[Frequency of musculoskeletal complications among the diabetic patients referred to Kashan diabetes center during 2009-10]

Diabetes Mellitus is one of the most common metabolic disorders causing pathophysiologic changes in multiple organs. Considering the burden of diabetes and its complications, this study aimed to evaluate the frequency of musculoskeletal complications in diabetic patients. This cross-sectional study was performed on 327 diabetic patients referred to Kashan diabetes center during 2009-10. Age, the type of diabetes and clinical manifestations such as arthralgia, paresthesia, and limited joint movements were obtained from the hospital medical records of patients and then musculoskeletal complaints [e.g., adhesive capsulitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, dupuytren's contracture, trigger finger, and limited joint movements] were diagnosed and recorded by a rheumatologist. The mean ages of type II and I diabetic patients were 54.6 +/- 12.61 and 29.7 +/- 10.36 years, respectively. Carpal tunnel syndrome [49.8%], knee osteoarthritis [45%], sclerodactyly [27.2%], dupuytren's contracture [14.1%], trigger finger [11.9%], adhesive capsulitis [11.9%], limited joint movements' syndrome [8%] and Charcot joint [0.6%] were seen in patients. There was a significant relationship between the type of diabetes and knee osteoarthritis [P<0.003; OR=1.86; CI=1.05-3.30] and also carpal tunnel syndrome [P<0.045]. A significant relationship was also seen between duration of disease and trigger finger, dupuytren's contracture [OR=3.76; CI=1.9-7.41] and limited joint movements. The findings of this study indicated that type of diabetes and also its duration [over 15 years] may increase the risk of musculoskeletal complications. Hence, careful periodic examinations of all diabetic patients are recommended

[ comparison between touch cytology and histology method in diagnosing Helicobacter pylori infection]

Touch cytology is one of the sensitive ways of diagnosing Helicobacter pylori in stomach biopsies. The current study was designed to compare touch cytology with histology method in the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection. This study was performed on 150 dyspeptic patients undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in Kashan Shahid Beheshti Hospital. Antrum samples [2-4] were taken from each of 150 patients. One biopsy sample was considered for touch cytology and the remaining biopsy samples were studied for histological examination. Eighty-three out of 150 patients [55.3%] were men with the mean age of 46.63 +/- 5.93 years. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value in the touch cytology method were 95.65%, 100%, 100% and 66%, respectively, while in the histology method they were 84.78%, 100%, 100% and 36.36%, respectively. The sensitivity of the touch cytology was more than that of the histology method [P<0.001] in the diagnosis of H. pylori. Since the cytology method is more sensitive with equal specificities in relation to histology method, when the histological information is not necessary, the cytology method can be considered more reliable for diagnosing Helicobacter pylori