Reinfection Rate after Successful Helicobacter pylori Eradication in Children

Objective

Reinfection rate of Helicobacter pylori after successful eradication is low in developed countries. This study was performed to determine the reinfection rate of H. pylori during a follow up period of 12 months in Iranian children.

Methods

In this prospective study, children with H. pylori infection were treated with triple omeprazole based regimen. Patients with negative ¹³C urea breath test (UBT) performed after 8 weeks of therapy, were followed up by the same test after 1 year.

Findings

Thirty seven patients, aged 5 to 17 years, were studied. Among them 25 (67.5%) were boys. After eradication therapy of H. pylori, 34 patients had negative ¹³C UBT. Reinfection occurred in 5 (14.7%) patients. Reappearance or continuing symptoms after treatment were associated with higher rate of recurrence (P=0.042).

Conclusion

Recurrence rate of H. pylori was high in our children. Successful eradication significantly decreased complaints and further symptoms. Follow up and reevaluation of patients is necessary especially when there are symptoms after eradication.     

Comparing Oral Route Paraffin Oil versus Rectal Route for Disimpaction in Children with Chronic Constipation; a Randomized Control Trial

Objective

Functional constipation is a common and challenging problem in pediatrics. Fecal disimpaction prior to maintenance therapy is recommended to ensure successful treatment. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and patient''s compliance of the two methods of paraffin oil administration (oral and rectal route) with the purpose of disimpaction in treatment of children with functional constipation.

Methods

A total of 80 children (49 males and 31 females) aged 1–12 years, with functional constipation according to Rome III criteria, whose rectal examination confirmed fecal impaction were divided into two groups randomly. Group I received 3 ml/kg/day paraffin oil orally and group II received 3ml/kg/day paraffin oil rectally during 3 consequent days. Successful treatment was defined as no detectable fecal impaction in rectal examination after at most 72 hours. Patient compliance and family satisfaction also was evaluated using a scored questionnaire.

Findings

Response to the treatment in both groups was with 92.5% and 82.5% in group I and II, respectively. So, there was no significant difference between the two methods of therapy. Family satisfying and compliance were obviously more achieved in group 1 (87.5% vs 57.5%) than in Group 2 (P<0.001). No parents in group I complained about type of treatment while 12.5% of parents in group II were unsatisfied with the mode of paraffin oil administration. The most common side effect of paraffin oil in both groups was anal oil seepage (27.5%). Nausea and abdominal pain were more common side effects in group 1 and 2 respectively.

Conclusion

It seems that using paraffin oil per oral route in comparison with rectal route could be a preferred option for disimpaction in children causing less anxiety to the family.     

Disulfiram and Copper Ions Kill Mycobacterium tuberculosis in a Synergistic Manner

Tuberculosis is a severe disease affecting millions worldwide. Unfortunately, treatment strategies are hampered both by the prohibitively long treatment regimen and the rise of drug-resistant strains. Significant effort has been expended in the search for new treatments, but few options have successfully emerged, and new treatment modalities are desperately needed. Recently, there has been growing interest in the synergistic antibacterial effects of copper ions (Cu^II/I) in combination with certain small molecular compounds, and we have previously reported development of a drug screening strategy to harness the intrinsic bactericidal properties of Cu^II/I. Here, we describe the copper-dependent antimycobacterial properties of disulfiram, an FDA-approved and well-tolerated sobriety aid. Disulfiram was inhibitory to mycobacteria only in the presence of Cu^II/I and exerted its bactericidal activity well below the active concentration of Cu^II/I or disulfiram alone. No other physiologically relevant bivalent transition metals (e.g., Fe^II, Ni^II, Mn^II, and Co^II) exhibited this effect. We demonstrate that the movement of the disulfiram-copper complex across the cell envelope is porin independent and can inhibit intracellular protein functions. Additionally, the complex is able to synergistically induce intracellular copper stress responses significantly more than Cu^II/I alone. Our data suggest that by complexing with disulfiram, Cu^II/I is likely allowed unfettered access to vulnerable intracellular components, bypassing the normally sufficient copper homeostatic machinery. Overall, the synergistic antibacterial activity of Cu^II/I and disulfiram reveals the susceptibility of the copper homeostasis system of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to chemical attacks and establishes compounds that act in concert with copper as a new class of bacterial inhibitors.     

RETRACTED ARTICLE: Evaluation of mRNA expression levels of IL-17A and IL-10 cytokines in cervical cancer

In this study, we evaluated mRNA expression levels of interleukin (IL)-10/IL-17A by quantitative real-time PCR and their clinical importance in cervical cancer. The IL-10 mRNA levels were higher in cervical cancer tissues as compared with corresponding normal tissues (p?<?0.05). Moreover, IL-17A mRNA was significantly increased in cervical cancer tissues than in normal tissues (p?<?0.05). Moreover, the high expression level of IL-10 mRNA was markedly related to International League of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage (p?=?0.001), but no significant association was found with other clinical factors including age, tumor size, histological grades, and lymph node metastasis. Moreover, high expression levels of IL-17A were not associated with patients’ age, tumor size, FIGO stage, and histological grades while IL-17A expression was strongly linked to lymphatic metastasis (p?=?0.001). These findings showed that IL-17A might have a crucial role in cervical cancer metastasis. Taken together, IL-17A expression was strongly linked to lymphatic metastasis, indicating that IL-17A might have a crucial role in cervical cancer metastasis. Moreover, our study suggested the association of IL-10 mRNA expression with clinical stage.