Journal of Basic and Clinical Physiology and Pharmacology最新文献

Objectives: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most common nosocomial infection in patients requiring mechanical ventilation in intensive care units (ICUs). VAP is associated with delayed extubation, prolonged hospital stays, increased healthcare costs and mortality rates. The aims of this study to evaluate the level of knowledge for the prevention of VAP among healthcare workers (HCWs) in ICUs and to assess their knowledge in relation to their socio-demographic characteristics.

Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional design was conducted to assess HCWs' knowledge of the guidelines for prevention of VAP in the ICUs of public and private hospitals in Hodeida city, Yemen. Around 140 self-administered multiple-choice questionnaires were distributed between April and July 2017.

Results: A total of 120 (85.6%) HCWs completed questionnaire were obtained (20 physicians, 20 anesthesia technicians and 80 nurses) in this study. The total mean score of the HCWs' knowledge was low (41 ± 18). A statistically significant difference was found in the HCWs' knowledge scores according to their specialties and gender. Anesthesia technicians had the highest knowledge score followed by physicians and nurses (52.2 ± 16.2, 45.6 ± 21.2 and 37.1 ± 16.9, respectively, p=0.002). Males had higher scores than females (Median [IQR] 4 [3-5] vs. 3 [2-4], p<0.001). Participants who received information about the prevention of VAP had better knowledge than those who did not (46.2 ± 17.7 vs. 36.8 ± 17.3, p=0.006).

Conclusions: HCWs had a low knowledge level of the guidelines for the prevention of VAP, which may affect their practice. HCWs' knowledge was affected by their previous received information that increases the necessity to provide them with regular in-service education and training programs.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a malignant tumor that grows from the epithelial cells of nasopharynx. NPC has the ability to modify its metabolism and leads the patient to suffer from malnutrition and cachexia, therefore aggravates the occurrence of impaired inflammatory response. Currently, available treatments for NPC are chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or chemoradiotherapy. Despite of its efficacy, these regimens have been known to elicit various inflammation-related side effects including infection, diarrhea, and mucositis. It has long been established that increased activity of inflammatory response is associated to low survival rate in both early and advanced stage of cancer. Furthermore, uncontrolled and dysregulated inflammatory response are significantly correlated with malignant progression of cancer. Considering how pivotal inflammation to malignancy progression, there is a need for effective strategies to modulate inflammatory response. Various strategies have been proposed to improve immune response in NPC patients including dietary supplementation of synbiotics. Synbiotics refers to the manipulation of both probiotics and prebiotics to provide a synergistic benefit to the host by promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria while inhibiting the growth of pathogenic bacteria. There is a growing number of evidences related to the potential of synbiotics in modulating the pro-inflammatory response and improve immune systems in a variety of conditions, including cancer. In this study, we will discuss the immunomodulatory effects of synbiotics in the nasopharyngeal carcinoma occurrences.

Objectives: Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive substance in the world. Animal studies indicate that acute caffeine exposure at high doses may induce seizures and diminish the anticonvulsant activity of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) at much lower doses. The aim of the current study was to assess the effect of caffeine on the anticonvulsant action of levetiracetam (LEV) and vigabatrin (VGB).

Methods: The anticonvulsant activity of LEV and VGB was examined in the maximal electroshock seizure threshold test in mice (MEST test). All drugs were administered intraperitoneally by single injections, and caffeine was applied at doses capable of interfering with AEDs. Effects of caffeine exposure on AEDs were also investigated in tests of memory and motor performance.

Results: Caffeine reduced the protective effect of LEV against electroconvulsions. Total brain concentration of LEV was unaffected by caffeine as well as inversely; LEV had no significant impact on the brain caffeine concentration, suggesting a pharmacodynamic nature of the interaction between LEV and caffeine in the MEST test. VGB at applied doses did not affect the convulsive threshold. Administration of VGB, but not LEV, alone or in combination with caffeine, impaired memory retention. In the chimney test, the combined treatment with AEDs and caffeine did not cause motor coordination impairment.

Conclusions: It is suggested that caffeine may negatively affect the anticonvulsant action of LEV in patients with epilepsy.

Objectives: Acute renal injury (AKI) is a major limiting factor for cisplatin administration. Recent evidence suggests the potential contribution of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to rehabilitation from several disorders via both direct and indirect routes. Thus, the present study aimed, for the first time, to explore and compare the reno-protective potential of human dental pulp-derived stem cells (hDPSCs) vs. hDPSC-conditioned medium (hDPSC-CM) in recovery of impaired kidney tissues in a rat animal model of cisplatin-induced AKI.

Methods: AKI was induced via cisplatin injection (n=36). One day after, 24 rats were treated with either hDPSCs or hDPSC-CM (n=12). An extra set of rats (n=12) served as sham group. On days 2 or 7 (n=6), rats were humanly sacrificed for further analysis. Renal injury was explored via measuring serum creatinine and BUN. Renal level of oxidative stress was assessed by determining malondialdehyde, and enzymatic activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase. Renal histopathological changes were scored for comparison among different experimental groups.

