Masoud Youssefi; Golsa Teimouri; Farnaz Zahedi Avval; kiarash ghazvini; Masoud Keikha
Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the serum levels of ST2 protein and interleukin-33 in patients affected to tuberculosis and compare them with the control group. In the present study, at first 30 patients affected to TB were randomly selected and 52 healthy individuals, who were matched with respect ...
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The aim of this study was to determine the serum levels of ST2 protein and interleukin-33 in patients affected to tuberculosis and compare them with the control group. In the present study, at first 30 patients affected to TB were randomly selected and 52 healthy individuals, who were matched with respect to their age and gender, included in the study as the control group. After that, the serum levels of sST2 and IL33 were measured by ELISA sandwich method using commercial Quantikine Human ELISA kit (R&D Systems). The data were finally analyzed by SPSS software. IL-33 levels in the TB group were higher than the healthy controls and a statistically significant difference was observed in the IL-33 levels between the two groups (P = 0.021). Moreover, IL-33R (ST2) was slightly increased in the TB patients compared to the healthy controls, although statistical analysis showed no significant difference between the two groups (P = 0.083). Regarding the high normal variation of sST2 and the limitations of the present study, it is recommended that future studies of sST2 be performed in with higher number of TB patients.
Mitra Ahadi; Negin Masoudifar
Abstract
Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic immune condition affecting children and adults. Dysphagia and food impaction are the main symptoms; however, reflux-like symptoms may also be present. The diagnosis of EoE is made with endoscopic evaluation for dysphagia, and its definitive diagnosis requires ...
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Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic immune condition affecting children and adults. Dysphagia and food impaction are the main symptoms; however, reflux-like symptoms may also be present. The diagnosis of EoE is made with endoscopic evaluation for dysphagia, and its definitive diagnosis requires biopsy confirmation. The criteria for active EoE are defined as the symptoms of esophageal dysfunction, eosinophilic tissue infiltration (eosinophil count of at least 15 eosinophils per high-power field), and exclusion of other possible causes of esophageal eosinophilia. EoE is more prevalent in patients suffering from atopic conditions; therefore, allergic conditions may play an important role in the development of the disease. However, the etiology and pathophysiology of the disease are not completely understood. Elimination diets are considered as the first-line therapy in children; nevertheless, this approach appears to be less effective in adults, who often require steroids. Despite medical treatments, EoE is complicated in some cases by esophageal stricture and stenosis that require additional endoscopic treatments.