Relationship Between Women's Body Mass Index and Success Rate of in Vitro Fertilization

Background: Infertility considered a traumatic life event and   assisted reproductive technology is a revolution for infertility treatment, in vitro fertilization is one of the most common assisted reproductive technology procedures performed, there are so many factors that affect the success rate of in vitro fertilization. Body mass index is one of the controlled factors which affecting in vitro fertilization success. Aim The aim of this study was to explore the relation between maternal body mass index & in vitro fertilization success rate. Subject and methods: a descriptive correlational design conducted by prospectively investigating the in vitro fertilization cycles of 100 women they were within the age from 25 to 35 years who were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria in a private assisted reproductive technology clinic between 2015 and 2016. The women were classified into six groups based on their body mass index, i.e., under weight (n=5), normal weight (n=9), overweight (n=36), obese grade I (n=32), obese grade II (n=14), and obese grade III (n=4). Then, body mass index - and related variations in the in vitro fertilization cycle parameters and clinical pregnancy rates of women were investigated. T-test and analysis of variance One Way ANOVA test were used. For finding the differences between categorical data, nonparametric Chi-square (X2) test was used to determine whether there was a relation between body mass index and in vitro fertilization success rate. Results: Finding of the study show that the mean age is 29.75± 3.88 years. According to the classes of body mass index, 36% of women were overweight body mass index (25-29.9kg/m), 32% were grade I obesity body mass index (30-34.9kg/m), 9% normal weight body mass index (18.5-24.9kg/m), and 5% underweight body mass index ( less than18.9kg/m). Eighty-one percent of women had primary infertility. Variations in variables with body mass index showed that doses of drugs for ovulation induction were negatively affected by body mass index. Ovulation induction cycles were found to be negatively affected by body mass index. Chemical pregnancy rate was found to be negatively affected by body mass index. Higher implantation rate was associated with normal body weight .Clinical pregnancy rates were found to be lower in the obesity grade III than in the other groups. Conclusion: The present study evaluated the relation between body mass index and in vitro fertilization success rates according to their body mass index groups, the clinical pregnancy rates were observed to be lower in the obesity grade III than in the other body mass index groups. Recommendations: Provide women undergoing in vitro fertilization process with a counseling program or teaching class about factors affecting the success of the procedure, administration of medication and follow up. Keywords:Body mass index, success rate, in vitro fertilization

Reading the Mind in the Eyes: Theory of Mind in Acute Psychosis and Schizophrenia

Background: The extant literature indicates that patients with acute psychosis or schizophrenia, as well as nonpsychotic first-degree relatives of patients with schizophrenia, all exhibit “Theory of Mind” (TOM) impairments. Objective: To assess TOM functioning and identify its correlates among a sample of patients with acute psychosis, schizophrenia and healthy controls. Methods: Case control study conducted on 20 patients with acute psychosis, 40 patients with schizophrenia and 60 healthy control volunteers. Patients admitted at Okasha Institute of Psychiatry, Ain Shams University Hospitals, diagnosed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders (SCID-I). Severity of symptoms assessed by the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms and the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms, while volunteers were assessed by General health questionnaire. All groups were assessed by Reading the mind in the eyes test (RMET). Results: There was significant difference between patients with schizophrenia who scored worse at the RMET than patients with acute psychosis while both have TOM deficit in comparison with the control group. No significant correlation between age or gender in all the three groups and their TOM functioning. There was significant negative correlation between duration of illness of patients with schizophrenia and their TOM functioning. In patients with acute psychosis group, negative symptoms were negatively correlated with the TOM functioning, while in patients with schizophrenia group positive and negative symptoms were negatively correlated with their TOM functioning

Vitamin E and N-Acetylcysteine as Antioxidant Adjuvant Therapy in Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Although cancer therapies have experienced great success nowadays, yet the associated toxic response and free radicals formation have resulted in significant number of treatment-induced deaths rather than disease-induced fatalities. Complications of chemotherapy have forced physicians to study antioxidant use as adjunctive treatment in cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the antioxidant role of vitamin E and N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) in overcoming treatment-induced toxicity in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) during the intensive period of chemo-/radiotherapy, almost the first two months of treatment. Forty children newly diagnosed with ALL were enrolled in this study. Twenty children (group I) have taken vitamin E and NAC supplementations with chemotherapy and the other twenty children (group II) have not taken any adjuvant antioxidant therapy. They were evaluated clinically for the occurrence of complications and by the laboratory parameters (blood levels of glutathione peroxidase (Glu.PX) antioxidant enzyme, malondialdehyde (MDA), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), liver enzymes, and bone marrow picture). Results revealed reduced chemotherapy and radiotherapy toxicity as evidenced by decreasing level of MDA, increasing level of Glu.Px and decreased occurrence of toxic hepatitis, haematological complications, and need for blood and platelet transfusions in group I compared to group II. We can conclude that vitamin E and NAC have been shown to be effective as antioxidant adjuvant therapy in children with ALL to reduce chemo-/radiotherapy-related toxicities during the initial period of treatment

Contribution of coagulation factor VII R353Q polymorphism to the risk of thrombotic disorders development (venous and arterial): A case-control study

