Orbital hydatid cyst and its successful treatment: A case report from Afghanistan.

Purpose: This study aims to underscore the rarity of intraorbital hydatid disease caused by Echinococcus granulosus, emphasizing the importance of comprehensive exploration and documentation for effective management.

Observations: Clinical presentations include proptosis, visual deterioration, ocular motility disruptions, and chemosis. A case study of an 8-year-old boy with a retroorbital hydatid cyst successfully resected through a right transcaruncular orbitotomy approach is presented, highlighting surgical complexities and the efficacy of pre and post-operative albendazole therapy.

Factors associated with sleep quality among Afghan healthcare workers.

Background And Aims: Sleep is a complex physiological process during which the body and mind enter a period of rest. For a healthy lifestyle, different cohort groups can be affected in different ways. One such cohort is healthcare workers (HCWs)-an unexplored group in Afghanistan.

An update on periodontal inflammation and bone loss.

Periodontal disease is a chronic inflammatory condition that affects the supporting structures of the teeth, including the periodontal ligament and alveolar bone. Periodontal disease is due to an immune response that stimulates gingivitis and periodontitis, and its systemic consequences. This immune response is triggered by bacteria and may be modulated by environmental conditions such as smoking or systemic disease.

Arachnoid cyst in the quadrigeminal cistern: A case from Afghanistan.

Arachnoid cysts, fluid-filled lesions within the central nervous system, pose diagnostic challenges. This study examines a unique case of a quadrigeminal arachnoid cyst in a 13-year-old girl, emphasizing accurate identification and treatment. The patient's symptoms of blurred vision and headaches led to the discovery of papilledema and imaging revealing a sizable cyst causing obstructive hydrocephalus.

Characterising the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patient journey after a serious road traffic injury and barriers to access to compensation: a protocol.

Introduction: Road safety has been a long-enduring policy concern in Australia, with significant financial burden of road trauma and evident socioeconomic disparities. Transport injuries disproportionately impact individuals in remote areas, those in lower socioeconomic situations, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. There is a lack of insight into transport injuries in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, absence of Indigenous perspective in published research and limited utilisation of linked data assets to address the inequity.

Development and validation of an individual-based state-transition model for the prediction of frailty and frailty-related events.

Frailty is a biological syndrome that is associated with increased risks of morbidity and mortality. To assess the value of interventions to prevent or manage frailty, all important impacts on costs and outcomes should be estimated. The aim of this study is to describe the development and validation of an individual-based state transition model that predicts the incidence and progression of frailty and frailty-related events over the remaining lifetime of older Australians.

Prenatal iodine supplementation and early childhood neurodevelopment: the PoppiE trial - study protocol for a multicentre randomised controlled trial.

Introduction: Observational studies suggest both low and high iodine intakes in pregnancy are associated with poorer neurodevelopmental outcomes in children. This raises concern that current universal iodine supplement recommendations for pregnant women in populations considered to be iodine sufficient may negatively impact child neurodevelopment. We aim to determine the effect of reducing iodine intake from supplements for women who have adequate iodine intake from food on the cognitive development of children at 24 months of age.

Chronic nitrate administration increases the expression the genes involved in the browning of white adipose tissue in female rats.

Nitrate, a nitric oxide (NO) donor, has antiobesity effect in female rats. This study hypothesized that the antiobesity effect of nitrate in female rats is due to the browning of white adipose tissue (WAT). Female Wistar rats (aged 8 months) were divided into two groups (n = 10/group): the control group received tap water and the nitrate group received water containing 100 mg/L of sodium nitrate for 9 months.

An Economic Evaluation of Government-Funded COVID-19 Testing in Australia.

Objective: Easy and equitable access to testing has been a cornerstone of the public health response to COVID-19. Currently in Australia, testing using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for COVID-19 is free to the user, but government funding for rapid antigen tests (RATs) is limited. We conduct an economic analysis of alternative government policies regarding the funding of COVID-19 testing in Australia.

Role of Cultured Skin Fibroblasts in Regenerative Dermatology.

The skin, as the largest organ, covers the entire outer part of the body, and since this organ is directly exposed to microbial, thermal, mechanical and chemical damage, it may be destroyed by factors such as acute trauma, chronic wounds or even surgical interventions. Cell therapy is one of the most important procedures to treat skin lesions. Fibroblasts are cells that are responsible for the synthesis of collagen, elastin, and the organization of extracellular matrix (ECM) components and have many vital functions in wound healing processes.

Hydrogen sulfide potentiates the protective effects of nitrite against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in type 2 diabetic rats.

Decreased heart levels of nitric oxide (NO) and hydrogen sulfide (HS) in type 2 diabetes (T2D) are associated with a higher risk of mortality following ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. This study aimed to determine the effects of co-administration of sodium nitrite and sodium hydrosulfide (NaSH) on IR injury in the isolated heart from rats with T2D. Two-month-old male rats were divided into 5 groups (n = 7/group): Control, T2D, T2D + nitrite, T2D + NaSH, and T2D + nitrite + NaSH.

