Effect of tranilast in comparison with beclomethasone in chronic murine model of asthma.

Aim Of The Study: The current investigation was taken to scrutinize the action of tranilast on the airway remodeling in chronic asthma in mice.

Materials And Methods: Intraperitoneal injection of ovalbumin was applied to mice for sensitization and subsequent inhalation of 1% ovalbumin three times week for 10 weeks for challenge. Beclomethasone or tranilast were given daily for the 10 week challenge period.

Airway Inflammatory Biomarker: Could It Tailor the Right Medications for the Right Asthmatic Patient?

Asthma is a heterogeneous disease, in which asthmatic patients present with different clinical phenotypes, variable endotypes, and different response to asthma medicines. Thus, we are faced with an asthma paradox; asthma is diagnosed subjectively by clinical history and treated with biologically active drugs. To solve this paradox, we need objective airway biomarkers to tailor the proper medications to the proper patient.

Montelukast as an add-on treatment in steroid dependant nephrotic syndrome, randomised-controlled trial.

Background: The underlying mechanisms of nephrotic syndrome (NS) are still under debate and the need for more effective and less toxic treatment is challenging. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of montelukast, a leukotriene receptor antagonist as an add-on therapy, and to explore the leukotriene (LT) biology in steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome (SDNS).

Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted including 32 patients with SDNS who were randomly assigned to receive standard steroid treatment only [low-dose steroid (LDS) group] or standard steroid therapy plus montelukast (Montelukast group).

Clinical asthma phenotyping: A trial for bridging gaps in asthma management.

Asthma is a common disease affecting millions of people worldwide and exerting an enormous strain on health resources in many countries. Evidence is increasing that asthma is unlikely to be a single disease but rather a series of complex, overlapping individual diseases or phenotypes, each defined by its unique interaction between genetic and environmental factors. Asthma phenotypes were initially focused on combinations of clinical characteristics, but they are now evolving to link pathophysiological mechanism to subtypes of asthma.

Clinical asthma phenotypes: is there an impact on myocardial performance?

Background: Asthma is a systemic disease, which affects various body systems. We aimed to assess the impact of clinical asthma phenotypes on myocardial performance in asthmatic children using tissue Doppler imaging (TDI).

Methods: We enrolled 58 children with moderate persistent asthma and 62 age- and sex-matched healthy controls.

Does decline of lung function in wheezy infants justify the early start of controller medications?

Objective: To compare lung function in wheezy infants, with risk factors of asthma and with some immunological parameters which may be useful as predictors of subsequent asthma.

Methods: The data of 241 infants aged 5–36 mo, with recurrent wheeze (≥3 episodes of physician confirmed wheeze) prior to receiving inhaled corticosteroids or anti-leukotrine agents was retrospectively analyzed. They were subdivided into 2 subgroups; those with asthma risk factors (132 patients) and those without (109 patients) Also, 67 healthy, age and sex matched children without recurrent wheezes were taken as control group.

Steroid Phobia among Parents of Asthmatic Children: Myths and Truth.

Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood. Inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) are the recommended controller drug for asthma treatment. The aim of our study was to determine concerns and fears of parents of children with asthma towards the use of ICS.

Interleukin-12 and peripheral blood invariant natural killer T cells as an axis in childhood asthma pathogenesis.

Interleukin-12 (IL-12) is a key cytokine involved in regulating the balance between TH1 and TH2 cells by promoting TH1 response. A reduced capacity to produce this cytokine could lead to aberrant TH2 development. On the same aspect significant impact of IL-12 on invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells was reported.

Montelukast as an episodic modifier for acute viral bronchiolitis: a randomized trial.

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of once-daily montelukast therapy on the clinical progress and the cytokine profile of patients with acute viral bronchiolitis. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial included 85 patients (mean age, 3.5 +/- 2.

Gene polymorphisms of IL-6(-174) G/C and IL-1Ra VNTR in asthmatic children.

Objective: To check for the association of genetic polymorphisms of IL-6-(-174)G/C and IL-1RaVNTR with the susceptibility and severity of asthma in Egyptian children.

Methods: Subjects included 69 asthmatic children and 98 healthy unrelated controls from the Nile Delta of Egypt. Cases consisted of 20 males and 49 females with an age mean +/- SD is 7.

Gene polymorphisms of tumor necrosis factor alpha-308 and interleukin-10-1082 among asthmatic Egyptian children.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha-308 and interleukin (IL)-10(-1082) have potent inflammatory responses in the process of airway inflammation in asthma. The purpose of this study was to check for association of polymorphisms related to cytokine genes with susceptibility and severity of bronchial asthma in Egyptian children. Blood samples of 69 asthmatic children receiving treatment and follow-up at the Allergy and Respiratory Medicine Unit, Mansoura University Children Hospital, Mansoura, Egypt, were subjected to DNA extraction and amplification using polymerase chain reaction with sequence-specific primers for detection of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the promoter regions of cytokine genes TNF-alpha(-308(G-->A)), IL-10(-1082(G-->A)).

Anasarca: not a nephrotic syndrome but dermatomyositis.

Juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM) is a rare autoimmune disease characterized by inflammation of the muscle, connective tissue, skin, gastrointestinal tract, and small nerves. Periorbital and facial edema may also be associated. Although localized edema is a common feature of JDM, generalized edema has rarely been reported.

Tension gastrothorax: a case report and review of literature.

Background: Tension gastrothorax develops when the stomach, herniated through a congenital diaphragmatic defect into the thorax, is massively distended by trapped air. We report a case of tension gastrothorax and review the literature.

Case Report: A previously healthy 8-month-old female presented with severe respiratory distress, misdiagnosed as tension pneumothorax.