Background: Elevated factor VII (FVII) level is a risk factor for thromboembolic disorders. It was reported that the FVII R353Q polymorphism is associated with variation in plasma FVII levels, where Q allele carriers were more associated with lower levels of FVII than R allele carriers. However, the association between coagulation FVII R353 Q polymorphisms and the risk of thrombosis is uncertain.Aim of the study: Is to investigate the contribution of factor VII R353Q gene polymorphism to the risk of thrombotic disorders development (venous and arterial) in a group of Egyptian patients.Subjects and methods: This study was conducted on 310 subjects: 110 acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients, 108 deep venous thrombosis (DVT) patients and 92 healthy controls. FVII R353Q genotypes were assessed using restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.Results: There were no statistically significant differences in the frequency of FVII R353Q polymorphism between each of the AMI and DVT patients and the control group (P = 0.9, 0.1). However the Q allele showed a significantly higher frequency in the AMI group (15.4%) vs. controls (8.7%) (OR: 1.92; 95% CI: 0.98–3.7). Bivariate analysis demonstrated no significant association between FVII R353Q genotypes and different studied risk factors, neither in arterial nor venous thrombosis.Conclusion: FVII R353Q polymorphism did not contribute to an increased risk of thrombosis (arterial and venous); also carrying the Q allele (of R353Q) did not confer protection against acute thrombotic events

Clinical Study Vitamin E and N-Acetylcysteine as Antioxidant Adjuvant Therapy in Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Although cancer therapies have experienced great success nowadays, yet the associated toxic response and free radicals formation have resulted in significant number of treatment-induced deaths rather than disease-induced fatalities. Complications of chemotherapy have forced physicians to study antioxidant use as adjunctive treatment in cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the antioxidant role of vitamin E and N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) in overcoming treatment-induced toxicity in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) during the intensive period of chemo-/radiotherapy, almost the first two months of treatment. Forty children newly diagnosed with ALL were enrolled in this study. Twenty children (group I) have taken vitamin E and NAC supplementations with chemotherapy and the other twenty children (group II) have not taken any adjuvant antioxidant therapy. They were evaluated clinically for the occurrence of complications and by the laboratory parameters (blood levels of glutathione peroxidase (Glu.PX) antioxidant enzyme, malondialdehyde (MDA), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), liver enzymes, and bone marrow picture). Results revealed reduced chemotherapy and radiotherapy toxicity as evidenced by decreasing level of MDA, increasing level of Glu.Px and decreased occurrence of toxic hepatitis, haematological complications, and need for blood and platelet transfusions in group I compared to group II. We can conclude that vitamin E and NAC have been shown to be effective as antioxidant adjuvant therapy in children with ALL to reduce chemo-/radiotherapy-related toxicities during the initial period of treatment

The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010-19 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Understanding the magnitude of cancer burden attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is crucial for development of effective prevention and mitigation strategies. We analysed results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 to inform cancer control planning efforts globally. Methods The GBD 2019 comparative risk assessment framework was used to estimate cancer burden attributable to behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risk factors. A total of 82 risk-outcome pairs were included on the basis of the World Cancer Research Fund criteria. Estimated cancer deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2019 and change in these measures between 2010 and 2019 are presented. Findings Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4.45 million (95% uncertainty interval 4.01-4.94) deaths and 105 million (95.0-116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44.4% (41.3-48.4) of all cancer deaths and 42.0% (39.1-45.6) of all DALYs. There were 2.88 million (2.60-3.18) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50.6% [47.8-54.1] of all male cancer deaths) and 1.58 million (1.36-1.84) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36.3% [32.5-41.3] of all female cancer deaths). The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20.4% (12.6-28.4) and DALYs by 16.8% (8.8-25.0), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34.7% [27.9-42.8] and 33.3% [25.8-42.0]). Interpretation The leading risk factors contributing to global cancer burden in 2019 were behavioural, whereas metabolic risk factors saw the largest increases between 2010 and 2019. Reducing exposure to these modifiable risk factors would decrease cancer mortality and DALY rates worldwide, and policies should be tailored appropriately to local cancer risk factor burden. Copyright (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.Peer reviewe

Mathematics teachers' views on group work as a working method : a qualitative study of teachers' experiences of group work in the subject of mathematics

Sammanfattning/Abstract   Syftet med studien är att öka kunskapen om och förståelsen för grupparbete som arbetsmetod i matematikundervisningen i årskurserna 7–9. Vårt intresse är riktat mot hur matematiklärare upplever grupparbete som arbetsmetod och hur de ser på grupparbetets potential för vad gäller kunskapsutveckling. I denna studie har vi använt oss av en kvalitativ metodansats, semistrukturerade intervjuer och tematisk analys för att kunna få svar på våra frågeställningar och belysa matematiklärarnas egna erfarenheter, synsätt och uppfattningar kring grupparbete som undervisningsmetod. Resultatet understryker vikten av lärarens roll och ledarskap vid grupparbete. Resultatet betonar även grupparbetets betydelse för elevernas lärande, kunskapsutveckling och sociala förmågor såsom samarbetsförmåga och kommunikationsförmåga. I studiens resultat framkommer att lärarna tycks ha en negativ inställning gentemot grupparbete som undervisningsmetod i ämnet matematik. Lärarna i studien anser vidare att denna arbetsform som kan ge upphov till obekanta processer bland eleverna fordrar lärarens engagemang från början till slut och även utgör utmaning för både lärare och elever.