Journal of Kerman University of Medical Sciences
Volume:25 Issue: 1, Jan - Feb 2018

There are different treatment modalities for common warts and all of them have side effects. Niosomal drug delivery systems have increased efficacy by enhanced transport of therapeutic agents through stratum corneum with decreased side effects. In this study, we assessed the efficacy of combined 2% niosomal zinc sulfate cream plus cryotherapy compared with combination of placebo plus cryotherapy.
Sixty patients with verruca vulgaris enrolled in this randomized clinical trial study. Patients were divided in 2 groups. Group A received 2% niosomal zinc sulfate cream and group B received placebo twice a day. Also, patients in both groups were treated with cryotherapy (liquid nitrogen) every other week. Treatment protocols continued for a maximum of 3 months or until total clearance of the lesions.
Mean number of the sessions for complete remission was 4.5±1.38 in group A and 5.36±0.88 in group B and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant. Complete remission was observed in 60% in group A compared with 43.3% in group B that was not statistically significant.
Combination therapy with niosomal zinc plus cryotherapy can lead to faster and greater percentage clearance of the lesions without significant increase in adverse effects in comparison with cryotherapy plus placebo.

Many case-control investigations have showed the correlation of TP53 gene polymorphisms with the risk of breast cancer. However, the findings are not consistent. It has been suggested that the investigation of P53 genotype combinations and haplotypes may be more helpful than the detection of single polymorphisms. In the present study, we investigated the association of P53 intron 3 and codon 72 polymorphisms, as well as their Haplotypes and genotype combinations, with the development of breast cancer among Azeri women of Iran.
A total of 143 Iranian-Azeri females suffering from breast cancer and 160 ethnically and age-matched healthy females participated in this study. Intron 3 genotype was indicated by length analysis of PCR amplicon on polyacrylamide gels and allele specific–polymerase chain reaction (AS-PCR) was applied for genotyping Arg72Pro variation. Data analysis was performed using the JavaStat online statistics package and SHEsis online program.
Our findings did not show a significant association of P53 intron 3 and codon 72 polymorphisms with the risk of breast neoplastic tumors among Iranian-Azeri women. However, the (-16ins/힨) (Arg/Arg) combined genotype and (힢Arg) haplotype had a higher frequency in patients in comparison with the control group (OR=3.816; 95%CI: 0.906-18.459; P=0.047 and OR=3.941; 95%CI: 1.583-9.812; P=0.002, respectively).
In our study, (-16ins/힨) (Arg/Arg) genotype combination and (힨Arg) haplotype showed significant correlation with the increased susceptibility to breast cancer development in Iranian-Azeri females.

Aseptic meningitis is frequently caused by viral agents, particularly human enterovirus. Several methods of Reverse Transcription PCR(RT-PCR) have recently been introduced and modified for better diagnosis of enteroviral infection in meningitis. This study aimed to determine enteroviruses in patients with suspicion of aseptic meningitis using RT-PCR in the West of Iran.
In this study, 120 CSF samples were collected from patients hospitalized with the suspicion of aseptic meningitis in Imam Reza Hospital of Kermanshah, Iran.RT-PCR was used to diagnose enteroviruses. The cDNA recovered from RT-PCR was purified using a DNA purification kit and sequenced to confirm viral genome. Sequence data were analyzed for homology using the Gen Bank database.
The samples were collected from 63 (52.5%) men and 57 (47.5%) women with an average age of 31.5 ± 29.4 years. Of the samples tested, 4 cases (3.33%) yielded positive results for enterovirus. The results of sequence data analysis confirmed all positive cases as Enterovirus type 71. The biochemical (protein and glucose) and cytological analyses of positive CSF samples showed no significant changes.
According to the results, Enterovirus type 71is one of the common causes of enteroviral meningitis in patients in Kermanshah. The RT-PCR technique can rapidly diagnose Enterovirus type 71 and help better treatment of the patients and prevent the unnecessary use of antibiotics. So, molecular methods can reduce the cost of patients’ treatments and prevent drug resistance among bacteria. It can also provide a better picture of enteroviral infection in our region.

