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Case Reports 2008; 29(1): 67-68 PubMed PMID: 18283251 Citation  Keywords:  Brain:blood supply, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome:diagnostic imaging, Diagnosis, Differential, Female, Fluorodeoxyglucose F18:metabolism, Humans, Middle Aged, Positron-Emission Tomography:methods, Radiopharmaceuticals:metabolism, Regional Blood Flow, Tomogra.   

: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a subacute spongiform encephalopathy. This fatal prion disease is characterized by rapidly progressive dementia with a variety of neurological disorders. Diagnostic methods provided by nuclear medicine might be helpful for evaluation of patients with probable CJD as additional diagnostic tools to MRI and cerebro-spinal fluid evaluation. The experience with FDG-PET and brain perfusion SPECT is presented....

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Controlled Clinical Trial 2008; 29(1): 168-172 PubMed PMID: 18283250 Citation  Keywords:  Adult, Affect:physiology, Anorexia Nervosa:physiopathology, Appetite:physiology, Body Temperature:physiology, Bulimia Nervosa:physiopathology, Circadian Rhythm:physiology, Eating:physiology, Female, Humans, Hunger:physiology, Phototherapy:methods,.   

OBJECTIVES: Light and food are important synchronizers of circadian rhythmicity. In eating disorders, the circadian rhythms of food intake and temperature are abnormal.

METHODS: We analyzed the effect of the morning light application on the circadian rhythm of tympanic temperature and its association with hunger and mood changes in the sample of 25 female patients hospitalized with DSM-IV diagnosis of eating disorders (14 bulimia nervosa and 11 anorexia nervosa) and in 6 healthy women.

RESULTS: Light therapy reduced interindividual variability of the temperature acrophase, synchronized the temperature and hunger rhythms and showed an antidepressant effect on patients with eating disorders. Bright light therapy normalized the circadian rhythm of body temperature in both anorexic and bulimic patients: phase advanced rhythm was delayed and phase delayed rhythm was advanced. In contrast with anorexic patients, the majority of bulimic patients had normal temperature rhythm before the therapy and this rhythm was not changed by the therapy.

CONCLUSION: The light therapy normalized temperature circadian rhythm in patient with eating disorders. We hypothesize that the light therapy can also contribute to improvement of pathological eating pattern because of the functional connections between light and food entrained oscillators. The light may help to restore the irregular circadian rhythmicity induced by chaotic food intake....

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Journal Article 2008; 29(1): 75-79 PubMed PMID: 18283248 Citation  Keywords:  Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Alzheimer Disease:blood, Amyloid beta-Peptides:blood, Biomarkers:blood, Case-Control Studies, Female, Humans, Interleukin-10:blood, Interleukin-6:blood, Middle Aged, Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha:blood,.   

: Alzheimer's disease (AD) belongs to a group of neurodegenerative disorders. It is characterized by irreversible and progressive memory loss accompanied with decline in other cognitive functions. At a microscopic level, the typical neuropathologic features, senile plaques and neurofibrillary lesions are found. The pathological processes lead to neuronal loss, synaptic dysfunction and inappropriate activity of neurotransmitters. The major constituent of senile plaques is abnormally aggregated beta amyloid protein. Beta amyloid (Abeta) is a short (40-42 amino acid) product of proteolysis of the transmembrane amyloid precursor protein (APP). Extracellular depositions of Abeta 1-42 may initiate a wide range of pathological processes including glia activation, neuroinflammation and neuronal apoptosis. There is convincing evidence that inflammatory response to accumulation of beta amyloid plays a pivotal role in the progression of neuropathological changes found in AD. Current research was directed at assessing beta amyloid, cytokines (IL-6, IL-10 and TNF alpha) plasma levels in women with AD. Hundred and twenty four women, aged between 59 to 86 years, were enrolled in the study. Amongst them 57 were diagnosed with AD (29 subjects in early stage and 28 subjects with moderate to severe stadium of disease) and 67 women without dementia were investigated as a control group. The lowest values of Abeta 1-42 were found in AD subjects in moderate to severe stage of disease as compared with the early stage of AD (p< 0.05) and the control group (p<0.01). Change in IL-6 values was significantly different between groups with the lowest values found in women without dementia. Both subset of AD patients demonstrated statistically enhanced IL-6 levels when compared with the control group (p<0.001, p<0.01 respectively for early and moderate/severe stage of AD). Moreover, our study revealed a trend to increase in TNF alfa and IL-10 values in AD. However, those differences were not statistically significant. In addition, we did not detect any correlations between plasma beta amyloid and investigated cytokines....

