Pediatric Acupuncture: A Review of Clinical Research

Practiced in China for more than 2000 years, acupuncture has recently gained increased attention in the United States as an alternative treatment approach for a variety of medical conditions. Despite its growing prevalence and anecdotal reports of success among pediatric populations, few empirically based studies have assessed the efficacy of acupuncture for children and adolescents. This article presents a review of the current literature, including a systematic appraisal of the methodological value of each study and a discussion of potential benefits and adverse effects of acupuncture. While acupuncture holds great promise as a treatment modality for diverse pediatric conditions, a significant amount of additional research is necessary to establish an empirical basis for the incorporation of acupuncture into standard care

Acromegaly and thyroid carcinoma

WOS: A1996VD87300020PubMed ID: 888146

Familial occurrence of subacute thyroiditis

WOS: 000175229400014PubMed ID: 12081240Although subacute thyroiditis (de Quervain's thyroiditis) is presumed to be caused by a viral infection, only 2 familial occurrences of subacute thyroiditis have been reported in the literature. Typical and severe subacute thyroiditis was diagnosed in an older sister who was hospitalized for 8 days. During this period her younger sister nursed her. Three weeks after, the same clinical picture occurred in the younger sister. We postulate that subacute thyroiditis might occur by transmission of possible viral infection in genetically predisposed individuals

Relationship between the serum digoxin level and left ventricular ejection time

Correlation between the difference obtained from the determination of left ventricular ejection time before and after digitalisation and digoxin level was investigated. It was concluded that the determination of the decrease in the value of left ventricular ejection time following digitalisation period is a limited and rough method for the determination of serum digoxin level

Is the effect of fine-needle aspiration biopsy on the thyroid nodule volume important to evaluate the effectiveness of suppression therapy?

WOS: 000185781300011PubMed ID: 14594117Fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) is recommended for the initial evaluation of thyroid nodule. If a benign cytology is obtained, suppression therapy with levothyroxine is the first choice in the management of nodular goiter with a follow-up of nodule size with ultrasonography, but the effects of FNAB have not been taken into consideration in this approach. We aimed at evaluating the effect of FNAB on thyroid volume and other ultrasonographic dimensions by measurement of these parameters before and immediately after the procedure, and in later periods, and to clarify the necessity of regarding the effects of FNAB on thyroid. Forty-six patients (34 females, 12 males; mean age: 36.3+/-10.7 yr) with solitary thyroid nodules were included in the study. The nodules were solid in ultrasonography, thyroid function tests were normal and results of FNAB were found as benign cytology. Thyroid hormone suppression therapy was not initiated. Ultrasonographic measurements were made before FNAB, repeated immediately after FNAB, and 1 month and 6 months later. There were no statistically significant changes in the mean thyroid nodule volume, nodule area and circumference of patients before, immediately after FNAB, 1 month and 6 months later. Size differences and individual variability at each time period were analyzed. These parameters changed by more than 10% in a great majority (69.5-78.2%) of patients, and more than 50% change was observed in 17.3-26.0% of patients. Changes in thyroid dimensions were bi-directional, both increment and decrement being noticed. It was thought that this is the reason why there was no significant change in mean nodule volume, area and circumference. Evaluating the difference in nodule volume according to ultrasonographic parameters obtained before FNAB may be misleading because of the individual change in these parameters with FNAB. It may be useful to evaluate the nodule size and volume closely after FNAB to make a true correspondence of these parameters in the long term. (C) 2003, Editrice Kurtis

Thyroid hemiagenesis associated with Graves' disease and graves' ophthalmopathy: case report

