Search

Introduction: To investigate the hypothesis that the presence of prenatal maternal stress, increased level of prenatal testosterone, and low level of vitamin D3 in pregnancy is associated with the development of ADHD-like symptoms in toddlers (< 2 years old)., Material and Methods: The study group comprised 53 pregnant women and 53 infants of these pregnancies. The population cohort of 53 pregnant women were recruited at their 35th to 37th week of pregnancy and investigated prospectively. The participants were selected through targeted selection. Maternal experience of stressful life events was assessed by stress standardised questionnaires, prenatal testosterone was determined in the mothers' saliva by using the immune enzymatic (ELISA) method, and maternal plasma D vitamin was measured using the ECLIA method, during pregnancy. When the age of the offspring was 6 months and then less than 2 years, the mothers completed the child behaviour and temperament checklist., Results: A small but statistically significant association was found between the common symptom complex of ADHD and the level of testosterone and vitamin D3, in the presence of prenatal maternal stress. Multiple regression analysis showed that maternal stressful events during pregnancy significantly predicted ADHD behaviours in offspring., Conclusions: The study supported the hypothesis that prenatal maternal stress, increased level of prenatal testosterone, and low level of vitamin D3 during pregnancy increases the risk of development of ADHD-like symptoms in toddlers (< 2 years old). Also, the obtained results support the hypothesis that the influence of prenatal factors causes ADHD-like symptoms in offspring through a programming effect.

Patients with insulin resistance (IR) have a higher thyroid volume therefore the aim of our study is to examine the correlation between IR and thyroid volume in the residents of Georgia., Methods: 413 patients with a mean age of 37.3 ± and 11.4 years were included in this study. Out of those, 120 were males, and 293 were females who were studied retrospectively. They had hyperinsulinemia and were referred to the clinic from 2017 to 2019. The factors studied were age, sex, body mass index (BMI), clinical signs, thyroid ultrasound, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), lipids, fasting insulin, fasting glucose, thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), Free thyroxine (FT4), and Zinc (Zn)., Results: IR was detected in 252 individuals. The frequency of men with insulin resistance was significantly higher than in the control group - 72.50%, and 56.31%, respectively (F = 9.55, p = 0.0021). Mean thyroid volume in the patients with IR was significantly higher compared to the controls 20.52 + 6.39 cm 3 and 15.25 + 6.55 cm 3 , respectively ( p < 0.001). Hyperinsulinemia had a significant positive correlation with Goiter r = 0.445, p < 0.0001. The associated factors for hyperinsulinemia are: Goiter (1) - OR = 5.12 (95% CI:3.02-8.69); Cholesterol - OR = OR = 3.31 (95% CI: 1.54-7.14); Triglycerides - OR = 3.23 (95% CI:1.02-10.28); Obesity (1)- OR = 3.94 (95% CI: 2.23-6.98); Thyroid structural changes (1) - OR = 2.01 (95% CI: 1.12-3.60); ALT/AST-OR = 4.53 (95% CI: 2.33-8.80); Zn decreased Odds Ratio hyperinsulinemia - OR = 0.95 (95% CI: 0.94-0.97)., Conclusion: Hyperinsulinemia is the most common cause of diffuse goiter and the heterogeneous structure of the thyroid. The volume of the thyroid gland shows a significant positive association with the characteristics of metabolic syndrome and increased thyroid volume predictors of metabolic syndrome., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Aim Of the study: To investigate the "prenatal testosterone hypothesis", according to which, high level of testosterone associated with the development of ADHD like symptoms in younger children, and to investigate whether maternal stress during pregnancy in-creases the risk of developing ADHD like symptoms in early childhood., Design: This was a prospective study with three measurement periods: the first one during pregnancy (12 to 25 weeks of gestation); the second period involved the assessment of infants of this pregnancy at the age of 6 months and the third one the assessment of the same infants at the age of 18 months. The research plan is approved by "David Tvildiani Medical University" Research Ethics Committee. The study does not contain serious predictable risks as the expected benefit overweighs them., Material and Methods: The study group is presented by 40 pregnant women and 40 infants of these pregnancies. Pregnant women were asked about their perceived stress levels, critical life events of the past year and pregnancy-specific stress levels using standardized questionnaires. Child's temperament and behavioral regulation were assessed using the questionnaires. Amniotic fluid was collected undergoing amniocentesis. Total testosterone in amniotic fluid was measured by radioimmunoassay., Results: Although statistically significant relationship was identified between hyperactivity, also impulsiveness symptoms and pre-natal stress, no statistically significant relationship was identified between testosterone level and hyperactivity, also impulsivity symptoms, as well as between testosterone level and prenatal stress level., Conclusions: The performed study did not support the "hypothesis about prenatal testosterone", because there was a significant negative correlation between the frequency of hyperactivity symptoms and testosterone level.