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Comparative Study 2008; 29(1): 80-86 PubMed PMID: 18283247 Citation  Keywords:  Adult, Birth Weight:drug effects, Buprenorphine:adverse effects, Female, Fetal Growth Retardation:chemically induced, Heroin:administration & dosage, Heroin Dependence:rehabilitation, Humans, Infant, Newborn, Life Style, Methadone:adverse effects, Narcoti.   

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of substitution therapy in heroin addicted pregnant women on the course of pregnancy, perinatal outcomes and course of the neonatal abstinence syndrome.

DESIGN OF THE STUDY: A five-year randomised prospective comparative study

METHODS: The study was carried out in the period of 2002-2007. The group of patients included 147 i.v. heroin-addicted pregnant women. All of them were outpatients of our Perinatal Care Unit. Their daily dose of heroin was approximately lg. Later, 30 women were disqualified from the study for breaking the randomised criteria engagement. The substitution therapy in women who agreed to undergo it, started during the I. trimester of pregnancy. Finally, 47 heroin, 32 methadone and 38 buprenorphine addicted women were enrolled in the study. Birthweight of newborns was compared with the national birthweight tables. Severity and duration of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) were evaluated by Finnegan s score scale.

RESULTS: None of the women delivered before the end of 34th gestational week. We did not encounter any perinatal death or developmental defect. The lowest birthweight, the highest number of newborns with IUGR and the most numerous placental changes were found in the group of heroin-addicted women. The differences compared to the two groups receiving substitution therapy were statistically significant (p < 0.05). The severity and course of NAS were the most severe (p < 0.001) in newborns of women from the methadone group.

CONCLUSION: Comparison of the groups of outpatients is in many ways questionable because of the restricted possibility of the patients' control. The lifestyle of addicted women has the same impact as the drug use alone. This is probably the main reason for differences in some of the monitored parameters between individual groups. Based on our results we can state that substitution therapy provides pregnant women with the possibility of social stabilization and adequate prenatal care. substitution therapy decreases the street heroin consumption. Methadone notably protracts the newborn's abstinence syndrome. With regard to this fact, attention has been recently focused on substitution with buprenorphine that seems to be from this viewpoint a more considerate option....

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Case Reports 2008; 29(1): 69-70 PubMed PMID: 18283246 Citation  Keywords:  Adult, Depression:therapy, Female, Humans, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Complications:psychology, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation:adverse effects, Treatment Outcome,.   

: Sir: For women diagnosed with Recurrent depressive disorder, pregnancy poses a major treatment challenge. Apart from antidepressants, the most commonly used biological therapeutical method is ECT (electroconvulsive therapy). We believe that similar efficacy can be achieved using rTMS as a safer option with substantially less side effects. So far, only a few case-reports reporting the use of rTMS for treatment of pregnant patients with depression were published....

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Journal Article 2008; 29(1): 137-140 PubMed PMID: 18283245 Citation  Keywords:  Adult, Blood Glucose:metabolism, Female, Humans, Hypothyroidism:blood, Insulin:blood, Middle Aged, Severity of Illness Index, Thyroid Gland:physiopathology, Thyroidectomy, Thyrotropin:blood, Thyroxine:blood, Triiodothyronine:blood,.   

OBJECTIVES: Among the peripheral effects of thyroid hormone action, their influence on insulin is of great interest and conflicting data on this subject are available. Despite various studies already performed, of concern is whether insulin levels change in line with a deterioration of thyroid function. In this study, we investigated serum serum insulin levels and their correlations with thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free thyroxine (FT4) and free triiodothyronine (FT3) in hypothyroid women.

