RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: The major risk factors for stroke are obesity, diabetes mellitus, systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) and dyslipidemia. In 1994 leptin was identifies as adipokine produced by adipose tissue. Its main action is the regulation of energy balance. Currently, hyperleptinemia is associated with cardiovascular disease. OBJECTIVE: To determine the association between serum leptin and stroke in patients with SAH. METHODS: We determined serum leptin in subjects with stroke and SAH, and compared this with patients with SAH without stroke. We calculated Student t, χ², and odds ratio (OR) for quantitative and qualitative variables. RESULTS: 60 subjects were recruited, 30 subjects per group. Considering a value>3.93 ng/ml as hyperleptinemia, it also was found a t=2.8 (p=0.007), and χ² with one degree of freedom of 10.82 (p=0.001), obtaining an OR of 3.05 for the development of stroke in the presence of elevated leptin (95% CI: 0.9-9.6; p=0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Hyperleptinemia is more common in patients with stroke than in those without this condition. But the question remains whether hyperleptinemia is a stroke risk factor or protective factor.
Assuntos
Isquemia Encefálica/sangue , Isquemia Encefálica/etiologia , Leptina/sangue , Acidente Vascular Cerebral/sangue , Acidente Vascular Cerebral/etiologia , Idoso , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Fatores de RiscoRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Alpha1 anti-trypsin (α1-AT), a serine protease inhibitor synthesized in the liver, is a major circulating antiprotease that provides defense against proteolytic damage in several tissues. Its deficiency is associated with airflow obstruction. The present study aimed to explore the role of α1-AT as a biomarker of airflow performance in chronic liver disease (CLD). MATERIAL/METHODS: Serum α1-AT levels and lung function (spirometry) were evaluated in non-primary α1-AT-deficient, alcoholic CLD patients without evident respiratory limitations. RESULTS: Thirty-four patients with airflow obstruction (n=11), airflow restriction (n=12), and normal airflow (n=11, age-matched controls) were eligible. α1-AT was decreased in the airflow obstruction group. ROC-cutoff α1-AT=24 mg/dL effectively discriminated airflow obstruction (AUC=0.687) and was associated with a 10-fold higher risk (p=0.0007). CONCLUSIONS: Lower α1-AT increased the risk of airflow obstruction in CLD patients without primary α1-AT deficiency.
Assuntos
Hepatopatias Alcoólicas/sangue , Hepatopatias Alcoólicas/fisiopatologia , Doença Pulmonar Obstrutiva Crônica/etiologia , Deficiência de alfa 1-Antitripsina/sangue , Deficiência de alfa 1-Antitripsina/fisiopatologia , alfa 1-Antitripsina/sangue , Adulto , Idoso , Biomarcadores/sangue , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Estudos Transversais , Feminino , Humanos , Hepatopatias Alcoólicas/complicações , Pneumopatias Obstrutivas/sangue , Pneumopatias Obstrutivas/etiologia , Pneumopatias Obstrutivas/fisiopatologia , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Doença Pulmonar Obstrutiva Crônica/sangue , Doença Pulmonar Obstrutiva Crônica/fisiopatologia , Fatores de Risco , Espirometria , Deficiência de alfa 1-Antitripsina/complicaçõesRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Chronic urticaria is a common skin disorder characterized by recurrent, transitory, itchy wheals with individual lesions lasting less than 24 hours and affecting patients for six weeks or longer. In adults it has been shown that approximately 40% of the patients with chronic urticaria have autoimmune urticaria. OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of autoimmune urticaria in adults with chronic urticaria. PATIENTS AND METHOD: We studied adult patients with chronic urticaria by means of autologous serum skin test (ASST), and by antinuclear and antithyroid (antityroglobulin, antiperoxidase) antibodies. We compared them with a group matched by sex and age. RESULTS: We included 68 patients: 34 cases (patients with chronic urticaria) and 34 controls (healthy individuals). In the cases we found high levels of TSH (p = 0.003) and positive autologous serum skin test (p = 0.04), while in the controls we observed a statistically significant difference of the levels of antithyroid antibodies (p = 0.002). The prevalence of autoantibodies (antithyroid or by autologous serum) was present in 55 and 44% of the patients with chronic urticaria. CONCLUSION: Autoimmunity is one of the most common causes of chronic urticaria; it may explain the pathogenesis in half of the studied cases.