Dental caries remains highly prevalent among children. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of aqueous broccoli extract in enhancing the microhardness of demineralized primary tooth enamel compared to a standard fluoride treatment.
An in vitro study was conducted using 30 extracted primary second molars, which were sectioned and polished. Baseline enamel microhardness was assessed using a Vickers hardness tester. Demineralization was induced using a cola drink (pH 4.5) for 8 min. The broccoli extract was prepared by air-drying fresh florets, stems, and leaves at room temperature, followed by aqueous extraction with distilled water and filtration. The samples were randomly assigned to receive a 10-min treatment with either aqueous broccoli extract (Group B) or 1.23% acidulated phosphate fluoride (APF) gel (Group F). Microhardness was measured posttreatment, and percentage changes between time points were compared using statistical analysis.
After demineralization, broccoli extract, and fluoride gel significantly improved enamel microhardness. The broccoli extract group exhibited a greater recovery in microhardness (+44.95% vs. +20.78%, p = 0.008) compared to the fluoride gel group. However, the overall reduction in microhardness from baseline to final measurement showed no statistically significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.077).
Aqueous broccoli extract demonstrated comparable overall efficacy to fluoride gel in enhancing demineralized primary tooth enamel microhardness despite showing different patterns of demineralization and recovery. These findings suggest that broccoli extract may be a natural and effective alternative for enhancing enamel remineralization in pediatric caries prevention, warranting further clinical investigation.
Perinatal asphyxia is the second leading cause of neonatal mortality in sub-Saharan African countries, including Ethiopia. This study aimed to assess survival status and predictors of mortality among neonates admitted to Jimma University Medical Center with perinatal asphyxia.
A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 373 asphyxiated neonates admitted to Jimma University Medical Center from April 12, 2019, to May 5, 2022. Data were collected from May 18 to June 3, 2022, entered into Epidata version 3.1, and analyzed using R software version 4.2.1. On univariate Cox regression, variables with a p < 0.25 were selected for the final model. Multivariate Cox regression was used to identify significant predictors of mortality among asphyxiated neonates at a 0.05 level of significance and a corresponding 95% confidence interval of the adjusted hazard ratio.
The median survival time of the participants was 20 (95% CI: 18–23) days. During 2888 days of total person-time at risk, a 29.09 (95% CI: 23.20–36.01) per 1000 person-days incidence rate of neonatal mortality was identified. The significant predictors of mortality were stage III Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (AHR: 3.46, 95% CI: 1.55–7.70), acute kidney injury (AHR: 2.82, 95% CI: 1.28–6.23), and stress ulcers (AHR: 2.24, 95% CI: 1.26–3.97).
The incidence of mortality was relatively high among the study participants. Stage III Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, acute kidney injury, and stress ulcers were significant predictors.
There has been a growing focus on health equity (HE) within health systems. Studies in HE have revealed significant domains that have been the focus of attention for academics and research institutions. This research aimed to provide an in-depth perspective on the research efforts conducted around the world concerning HE.
In this bibliometric study, we used co-word analysis to map HE studies indexed in Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and PubMed by the end of 2023. A comprehensive search was carried out in the databases, and the data were analyzed employing VOSviewer software. Along with analyzing publication trends, thematic clusters, and emerging topics in HE were identified.
The compound annual growth rate of the HE documents in PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science were 0.157, 0.173, 0.453, and 0.317, respectively. Topic clusters of HE keywords in the period preceding the COVID-19 pandemic were “Health care,” “Health economics,” “Race and ethnicity,” “Social determinants of health,” and “Age and gender.” The analyses related to the time following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the identification of six topic clusters, namely “Health workforce,” “Risk factors,” “Maternal and child health,” “COVID-19,” “Cancer,” and “Mental health.” Moreover, “Artificial intelligence,” “Racial disparity,” “Machine learning,” and “COVID-19,” were four key emerging topics of HE pertinent to the post-COVID-19 period.
In recent years, there has been a significant increase in research focused on HE. The focus of research in HE has shifted to an emphasis on various diseases and their risk factors. Emerging topics identified in this study represent significant areas of interest as novel research domains, particularly within low- and middle-income countries.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become integral to medical research, impacting various aspects such as data analysis, writing assistance, and publishing. This paper explores the multifaceted influence of AI on the process of writing medical research papers, encompassing data analysis, ethical considerations, writing assistance, and publishing efficiency.
The review was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines; a comprehensive search was performed in Scopus, PubMed, EMBASE, and MEDLINE databases for research publications on artificial intelligence in medical research published up to October 2023.
