Search

Background and Objectives: Brucellosis is considered the leading zoonotic disease of the Middle East. The disease has a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations and can result in complications with severe morbidity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency, distribution and characteristics of arthritis in Iranian children with brucellosis. Design and Setting: A retrospective descriptive study conducted in a referral children center in Tehran from 1997 to 2005. Patients and Methods: Arthritis in children with brucellosis who were admitted to a specialized hospital was detected by clinical signs of the involved joint(s) and characteristics of joint fluid aspiration. Socio-demographic information was recorded. Results: Of 96 patients diagnosed with brucellosis, 24 (25%) had Brucella arthritis 14 (58.3%) males and 10 (41.7%) females. Most common manifestations were fever in 21 patients (87.5%) and fatigue in 18 patients (75%). Monoarthritis was recorded in 15 patients (62.5%) of the cases with involvement of the knee in 8 (45%) and hip in 5 (29%), the ankle in 2 (8%) patients while 9 (37.5%) patients suffered from polyarthritis. None of the patients had axial joints involvement. Seventy-five percent of the subjects (18 patients) were from urban areas and 66.7% (16 patients) had consumed un-pasteurized cheese. Recurrence was not seen in any of the 24 patients who received a combination of co-trimoxazole for 6 weeks and gentamicin for 5 days. Conclusion: Childhood brucellosis is a challenging disease in Iran that has serious complications like arthritis. Therefore all physicians who work in endemic areas should be familiar with this disease and consider the possibility of brucellosis in all children who present with arthritis and arthralgia.

Objectives. We determined whether exposure to family poverty over a child's early life course predicts adolescent and young adult anxiety and depression. Methods. We used a birth cohort study of a sample of women in Brisbane, Australia, who were recruited in early pregnancy and whose children were followed up on at ages 14 and 21 years. Some 2609 mothers and adolescents provided usable data at the 14-and 21-year follow-ups. Results. After adjustment for poverty at other phases, poverty at the 14-year follow-up was the strongest predictor of adolescent and young adult anxiety and depression. The more frequently the child was exposed to poverty, the greater was the risk of that individual being anxious and depressed at both the 14- and 21-year follow-ups. Conclusions. Family poverty predicts higher rates of adolescent and young adult anxiety and depression. Increased frequency of child exposure to poverty is a consistent predictor of adolescent and young adult anxiety and depression. Repeated experiences of poverty over a child's early life course are associated with increased levels of poor mental health. (Am J Public Health. 2010;100: 1719-1723. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2009.180943)

