this trial was performed to determine if a continuous low-dose infusion of methylprednisolone is as effective as its bolus of high-dose in reducing inflammatory response. the study was single-center, double-blinded randomized clinical trial and performed in a surgical intensive care unit of an academic hospital. in this study, 72 consecutive patients undergoing elective coronary artery bypass g...

Background: Transcutaneous bilirubinometry (TCB) is a simple method for estimating bilirubin levels in neonates. This method is noninvasive, quick, and painless. We aimed to compare serum and cutaneous bilirubin measurements in term neonates.Method: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 200 neonates with icter with birth weights of at least 2500 grams were studied. TCB was measured using a...

Background: One of the most important nonenzymatic antioxidant defense systems is vitamin A, and is considered as an important dietary agent for reducing cardiovascular diseases. Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the serum vitamin A status in women who used low-dose oral contraceptives (OCs) containing 0.15 mg levonorgestrol and 0.03 mg ethinyl estradiol and also in...

The proliferation of smooth muscle cells in the arterial wall (VSMC) is considered to play a key role in the development of atherosclerosis. To investigate the possible contribution of "stress" (experimentally-induced) to this process, blood from healthy volunteers, ages 21 to 65, screened to exclude major risk factors for coronary heart disease, was assayed for mitogenic activity after the sub...