The objective of this study was to identify predictors of relapse and determine the predictive score for relapse in steroid-sensitive nephrotic syndrome. Ninety-nine children with nephrotic syndrome visiting the pediatric nephrology outpatient clinic of Soetomo Hospital from 1983 to 2001 were studied. There were 63 children with relapses (50 infrequent relapses, 13 frequent relapses) and 36 chi...

Well-established associations between reproductive characteristics and epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) support an involvement of sex steroid hormones in the etiology of EOC. Limited previous studies have evaluated circulating androgens and the risk of EOC, and estrogens and progesterone have been investigated in only one of the previous studies. Furthermore, there is little data on potential he...

Patients with adrenal insufficiency have a life-threatening risk of adrenal crisis, thus preventing adrenal crisis is an important clinical issue. In order to clarify the risk factors for adrenal crisis, the medical records of 137 patients with established adrenal insufficiency were retrospectively investigated. The explanatory variables analyzed were gender, etiology of hypoadrenalism, class o...

Parasites are intimately connected to the host in which they live, and some may be affected by the polluted environment of their host. The present study describes the effect of a steroid hormone (11-ketotestosterone) on the sex ratio of the invasive hematophagous nematode Anguillicola crassus Kuwahara, Niimi & Itagaki, 1974, when experimentally injected to European eels, Anguilla anguilla. Our ...

Developmental programing is gaining considerable leverage as a conceptual framework for understanding individual variability in human behavioral and somatic health. The current mini-review examines some of the key conceptual and methodological challenges for developmental programing research focused on fetal sex steroid exposure and physical, behavioral, physiological, and health outcomes. Spec...

Sex differences in age- and puberty-related maturation of human brain structure have been observed in typically developing age-matched boys and girls. Because girls mature 1-2 years earlier than boys, the present study aimed at assessing sex differences in brain structure by studying 80 adolescent boys and girls matched on sexual maturity, rather than age. We evaluated pubertal influences on me...

A finely tuned balance between estrogens and androgens controls reproductive functions, and the last step of steroidogenesis plays a key role in maintaining that balance. Environmental toxicants are a serious health concern, and numerous studies have been devoted to studying the effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). The effects of EDCs on steroidogenic enzymes may influence steroid ...

Salt preference was assessed in 60 adults of 18-21 yrs of age (30 males and 30 females) and in 60 children of 7-12 yrs of age (30 boys and 30 girls). Subjects rated the preference on Likert scale for popcorns of five salt concentrations (OM, 1M, 2M, 3M and +3M). Statistical analysis using Two way ANOVA revealed statistically significant effect of age and sex on salt preference (F4,100 = 15.027,...

Ginseng has been used in China for at least two millennia and is now popular in over 35 countries. It is one of the world's popular herbs for complementary and alternative medicine and has been shown to have helpful effects on cognition and blood circulation, as well as anti-aging, anti-cancer, and anti-diabetic effects, among many others. The pharmacological activities of ginseng are dependent...