Preparation and evaluation of the clinical efficacy and safety of tomato lotion containing lycopene 

Introduction: Skin aging starts at around age of 30 with wrinkling and pigmentations as its mainindicators. Delay and prevention of aging is a major concern for a great number of people. Thepurpose of this research was to develop and evaluate the efficacy of an anti-wrinkle tomato lotion,consisting of 5 w/w tomato powder in an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion.Methods: Different O/W emulsions were prepared and stability tests were done on them. Theformulation that successfully passed the stability tests, was chosen and the Solanum lycopersicumpowder was added to the oily phase of this O/W emulsion. The prepared lotion was evaluated forpharmaceutical tests. In vitro permeation studies were performed to measure permeation throughcellulose acetate membrane by diffusion cell at sink condition. In vivo trial for examination of theanti-wrinkle efficacy of lotion was done on 10 healthy women as case group compared with 10volunteers using the placebo lotion (lotion base without Solanum lycopersicum powder) as controlgroup.Results: According to the experimented results on the formulated lotion, the efficient time durationfor lotion effectiveness was 42 days. Tomato powder formulated in base of lotion significantlydecreased wrinkles. Our formulation was compatible with skin and caused no sensitivity reactionin human modelsConclusion: The Lycopene in Solanum lycopersicum in this formulation has anti-aging effect. Thisformulation might be a strong candidate for treatment of skin wrinkles

Topical effectiveness of different concentrations of nanosilver solution on Leishmania major lesions in Balb/c mice

Background & objectives: Cutaneous leishmaniasis is an infection caused by protozoan genus Leishmania. Althoughglucantime is commonly used for the treatment of leishmaniasis, it has some side effects including increased liverenzymes and electrocardiogram changes. In addition, the drug is expensive, the injection is painful, and researchshows that resistance of parasite to glucantime is growing in different parts of the world. Therefore, scientists arepaying more attention to develop new drugs such as nanosilver solution. The present study is an attempt toevaluate the in vivo topical effects of different concentrations of nanosilver solution in the treatment of leishmaniasislesions.Methods: In all, 90 female Balb/c mice aged 6–8 wk were infected with 2×106 viable stationary-phase promastigotesin the base of tail. Different concentrations (60, 80, 120, 130 and 2000 ppm) nanosilver solution were used in thepresent study to test the efficacy in the treatment of lesions. Clinical control of the infection trends was conductedweekly for 5 wk by measuring lesion diameter with standard Kulis-Vernieh. Data were analyzed by paired t-test,analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Tukey test.Results: Mean lesion diameter pre- and post-treatment did not significantly differ between different treatmentgroups (p >0.05). Likewise, a significant difference in splenic parasite load was also not observed between differenttreatment groups.Interpretation & conclusion: Based on our results, different concentrations of nanosilver are ineffective in reducingmean sizes of lesions

Colloid milium

Colloid milium is a rare cutaneous condition with at least three distinct subtypes, characterized clinically by the development of yellowish translucent papules or plaques on sun-exposed skin, and histologically by the presence of colloid in the dermal papillae. In this case report, we present a man with multiple small papules on dorsum of his hands that in pathology confirmed to be colloid milium. Colloid milium is more commonly observed in fair-skin patients and remain unchanged; however our patient had dark skin type (Fitzpatrick skin type III) and lesions were increasing in summer and decreasing in winter

Prolotherapy: Potential for the Treatment of Chronic Wounds?

Significance: Chronic skin ulcers, including venous, diabetic, and pressure ulcers, constitute a major health care burden, affecting 2-6 million people in the United States alone, with projected increases in incidence owing to the aging population and rising epidemic of diabetes. The ulcers are often accompanied by pain. Standard of care fails to heal ∼50% of diabetic foot ulcers and 25% of venous leg ulcers. Even advanced therapies do not heal >60%. Thus there is an unmet need for novel therapies that promote healing and also address the concomitant pain issue. Recent Advances: Prolotherapy involves injection of small amounts of an irritant material to the site of degenerated or painful joints, ligaments, and tendons. Multiple irritants are reported to be efficacious, but the focus here is on dextrose prolotherapy. In vitro and in vivo studies support translation to clinical use. Concentrations as low as 5% dextrose have resulted in production of growth factors that have critical roles in repair. Numerous clinical trials report pro-reparative effects of dextrose prolotherapy in joint diseases, tendon, and ligament damage, and for painful musculoskeletal issues. However, most of the studies have limitations that result in low-quality evidence. Critical Issues: The preclinical data support a role for dextrose prolotherapy in promoting tissue repair that is required for healing chronic wounds and ameliorating the associated pain. Critical issues include provision of evidence of efficacy in human chronic wounds. Another potential obstacle is limitation of reimbursement by third-party payers for a therapy with as yet limited evidence. Future Directions: Preclinical studies in models of chronic wounds would support clinical translation. As dextrose prolotherapy has some mechanistic similarities to already approved honey therapies, it may have a shortened pathway for clinical translation. The gold standard for widespread adoption would be a well-designed clinical trial

