An MRI longitudinal study in Low back Pain Patients: Assessment of Disc Herniation Grade 2

Background: A herniated disc is assessed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). We assessed a correlation between MRI findings at baseline and follow-up to determine whether there is an ability to predict future progress in LBP among LBP patients with moderate disc prolapse (grade 2-disc herniation). Method: This is was a prospective longitudinal study conducted at single center with  total of 65 patients , all of whom gave their informed consent to participate. Utilizing the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), patients were approached to rate how extreme the back pain was and to complete the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire for an evaluation of their disability. Then, the spine was assessed by MRI scan for all participants. Within 1.5 years of baseline MRI scan, 49 volunteers were repeat MRI scan for LBP patients. Result: The study found weak correlations between age, VAS  scores, disability index, and the presence of disc herniation and LBP patients with moderate prolapsed discs (grade 2-disc herniation). Pain and disability also had a weak relation with Grade 2 (r=0.13, r=0.05). In addition, most MRI findings did not demonstrate a significant association with future LBP severity, regardless of whether participants had a history of LBP or not (correlation coefficient, r=0.08, p=0.7) Conclusion: It was concluded that MRI findings in both ongoing and forthcoming studies do not exhibit a statistically noteworthy association with the magnitude and position of lumbar disc herniation, pain, and disability for LBP patient with grade 2 disc herniation

Association Between Lipid Profile and Diabetic Foot Ulcer

Diabetic foot ulcer is a serious disabling consequence of Diabetes Mellitus. They are characterized by the breakdown of skin and underlying tissues in the feet, and are a major cause of lower limb amputations. Various risk factors have been identified for the development of diabetic foot ulcers, including poor glycemic control, peripheral neuropathy, peripheral arterial disease, and impaired wound healing. it is considered that the lipid profile is one of many factors that contribute to the formation and progression of diabetic foot ulcers. To stratify the incidence of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs), biomarkers are required. The aim of this review is to assess the relationship between the risk of DFU and lipid profile in diabetic patients

Mitochondrial dysfunction and kidney disease

Context: Mitochondria play a vital role in producing the energy needed for different cellular activities. The role of mitochondria in different diseases and the aging process is gradually being clarified. Different studies have suggested that mitochondrial dysfunction due to mutations in genes that maintain the integrity of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), mitophagy, and apoptosis can lead to many neurological and muscular phenotypes as well as diseases in other organ systems including liver, gastrointestinal tract, heart, and kidneys. We examined the current knowledge of mitochondrial dysfunction and its role in renal pathophysiology. Additionally, we examined how chronic kidney diseases can lead to mitochondrial dysfunction through oxidative stress accumulation, which can subsequently lead to other pathological complications. Evidence Acquisitions: Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Google Scholar, PubMed (NLM), LISTA (EBSCO), and Web of Science have been searched. Results: The renal pathological manifestation of mitochondrial dysfunction includes tubular defects, focal segmental glomerular sclerosis (FSGS), glomerular dysfunction, interstitial nephritis, and cystic kidney disease or renal tumors. These conditions can be caused by mutations in the nuclear genes that are involved in mtDNA replication and transcription or due to mtDNA mutations in the genes involved in the respiratory chain. Conclusions: Clearly, mtDNA plays an important role in renal pathology, and mitochondria may serve as a potential therapeutic target to treat different renal pathologies

Preparation, structural characterization, optical, photoluminescence, AC electrical conductivity and broadband dielectric properties of WO3 reinforced PEG/CS blend for futuristic optoelectronic and energy storage devices

Polymer nanocomposites (PNCs) composed of biopolymers and metallic oxides are important classes of materials. In addition to the environmental and economic considerations, these materials became the best candidates for various industrial fields. In the current study, solution cast procedure is used to prepare polymer nanocomposites (PNCs) based on polyethylene glycol (PEG)/chitosan (CS) blend and varying concentrations of tungsten trioxide nanoparticles (WO3 NPs), as a nanofiller. TEM micrograph shows that WO3 NPs have particle sizes of 5–32 nm their shapes are cubic and spherical. The XRD results reveal the semicrystalline of PEG/CS blend through showing three distinct diffraction peaks at 2θ = 7.42°, 19.47° and 23.62° and the degree of crystallinity is decreased after the incorporation of WO3 NPs due to the formation of polymer-nanoparticle interactions as indicated by FTIR spectra. The values of optical energy bandgap (direct and indirect) reduce while the Urbach energy increases with raising the concentration of WO3 NPs in the PEG/CS matrix. The PEG/CS-WO3 films' PL spectra show a photoemission peak at about 387 nm, where this peak loses intensity and becomes broader due to the induced defects and increase of disordering within the nanocomposite films. Additionally, the results of the dielectric investigation show an increase in the dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and AC electrical conductivity, which may be a sign of an increase of charge carriers and the content of amorphous regions that assists the movement of charge carriers. The DC electrical conductivity and conduction mechanism are also reported. Argand plot shows a half semicircle implying the Debye-type relaxation mechanism. The experimental results suggest the use of PEG/CS-WO3 nanocomposites as a possible contender for futuristic energy storage and optoelectronic applications

