Patterns of occurrence and concordance between subjective and objective hot flashes among Muslim and Hindu women in Sylhet,Bangladesh

This study examined the pattern of occurrence and the rate of concordance between objective hot flashes measured by sternal skin conductance and the subjective experience of “gorom vap laga” (feeling steaming hot) among Muslim and Hindu women living in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Participants were aged 40–55, not pregnant or lactating, not using hormone therapy, and with no history of hysterectomy. Thirty women wore an ambulatory hot flash monitor for 8 h on average, from mid‐morning to early evening. True positive, false negative, and false positive measures of hot flashes were examined in relation to demographic, reproductive, and lifestyle variables. On body diagrams, women were most likely to indicate hot flashes on the top of their head (64%) and upper chest (68%). The greatest number of objective hot flashes occurred during the hour of 17:00, perhaps due to the heat of the day, and the clothing and activity associated with prayer. Muslim participants demonstrated more objective hot flashes per woman than Hindu participants (1.5 vs. 0.1, P < 0.05), and Muslims had more false positive measures (86%) compared with Hindu participants (0%, P = 0.06). Among all women who reported subjective hot flashes (n = 19), the proportion of true positive scores was 19%. Overall, the frequency of objective hot flashes was low compared with reports from studies in the United States. The pattern of sweating assessed by body diagrams was not associated with variation in hot flash experience. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Effect of Semecarpus anacardium nut extract on ECM and proteases in mammary carcinoma rats

The early stages of invasion are characterized by the extracellular proteolysis and the accumulation of specialized extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffold, that are responsible for the development of vascular bed, endothelial cell proliferation and invasion of tumour cells. The ground substance of provisional matrix consists of collagen, elastin, glycoaminoglycans and proteoglycans that facilitate the interaction of tumour cells with the host environment. In the present work, we have studied the influence of Semecarpus anacardium nut milk extract on localized differentials of ECM component and proteases involved in matrix metabolism of tumour tissue. Mammary carcinoma was induced in Sprague Dawley rats with 7,12, dimethyl benz(a)anthracene and treated with S. anacardium nut milk extract administered orally for 14 days. The altered amount of ECM components in tumour tissues was almost reverted back to normal level in the drug treated animals. The activities of reported proteases and glycohydrolases were also decreased on treatment with S. anacardium nut milk extract indicating decreased turnover of the matrix. Also, the factors associated with the matrix turnover and expression of MMP-1, MMP-2, MMP-3, TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 were restored back to near normal values. The stabilization of the ECM with the decreased activity of proteases might inhibit the epithelial-endothelial interaction and tumour cell migration thus, preventing the adjacent invasion and tumour growth and might be regarded as antineoplastic agent which demands further studies.     

Treatments for pulmonary sarcoidosis

Corticosteroids (oral or inhaled) are commonly used to treat pulmonary sarcoidosis; however, there is no consensus about when to start treatment, what dose of steroids to give and for how long. Immunosuppressive and cytotoxic agents (used in immunosuppressive doses) are used in addition to oral corticosteroids to treat multisystem and chronic sarcoidosis, or as steroid-sparing agents. We summarize the findings from two Cochrane systematic reviews that have examined the efficacy of corticosteroids and immunosuppressive and cytotoxic drugs in the treatment of pulmonary sarcoidosis. Studies of corticosteroids differed in outcome measures, dose of drug given and length of treatment. For many outcome measures, data could not be pooled for meta-analysis. Oral corticosteroids improved chest X-ray appearance over 3-24 months, with improvement in global score in one study. Little evidence was found of improvement in lung function or of any long-term disease-modifying effect. Follow-up data could not be analysed. Inhaled corticosteroids improved symptoms in one small study but not lung function or chest X-ray. Side-effects of steroids were not well reported. In the immunosuppressive and cytotoxics review, no data could be combined for meta-analysis. Data on lung function, chest X-ray and dyspnoea were largely inconclusive. Methotrexate had a steroid-sparing effect in one small study. Significant adverse events were associated with cyclosporine A, chloroquine and pentoxifylline. Evidence from randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) supporting the use of immunosuppressive and cytotoxic agents is limited.