Explore the vast range of titles available.

A hemolytic uremic syndrome is an uncommon but severe condition brought on by an overactive alternative complement system, typically involving a hereditary component. It will be crucial to comprehend the epidemiology of hemolytic uremic syndrome as research advances toward bettering its diagnosis and treatment. A systematic review was conducted to evaluate the incidence and prevalence estimates of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) internationally. A thorough literature search was conducted using PubMed, Springer, Cochrane Library for Systematic Reviews, and Embase databases between 2012 and 2023 in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 recommendations. A further source of data was the PubMed Central search engine. To make sure that the evaluation included just the studies that were the most pertinent, a population, interventions, comparators, and outcomes (PICO) eligibility criterion was also used. Eight articles were included in this review. HUS had an annual crude incidence of 0.66 per 100,000 people and a standard annual incidence of 0.57 per 100,000 people. Females were more likely than males to develop HUS, but only marginally more frequently. Patients under 20 years old were the age group where HUS was most common. HUS had an average cost of $21,500 per patient, which was more expensive than the country's overall inpatient average cost for the same period. This is due to patients requiring supportive care, antibiotics, plasma exchange, plasma infusion, and renal replacement therapy, and it could take multiple courses of treatment before they improve. It was concluded that several variables, including the region, the age group affected, and the frequency of the underlying bacterial infection, determine the prevalence and incidence of HUS. HUS is often more common in children than adults and is more common in some nations. Overall, HUS is an uncommon disorder that can have significant repercussions for people who have it. For better results and fewer consequences, HUS must be diagnosed and treated as soon as possible.

Background Dementia is a public health concern and the main cause of impairment and dependency among the elderly worldwide. It is characterized by a progressive decline in cognition, memory, and all domains of quality of life with preserving the level of consciousness. Accurate measurement of dementia knowledge among future health professionals is required to improve targeted educational initiatives and supportive care of patients. This study aimed to assess knowledge of dementia and its associated factors among health college students in Saudi Arabia. Methods A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted among health college students from various regions in Saudi Arabia. Data on sociodemographic characteristics and dementia knowledge were gathered using a standardized study questionnaire Dementia Knowledge Assessment Scale (DKAS) distributed on different social media platforms. Data analysis was carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 24.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) statistical software. A -value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results A total of 1,613 participants were included in the study. The mean age was 20.5 ± 2.5 years (range 18-25 years). The majority of them were males (64.9%), and females represented 35.1%. The mean knowledge score of the participants was 13.68 ± 3.18 (out of 25). According to DKAS subscales, we found that the respondents scored the highest in care considerations (4.17 ± 1.30) and the lowest in risks and health promotion (2.89 ± 1.96). Furthermore, we found that the participants with no previous dementia exposure had a significantly higher level of knowledge than those with previous dementia exposure. In addition, we found that both genders, aged 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 years; the geographic distribution of respondents; and previous dementia exposure significantly affected the DKAS score. Conclusions Our findings showed that health college students in Saudi Arabia had poor knowledge about dementia. Ongoing health education and comprehensive academic training are recommended to improve their knowledge and provide competent care for dementia patients.

Introduction Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most prevalent gastrointestinal disorders worldwide. There is still debate about the pathophysiology of IBS. Symptoms of IBS include abdominal pain and alternating bowel movements, but the severity differs among the patients, which affects their quality of life. Our main aim in this study is to find the impact of work hours on the quality of life of adult employees with irritable bowel syndrome in Saudi Arabia. Methods An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted using an online self-administered survey including employees over 18 years old in Saudi Arabia. The survey was designed in three different parts. The first part is demographics and personal information, The second concentrates on IBS using the Rome-IV criteria while the third part reviewed the participant's quality of life by utilizing the quality-of-life scale (QOLS). Results The total number of participants was 1800; most of the population were females (954; 53%) and there were 846 (47%) males. The study showed that 27.11% were diagnosed with IBS. Furthermore, the result revealed significant differences between working hours, with employees who work more than nine hours (33.7%) being more affected by IBS than others. Nevertheless, significant independent risk factors for IBS were QOLS (OR = 0.988; 95% CI (0.981, 0.995), p = .001), being an employee in free business (OR = 1.755; 95% CI (1.134, 2.714) p = .012), working between 6 and 9 hours (OR = 0.623; 95% CI (0.404, 0.961), p = .032). Conclusion The impact of work hours on adult employees with IBS in Saudi Arabia has been noticed; the results showed that the prevalence of IBS among females is higher; employees working more than nine hours with a medium to sedentary work nature are more vulnerable to developing IBS. We suggest that IBS patients should address their needs to their employers.

