Acalvaria: An Extremely Rare Congenital Skull Malformation

Acalvaria defined as absent skull bones, is an extremely rare congenital anomaly with only a handful of cases reported in literature. In this report we presented a male newborn case of acalvaria referred to our hospital (Shahid Motahari hospital of Urmia, Iran). The condition per se has been described as having high mortality rate. Very few living cases, less than ten, have been reported till now

Tele Education in Diabetic Patients during Coronavirus Outbreak

The number of cases of infection to coronavirus disease (COVID)-19, human casualties and economic losses are increasing, and one of the high-risk groups in which the risk of infection and death is high is diabetics. People with diabetes experience severe symptoms and complications if they are infected by COVID-19. One way to control and prevent the spread of the coronavirus is to stay home, avoid daily physical interactions, and quarantine at home. Due to the high prevalence of diabetes and the importance of long-term follow-up, Tele education in diabetic patients is one of the methods that provide care using communication means. As the quality of information received by diabetic patients improves, their awareness of treatment goals and, consequently, their acceptance of treatment methods will increase, which in turn will lead to greater effectiveness and better treatment outcomes. Finally, Tele education reduces contact between diabetics and physicians, therapists, and health care providers, thereby reducing the risk of disease

The Effect of Probiotics on Late-Onset Sepsis in Very Preterm Infants: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background Late onset sepsis is a frequent complication of prematurity, associated with increased mortality and morbidity. Probiotics may prevent late onset sepsis in premature infants. The aim of this study was to determine prophylactic effect of oral probiotics in prevention of late onset sepsis of very preterm infants. Materials and Methods This study was a randomized, double blinded, placebo controlled trial. Eighty preterm infants born at 0.05). Conclusion According to the results, usage of prophylactic probiotics can reduce the incidence of late onset sepsis and its mortality. By consuming probiotics preterm infants could reach the full enteral feeding in a shorter period of time, but the duration of hospitalization not reduced

The Effect of Home Phototherapy in Jaundice and Bilirubin Levels of Neonates in Urmia City

Neonatal jaundice is one of the most common diseases in neonatal medicine. Phototherapy is a safe and secure method and is one of the most common treatments of indirect hyperbilirubinemia. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of home phototherapy in neonatal hyperbilirubinemia in Urmia. The present study is a cross-sectional study by the Cohort method. Two hundred three full-term infants older than 24 hours, who were referred to phototherapy for home phototherapy for two months, were selected as the study population. Neonatal serum bilirubin levels in both groups were measured at the beginning and 24 hours after phototherapy. The collected data were analyzed by using SPSS-20. In this study, the mean neonatal bilirubin level before phototherapy was 14.33 ±2.41 mg/dl before and 8.11 ± 2.29 mg/dl after phototherapy. The reduction rate of bilirubin after home phototherapy was 6.6 mg/dl per day and these differences were statistically significant. During phototherapy at home, phototherapy was successful in 96.6% of the neonates recovered, and only seven neonates (3.4%) had complications. Due to the lower prevalence of complications and low duration of treatment, it can be concluded that home phototherapy can be a good alternative for the treatment of neonatal jaundice. Therefore, this method is recommended for the treatment of neonatal jaundice through proper phototherapy training at home

Assessment of the Role of Maternal Characteristics, Mental Health and Maternal Marital Satisfaction in Prediction of Neonatal Birth Weight

Background Neonatal mortality comprises a large part of infant mortality, and it depends largely on neonatal birth weight. Besides maternal diseases, it seems that other important factors such as maternal demographic characteristics, mental health and marital satisfaction, affects their infants birth weight. This study conducted aiming to evaluate these affecting factors on neonatal birth weight. Materials and Methods  This study was descriptive – correlative, and conducted on all of the mothers and their neonates who were 200 mothers and neonates born during the summer 2015, in Urmia Kosar hospital that lasted 6 months. We used the GHQ (General Health Questionnaire), to evaluate the mental status of mothers and ENRICH for the evaluation of marital satisfaction. Demographic characteristics of mothers collected to special forms. Results In this study, 200 mothers, and 200 neonates born in Kosar Hospital were studied. The mean age of the mothers was 28.06 ± 6.34 years and the duration of pregnancy was 39.14 ± 1.21 months. The amount of obtained was significant for pregnancy duration in predicting neonatal birth weight. In marital status parameters, beta amounts for economic, family and communication was significant in predicting neonatal birth weight. Among parameters of maternal mental health, correlation of depression was significant in predicting neonatal birth weight. Conclusion According to results, in white race low maternal age was a risk factor for bearing low birth weight baby. Marital satisfaction and bearing no stress from husband lets the fetus grow well and reaches normal birth weight

