مجله دانشکده پزشکی اصفهان
پیاپی 610 (هفته دوم فروردین 1400)

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the kV Assist technique on the radiation dose and image quality of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA).

In this retrospective case-control study, 179 patients with the mean age of 58.45±11.86 years, who had undergone CCTA test using the kv assist technique, were considered as the study group; and 141 patients with the mean age of 58.24±11.37 years, who had previously undergone CCTA with the usual 120 kV protocol, were considered as the control group. The two groups were compared in terms of image quality criteria including noise, contrast-to-noise ratio, signal-to-noise ratio, CT numbers of the left coronary artery, and left ventricular chamber, and radiation dose criteria including effective dose and carcinogenic risk.

The effective dose (5.05 ± 2.16 vs. 6.63 ± 3.04 mSv; P < 0.001) and overall risk of carcinogenesis (3.89 ± 1.63 vs. 5.11 ± 2.71 in 10,000 people; P < 0.001) reduced by about 23%in the study group compared to the control group. No significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of noise, signal-to-noise ratio, and left coronary artery CT number (P > 0.050). Left ventricular chamber CT number and contrast to noise ratio were higher in the study group than the control group (P < 0.001).

Using the kV Assist technique can reduce the effective dose and the carcinogenic risk of CCTA without loss of image quality.

Studies have shown that exercise can affect learning and memory. This study intended to investigate the effect of short-term aerobic exercise on memory and learning in both behavioral and electrophysiological methods.

In this research, 30 male Wistar rats were divided into two groups of 10 for electrophysiological testing, and 2 groups of 5 for behavioral testing. First, the exercise groups were compelled by a running wheel machine at 17.5 m/minute for 2 hours per day, during 10 days. Then, in both exercise and control groups, using electrophysiological method, long-term potentiation was induced and synaptic plasticity change in the CA1 region was recorded and evaluated for 90 minutes. Exercise and control groups were trained in passive avoidance device to evaluate the effect of exercise on memory recall, and were tested at 0 and 24 hours, and one week after receiving shocks.

In the electrophysiological method, the index of recorded responses (field excitatory postsynaptic potentials) was not significantly different between exercise and control groups. In the passive avoidance learning test, the delay time of entering the dark room at 0 and 24 hours and one week after receiving shocks in the control group was significantly longer than the exercise group, and the time of staying in the dark room in exercise group was significantly longer than control group, 24 hours after receiving the shock.

It can be concluded that short-term moderate intensity exercise cannot significantly change the avoidance memory and cognitive activity of the animal, and will not affect changes in synaptic plasticity in the animal.

In order to timely identify and treat the patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the use of rapid and accurate laboratory diagnostic methods is important, and tests such as erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), complete blood count (CBC), C-reactive protein (CRP), arterial blood gas (ABG), and real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) are helpful in assessing patient's condition and diagnosing the disease. This was a comparative study of the physician specialty and laboratory services requested for patients with COVID-19 based on the evidence from a large hospital."

This was a descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study in Mashhad City, Iran, on 307 patients with COVID-19 hospitalized under the management of internal and infectious therapist groups, selected using random stratified sampling method. Data were entered into SPSS version 22 statistical software.

A statistically significant relationship was reported between the two groups of internal and infectious therapists in the capitation and cost of K, Na, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), blood albumin (Alb), bilirubin (Bili), blood sugar (BS), fasting blood sugar (FBS), Ca, Mg, phosphorus (Pho), treponema pallidum immobilization (TPI), CBC, CBC differential (CBC/Diff), and ABG tests, and tracheal tube culture and antibiogram. Patients were discharged with 89.7% recovery and 10.3% death in the first group, and with 95.5% recovery and 4.5% death in the second group.

Different behavioral patterns in prescribing and performing laboratory services by physicians with different specialties, especially in times of epidemic outbreaks, may indicate the lack of national laboratory protocol and also limited access to reliable diagnostic tests, while wasting resources, impose direct and indirect costs to patients and medical centers.