Differential effects of oral versus intravenous hydrocortisone and dexamethasone on capillary blood glucose levels in adult inpatients - a single centre study.

Background: Corticosteroids raise blood glucose concentrations; however, it remains unknown which form of administration, oral or intravenous, is associated with the greatest degree of blood glucose rise in hospitalised patients. Furthermore, it is not known whether the pattern of the associated hyperglycaemia throughout the day differs depending on the route of administration.

Methods: This was a single centre retrospective study of 384 adult inpatients receiving oral or intravenous hydrocortisone and dexamethasone.

The effect of different types of oral or intravenous corticosteroids on capillary blood glucose levels in hospitalized inpatients with and without diabetes.

Purpose: This study investigated: (1) the type of corticosteroid associated with the greatest degree of hyperglycemia, assessed using bedside capillary blood glucose monitoring, in hospitalized patients; and (2) the pattern of hyperglycemia throughout the day with the use of each type of corticosteroid.

Methods: This single-center, retrospective study used data from 964 adult inpatients receiving oral or IV corticosteroids. Data on capillary blood glucose concentrations and time taken over 7 days were collected.

How Do Psychosocial Interventions for Adolescents and Young People Living With HIV Improve Adherence and Viral Load? A Realist Review.

Purpose: Psychosocial interventions have the potential to support adolescents and young people living with HIV (AYPLHIV) to achieve better HIV outcomes. However, more evidence is needed to understand which interventions are most effective, and the mechanisms driving how they work in practice.

Methods: We used realist methodologies to generate statements based on evidence from intervention studies and linked evidence included in a systematic review of psychosocial interventions for AYPLHIV.

Psychosocial interventions for improving engagement in care and health and behavioural outcomes for adolescents and young people living with HIV: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Adolescents and young people comprise a growing proportion of new HIV infections globally, yet current approaches do not effectively engage this group, and adolescent HIV-related outcomes are the poorest among all age groups. Providing psychosocial interventions incorporating psychological, social, and/or behavioural approaches offer a potential pathway to improve engagement in care and health and behavioural outcomes among adolescents and young people living with HIV (AYPLHIV).

Methods: A systematic search of all peer-reviewed papers published between January 2000 and July 2020 was conducted through four electronic databases (Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, PubMed and Scopus).

An incarcerated Spigelian hernia with the appendix in the sac passing though all layers of the abdominal wall: an unusual cause for chronic right iliac fossa pain.

Abdominal wall hernias are a common pathology and source of morbidity including chronic pain. They occur in various anatomical areas; amongst the rarest locations is the Spigelian hernia accounting for <2% of all abdominal hernias. We present a case report of a patient with chronic right iliac fossa pain caused by an incarcerated Spigelian hernia containing her appendix within the hernial defect.

A rare case of emphysematous pancreatitis: managing a killer without the knife.

Emphysematous pancreatitis (EP) is a rare and severe complication of acute pancreatitis carrying a high mortality with only a handful of case reports and small studies reporting these cases and their management. The presence of emphysematous pancreatitis is often indicative of infected pancreatic necrosis with the mainstay of treatment being pancreatic necrosectomy; however there are cases where it may be appropriate to have a trial of conservative management, and there is a small body of evidence to support this. This paper describes a case of an 87-year-old male with acute emphysematous pancreatitis successfully managed with conservative cares.

Injectable nanoclay gels for angiogenesis.

The retention and sustained activity of therapeutic proteins at delivery sites are goals of regenerative medicine. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has significant potential in promoting the growth and regeneration of blood vessels but is intrinsically labile. This is exacerbated by the inflammatory microenvironments at sites requiring regeneration.

South African adolescents living with spina bifida: contributors and hindrances to well-being.

Background: Spina bifida myelomeningocele is a major cause of disability among adolescents. However, little research is available in low-income nations such as South Africa. Investigating the contributors and hindrances to well-being in adolescents with spina bifida myelomeningocele may yield novel insights.

Prevalence and sociodemographic correlates of common mental disorders among first-year university students in post-apartheid South Africa: implications for a public mental health approach to student wellness.