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is considered as a potentially malignant disorder and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) may play a key role in cancer development. The aim of this study was to compare serum and saliva VEGF among patients with OLP, oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and a healthy control group.
A cross sectional study was performed on 27 patients with OLP, 27 patients with OSCC and 27 healthy volunteers. The serum and saliva VEGF were assayed by ELISA method. Statistical analysis of ANOVA was used.
The mean saliva flow rate and serum VEGF in OLP and OSCC patients were significantly lower compared to healthy control group (p It seems that saliva VEGF may not be a good biomarker for OLP and OSCC.

Since in multiple sclerosis (MS), changes in speech and voice quality often precede other signs and symptoms; early diagnosis of these changes is necessary. In this study, an acoustic examination of phonation subsystem was performed. Due to the progressive nature of multiple sclerosis, the aim of this study was to examine the correlation between acoustic parameters of voice quality and disease severity and duration.
This descriptive-analytic study was performed on 43 patients with multiple sclerosis. The disease severity was detected by a neurologist based on the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) for each patient. Acoustic analysis was performed during the production of sustained vowel /a/ and accordingly, the maximum phonation time (MPT), perturbation of the frequency (jitter), perturbation of amplitude (shimmer), the maximum and minimum frequency, and the highest and lowest intensity were evaluated. All the acoustic analyses were performed using PRAAT software. Data were statistically analyzed using Spearman's correlation coefficient by SPSS version 21.
The lowest intensity showed a significant correlation with disease severity (P=0.00). Also, the highest and lowest intensity showed a significant correlation with disease duration (P=0.022 and P=0.002).
One of the earlier symptoms of central nervous system impairment resulting from multiple sclerosis is changes in phonation subsystem and voice quality. These changes may appear at any clinical stages; however, the symptoms might get worse over time, with the progression of the disease. Therefore, immediate acoustic assessments and interventions can prevent more degradation of voice quality.

A majority of people widely use acetaminophen as a sedative. Overusing the drug for prolonged periods of time can lead to acute liver damage. Mumijo, as a strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory drug, could possibly reduce some of the acetaminophen-induced side effects on the liver. Thus, the aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of Mumijo on the liver damage caused by the use of acetaminophen.
40 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups: sham, acetaminophen, low and high doses of mumijo, and vehicle. All groups except the sham group received a single dose of 500 mg/kg acetaminophen via ip injection. Then the groups that were under treatment received 150 mg/kg (low dose) and 250 mg/kg (high dose) of mumijo, and the vehicle group received distilled water as vehicle. After 24 hours, blood samples were taken for biochemical tests, and a part of the liver was extracted for histopathological examination.
acetaminophen increases the activities of functional liver enzymes including alanine amino transferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and gamma glutamine transferase (GGT). In groups under treatment, values of the mentioned enzymes were significantly reduced in comparison with the acetaminophen and vehicle groups (P The findings showed that mumijo is salient in preventing liver damage caused by consumption of high doses of acetaminophen probably through reducing oxidant activities and also through increasing anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities.

The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of resistance to synthetic erythropoietin and factors affecting it among chronic hemodialysis patients in Kerman/ Iran. This cross- sectional study was performed on chronic hemodialysis patients of three hemodialysis centers in Kerman, Iran during 3 successive months in the summer of 2016. Women with hemoglobin less than 11 and men with hemoglobin less than 12 were included in the study and using medical records, their sex, age, hemoglobin level, the amount of administered erythropoietin, tests of ferritin profile, and CPR and PTH levels were extracted and entered in a questionnaire. Patients were divided into the two groups of resistant to medication (received 300 units or more erythropoietin for each kilogram body weight in week for reaching the target hemoglobin) and the group who did not have resistance. Then, the two groups were compared in terms of mentioned factors. The frequency of resistance to synthetic erythropoietin was generally 33.66% and it was 32.4%in females and 67.6% in males that shows no significant difference between the two sexes (p=0.079). Among the studied factors, low ferritin level (P=0.012) and CRP level (p= 0.001) showed significant relationship with resistance to erythropoietin. Since, iron- deficiency anemia presented with low ferritin level, and high CRP level which indicates infection and inflammation had the greatest relationship with resistance to synthetic erythropoietin, removing causes of infection and iron-deficiency anemia in hemodialysis patients in order to reduce the use of costly synthetic erythropoietin is recommended.