WOS: 000220011100012PubMed ID: 15009918Failure of embryologic development of a lobe of the thyroid gland is a rare anomaly. Usually, this condition is diagnosed when there are some other pathologic conditions in the gland and is often found when a patient presents with a thyroid nodule, which in reality is compensatory hypertrophy of the side that is present, therefore appearing as a nodule. A variety of pathological conditions occur in the remaining thyroid tissue in association with this rare anomaly such as adenoma, carcinoma, subacute thyroiditis, colloid nodule, Graves' disease, simple goiter, and Hashimoto thyroiditis. Association of Graves' disease with ophthalmopathy and thyroid hemiagenesis is quite rare and very few cases are reported in the literature. We report a 29-year-old female presented as Graves' disease and Graves' ophthalmopathy with left lobe hemiagenesis of the thyroid gland

Occurrence of Riedel's Thyroiditis in the course of sub-acute thyroiditis

WOS: 000087984300008PubMed ID: 10908168Riedel's Thyroiditis is an uncommon form of chronic thyroiditis characterized by an invasive fibrosclerosis of the gland, often involving surrounding tissue. The relationship of Riedel's Thyroiditis to other forms of thyroiditis is not clear. We presented a 47 year-old woman first diagnosed with sub-acute thyroiditis based on clinical findings and laboratory results. Eight months later, she had a thyroidectomy operation due to an enlargement of the thyroid gland and symptoms of compression. Histopathologic evaluation showed that she had Riedel's Thyroiditis, but there were some histopathologic findings of sub-acute thyroiditis as well. Until now, there has only been one case reported in which Riedel's Thyroiditis was diagnosed in a patient with a history of sub-acute thyroiditis in the literature. Although aetiology of Riedel's Thyroiditis is unknown, it may develop in the course of sub-acute thyroiditis. (C)2000, Editrice Kurtis

Salivary cortisol levels in children during dental treatment.

PubMed ID: 9569792Cortisol which is also called as stress hormone, is used as an indicator in the stress evaluation studies. 60 children who never visited a dentist before, participated in the present study. Saliva samples were collected from 30 children without any dental treatment (control group). Experimental group comprised 30 children with caries. Saliva samples were obtained at various stages during dental treatment. Totally 180 samples were collected and the cortisol levels were measured. Paired-t test has shown that the salivary cortisol levels at various stages of dental treatment in the experiment group were significantly higher in comparison with the control group. It is concluded that dental treatment may cause extreme stress in children who never had dental treatment experience before

Glomerular filtration rate and kidney size in type 2 hypertensive diabetic patients

Glomerular hyperfiltration is thought to play an important role in the genesis of diabetic nephropathy. While hyperfiltration is well documented in early Type 1 diabetes, the evidence for hyperfiltration in type 2 diabetes is conflicting. The aim of this study was to find out whether Type 2 hypertensive diabetic patients have hyperfiltration and renal hypertrophy and to asses the effects of an angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, perindopril, on glomerular filtration rate (GFR), kidney size in hypertensive Type 2 diabetic patients. GFR and kidney size have been studied in 32 Type 2 hypertensive diabetic patients (M:F 16:16, mean age 40.9±1.2 year, mean duration of diabetes 2.6 ± 1.0 month) and 30 normal controls (M:F 15:15, mean age 40. 3 .± 2.5) enrolled into this study. In normal subjects total GFR, right and left kidney sizes (length × width) were 105.3 ± 7.0 ml/min, 101.4±2.3 mm × 55.7±3.8 mm and 102.8±2.1 mm × 52.0 ± 4.2 mm. In diabetic patients total GFR, right and left kidney sizes (length width) were 100.6 ± 7.1 ml/min (p> 0.05), 99.12 ± 1.5 mm × 50.03 ± 1.08 mm (p >0.05) and 101.0 ± 1.4 mm × 47.53 ± 1.2 mm (p>0.05) respectively. Patients were prescribed perindopril for eight months. After perindopril treatment, GFR and kidney size did not change significantly. In conclusion there was no hyperfiltration and renal hypertrophy in Type 2 hypertensive diabetic patients. The lack of glomerular hypertrophy, nephromegaly and hyperfiltration suggests that diabetic glomerulopathy is not always associated with preceding hyperfiltration. As a result of this, perindopril therapy did not change kidney size and glomerular filtration rate