Systematic review
Maryam Tavakoli; Donya Farrokh
Abstract
Introduction: Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is a sensitive and non-invasive imaging method that provides information about the metabolite variations due to pathological damages. In this study, we aimed to systematically review studies in which the MRS had been used for quantitative analysis of ...
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Introduction: Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is a sensitive and non-invasive imaging method that provides information about the metabolite variations due to pathological damages. In this study, we aimed to systematically review studies in which the MRS had been used for quantitative analysis of steatohepatitis.Methods: PubMed and Scopus were methodically searched in June 2015 with following search method (((magnetic resonance spectroscopy OR MR spectroscopy OR MRS)) AND (hepatic steatosis OR steatohepatitis OR fatty liver)) AND Quantitative) to find relevant documents in which the diagnostic value of MRS had been investigated in patients with hepatic steatosis. Obtainable information were extracted and used for further evaluation based on the main purpose of this study.Results: Of 88 articles found in the PubMed and 328 found in the Scopus, only 10 relevant documents were selected and used for data extraction according to inclusion/exclusion criteria. Of total 2963 participants enrolled in the selected studies, 1428 were male and 1535 were female. The results of this review showed that MRS is reliable technique for quantitative assessment of steatohepatitis.Conclusion: Findings showed that MRS as a non-invasive imaging method can quantitatively determine even small changes of metabolites due to pathological damages. As well, findings suggested that the results obtained by MR spectroscopy can be considered as reference standard in quantitative analysis. Based on the results of studied documents, MRS as a sensitive tool is helpful in the quantitative assessment of patients with fatty liver disease.
Systematic review
Farzane Farzam; Masume Safaee; Mahsa Akbari Oryani; Hadi Razmara; Naveed Fathee; Vahide Farzam
Abstract
Introduction: Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) are known as putative cells in neovasculogenesis during pathological conditions, which are derived from bone marrow. This study was performed to systematically review the EPCs frequency in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by evaluating ...
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Introduction: Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) are known as putative cells in neovasculogenesis during pathological conditions, which are derived from bone marrow. This study was performed to systematically review the EPCs frequency in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by evaluating the expression of CD133 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) markers.Methods: We search the PubMed and Scopus databases for the following keywords; CD133 AND lung AND VEGF. Inclusion criteria were all the articles studied the expression of both CD133 and VEGF markers in patients with NSCLC. No language and date restrictions were imposed to the search strategy. All the articles that studied only one biomarker or those that investigated the markers expression and EPCs count in patients with other types of tumors except NSCLC were excluded from the study.Result: Totally 51 articles obtained following the primary search of both databases. Only 7 of them had the eligibility to be included in this systematic review. Six articles were case- control and one was a cohort type of investigation. Flowcytometry and immunohistochemistry were the most applied methods for estimating the EPCs count and evaluating the expression of markers in circulating peripheral blood and tumors tissue. The expression of EPCs markers was increased in patients with NSCLC compared to healthy control individuals; however, the frequency of EPCs was low in peripheral blood of patients.Conclusion: Although it is not clear that circulating EPC numbers are associated with lung cancer patients angiogenesis, EPCs and VEGF levels are elevated in patients with operable NSCLC. The ideal method for evaluating circulating endothelia cells (CECs) or EPCs levels in vivo is still a matter of debate and because of the low number of EPCs in peripheral blood, their detection is technically challenging.
Systematic review
Hamid Reza Bahrami; Roshanak Salari; Mohammadreza Noras
Abstract
Introduction: The prevalence of infantile colic is high, but there is no safe and effective conventional treatment. Acupuncture is a Chinese method of complementary medicine, and its therapeutic effects have been investigated in colic pain, crying out, fecal excretion, anxiety, relaxation and sleep duration. ...
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Introduction: The prevalence of infantile colic is high, but there is no safe and effective conventional treatment. Acupuncture is a Chinese method of complementary medicine, and its therapeutic effects have been investigated in colic pain, crying out, fecal excretion, anxiety, relaxation and sleep duration. The use of acupuncture in infantile colic has increased despite weak evidence. The aim of this paper was to review the literature about safety and efficiency of acupuncture in infantile colic.Methods: Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central, and Scopus were searched with keywords “infantile colic”, and “acupuncture”, and a manual search of references was also performed in articles. Randomized controlled trial (RCT) and case reports were included in this review.Results: Seven of the 36 studies evaluated the effects of acupuncture in infantile colic. Five RCT, one case reports and one personal communication with acupuncturists were evaluated in our studys.Conclusion: Several studies have investigated the effects of acupuncture in infantile colic and found beneficial results. We found evidences of some efficacy and low risk associated with acupuncture in pediatrics. To improve further acupuncture therapy, further research is required to investigate the effects of acupuncture on infantile colic by using experimental and control groups.
Review
Najmeh Malekzadeh
Abstract
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common inflammatory disease affecting approximately 1% of the adult population worldwide. Before new treatments were available, unchecked RA caused notable inability and mortality .It is now accepted that primary diagnosis and treatment are essential and useful. Progress ...
