Effects of olive oil on striae gravidarum in the second trimester of pregnancy

This study was performed in order to determine the effects of olive oil on striae gravidarum (SG) occurring within the second trimester of pregnancy.The intervention group, applied olive oil on their abdominal skin area twice a day until the end of the study term. The control group did not use any oil.Striae occurred in 40 of women using olive oil whilst striae were noted to occur in 50 of the control group. There was no significant difference between the intervention and control groups.This study notes that the use of olive oil to the end of the second trimester in pregnancy was not effective in reducing the occurrence of striae gravidarum. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd

Emerging green techniques for the extraction of antioxidants from agri-food by-products as promising ingredients for the food industry

Nowadays, the food industry is heavily involved in searching for green sources of valuable compounds, to be employed as potential food ingredients, to cater to the evolving consumers’ requirements for health-beneficial food ingredients. In this frame, agri-food by-products represent a low-cost source of natural bioactive compounds, including antioxidants. However, to effectively recover these intracellular compounds, it is necessary to reduce the mass transfer resistances represented by the cellular envelope, within which they are localized, to enhance their extractability. To this purpose, emerging extraction technologies, have been proposed, including Supercritical Fluid Extraction, Microwave-Assisted Extraction, Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction, High-Pressure Homogenization, Pulsed Electric Fields, High Voltage Electrical Discharges. These technologies demonstrated to be a sustainable alternative to conventional extraction, showing the potential to increase the extraction yield, decrease the extraction time and solvent consumption. Additionally, in green extraction processes, also the contribution of solvent selection, as well as environmental and economic aspects, represent a key factor. Therefore, this review focused on critically analyzing the main findings on the synergistic effect of low environmental impact technologies and green solvents towards the green extraction of antioxidants from food by-products, by discussing the main associated advantages and drawbacks, and the criteria of selection for process sustainability

Effect of olive oil on striae gravidarum

Background and Objective: Striae gravidarum is one of the cutaneous physiological changes during pregnancy with a high prevalence. This study was done to evaluate the effect of olive oil on prevention of striae gravidarum. Materials and Methods: In a randomized controlled clinical trial, 100 nulliparous women referring to Tehran health ceatens were gone under investigation during 2009. Those whome had the inclusion criteria were divided to experimental group (using olive oil) and control group. The questionnaire was completed via interview and observation. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Chi-Square test. Results: Moderate striae gravidarum was seen 32% and 22% in intervention and conrtol groups, respectively. Severe striae gravidarum was 6% and 14% in intervention and control groups, respectively, but this diference was not significant. Conclusion: This study showed that olive oil did not demonstrate to have any role in reducing of stria gravidarum

Surveillance, control and management of infections in intensive care units in Southern Europe, Turkey and Iran--a prospective multicenter point prevalence study

PMID = 2426995

Surveillance, control and management of infections in intensive care units in Southern Europe, Turkey and Iran--a prospective multicenter point prevalence study

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to compare the features of intensive care units (ICUs), their antimicrobial resistance patterns, infection control policies, and distribution of infectious diseases from central Europe to Mid-West Asia. METHODS: A cross-sectional point prevalence study was performed in 88 ICUs from 12 countries. Characteristics of ICUs, patient and antibiotic therapy data were collected with a standard form by infectious diseases specialists. RESULTS: Out of 749, 305 patients at least with one infectious disease were assessed and 254 patients were reported to have coexistent medical problems. When primary infectious diseases diagnoses of the patients were evaluated, 69 had community-acquired, 61 had healthcare-associated, and 176 had hospital-acquired infections. Pneumonia was the most frequent ICU infection seen in half of the patients. Distribution of frequent pathogens was as follows: Enteric Gram-negatives (n = 62, 28.8), Acinetobacter spp. (n = 47, 21.9), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n = 29, 13.5). Multidrug resistance profiles of the infecting microorganisms seem to have a uniform pattern throughout Southern Europe and Turkey. On the other hand, active and device-associated infection surveillance was performed in Turkey more than Iran and Southeastern Europe (p < 0.05). However, designing antibiotic treatment according to culture results was highest in Southeastern Europe (p < 0.05). The most frequently used antibiotics were carbapenems (n = 92, 30.2), followed by anti-gram positive agents (vancomycin, teicoplanin, linezolid, daptomycin, and tigecycline; n = 79, 25.9), beta-lactam/beta lactamase inhibitors (n = 78, 25.6), and extended-spectrum cephalosporins (n = 73, 23.9). CONCLUSION: ICU features appears to have similar characteristics from the infectious diseases perspective, although variability seems to exist in this large geographical area

Systematic review of single and combined treatments for different types of striae : A comparison of striae treatments

Acknowledgements The authors would like to express their gratitude to the staff of Rasool Akram Medical Complex Clinical Research Development Center (RCRDC) for their technical and editorial assistance.Peer reviewedPostprin