PURPOSE Gastroenterologists have been seeking reliable noninvasive indices of inflammatory and malignant bowel disease. This prospective study was to assess the value of fecal calprotectin in predicting abnormal histologic findings in patients undergoing colonoscopy. METHODS Stool specimens supplied before colonoscopy by 72 consecutive patients were measured for calprotectin levels, and the f...

Allergic rhinitis and asthma are closely associated. Inflammation is a common pathological characteristic shared by both disorders. The measure of the fractional concentration of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) may be considered a surrogate marker for airway inflammation. Forced expiratory flow between 25 and 75 percent of vital capacity (FEF25-75) has been previously demonstrated to be able to pre...

An improved method of noninvasive assessment of pulmonary arterial pressure is presented. The already existing radionuclide method for assessment of pulmonary arterial pressure based on right ventricular ejection fraction, although having a relatively good positive predictive accuracy (75 percent), lacks in specificity and correlates only weakly with pulmonary arterial pressure, r = .66. In the...

BACKGROUND Asthma is an obstructive airway disease characterized by airway inflammation. OBJECTIVE To measure systemic inflammation in asthma patients, and to assess the effect of treatment on systemic inflammation. METHODS In 30 newly diagnosed non-randomized adult asthma patients we measured systemic inflammation markers (serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, total leukocyte count, a...

Abstract Background Insecticides are applied on a large scale in the environment to control oak processionary moth ( Thaumetopoea processionea ) for protection of human health. Drift insecticides non-target areas is risk surrounding biodiversity. Since habitats caterpillars usually restricted treetops, sprayers used apply biocidal products must be able transport droplets over longer distances. ...

PURPOSE Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) and forced expiratory flow between 25% and 75% of vital capacity (FEF(25-75)) are not included in routine monitoring of asthma control. We observed changes in FeNO level and FEF(25-75) after FeNO-based treatment with inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) in children with controlled asthma (CA). METHODS We recruited 148 children with asthma (age, 8 to 16 y...

this experiment was carried out at the research farm of faculty of agriculture, university of zanjan in spring of 2012 to introduce an integrated weed management method in fennel. treatments were type of herbicide (trifluralin and pendimethalin), application dose (recommend dose in other crop (r), 75 percent r, 50 percent r, and 0 percent r) and supplemental control (none, one hand-weeding at 5...

Global declines in insects have sparked wide interest among scientists, politicians, and the general public. Loss of insect diversity and abundance is expected to provoke cascading effects on food webs and to jeopardize ecosystem services. Our understanding of the extent and underlying causes of this decline is based on the abundance of single species or taxonomic groups only, rather than chang...

The effects of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (passive smoking) on pulmonary function of non-smoking, healthy Iranian men (n = 167) and women (n = 108) were investigated. There were significant reductions in % predicted FEV1 (5.7%), forced vital capacity (FVC, 4.6%) and forced expiratory flow 25-75% (FEF25-75, 9.9%) among men exposed to cigarette smoke (n = 78). The adverse effect of p...