The relationship of monocyte to high density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio and complete blood count parameters with radiologic staging of knee osteoarthritis

Aim: To evaluate the predictive ability of bioindicators derived from complete blood count (CBC) parameters and monocyte-high density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio (MHR) in the diagnosis of radiological stage of knee osteoarthritis (OA) in this study. Method: This cross-sectional retrospective study was carried out between November 2017 and June 2021, in our physical therapy and rehabilitation clinics.  65 patients knee x-rays and routine laboratory results were included in the study. Each knee x-rays were assigned a grade from 0 to 4 (Kellgren-Lawrence Classification System (KL). Patients were divided into two groups according to severity of the knee OA as follows. Group 1: Mild-moderate OA (KL Grade1-2), Group 2: Severe OA (KL Grade 3-4). Results: Independent T test and Mann Whitney U test were used to assess whether there was a difference in CBC parameters and their derivatives between two groups. Platelet lymphocyte ratio (PLR), red cell distribution width (RDW) to platelet ratio (RPR) and platelet (PLT) counts indicated statistically significant differences between the groups, p-values were 0.04, 0.03 and 0.04 respectively. There were no significant differences in terms of MHR score between the groups. Conclusions: We could not find a relationship between MHR and radiological degree of knee osteoarthritis. However, there is a correlation between radiological stage of knee osteoarthritis and hemogram parameters like PLT and their derivatives such as PLR and RPR

Is acupuncture effective against pain in patients with Parkinson’s disease? A randomized controlled study

Aim: To investigate the efficacy of acupuncture application in the treatment of neck pain of musculoskeletal origin in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: Forty-five patients were screened, of whom 40 were enrolled and 29 completed the study. The patients were divided into two groups, each consisting of 20 individuals. The acupuncture group (AG) received acupuncture therapy in addition to neck exercises, while the control group (CG) performed only neck exercises. Both groups were enrolled in an exercise program, every day of the week for five weeks. The AG also received 10 sessions of acupuncture, twice weekly.  The Hoehn and Yahr Scale, the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), the Movement Disorder Society Unified Parkinson's Disease rating Scale-I (MDS-UPDRS-I), a Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), and the Neck Disability Index (NDI) were applied as data collection tools before and at the end of treatment. Results: Significant improvement was determined in both groups in post-treatment VAS, MDS-UPDRS-I, HAQ, and NDI values compared to pre-treatment (p<0.05). The improvement in VAS, MDS-UPDRS-I, HAQ, and NDI values was significantly greater in AG than in CG (p<0.05). Conclusion: With its local and systemic effects, acupuncture is a safe procedure capable of use for analgesia. However, further randomized, placebo-controlled studies will permit a more detailed evaluation of its therapeutic efficacy

Endothelial cell loss: Biaxial small-incision torsional phacoemulsification versus biaxial small-incision longitudinal phacoemulsification

PURPOSE: To compare clinical results of biaxial small-incision torsional phacoemulsification and biaxial small-incision longitudinal phacoemulsification

Związek między niskimi stężeniami bilirubiny a zjawiskiem zwolnionego przepływu wieńcowego

Background and aim: Increasing evidence suggests an inverse relationship between bilirubin levels and cardiovascular disease. The present study evaluated the effect of bilirubin level on the slow coronary flow (SCF) phenomenon. Methods: This study was cross-sectional and observational. We enrolled 222 consecutive patients who underwent coronary angiography for suspected ischaemic heart disease and were found to have normal or near-normal coronary arteries. Then, bilirubin levels were measured and coronary flow rate was assessed using the thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) frame count. SCF was defined as a TIMI frame count > 27 frames. Results: SCF was observed in at least one coronary vessel in 22 of the 222 subjects, indicating a prevalence of 10%. Serum bilirubin levels were significantly decreased in the SCF group. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, total bilirubin and diabetes mellitus were independent risk factors for SCF. Furthermore, after adjusting for age, sex, and cardiovascular disease risk factors, serum bilirubin level (B = –0.34, p < 0.001) was independently associated with TIMI frame count. Conclusions: These findings suggest that serum total bilirubin levels may be a useful marker for patients with the SCF phenomenon. We believe that further studies are needed to clarify the role of bilirubin in patients with SCF.Wstęp i cel: Coraz większa liczba dowodów naukowych wskazuje, że istnieje odwrotna zależność między stężeniem bilirubiny a chorobami sercowo-naczyniowymi. W niniejszym badaniu oceniono wpływ stężenia bilirubiny na zjawisko zwolnionego przepływu wieńcowego (SCF). Metody: Do tego przekrojowego badania obserwacyjnego włączono 222 kolejnych pacjentów, u których wykonano koronarografię z powodu podejrzenia choroby niedokrwiennej serca i stwierdzono prawidłowe lub prawie prawidłowe tętnice wieńcowe. Następnie zmierzono stężenie bilirubiny i oceniono szybkość przepływu wieńcowego, stosując metodę określania liczby klatek do pojawienia się środka cieniującego, użytą w badaniu Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI). Zwolniony przepływ wieńcowy zdefiniowano jako liczbę klatek TIMI wynoszącą > 27. Wyniki: W badanej populacji SCF w co najmniej 1 tętnicy wieńcowej stwierdzono u 22 chorych, co oznacza chorobowość wynoszącą 10%. Stężenia bilirubiny w surowicy były istotnie mniejsze w grupie osób z SCF. W wieloczynnikowej analizie regresji logistycznej całkowite stężenie bilirubiny i cukrzyca stanowiły niezależne czynniki ryzyka SCF. Ponadto po skorygowaniu względem wieku, płci i czynników ryzyka chorób sercowo-naczyniowych stężenie bilirubiny w surowicy (B = –0,34; p < 0,001) było niezależnie związane z liczbą klatek TIMI. Wnioski: Podsumowując, powyższe rezultaty wskazują, że całkowite stężenie bilirubiny w surowicy może być użytecznym wskaźnikiem u chorych, u których występuje SCF. Autorzy uważają, że należy przeprowadzić dalsze badania w celu sprecyzowania znaczenia oznaczeń stężenia bilirubiny u chorych z SCF

