1,720,956 research outputs found
Phyto-Oestrogens and Chaste Tree Berry: A New Option in the Treatment of Menopausal Disorders
Full text linkAbstract
For a woman, menopause represents a transitional phase from a fertile to a non-fertile age, in which there is a
gradual reduction in ovarian function accompanied by a gradual cessation of oestrogen production.
The clinical presentation can involve a series of disorders, including hot flushes with episodes of sweating,
particularly at night, palpitations, changes in sleep-wake rhythm, irritability, anxiety and mood changes, vaginal dryness
due to a process of progressive atrophy with thinning of the outer and inner labia, reduction of vascularisation and
elastic fibres, and decreased sexual desire; subsequently, Many women use alternative therapies to treat hot flushes
and other menopausal symptoms. The purpose of this review is to summarize current information on the efficacy and
safety of phytoestrogens and the herbal medicine. Given the importance that these symptoms assume for the woman,
not only for the perceived quality of life, but also for the increased risk of developing all the diseases, all the treatments
adopted for menopausal women are directed primarily to resolving vasomotor disorde
Effect of a new oral contraceptive with estradiol valerate/dienogest on carbohydrate metabolism
No full textBackground: Insulin resistance may be induced by both the estrogen and progestin component in hormonal contraception. When estrogen dose is reduced from 50 to 20 mcg, the extent of hyperinsulinemia decreases. Recently, the oral combination contraceptive (COC) containing estradiol valerate (E2V) in combination with dienogest (DNG) was developed in a new estrogen step-down, progesterone step-up dosing strategy (Qlaira, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals). This study was conducted to evaluate of the effect of a 3-month treatment with E2V/DNG on carbohydrate metabolism in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and insulin resistance.
Study Design: Study consisted of subjects attending the gynecological clinic of Siena or Pisa, with PCOS and insulin resistance, and without contraindications for the use of COCs. PCOS females (n=20) aged 18 to 33 years were treated with a contraceptive formulation containing E2V/DNG for 3 months. Before treatment and during the third month of therapy, body mass index (BMI) measurement and an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) were performed.
Results: Median values of insulin after treatment were lower than median values before treatment. In particular, the median value of insulin at To was reduced by 54.6% (p<.001), and the mean difference between time 0 and 30 min was significantly reduced [42.96 (9.99) mU/mL vs 38.00 (15.10) mU/mL; p<.05]. Homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance levels were significantly decreased following treatment. OGTT after treatment revealed median fasting glucose levels to be stable (p=.895) at T-0. At T-30, T-60, T-120 and T-180 min, glucose median values were moderately reduced in comparison to median values before treatment. No significant difference was observed between median BMI values before [26 (4.8) kg/m(2)] and after treatment [26 (3.7) kg/m(2)].
Conclusions: Median insulin levels at T-0 and the mean difference between time 0 and 30 of insulin following OGTT were significantly reduced than values before treatment with E2V/DNG for 3 months. Median BMI and glucose levels were not significantly modified. Natural estradiol and nonandrogenic progestogen in the Qlaira formulation could be recommended as an oral contraceptive in women with PCOS who are insulin resistant or who are overweigh
Present and future of recombinant gonadotropins in reproductive medicine
No full textPharmacological ovarian stimulation has a major role in reproductive medicine and has been used in anovulatory patients and in the induction of multifollicular development required for the procedures of assisted reproductive techniques (ART). Currently, gonadotropins are the most important tools to proceed with ovarian stimulation for all purposes, including ART and anovulation disorders, like hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and hypothalamic hypophyseal dysfunction. Gonadotropin preparations derived from human urine have been used clinically since the early 1960s and the first urine-derived preparation containing only FSH (urofollitropin) became available in 1983. More recently, the application of recombinant DNA technology has resulted in the development of recombinant FSH produced in mammalian cells. In the last period, LH became available by recombinant DNA technology and is now a new option for protocols of ovarian stimulation. Treatment with gonadotropins has been shown to be effective in males affected by hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. This success has resulted in attempts to utilize FSH therapy in oligozoospermic men, aimed at obtaining a quantitative increase in sperm count. The purpose of this review was to examine the pharmacological aspects and different clinical applications of recombinant gonadotropins (FSH, LH, hCG) in the treatment of female infertility in all its aspects and their use also in the treatment of male infertility. This review will trace these events, from the past through to the present, and conclude with a glance towards the future
The administration of metformin during pregnancy reduces polycystic ovary syndrome related gestational complications
No full textOBJECTIVES:
To prospectively evaluate the safety of metformin administration during pregnancy in a group of PCOS patients by assessing its effect on the prevalence of gestational complications and neonatal outcome.
STUDY DESIGN:
Our prospective, single centre study included 98 pregnant women with PCOS treated with metformin throughout pregnancy and 110 normal pregnant controls. All PCOS patients were hyperinsulinemic and received metformin (1700-3000 mg/day) before conception and until 37 weeks' gestation.
RESULTS:
Metformin treatment in the pregnant PCOS patients resulted in significant decrease in miscarriage rate (9.1% vs 20%; p<0.05), gestational diabetes (0 vs 13%; p<0.005), and gestational hypertension (0 vs 11%; p<0.005) and a non-significant decrease in pre-eclampsia (0 vs 3%; p=.24), compared to the control group. Mean neonatal Apgar score, weight and length were comparable between the two groups.
CONCLUSIONS:
Continuing metformin therapy throughout pregnancy resulted in significant reduction in pregnancy complications with concomitant improved neonatal outcome, with no serious deleterious side effects
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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