AI facilitates the writing process by generating drafts, offering grammar and style suggestions, and enhancing manuscript quality through advanced models like ChatGPT. Ethical concerns regarding content ownership and potential biases in AI-generated content underscore the need for collaborative efforts among researchers, publishers, and AI creators to establish ethical standards. Moreover, AI significantly influences data analysis in healthcare, optimizing outcomes and patient care, particularly in fields such as obstetrics and gynecology and pharmaceutical research. The application of AI in publishing, ranging from peer review to manuscript quality control and journal matching, underscores its potential to streamline and enhance the entire research and publication process. Overall, while AI presents substantial benefits, ongoing research, and ethical guidelines are essential for its responsible integration into the evolving landscape of medical research and publishing.
The integration of AI in medical research has revolutionized efficiency and innovation, impacting data analysis, writing assistance, publishing, and others. While AI tools offer significant benefits, ethical considerations such as biases and content ownership must be addressed. Ongoing research and collaborative efforts are crucial to ensure responsible and transparent AI implementation in the dynamic landscape of medical research and publishing.
The biopsychosocial (BPS) model considers that health and behavioral outcomes result from the interaction of biological, psychological, and social factors. Regular exercise is an essential component of modern-day healthy living. All three factors in the BPS model are related to long-term exercise. Therefore, this cross-sectional study aimed to compare adults exercising regularly for at least 3 years with their non-exercising counterparts on perceived health and stress (antagonistic, biopsychological), life satisfaction (psychological), and perceived income (psychosocial) while controlling for age, gender, and education level.
Participants were 461 Hungarian volunteers (74.83% female) aged 18−73 years. There were 274 regular exercisers and 187 non-exercisers. They completed the study on the Qualtrics research platform.
A statistically significant (p < 0.001) multivariate analysis of covariance revealed that long-term exercisers scored lower on perceived stress and higher on perceived health, income, and life satisfaction than non-exercising adults. Consequently, the three factors of the BPS model differentiated the groups. Still, the effect sizes were relatively small. Finally, perceived stress was a statistically significant (p < 0.001) mediator of life satisfaction.
These findings support the idea that long-term exercise behavior can be studied via the BPS model and the role of stress in life satisfaction. The results have practical implications for promoting a healthy and satisfactory life targeting multi-level development through exercise based on the BPS model.
Oral ulcer (OU) is a complex issue with limited effective treatments. This study uses multi-omics data through summary Mendelian randomization (SMR) and colocalization analysis to identify specific gene associations with OU, aiming to find new therapeutic targets, repurpose existing drugs, and develop new treatment options.
Our study consists of two phases: first, extracting data from Genome-Wide Association Studies and using blood mQTL, eQTL, and pQTL data as exposure factors, then integrating these with OU gene data through SMR analysis. Then, we validate the results with UK Biobank data and perform colocalization analysis to confirm shared genetic variants.
Genetically predicted levels of four circulating proteins are associated with OU. Under strong supportive evidence from mQTL, eQTL, and pQTL, genetically predicted levels of NFKB1 are negatively correlated with the risk of OU. With moderate supportive evidence from mQTL and pQTL, genetically predicted levels of FAIM3 are negatively correlated with the risk of OU. Meanwhile, under low supportive evidence from eQTL and pQTL, higher genetically predicted levels of JUND and lower levels of IL12β are associated with a higher risk of OU.
SMR approach employed in this study has pinpointed several proteins with tangible associations to the risk of OU. NFKB1, FAIM3, JUND, and IL12β stand out as promising therapeutic targets for OU, beckoning further exploration and research.
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) remains one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide, including Bangladesh. SIRT1, an NAD-dependent deacetylase, is involved in energy homeostasis and protects β-cells of the pancreas from oxidative stress. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the SIRT1 gene have been found to be associated with T2DM in several populations, however, with conflicting results. The aim of this present case-control study, along with the meta-analysis, was to elucidate the association of rs3758391 polymorphism with the susceptibility to T2DM in Bangladeshi population.
72 T2DM patients and 90 healthy controls were enrolled in our study and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was employed for genotyping the SNP. Odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was used to represent the association of SIRT1 polymorphism with T2DM. For the meta-analysis six studies were included and pooled odds ratio with 95% CI were calculated for six genetic models using the random effects model. Heterogeneity and publication bias was also calculated for each study.
A significant association was found between rs3758391 polymorphism and increased risk of T2DM under codominant TT versus CC (OR = 3.88, 95% CI = 1.34–11.25, p = 0.012), recessive TT versus CC + CT (OR = 2.83, 95% CI = 1.12–7.09, p = 0.027) and allelic T versus C (OR = 1.67, 95% CI = 1.07–2.60, p = 0.024) genetic models. However, no significant association between rs3758391 and other biochemical and anthropometric parameters were found. Our meta-analysis showed no statistically significant association of this polymorphism.
We conclude that, polymorphism at rs3758391 of SIRT1 gene conferred an increased risk of T2DM in Bangladeshi population.
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