Novel inflammatory markers for incident pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes: the Rotterdam Study

The immune response involved in each phase of type 2 diabetes (T2D) development might be different. We aimed to identify novel inflammatory markers that predict progression from normoglycemia to pre-diabetes, incident T2D and insulin therapy. We used plasma levels of 26 inflammatory markers in 971 subjects from the Rotterdam Study. Among them 17 are novel and 9 previously studied. Cox regression models were built to perform survival analysis. Main Outcome Measures: During a follow-up of up to 14.7 years (between April 1, 1997, and Jan 1, 2012) 139 cases of pre-diabetes, 110 cases of T2D and 26 cases of insulin initiation were identified. In age and sex adjusted Cox models, IL13 (HR = 0.78), EN-RAGE (1.30), CFH (1.24), IL18 (1.22) and CRP (1.32) were associated with incident pre-diabetes. IL13 (0.62), IL17 (0.75), EN-RAGE (1.25), complement 3 (1.44), IL18 (1.35), TNFRII (1.27), IL1ra (1.24) and CRP (1.64) were associated with incident T2D. In multivariate models, IL13 (0.77), EN-RAGE (1.23) and CRP (1.26) remained associated with pre-diabetes. IL13 (0.67), IL17 (0.76) and CRP (1.32) remained associated with T2D. IL13 (0.55) was the only marker associated with initiation of insulin therapy in diabetics. Various inflammatory markers are associated with progression from normoglycemia to pre-diabetes (IL13, EN-RAGE, CRP), T2D (IL13, IL17, CRP) or insulin therapy start (IL13). Among them, EN-RAGE is a novel inflammatory marker for pre-diabetes, IL17 for incident T2D and IL13 for pre-diabetes, incident T2D and insulin therapy start

The Effect of Abdominal Touch on Nutritional Tolerance in Premature Infants: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trail

Background The most common cause of death during neonatal period is prematurity. Nutritional tolerance is very important in this period. If during this period the problems of feeding the preterm infant are not resolved, chronic disorder occurs in normal growth. Materials and Methods In this randomized controlledclinical trial we selected 60 preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit of Motahhari Hospital in Urmia, Iran, and randomly assigned to control and intervention groups. The infants were touched using Field technique by olive oil in two steps in the morning and evening, with a time of 15 minutes by first researcher. Nutritional tolerance was evaluated using the "Daily Observation Chart" and by gavage milk volume, abdominal circumference, the frequency of defecations and gastric residual volume. The data were collected during 4 consecutive days and the results were compared on the fourth day, with the first day. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 17.0. Results According to the results, the abdominal circumference after touch was less in the intervention group (1.77±1.38) compared to the control group (1.43±1.22) (

A genome-wide scan for microrna-related genetic variants associated with primary open-angle glaucoma

PURPOSE: To identify microRNAs (miRNAs) involved in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), using genetic data. MiRNAs are small noncoding RNAs that posttranscriptionally regulate gene expression. Genetic variants in miRNAs or miRNA-binding sites within gene 3’-untranslated regions (3’UTRs) are expected to affect miRNA function and con

Gait patterns associated with thyroid function: The Rotterdam Study

Gait is an important health indicator and poor gait is strongly associated with disability and risk of falls. Thyroid dysfunction is suggested as a potential determinant of gait deterioration, but this has not been explored in a population-based study. We therefore investigated the association of thyroid function with gait patterns in 2645 participants from the Rotterdam Study with data available on TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone), FT4 (free thyroxine) and gait, without known thyroid disease or dementia. The primary outcome was Global gait (standardized Z-score), while secondary outcomes included gait domains (Rhythm, Variability, Phases, Pace, Base of support, Tandem, Turning) and velocity. Gait was assessed by electronic walkway. Multivariable regression models revealed an inverted U-shaped association of TSH (p < 0.001), but no association of FT4 concentrations with Global gait (p = 0.2). TSH levels were positively associated with Base of support (p = 0.01) and followed an inverted U-shaped curve with Tandem (p = 0.002) and velocity (p = 0.02). Clinical and subclinical hypothyroidism were associated with worse Global gait than euthyroidism (β =-0.61; CI =-1.03,-0.18; p = 0.004 and β =-0.13; CI =-0.26,-0.00; p = 0.04, respectively). In euthyroid participants, higher thyroid function was associated with worse gait patterns. In conclusion, both low and high thyroid function are associated with alterations in Global gait, Tandem, Base of support and velocity