Association analysis of clinical aspects and vitamin D receptor gene polymorphism with external apical root resorption in orthodontic patients.

Introduction: Vitamin D is responsible for the regulation of certain genes at the transcription level, via interaction with the vitamin D receptor, and influences host immune responses and aspects of bone development, growth, and homeostasis. Our aim was to investigate the association of TaqI vitamin D receptor gene polymorphism with external apical root resorption during orthodontic treatment.

Methods: Our subjects were 377 patients with Class II Division 1 malocclusion, divided into 3 groups: (1) 160 with external apical root resorption ≤1.

Assessment of a five-year survival on hemodialysis in Brazil: a cohort of 3,082 incident patients.

Brazil has the third largest contingent of patients on maintenance hemodialysis (HD) worldwide. However, little is known regarding survival rate and predictors of mortality risk in that population, which are the purposes of this study. A total of 3,082 patients incident on HD, from 2000 to 2004, at 25 dialysis facilities distributed among 7 out of 26 states of Brazil were followed-up until 2009.

Calcium acetate versus calcium carbonate in the control of hyperphosphatemia in hemodialysis patients.

Context: Hyperphosphatemia has an important role in the development of bone and mineral abnormalities in end-stage renal disease (ESRD).

Objective: To compare the phosphorus binding power and the hypercalcemic effect of calcium acetate and calcium carbonate in hemodialysis patients.

Type Of Study: Crossover, randomized, double-blind study.

Thalidomide for the treatment of uremic pruritus: a crossover randomized double-blind trial.

Our observation that thalidomide administration to a dialysis patient with leprosy alleviated his pruritus led us to conduct this short-term study to assess the efficacy of the drug in this regard. From 210 hemodialysis patients, 29 cases of refractory uremic pruritus were entered into the study. Patients were instructed to score their symptoms from 0 to 3, three times a day and assigned to receive thalidomide or placebo at bed time for 7 days.