RESUMO
Background: Pinus eldarica is a widely growing pine in Iran consisting of biologically active constituents with antioxidant properties. This study investigates the effect of hydroalcoholic extract of P. eldarica bark against oxidative damage induced by hydrogen peroxide [H2O2] in human umbilical vein endothelial cells [HUVECs]
Methods: The total phenolic content of p. eldarica extract was determined using Folin-Ciocalteu method. The cytotoxicity of P. eldarica extract [25-1000 microg/ml] on HUVECs was assessed using 3-[4,5- Dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide [MTT] method. Cytoprotective effect of P. eldarica extract [25-500 microg/ml] on H2O2-induced oxidative stress was also evaluated by MTT assay. The intra- and extra-cellular hydroperoxides concentration and ferric reducing antioxidant power [FRAP] were measured in pretreated cells
Results: The total phenolic content of P. eldarica extract was estimated as 37.04 +/- 1.8% gallic acid equivalent. P. eldarica extract [25-1000 microg/ml] had no cytotoxic effect on HUVECs viability. The pretreatment of HUVECs with P. eldarica extract at the concentrations of 50-500 microg/ml significantly reduced the cytotoxicity of H2O2. P. eldarica extract decreased hydroperoxides concentration and increased FRAP value in intra-cellular fluid at the concentration range of 100-500 microg/ml and in extra-cellular fluid at the concentration range of 25-500 microg/ml
Conclusions: This study revealed the antioxidant and cytoprotective effects of P. eldarica extract against H2O2-induced oxidative stress in HUVECs. Concerning the high content of phenolic compounds in P. eldarica, more research is needed to evaluate its clinical value in endothelial dysfunction and in other oxidative conditions
RESUMO
Rational prescribing increases the quality of health care and patient outcomes. In this study, the quality of drug prescription in specialist physicians in Isfahan province of Iran was assessed for evaluating the rational use of drugs and improving the therapeutic outcomes
This retrospective survey was conducted on a total of 7999530 prescriptions from all general and specialist physicians. The most frequently prescribed drugs and World Health Organization [WHO] prescribing indicators were evaluated in prescriptions of all medical specialties
Assessment of prescribing indicators revealed poor-quality prescribing performance by general practitioners including high number of medicines prescribed per clients, wide range of prescribed medicines in each prescription, over-prescribing of antibiotics, corticosteroids and injectable drugs. There were also wide differences in the pattern of drug prescribing depending on the medical specialties. The average number of drugs prescribed per encounter by specialists was less than generalists except for the cardiologists. General practitioners, otorhinolaryngologists and general surgeons prescribed more antibiotics. Orthopedic surgeons and general practitioners were the top prescribers of injectable and corticosteroid drugs. The most frequently prescribed medicine groups varied according to the prescribers' medical specialty. Analgesics and antipyretics were the most prescribed preparations in general medicine, pediatrics, orthopedics, general surgery and cardiology
Because of the wide variability in the pattern of drug prescribing depending on the medical specialties, specific performance indicators should be developed for each specific medical specialty for better assessing of prescribing quality in specialist physicians
RESUMO
Self-medication is defined as the use of drugs for the treatment of self-diagnosed disorders. It is influenced by factors such as education, family, society, law, availability of drugs and exposure to advertisements. This study was performed to evaluate self-medication with analgesics and its pattern among different groups of Iranian University Students. A randomized, cross-sectional, multicenter study was conducted from December 2009 to February 2010. The target population of this study was 564 students out of 10,000 students attending four medical and non-medical science universities in Qom state. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 16, and analysis was conducted with descriptive analysis procedures. 76.6% of the students had used analgesics in self-medication in the previous 3 months. The frequency of analgesic use in the study period was once in 19.2% of the participants, twice in 22.2%, three times in 16.3% and more than three times in 35.5% of the participants, although 6.8% of them were not sure when they were used. Of all the respondents, 49.8% reported headache as the problem. This was the most common problem, after which came Dysmenorrhea, headache and stomach ache. Bone and joint pains were other problems that led to the use of analgesics. The most commonly used source of information for self-medication with analgesics was advice from friends and family [54.7%], previously prescribed medications [30.1%], their medical knowledge [13.3%] and recommendation of a pharmacist [1.9%]. Self-medication with analgesics is very high among Iranian students in Qom city. This could be an index for other parts of the Iranian community. Because the source of information about analgesics is inappropriate, we would recommend education courses about analgesics and self-medication on the radio and television for the entire population