Medicina
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Background and objective: Nowadays, diabetes is one of the main causes of blindness in the world. Identification and differentiation of risk factors for diabetic retinopathy depending on the type of diabetes gives us the opportunity to fight and prevent this complication. Aim of the research: To assess differences in the risk factors for diabetic retinopathy in type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus patients in Warmia and Mazury Region, Poland. ⋯ Conclusions: In the whole study group, the risk of DR was associated with the duration of diabetes, HbA1c, triglyceride concentrations and smoking. In DM1 patients, the risk of DR was associated with diabetic kidney disease in the G1A1/A2 stage of chronic kidney disease, and in DM2 patients with the G2 stage of chronic kidney disease. An important risk factor for DR in DM2 patients was associated with late introduction of insulin therapy.
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Background and Objectives: Risk factors for neonatal/maternal morbidity and mortality in placental abruption have been incompletely studied in the current literature. Most of the research overlooked the African American population as mostly Caucasian populations are selected. We aimed to find which risk factor influence the neonatal and maternal outcome in cases of placental abruption occurring in African American pregnant women in an inner-city urban setting. ⋯ Conclusions: Lower gestational age at delivery is the most important risk factor for poor neonatal outcome in African American women with placental abruption. Poor maternal outcome correlated with HELLP syndrome, crack/cocaine use and previous cesarean section. More research in this understudied population is needed to establish reliable risk factors and coordinate preventive interventions.
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Background: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common functional gastrointestinal disorders, exhibiting complex and controversial pathological features. Both oxidative stress and inflammation-related reactive oxygen species production may be involved in IBS pathological development. Thus, we focused on several aspects regarding the causes of oxidative stress occurrence in IBS. ⋯ Conclusions: Therefore, there is a possible correlation between neurological impairment, emotional over-responsiveness, mild inflammatory patterns, and oxidative stress that are not followed by tissue destruction in IBS patients. Moreover, it is not yet clear whether oxidative stress, inflammation, or neurological impairments are key determinants or in which way these three interact in IBS pathology. However, the conditions in which oxidative imbalances occur may be an interesting research lead in order to find possible explanations for IBS development.
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Background and objectives: The purpose of this project is to evaluate the association between twin sex discordance and menstrual characteristics. We hypothesize that sharing the uterus with a male twin can change ovulation programming, hence changing the menstrual cycle characteristics during adulthood. This project could be novel in discovering new physiological mechanisms of hormone exposure and menstrual cycles. ⋯ However, twin sex discordance was not associated with period duration, length of menstrual cycle, cycle regularity, or a number of periods per year. Conclusions: Twin sex discordance is not a predictor of clinical characteristics of menstruation during adulthood except for the amount of bleeding. Future studies should focus on the impact of male hormones on the amount of bleeding during menstruation.
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Background and objective: This is the first study to investigate the effect of high-flow oxygen therapy, using a normobaric chamber on cognitive, biochemical (oxidative stress parameters and the level of neurotrophins), cardiovascular and autonomic functioning. Materials and methods: 17 healthy volunteers, eight males and nine females, with a mean age of 37.5 years, were examined. The experimental study involved ten two-hour exposures in a normobaric chamber with a total pressure of 1500 hPa (32–40 kPa partial pressure of oxygen, 0.7–2 kPa of carbon dioxide and 0.4–0.5 kPa of hydrogen). ⋯ A response of the respiratory tract to oxidative stress was also noted. There is a need to rigorously examine the safety of normobaric therapy. Further studies should be carried out with physician examination, both pre and post treatment.