Combination of Exercise and Acupuncture Versus Acupuncture Alone for Treatment of Myofascial Pain Syndrome: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) is a common musculoskeletal disorder. This study was designed to compare the effects of aerobic exercise plus acupuncture with acupuncture alone in treatment of patients with MPS. Sixty-four patients (55 female and 9 male) with MPS in their neck and shoulders participated in the study with mean age of 33.1 ± 6.4 years. Participants were randomly allocated to aerobic exercise plus acupuncture (n = 32) or acupuncture alone (n = 32) groups. Outcome measurements included visual analog scale, pressure pain threshold, neck disability index, and quality of life that was measured with QoL-SF36 scale. Each group received 10 sessions of acupuncture in combination with aerobic exercise or acupuncture alone. The outcome measures were evaluated at baseline, at the end of the last treatment session, and at 1-month follow-up visit. While participants were waiting for their 1-month follow-up visit, the patients who received combination therapy were asked to continue their aerobic exercise by jogging 40 minutes a day. Although mean visual analog scale, pressure pain threshold, neck disability index, and QoL-SF36 were significantly improved in both groups (p < 0.001), there was no statistically significant difference among the measures between the two groups throughout the evaluated sessions. The interaction effect of time and groups did not show any significant difference among the outcome measures (p > 0.29).     

Investigating the role of DCE-MRI,over T2 and DWI,in accurate PI-RADS v2 assessment of clinically significant peripheral zone prostate lesions as defined at radical prostatectomy

Abdominal Radiology - PI-RADS v2 dictates that dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) imaging be used to further classify peripheral zone (PZ) cases that receive a diffusion-weighted imaging equivocal...     

The cost of chemotherapy administration: a systematic review and meta-analysis

The European Journal of Health Economics - Cancer treatment is a significant driver of healthcare costs worldwide, however, the economic impact of treating patients with anti-neoplastic agents is...     

A comparison between the effects of flaxseed oil and fish oil supplementation on cardiovascular health in type 2 diabetic patients with coronary heart disease: A randomized,double‐blinded,placebo‐controlled trial

This study compared the effects of flaxseed and fish oil supplementation on cardiovascular risk parameters in diabetic patients with coronary heart disease. Participants were randomly allocated into three intervention groups to receive either 1,000 mg of omega‐3 fatty acids from fish oil or 1,000 mg of omega‐3 fatty acids from flaxseed oil or placebo (n = 30 each group) twice a day for 12 weeks. A significant reduction in insulin levels (.04) was observed following flaxseed oil and fish oil supplementation compared with the placebo. In addition, a significant reduction in high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein (.02) was seen after flaxseed oil supplementation compared with the placebo and a significant increase in total nitrite (.001) was seen after flaxseed oil and fish oil intake compared with placebo. Additionally, a significant increase in total antioxidant capacity (p < .001) after consuming flaxseed oil and fish oil compared with placebo and glutathione levels (.001) after consuming fish oil compared with flaxseed oil and placebo was observed. Overall, our study revealed the beneficial effects of flaxseed oil and fish oil supplementation on few metabolic profiles. This study suggests that the effect of flaxseed oil in reducing insulin and increasing total nitrite and total antioxidant capacity is similar to fish oil.     

Mental fitness during transition to fatherhood

Transition into fatherhood is often marked by a period of adjustment, uncertainty and psychological distress and challenges for many men, along with social isolation and relationship problems. Risk factors for paternal mental health issues are maternal depression, marital distress, parenting stress, gender role stress, mismatched expectations for pregnancy and after childbirth, poor physical health, inadequate self-care behaviours, avoiding seeking help for mental health issues, and having a child with sleeping, feeding and temperament problems. Paternal depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder can have negative impacts on the social and emotional wellbeing of fathers, their partners and their children. Nevertheless, these issues are not widely acknowledged, recognised or treated. Men’s mental health illness is a silent crisis. They often fail to seek help due to their feeling of shame, stigma for a lack of emotional control, distress or anxiety related to utilising mental health support services, and underrating the severity of their symptoms. These necessitate the need for timely attention, psychological support and proper education to minimise their risk of mental health issues. Although research has indicated fathers’ inclination toward being included in practices such as the mental health assessment, perinatal education and postnatal educational approaches need to be inclusive of fathers and encourage them to seek support for their paternal mental health issues and parenting difficulties.     

