Prevalence of stroke among patients with chronic kidney disease, Taif, Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the prevalence of stroke among chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients in Taif, Saudi Arabia. METHODS: A multicentric retrospective study was carried out from May 2021 to August 2022 on 4 dialysis centers in Taif, Saudi Arabia. With a total of 1857 CKD patients (aged ≥18 years old) participated in this study. Data were collected by reviewing patients' files. RESULTS: Approximately 98.3% of the participants had severely decreased glomerular filtration rate. Approximately 49.1% of them were on dialysis; the majority of them (87.2%) underwent hemodialysis. The prevalence of stroke in these CKD patients was 8.3%. Ischemic stroke was the most frequently reported issue (81.2%). Ischemic stroke was comparatively more frequently observed in peritoneal dialysis patients (12.1%); whereas hemorrhagic stroke was more on hemodialysis patients with statistically significant association (p=0.029). However, there was no significant association between the prevalence of stroke and stages of CKD. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of stroke in our cohort was 8.3%, and the majority of cases were ischemic strokes. Furthermore, ischemic strokes were more frequent in peritoneal dialysis patients, whereas hemorrhagic strokes occurred more frequently in hemodialysis patients with a statistically significant association.

Podocin, mTOR, and CHOP dysregulation contributes to nephrotoxicity induced of lipopolysaccharide/diclofenac combination in rats: Curcumin and silymarin could afford protective effect.

AIM: Sepsis is a common cause of acute kidney injury (AKI). Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are the main gram-negative bacterial cell wall component with a well-documented inflammatory impact. Diclofenac (DIC) is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug with a potential nephrotoxic effect. Curcumin (CUR) and silymarin (SY) are natural products with a wide range of pharmacological activities, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory ones. The objective of this study was to examine the protective impact of CUR and SY against kidney damage induced by LPS/DIC co-exposure. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four groups of rats were used; control; LPS/DIC, LPS/DIC + CUR, and LPS/DIC + SY group. LPS/DIC combination induced renal injury at an LPS dose much lower than a nephrotoxic one. KEY FINDING: Nephrotoxicity was confirmed by histopathological examination and significant elevation of renal function markers. LPS/DIC induced oxidative stress in renal tissues, evidenced by decreasing reduced glutathione and superoxide dismutase, and increasing lipid peroxidation. Inflammatory response of LPS/DIC was associated with a significant increase of renal IL-1ß and TNF-α. Treatment with either CUR or SY shifted measured parameters to the opposite side. Moreover, LPS/DIC exposure was associated with upregulation of mTOR and endoplasmic reticulum stress protein (CHOP) and downregulation of podocin These effects were accompanied by reduced gene expression of cystatin C and KIM-1. CUR and SY ameliorated LPS/DIC effect on the aforementioned genes and protein significantly. SIGNIFICANCE: This study confirms the potential nephrotoxicity; mechanisms include upregulation of mTOR, CHOP, cystatin C, and KIM-1 and downregulation of podocin. Moreover, both CUR and SY are promising nephroprotective products against LPS/DIC co-exposure.

Perceptions of Dietary Factors Promoting and Preventing Kidney Stones Among Taif City Population - A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background and Aim: Renal stones are the most common urological disorder resulting in different marked morbidities with different risk factors. This study aimed to assess the perceptions of the general population regarding dietary factors in promoting and preventing nephrolithiasis in the Taif region. Methods: We carried out this cross-sectional study during a period of 4 months. All Taif city population who were ≥18 years old were included in the study regardless of their gender and history of urolithiasis. Participants were excluded if they were <18 years of age, not Taif city residents, and whose primary language was not Arabic. Data were analyzed using SPSS ver. 23. Results: It was found that 68.4% of the participants had poor knowledge of dietary risk factors. Further, 86.4% of the participants thought that their diet could affect the risk of kidney stone formation, and 88.6% believed that water can decrease the risk of kidney stone formation. In addition, 54.5% and 66.3% knew that increased consumption of meat and smoking can increase the risk of kidney stone formation. Conclusion: The knowledge regarding specific dietary risk factors promoting and preventing kidney stones formation was poor among the Taif city population.

Prevalence of anosmia among COVID-19 patients in Taif City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of anosmia in coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) patients. Coronavirus-19-related anosmia and hyposmia is a new emerging concept in the medical literature. METHODS: A retrospective study on COVID-19 patients with anosmia and hyposmia was performed during the period between May-July, 2020. The inclusion criteria were all clinically stable COVID-19 patients less than 15 years old with positive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Patients who refused to participate or leave incomplete questions were excluded. In this study, we investigated 1022 patients who met our criteria. RESULTS: Olfactory dysfunction (OD) was reported by 53% of our COVID-19 patients, of which 32.7% were anosmic and 20.3% were hyposmic. Other neurological symptoms included ageusia (51.4%), fatigue (63%), myalgia (59.2%), and headache (50.9%), all of which showed significant association with OD. In addition, anosmia had a significant association with young age and female gender. However, there was no association between OD and pre-existing neurological disease. CONCLUSION: Half of our COVID-19 patients presented OD (anosmia/hyposmia), which often associated with ageusia and many neurological symptoms.