Journals of Rzeszow University - Open Journal System
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Inference of oxidative stress in patients with hypothyroidism
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. Oxidative stress is one of the complications that accompany defects in thyroid hormone levels. This study was designed to evaluate oxidative stress markers in patients with hypothyroidism.
Material and methods. This case control study was comprised of forty-two hypothyroid patients aged 36–46 years and forty age matched (35–43 years) healthy control participants randomly selected from the Endocrine Clinic of Al-Yarmook Hospital in Iraq. Blood levels of thyroid hormones malondialdehyde, glutathione, and paraoxonase-1 were assessed. Body mass index was calculated for each patient and control participant.
Results. Regarding the data of oxidative stress markers in hypothyroid patients compared to controls, a significant elevation was reported in blood levels of malondialdehyde and a significant reduction was found in blood levels of glutathione (p=0.031). On the other hand, the blood levels of paraoxonase-1 were significantly different in hypothyroid patients compared with the control.
Conclusion. Elevated blood levels of malondialdehyde and declined blood levels of glutathione in hypothyroid patients are a signal of oxidative stress and consequently increase the risk of cardiovascular complications
Evaluation of the knowledge, attitudes and behavior of healthcare workers concerning influenza vaccination in a training and research hospital in Türkiye
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. Although increasing vaccination rates among healthcare workers (HCWs) is crucial for protecting their own health and preventing the spread of infections to patients, vaccination rates remain low. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and behavior of healthcare workers concerning seasonal influenza vaccination in a training and research hospital in Türkiye.
Material and methods. This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 364 healthcare workers working in a training and research hospital in Ankara, Türkiye. A face-to-face questionnaire was completed by selected participants that included questions about their sociodemographic characteristics, receiving seasonal influenza vaccination, reasons for not receiving vaccination, attitudes and behavior towards seasonal influenza vaccination recommendations for their surroundings, knowledge of who should get the vaccine, and their immunization history.
Results. Among the participants, 58.5% stated that they had never received an influenza vaccination, 35.7% mentioned not receiving the regular influenza vaccination, and only 5.8% reported receiving the influenza vaccination regularly every year. Reasons for not getting vaccinated included not trusting the influenza vaccine’s protection (60.1%), not believing they are in the risk group (38.9%), and not finding a suitable time to get vaccinated (36.1%). A total of 57.1% of the healthcare workers recommended the influenza vaccine for their surroundings.
Conclusion. Influenza vaccination rates among healthcare workers are quite low. To maximize influenza vaccine uptake, awareness programs are needed to correct the misconceptions health care workers have about the vaccine, and diverse strategies should be implemented to encourage them to get vaccinated, thereby promoting influenza vaccination
Combined non-surgical and surgical management of misdiagnosed cutaneous sinus tract of endodontic origin – 15 months CBCT follow-up
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. An extraoral cutaneous sinus tract of endodontic origin represents a skin condition that appears due to an infection that could be primary or secondary to trauma accompanied by alveolar bony changes. It may be easily misdiagnosed and inappropriately treated due to lack of inadequate expertise on part of medical professionals followed by faulty treatment which can complicate the case further.
Description of case. This case report intends to highlight a case of a sixteen-year-old male patient referred for an extraoral cutaneous sinus tract misdiagnosed and insufficiently treated by a general physician followed by general dentists for more than a month due to lack of proficiency in the field of endodontics. The clinical and radiographic examinations confirmed the pulpal origin due to trauma related to permanent mandibular incisors. A combination of non-surgical root canal therapy followed by periapical surgery was performed leading to a significant healing of the lesion.
Conclusion. Accurate diagnosis is the key to treat draining sinus tracts of endodontic origin. Root canal treatment and endodontic surgery should be used judiciously for effectively eliminating the pathogens thus providing healing and repair mechanisms a chance to achieve the desired result
Acute myocarditis mimicking ST – elevation myocardial infarction in a young adult with pharyngitis – a case report
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. Acute myocarditis (AM) is a life-threatening inflammatory disease that manifests with a highly variable range of clinical symptoms, sometimes mimicking those of myocardial infarction. The aim of this report was to describe the diagnostic challenges of AM.