Topical spray of Wharton's jelly mesenchymal stem cells derived from umbilical cord accelerates diabetic wound healing.

Background And Aim: Cell-based therapy utilizing mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is currently being investigated as a therapeutic agent for chronic wounds. There is no evidence regarding effectiveness of the spray and local transfer of this cellular product in diabetic wound healing. Accordingly, the present study, using clinical, pathological and biometric parameters, investigated the effectiveness of the spray of these cells in the healing of diabetic wounds in rats.

Combination of epidermal keratinocyte-melanocyte cells suspension and microneedling: Safe surgical approach in vitiligo.

Introduction: Vitiligo is a skin disease that is associated with impaired skin immune systems and pigment degradation in skin melanocyte cells. Despite the significant impact of the disease on the quality of life of patients, treatment of the disease using an effective method such as the transplantation of uncultivated melanocytes was considered by researchers around the world. The goal of this research was to use microneedling to transplant epidermal keratinocyte-melanocyte cells suspension for the treatment of vitiligo patients.

Tissue engineering in dermatology - from lab to market.

Tissue Engineering is a branch of regenerative medical technology which helps replace damaged tissue using appropriate scaffolding, living cells, and growth factors. Using tissue engineering products can be a promising method for treating skin lesions such as wounds and deep burns. The interaction and interconnection of cells within the bio-culture medium or within a three-dimensional scaffold provides the conditions for tissue regeneration and subsequent healing of skin wounds.

Long Term Sodium Nitrate Administration Positively Impacts Metabolic and Obesity Indices in Ovariectomized Rats.

Background: In postmenopausal women, nitric oxide (NO) deficiency is associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). This study aims at determining the long-term effects of low-dose nitrate administration on metabolic and obesity indices in ovariectomized (OVX) rats.

Methods: OVX rat model was induced using the two dorsolateral skin incision method.

Effect of oral nitrite administration on gene expression of SNARE proteins involved in insulin secretion from pancreatic islets of male type 2 diabetic rats.

Background: Nitrite stimulates insulin secretion from pancreatic β-cells; however, the underlying mechanisms have not been completely addressed. The aim of this study is to determine effect of nitrite on gene expression of SNARE proteins involved in insulin secretion from isolated pancreatic islets in Type 2 diabetic Wistar rats.

Methods: Three groups of rats were studied (n = 10/group): Control, diabetes, and diabetes + nitrite, which treated with sodium nitrite (50 mg/L) for 8 weeks.

Association between vitamin D level and prognostic factors among patients infected with SARS-CoV-2.

Objectives: The present study aimed to evaluate the presence of any relationship between vitamin D and prognostic factors among patients infected with SARS-CoV-2.

Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted among patients admitted from March to August 2020 in a referral hospital, Tehran, Iran. All patients aged 18-65 who had not any comorbidity participated in the study.

Acidified Nitrite Accelerates Wound Healing in Type 2 Diabetic Male Rats: A Histological and Stereological Evaluation.

Impaired skin nitric oxide production contributes to delayed wound healing in type 2 diabetes (T2D). This study aims to determine improved wound healing mechanisms by acidified nitrite (AN) in rats with T2D. Wistar rats were assigned to four subgroups: Untreated control, AN-treated control, untreated diabetes, and AN-treated diabetes.

Long-term nitrate administration increases expression of browning genes in epididymal adipose tissue of male type 2 diabetic rats.

Expression of browning genes are lower in both humans and animals with type 2 diabetes (T2D). This study aims at determining effects of long-term nitrate administration on protein and mRNA levels of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ), and PPAR-γ coactivator 1 alpha (PGC1-α) in epididymal adipose tissue (eAT) of rats with T2D. Male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups (n = 6/group): Control, diabetes, control + nitrate (CN), and diabetes + nitrate (DN).

Acidified nitrite improves wound healing in type 2 diabetic rats: Role of oxidative stress and inflammation.

Purpose: Decreased nitric oxide bioavailability in skin contributes to impaired wound healing in type 2 diabetes (T2D). This study aims at determining effects of acidified nitrite on wound closure as well as inflammatory and antioxidants markers in wound tissue of rats with T2D.

Main Methods: Skin wound was made on the back of rats 28 days after the induction of T2D (high-fat diet/low-dose of streptozotocin).

AMEND study protocol: a case-control study to assess the long-term impact of invasive meningococcal disease in Australian adolescents and young adults.

Introduction: Invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) primarily causes disease in young children and adolescents and can cause long-term disability. Many countries are considering implementation of meningococcal B and/or meningococcal ACWY vaccines to control meningococcal disease. Estimating the cost-effectiveness of meningococcal vaccine programme is hampered due to a lack of good quality costing and burden of disease data.

Cost and effectiveness analysis of the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches of group A Streptococcus pharyngitis management in Iran.

Background: A sore throat is one of the common causes behind visits to the physician and antibiotic overtreatment in the world, especially in Iran. There are six ways of approaching pharyngitis patients. It is necessary to perform a cost-effectiveness analysis and find the best approach in all situations on group A (GAS) pharyngitis management to propose a pharyngitis guideline.