Low bilirubin levels are associated with coronary slow flow phenomenon

Background and aim: Increasing evidence suggests an inverse relationship between bilirubin levels and cardiovascular disease. The present study evaluated the effect of bilirubin level on the slow coronary flow (SCF) phenomenon

The association between gallstone disease and plaque in the abdominopelvic arteries

The aim of this study was to assess the atheromatous plaque, in the abdominopelvic arteries as a marker of cardiac risk in patients with or without gallstone disease (GD). Materials and Methods: A total of 136 patients were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Forty-eight patients had GD and the remaining 88 patients did not. The presence or absence of gallstones was noted during abdominal ultrasonography while vascular risk factors such as plaque formation, intima-media thickness, plaque calcification, mural thrombus, stenosis, aneurysm, and inflammation were recorded during an abdominopelvic computed tomography scan. In addition, percentage of the abdominopelvic aorta surface covered by atheromatous plaque was calculated. Results: The mean age of patients with GD and without GD was 50.81 +/- 16.20 and 50.40 +/- 12.43, respectively. Patients with GD were more likely to have diabetes mellitus, a higher body mass index (BMI) (P < 0.001), and higher cholesterol (P < 0.01), and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (P < 0.02) levels. No significant differences were found between the groups regarding other atherosclerotic risk factors. Patients with GD had significantly higher rates of the vascular risk factors as intima-media thickness, plaque formation, calcification, aneurysm, mural thrombosis, stenosis, and inflammation in all abdominal arterial segments other than aneurysm in the femoral arteries. In addition, patients with GD had severe atheromatous plaques in the abdominal aorta, common iliac, external iliac, and common femoral artery (CFA). In patients with GD, parameters of age, BMI, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure were all correlated with the severity of the atheromatous plaque in abdominal aorta, common iliac, external iliac, and CFA. Conclusion: We demonstrated a direct relationship between GD and abdominopelvic atheromatous plaque, which is a marker for increased cardiovascular risk, for the first time in the literature. Patients with GD exhibit greater abdominopelvic atherosclerosis and therefore, have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease

Effects of Intrathecai Verapamil on Cerebral Vasospasm in Experimental Rat Study

BACKGROUND: Verapamil a calcinarn channel blacker, has shown promising results on cerebral vasospasm. However, it has not yet been accepted for treatment or prevention purposes because of the associated side effects, Although the effective results of nimodipine and nicardipine's intrathecal administration are well known, intrathecal verapamil has not been considered earlier. We used an experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage induced vasospasm model for the evaluation of vasodilator and neuroprotective effects of intrathecal verapamil

NRGN, S100B and GFAP levels are significantly increased in patients with structural lesions resulting from mild traumatic brain injuries

Objective: To determine whether serum neurogranin (NRGN), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), and calcium-binding protein S100 beta (S100B) levels are associated with traumatic intracranial lesions compared to computed tomography (CT) findings of patients with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI)

Inhibition of Corneal Neovascularization by Topical and Subconjunctival Tigecycline

Objective. To investigate the effects of topical and subconjunctival tigecycline on the prevention of corneal neovascularization. Materials and Methods. Following chemical burn, thirty-two rats were treated daily with topical instillation of 1 mg/mL tigecycline (group 1) or subconjunctival instillation of 1 mg/mL tigecycline (group 3) for 7 days. Control rats received topical (group 2) or subconjunctival (group 4) 0.9% saline. Digital photographs of the cornea were taken on the eighth day after treatment and analyzed to determine the percentage area of the cornea covered by neovascularization. Corneal sections were analyzed histopathologically. Results. The median percentages of corneal neovascularization in groups 1 and 3 were 48% (95% confidence interval (CI), 44.2–55.8%) and 33.5% (95% CI, 26.6–39.2%), respectively. The median percentages of corneal neovascularization of groups 1 and 3 were significantly lower than that of the control group (P=0.03 and P<0.001, resp.). Histologic examination of samples from groups 1 and 3 showed lower vascularity than that of control groups. Conclusion. Topical and subconjunctival administration of tigecycline seems to be showing promising therapeutic effects on the prevention of corneal neovascularization. Furthermore, subconjunctival administration of tigecycline is more potent than topical administration in the inhibition of corneal neovascularization

DOES LEUKEMOID REACTION AFFECT PROGNOSIS IN PATIENTS WITH SOLID MALIGNANCIES?

Introduction: Although extreme leukocytosis is associated with increased mortality in patients with non-hematologic cancer patients, it is not well known. The prognosis of patients with extreme leukocytosis mainly depends on the underlying disease