Description of the case. A 22-years old male previously diagnosed with pharyngitis arrived in the emergency room (ER) with retrosternal chest pain. The electrocardiogram (ECG) showed ST elevation in inferior and posterior leads and reciprocal changes with ST depression in anterolateral leads. Laboratory tests revealed elevated cardiac enzymes and bedside echocardiogram (ECHO) revealed hypokinesis of the inferior wall. Initial diagnosis of ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) was made. Coronary angiogram showed normal epicardial coronary arteries and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) revealed subepicardial late gadolinium enhancement (LGE).
Conclusion. This case was proven challenging due to the unusual ECG and ECHO findings, mimicking inferoposterior STEMI. The need for available angiography and CMRI was mandatory for the final diagnosis of AM
Benign endotracheal tumor (hamartoma) mimicking bronchial asthma
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. The most common benign tumor of the lung is hamartoma. In many cases, it is a spherical tumor, located peripherally, often without clinical symptoms. Predominantly it is found accidentally during radiological examination. In some cases the tumor reaches a significant size in the lung parenchyma or in the lumen of the bronchi or trachea. Then, symptoms such as cough, dyspnea, wheezing, less commonly hemoptysis, and chest pain may occur. In addition, tumors located endobronchial or endotracheal may cause recurrent pneumonia or mimic obstructive diseases of the lower respiratory tract such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or bronchial asthma. We present the case of a patient with an endotracheal tumor mimicking bronchial asthma.
Description of the case. A 53-year-old male was taking bronchodilators and inhaled steroids for several months. The baseline chest radiograph showed no abnormalities. Spirometry suggested an obstruction of respiratory flow in the central or upper airways. The lack of improvement after asthma treatment required an extension of the diagnosis. Computed tomography allowed accurate visualization of the tumor lesion of the trachea, which was significantly obstructing its lumen, and resection was carried out.
Conclusion. Our case demonstrates that tracheal tumors can present symptoms similar to respiratory tract diseases. In unresolved cases, spirometry and computed tomography are helpful in proper diagnosis
Morphometric analysis of dry acetabulum and iliac bones from anatomy museums in south eastern Nigeria with relation to clinical practice
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. Good outcomes of total hip replacement and acetabular surgeries have been linked to proper understanding of the morphometry of acetabular and iliac bones. The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical morphometry of dry acetabulum and iliac bones in southeastern Nigeria.
Material and methods. The measurements were done on human hip bones in anatomy museums using a Vernier caliper. The acetabular and iliac bone parts were measured.
Results. A total of 148 dry hip bones were measured during the study. The mean acetabular depth and diameter are 32.10±2.33 mm, and 53.93±2.74 mm respectively. The mean thicknesses of the acetabular walls are 5.88±1.38 mm, 12.64±1.84 mm, 15.79±2.07 mm and 19.74±2.18 mm for the antero-inferior, antero-superior, postero-inferior and postero-superior walls respectively. The distances between landmarks on the iliac bone are: anterior-inferior-iliac-spine – posterior-inferior-iliac-spine = 112.91±8.01 mm, posterior-superior-iliac-spine – anterior-inferior-iliac-spine = 135.29±8.04 mm, anterior-inferior-iliac-spine – anterior-superior-iliac-spine = 34.98±9.55 mm, posterior-superior-iliac-spine – upper-edge-of-acetabulum = 119.14±7.83 mm and anterior-superior-iliac-spine – nearest-edge-of-acetabulum = 55.71±5.60 mm. The regression model for prediction of diameter of the acetabulum using the depth of the acetabulum shows that for every 1 mm increase in the acetabular depth, the acetabular diameter increases by 0.312 times. The regression equation is “Y = bx + a”; Y = acetabular diameter, x = acetabular depth, b = margin of error = 0.312, and a = constant determined to be 43.919.
