The Libyan journal of medicine
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Observational Study
Effectiveness of direct-acting antiviral drugs against hepatitis C virus: predictive factors of response to the treatment.
Background/Aims. Despite the high efficacy and safety of direct-acting antivirals against hepatitis C virus shown in clinical trials, treatment failures continue to occur. Our aim was to establish the effectiveness of these drugs in routine clinical practice, as well as to determine factors that could influence the response to the treatment. ⋯ Conclusion. The effectiveness and safety of direct-acting antivirals against hepatitis C virus have been maintained in routine clinical practice. Further research on predictive factors of response is required in order to develop more reliable and reproducible predictive models.
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The burdenofchildren with cardiovascular disease is on a rising trend. These rising trends are enhanced by the development of new technology in the diagnosis of cardiac lesions. This article is aimed at documenting the current trends in the occurrence of cardiac disease among children attending tertiary hospitals in Sothern Nigeria. ⋯ Five 62.5% (5/8) of such dysmorphic features were associated with VSD. The majority of the children with cardiac disease were from the middle class 63.6% followed by the higher class 21.9% and the least is from the lower class 14.5%. The prevalence values of heart disease were quite higher than that documented in previous studiesThe is a rising prevalence of congenital heart disease (83.6%) and acquired heart disease (16.4%) among children with cardiac disease in southern Nigeria. Extracardiac anomalies were also associated with these trends.
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Quercetin (QN) is a naturally occurring phenolic compound found largely in vegetables and fruits. Lycopene (LY) is yet another natural phytocompound, found abundantly in red-colored fruits and vegetables. Both have been reported to have beneficial activities in humans. ⋯ QL pretreatment prevented all these adverse effects of ISO cardiotoxicity and significantly reduced the myocardial damage. Decrease in oxidative stress was observed, possibly through alterations in the expression levels of enzymic antioxidant genes (GSTµ, SOD1, SOD2 and CAT). In general, QL exert a strong protective effect through the modulations in enzymic antioxidant activity and associated molecular pathways-regulating effect in cardiovascular disease.
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The use of plants as a source of sedative or treatment for cancer is reasonably widespread worldwide. Annona muricata Linn exhibits a vast array of medicinal and ethno-pharmaceutical benefits, attributed by different plant parts. The activity of this plant is regarded to the bio-production of secondary metabolites like alkaloids, phenols, flavonoids, and most unique group of compounds, namely, annonaceous acetogenins. ⋯ LEAM treated ascites tumour-induced mice. This study thus indicates that LEAM possesses potent cytotoxic and antineoplastic activity and calls for more methodical safety assessments and other end-points of anti-tumourigenesis. Abbreviations: LEAM: Leaf methanol extract of Annona muricata; DLA: Dalton's Lymphoma Ascites; EAC: Ehrlich Ascites Carcinoma; IC50 : Half maximal inhibitory concentration; CPCSEA: Committee for the Purpose of Control Supervision of Experiments on Animal; IAEC: Institutional Animal Ethics Committee; ARRIVE: Animal Research: Reporting In-vivo Experiments; DMSO: Dimethyl sulphoxide; LD50 : Lethal Dose, 50%; SD: Standard Deviation; Hb: Haemoglobin; RBC: Red blood cells; WBC: White blood cells; HCT: Hematocrit; MCV: Mean cell volume; MCH: Mean cell haemoglobin; MCHC: Mean cell haemoglobin concentration; SALP: Serum alkaline phosphatase; SGPT: Serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase; SGOT: Serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase; ATP: Adenosine triphosphate; EGFR: Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor.
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The first case of COVID-19 was identified in Libya on 24/3/2020, and about 2 months later, the number of reported COVID-19 cases started to increase notably. The outbreak was first prominent in the southern region (Sabha) and then spread to the western and eastern parts of Libya. By 24/12/2020, the reported total number of deaths from COVID-19 reached 1415. ⋯ We estimated that 14-20% of the Libyan population have been exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, the risk of spread of COVID-19 infections during the coming months is high, and a considerable number of Libyans, particularly the elderly and people with chronic diseases, should be protected against COVID-19 infection. This is particularly urgent in the light of unofficial reports that the relevant healthcare facilities are under extreme stress.