Skin prick testing with extensively heated milk or egg products helps predict the outcome of an oral food challenge: a retrospective analysis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cow’s milk and hen’s egg are the most frequently encountered food allergens in the pediatric population. Skin prick testing (SPT) with commercial extracts followed by an oral food challenge (OFC) are routinely performed in the diagnostic investigation of these children. Recent evidence suggests that milk-allergic and/or egg-allergic individuals can often tolerate extensively heated (EH) forms of these foods. This study evaluated the predictive value of a negative SPT with EH milk or egg in determining whether a child would tolerate an OFC to the EH food product.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Charts from a single allergy clinic were reviewed for any patient with a negative SPT to EH milk or egg, prepared in the form of a muffin. Data collected included age, sex, symptoms of food allergy, co-morbidities and the success of the OFC to the muffin.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Fifty-eight patients had negative SPTs to the EH milk or egg in a muffin and underwent OFC to the appropriate EH food in the outpatient clinic. Fifty-five of these patients tolerated the OFC. The negative predictive value for the SPT with the EH food product was 94.8%.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>SPT with EH milk or egg products was predictive of a successful OFC to the same food. Larger prospective studies are required to substantiate these findings.</p

Burden of diarrhea in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, 1990-2015: Findings from the Global Burden of Disease 2015 study

publishedVersio

Isolated ectopic cilia in an 11-year-old girl

Ectopic cilia (EC) are a very rare condition with only few cases reported in literature. Many associations were seen with ectopic cilia which include distichiasis, choristoma and aberrant lacrimal gland, hypochromic nevus, atopic eczema and others. We are reporting a case of an 11-year-old girl with isolated left upper lid ectopic cilia, which was confirmed by surgical removal and histopathological study

Combined phacocanaloplasty for open-angle glaucoma and cataract: 12 months results

Mahmoud Mohamed Genaidy, Hosny Ahmed Zein, Ahmed Mostafa Eid Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Minia University, Minia, Egypt Purpose of the study: To evaluate efficacy, safety, and success rates of canaloplasty combined with phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation in patients with open-angle glaucoma (OAG) and visually significant cataract.Patients and methods: A prospective interventional noncomparative case series carried out in Minia University Hospital from April 2015 to October 2016 on 20 eyes of 18 patients who had visually significant cataract and primary OAG. All the cases had combined phacocanaloplasty. Preoperative best-corrected visual acuity, intraocular pressure (IOP), and number of antiglaucoma medications were collected and compared to postoperative levels, and complications rates were recorded.Results: 20 eyes of 18 patients (5 males and 15 females), with a mean age 57.6 years (range 48&ndash;69&nbsp;years), underwent phacocanaloplasty. Preoperative mean IOP was 25.20 &plusmn;1.009&nbsp;mmHg. Postoperative IOP decreased to a mean of 14.20&plusmn;0.9, 14.85&plusmn;0.8, and 15.85&plusmn;0.7 mmHG at 3, 6, and 12&nbsp;months, respectively, with 37% reduction from preoperative IOP level at one year follow-up visit (P=0.0005). The number of antiglaucoma medications dropped from mean of 1.55 preoperatively to 0.35 postoperatively. LogMAR of best-corrected visual acuity improved from 0.6950&plusmn;0.07 preoperatively to 0.3670&plusmn;0.056, 0.3460&plusmn;0.056, and 0.03370&plusmn;0.052 at 3, 6, and 12&nbsp;months postoperatively (P=0.0005). Complications were limited to mild hyphemia (one case), mild corneal edema (one case), and mild inflammatory membrane (one case) that resolved in the first week after surgery.Conclusion: Canaloplasty combined with clear corneal phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation may be a safe and effective procedure to lower IOP in adult patients with OAG and visually significant cataract. Keywords: cataract, glaucoma, phacoemulsification, canaloplast

An updated systematic review with meta-analysis for the clinical evidence of silymarin

BACKGROUND: The potential benefit of silymarin (special extract from the fruits of Silybum marianum) in the treatment of liver diseases remains a controversial issue. METHODS: For this systematic review electronic databases identified 65 papers for the search terms silymarin, silibinin, silicristin or milk thistle and clinical trial. Only 19 complied with the criteria'double-' or 'single-blind'. These publications were analysed from a clinical point of view and meta-analytic calculations were performed. RESULTS: The clinical evidence ofa therapeutic effect of silymarin in toxic liver diseases is scarce. There is no evidence of a favourable influence on the evolution of viral hepatitis, particularly hepatitis C. In alcoholic liver disease, comparing with placebo, aspartate aminotransferase was reduced in the silymarin-treated groups (p = 0.01) while alkaline phosphatase was not. In liver cirrhosis, mostly alcoholic, total mortality was 16.1% with silymarin vs. 20.5% with placebo (n.s.); liver-related mortality was 10.0% with silymarin vs. 17.3% with placebo(p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Based on the available clinical evidence it can be concluded - concerning possible risks /probable benefits - that it is reasonable to employ silymarin as a supportive element in the therapy of Amanita phalloides poisoning but also (alcoholic and grade Child 'A') liver cirrhosis. A consistent research programme, consolidating existing evidence and exploring new potential uses,would be very welcome