The effect of luteal phase gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist administration on IVF outcomes in women at risk of OHSS

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) plays essential roles in embryo implantation, invasion of trophoblastic tissue, and steroid synthesis in the placenta. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of GnRH antagonist administration on pregnancy outcomes in early implantation period. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, 94 infertile women undergoing GnRH antagonist protocol who were at risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) were included. Sixty-seven patients (group I) received Cetrorelix 0.25 mg/daily in the luteal phase for 3 days while in 27 participants (group II), it was not administered. Pregnancy outcomes were assessed based on chemical and clinical pregnancy rates. Results: The pregnancy outcomes were not significantly different between two groups (p=0.224). Conclusion: The present study proposed that luteal phase GnRH antagonist administration does not influence the chance of successful pregnancy outcomes

Religious coping and quality of life in women with breast cancer

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the predictive role of religious coping in quality of life of breast cancer patients. Materials and Methods: This multi-center cross-sectional study was conducted in Tehran, Iran, from October 2014 to May 2015. A total of 224 women with breast cancer completed measures of socio-demographic information, religious coping (brief RCOPE), and quality of life (FACT-B). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the t-test, ANOVA, and linear regression analysis. Results: The mean age was 47.1 (SD=9.07) years and the majority were married (81.3). The mean score for positive religious coping was 22.98 (SD=4.09) while it was 10.13 (SD=3.90) for negative religious coping. Multiple linear regression showed positive and negative religious coping as predictor variables explained a significant amount of variance in overall QOL score (R2=.22, P=.001) after controlling for socio-demographic, and clinical variables. Positive religious coping was associated with improved QOL (β=0.29; p=0.001). In contrast, negative religious coping was significantly associated with worse QOL (β=-0.26; p=0.005). Conclusions: The results indicated the used types of religious coping strategies are related to better or poorer QOL and highlight the importance of religious support in breast cancer care

Accuracy of Visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) for early detection of cervical dysplasia in Tehran, Iran

Objective: To evaluate the accuracy of visual inspection with 5 acetic acid (VIA) when used to detect cervical cancer and its precursors. Methods: The study population included women attended Family Planning and Gynecological Clinic in Bagher Abad Health Center and Mirza Koochak Khan Hospital for regular cervical screening tests. After obtaining informed consent from each woman, VIA was performed. One hundred with a positive VIA test and 100 women with a negative VIA test were randomly selected for this study. Cytology and colposcopy examination were performed for all 200 cases and cervical biopsies were conducted for those individuals showing abnormal colposcopic findings. Results: Nine cases in VIA-positive group and two cases in VIA-negative group had an abnormal cytology. Ninety five women in the VIA-positive group and 25 in the VIA-negative group had abnormal colposcopic findings. From biopsy examination, 67 (71) of cases in the VIA-positive group and 3 (12) cases in the VIA-negative group had a final diagnosis of dysplasia. Among biopsied samples, only 7 cases of VIA-positive group showed abnormal result and the remaining were normal. Based on these results, VIA test sensitivity and specificity were 95.7 and 44.0 respectively, while they were 10 and 92 for cytology tests. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that although VIA is a sensitive screening test for detection of cervical dysplasia, it can not be used by itself. Applying VIA along with Pap smears helps to detect a higher number of cases with cancer precursor lesions

Macroscopic and microscopical investigations of the effects of alcoholic extract of henna (Lawsonia inermis) on skin healing of experimentally induced tissue damage in macro fish (Labidochromis caeruleus)

One of the well-known herbal drugs is henna (Lawsonia inermis). According to the components in henna, several beneficial properties (i.e., antimicrobial, anti-inflammation, wound healing, trypsin inhibitory and antioxidant) have been reported. The present study was designed to investigate the effects of two natural substances (sodium chloride and henna extract) on experimental skin lesion due to pulling out scales and trypsin injection (0/02 ml, beneath dorsal fin). For this purpose, 54 fish in weight 5/5±0/55 of were divided to 3 groups, with eighteen fish in each group. Fishes were placed in laboratory condition in 22-25 ˚C. Two, four and six days after induction of skin injury, fishes were treated with different agents for 10 minutes. First group was treated in salt water 1%, second group in henna extract 0.5% and the control group without any additives. The fish were sampled weekly, 3 times by sampling from the wound. Macroscopic examination showed that color changes of wound place decreased in henna group in comparison with that other groups. In third week of healing, normal appearance of skin were seen in most of fishes in henna and salt groups. Microscopic study revealed a decrease in inflammatory cells infiltration in henna group second week after induction of skin injury. It seems that henna by decreasing inflammatory process, can also prevent skin damage and secondary infections that can help faster and more effective on wound healing than salt bath in fish

Malignant mixed mullerian tumor of the uterus associated with tamoxifen therapy in a patient with a history of breast cancer

Tamoxifen is the drug of choice in the treatment of breast cancer. Recent reports show an increased incidence of endometrial carcinoma in patients taking tamoxifen. In this article, we report a case of malignant mixed mullerian tumor after tamoxifen use. Copyright © 2006 by Razi Institute for Drug Research (RIDR)

Comparison of metronidazole and ceftizoxime in prophylaxis of post-hysterectomy infections

Ceftizoxime is a common agent used in prophylaxis of infections after abdominal hysterectomy. Metronidazole could be used instead of ceftizoxime for this matter. To compare these two drugs, in a randomized clinical trial, 30 patients received metronidazole suppositories (1g) and 33 patients received intravenous ceftizoxime (1g) before surgery. There were not any significant demographic (age, weight, parity, hospitalization duration, pre-operation hemoglobin) differences between two groups. Also, the incision type and post-operation bleeding were the same in two groups. The complications after abdominal hysterectomy such as febrile morbidity, urinary tract infections and wound infections were not significantly different between two treatment groups. These results indicate that a single dose metronidazole has the same effect as ceftizoxime in infection prophylaxis of post-hysterectomy infection. Copyright © 2006 by Razi Institute for Drug Research (RIDR)

Can we substitute brush cytology for biopsy in the evaluation of cervical lesions under the guidance of colposcopy?

In cervical cancer screening, colposcopically directed biopsy is the gold standard method for identifying intraepithelial and occult invasive lesions of the uterine cervix. As biopsy needs special expertise and the procedure is not convenient for the patients, we sought to evaluate colposcopically directed brush cytology as a substitute for biopsy of cervical lesions. We studied a series of 150 women who were referred for colposcopic evaluation. Colposcopically directed brush cytology and biopsy were performed for all patients with abnormal colposcopic findings. A total of 40 samples were excluded due to unsatisfactory report of brush cytology. Of the remaining 110 samples, 34 abnormal pathologies were reported in biopsy evaluations, while only 9 abnormal cytologies were reported in brush cytology specimens. Brush cytology sensitivity and specificity were 26 and 97, respectively. We conclude that colposcopically directed brush cytology is not a safe substitute for biopsy in the evaluation of cervical lesions. © 2005 IGCS