ABSTRACT
Background and Aims: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD] is a kind of pulmonary diseases characterized by chronic obstruction of lung that is in the form of a diffuse narrowing of airways resulting in air flow resistance. Alpha-1 antitrypsin [AAT] deficiency is genetically relatively common risk factor in patients with COPD throughout the world and the exact cause of its prevalence is unknown. We therefore performed a study to determine the frequency of AAT deficiency in patients with severe COPD compared to the healthy controls
Materials and Methods: in this cross-sectional case control study, AAT serum level in 60 patients with severe COPD for whom the history and spirometry test with FEV1<50% had been confirmed based on gold criteria as well as 60 healthy controls, were tested using commercial kit and nephelometry method
Results: the lowest serum levels of AAT measured in patients was <0.349 g/l and the highest was 3.099 g/l. These were obtained in healthy subjects as 1.180 g/l and 4.195 g/l respectively. Out of 60 patients, 4 [6.7%] had partial deficiency of AAT [AAT<1 g/l] and 6 [10%] had definite shortage of AAT [AAT<0.5 g/l]. In healthy subjects, we did not find any definite and relative lack of AAT. The comparison of results obtained from these two groups indicated a significant difference between frequency of AAT [P=0.001]
Conclusions: our findings revealed the frequency of AAT deficiency, as a factor involved in COPD disease, to be 10% and can be the reason for the high prevalence and severity of COPD in Zahedan city
ABSTRACT
Coeliac disease [CD] may be associated with several liver disorders including primary biliary cirrhosis, primary sclerosing cholangitis and autoimmune hepatitis. Furthermore preliminary data suggest a causative role of CD in steatosis and steatohepatitis. The aim of present study was to determine the prevalence of CD in a series of patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease [NAFLD]. In a cross sectional study [2008-2010], 403 consecutive NAFLD patients [127 female and 276 male] referred to GI clinics of the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences were included. IgA anti-tissue transglutaminase [Anti-tTG] was used for screening of coeliac disease. In the patients with a positive serologic test, duodenal biopsies were taken to confirm the diagnosis. The mean +/- SD of the age and BMI of patients were 37.4 +/- 12.4 years and 28.3 +/- 4.15 kg/m[2] respectively. BMIs lower than 25 kg/m2 were found in 58 subjects [14.5%]. Furthermore diabetes mellitus and hyperlipidaemia were diagnosed in 48 [11.9%] and 84 [20.8%] individuals respectively. Positive Anti-tTGs were found in 14/403 [3.4%] and 13/403 [3.2%, 95% CI 1.5-4.9] had coeliac disease according to the modified Marsh classification; 8 had type I, 3 type II, 1 type IIIA and 1 type IIIB lesions. According to our data, prevalence of CD in the subjects with NAFLD is higher than the rates reported in the general population. Therefore screening for CD in selected cases of NAFLD may be appropriate