Medicina
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Background and objectives: Calcium phosphates have been widely used as bone substitutes, but their properties are limited to osteoconduction. The association of calcium phosphates with osteoinductive bioactive molecules has been used as a strategy in regenerative medicine. Melatonin has been studied due to its cell protection and antioxidant functions, reducing osteoclastic activity and stimulating newly formed bone. ⋯ Mann-Whitney was used to assess statistical differences between different time points and in the biomaterial variable. Results: Results showed a greater volume of residual biomaterial in the CHA-M than the CHA group (p = 0.007), and there were no significant differences in terms of newly formed bone and connective tissue between CHA and CHA-M after 42 days. Conclusions: This study concluded that both biomaterials improved alveolar bone repair from 7 to 42 days after surgery, and the association of CHA with melatonin gel reduced the biomaterial's biodegradation at the implanted site but did not improve the alveolar bone repair.
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Background and aims: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in middle-aged Lithuanian men categorized according to body mass index and waist circumference results. Methods and results: The data were from the Lithuanian High Cardiovascular Risk primary prevention program between 2009 and 2016. This community-based cross-sectional study comprised 38,412 men aged 40 to 54 years old. ⋯ Conclusion: The most prevalent cardiovascular risk factor among middle-aged Lithuanian men was dyslipidaemia, with a surprisingly high prevalence in all BMI and WC groups. Smoking was the only risk factor most prevalent in subjects with low or normal weight according to BMI. It was also more prevalent in the normal WC group compared to the increased WC or abdominal obesity groups, but ABSI values associated with higher mortality were more prevalent among smokers than non-smokers.
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Background and Objectives: Fibrotic lung disease is one of the main complications of many medical conditions. Therefore, the use of anti-fibrotic agents may provide a chance to prevent, or at least modify, such complication. The aim of this study was to evaluate the protective pulmonary anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory effects of Dinebra retroflexa. ⋯ Such activity was believed to be due to the tentative identification of twenty-seven flavonoids and one phenolic acid along with a phenolic content of 57.8 mg/gm (gallic acid equivalent) and flavonoid content of 22.5 mg/gm (quercetin equivalent). Conclusion: Dinebra retroflexa may be considered as a promising anti-fibrotic agent for people at high risk of complicated lung fibrosis. The results proved that further clinical trials would be recommended to confirm the proposed findings.
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Background and Objectives: SARS-CoV-2 infection is frequently associated with pneumonia but has a broad tissue tropism also leading to systemic complications (hematologic, gastro-intestinal, cardiac, neurologic, etc.). In this study, we aim to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 infection on the liver and to identify the risk factors/predictors for liver injury at admission to the hospital. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study on 249 patients, divided into two Group A (157 patients with liver involvement) and Group B (92 patients without liver involvement). ⋯ Conclusions: Liver involvement in COVID-19 patients is frequent, usually mild, and occurs mostly in male patients over 50 years old. Cholestatic and mixed liver injuries are more frequent than hepatocytolytic injuries. The severity of lung injury evaluated by CT scan, increased values of inflammatory markers, LDH, and low values of SO2 can be considered risk factors/predictors for liver injury at admission to the hospital.
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Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory condition causing itching skin, with a significant psychosocial impact on patients and relatives. AD affects 15 to 30% of children and 2 to 10% of adults. AD significantly affects patients' quality of life (QoL) given the chronicity and symptoms of the disease. ⋯ We used the Sexual Desire Inventory-2 (SDI-2), a validated instrument consisting of 14 items; moreover, we used a second questionnaire with eight items, an unvalidated instrument created specifically for this study, to obtain the assessment of the influence of AD on the body image, sexuality, and self-perception of those affected. Results and Conclusions: The impact of AD on sexual desire assessed using SDI-2 showed a significant improvement in both sexes during dupilumab treatment from the baseline to W4 and W16. Similar results were obtained with our questionnaire.