Math learning difficulty (MLD) is a learning disorder characterized by persistent impairments in the understanding and application of numbers independent of intelligence or schooling. The current ...study aims to review existing neuroimaging studies to characterize the neurobiological basis in MLD for their quantity and arithmetic dysfunctions. We identified a total of 24 studies with 728 participants through the literature. Using the activation likelihood estimate (ALE) method, we found that the most consistent neurobiological dysfunction in MLD was observed in the right intraparietal sulcus (IPS) with distinct patterns of the anterior and posterior aspects. Meanwhile, neurobiological dysfunctions were also observed in a distributed network including the fusiform gyrus, inferior temporal gyrus, insula, prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and claustrum. Our results suggest a core dysfunction in the right anterior IPS and left fusiform gyrus with atypically upregulated functions in brain regions for attention, working memory, visual processing, and motivation, serving as the neurobiological basis of MLD.
Using the activation likelihood estimate (ALE) method, we revealed the IPS and a distributed brain network for attention, working memory, visual processing, and motivation, serving as the neurobiological basis of math learning difficulties (MLD). The study provided the first comprehensive and quantitative review of the neurobiological basis of MLD.
Given the broad biological effects of the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway, there is potential clinical value in local application of Hh pathway modulators to restrict pathway activation of target tissues and ...avoid systemic pathway activation. One option to limit Hh pathway activation is using fibrin hydrogels to deliver pathway modulators directly to tissues of interest, bypassing systemic distribution of the drug. In this study, we loaded the potent Hh pathway agonist, SAG21k, into fibrin hydrogels. We describe the binding between fibrin and SAG21k and achieve sustained release of the drug in vitro. SAG21k-loaded fibrin hydrogels exhibit strong biological activity in vitro, using a pathway-specific reporter cell line. To test in vivo activity, we used a mouse model of facial nerve injury. Application of fibrin hydrogels is a common adjunct to surgical nerve repair, and the Hh pathway is known to play an important role in facial nerve injury and regeneration. Local application of the Hh pathway agonist SAG21k using a fibrin hydrogel applied to the site of facial nerve injury successfully activates the Hh pathway in treated nerve tissue. Importantly, this method appears to avoid systemic pathway activation when Hh-responsive organs are analyzed for transcriptional pathway activation. This method of local tissue Hh pathway agonist administration allows for effective pathway targeting surgically accessible tissues and may have translational value in situations where supranormal pathway activation is therapeutic.
Despite the ongoing vaccination efforts, there is still an urgent need for safe and effective treatments to help curb the debilitating effects of COVID-19 disease. This systematic review aimed to ...investigate the efficacy of supplemental curcumin treatment on clinical outcomes and inflammation-related biomarker profiles in COVID-19 patients. We searched PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE, ProQuest, and Ovid databases up to 30 June 2021 to find studies that assessed the effects of curcumin-related compounds in mild to severe COVID-19 patients. Six studies were identified which showed that curcumin supplementation led to a significant decrease in common symptoms, duration of hospitalization and deaths. In addition, all of these studies showed that the intervention led to amelioration of cytokine storm effects thought to be a driving force in severe COVID-19 cases. This was seen as a significant (
< 0.05) decrease in proinflammatory cytokines such as IL1β and IL6, with a concomitant significant (
< 0.05) increase in anti-inflammatory cytokines, including IL-10, IL-35 and TGF-α. Taken together, these findings suggested that curcumin exerts its beneficial effects through at least partial restoration of pro-inflammatory/anti-inflammatory balance. In conclusion, curcumin supplementation may offer an efficacious and safe option for improving COVID-19 disease outcomes. We highlight the point that future clinical studies of COVID-19 disease should employ larger cohorts of patients in different clinical settings with standardized preparations of curcumin-related compounds.
To evaluate the effectiveness of the Partnership Care Model (PCM) on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adults with chronic diseases. Methods Data Sources/Study Setting: Existing literature ...dealing with the effect of HRQoL on chronic patients according to the HRQoL outcomes based on SF36 questionnaires.
Systematic review and meta-analysis.
Medline, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, Cochran database and Persian databases, including SID, Magiran, Iranmedex, and Irandoc, were searched according to the MeSH terms until May 15, 2022. Data analysis was made by using the random effects model and heterogeneity by I
index, and all analyses were made by STATA vers.16 (Stata Corp, College Station, Texas, USA).
