A new highly sensitive and specific overnight combined screening and diagnostic test for primary aldosteronism.

Context: Primary aldosteronism (PA) is the most common cause of endocrine hypertension that is diagnosed following a two-step process: an initial screening test, based on the serum aldosterone-to-renin ratio (ARR), followed by a relatively laborious and time-consuming confirmatory test to document autonomous aldosterone (ALD) secretion.

Objective: The aim of this study is to develop a simple overnight test for the early and definite diagnosis of PA.

Patients And Methods: Totally, 148 hypertensive patients underwent a fludrocortisone-dexamethasone suppression test (FDST) and the new overnight diagnostic test (DCVT) using pharmaceutical RAAS (renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system) blockade with dexamethasone, captopril and valsartan.

Inducible nitric oxide synthase expression and its prognostic significance in colorectal cancer.

Nitric oxide synthases (NOS) are expressed in colorectal cancer. The aim of this study was to examine the inducible NOS (iNOS) expression in colorectal cancer and to investigate its prognostic relevance. Tissue sections of primary tumors from 132 patients undergoing curative resection for colorectal cancer were immunohistochemically examined for iNOS expression.

Prognostic value of COX-2 immunohistochemical expression evaluated by quantitative image analysis in colorectal cancer.

Epidemiological studies have shown that the inducible form of cyclooxygenase (COX-2) may be involved in colorectal carcinogenesis, but it is controversial whether its expression is a prognostic factor for colorectal cancer. The aim of the study was to examine the expression of COX-2 in colorectal cancer and investigate its prognostic relevance. Tissue sections of primary tumors from 132 patients undergoing curative resection for colorectal cancer were immunohistochemically examined for COX-2 expression.

Prognostic significance of VEGF expression evaluated by quantitative immunohistochemical analysis in colorectal cancer.

Background: The prognostic value of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in colorectal cancer is still unclear, as shown by the discordant results still reported in the literature. The aim of the study was to examine the expression of VEGF in colorectal adenocarcinomas and investigate its prognostic relevance.

Materials And Methods: VEGF expression was investigated by immunohistochemistry performed on tissue microarrays, in a series of 117 colorectal cancer specimens.

Total thyroidectomy for the treatment of thyroid diseases in an endemic area.

Introduction: Thyroidectomy is a common operation with very low mortality and an acceptable morbidity rate. Total thyroidectomy has become the predominant type of surgery used today for the treatment of thyroid diseases. In this retrospective study, we analyzed the complications of thyroid surgery according to the operative technique used in our department.