RESUMO
BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the normal diameters of larger airways in the Persian population, since these demographic variables are essential for interpretation of chest CTs and/or plain X-rays. MATERIAL/METHODS: During a 6-month period, sagittal and coronal diameters of tracheas of all cases admitted for a chest CT to the radiology department of the National Research Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (NRITLD) were measured. The patients had to accept to take part in the study and had to fulfill the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the study. Ninety-nine percent confidence intervals (99% CI) were used to define the upper and lower limits of normal. RESULTS: Two hundred subjects, including 132 men and 68 women aged 20-85 years, were studied. CORONAL AND SAGITTAL DIAMETERS OF TRACHEAS IN THE UPPER PART WERE AS FOLLOWS: 1.8±0.24 and 2.06±0.27cm for men, and 1.48±0.20 and 1.49±0.24 for women, respectively. For the lower part that was: 1.8±0.23, 1.86±0.27, 1.51±0.18, and 1.46±0.23, respectively. For the right and left main-stem bronchi the values were as follows: 1.16±0.17 and 1.02±0.22 for men and 0.93±0.13 and 0.81±0.13 for women, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The values determined by us had a narrower range of normality than the ones found in the previous reports, so they will stay more friendly for interpretation of individual cases.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Opium and its derivatives are widely abused throughout the world. Recent case reports and a few limited studies have suggested that opiates cause dilation of the common bile duct of the abusers. MATERIAL/METHODS: Our case-control study, lasting 7.5 months, investigated 121 male adult addicts and 142 non-addicted controls for biliary tract diameters, using ultrasonography. The study was conducted in Bahonar Hospital in Kerman. Neither the addiction cases nor the non-addict controls revealed any hepatobiliary tract symptoms. The subjects were asked to fill in a questionnaire. After the exclusion of the symptomatic cases, ultrasound examinations were carried out and the findings from questionnaires and US examinations were recorded. RESULTS: The mean ±SD diameter of the common bile duct was 4.78±2.58 for addicts and 3.37±2.25 for non-addicts. CBD wall thickness was 1.969±0.61 mm in addicts versus 1.73±0.631 in non-addicts. The differences were statistically significant. According to the multivariate analysis, the duration of opium abuse was a significant factor. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that CBD dilation and increased CBD wall thickness can be expected in people with a prolonged history of opiate addiction.