Background: Autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD) are the most prevalent organ-specific autoimmune disorders. Vitamin B12 plays an important role in the proper functioning of the immune system. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the correlation between vitamin B12 deficiency and AITD., Materials and Methods: A total of 306 patients (aged 18-65 years, mean - 37.6 ± 11.3 years and comprising 87 males and 219 females) were studied retrospectively (observational study). Patients were divided into groups: with and without vitamin B12 deficiency, and with and without AITD. Differences between groups were evaluated by Fisher's exact test for qualitative variables and by Student's t-test for quantitative variables. Correlations for quantitative factors were determined by the Pearson correlation coefficient and for qualitative factors by Spearman correlation analysis. The sensitivity and specificity of vitamin B12 deficiency for AITD were calculated by ROC analysis., Results: The vitamin B12 level was significantly lower in patients with AITD (and 200.70 + 108.84) compared to controls (393.41+150.78 p<0.0001). Patients with vitamin B12 deficiency were characterized by significantly higher mean values of anti-TPO (236.60+455.74) compared to controls (39.51+165.57 p<0.0001). Vitamin B12 levels were inversely correlated to anti-TPO levels (r=- 0.233, p<0.001). Roc analysis of vitamin B12 as a diagnostic test for AITD gave the area under curve as 0.881 (95% CI: 0.839-0.924), a sensitivity of - 0.947, a specificity of - 0.768, and a cutoff value of - 178.9., Conclusion: The vitamin B12 level correlates significantly to AITD. The concentration of vitamin B12 should therefore be determined in patients with autoimmune thyroiditis as a diagnostic test with high sensitivity and good specificity., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Aims - to identify association between maternal stress during pregnancy and the developemnt of the attention deficiency hyperactivity syndrom in young children We conducted a case-control study sequentially recruiting 200 children from the "Early detection of disease and screening" State Program, from them 100 children with ADHD diagnose, and 100 subjects, as a control group, without Disruptive Behavior Disorder (DBD), aged between 1 and 6 years. The children were diagnosed with ADHD according to the DSM-IV-R and a clinical interview of the parents that used the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version IV (DISC-IV). We investigated the effect of cumulative exposure separately for life events considered as dependent and independent.The mother's stress level was scored from 1 to 5 on the DSM-III and DSM-III-R axis IV scales, according to the highest level of stress experienced during the pregnancy. The presence of stress factor plays an important role in the development of ADHD syndrome, but does not play a statistically significant role in which type of syndrome develops: F90.0, F90.1, F90.2: p=.258. A statistically significant relationship between ADHD diagnosis and stress degree was not confirmed at p=.503. Our data revealed that moderate-grade stress is caused by dependent causes, severe stress by independent causes, this association is statistically significant(p=.001 Cramer's V=.750). A statistically significant negative association was also found between the presence of prenatal stress and the length and weight of the baby at birth. For our study population, the risk of developing the syndrome in children of stress-relieved mothers was 2 times higher than in children of non-stressed mothers RR = 2.042. These findings show that there is an association between maternal stress during pregnancy and ADHD symptoms in offspring and support the hypothesis that prenatal stress causes offspring ADHD through a programming effect and future research should focus on exploring other prenatal factors that might be causally related to ADHD.