Conclusion. The study established the mean values and the relationship between acetabular depth and diameter
The relationship between the consumption of traditional Turkish brewing style coffee and other brewing style coffee and HbA1c levels in patients with type 2 diabetes
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. To investigate the relationship between the consumption of traditional Turkish brewing style coffee and other brewing style coffee and hemoglobin A1c:glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels in patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus.
Material and methods. One hundred fifty patients were included in the study. The research sample was obtained from a family health center that called İzmir Karşıyaka 16 -Family Health Center in İzmir-Türkiye. Sociodemographic characteristics, medications, diet, nutritional status, self-reported health status, and consumption of Turkish and other coffee consumption style and other beverages of the patients were recorded. HbA1c, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), triglyceride, total cholesterol, and fasting plasma glucose levels in the previous year were obtained from medical records. All patients had their HbA1c readings taken on quarterly basis. In addition, routine blood tests, including HbA1c measurements, were conducted every six months as part of the regular follow up at the family health center. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was used to evaluate the daily physical activities of the patients.
Results. The median HbA1c value of the group taking oral antidiabetic drugs was significantly lower than the median HbA1c value of the group using insulin (p=0.012). There was no significant difference in HbA1c levels regarding missing a meal, drinking coffee (sugar-free or not), and physical activity (p>0.05). Correlation analysis showed a significant weak relationship between the amount of Turkish coffee consumption per week and fasting blood glucose level (p=0.041, r=-0.088). There was a negative weak and significant relationship (p<0.05) between HbA1c levels and the amount of Turkish coffee consumption per week (p=0.014). In the exponential regression model, coffee consumption per week explained the HbA1c level in proportion to 2.9% (F=4.386; p=0.038).
Conclusion. Consumption of Turkish coffee was inversely correlated with fasting glucose and HbA1c levels. Future studies are needed to determine the effect of coffee in the treatment of diabetes mellitus
Phytochemical analysis, stability, and antimicrobial activity of eighteen medicinal plants studied against five multi-drug resistant human pathogens
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. Several medicinal plants from India have been reported to be effective against human pathogens, but comprehensive comparative studies are scarce. The aim of this study has been to evaluate and compare the antimicrobial activity, phytochemical composition, and stability at different temperatures and pH of ethanolic extracts of eighteen Indian medicinal plants which are prevalent in North-east India and thrive abundantly.
Material and methods. These plants included Syzygium cumini, Cannabis sativa, Camellia sinensis, Murraya koenigii, Alstonia scholaris, Terminalia chebula, Flemingia strobilifera, Azadirachta indica, Prunus persica, Euphorbia thymifolia, Averrhoa carambola, Paderia foetida, Psidium guajava, Spondias pinnata, Garcinia cowa, Litsea cubeba, Micania macrantha, and Phlogocanthus thyrsiflorus. Their potent medicinal properties made them the ideal choice for this study which included the use of agar well diffusion method and phytochemical analysis.
Results. Agar well diffusion has been used to test their antibacterial activity, which demonstrated higher antibacterial activity of G. cowa extract against Vibrio cholerae and Staphylococcus aureus, whereas S. pinnata extract was most effective against V. cholerae and Enterococcus faecium.
Conclusion. Phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of tannins, alkaloids, saponins, glycosides, steroids, terpenoids, flavonoids, and phenols. The antimicrobial activity of these plant extracts remained stable at higher temperatures and varying pH levels
Congenital epulis in a newborn – a case report in Benin City, Nigeria
Get PDFIntroduction and aim. Congenital epulis is a rare benign tumor that affects the oral cavity of newborns which typically presents as a solitary mass on the maxillary alveolar bridge at birth, with a predilection for the female gender. The rarity of congenital epulis is underscored by the limited number of reported cases in the literature, as evidenced by the infrequent occurrence of this condition in newborns.
Description of the case. This case report presents a rare case of congenital epulis, a benign gingival tumor in a newborn. The report includes a brief literature review to provide insights into the clinical characteristics, diagnostic approaches, and management of congenital epulis.
Conclusion. This case contributes to the current knowledge regarding rarity of occurrence and emphasizes the need for reporting, early intervention and multidisciplinary collaboration in effective management