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Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common inflammatory disease affecting approximately 1% of the adult population worldwide. Before new treatments were available, unchecked RA caused notable inability and mortality .It is now accepted that primary diagnosis and treatment are essential and useful. Progress in therapy of RA has made it possible to deeply influence signs and symptoms as the period that joint destructed in inflammatory arthritis. Earlier and more efficient treatment becomes visible to significantly improve the prognosis of this disease. In this article, the old and new methods for treatment rheumatoid arthritis and their limitation and benefits were reviewed. These methods include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs), glucocorticoids(GC) that are a class of steroid hormones, disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), biological agents that can be divided in two groups of monoclonal antibodies and teeny molecules, bisphosphonate therapy, nanotechnology, oral tolerance, photodynamic therapy, gene therapy, bone marrow transplantation, liposomes, superparamagnetic iron oxide nano particles (SPIONs).
Review
Soodabeh Shahidsales; Mitra Fazl Ersi
Abstract
Studies have devoted relatively scant attention to male breast cancer compared with female breast cancer. Nevertheless, the incidence of male breast cancer has increased considerably in parallel manner with women. There is not comprehensive knowledge regarding the etiology of breast cancer in men. The ...
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Studies have devoted relatively scant attention to male breast cancer compared with female breast cancer. Nevertheless, the incidence of male breast cancer has increased considerably in parallel manner with women. There is not comprehensive knowledge regarding the etiology of breast cancer in men. The environmental agents and genetic factors are proposed as the influential parameters in the pathogenesis of breast cancer. Invasive ductal carcinoma is the most frequent subtype of breast cancer in men and a palpable mass is the most common presentation. Breast masses might be identified at advanced stages of the disease, if undiagnosed, due to the lower prevalence and lack of awareness in men compared to women. There is not any large sample size trial or retrospective study regarding any specific treatment strategy; the routine treatments are based on existing data. In this review, we studied the risk factors, biological characteristics, and therapeutic strategies of breast cancer in men.
Review
Fariba Rezaeetalab; Fariborz RezaeiTalab
Abstract
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common chronic sensory motor disorder that prevents initiation and/or sleep staying. Patients with this syndrome have uncomfortable sensations in their legs (and sometimes arms or other parts of the body), with moving their legs to relieve this sensations. The symptoms ...
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Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common chronic sensory motor disorder that prevents initiation and/or sleep staying. Patients with this syndrome have uncomfortable sensations in their legs (and sometimes arms or other parts of the body), with moving their legs to relieve this sensations. The symptoms of RLS are usually worse in the evening and at night. The diagnosis of RLS is primarily based on clinical evaluation and clinical history of the patient. International restless leg syndrome group study (IRLSSG) evaluates the symptoms and severity of RLS. RLS can be divided into two groups of primary and secondary. Iron deficiency, Parkinson’s disease, kidney failure, diabetes, peripheral neuropathy, and pregnancy may cause RLS. Antinausea, antipsychotic drugs, some antidepressants, and antihistamines may also worsen the symptoms. RLS is also observed in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which makes the outcomes worse. COPD is a main preventable health problem that can lead to morbidity and mortality. Thus, RLS in COPD causes excessive daytime hypersomnolence, fatigue, poor quality of life, disability and neuropsychological complications such as social isolation, frequent daytime headaches, anxiety and depression.
Review
Khadijeh Saket; Mozhdeh Khodabakhsh; Roshanak Salari
Abstract
Foods play an important role in preparing the health of body. Foods and nutrients are effective in increasing health and regulating the immune system as well as in prevention of different diseases such as cardiovascular diseases. In the past few years, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease is progressively ...
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Foods play an important role in preparing the health of body. Foods and nutrients are effective in increasing health and regulating the immune system as well as in prevention of different diseases such as cardiovascular diseases. In the past few years, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease is progressively increasing. Change in lifestyle and dietary pattern of the societies plays an important role in inducing cardiovascular diseases. Studies have shown that the risk of cardiovascular disease among people consuming more vegetables is lower. Recent findings suggest that foods rich in omega-3, vitamins, antioxidants and fibers are useful for the health of cardiovascular system and such nutrition, in addition to disease prevention, reduces the cost and side effects of chemical treatments. In this article, different clinical trials introducing beneficial dietary approaches in preventing cardiovascular diseases are reviewed.
Case report
Aliasghar Moeinipour; Mohamad Abbassi Teshnizi; Babak Manafi; Hadi Yavari; Yasamin Moeinipour; Hamid Hoseinikhah
Abstract
Herbal medicine is usually safe and popular in Iranian communities. Peppermint herbal products may interact with warfarin, which is an essential lifelong drug used in patients with prosthetic heart valves. Herein, we report a case of possible interaction between warfarin and peppermint herbal tea.We ...
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Herbal medicine is usually safe and popular in Iranian communities. Peppermint herbal products may interact with warfarin, which is an essential lifelong drug used in patients with prosthetic heart valves. Herein, we report a case of possible interaction between warfarin and peppermint herbal tea.We described a 68-year-old woman who was on warfarin treatment due to bileaflet mechanical aortic valve, and mitral valve replacement presented with severe dyspnea in the setting of large obstructive prosthetic mitral valve thrombosis diagnosed by echocardiography. Therefore, cardiac surgery was conducted in the emergent setting. Warfarin was started the day after the procedure. She developed melena with a volatile and elevated international normalized ratio (INR) of 4.8 and prothrombin time > 30 s on the 7th post-operation day. She reported no changes in drug or dietary habits except for drinking high amounts of peppermint tea the day before. After the discontinuation of warfarin and medical consultation for gastrointestinal bleeding, the INR level decreased to 1.8 within two days.Consumption of peppermint herbal products are usually safe; however, caution should be taken with patients under warfarin treatment. Full disclosure for patients on anticoagulant treatment is necessary before discharge and during clinical follow-up