Background: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder characterized by altered bowel habits and abdominal pain in the absence of a recognizable structural anomaly. The pathogenesis of IBS has been associated with inflammation and the expression of pro-inflammatory chemokines, such as CCL2 and CCL16. Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between the serum levels of CCL2 and CCL16 and IBS. Additionally, we examined how serum levels of these chemokines relate to IBS subtypes. Methods: Patients with IBS diagnosed according to the Rome III criteria participated in this study (n= 96). Healthy individuals with no history of allergic, autoimmune, chronic or active gastrointestinal infectious diseases were used as controls (n= 44). The serum levels of CCL2 and CCL16 was measured via enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: A significant decrease in the serum levels of CCL16 and CCL2 was observed in the patients with IBS. Additionally, the serum levels of CCL16 in IBS patients with diarrhea (D-IBS) was significantly higher than those with the mixed IBS (M-IBS) subtype. Conclusions: The significant increase in the serum levels of CCL-16 in patients with D-IBS compared to patients with M-IBS suggests that CCL-16 may be used as an immunological biomarker to differentiate between these two subtypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study aimed at investigating the effect of Iranian traditional remedy prepared from Apium graveolens and Trachyspermum copticom (AT) on the severity and frequency of symptoms in patients with functional dyspepsia (FD). Material and Methods: In total, 150 FD patients were included in this randomized double-blind trial, based on the ROME III diagnostic criteria, and they were divided into three intervention groups namely, AT, Placebo and omeprazole. Then, severity and frequency of symptoms during this eight-week trial were measured. Obtained information was analyzed using Chi-square test and repeated measures test. Result: In general, the severity and frequency of symptoms after the 4th week significantly decreased in the AT group as compared to the omeprazole and placebo groups, and continued to reduce by the end of the eighth week. General reduction of symptom severity and frequency in the omeprazole group was significantly different from the placebo group by the end of the 4th and 8th weeks. With respect to each individual symptom, AT markedly improved symptoms, such as burning, pain, early satiation, fullness, bloating, belching and nausea, as compared to placebo-treated group. Moreover, AT significantly improved symptoms, like vomiting, and nausea, except for pain, as compared to omeprazoletreated subjects. Conclusion: According to the results, AT, as Iranian traditional remedy, was more effective than omeprazole and placebo in reducing the symptoms in FD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Several components of metabolic syndrome (MetS) facilitate its diagnosis, including abdominal obesity, hyperlipidemia, high blood pressure, and insulin resistance. The production of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) seem to be associated with MetS components. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between IL-6 and TNF-α serum levels with MetS and its components. Methods: This case-control study investigated 250 subjects, comprising 125 healthy controls from the Kerman Blood Transfusion Organization and 125 MetS patients. Serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels were measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: Serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels were greater in MetS patients than in controls. However, no correlation was observed between MetS components and IL-6 or TNF-α serum levels. Conclusions: Patients with MetS had significantly greater serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels than the controls, supporting the evidence that inflammation plays an important role in the immunopathogenesis of the disease. Additionally, IL-6 and TNF-α serum levels may predict MetS. The lack of association between IL-6 and TNF-α serum levels and MetS components remains to be investigated by further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a multi-factorial autoimmune disease. P-glycoprotein is encoded by the multidrug resistance 1 (MDR1) gene. The C3435T polymorphism in the MDR1 gene is correlated with low P-glycoprotein expression. Additionally, vitamin D has regulatory effects on the immune system. The aim of our study was to determine the association between the C3435T MDR1 polymorphism and UC and to detect the vitamin D serum levels in patients with UC. METHODS One hundred healthy controls and 85 patients with UC were evaluated. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCRRFLP) was used to detect the C3435T MDR1 polymorphisms. Serum levels of vitamin D were measured by Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The research was performed in Kerman, Iran, from 2011 to 2013. RESULTS We could not find any association between the C3435T MDR1 polymorphism and susceptibility to UC. There was a significant decrease in serum levels of vitamin D in patients with UC compared with healthy controls (p<0.001). CONCLUSION Controversies regarding the association between the C3435T MDR1 polymorphism with UC have been reported in different populations. The difference between our results and others may be attributed to the heterogeneity of the Iranian population and the sample size. Additionally, our data indicated that UC might be correlated with vitamin D insufficiency. Therefore, the administration of vitamin D might be suggested as a valuable treatment for patients with UC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The association of HLA class II genes with ulcerative colitis (UC) as an autoimmune disease has been investigated for several years. However, factors responsible for genetic predisposition of this disease have so far not been clearly understood. In this study, for the first time, we aimed to investigate the association between HLA-DRB1 types and UC in the population of Kerman, a city southeast Iran. HLA typing was performed among 85 UC patients and 95 healthy controls using PCR amplification, employing sequence specific primers (PCR-SSP). The DRB1 frequencies were determined in the patients and controls. HLA-DRB1*04 was negatively associated with UC. Furthermore, HLA-DRB1*13 was significantly associated with severity of the disease (p=0.01) among UC patients. This is the novel result that describes an association of HLA-DRB1*13 with UC and also shows the protective role of HLA-DRB1*04 against the disease in people of Kerman. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Hepatitis B virus infection is one of the most common causes of acute and chronic hepatitis worldwide. Furthermore, since most people with hepatitis B virus are asymptomatic, timely diagnosis is important for prevention. This study has evaluated the prevalence of Hepatitis B seromarkers in marriage candidates. Design: In this Cross-sectional study, 370 marriage volunteers selected by the simple sampling method were investigated in 2011 - 2012. Results: A total of 185 men and 185 women were investigated. Mean Age of participants was 24.7 years. The prevalence rates of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), anti hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) and anti-hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) were 1.1%, 47.6% and 8.9% respectively. Frequency of HBsAg was 0.5% and 1.6% in men and women respectively. The prevalence of anti-HBs was 43.8% in men and 51.45% in women. Anti-HBs was more common in young people and those with higher levels of education and positive history of vaccination. The prevalence of anti-HBc was 8.1% and 9.7% in men and women respectively. Conclusion: Although Kerman is a low endemic area, due to the high risk of transmission to the spouse and offspring, screening for HBV study before marriage is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

H. pylori is a human pathogen that colonizes the epithelium of the stomach. The host immune response may influence the disease process, where cytokines play important roles in the development of disease. In this study, the concentrations of selected cytokines in the gastric antrum and stomach body mucosa and also in the serum were evaluated. Eighty patients according to their rapid urease test were divided into two groups: H. pylori positive (n=39) and H. pylori-negative (n=41). The concentrations of cytokines in biopsies and serum were determined by ELISA method. The mean TNF-α and IFN-γ levels in the infected group were significantly higher than that of uninfected patients. In contrast, IL-10 level in most patients was undetectable. The mean antral of stomach TNF-α and IFN-γ levels were significantly higher than that of the stomach body. IFN-γ serum level showed positive correlation with antrum and stomach body levels, whereas no correlation was found in TNF-α in different samples. Higher levels of TNF-α and IFN-γ in antral indicate that the colonization of bacteria in the antrum may be higher than stomach body (culture results from two sites support this statement). Increased serum level of IFN-γ indicates the activation of circulating-T cells against infection. Induced H. pylori-related TNF-α is concentrated is gastric mucosa and this pathogen does not cause any significant change in the serum level of this cytokine. Therefore H. pylori by inducing certain inflammatory cytokines but not IL-10 may contribute the process of disease development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Hepatitis B virus infection is one of the most common causes of acute and chronic hepatitis worldwide. Furthermore, since most people with hepatitis B virus are asymptomatic, timely diagnosis is important for prevention. This study has evaluated the prevalence of Hepatitis B seromarkers in marriage candidates., Design: In this Cross-sectional study, 370 marriage volunteers selected by the simple sampling method were investigated in 2011 - 2012., Results: A total of 185 men and 185 women were investigated. Mean Age of participants was 24.7 years. The prevalence rates of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), anti hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) and anti-hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) were 1.1%, 47.6% and 8.9% respectively. Frequency of HBsAg was 0.5% and 1.6% in men and women respectively. The prevalence of anti-HBs was 43.8% in men and 51.45% in women. Anti-HBs was more common in young people and those with higher levels of education and positive history of vaccination. The prevalence of anti-HBc was 8.1% and 9.7% in men and women respectively., Conclusion: Although Kerman is a low endemic area, due to the high risk of transmission to the spouse and offspring, screening for HBV study before marriage is recommended.