Three studies were included in the meta-analysis. Computing the common effect size, there was a significant intervention effect in all HRQoL dimensions, physical and mental subscales, as well as HRQoL total score. The results showed that there was significantly moderate to high substantial heterogeneity between studies except for vitality (I
=45.9%, P=0.157) and physical functioning (I
=30.9%, P=0.235) dimensions.
According to the results of the study and realizing the efficiency of PCM on the eight dimensions of quality of life of chronic patients, it can be stated that this national model, which is in line with the culture and context of Iran, is effective, simple, efficient and reliable. It can be used in the promotion and improvement of various dimensions of HRQoL in chronic diseases.
COVID-19 disease manifests itself in a wide range of signs and symptoms, beginning with mild symptoms, such as fever, cough, and dyspnea, progressing to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and ...death in some cases. The cytokine storm, or an excess of cytokines released locally, is assumed to be the primary cause of ARDS and mortality in COVID-19 patients. To enhance the survival rate of COVID-19 patients, early management of the cytokine storm with immunomodulators is crucial. Although the effectiveness of some immunosuppressants, such as corticosteroids and tocilizumab, has been studied in clinical trials, the administration of these drugs should be exercised cautiously. Cannabidiol (CBD) is a non-psychotropic phytocannabinoid from Cannabis sativa extracts with anti-inflammatory properties. This review is intended to discuss the possible utility of CBD for the management of COVID-19 patients, particularly those with ARDS.
Conflicting data suggest that statins could cause chronic liver disease in certain group of patients, while improving prognosis in those with chronic viral hepatitis (CVH).
To quantify the potential ...protective role of statins on some main liver-related health outcomes in clinical studies on CVH patients.
Data Sources: The search strategy was explored by a medical librarian using bibliographic databases, from January 2015 to April 2020.
Data synthesis: The results showed no significant difference in the risk of mortality between statin users and non-users in the overall analysis. However, the risk of mortality significantly reduced by 39% in statin users who were followed for more than three years. Moreover, the risk of HCC, fibrosis, and cirrhosis in those on statins decreased by 53%, 45% and 41%, respectively. Although ALT and AST reduced slightly following statin therapy, this reduction was not statistically significant.
A significant heterogeneity among studies was observed, resulting from differences in clinical characteristics between statin users and non-users, study designs, population samples, diseases stage, comorbidities, and confounding covariates.
Not only long-term treatment with statins seems to be safe in patients affected by hepatitis, but also it significantly improves their prognosis.
In critically ill patients, acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication with very high mortality rates. Several studies indicated that statin therapy, primarily due to its so-called ...pleiotropic effects, may beneficially affect the course of the disease, otherwise leading to significant clinical complications. However, both the original research as well as available meta-analyses on these associations report equivocal results. This leaves open a question whether pre- and perioperative statins might prevent AKI and improve overall prognosis in patients undergoing surgery.
Following a systematic search of the literature, we performed a meta-analysis of selected clinical studies investigating the impact of statin treatment on the development and the clinical outcomes of AKI among subjects undergoing surgeries. The pooled odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the development of AKI and AKI-associated mortality, as well as the pooled mean differences (MD) and 95% CI for mean intensive care unit (ICU) stay and overall hospital length of stay were calculated for statin users compared to non-users.
Our results showed a highly significant association between statin use and the decrease in mortality of patients with AKI (OR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.69-0.77; p<0.001). The development of AKI (OR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.63-1.33;
= 0.659) as well as the ICU stay (MD = -0.02, 95% CI: -0.06 - 0.02;
= 0.321) were not significantly affected, while the overall hospital length of stay (MD = -0.49, 95% CI: -0.91 -0.07;
= 0.020) was reduced. Subgroup analysis showed that both pre- and postoperative statin use were not associated with the risk of AKI.
Our analysis showed a significant association between statin therapy and overall mortality of critically ill surgical patients diagnosed with AKI, while at the same time the use of statins did not affect the length of their stay in ICU.