Background: There is growing awareness of the need for effective prevention, early detection, and novel treatment approaches for common mental disorders (CMDs) among university students. Reliable epidemiological data on prevalence and correlates are the cornerstones of planning and implementing effective health services and adopting a public health approach to student wellness. Yet, there is a comparative lack of sound psychiatric epidemiological studies on CMDs among university students in low- and middle-income countries, like South Africa (SA).

N-Methyl-3-(tetrahydro-2H-pyran-4-yl)-2,3,4,9-tetrahydro-1H-carbazole-6-carboxamides as a novel class of cannabinoid receptors agonists with low CNS penetration.

Cannabinoid CB(1) receptor agonists exhibit potent analgesic effects in rodents and humans, but their clinical utility as analgesic drugs is often limited by centrally mediated side effects. We report herein the preparation of N-methyl-3-(tetrahydro-2H-pyran-4-yl)-2,3,4,9-tetrahydro-1H-carbazole-6-carboxamides as a novel class of hCB(1)/hCB(2) dual agonists with attractive physicochemical properties. More specifically, (R)-N,9-dimethyl-N-(4-(methylamino)-4-oxobutyl)-3-(tetrahydro-2H-pyran-4-yl)-2,3,4,9-tetrahydro-1H-carbazole-6-carboxamide, displayed an extremely low level of CNS penetration (Rat Cbr/Cplasma=0.

Novel benzimidazole derivatives as selective CB2 agonists.

The preparation and evaluation of a novel class of CB2 agonists based on a benzimidazole moiety are reported. They showed binding affinities up to 1nM towards the CB2 receptor with partial to full agonist potencies. They also demonstrated good to excellent selectivity (>1000-fold) over the CB1 receptor.

New 1,2,3,4-tetrahydropyrrolo[3,4-b]indole derivatives as selective CB2 receptor agonists.

The preparation and evaluation of a novel class of CB2 agonists based on a 1,2,3,4-tetrahydropyrrolo[3,4-b]indole moiety are reported. They showed binding affinities up to 4.2 nM toward CB2 with sub-nanomolar EC(50) values.

Thermodynamic, kinetic, and electron microscopy studies of concanavalin A and Dioclea grandiflora lectin cross-linked with synthetic divalent carbohydrates.

The jack bean lectin concanavalin A (ConA) and the Dioclea grandiflora lectin (DGL) are highly homologous Man/Glc-specific members of the Diocleinae subtribe. Both lectins bind, cross-link, and precipitate with carbohydrates possessing multiple terminal nonreducing Man residues. The present study investigates the binding and cross-linking interactions of ConA and DGL with a series of synthetic divalent carbohydrates that possess spacer groups with increasing flexibility and length between terminal alpha-mannopyranoside residues.

New scaffolds in the development of mu opioid-receptor ligands.

A new class of mu selective receptor antagonists has been developed using a combinatorial approach based on previously reported Dmt-Tic dipeptide ligands. Modified tetrahydroisoquinoline (Tiq) residues were reacted with different electrophiles in order to create novel molecules that would mimic the original dipeptide. A specific class of thioureas bearing basic pyrrolidine residues were shown to give good binding affinities.

Inhibition of adhesion of type 1 fimbriated Escherichia coli to highly mannosylated ligands.

The inhibitory potencies of a number of mannosides, di- and trivalent mannosides, a set of mannose-terminating dendrimers, and five types of mannose-bearing neoglycoproteins were determined by using a binding assay that measures the binding of (125)I-labeled, highly mannosylated neoglycoprotein to a type 1 fimbriated Escherichia coli (K12) strain in suspension. The IC(50) values (the concentration of inhibitor that causes 50 % reduction in the bound (125)I-ligand to E. coli) obtained by this method were much lower than the equivalent values obtained by hemagglutination or in assays that involve microplate immobilization.

Thermodynamic binding parameters of individual epitopes of multivalent carbohydrates to concanavalin a as determined by "reverse" isothermal titration microcalorimetry.

The preceding paper [Dam, T. K., Roy, R.

Negative cooperativity associated with binding of multivalent carbohydrates to lectins. Thermodynamic analysis of the "multivalency effect".

Our previous study demonstrated that isothermal titration microcalorimetry (ITC) could be used to determine the thermodynamics of binding of a series of synthetic multivalent carbohydrates to the Man/Glc-specific lectins concanavalin A (ConA) and Dioclea grandiflora lectin (DGL) [Dam, T. K., Roy, R.