 The objective is to assess knowledge, attitude, and practice toward diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its association with socioeconomic status among adult patients with T2DM.  This cross-sectional study used the validated \"Diabetes Knowledge Test (DKT)\" questionnaire obtained from the Michigan Diabetes Research Center. A translated copy into Arabic has been validated and used in another study. The questionnaire was created on Google Forms and distributed through digital platforms to collect data from patients with T2DM in Saudi Arabia.  In this study, the majority were female (63.4%), and Saudi Arabians (96.5%), among them 23.7% lived in Riyadh, and 42.8% were from the central region. As for marital status, 60.5% were married, 28.4% were single, and 11.1% were divorced or widowed. 58.9% had college/higher degrees, and 45.8% were unemployed. Furthermore, the majority (47.1%) reported having a salary of less than 5,000 Saudi Riyals per month. 55.1% of participants lived in villas, while 46.6% had 6-10 people living in their household. Generalized linear model (GLM) findings showed that age, marital status, level of education, monthly income, and accommodation are significantly correlated with the level of knowledge.  Findings indicated a high level of knowledge, positive behavior, and good adherence to practice among patients with T2DM. GLM findings showed that age, marital status, level of education, monthly income, and accommodation are significantly correlated with the level of knowledge. Researchers suggest that effective health education interventions are needed to improve diabetes knowledge, behavior, and practices, particularly regarding lifestyle modifications and dietary management.

Hepatotoxicity caused by chemotherapeutic drugs (e.g., doxorubicin) is of critical concern in cancer therapy. This study focused on investigating the modulatory effects of diosmin against doxorubicin-induced hepatotoxicity in Male Wistar rats. Male Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups: Group I was served as control, Group II was treated with doxorubicin (20 mg/kg, intraperitoneal, i.p.), Group III was treated with a combination of doxorubicin and low-dose diosmin (100 mg/kg orally), and Group IV was treated with a combination of doxorubicin and high-dose diosmin (200 mg/kg orally) supplementation. A single dose of doxorubicin (i.p.) caused hepatic impairment, as shown by increases in the concentrations of serum alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase. Doxorubicin produced histological abnormalities in the liver. In addition, a single injection of doxorubicin increased lipid peroxidation and reduced glutathione, catalase, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels. Importantly, pre-treatment with diosmin restored hepatic antioxidant factors and serum enzymatic activities and reduced the inflammatory and apoptotic-mediated proteins and genes. These findings demonstrate that diosmin has a protective effect against doxorubicin-induced hepatotoxicity.

Cardiovascular damage induced by anticancer therapy has become the main health problem after tumor elimination. Venetoclax (VTX) is a promising novel agent that has been proven to have a high efficacy in multiple hematological diseases, especially acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Considering its mechanism of action, the possibility that VTX may cause cardiotoxicity cannot be ruled out. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the toxic effect of VTX on the heart. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: control, low-dose VTX (50 mg/kg via oral gavage), and high-dose VTX (100 mg/kg via oral gavage). After 21 days, blood and tissue samples were collected for histopathological, biochemical, gene, and protein analyses. We demonstrated that VTX treatment resulted in cardiac damages as evidenced by major changes in histopathology and markedly elevated cardiac enzymes and hypertrophic genes markers. Moreover, we observed a drastic increase in oxidative stress, as well as inflammatory and apoptotic markers, with a remarkable decline in the levels of Bcl-2. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to report the cardiotoxic effect of VTX. Further experiments and future studies are strongly needed to comprehensively understand the cardiotoxic effect of VTX.

