Helicobacter pylori and gastric hyperacidity,and their association with recurrent aphthous stomatitis

Helicobacter pylori is an established cause of gastric ulcers. Its role in causing recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) remains controversial. Fifty-two RAS patients and 52 sex-matched controls were recruited in this case–control study. All subjects were screened for hematinic deficiencies and H. pylori. The latter was assessed quantitatively using the ¹⁴C-urea breath test. The χ² test and Wilcoxon signed ranks test were used to compare H. pylori and hematinic indices between cases and controls, while conditional logistic regression was used to assess the associations between the occurrence of RAS and independent factors. H. pylori was positive in 56.7% of the overall sample, with no difference between RAS patients (50.8%) and controls (49.2%) (P = 0.843). The median H. pylori and haematological indices values did not show any association with ulcer diameter, number, or frequency. Interestingly, gastric hyperacidity was significantly associated with RAS, and this association was independent from tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking, and H. pylori (odds ratio 14.99, 95% confidence interval 2.47–90.95; P = 0.003). This study found no association between H. pylori and RAS. The association between RAS and gastric hyperacidity suggests that gastric refluxate, not H. pylori, has an effect on the oral mucosa that favours an ulcerative change.     

Bio-accumulation and health risk assessment of heavy metals in different edible fish species from Hurghada City,Red Sea,Egypt

BackgroundHeavy metal contamination has become a serious issue in this century especially detected in fish organs. Due to the presence of radioactive compounds in agricultural and sewage effluent, which destroys aquatic ecosystems, threatening human livelihoods. Health hazards associated with low and high consumption consumers assessed in five commercial fish species collected from Hurghada City, Egypt, during winter and summer, 2020. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer technique used for determination heavy meals in different organs and expressed as μg/g wet weight.ResultsHeavy metal concentrations in muscle ranged between:(0.054–0.109), (0.260–1.043), (0.264–0.897), (5.895–11.898), (0.381–0.970), (13.582–29.133) and (0.332–0.589) µg/g for Cd, Pb, Mn, Zn, Cu, Fe and Ni respectively, which were lower than those of gills and liver. These concentrations were within WHO, FAO/WHO, and EU standards. Consumption of edible species was lower than the (TDIs) established by the (JECFA) and Egyptian Standards. Even though THQ and TTHQ values were < 1 while, in children with highly consumer were> 1.ConclusionThis study concluded that intake of Red Sea fish is safe for human health. It is critical for consumers to be aware of the consequences of excessive fish consumption, particularly children with highly consumer, which represent possible health risks.     

出院过渡期老年心力衰竭患者相关症状及影响因素的纵向研究

目的调查老年心力衰竭患者出院过渡期心衰相关症状,分析其变化趋势及影响因素。方法采用Memorial心力衰竭症状评估量表、心脏病患者抑郁量表、照护负担问卷和家属照护者照护能力问卷,对219例老年心衰患者及主要家庭照护者,于患者出院前1～2 d、出院后1个月和3个月进行调查。结果患者的心衰相关症状随着出院过渡期的延长呈恶化趋势,与出院前1～2 d相比,出院后1个月和3个月患者的心衰症状总分及各维度得分显著提高(P0.01)。抑郁症状在出院后1个月得分最高(90.31±3.27),随着过渡时间的延长得分逐渐下降(P0.01)。回归分析显示,出院过渡期患者心衰相关症状受患者服药种类、心功能分级和照护能力的影响;抑郁受患者年龄、病程和住院次数的影响(P0.05,P0.01)。结论老年心衰患者出院过渡期心衰相关症状较差且呈动态变化,受多种因素影响。护理人员应该制定针对性的过渡期护理计划,减轻患者症状负担。     

Cardioprotective effects of sinomenine in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury in a rat model