Perspectives of the Saudi medical students toward the impact of lockdowns on their physical activity level and lifestyle during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background Physical activity (PA) level is affected by various factors in university students. Due to the pandemic of COVID-19, the Saudi Ministry of Education announced the closure of schools and universities as a preventive measure. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on PA levels and other lifestyle aspects among the Saudi medical students and to explore their perspectives toward it. Methods Three hundred ninety-six medical students have completed the survey, which consisted of three sections: (1) participant’s demographic data; (2) five statements about the PA and the lockdown; and (3) the International PA Questionnaire—Short Form (IPAQ-SF). Results About 63.9% of the participants were female, and 60.4% were of normal weight. Approximately 80% of participants were classified as inactive. Regarding the perspective of the students, 52.8% reported that they were not exercising regularly in the gym before the lockdown, and 46.9% reported that the lockdown and transition to online learning affected their compliance with exercise. During the lockdown and shift to online learning, the majority of participants experienced decreased PA levels, 42.4% experienced weight gain, and 53.6% reported a negative impact on their psychological status. Conclusion Generally, the results of this study showed that the COVID-19 had a negative influence on the PA level, as well as other lifestyle aspects (e.g., gaining weight) and psychological status of medical students. This study highlights aspects where universities and institutions delivering medical education can use resources to improve students’ well-being during pandemics

A Sentiment Analysis Approach to Predict an Individual’s Awareness of the Precautionary Procedures to Prevent COVID-19 Outbreaks in Saudi Arabia

In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a pandemic, which affected all countries worldwide. During the outbreak, public sentiment analyses contributed valuable information toward making appropriate public health responses. This study aims to develop a model that predicts an individual’s awareness of the precautionary procedures in five main regions in Saudi Arabia. In this study, a dataset of Arabic COVID-19 related tweets was collected, which fell in the period of the curfew. The dataset was processed, based on several machine learning predictive models: Support Vector Machine (SVM), K-nearest neighbors (KNN), and Naïve Bayes (NB), along with the N-gram feature extraction technique. The results show that applying the SVM classifier along with bigram in Term Frequency–Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF) outperformed other models with an accuracy of 85%. The results of awareness prediction showed that the south region observed the highest level of awareness towards COVID-19 containment measures, whereas the middle region was the least. The proposed model can support the medical sectors and decision-makers to decide the appropriate procedures for each region based on their attitudes towards the pandemic

Redox State and Mitochondrial Respiratory Chain Function in Skeletal Muscle of LGMD2A Patients

<div><p>Background</p><p>Calpain-3 deficiency causes oxidative and nitrosative stress-induced damage in skeletal muscle of LGMD2A patients, but mitochondrial respiratory chain function and anti-oxidant levels have not been systematically assessed in this clinical population previously.</p><p>Methods</p><p>We identified 14 patients with phenotypes consistent with LGMD2A and performed <i>CAPN3</i> gene sequencing, CAPN3 expression/autolysis measurements, and <i>in</i><i>silico</i> predictions of pathogenicity. Oxidative damage, anti-oxidant capacity, and mitochondrial enzyme activities were determined in a subset of muscle biopsies.</p><p>Results</p><p>Twenty-one disease-causing variants were detected along the entire <i>CAPN3</i> gene, five of which were novel (c.338 T>C, c.500 T>C, c.1525-1 G>T, c.2115+4 T>G, c.2366 T>A). Protein- and mRNA-based tests confirmed <i>in</i><i>silico</i> predictions and the clinical diagnosis in 75% of patients. Reductions in antioxidant defense mechanisms (SOD-1 and NRF-2, but not SOD-2), coupled with increased lipid peroxidation and protein ubiquitination, were observed in calpain-3 deficient muscle, indicating a redox imbalance primarily affecting non-mitochondrial compartments. Although ATP synthase levels were significantly lower in LGMD2A patients, citrate synthase, cytochrome <i>c</i> oxidase, and complex I+III activities were not different from controls.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>Despite significant oxidative damage and redox imbalance in cytosolic/myofibrillar compartments, mitochondrial respiratory chain function is largely maintained in skeletal muscle of LGMD2A patients.</p></div

Linear Dimensional Change in Acrylic Denture Teeth Positions Factored by Different Processing Techniques and Occlusal Forms: An In Vitro Study

