Study on the Application of PRP Enriched with Hyaluronic Acid to Skin Wounds-Macroscopic Result.

Tissue healing is a complex process of replacing damaged tissue structures, being a dynamic process with spatial and temporal involvement. In practice, there are three types of healing: primary, secondary and tertiary. Since even tertiary healing can cause different problems depending on the individual patient, the medical world has always strived for new, easier, more effective, faster, and low cost-effective methods to cover skin wounds. This experiment aims to find a method that is as efficient and fast as possible, with minimal costs, of native healing of skin wounds and the development of a protocol that is as reliable and safe as possible for the patient. The experiment was carried out within the animal facility of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, with the agreement of our institutional Ethics Committee. The experimental group consisted of 30 individuals (Wistar laboratory rats), clinically healthy, male and female, being divided into 3 sublots of 10 individuals each. Each sublot was sacrificed at different time intervals: 7, 14 and 21 days, respectively. The local evolution of each individual was monitored during the experimental days, as well as their general state of health. Before slaughter, the lesions were examined macroscopically, following their size, whether or not the infection was present and the presence of other self-inflicted lesions later. Macroscopically, a faster wound healing was found where PRP enriched with hyaluronic acid was applied from the 7th day, so we can say that at first glance the "free" healing period in the case of enhanced epithelialization was about 7 days shorten. This fact will be confirmed or refuted following histopathological examinations and immunohistochemistry.

The Angiogenic Balance and Its Implications in Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases: An Overview.

Angiogenesis is the process of developing new blood vessels from pre-existing ones. This review summarizes the main features of physiological and pathological angiogenesis and those of angiogenesis activation and inhibition. In healthy adults, angiogenesis is absent apart from its involvement in female reproductive functions and tissue regeneration. Angiogenesis is a complex process regulated by the action of specific activators and inhibitors. In certain diseases, modulating the angiogenic balance can be a therapeutic route, either by inhibiting angiogenesis (for example in the case of tumor angiogenesis), or by trying to activate the process of new blood vessels formation, which is the goal in case of cardiac or peripheral ischemia.

Human Anthrax in Dolj County, Romania-A Series of Three Cases.

Bacillus anthracis is the causative agent of anthrax, primarily a disease of herbivorous animals, which can be accidentally transmitted to humans. Three cases of cutaneous human anthrax were recorded in August 2020 in Dolj county, Romania. These cases included livestock farmers (husband and wife, as well as a man from their entourage). The women presented malignant edema, which required surgery for compartment syndrome; and the men presented the common form of cutaneous anthrax. According to the laboratory investigation, two cases complied with the criteria in the case definition. All cases were successfully treated with antibiotics and the women received reconstructive plastic surgery of the skin defects, restoring normal hand function. The contact with sick animals was ruled out by the health authorities concluding that it was the contamination of pre-existing skin lesions with B. anthracis spores from the soil, the anthracogenic area.

New insights in the molecular pathways linking obesity, type 2 diabetes and cancer.

Steadily, cancer is becoming the first cause of mortality, with over 9 million deaths estimated in 2018. Increasing evidence supports a direct association between obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and cancer, with a higher risk of cancer mortality especially for some of the most common malignancies, such as breast, colon, and rectal cancers. So far, several mechanisms underlying the cancer-diabetes relationship have been investigated revealing dysregulations of the insulin-insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system as the most important paradigm. Other molecular mechanisms that seem to play a role in the association cancer-T2DM consist of alteration of the signaling pathways activated by inflammatory cytokines, adipocytokines or adhesion molecules. The overall aim of this review is to provide an overview of the molecular mechanisms linking obesity, T2DM and cancer, as related to the receptors and signaling pathways involved in these associations.

Immunohistochemical evaluation of hormone receptors with predictive value in mammary carcinomas.

AIM: Immunohistochemical evaluation of hormone receptors (ER, PR) and correlation of immunohistochemical and morpho-clinical data. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was performed on paraffin-embedded and HE-stained tissues originating from 100 cases of invasive mammary carcinoma. Monoclonal antibodies, anti-estrogen and anti-progesterone receptors, were used for the immunohistochemical study. The detection system was EnVision HRP and the visualization system was 3,3'-diaminobenzidine tetrahydrochloride (DAB). The evaluation of the result was performed using the Allred score. RESULTS: The majority of the studied cases (57%) expressed both types of hormone receptors and in 32% of the cases the hormone receptors were completely absent. The rest of the cases presented a heterogeneous phenotype: 7% presented the ER-÷PR+ phenotype and 4% the ER+÷PR- phenotype. Compared with the classical phenotype (ER+÷PR-), ER+÷PR- tumors were more frequent at patients over 50-year-old. The tumors with ER+÷PR- were larger than the ER+÷PR+ and they were of the invasive ductal carcinoma type with an Allred score for ER under 6. CONCLUSIONS: The predictive value is amplified when the ER status is correlated with the PR status because the heterogeneous phenotypes are identified, especially the ER+÷PR- phenotype, which have an aggressive behavior and the lowest response to tamoxifen therapy.

Retroperitoneoscopic lumbar sympathectomy: prospective study upon a series of 50 consecutive patients.

BACKGROUND: Lumbar sympathectomy (LS) is still indicated for peripheral arterial occlusive diseases (PAOD) with critical ischemia beyond any vascular reconstruction. The retroperitoneoscopic approach was proven feasible and effective but its results were never evaluated in larger series. METHODS: Between January 2007 and January 2009, 50 patients were included in a prospective study (age range = 49-71 years; sex ratio: M/F = 9:1). Their comorbidities included arterial hypertension, n = 12 (24%); atrial fibrillation, n = 4 (8%); cerebral stroke sequels, n = 4 (8%); diabetes mellitus, n = 6 (12%); chronic coronary ischemic disease, n = 20 (40%); and obstructive bronchitis, n = 4 (8%). Fifty-one retroperitoneoscopic lumbar sympathectomies were performed (31 on the left side and 20 on the right side; 1 patient was operated on both sides). RESULTS: Intervention was successful in 50 cases (98.04%), with one conversion in the first three cases. Results were excellent in all patients, with warming of the extremity and regression of pain. The pathology report confirmed excision of the ganglia in all cases. Complications included 3 cases (6%) of accidental peritoneal tear and pneumoperitoneum which were resolved by insertion of a Veress needle in the hypochondrium; 2 (4%) retroperitoneal hematoma, and 6 (12%) superficial wound infections. Operative time was 65-105 min in the first ten cases and <40 min for the last 41. There was no neuralgia, sexual dysfunction, or postoperative mortality. Associated interventions included necrectomy in 10 cases. The limb preservation rate was 77.09% at 1 year and 58.69% at 2 years. CONCLUSION: For a larger number of cases, retroperitoneal LS has been proven effective and safe in PAOD beyond reconstruction.