Association of polymorphisms in nucleotide excision repair pathway genes with susceptibility to cutaneous melanoma.

BACKGROUND: The effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway on susceptibility to cutaneous melanoma (CM) are of great interest. To date, several epidemiological studies have evaluated whether the XPC, XPD, XPG and XPF polymorphisms are associated with CM. However, those studies results are controversial or inconclusive. Therefore, we conducted a study to evaluate the association of seven frequently investigated NER pathway polymorphisms with CM risk. METHODS: A total of 150 patients dia-gnosed with CM and 150 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. Seven SNPs in the NER pathway including XPC (Lys939Gln and Ala499Val), XPD (Lys157Gln, Asp272Asn, and Arg751Arg), XPG (Asp1104His) and XPF (Arg415Gln) were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism assay. RESULTS: There was no a significant association between XPC Lys939Gln, Ala499Val; XPD Asp272Asn, Arg751Arg, Arg751Arg; XPF Arg415Gln; and XPG Asp1104His polymorphisms and an increased risk of CM. CONCLUSIONS: This study results revealed that the XPC, XPD, XPG and XPF polymorphisms were not risk factor for susceptibility to CM. However, more well-designed with larger sample size studies in different populations are necessary to further evaluate and validate our results. Future studies which take into account gene-gene and gene-environment interactions are warranted for more precise evidence and further elucidation of the underlying mechanism of CM.

Factors influencing range of motion after total knee arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: The range of motion after a total knee arthroplasty is an important clinical outcome affecting the life of the patient. The aim of this study was to determine the most important factors influencing the postoperative knee flexion in Tehran, Iran. METHODS: Between July 2007 and January 2009, on 95 cases of total knee joint replacement (89 patients), who were followed for 1 year postoperatively, the risk factors were assessed. Patient demographics (sex, age, body mass index, previous surgery, preoperative Knee Society System score, and preoperative range of motion) as well as radiographic measurement for preoperative tibiofemoral angle were statistically analyzed and the probable predictors entered into a linear regression model. RESULTS: Univariate analysis showed that age, preoperative flexion angle, preoperative flexion arc and preoperative tibiofemoral angle had significant correlation with the postoperative flexion angle. The linear regression model on the other hand revealed that preoperative flexion angle and preoperative tibiofemoral angle were the true predictors of the postoperative flexion angle with coefficients of 0.64 and -0.21, respectively. CONCLUSION: Better range of motion before the surgery with a lower tibiofemoral varus/valgus angle were more likely to result in a better range of motion after the surgery, suggesting that an appropriate timing for the surgery when the knee joint is still in a better function can lead to a better outcome.