Background. Although vaccine rollout for COVID-19 has been effective in some countries, there is still an urgent need to reduce disease transmission and severity. We recently carried out a ...meta-analysis and found that pre- and in-hospital use of statins may improve COVID-19 mortality outcomes. Here, we provide an updated meta-analysis in an attempt to validate these results and increase the statistical power of these potentially important findings. Methods. The meta-analysis investigated the effect of observational and randomized clinical studies on intensive care unit (ICU) admission, tracheal intubation, and death outcomes in COVID-19 cases involving statin treatment, by searching the scientific literature up to April 23, 2021. Statistical analysis and random effect modeling were performed to assess the combined effects of the updated and previous findings on the outcome measures. Findings. The updated literature search led to the identification of 23 additional studies on statin use in COVID-19 patients. Analysis of the combined studies (n=47; 3,238,508 subjects) showed no significant effect of statin treatment on ICU admission and all-cause mortality but a significant reduction in tracheal intubation (OR=0.73, 95% CI: 0.54-0.99, p=0.04, n=10 studies). The further analysis showed that death outcomes were significantly reduced in the patients who received statins during hospitalization (OR=0.54, 95% CI: 0.50-0.58, p<0.001, n=7 studies), with no such effect of statin therapy before hospital admission (OR=1.06, 95% CI=0.82-1.37, p=0.670, n=29 studies). Conclusion. Taken together, this updated meta-analysis extends and confirms the findings of our previous study, suggesting that in-hospital statin use leads to significant reduction of all-cause mortality in COVID-19 cases. Considering these results, statin therapy during hospitalization, while indicated, should be recommended.
Family-centered empowerment model (FCEM) is a concept that strengthens the family to help a chronic patient to obtain a better quality of life (QoL). The effects of FCEM on QoL of chronic patients ...are still inconclusive. Therefore, this meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the effect of FCEM on QoL of adult patients with chronic diseases.
Following an online search PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, OVID, EMBASE, EBSCO, PsycINFO and Persian databases (Irandoc, IranMedex, SID and MagIran), all studies that tested the impact of FCEM on QoL of patients with chronic diseases were included. Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool was used to assessment the quality of included randomized clinical trials (RCTs) and before/after studies. Analyses were conducted by STATA16.
Six hundred and ninety-seven studies were identified for screening. After screening process, 11 eligible studies were included in this meta-analysis. There were significant intervention effects in all QoL dimensions, physical and mental subscales and QoL total score (All P < 0.05). The minimum lower bound for SMD was 0.61 (95%CI: 0.96 to 1.66), indicating an increasing effect of the intervention on all QOL dimensions. The results showed substantial heterogeneity between the studies for all QoL dimensions, physical and mental subscales and QoL total scores (P < 0.001).
FCEM is an appropriate model with a simple and effective application for families with a patient suffering from a chronic illness. Nursing education planners and healthcare providers could benefit from this model for improving the nursing education curriculum and accrediting programs.
•Having a person with a chronic disease affect the living of the other family members.•FCEM is a concept that strengthens the family to help a chronic patient for better quality of life•FCEM is an appropriate model with a simple and effective application for families with a patient suffering from a chronic illness.•Nursing education planners and healthcare providers could benefit from this model.
Does SARS-CoV-2 Threaten Male Fertility? Vahedian-Azimi, Amir; Karimi, Leila; Makvandi, Somayeh ...
Advances in experimental medicine and biology,
2021, Letnik:
1321
Journal Article
Recenzirano
In the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, one of the most important concerns in reproductive health is the issue of male fertility of recovered patients. In this study, we discuss the potential mechanisms ...that justify the possible impact of COVID-19 on male fertility. The main point of entry of SARS-CoV-2 into the host cells appears to be through the viral spike protein which permits entry into cells via the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2 receptor). In human testes, ACE2 is enriched in Sertoli and Leydig cells and spermatogonia. Also, it seems that there is a mild or severe cytokine storm in patients with severe COVID-19, and such changes may affect fertility. It should also be mentioned that the orchitis caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus may have an important impact on fertility. Prolonged and high fever may lead to changes in testicular temperature and destroy germ cells. In general, there is little evidence for a definite conclusion, but there are facts that suggest that COVID-19 may affect male fertility. It is prudent for men of reproductive age who have recovered from COVID-19 to be evaluated for the presence of the virus in semen and fertility-related items. There is an urgent need to conduct quality studies on, in particular, the long-term effects of COVID-19 on the fertility of recovered males.
PDF
