25-hydroxyvitamin D status in patients with alopecia areata.

INTRODUCTION: Alopecia areata (AA) is a T cell-mediated autoimmune disease that causes inflammation around anagen-phase hair follicles. Insufficient levels of vitamin D have been implicated in a variety of autoimmune diseases. AIM: To investigate the status of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) in patients with AA, serum 25(OH)D concentrations were compared between AA patients and healthy controls and thus determine if a possible association exists between serum 25(OH)D levels and AA. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study comprising 41 patients diagnosed with AA and 32 healthy controls was conducted between October 2010 and March 2011. The serum vitamin D levels of the study group were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Serum levels of calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase, and parathyroid hormone were also evaluated. RESULTS: The study was based on 41 patients aged between 20 and 50 (mean: 32.8 ±7.5). The control group included 32 healthy persons aged between 20 and 51 (mean: 32.7 ±7.5). Serum 25(OH)D levels in patients with AA ranged from 5.0 to 38.6 ng/ml with a mean of 8.1 ng/ml. Serum 25(OH)D levels in healthy controls ranged from 3.6 to 38.5 ng/ml with a mean of 9.8 ng/ml. There was no statistically significant difference in the serum vitamin D level between AA patients and healthy controls (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Deficient serum 25(OH)D levels are present in patients with AA. However, considering the high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in Turkey, no difference was noted between AA patients and controls.

Gut satiety hormones and hyperemesis gravidarum.

UNLABELLED: Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) is described as unexplained excessive nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. Some gut hormones that regulate appetite may have important role in etiopathogenesis of HG and weight changes during pregnancy. In this study, levels of gut satiety hormones were evaluated in pregnant women with HG. METHODS: This prospective case-control study was conducted in 30 women with HG and 30 healthy pregnant women without symptoms of HG. Fasting venous blood samples were taken from all subjects for measurement of plasma gut hormone levels; obestatin (pg/mL), peptide YY (PYY), pancreatic polypeptide (PP) and cholecystokinin (CCK). RESULTS: Plasma PYY and PP levels were significantly higher in HG group. The most important parameter in diagnosis of HG was plasma PP level. Simple use of PP level led to the diagnosis 91.1 % of HG cases correctly. The single most important parameter in the prediction of HG was also PP level. CONCLUSION: Anorexigenic gut hormones might have important role in etiopathogenesis of hyperemesis gravidarum and weight changes during pregnancy.

Cord-blood 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels and risk of early-onset neonatal sepsis: a case-control study from a tertiary care center in Turkey.

UNLABELLED: Vitamin D has been linked with immunity, and the immunomodulatory role of this molecule in regulating key elements of the immune system has become an area of intense scientific investigation. We designed a case-control study to investigate whether neonates with early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS) had lower levels of vitamin D. The primary exposure for the analysis in the study was the cord-blood level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D). Of the 2571 live births occurring during the 18-month study period, 53 infants were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit with suspected EONS. After clinical and laboratory confirmation, 40 newborns with EONS and 43 controls were analyzed. Cord-blood 25(OH)D levels of infants in the study group were significantly lower than that of the control group (median 12.6 ng/mL (3.1-78.9) vs. 21 (5-118); p = 0.038, respectively). In multivariate models, a low cord-blood 25(OH)D level (<30 ng/ml) was associated with an increased risk of EONS (OR = 5.6; 95% CI = 1.3-23.5). CONCLUSION: Cord-blood 25(OH)D levels of neonates with EONS were significantly lower than that of the healthy controls, and a low level of cord-blood vitamin D was found to be associated with an increased risk of EONS. Further studies are warranted to confirm this association.

Investigation of trace elements in pterygium tissue.

PURPOSE: In this study, we compare the concentrations of the essential trace elements chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), selenium (Se), manganese (Mn), boron (B) and zinc (Zn) in both pterygium and normal conjunctiva and investigate the role they play in the development of pterygium. METHODS: Included in the study were 38 patients with pterygium and 38 control patients in matching age groups who had been operated on for strabismus or cataracts and in whom conjunctiva samples were collected from the nasal limbus area. All conjunctiva samples were kept at -80 °C until the performance of the biochemical investigations. The B, Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn and Se levels in the samples were then measured. The levels of all tissue trace elements were determined by using Agilent 7500a Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometer (Agilent Technologies, Santa Clara, CA). RESULTS: Cr, Mn, Zn and Se levels are significantly lower in the study group as compared to those of the control group (p < 0.001 for all four values). Regarding the level of B, there was no significant difference between the groups. The Cu levels of almost all subjects in the control group and all subjects in the pterygium group were under the detection limit. CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that remarkable differences in Mn, Zn, Se and Cr levels exist in pterygium tissues. Further investigation of electrolyte composition of the conjunctiva is needed to understand the genesis and developmental mechanism of pterygium.

Is meconium stained amniotic fluid related to occult myocardial injury in term low risk pregnancies?

AIM: The present study aimed to compare Troponin T (Tp T) levels of infants born with meconium stained amniotic fluid (MSAF) to those with clear amniotic fluid. STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study SUBJECTS: Thirty-five women who had delivery complicated by MSAF between 37 and 41weeks of gestation were defined as the study group and women with healthy uncomplicated pregnancies with clear amniotic fluid who were matched for age, parity, and gestational age were defined as the control group. OUTCOME MEASURES: Cord blood Tp T level, gas analysis and neonatal outcomes were compared between groups. RESULTS: Tp T levels of the study and control groups were 0.026±0.013ng/ml and 0.031±0.016ng/ml, respectively. The difference was not statistically significant (p=0.132). On the other hand, the study group had a statistically lower HCO(3) level (21.80 vs 23.60mmol/l ) and higher rate of base deficit (4.85 vs 3.25mmol/l) than the control group. CONCLUSION: The presence of meconium during labor is not related to occult myocardial injury in low-risk term pregnancies.