It is recommended to apply various surface modification techniques to improve the mechanical and chemical interaction between zirconia core and veneering ceramic. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the effects of various surface treatments over the zirconia core on the shear bond strength (SBS) between layering ceramic and zirconia core. A total of 90 zirconium oxide (Cercon, Degudent GmbH, Hanau-Wolfgang, Germany) specimens were prepared with standardized dimensions (10 mm × 10 mm × 5 mm). The specimens were randomly divided into six groups of 15 specimens each (Control group-no surface treatment; Sandblasting with 25 µm Al O ; Sandblasting with 50 µm Al O ; Sandblasting with 110 µm Al O ; Etching with hydrofluoric acid (9.5%); Surface treatment using Zirface (nano layer etching technology for enhanced bonding strength of zirconia). All specimens were veneered with fluorapatite glass-ceramic (5 mm × 5 mm × 5 mm) using a custom silicone mold, sintered in a calibrated porcelain furnace, and verified with a digital caliper. Following veneering, the samples were embedded in self-curing acrylic resin within polyvinyl chloride molds and immersed in distilled water at 37 °C for 24 hours to simulate intraoral conditions. Using universal testing machine, specimens were tested for SBS. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey's-test were used for statistical analysis (  ≤ 0.05). Surface topography of the surfaces treated and after debonding were examined using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and failure mode of different groups was also noted. The application of Zirface to the zirconia core had the highest mean SBS value (26.56 ± 1.25 MPa), followed by the hydrofluoric acid only group (23.42 ± 0.94 MPa). The control group with no surface treatment showed the least SBS values. While the groups with surface treatments of 25 and 50 aluminum oxide (Al O ) sandblasting showed SBS values of 17.16 ± 0.48 and 18.06 ± 0.89, respectively, with no significant difference (  > 0.05) between the SBS values of the two groups. However, the sandblasting with 110 Al O particles over the zirconia core surface showed higher SBS values (20.53 ± 1.14) as compared to the 25 and 50 Al O particles. The study found that the shear bond strength between zirconia and veneering ceramic is significantly influenced by the surface treatment used, with nano-layer etching and hydrofluoric acid etching enhancing adhesion, and larger alumina particles enhancing bonding durability.

Although self-service facilities (SSFs) have been used on a large scale worldwide, they can be easily contaminated by microorganisms from the hands of their sequential users. This research aimed to study the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility/resistance of bacteria contaminating SSFs in Sakaka, Aljouf, Saudi Arabia. We randomly swabbed the surfaces of 200 SSFs, then used the suitable culture media, standard microbiological methods, and the MicroScan WalkAway Microbiology System, including the identification/antimicrobial susceptibility testing-combo panels. A high SSFs’ bacterial contamination load was detected (78.00%). Ninety percent of the samples collected in the afternoon, during the maximum workload of the SSFs, yielded bacterial growth (p < 0.001 *). Most of the contaminated SSFs were supermarket payment machines, self-pumping equipment at gas stations (p = 0.004 *), online banking service machines (p = 0.026 *), and barcode scanners in supermarkets. In the antiseptic-deficient areas, 55.1% of the contaminated SSFs were detected (p = 0.008 *). Fifty percent of the contaminated SSFs were not decontaminated. The most common bacterial contaminants were Escherichia coli (70 isolates), Klebsiella pneumoniae (66 isolates), Staphylococcus epidermidis (34 isolates), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (18 isolates), and methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (14 isolates), representing 31.53%, 29.73%, 15.32%, 8.11%, and 6.31% of the isolates, respectively. Variable degrees of reduced sensitivity to some antimicrobials were detected among the bacterial isolates. The SSFs represent potential risks for the exchange of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria between the out-hospital environment and the hospitals through the hands of the public. As technology and science advance, there is an urgent need to deploy creative and automated techniques for decontaminating SSFs and make use of recent advancements in materials science for producing antibacterial surfaces.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to review the use rituximab (RTX) and outcomes in immune-mediated glomerular diseases (glomerulonephritis [GN]) and to compare it to the established literature. Methods: Adult GN patients who received RTX between January 2014 and January 2018 in three public hospitals were reviewed. Membranous nephropathy (MN) and minimal change disease (MCD) were considered diseases with the literature supporting RTX use. Lupus nephritis (LN), primary focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (1 o FSGS), IgA nephropathy, IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD), and C3GN had insufficient literature support for RTX use. Clinical remission was assessed 6 months after receiving RTX. Results: A total of 61 cases were analyzed. RTX was an add-on therapy in 87%. The remission rate was 95% in the MCD and MN versus 56% in the off-label group (p = 0.002). LN patients had a mean initial estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 69 mL/min. All class III LN achieved remission, and 11 of 21 class IV achieved remission. The mean initial eGFR for 1 o FSGS was 33 mL/min, and it did not improve, and only 2 of 5 had partial resolution of proteinuria. Proteinuria improved in 3 of 5 IgG4-RD cases with eGFR stabilization but failed to improve in C3GN cases with eGFR deterioration. Vasculitis cases (6 ANCA-associated vasculitis and 2 IgA vasculitis) were analyzed separately. Remission was achieved in only 2 ANCA-associated vasculitis cases, and none in IgA vasculitis cases. Conclusions: Our data support the use of RTX in resistant MCD and MN. RTX showed success in LN and IgG4-RD but not FSGS or C3GN. The small number of cases of vasculitis does not allow drawing a conclusion on RTX effectiveness.