Association between Serum Selenium Concentrations and Levels of Proinflammatory and Profibrotic Cytokines-Interleukin-6 and Growth Differentiation Factor-15, in Patients with Alcoholic Liver Cirrhosis.

According to some authors, serum selenium levels are strongly associated with the severity of liver diseases, including liver cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between the concentration of selenium and pro-inflammatory and profibrotic cytokines-interleukin-6 (IL-6) and growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. The parameters studied were determined in the serum of 99 patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis divided based on the severity of disease according to the Child-Turcotte-Pugh criteria. In patients with liver cirrhosis, the serum selenium concentration was statistically lower, whereas serum IL-6 and GDF-15 concentrations were higher than those in the control group. Moreover, the concentration of selenium negatively correlated with the levels of GDF-15 and IL-6. The above results may indicate a role of selenium deficiency in the pathogenesis and progression of alcoholic liver disease.

Alterations of Hair and Nail Content of Selected Trace Elements in Nonoccupationally Exposed Patients with Chronic Depression from Different Geographical Regions.

The aim of this study was to determine if altered levels of selected trace elements manifest themselves during chronic depression. To identify elements strongly associated with chronic depression, relationships between the elemental contents of hair and nails and the interelement correlations were checked. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and ion chromatography were used to evaluate the contents of Zn, Cu, Co, Pb, Mn, and Fe in hair and nail samples from a total of 415 subjects (295 patients and 120 healthy volunteers). The study included logistic regression models to predict the probability of chronic depression. To investigate possible intercorrelations among the studied elements, the scaled principal component analysis was used. The research has revealed differences in TE levels in the group of depressed men and women in comparison to the healthy subjects. Statistically significant differences in both hair and nails contents of several elements were observed. Our study also provides strong evidence that the intermediary metabolism of certain elements is age- and gender-dependent. Zn, Mn, Pb, and Fe contents in hair/nails seem to be strongly associated with chronic depression. We found no statistically significant residence-related differences in the contents of studied elements in nonoccupationally exposed patients and healthy subjects.

Serum Concentrations of Selected Heavy Metals in Patients with Alcoholic Liver Cirrhosis from the Lublin Region in Eastern Poland.

According to the WHO report, alcohol is the third most significant health risk factor for the global population. There are contrary reports about heavy metals concentrations in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to investigate serum concentrations of selected heavy metals in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis living in the eastern part of Poland according to cirrhosis stage. The participants came from various hospitals of the Lublin region were enrolled. The study group included 46 male and 16 female patients. The control group consisted of 18 healthy individuals without liver disease. High Performance Ion Chromatography was used to determine the concentrations of metal ions (Cd, Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Mn, and Pb) in serum samples. The concentrations of copper, zinc, nickel, and cobalt were found to be significantly lower in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis compared to the control group. The serum concentration of cadmium was significantly higher in patients with advanced alcoholic liver cirrhosis compared to the control group. We hypothesize that disorders of metabolism of heavy metals seem to be the outcome of impaired digestion and absorption, which are common in cirrhosis, improper diet, environmental and occupational exposure.

[Polish physicians'opinions concerning morally controversial medical practices]. / Opinie lekarzy polskich o kontrowersyjnych moralnie procedurach medycznych.

OBJECTIVES: Some lawful procedures are morally controversial and this situation can sometimes provoke conflicts between patients and physicians (conscience clause problem). The aim of our survey was to collect opinions about medical procedures that are accepted by Polish law and unaccepted by the Catholic Church--dominating denomination in Poland, and analyzing conditions determining these opinions. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Cross sectional study. An anonymous survey was distributed among 528 physicians who work in public hospitals in eastern Poland (turn = 61%). The sample consist of: 51% women, 49% men; 52% work AT surgical wards, 48% at non-surgical wards; average work period: 17.03 years (SD = 10.73; min. = 1, max. = 45); 93% Catholics; average religiosity (measured by the Scale of Religious Attitudes): M = 5.47 (SD = 1.01; min. = 1.60, max. = 6.80). The questionnaire contained questions about: hormonal contraceptives, artificial fertilization, abortion in the case of rape and fetus defect. RESULTS: The majority of respondents accepts artificial fertilization (70%), about half accepts abortion in case of fetus defect (50%), almost half accepts abortion in case of rape (41%) and contraception for minors (43%). There was statistically significant differences between physicians with different religiosit--the lack of approval for above procedures correlates with increasing religiosity. CONCLUSIONS: Individual religiosity (regardless of denomination) is the most important condition influencing Polish physician's opinions and attitudes concerning contraception, abortion and artificial fertilization. Physicians with higher religiosity (about 25%) in the situation of divergence between their moral beliefs and patient's demands will choose for their beliefs, which can cause conflicts. Physician-patient relationship's models should take into account physicians'cultural beliefs and not only the cultural beliefs of the patients.