Development of drug resistance to Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) has led to the use of older antibiotics such as macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B (MLSB) for the treatment of infections. MLSB resistance can be caused by several mechanisms, however, one of the predominant reasons is target modification mediated by erm genes. The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of erm genes and the frequency of constitutive MLSB (cMLSB), inducible MLSB (iMLSB), and MS phenotypes using D-test and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods.
D-test was performed on 110 clinical specimens of S. aureus collected from Kashani and Hajar Hospitals in Shahrkord from October 2014 to May 2015. After sampling, DNA extraction was performed by simple boiling method and, in order to detect erm genes, multiplex PCR was carried out on erythromycin resistant isolates using specific primers.
The result of this study revealed that among 110 S. aureus isolates examined, 35 (31.8%) were MRSA and frequency of cMLSB, iMLSB, and MS resistant phenotypes were 22 (20%), 9 (8.2%), and 2 (1.8%), respectively. The genes ermA, ermB, and ermC were detected in 27 (24.5%), 28 (25.4%), and 26 (23.6%) isolates.
This study demonstrated that cMLSB was the most common phenotype among isolated S. aureus. Moreover, another interesting point to notice in our study was the high frequency of the ermB gene in iMLSB resistant phenotypes.

Different studies assessed the role of inflammation in malignancy of different organs. Prostatitis has been suggested as a cause of cancer and BPH. Till now, more than 100 types of human Papilloma virus (HPV) are recognized including low and high-risk groups for carcinogenesis. Among them HPV-16 and HPV-18 have shown further association with cancer. Regarding the presence of E6 and E7 in HPV and ability for modification of basal epithelial cells, related role in prostate cancer (as well as cervical and genital malignancies) is hypothesized. The aim of this study was to determine the association of HPV-16 and HPV-18 with prostate cancer and malignancy degree.
A total of 75 consecutive paraffin-embedded blocks including 50 samples with primary prostate cancer and 25 samples with benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) as control were studied. Amplisense kit was used for replication at real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to determine genotypes of HPV-16 and HPV-18. DNA purity was assessed by Nano Drop.
The results of real-time PCR demonstrated that none of the samples of BPH and prostate cancer had amplification of HPV DNA.
The results revealed that HPV-16 and HPV-18 are not causes of prostate cancer.

Recent research has provided evidences indicating the importance of endothelin axis in carcinogenesis. According to our knowledge, there are little information about endothelin A receptor (ETA) expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). So, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the immunohistochemical expression of ETA in OSCC and normal oral mucosa (NOM).
In this cross-sectional study, studied group composed of paraffin-embedded tissue blocks of 21 OSCCs and 20 NOMs. Four micron sections were prepared from tissue blocks and stained with ETA antibody using immunohistochemistry (IHC). Percentage of stained cells and staining intensity were compared between OSCC and NOM groups and also between different grades of OSCC using Mann-Whitney, Chi-Square and Kruskal-Wallis statistical tests.
In OSCC group, all cases showed positive staining for ETA while in NOM group, 17 cases showed no staining. Comparison of the percentage of stained cells and staining intensity for ETArevealed a significant difference between OSCC and NOM groups (PThe results of this study support the role of ETA receptor in carcinogenesis process and progression of OSCC.

Common warts are the infectious viral diseases that occur in the epidermal layer of skin and are transmitted through skin contact. They are caused by a diverse range of human papillomaviruses (HPV). So, there is no vaccine or definite anti-viral medication for the prevention of this disease. Also, the treatments of common warts often have some limitations and numerous side effects as well as the risk of recurrence or superficial spreading. Persian medicine is one of the oldest traditional medicines which described common warts as a kind of skin disease and recommended several herbal medicines like Allium porrum L. for the treatment of this disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the hydroalcoholic extract of the aerial parts of Allium porrum L. on common warts.
In this study, five patients with common warts on their hands were included. The hydroalcoholic extract of Allium porrum L. were applied on the site of the lesion just for 2 hours every day over a three-week period. The patients were followed up for 18 weeks to check any case of recurrence.
After completing the treatment, the wart lesions in all five patients were completely healed within three weeks. During the follow-up phase (18 weeks), no case of recurrence was observed.
This study shows that the topical application of hydroalcoholic extract of Allium porrum L. has therapeutic effects for common warts. Since the extract is cost-effective, without complications and highly accepted by the patients, it seems that it can be further investigated in future studies.