The current literature lacks substantial evidence for the effect of denture base processing techniques and posterior denture tooth forms on denture tooth shifts due to denture base resin polymerization. The aim of this study was to evaluate the combined effect of PMMA-based denture processing techniques (compression packing and injection molding) and posterior tooth forms (semi-anatomic and non-anatomic) on the linear dimensional shift of denture teeth following denture processing in both horizontal and vertical dimensions. Two different complete denture fabrication techniques were used to prepare forty ideal maxillary complete dentures using two different types of posterior tooth forms. The used fabrication techniques were conventional heat polymerized compression packing and injection molding. The posterior tooth forms used in the current study were non-anatomic tooth (0 degrees) and semi-anatomic tooth forms (approximately 20 degrees). Initial linear measurements (vertical and horizontal) were taken from pre-specified points for the central incisor and first molar. Specimens were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10), and denture processing was performed using the two techniques. Final linear measurements were recorded. The linear change in dimension for all six parameters was calculated by deducting the after values from the before values. Since the discrepancies were both positive and negative in magnitude, the absolute value of the difference was taken for further analysis. This value represents the dimensional change. T-tests were used to compare the mean dimensional changes. Furthermore, the mean dimensional changes for all the six parameters were compared using a two-way analysis of variance. The alpha error was set at 5%, and a p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The injection molding technique showed significantly fewer tooth movements in both the vertical and horizontal measurements as compared to the conventional compression packing technique. The non-anatomic tooth showed significantly fewer changes in tooth movement as compared to semi-anatomic teeth in both the compression and injection techniques. This study can guide the selection of a proper processing technique for a particular posterior tooth form, thus minimizing occlusal discrepancies and reducing occlusal corrections during laboratory and clinical remount procedures

LGMD2A phenotypes, CAPN3 sequence variants, and <i>in</i><i>silico</i> predictions.

A<p>Current age/age at biopsy (or genetic confirmation)/first symptoms noted, ^† = deceased, w = wheelchair, c = childhood;</p>B<p>Phenotypic classification into Erb (scapulohumeral), early pelvifemoral (≤12 y), classical pelvifemoral (Leyden-Möbius;13–29 y), late onset pelvifemoral (≥30 y), or asymptomatic phenotype (hyperCKemia);</p>C<p><i>CAPN3</i> exon/intron;</p>D<p>CAPN3 domains;</p>E<p>Zygosity;</p>F<p>Novelty;</p>G<p><i>In silico</i> predictions of pathogenicity of missense mutations with SIFT (Uni-Prot TrEMBL 2009 Mar) and PolyPhen-2 (v2.2.2r398). Y = pathological; N = benign. Conservation of exchanged/deleted amino acids with UCSC genome browser (Human Feb. 2009 [GRCh37/hg19] Assembly) across 46 species. Effects of intronic mutations on pre-mRNA splicing with Human Splicing Finder program (version 2.4.1).</p>$<p>Mutation in 5′ end of intron 19 creates a cryptic splice site that is used instead of the regular site.</p><p>#Mutation in 5′ end of intron 4 destroys donor splice site.</p>‡<p>Mutation in 3′ end of intron 11 destroys the acceptor splice site.</p><p>*Selected for further biochemical testing.</p

Linear Dimensional Change in Acrylic Denture Teeth Positions Factored by Different Processing Techniques and Occlusal Forms: An In Vitro Study

The current literature lacks substantial evidence for the effect of denture base processing techniques and posterior denture tooth forms on denture tooth shifts due to denture base resin polymerization. The aim of this study was to evaluate the combined effect of PMMA-based denture processing techniques (compression packing and injection molding) and posterior tooth forms (semi-anatomic and non-anatomic) on the linear dimensional shift of denture teeth following denture processing in both horizontal and vertical dimensions. Two different complete denture fabrication techniques were used to prepare forty ideal maxillary complete dentures using two different types of posterior tooth forms. The used fabrication techniques were conventional heat polymerized compression packing and injection molding. The posterior tooth forms used in the current study were non-anatomic tooth (0 degrees) and semi-anatomic tooth forms (approximately 20 degrees). Initial linear measurements (vertical and horizontal) were taken from pre-specified points for the central incisor and first molar. Specimens were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10), and denture processing was performed using the two techniques. Final linear measurements were recorded. The linear change in dimension for all six parameters was calculated by deducting the after values from the before values. Since the discrepancies were both positive and negative in magnitude, the absolute value of the difference was taken for further analysis. This value represents the dimensional change. T-tests were used to compare the mean dimensional changes. Furthermore, the mean dimensional changes for all the six parameters were compared using a two-way analysis of variance. The alpha error was set at 5%, and a p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The injection molding technique showed significantly fewer tooth movements in both the vertical and horizontal measurements as compared to the conventional compression packing technique. The non-anatomic tooth showed significantly fewer changes in tooth movement as compared to semi-anatomic teeth in both the compression and injection techniques. This study can guide the selection of a proper processing technique for a particular posterior tooth form, thus minimizing occlusal discrepancies and reducing occlusal corrections during laboratory and clinical remount procedures