Results: A single dose of cisplatin resulted in considerable renal dysfunction and oxidative stress. Treatment with hDPSCs or hDPSC-CM resulted in significantly restored renal function, reduced level of oxidative stress, and improved histopathological manifestations. Furthermore, as compared to hDPSC-CM, administration of hDPSCs led to superior results in AKI-induced animals.

Conclusions: The current study described the first comparative evidence of reno-protective potential of hDPSCs and their CM against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in an AKI rat model, proposing them as useful adjunctive therapy in AKI. Yet, future explorations are still needed.

Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) has been shown to have a favorable effect on many diseases as a complementary therapy and is a critical component of healthy living. During the pandemic era, physical activity has been promoted for resistance against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, there is scarce evidence on whether MVPA could reduce the infectivity and susceptibility to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The objective of this meta-analysis was to determine the effect of MVPA on morbidity, mortality, and duration of hospitalization in COVID-19 patients. We performed a comprehensive search of five online databases for eligible studies up to September 9, 2021. Meta-analyses were conducted to determine the association between MVPA and COVID-19-related morbidity, hospitalization, and mortality. The odds ratio (OR) was applied as the summary statistic for the primary outcomes. Secondary analyses were conducted to evaluate the difference in the metabolic equivalent of tasks (METs) between the outcome and non-outcome groups with the mean difference as the pooled effect. This meta-analysis included eight observational studies. We found that MVPA significantly reduced the odds of contracting SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR=0.88; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.85-0.92), hospitalization (OR=0.56; 95% CI=0.35-0.92), and mortality (OR=0.42; 95% CI=0.21-0.81) due to COVID-19 compared to no physical activity. METs≥500 min/week were linked to decreased morbidity and mortality of COVID-19 (OR=0.94 [95% CI=0.90-0.98]; OR=0.56 [95% CI=0.38-0.83]). COVID-19 patients with MVPA demonstrated a lower risk of COVID-19-related morbidity, hospitalization, and mortality compared to those who were less active, highlighting the importance of an active lifestyle despite the pandemic situation where such activities are limited.

Objectives: To assess the predictive value of pre-discharge heart rate variability (HRV) parameters in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) treated by percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Methods: 145 consecutive male patients with ACS (aged 57.12 ± 10.81 years) were included in this study. Fifteen minutes electrocardiogram recording was done to measure time-domain [standard deviation of N-N intervals (SDNN), root-mean square differences of successive R-R intervals (rMSSD)] and frequency-domain [low-frequency (LF) power, high-frequency (HF) power and total power (TP)] HRV parameters before and after PCI. The primary end point was the occurrence of major clinical events (MCE) defined as death, sudden death or re-acute myocardial infarction at the end of 3 months follow-up.

Results: At a follow-up of 3 months, MCE occurred in 06 patients (4.14%) (Cardiac death was 3.01%, while that of sudden death was 1.13%). Out of six-MCE, four deaths and two re-AMIs occurred. Pre-discharge HRV values (SDNN, rMSSD, TP, LF and HF) were significantly lower in patients with ACS without MCE. Only total power HRV index (AUC=0.748; p=0.040) showed greater prognostic accuracy.

Conclusions: In conclusion, study showed an increase in SDNN, rMSSD, LF, HF and TP after successful revascularization with PCI in patients who had MCE. The resultant sensitivity, specificity of HRV is still limited in the present study. Particularly, its sensitivity is higher (33-83%) with a modest specificity (61-72%).

Objectives: To compare differences of operative outcomes, post-operative complications and survival outcomes between open and laparoscopic cases in a multicenter study.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study performed at three European centers from September 2011 to January 2019. The surgeon decision to perform open inguinal lymphadenectomy (OIL) or video endoscopic inguinal lymphadenectomy (VEIL) was done in each hospital after patient counselling. Inclusion criteria regarded a minimum follow-up of 9 months since the inguinal lymphadenectomy.

Results: A total of 55 patients with proven squamous cell penile cancer underwent inguinal lymphadenectomy. 26 of them underwent OIL, while 29 patients underwent VEIL. For the OIL and VEIL groups, the mean operative time was 2.5 vs. 3.4 h (p=0.129), respectively. Hospital stays were lower in the VEIL group with 4 vs. 8 days in OIL patients (p=0.053) while number of days requiring drains to remain in situ was 3 vs. 6 days (p=0.024). The VEIL group reported a lower incidence of major complications compared to the OIL group (2 vs. 17%, p=0.0067) while minor complications were comparable in both groups. In a median follow-up period of 60 months, the overall survival was 65.5 and 84.6% in OIL and VEIL groups, respectively (p=0.105).

Conclusions: VEIL is comparable to OIL regarding safety, overall survival and post-operative outcomes.