https://www.medsciencegroup.us/journals/rheumatica-acta-open-access A Peertechz Open Access Journal en-us 19 Oct, 2024 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-8-116.php Hypovitaminosis D is common in the sunny UAE. This study focusses on the perspectives of 25 hydroxy-D in patients with RA and others with SLE ((Autoimmune disease, ADs)) and to compare them to others of patients without ADs) .The latter were used as control group. All included individuals were without history of vitamin D intake. Hypovitaminosis D was common in the 3 groups (RA, SLE and controls). However, the prevalence of hypovitaminosis D in patients with each of ADs was significantly lower to that of the control group yet with higher means of 25 (OH) D levels. These findings were in contrast to those of number of regional and international studies conducted earlier. Data on the high prevalence of hypovitaminosis D and the low mean values of 25 (OH) D were comparable between the two groups of ADs. Overall, the results of this study may lead to some controversy or perhaps a challenge to the widespread understanding of the contrary as per previous international and regional studies. They also argue further the concept of specific association of hypovitaminosis D and autoimmune disease and certainly encourage wider estimation of 25(OH) D among larger numbers of patients in general medical practice. Finally, the outcomes of this work deserve further study/ies in larger groups in the future. 30 Dec, 2023 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-7-115.php Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the positive impact of yoga and deep breathing exercises on overall physical wellness. The effects of deep breathing alone on metabolic rate, weight, and cholesterol management have not been studied well. Objective: This study assessed changes in C-Reactive Protein (CRP) following a 60-day intervention of a 12-minute deep breathing program. Methods: Sixty-six participants with a BMI >27 kg/m2 and 18 years - 70 years were enrolled in this study. Participants were assigned to either the control or intervention group in a single-blind manner. The intervention group followed the novel deep breathing program, while the control group did not modify their lifestyle or exercise. Anthropometric measurements and metabolic markers were evaluated and compared between the two groups after 60 days. Results: After 60 days, the control group exhibited a mean increase change in CRP of 3.9%. The intervention group showed a mean reduction of CRP by 25%. Conclusion: A guided daily 12-minute-deep breathing program can lead to reductions in inflammation marker CRP even without additional lifestyle modifications or medication modifications. Further investigations are warranted to explore the effects of novel deep breathing programs on metabolic markers and elucidate the underlying mechanisms of CRP reduction. 21 May, 2022 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-6-114.php Background: Despite improvement in sterilization techniques, peri-prosthetic joint infection (PJI) is the most fearsome complication after hip and knee arthroplasties. Various strategies have been devised from time to time to diagnose and treat PJI. Recently, Leukocyte esterase and alpha-defensin are identified as markers of active infection in synovial fluid. Therefore, kits are designed to detect these two markers during surgery. If found reliable, these tests will increase the confidence of surgeons in situations, where the diagnosis of PJI is not established. Material and methods: This study was conducted on 132 patients in Lahore General Hospital; from August 2020 to December 2021. Leukocyte Esterase strip and Alpha-Defensin kit were used to detect infection in synovial samples taken just before performing arthrotomy, intra-operatively. Patients were divided into 2 groups, Group-A had 31 patients with peri-prosthetic joint infection (PJI) diagnosed as per Musculoskeletal Infection Society (MSIS) criteria, whereas in Group B 101 patients were present in whom PJI was not present. Synovial tissue and fluid samples were also sent to a laboratory for culture and histopathology; so that sensitivity and specificity of LE strips and Alpha-Defensin Kits could find out. Results: The mean age of patients in our study was 59.6 SD 11.90 years with a male to female ratio of 85:47. 31 patients were diagnosed as PJI after primary hip or knee arthroplasty based on serological investigations and culture of joint aspiration. The sensitivity and specificity of LE strips were 90.32% and 95.04%, whereas that of Alpha defensin was 93.54% and 100% respectively. The correlation coefficient between the LE strip test and synovial fluid polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) counts was 0.811 and it was even higher when the Alpha-Defensin kit was used (0.845). Conclusion: Both LE and Alpha-Defensin kits are highly specific and sensitive in diagnosing PJI. Though Alpha-defensin is more accurate the cost-effectiveness of the LE strip makes it a more feasible option in diagnosing PJI, intra-operatively. 25 Jan, 2021 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-5-113.php The analysis of almost a century-long evolution of ideas about the criteria for the activity of Rheumatoid Arthritis showed that the developed complex indices for determination there of are far from perfect, in particular the Disease Activity Score 28 (DAS28), widely used in clinical practice [1]. Therefore, the recently developed new Disease Activity Score (EgyDAS) of Rheumatoid Arthritis [2] has attracted interest because it includes four laboratory markers of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) activity, as opposed to DAS28, which assesses only one laboratory marker. 