Type and location of findings in dental panoramic tomographs in 7–12-year-old orthodontic patients

Objective The Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority in Finland has paid attention to the large numbers of dental panoramic tomographs (DPTs), particularly in 7–12-year-old children. The majority of these radiographs are taken for orthodontic reasons. Because of the high radiosensitivity of children, the size of the irradiated field should be carefully chosen to yield the necessary diagnostic information at the lowest possible dose. The purpose of the present study was, therefore, to assess the outcome of DPTs within this age group in terms of type and location of pathological findings. It was also hypothesized that DPTs of orthodontic patients rarely display unrestored caries. Materials and methods Four hundred and forty-one DPTs, taken of 7–12-year-old children in 2010–2014, were randomly sampled. The 413 of them (94%) that had been taken for orthodontic reasons were analysed. Results All pathologic findings were restricted to the tooth-bearing area and there was no pathology in the bone structure or any incidental findings in the region of temporomandibular joint. Unlike hypothesized, 27% of the orthodontic DPTs showed caries in deciduous teeth and 16% in permanent teeth. A sub-sample of 229 DPTs, analysed for developmental dental and occlusal problems, most commonly displayed crowding (50%), positional anomalies and local problems with tooth eruption (32%), as well as hyperodontia (15%).

Conclusion Inclusion of only the actual area of interest in the image field should be considered case-specifically as a means to reduce the radiation dose.     

Intraarticular factor IX protein or gene replacement protects against development of hemophilic synovitis in the absence of circulating factor IX

Hemophilic bleeding into joints causes synovial and microvascular proliferation and inflammation (hemophilic synovitis) that contribute to end-stage joint degeneration (hemophilic arthropathy), the major morbidity of hemophilia. New therapies are needed for joint deterioration that progresses despite standard intravenous (IV) clotting factor replacement. To test whether factor IX within the joint space can protect joints from hemophilic synovitis, we established a hemophilia B mouse model of synovitis. Factor IX knockout (FIX(-/-)) mice received a puncture of the knee joint capsule with a needle to induce hemarthrosis; human factor IX (hFIX) was either injected through the needle into the joint space (intraarticularly) or immediately delivered IV. FIX(-/-) mice receiving intraarticular FIX protein were protected from synovitis compared with mice receiving same or greater doses of hFIX IV. Next, adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene transfer vectors expressing hFIX were injected into knee joints of FIX(-/-) mice. Joints treated with 10(10) vector genomes (vg)/joint AAV2-, AAV5-, or AAV8-hFIX or 2.5 x 10(9) vg/joint AAV5-hFIX developed significantly fewer pathologic changes 2 weeks after injury compared with the pathology of control injured contralateral hind limbs. Extravascular factor activity and joint-directed gene transfer may ameliorate hemophilic joint destruction, even in the absence of circulating FIX.     

Isolation and characterization of anti c-met single chain fragment variable (scFv) antibodies

The receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) Met is the cell surface receptor for hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) involved in invasive growth programs during embryogenesis and tumorgenesis. There is compelling evidence suggesting important roles for c-Met in colorectal cancer proliferation, migration, invasion, angiogenesis, and survival. Hence, a molecular inhibitor of an extracellular domain of c-Met receptor that blocks c-Met-cell surface interactions could be of great thera-peutic importance. In an attempt to develop molecular inhibitors of c-Met, single chain variable fragment (scFv) phage display libraries Tomlinson I?+?J against a specific synthetic oligopeptide from the extracellular domain of c-Met receptor were screened; selected scFv were then characterized using various immune techniques. Three c-Met specific scFv (ES1, ES2, and ES3) were selected following five rounds of panning procedures. The scFv showed specific binding to c-Met receptor, and significantly inhibited proliferation responses of a human colorectal carcinoma cell line (HCT-116). Moreover, anti- apoptotic effects of selected scFv antibodies on the HCT-116 cell line were also evaluated using Annexin V/PI assays. The results demonstrated rates of apoptotic cell death of 46.0, 25.5, and 37.8% among these cells were induced by use of ES1, ES2, and ES3, respectively. The results demonstrated ability to successfully isolate/char-acterize specific c-Met scFv that could ultimately have a great therapeutic potential in immuno-therapies against (colorectal) cancers.