DESIGN AND METHODS: Study group consisted of 22 women with a history of total thyroidectomy and radioiodine ablation performed for thyroid cancer, without diabetes or glucose intolerance. After six-weeks of thyroxine withdrawal, subjects were admitted to the Department of Endocrinology of the Poznan University of Medical Sciences to perform this study.

RESULTS: Plasma glucose and insulin were respectively: 4.76+/-0.47 mmol/L and 7.19+/-4.22 microU/mL. Serum TSH, FT4 and FT3 were respectively: 91.66+/-58.59 microU/mL, 2.65+/-2.19 pmol/L, and 1.53+/-1.00 pmol/L. Correlations were: r of -0. 4381 and P of 0.0414, r of -0.2368 and P of 0.2887, and r of 0.3954 and P of 0.0686 for insulin and FT4, insulin and FT3, and insulin and TSH, respectively. The only significant correlation was an inverse correlation between insulin and FT4.

CONCLUSIONS: In profound hypothyroidism insulin concentrations correlate with FT4 only, but not with FT3 or TSH....

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Journal Article 2008; 29(1): 87-90 PubMed PMID: 18283242 Citation  Keywords:  Animals, Circadian Rhythm:physiology, Female, Fetal Development:physiology, Fetal Weight:physiology, Models, Animal, Organ Size, Photoperiod, Placenta:pathology, Placentation:physiology, Pregnancy, Random Allocation, Rats, Rats, Wistar,.   

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of circadian rhythm changes on fetal-placental development in pregnant rats.

MATERIAL AND METHOD: Pregnant rats were randomly allocated to 4 groups with 10 rats in each group. Group 1: 12 hours light 12 hours dark period (n:10, Control Group); Group 2: 6 hours light 6 hours dark period (n:10); Group 3: constant light group (n:10); Group 4: constant dark group (n:10). Rats were made to deliver by cesarean birth at the end of their pregnancy and their placenta, number and weight of the offspring, and placental histopathological changes were examined.

FINDING: Fetal number in the constant dark group was found significant in comparison to constant light group (p<0.01). Fetal weight in all groups with altered circadian rhythm was significantly lower than that in the control group (p<0.01). The decrease in fetal weight was more evident in the constant light group than in the constant dark group (p<0.01). Comparison of the histopathological findings of the placenta showed that placental edema, fibrin accumulation and leukocyte infiltration were significantly higher in constant light and constant dark groups than in other groups (p<0.01).

CONCLUSION: Circadian rhythm change in pregnancy adversely affects the fetal-placental development. More detailed studies are needed to clarify this mechanism....

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Journal Article 2008; 29(1): 173-177 PubMed PMID: 18283241 Citation  Keywords:  Animals, Boron:pharmacology, Female, Lactates:blood, Leptin:blood, Ovariectomy, Physical Conditioning, Animal:physiology, Rats, Rats, Sprague-Dawley, Swimming:physiology, Trace Elements:pharmacology,.   

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of intraperitoneal (IP) boron administration on leptin and lactate levels in swimming exercise in ovariectomized rats.

METHODS: Eighty adult female rats were equally allocated into 8 groups. Group 1; Control, Group 2; exercise control, Group 3; ovariectomized control, Group 4; Boron control (2 mg/kg/day), Group 5; ovariectomized plus exercise, Group 6; exercise plus IP boron, Group 7; ovariectomized and exercise group plus IP boron, Group 8; ovariectomized plus boron.

RESULTS: Leptin levels in Group 1 were higher than those in Groups 2, 3 and 4 and lower than those in groups 5, 6, 7 and 8 (p<0.01). Leptin levels were higher in Group 3 than in Groups 2 and 4 and significantly lower than in all other groups (p<0.01). Lactate levels in Groups 2 and 4 were higher than those in all other groups (p<0.01). Lactate levels were significantly lower in Groups 1, 3, 5 and 8 than in all other groups (p<0.01). Lactate levels in Groups 6 and 7 were significantly lower than those in Groups 2 and 4 (p<0.01) and higher than those in groups 1, 3 and 5 (p<0.01).

CONCLUSION: The present findings demonstrate that ovariectomy and acute swimming exercise in rats led to a significant decrease in leptin levels and a significant increase in lactate levels and that boron administration prevented the increased in circulating lactate concentration induced by swimming exercise....

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