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Background: Silymarin and N-acetylcysteine are antioxidant supplements with protective effects on the liver and kidneys. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of silymarin and N-acetylcysteine on liver and kidney disorders against severe pre-eclampsia. Methods: In the present single-blind clinical trial, 60 mothers who underwent termination of pregnancy due to severe pre-eclampsia were divided into two groups. The first group received 70 mg of silymarin and the second group received 600 mg of N-acetylcysteine at 3 doses immediately, 12 and 24 hours after delivery. Patients were monitored for blood pressure, platelet and biochemical markers of liver injury and kidney function 12, 36 and 60 hours after drug administration. Results: Over time, the mean Alanine Transaminase (ALT), Aspartate Transaminase (AST), Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) and Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP), levels in the two groups of silymarin and N-acetylcysteine significantly decreased (p

Background Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most important liver diseases. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) has anti-atherogenic properties and its reduction can be associated with fatty liver. Serum ferritin levels are usually elevated in patients with NAFLD. This study aimed to evaluate the correlation between HDL subtypes and serum ferritin levels with evidence of NAFLD in liver histology of organ donors. Methods One hundred organ donor patients who were eligible for the study were included in the study and ferritin; HDL2 and HDL3 were measured in blood samples. Donated liver tissue biopsy specimens were evaluated for fatty liver and NAFLD activity score (NAS). In addition, AST and ALT were measured in recipients 24 h after transplant. All data abstracted and analyzed statistically. Results Serum HDL2 levels and HDL2/HDL3 ratio in patients with NAS > 1 were significantly lower (P 1 (P > 0.05). In addition, serum ferritin > 1000 ng/ml in organ donors associated with increased AST and ALT levels 24 h after transplantation in the liver organ recipient. Conclusions Lower HDL2 values and HDL2/HDL3 ratio were associated with increased NAFLD activity score, but HDL3 and ferritin did not show such a relationship. In addition, higher levels of ferritin in organ donors may be associated with increased AST and ALT 24 h after liver transplantation in the organ recipient.

Background Prenatal corticosteroid administration is known to be an effective strategy in improving fetal pulmonary maturity. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of maternal betamethasone administration on fetal pulmonary and other arteries Doppler velocity and the correlation between RDS development and Doppler indices results. Methods Fifty one singleton pregnancies between 26 and 34 gestational weeks with a diagnosis of preterm labor were included in the exposed group and received betamethasone. Fifty one uncomplicated pregnancies were included in the non-exposed group. Fetal pulmonary, umbilical and middle cerebral arteries Doppler parameters were evaluated before and 24 to 48 h after steroid administration in the exposed group and two times at same intervals in the non-exposed group. Maternal records were matched to neonatal charts if delivery happened, and demographic and outcome data were abstracted. Results When compared with the nonexposed group, fetuses treated with corticosteroids demonstrated significantly decreased umbilical artery Pulsatility index (PI) and significantly increased the middle cerebral artery PI, pulmonary artery Acceleration time (AT) and pulmonary artery AT/ET (Ejection time), while all other indices remained similar. We found significantly decreased pulmonary artery AT in the fetuses with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) compared to those that did not. Conclusions The results of our study showed that maternal antenatal betamethasone administration caused significant changes in the fetus blood velocity waveforms and also affected the blood flow in the pulmonary artery which led to an increase in the pulmonary artery AT and AT/ET. Among those fetuses with RDS, we found a significant decrease in the pulmonary artery AT, but we did not observe any pulmonary artery AT/ET differences.

Background: Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-specific disorder, associated with increased blood pressure and proteinuria, and in extreme cases it can also cause liver and kidney problems. Objective: To determine the impact of silymarin on the improvement of severe preeclampsia. Methods: This randomized clinical trial was conducted at Hajar Hospital in Shahrekord, Iran, from April 2014 to September 2015. Sixty patients whose pregnancy had ended as a result of severe preeclampsia, were entered into the study. Patients were randomly divided into two groups of thirty study and control groups. In addition to current treatment for preeclampsia, case groups were administered 70 mg of silymarin, three and twenty four hours after the termination of pregnancy. The control group received placebo at the same time. The blood pressure and AST, ALT, ALP, LDH, uric acid, bilirubin and kidney tests were compared at the baseline and 12, 36 and 60 hours post- measurements in two groups by SPSS software, version 22, by the ANOVA test, and by the independent-samples t-test. Results: AST and ALT liver enzyme levels decreased significantly 36 and 60 hours after the termination of pregnancy in the study group compared to the control group (p

Background: Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-specific disorder that is associated with an increase in blood pressure and proteinuria; in severe cases, it can cause platelet abnormalities. Silymarin is the extract of Silybum marianum, which is recognized as a safe antioxidant drug. Objective: To determine the impact of Silymarin on the improvement of severe preeclampsia in 60 patients with severe preeclampsia. Methods: In this double-blind clinical trial study, This study included 60 patients whose pregnancies were terminated because of severe preeclampsia and who were referred to Hajar Hospital in Shahrekord, Iran, from April 2014 to September 2015. The patients were divided randomly into two groups, i.e., a group of 30 patients and a control group of 30 patients. In addition to the current treatments for preeclampsia, The members of the study group were administered 70 mg of Silymarin at three hours and 24 hours after the termination of their pregnancies. The control group received a placebo at the same times. Platelet count tests were compared at the baseline and at 12, 36, and 60 hours post-measurements in the two groups by SPSS software, version 22, by the ANOVA test, and by the independent-samples t-test. Results: At the baseline, the two groups were not significantly different in terms of various criteria, such as age, BMI, and platelet counts. There were no significant differences between the two groups regarding the number of platelets at 12, 36, and 60 h after their pregnancies were ended (p > 0.01). Conclusions: The results of this study indicated that, although oxidative factors are involved in the incidence of complications of preeclampsia, e.g., thrombocytopenia, merely using an oxidative agent does not alleviate this effect. This indicated that other factors likely are involved in the pathogenesis of this disease. Additional studies are needed to prove the beneficial effects of this drug in the treatment of preeclampsia. Clinical trial registration: The trial was registered at the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (http://www.irct.ir) with the Irct ID: IRCT201509042388/N1. Funding: Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences supported this research (project no. 2006).