Sapporo Medical Journal

Abstract : Background: Increase in the frequency of malignant thyroid neoplasms is currently so pronounced among the Saudi Population. Aim: This five-year retrospective study was performed to report a holistic view about malignant goiter in a local district of Saudi Arabia. Patient and Methods: Five-year retrospective study took place from December 2015 to January 2020. Patients’ records were reviewed to distill their sociodemographic, clinical presentation, nature of surgery and the glandular pathological results. Results: A total of 72 patients underwent surgery. The female to male ratio was found to be 3.8:1 (49 females and 23 males). Patients’ age ranged from 16 to 74 year with the mean of 41.2 ±12.4 (mean ± SD). The commonly encountered carcinoma was of the papillary type in 56 patients (77.7%) while the remaining 16 showed follicular carcinoma in 12 (16.7 %) and 4 (5.5 %) presented with lymphoma. Conclusion: Thyroid cancer is apparently increasing among the studied sample. This need further investigations for an accurate elaboration of the cause, the commoner thyroid malignancy in the current study setting was papillary cancer compared to follicular malignancy and lymphoma. Although the sample size of this retrospective study may not be so accurate to highlight the problem it may raise the necessity of having further prospective studies on larger cohort.

Abstract : Introduction: Telogen effluvium is a temporary form of excessive hair shedding, and it can occur due to a variety of physical or mental stressors. This study aimed to observe the relationship between hair loss and anxiety among male and female in Poly Clinic at King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia. Methods and Material: This is a cross-sectional study conducted in Polyclinic at King Faisal University. A well-structured questionnaire was distributed among males and females. Results: The prevalence of hair loss associated with anxiety was 21.7% (n=82). The most frequently mentioned reason for hair loss was lack of vitamins (26.2%), followed by psychosocial disorder (18%). In univariate analysis, nationality, history of the stressful event, having recurrent, irresistible urges to pull out hair from the scalp and taking medication were all significantly influenced hair loss associated with anxiety. In the multivariate regression model, history of the stressful event, used of Minoxidil hair spray and those who seek treatment for anxiety were the significant independent factors associated with anxiety. Conclusions: Hair loss associated with anxiety were minimal. Stress used Minoxidil spray and seeking treatment for anxiety likely to be the reason for hair loss associated with anxiety. Meanwhile, lack of vitamins, psychosocial factors and hereditary influence branded as the reason for hair loss.

Abstract : One in seven women are affected by postpartum depression which is an established clinical condition which affects women after childbirth. Pregnant women ought to be screened by employing a standardized tool evaluating them for depression and anxiety symptoms once through the pregnancy tenure to identify and manage the women at risk of developing postpartum depression. The purpose of the study was to assess the knowledge perception of postpartum depression among citizens of Al- Ahsa located in Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. An online questionnaire oriented cross sectional study was executed over a period of one month. Study data was analyzed and evaluated in SPSS software version 21. A total of 446 participants responded the questionnaire, with a mean age of (35.2 ± 10.6 SD). Female participants (55.7%) were slightly more in number than the males. Most of the participants were married, employees, undergraduates and graduates. Regarding prevalence of Postpartum depression (PPD) most of them were unaware (60.4%) but majority identified symptoms of PPD correctly. Larger number of participants (74.3%) reflected that psychological intervention is effective in treating PPD. Half of them (54.8%.) did not have the idea about vitamins use in the treatment of PPD. Overall total of 60.51% participants answered the questionnaire correctly. Associations of the responses with independent variable were not statistically significant. It is concluded that Al-Ahsa inhabitants were capable of

Abstract : Colchicine is a medication used to treat gout and Behçet's disease. A rapid, stable and sensitive reversed phase liquid chromatography method coupled with MS/MS detector was developed and validated for determination of Colchicine in human plasma, Colchicine and internal standard (Colchicine-D3) were usefully extracted from human plasma samples by using liquid-liquid extraction technique. Validation parameter was carried out for the chromatographic method used for determining Colchicine in plasma including: accuracy, precision, linearity, selectivity, stability, calibration curve, recovery. The mobile phase consisting of (85% methanol: 15% Ammonium chloride), column ACE C8, (50 X 2.1) mm, 5 µm, flow rate was 0.4 ml/min, retention time was 0.44 minute for colchicine and Colchicine- D3, and the total run time was 0.8 minute. The lower limit of quantitation was 0.05 ng/mL, the calibration curve was linear (R2 = 0.9985) over the range of (0.05 – 4.00) ng/ml. The intra- and inter day precisions for quality control samples were < 10.0%, and the intra- and inter day accuracies were in the range of (89.33-106.33) %. However, the current LC/MS method of colchicine could be applied for pharmacokinetic study in human plasma.

Abstract : To reduce acute postoperative pain in major abdominal surgeries, patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) has been considered the gold standard. However, in recent years, its safety is being questioned as despite its low incidence rate of serious complications, these complications are often very dangerous nevertheless. On the other hand, for minimally invasive surgeries (MIS) with estimated reduced postoperative pain, intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (IV PCA) is seen as a possibly more effective alternative due to the autonomy and satisfaction given to the patient. A systematic review of previous RCTs and clinical trials of patients undergoing abdominal MIS was done to compare acute postoperative pain, length of hospital stay, time to first flatus, and incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) between PCEA and IV PCA. During movement, pain scores consistently showed a lower pain score in the PCEA group rather than the IV PCA group, because epidural analgesia with local anesthetics blocks non-nociceptive stimuli on top of nociceptive stimuli. Only 1 study showed > 0.1 day difference in length of stay after surgery. The IV PCA group took a longer time to first flatus and showed a higher percentage of patients experiencing PONV than in the PCEA group. This review showed that incidence of severe complications in PCEA proves to be low and is therefore the best method to reduce postoperative pain in abdominal MIS.