The place of ultrasound in urogynaecology clinic

Urinary incontinence is a silent epidemic severely affecting the quality of life of women. Clinical assessment alone has been shown to be an ineffective way of assessing women with lower urinary tract dysfunction; hence, there is a need for urodynamic studies. Nevertheless, urodynamics cannot explain all the symptoms and is not always available. Ultrasound scan is becoming more useful in the field of urogynaecology. It is safe, non-invasive and acceptable technique for the patients. In this review, we explore the place of modern ultrasound in managing women attending urogynaecology clinic.     

The role of endoluminal self-expanding stents in the management of pediatric tracheal stenosis

OBJECTIVE: Review of our experience in the management of pediatric tracheal stenosis using endoscopic techniques and self-expanding intraluminal stents. METHODS: Thirteen children (aged 1 week to 14 years) with various causes of tracheal stenosis were treated. A total of 15 stents were used, 13 self-expanding nitinol stents and 3 silicone self-expanding stents. Follow-up ranged from 6 month to 8 years. RESULTS: There were no stent related mortalities. Serious complications occurred in 4 patients [30.7%] but all were managed successfully. The most frequent problem was granulation tissue formation. Patient follow-up ranged from 6 months to 8 years. In the short-term (18-24 months) 12 stents remained patent and functional. On the longer term (5 years) 3 stents required removal, one required replacement and another resulted in stenosis. CONCLUSION: Endoluminal stenting can have an increasing role in the management of selected cases pediatric tracheal stenosis with acceptable morbidity and stable long-term results.     

Effect of human umbilical cord blood CD34+ progenitor cells transplantation in diabetic mice

Shortage of donor organs spurs research into alternative means of generating β cells. Stem cells might represent a potential source of tissues for cell therapy protocols, and diabetes is a candidate disease that may benefit from cell replacement protocols. We examined the effect of transplanted human umbilical cord blood CD34+ cells on some detailed parameters in streptozotocin- (STZ) induced diabetic mice. An experimental study was conducted in the departments of clinical pathology, physiology and pathology of Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University. Thirty male albino mice 8–12 weeks were included and subdivided into 3 groups, first group served as normal control group, second group as diabetic control after induction of diabetes with STZ and third group treated diabetic mice by injection of positively selected CD34 progenitor cells from human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) with a dose of one million cells/mouse. Blood glucose and serum insulin were measured at specific time interval and immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis and histopathology on pancreas were conduced. Data were analyzed using chi square between groups. Intravenous injection of CD34+ cells caused significant improvement in blood glucose level (277.9?±?102.5 mg/dl in treated group vs 530.3?±?99 mg/dl in untreated group, p?<?0.01). Blood level of mouse insulin was higher in the treated group as compared with untreated diabetic mice (0.77?±?0.2 ng/ml in treated group versus 0.26?±?0.09 in untreated group, p?<?0.001). IHC analysis for detection of human insulin producing cells in pancreas of treated mice revealed that 33.3% positive cellular staining and 55.6% positive sinusoidal staining were detected. In conclusion, Transplantation of HUCB-CD34+ cells appear to be a modality of stem cell therapy in diabetes mellitus.     

Early post‐operative intravenous tacrolimus in pediatric liver transplant recipients is not superior to oral tacrolimus

We aimed to compare the early results of i.v. with p.o. TAC as a primary immunosuppressant in pediatric patients undergoing LT. This retrospective study enrolled 75 children who underwent LT and received TAC‐steroid regimens as a primary immunosuppressant between September 2011 and October 2015 at our institution. Thirty‐five recipients received TAC i.v. and 40 received TAC p.o. Early results were evaluated and compared, including ACR, EBV, or CMV infection; renal adverse effects; and hospital stay. Comparisons of 90‐day post‐transplant results showed that the rates of overall viral (74% vs 40% P < 0.002), EBV (46% vs 17.5% P < 0.008), and CMV (51% vs 30% P = 0.05) infections were significantly higher in the i.v. than in the p.o. group. Neither regimen has any adverse effects on renal function. There were no between‐group differences in ACR incidence and severity, serum creatinine concentration, and hospital stay. Patient and graft survival rates at 3 months and 1 year did not differ significantly between the two groups. Compared with p.o. treatment, i.v. administration of high TAC concentration did not have beneficial post‐transplant effects on ACR incidence and severity, while increasing the incidence of viral infections in pediatric LT.     

Reactions with activated nitriles: A new route for the synthesis of new pyridine and pyrazolopyridine derivatives

It has been found that α, β-unsaturated nitrile derivatives1–3 reacted with S-methylisothiourea to give the propene derivatives4–6 respectively. Cyclisation of4–6 using ethanolic hydrochloric acid afforded the pyridine derivatives7–9 in good yields. On the other hand, the reactions of hydrazine hydrate and of phenylhydrazine with each of7–9 gave the corresponding pyrazolopyridine derivatives10–15. The structures of the newly synthesised derivatives were assigned on the basis of elemental analyses, IR and¹H-NMR spectral data studies.     

Discrimination between malignant and bland portal vein thrombosis: Could diffusion weighted MRI help

Objective

To study the role of DWI in the differentiation between bland and malignant portal vein thrombus in HCC patients.