Application of Parametric Models of Survival Analysis in Determining the Cancer Influencing Factors in Patients with Thyroid Nodules

Background & aim: One of the most common clinical problems among individuals is thyroid nodule diseases which are characterized by one or more nodules in the thyroid and are usually benign. It can be said that thyroid cancer is the most common endocrine cancer worldwide. This study aimed to determine the risk factors for cancer in patients with thyroid nodule in Mazandaran province,Iran, using parametric survival analysis. Methods: In the present historical cohort study, 26,730 patients with thyroid nodules who were referred to health care centers from July 2002 to March 2008 were identified. Parametric log-normal and log-logistic models were compared with and without taking frailty into account. The criterion for comparing models was Akaike's criterion. All calculations were performed with the SPSS software and the significance level was considered 0.05. Results: The mean time of the conversion of thyroid nodules to cancer in patients was found to be 29.32 months. Using Kaplan-Meier method, survival rates of one year, five years and ten years of nodule conversion to cancer was calculated 94.6, 88.6 and respectively. According to the log rank test age (p=0.03), hypothyroidism (p=0.01), bilateral nodules (p <0.001), a multi-nodular goiter (p <0.001), TSH hormone (p <0.001), T4 hormones (p = 0.005), cholesterol (p = 0.03), creatinin levels (p = 0.001) a significant relationship was seen. Based on the Akaike's criterion, the lognormal model which takes frailty into account best fits to the data. Conclusion: Based on the log-normal model with frailty, It can be concluded that the thyroid nodule patients with abnormal TSH hormone are 6.55 times more likely to develop risk of thyroid cancer than patients who had normal TSH hormone overall. This model also indicated that patients who had heart palpitations are 5.52 times more likely to develop risk of cancer than patients who did not have heart palpitations

Prevalence of gestational diabetes according to one-step and two-step screening in sari rural areas, 2012-2014

Background and purpose: All pregnant women should be screened for diabetes mellitus. In this regard, two strategies are proposed that superiority of these two is still not clear. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) according to these recommended strategies, (one-step and two-step glucose tolerance tests) in pregnant women attending health centers in rural areas of Sari, Iran during 2012-2014. Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study, the medical records of pregnant women were randomly selected using cluster sampling. In Sari rural areas, the gestational diabetes mellitus screening had been done by two-step (50-g and 100-g) and one-step (75-g) tests in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Demographic data and the results of the glucose tolerance tests were extracted from the records and the frequency and odds ratios were calculated with a confidence interval of 95. Results: Totally, 627 subjects (one-step n= 317 and two-step n=310 patients) were investigated. The mean ages in those screened by one-step and two-step tests were 26.6±4.1 and 26.5±4 years, respectively (P= 0.843). The mean values for BMI, history of pervious gestational diabetes and macrosomal baby delivery and diabetes familial history were not significantly different between the two groups. According to one-step screening, the prevalence of GDM was 38.5 (CI95:33.1-44.1) while, the two-step test showed a prevalence rate of 4.2 (CI95:2.3-7.1) (P< 0.0001) OR=14.3 (CI95: 7.8-26.0). Conclusion: Prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus is estimated to be much higher in one-step compared with that of the two-step screening. But, maternal and fetal benefits of this method should be assessed more accurately. © 2018, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved

Changes in Serum TSH and T4 Levels after Switching the Levothyroxine Administration Time from before Breakfast to before Dinner

Background. Levothyroxine is commonly used in the treatment of patients with hypothyroidism. Levothyroxine is most often administered in the morning, on an empty stomach, in order to increase its oral absorption. However, many patients have difficulties taking levothyroxine in the morning. Aim. The aim of this study was evaluating the effect of changing levothyroxine administration time from before breakfast to before dinner on the serum levels of TSH and T4. Subjects and Methods. Fifty patients between 18 and 75 years old with hypothyroidism were included in the study and were randomly divided into two groups. Each group received two tablets per day (one levothyroxine tablet and one placebo tablet) 30 minutes before breakfast and 1 hour before dinner. After two months, the administration time for the tablets was changed for each group, and the new schedule was continued for a further two-month period. The serum TSH and T4 levels were measured before and after treatment in each group. Results. Changing the levothyroxine administration time resulted in 1.47 ± 0.51 µIU/mL increase in TSH level (p=0.001) and 0.35 ± 1.05 µg/dL decrease in T4 level (p=0.3). Conclusions. Changing the levothyroxine administration time from before breakfast to before dinner reduced the therapeutic efficacy of levothyroxine

Reduced dosage of ERF causes complex craniosynostosis in humans and mice and links ERK1/2 signaling to regulation of osteogenesis

The extracellular signal-related kinases (ERK1/2) are key proteins mediating mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling downstream of RAS: phosphorylation of ERK1/2 leads to nuclear uptake and modulation of multiple targets(1). Here we show that reduced dosage of ERF, which encodes an inhibitory ETS transcription factor directly bound by ERK1/2 (refs 2-7), causes complex craniosynostosis (premature fusion of the cranial sutures) in humans and mice. Features of this newly recognized clinical disorder include multiple suture synostosis, craniofacial dysmorphism, Chiari malformation and language delay. Mice with functional Erf reduced to ~30% of normal exhibit postnatal multisuture synostosis; by contrast, embryonic calvarial development appears mildly delayed. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation in mouse embryonic fibroblasts and high-throughput sequencing, we find that ERF binds preferentially to distal regulatory elements containing RUNX or AP1 motifs. This work identifies ERF as a novel regulator of osteogenic stimulation by RAS-ERK signaling, potentially by competing with activating ETS factors in multifactor transcriptional complexes