BackgroundIschemia reperfusion (I/R) play an imperative role in the expansion of cardiovascular disease. Sinomenine (SM) has been exhibited to possess antioxidant, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antiviral and anticarcinogenic properties. The aim of the study was scrutinized the cardioprotective effect of SM against I/R injury in rat.MethodsRat were randomly divided into normal control (NC), I/R control and I/R + SM (5, 10 and 20 mg/kg), respectively. Ventricular arrhythmias, body weight and heart weight were estimated. Antioxidant, inflammatory cytokines, inflammatory mediators and plasmin system indicator were accessed.ResultsPre-treated SM group rats exhibited the reduction in the duration and incidence of ventricular fibrillation, ventricular ectopic beat (VEB) and ventricular tachycardia along with suppression of arrhythmia score during the ischemia (30 and 120 min). SM treated rats significantly (P < 0.001) altered the level of antioxidant parameters. SM treatment significantly (P < 0.001) repressed the level of creatine kinase MB (CK-MB), creatine kinase (CK) and troponin I (Tnl). SM treated rats significantly (P < 0.001) repressed the tissue factor (TF), thromboxane B2 (TXB2), plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) and plasma fibrinogen (Fbg) and inflammatory cytokines and inflammatory mediators.ConclusionOur result clearly indicated that SM plays anti-arrhythmia effect in I/R injury in the rats via alteration of oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction.     

Three-dimensional finite element analysis of intramedullary nail with different materials in the treatment of intertrochanteric fractures

Intramedullary nails are the common treatment options for femoral intertrochanteric fractures. However, aseptic loosening is considered to be one of the primary forms of failure that can be caused by the stress shielding between the bone and implants. The matching in mechanical properties of implant and bone is a key issue to prevent this failure. Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) and Function-graded (FG) materials are widely used in clinical because of their excellent mechanical properties. In this study, to investigate the biomechanical behaviors of intramedullary nails made of Ti-6Al-4V alloy, Stainless Steel (SS), PEEK and two FG materials, three-dimensional finite element models of intertrochanteric fracture femur with intramedullary nail were constructed with ABAQUS. The maximum von Mises stress on the femoral fracture surface fixed by PEEK intramedullary nail was the largest, followed by FG intramedullary nail, which help stimulate bone growth and subsequently reduce fracture healing time. Compared with traditional metal intramedullary nails, PEEK and FG implants might increase von Mises stress along the same path in the proximal femur. The results showed that PEEK and FG intramedullary nails obviously changed the stress distributions in the bone and reduced stress shielding. This finding indicated that PEEK and FG intramedullary nails have the potential to become alternatives to the conventional metal intramedullary nails.     

血清谷丙转氨酶水平与不同性别2型糖尿病患病的关系

目的 探讨血清谷丙转氨酶（ALT）与新诊2型糖尿病（T2DM）患病风险之间的关联，为T2DM的防治提供科学依据。方法 采用4阶段分层随机抽样的方法选取2006年和2009年参与青岛糖尿病预防项目的研究对象男性3 012例、女性4 422例，采用Pearson相关检验分析不同性别ALT与FPG、2 h PG的相关性，并利用多因素logistic回归分析ALT与新诊T2DM患病的关系。结果 男性中，ALT与空腹血浆血糖（FPG）、餐后2 h血浆血糖（2 h PG）的Pearson相关系数分别为0.088、0.080（均P＜0.01）；多因素logistic回归显示，在调整了年龄、BMI、糖尿病家族史、城乡、教育、婚姻、收入、吸烟及饮酒状况等混杂因素后，ALT的第4分位（Q4）组新诊T2DM患病风险是第1分位（Q1）组的1.832倍（OR = 1.832，95% CI:1.324～2.534，P＜0.01）。女性中，ALT与FPG、2h PG的Pearson相关系数分别为0.065、0.108（均P＜0.01）；多因素logistic回归显示，在调整了年龄、BMI、糖尿病家族史、城乡、教育、婚姻、收入、吸烟及饮酒状况等混杂因素后，ALT的第4分位（Q4）组新诊T2DM患病风险是第1分位（Q1）组的1.445倍（OR = 1.445，95% CI:1.087～1.919，P＜0.05）。结论 在男、女性人群中，ALT水平升高与T2DM患病相关，且这种相关性不受年龄、BMI、糖尿病家族史等的影响。