purpose. However, it requires patient cooperation and is associated with adverse effects of radiation. Apex locators can serve as an efficient alternative for this purpose. We wanted to compare the accuracy of Root ZXII and Raypex 5 electronic apex locators for working length determination in primary teeth.METHODSThis in vitro study was performed on 154 canals of 58 extracted primary teeth. Access cavity was prepared, and a K-file was introduced into the canal until its tip was visible at the apex under a microscope. 0.5 mm was subtracted from this length to determine the actual working length. The canal length was then measured again using Root ZXII and Raypex 5 apex locators. The obtained values were compared with the actual value. Data was analysed using SPSS version 21 via paired t-test with intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) at P<0.05 level of significance.RESULTSThe mean difference in values measured by Root ZXII and Raypex 5 and the actual working length was 0.77 ± 0.65 mm and 0.62 ± 0.58 mm, respectively. No significant difference existed in the accuracy of the two apex locators for determination of actual working length (P=0.54). The actual working length had a strong correlation with the values measured by Root ZXII (ICC=0.97) and Raypex 5 (ICC=0.95).CONCLUSIONSBoth apex locators have acceptable accuracy as an alternative to radiography for working length determination in primary teeth.
ABSTRACT
Objective: Breast cancer is considered a heterogeneous disease, characterized by different biological and phenotypic features which make its diagnosis and treatment challenging. We have sought to investigate the expression levels of key components of the Hedgehog signaling pathway, correlation between the signal transducer Smo, and clinicopathologic features [lymph node metastasis and metastasis stage] in invasive breast carcinoma. Also, we examined the inverse correlation between expression levels of Smo and Claudin-1 [an important gene involved in cell tight junctions]
Methods: In this case-control study, we assessed 36 pairs of tumor and adjacent normal tissue specimens obtained from patients with invasive ductal breast carcinoma. The expression levels of key components of Hedgehog signaling [Smo, Gli1 and Ptch], Claudin-1, E-cadherin, and MMP2 were measured by qRT-PCR. The correlations between Smo expression with some clinicopathologic parameters were also analyzed
Results: We found up-regulation of Hedgehog signaling in invasive breast carcinoma samples compared to normal adjacent tissues. Upregulation of the signal transducer Smo correlated with tumor stages and lymph node metastasis of the breast tumors. Interestingly, this correlation was affected by the expression of Her2. A significant correlation existed between expression levels of the signal transducer Smo and Claudin-1, E-cadherin as an epithelial cell marker, and MMP2 as a metastasis-related gene in advanced metastatic tumor samples
Conclusion: Taken together, our study revealed a new layer of molecular complexity which should be considered in the management of patients with invasive breast carcinoma. The results suggested a key role for Hedgehog signaling in invasive breast carcinoma. In terms of the inverse correlation between expression levels of Claudin-1 and Hedgehog signaling, Claudin-1 could serve as a candidate gene in diagnostic studies. Thus, its clinical significance should be further clarified
ABSTRACT
With the ever increasing incidence of coronary artery disease, its detection in particular through visual system becomes important. This study examines the relationship between corneal arcus and coronary risk factors such as cholesterol, triglyceride and fasting blood sugar. For this cross-sectional study, 265 participants all aged over 30 years were randomly selected from the patients who referred to a clinic over the first three months of 2004. Cholesterol, triglyceride and fasting blood sugar level was tested. Severity of corneal arcus was determined. The data were then analyzed using ANOVA and Chi square test with 95% confidence interval. Our results showed that the frequency and severity of corneal arcus were positively correlated with age [P=0.041]. And the condition was more prevalent in males [p=0.001]. There was a statistically significant difference between mean of cholesterol and blood sugar level and how severe corneal arcus [cholesterol P=0.004, blood sugar P=0.04]. But the condition was not related to the triglyceride level [p= 0.0268]. Corneal arcus picked up in eye exams can aid detection of coronary artery disease as the condition is related to other health problems such as high cholesterol and high fasting blood sugar level