Acta clinica Croatica
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Acta clinica Croatica · Dec 2019
SAFETY AND EFFECTS OF CRATAEGUS EXTRACT WS 1442 AND NORDIC WALKING ON LIPID PROFILE AND ENDOTHELIAL FUNCTION: A RANDOMIZED, PARTIALLY BLINDED PILOT STUDY IN OVERWEIGHT VOLUNTEERS.
Overweight and physical inactivity adversely affect endothelial function and are risk factors for atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. Both Crataegus extract WS 1442 and physical exercise exert beneficial effects on endothelial function. We investigated whether WS 1442 and Nordic walking (NW) had comparable effects on endothelial function and lipid profile in overweight subjects. ⋯ WS-double showed no additional benefits over WS-standard. All adverse events were unrelated or improbably related to treatment. In conclusion, WS 1442 and exercise training were safe and showed beneficial effects on endothelial function and lipid profile in overweight but otherwise healthy volunteers; exercise capacity improved only by Nordic walking.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Dec 2019
POSITIVE EXPRESSION OF NEDD9 IN HEAD AND NECK CANCER IS RELATED TO BETTER SURVIVAL PERIOD.
The aim was to determine immunohistochemical expression of NEDD9 protein in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and the possible relation of its expression with primary tumor size (T), regional lymph node status (N), stage of disease (TNM) and survival period. A total of 131 patients with primary tumor localization in the area of oropharynx, hypopharynx and larynx, monitored for at least 5 years after initial surgical treatment were analyzed. The study included 128 male and three female patients, median age 62.0 (range 53.0-68.0) years. ⋯ Patients with positive NEDD9 expression had a significantly higher median (IQR) survival time 51.0 (15.0-60.0) months as compared to 22.5 (9.0-55.0) months in patients with negative NEDD9 expression (p=0.048). NEDD9 negative expression, controlled for the influence of other variables included in the Cox's proportional hazards model, had a significant hazard ratio (HR) of 2.10 (95% CI: 1.23-3.58; p=0.006). The results of our study showed that NEDD9 expression might be an independent prognostic marker in patients with HNSCC regarding data on overall survival and mortality.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Dec 2019
EFFECT OF SUN EXPOSURE DURATION ON CYCLOOXYGENASE-2 EXPRESSION IN THE CONJUNCTIVA.
Pterygium is a multifactorial proliferative pathologic change of bulbar conjunctiva. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the duration of exposure to solar radiation (expressed in years) on the incidence of positive cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) finding in conjunctival tissue in two groups of patients. Group 1 consisted of 68 patients with primary pterygium having undergone conjunctival autograft transplantation. ⋯ The analysis of COX-2 activity yielded 29 (42.6%) positive findings in group 1 and 27 (62.8%) positive findings in group 2. Group 2 consisted of statistically significantly older individuals with a history of considerably longer sun exposure. Statistical analysis proved the duration of exposure to solar radiation to be the most important factor in positive COX-2 findings.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Dec 2019
Case ReportsADENOID CYSTIC CARCINOMA OF DISTAL TRACHEA: A CASE REPORT.
Primary malignant tumors of the trachea are very rare with the incidence of less than two per million people per year, and only ten percent of them are adenoid cystic carcinomas. Eighty percent of all tracheal tumors are malignant. Diagnosis is usually late because the symptoms mimic other conditions such as asthma. ⋯ Radical resection is only accomplished in about half of all cases because of the submucosal tumor growth and limited length of tracheal resection. The role of adjuvant radiation therapy in negative resection margin cases is not clear but all patients with positive resection margin benefit from radiation therapy. We present a case of a 43-year-old patient with primary adenoid cystic carcinoma of distal trachea treated by emergency bronchoscopic recanalization and resection of the tracheal tumor with end-to-end anastomosis.
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Acta clinica Croatica · Dec 2019
THE ROLE OF CIGARETTE SMOKING AND ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION IN PULMONARY TUBERCULOSIS DEVELOPMENT AND RECURRENCE.
During a two-year period (2001-2003), 464 patients were treated for tuberculosis at Jordanovac Department for Lung Diseases in Croatia. Besides pulmonary tuberculosis in 97.7% of patients, patients were also treated for tuberculous pleurisy (0.9%), tuberculous laryngitis (0.6%), tuberculous meningitis (0.2%), tuberculous pericarditis (0.2%) and urogenital tuberculosis (0.4%). Out of the total number of patients, 57.3% declared themselves to be active smokers (men were predominant and made up to 80.8%) and 20.9% to be active alcohol consumers. ⋯ Seventy-two of 464 (15.5%) patients had recurrences of tuberculosis. Of these, 30.5% had one of the risk factors (20.8% were smokers and 9.7% consumed alcohol), while 32.5% of patients had both risk factors. In conclusion, cigarette smoking was proved to be the most significant risk factor for development of pulmonary tuberculosis and its recurrence.