ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Pericarditis is an inflammatory pericardial disorder that can be caused by several infectious and non-infectious illnesses. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was recently added to the long list of pericarditis causes. As a result, this study aims to look at the incidence of various etiologies of pericarditis, including post-COVID-19 vaccine and risk factors, at King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. METHODS: Between 2012 and 2022, all male and female patients diagnosed with acute, chronic, or constrictive pericarditis at the King Abdulaziz University Hospital clinic were included in this retrospective study, which took place in June 2022. Data were collected from the hospital's medical records, including the patient's demographic information, pericarditis history, medical history, social background, laboratory tests, Echocardiogram (ECHO) and electrocardiogram (ECG) readings, and medication history. Associations were tested using univariate and bivariate analysis. RESULTS: Acute pericarditis was diagnosed in 59 (89.1%) patients and the most common symptoms were chest pain and shortness of breath (SOB) followed by fever and cough.Idiopathic pericarditis was the primary etiology 30 (46.9%) with male predominance 25 (55.6%), followed by infections and then cardiac presenting primarily with chest pain 25 (83.3%). In comparison, the most common presentation in females was autoimmune, as seen in eight patients (42.1%). Most patients required aspirin, ibuprofen, and colchicine. Among outcomes, of a total of 64 patients, five died within 30 days. Moreover, four (7.5%) experienced subsequent cardiac tamponades, which was mainly due to malignancy (50%) (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: There was a substantial relationship between malignancy and developing morbid complications, with 59 patients out of 64 getting acute pericarditis and the remainder chronic and constrictive pericarditis with idiopathic pericarditis being the leading causes.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: An electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) is initially marketed as an assistant product to quit smoking or limit its use. However, recent studies suggest the opposite, describing it as a product that lacks adequate quality and user safety. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of e-cigarette flavoring agent (cinnamon flavor) on the neural retina development of chick embryos and apoptosis induction after the early and late apoptosis stages by quantitative detection of gene expression CASP-3 at both embryonic days E9 and E17. METHODS: Fertilized chicken eggs were divided into two groups: control and treatment, and each group included two embryonic days; E9 and E17. For each treatment stage, two dosages of the treatment were applied, 2% and 5%. The neural retinas were dissected from the sclera and retinal pigment epithelium for subsequent RNA extraction and histological examination. RESULTS: This study indicated that aerosol of the subtle cinnamon flavor e-liquid causes downregulated expression of CASP3 in neural retina development. In addition, the hematoxylin and eosin (H&E)-stained sections showed multiple structural changes in the retinal layers and evidence of apoptotic cell death. CONCLUSION: Cell death was visible and abundant in E9, and E17 concludes that flavor vapor condensate treatment caused neuronal cell death. CASP-3 was downregulated, which indicates that cell death occurred independently of CASP-3.
Subject(s)
Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems , Animals , Apoptosis , Chick Embryo , Flavoring Agents/toxicity , Gene Expression , RetinaABSTRACT
AIM: To identify the underlying diseases with TRI-positive kidney biopsies, and describe the histological pattern and spectrum of TRI-positive kidney biopsies. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of all patients' chart that underwent renal biopsy at King Saud University Medical City between 2012 and 2017 was done. Kidney biopsies that indicated a positive result for tubuloreticular inclusions (TRI's) on electron microscopy were reviewed and the underlying disease and histological pattern was extracted. RESULTS: Of 1,473 native kidney biopsies reviewed, 96 (6.5%) were TRI-positive. Of the 96 TRI-positive kidney biopsies, 87 (90.6%) were TRI-positive lupus nephritis (LN); of which 10 (11.5%) were Class V, 49 (56.3%) were active LN, and 28 (32.2%) were inactive LN. The underlying diseases of the nine non-LN TRI-positive cases included diabetic nephropathy, connective tissue disorders, immune complex mediated Glomerulonephritis (GN), acute thrombotic microangiopathy, rhabdomyolysis, and Wegener's disease. CONCLUSION: LN is a very common finding in TRI-positive kidney biopsies. Active LN and chronic LN are the more common classes of TRI-positive LN kidney biopsies, than pure membranous (Class V) LN. TRI positive kidney biopsies without LN are commonly found in diabetic nephropathy, connective tissue disorders and immune mediated GN's. This study highlights this finding in our patients cohort in opposition to what has been reported in the literature.
