Accomplishments and challenges in tobacco control endeavors - Report from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

Objectives: To review the tobacco governance and national responsibility for control, and existing countering measures to reduce the tobacco use among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states.

Methods: We reviewed the data in regards to tobacco control efforts and difficulties encountered during implementation of the policies for all the GCC member states from the respective country profile in the WHO report on the global tobacco epidemic. Also, we utilized the measures outlined in the FCTC's MPOWER package to not only assess the degree of national commitment, but also compare it against the level of significance that the legislatures give to this matter.

Altered coronal tissue of the human dental pulp in chronic hepatitis C virus infected patients.

Introduction: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is characterized by a high rate of chronicity and concerns 170 million individuals worldwide. Extrahepatic manifestations are frequently observed in patients with chronic viral hepatitis. Although extrahepatic manifestations do exist with all hepatitis viruses, they are more commonly associated with chronic HCV infection.