The American journal of the medical sciences
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Whether Astragalus membranaceus is an effective drug in the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) is unknown and how it exhibits activity in UC is unclear. ⋯ Astragalus membranaceus may be an effective drug in the treatment of UC by acting on targets with anti-UC effect via its antioxidant action and by regulating the balance of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory factors.
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Review Case Reports
1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D Mediated Hypercalcemia in Seminoma.
Hypercalcemia has rarely been associated with seminomas. Due to the limited data available, the pathophysiology of hypercalcemia in seminoma has not been established in literature. We present a case of a 59-year-old male who presented with weakness, abdominal fullness, fatigue, constipation, and a 14 lb unintentional weight loss. ⋯ However, few cases present sufficient data to conclude the pathophysiology of hypercalcemia. In all four cases that presented 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D levels, the levels were elevated, suggesting seminomas are associated with 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D mediated hypercalcemia. Interestingly, one case was associated with increased 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D and increased PTHrP levels, suggesting there may be multiple mechanisms of hypercalcemia in seminomas.
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Review Case Reports
Severe Hyponatremia Secondary to Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuretic Hormone (SIADH): A Rare Cause of Takotsubo (Stress) Cardiomyopathy.
Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is a reversible, stress-induced systolic abnormality of the left ventricular apex.1,2 It can carry significant morbidity and mortality for patients, largely due to associated complications that can occur in the acute setting. While it is most commonly linked with acute emotional or physical stressors, it is now recognized that many acute medical illnesses can precipitate the syndrome. Severe acute hyponatremia (<120 mmol/L) should be considered as a possible causative condition for Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, however reports of its occurrence in the literature are exceedingly rare.3-14 We present a case of a 73-year-old woman who was admitted for severe hyponatremia secondary to syndrome of inappropriate anti-diuretic hormone (SIADH) with a sodium level of 105 mmol/L and a concomitant diagnosis of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, as well as a review of the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and clinical outcomes of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy.
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The association between serological indexes and occurrence of complications in patients with autoimmune gastritis (AIG) remains unclear. ⋯ We found that TPOAb can serve as a predictive biomarker of NET in AIG. This accessible test is helpful for endoscopy specialists to pay attention to gastric mucosal lesions in TPOAb-positive AIG patients, improving early diagnosis and intervention of comorbidities ability.