Role of Thymosin Beta 4 in the diagnosis of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver and its relation to Metabolic Syndrome in Egyptian patients.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a spectrum of hepatic diseases linked to metabolic and cardiovascular disorders that impair quality of life and increase morbidity and mortality. There has been significant interest in replacing conventional diagnostic tools such as liver biopsy with non-invasive biomarkers for the diagnosis of NAFLD. Thymosin Beta 4 (Tß4) is a G-actin sequestering peptide involved in many critical biological processes. This study aimed to evaluate the role of Tß4 in the diagnosis of NAFLD, and its relation to metabolic syndrome. Eighty patients were enrolled in this study, divided into two equal groups of NAFLD cases (n=40) and a control group (n=40). The two groups were subjected to history taking, physical examination, measurement of waist circumference and body mass index (BMI). Laboratory workup included serum Tß4, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), fibrosis-4 score (FIB-4), fatty liver index (FLI) and NAFLD fibrosis score (NFL) were calculated for both groups. Serum Tß4 was significantly lower in NAFLD patients (P < 0.001) and there was a significant positive correlation between serum Tß4 and HDL (P = 0.034). On the other hand, there was a significant negative correlation between serum Tß4 and waist circumference (P < 0.001), total cholesterol level (P < 0.001), insulin level (P < 0.001), HOMA-IR (P < 0.001), serum triglycerides (P= 0.025) and FLI (P = 0.004). Serum Tß4 at a cut-off value of ≤900 ng/ml had 100 % sensitivity, 100 % specificity, 100% positive predictive value and 100% negative predictive value for the prediction of NAFLD. In conclusion, serum Tß4 could be used as a biomarker for the diagnosis of NAFLD.

Reversibility of minimal hepatic encephalopathy following liver transplantation in Egyptian cirrhotic patients.

AIM: To evaluate the reversibility of minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) following liver transplantation (LT) in Egyptian cirrhotic patients. METHODS: This prospective study included twenty patients with biopsy-proven liver cirrhosis listed for LT and twenty age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects. All underwent neuro-psychiatric examination, laboratory investigations, radiological studies and psychometric tests including trail making test A (TMT A), TMT B, digit symbol test and serial dotting test. The psychometric hepatic encephalopathy score (PHES) was calculated for patients to diagnose MHE. Psychometric tests were repeated six months following LT in the cirrhotic patient group. RESULTS: Before LT, psychometric tests showed highly significant deficits in cirrhotic patients in comparison to controls (P < 0.001). There was a statistically significant improvement in test values in the patient group after LT; however, their values were still significantly worse than those of the controls (P < 0.001). The PHES detected MHE in 16 patients (80%) before LT with a median value of -7 ± 3.5. The median PHES value was significantly improved following LT, reaching -4.5 ± 5 (P < 0.001), and the number of patients with MHE decreased to 11 (55%). The pre-transplant model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score ≥ 15 was significantly related to the presence of post-transplant MHE (P = 0.005). More patients in whom reversal of MHE was observed had a pre-transplant MELD score < 15. CONCLUSION: Reversal of MHE in cirrhotic patients could be achieved by LT, especially in those with a MELD score < 15.

Personal A-constant in relation to axial length with various intraocular lenses.

PURPOSE: To study the relationship between the axial length and personal A-constant for the 1-piece Tecnis (Abbott ZCB00), AcrySof MA60AC (Alcon) and the Quatrix aspheric preloaded (CROMA) intraocular lenses (IOL). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients matching the inclusion criteria were further subdivided according to the implanted IOL in this prospective comparative study. The obtained refractive outcomes were introduced into the formula installed in the biometry machine (Humphrey model 820 ultrasonic biometer) to obtain the personal A-constant for each eye. Polynomial regression analysis was done to study the individualized A-constant for each type of IOL in relation to preoperative axial length measurement. RESULTS: Two hundred and forty five eyes of 186 patients were enrolled into this study, of whom 73 eyes with Tecnis 1-piece, 116 eyes with MA60AC, and 56 eyes with Quatrix. The median of personalized A-constant for Tecnis 1-piece, MA60AC, and Quatrix were 119.21 (SD 1.3, Std. Mean error 0.15), 119 (SD 1.2, Std. Mean error 0.11) and 120.4 (SD 1.2, Std. Mean error 0.16) respectively. Regression plots for the same range of axial length among all the groups showed that the Tecnis1 group followed the same pattern of the Quatrix group in which there was a linear relationship of a trend towards myopia when the axial length had increased and a hyperopic shift when decreased. This relationship changed into a plateau when the axial length became in the range of 23.5 mm to 27 mm in the MA60AC group. CONCLUSIONS: Personal A-constant follows different trends with different IOLs even for the same range of axial length.