07 Apr, 2020 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-4-112.php Background: To evaluate aerobic capacity and muscle function in patients with Relapsing Polychondritis (RP). Methods: A cross-sectional single center study evaluated seven women with RP (McAdam criteria) that were compared to seven healthy control individuals matched for age, gender, and body mass index. Both groups performed a treadmill-graded maximal exercise. Aerobic capacity was assessed by peak oxygen uptake (VO2 peak), time at anaerobic Ventilatory Threshold (VAT) and Respiratory Compensation Point (RCP) and time-to-exhaustion. Muscle function was evaluated through the sit-to-stand and the timed up-and-go test. 03 Mar, 2020 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-4-111.php Background: Enthesitis is a major feature of psoriatic arthritis. However, clinical assessment of enthesitis is known to lack accuracy and have poor interobserver reliability. Objective: This study aimed to determine the added value of the US assessment of enthesitis according to LEI over the clinical assessment in determination of PsA activity. Methods: A total of 75 consecutive PsA patients diagnosed according to Classification Criteria for Psoriatic Arthritis (CASPAR criteria) participated in the study. The LEI score was used to assess the enthesitis. All PsA patients underwent US assessment by the same sonographer who was blinded to the findings of the clinical examination. Grey scale US imaging was used to assess the longitudinal and transverse planes of the 6 entheseal points of the LEI. 26 Aug, 2019 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-3-110.php We report the case of a 60-year-old female patient who presented meningoencephalitis due to Neisseria meningitidis serogroup B in November 2018. She was admitted at the emergency department for febrile confusion lasting two days associated with one episode of vomiting. 31 May, 2019 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-3-109.php Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a general, chronic, systemic and autoimmune inflammatory disease. This disease represents the inflammatory response of the synovium resulting to hyperplasia of synovial cells along with associated destruction of cartilage, bone and ligaments, eventually leading to deformity of the joints. There is a considerable alteration observed in the metabolism. Chronic inflammation is responsible for altering the metabolism and also the metabolic profile of an individual patient with early inflammatory arthritis expects the following route of disease. These metabolic changes would identify biomarkers, which may be useful for the diagnostic purposes. NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectroscopy based metabolomics studies of serum, urine and synovial fluid of RA were performed. These studies reflected the possibility of the development of metabolomics based diagnostic methods for RA. So, our question “Can NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) spectroscopy serve as a diagnostic tool for rheumatoid arthritis?” will definitely get an answer with the development of NMR based diagnostic method for RA. 24 Sep, 2018 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-2-108.php Objective: Septic arthritis is a relatively rare disease, which is associated with a high morbidity and mortality. Treatment consists of prolonged antibiotic therapy and removal of intra-articular inflammatory debris. However, there is much controversy about the most effective drainage method. Therefore, we compared the clinical efficacy of (daily) needle aspiration with surgical drainage in adult patients with septic arthritis. 20 Nov, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-107.php Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is an idiopathic infl ammatory disease characterized by pain and stiffness around the shoulders,neck and hips. IL-6 is an important cytokine in the pathogenesis of the disease. 04 Jul, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-106.php A 31-year-old systemic lupus erythematotus (SLE) patient presented with headache and blurring of vision. Prior to this, she received 2 doses of monthly triptorelin for endometriosis. On examination, she had bilateral sixth nerve paresis. 23 Mar, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-105.php IgA nephropathy (known as Berger’s disease) is the most common cause of glomerulonephritis. Its estimated prevalence between 25-50 cases per 100.000 individuals.Gross hematuria (40-50%) and microscopic hematuria (30-40%) are the most common fi ndings which can be related to upper respiratory tract or gastrointestinal infection. 08 Mar, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-104.php Primary laryngeal amyloidosis (PLA) and granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) can present rarely with the isolated symptom of dyspnea and/or dysphonia, affecting exclusively the larynx. 02 Mar, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-103.php Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is one of the pro-infl ammatory cytokines involved in pathogenesis of various autoimmune and chronic infl ammatory diseases. IL-6 through binding to its cellular receptor can transduce both classical- and trans-signaling pathways. 30 Jan, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-102.php Availability of new has afforded rheumatologists the opportunity to investigate molecular pathophysiology of joint disease techniques [1,2]. Attempts to relate DNA polymorphisms to disease activity or addresses one aspect susceptibility [3-5]. 04 Jan, 2017 https://www.medsciencegroup.us/articles/RAOA-1-101.php Eosinophilic fasciitis is a rare connective tissue disease characterized by symmetrical and painful swelling with a progressive induration and thickening of the skin and soft tissues. Its etiology is unknown, but possible causes or associated conditions include drugs, physical exercises, autoimmune diseases, neoplasia and infections.