Effectiveness of amlexanox and adcortyl for the treatment of recurrent aphthous ulcers

Background: Recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) is a common condition that affects approximately 20% of the general population. The ulcers can interfere with speech and eating and cause significant pain and discomfort. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of Amlexanox and Adcortyl in the treatment of aphthous ulcers. Material and Methods: In this randomized double blind clinical trial with sequential patient entry, a total of 40 patients who presented with aphthous ulcers were included. Patients were received Amlexanox or Adcortyl four times daily for 7 days. Patients were evaluated for pain, lesion size, and tingling at one day, three days, five days and seven days follow-ups. The treatment effects were then evaluated using the Wilcoxonâ Mannâ Whitney (WMW) test. Values of p<0.05 were considered significant. Results: No significant differences in pain score, tingling and lesion size were observed on similar days between Amlexanox and Adcortyl groups. In both groups, reduction in the assessed variables was significant between days 1-3, 3-5, and 5-7 (p < 0.001). Conclusions: This study indicated that Amlexanox as well as Adcortyl was effective in relieving pain and reducing the lesion size during the treatment of aphthous ulcers

Reliability of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology for Salivary Gland Lesions

Background and Aim: Fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology is a safe, reliable, mini-mally invasive and cost-effective technique for the diagnosis of salivary gland lesions. This study aimed to assess the accuracy, reliability and diagnostic value of FNA cytology in Iran. Materials and Methods: A total of 200 records of patients with a history of biopsy or surgical excision of salivary gland lesions along with their histological and cytological examination results were retrieved and evaluated in the Pathology Department of Amir Alam Hospital during 2007-2013. The results of cytological diagnosis were divided into 4 groups of unfavorable, benign, suspicious and malignant. The cytological results were compared with the histological data. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predic-tive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of FNA cytology were calculated using SPSS version 16.00. Results: Of the specimens chosen for the study, 173 were from the parotid, 22 from the submandibular and 5 from the minor salivary glands. FNA cytological diagnosis was be-nign in 161 cases, suspicious for malignancy in 4 cases, and malignancy in 35 cases. Of 161 cases diagnosed as benign by FNA cytology, 25 were malignant and the frequency of false positive results was 15.5%. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV of the FNA test were 82, 53, 93, 72 and 84%, respectively. Conclusion: A good agreement exists between the FNA results and final histopathological diagnosis of salivary gland tumors. Also, this study showed that FNA cytology has mod-erate accuracy and relative diagnostic value for diagnosis of salivary gland lesions

Liposomal delivery system/adjuvant for tuberculosis vaccine

Abstract As reported by the World Health Organization, about 10 million individuals were infected with tuberculosis (TB) worldwide. Moreover, approximately 1.5 million people died of TB, of which 214,000 were infected with HIV simultaneously. Due to the high infection rate, the need for effective TB vaccination is highly felt. Until now, various methodologies have been proposed for the development of a protein subunit vaccine for TB. These vaccines have shown higher protection than other vaccines, particularly the Bacillus culture vaccine. The delivery system and safety regulator are common characteristics of effective adjuvants in TB vaccines and the clinical trial stage. The present study investigates the current state of TB adjuvant research focusing on the liposomal adjuvant system. Based on our findings, the liposomal system is a safe and efficient adjuvant from nanosize to microsize for vaccinations against TB, other intracellular infections, and malignancies. Clinical studies can provide valuable feedback for developing novel TB adjuvants, which ultimately enhance the impact of adjuvants on next‐generation TB vaccines