Communication of Changes in Parallel Processes at IRO AB in Ulricehamn, Sweden

This thesis is aiming at finding a solution for the manufacturing company IRO AB inUlricehamn, Sweden to communicate the changes that are made in processes and products ofthe company to its Chinese subsidiary company IWTC. The company wants to have a systemthrough which any change and improvement happened at one company is communicated toanother one in order to exercise the same changes at parallel processes that are running at bothcompanies. To solve their problem and to find an effective solution, first current situationregarding change processes at the company is examined to make sure that all changes andimprovements made at the company are registered in a structured way. Then differentcommunication channels existed between two companies is reviewed to find out thepossibilities and capacities of the company. This thesis focuses on using the ERP system as acommunication tool at both companies IRO AB and IWTC through which all the changes canbe registered and communicated in an effective, fast way. This capacity in ERP systems isfound out through a comprehensive study of this concept and its characteristics that has beendone in this research

Comparison of fat maintenance in the face with centrifuge versus filtered and washed fat

Background: Autogenous fat injection of the face is a viable and lasting remedy for soft tissue loss and has become a mainstay in facial rejuvenation. Fat transfer as either a stand-alone technique or as an adjunct to other filler technique and lifting depending on patient needs. Although soft tissue augmentation with autologous fat transfer has been increasingly used by esthetic surgeon, but there is no agreement concerning the best way of processing the harvested fat before injection. This study compared the clinical results obtained using simple filtered and washed fat via metal sieve with those achieved by means of pure centrifuged fat. Materials and Methods: A prospective single-blind analysis on 32 healthy patients undergoing nasolabial fold fat transplantation from 2009 to 2011 (simple sampling). Patients assigned in two groups randomly. The face of half (16 subjects) was injected with centrifuged, another half with simple filtered and washed fat to evaluate the effect of preparation methods on fat graft viability. Objective method was used to evaluate the results, involving the evaluation of postoperative photographs (in month 1, 6 and 12) by an esthetic surgeon (according to the nasolabial scale). Subjective method was a self-assessment obtained from patients about general level of satisfaction and improvement of skin texture, statistical analysis were performed by means of the Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney test. Acquired data were analyzed using SPSS version 15 and a value of P > 0.05 was considered as significant. Results: There was no significant difference in the survival of grafted fat between the Group 1 (fat-processing with centrifuge at 3400 rpm for 1-min) and Group 2 (washing the fat in the sieve). Conclusion: Our data suggest that the centrifuge of the fat does not enhance survival of grafted fat (P > 0.05)

Comparison of topical 5% nicotinamid gel versus 2% clindamycin gel in the treatment of the mild-moderate acne vulgaris: A double-blinded randomized clinical trial

Background: Acne vulgaris is considered one of the most common disorders for which patients seek dermatologic care. In the current study, we evaluated efficacy of the 5% nicotinamide gel versus 2% clindamycin gel in the treatment of the mild-moderate acne vulgaris. Materials and Methods: This was a randomized, controlled clinical trial that was performed in 2009-2010. Sixty female patients with mild or moderate acne vulgaris were recurited to be treated either with 5% nicotinamide or 2% clindamycin gel for 8 weeks. Acne severity index (ASI) was used to evaluate response to treatment and SPSS software was used to analyze the data. Results: The mean of ASI at the baseline was 16.85 ± 8.5 and 18.2 ± 12.27 in nicotinamide gel and clindamycin gel, respectively (P > 0.05). The mean of ASI was significantly decreased compared with baseline ASI during the time in both groups (P < 0.0001). However, there was not a significant difference regarding reduction of ASI between the nicotinamide and clindamycin gel (P = 0.583). Conclusion: Five percent nicotinamide gel is as effective as 2% clindamycin gel for treatment of mild to moderate acne vulgaris. No side effect was observed during the treatment