Background: To test effectiveness and safety of topical methotrexate 0.5%gel and to introduce new formula of methotrexate gel using suitable media for delivery.
Patients and Methods: The clinical work was performed at the Department of Dermatology and Venereology in Baghdad Teaching Hospital during the period from January 2008 to October 2008. While preparation of formula was performed in the laboratories of the Department of Pharmacology- College of Medicine-University of Baghdad. Patients were divided in to two groups according to the type of treatment, group (I) 32 patients treated with methotrexate 0.5% gel and group(II) (placebo group) included 33 patients treated with placebo gel.
Results: A total of 65 patients with limited plaque psoriasis were included in this study. For the MTX group the mean PASI score before treatment was 7.07 while at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks treatment, it was decreased to 5.17, 3.93, 3.07 and 2.35 respectively. At eight weeks treatment 25(78%) patients achieved good response (reduction in PASI score 50%), while 5(15.6%) patients achieved partial response (reduction in PASI score 25-49%) and 2(6.25%) patients had poor response (reduction in PASI score< 25%). For placebo group the pretreatment mean PASI score was 7.12 and after 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks treatment it became 6.32, 6.07, 5.99 and 6.2 respectively. Clinically the response of the patients to placebo gel at 8 weeks treatment was partial in 10(30.3%) patients and poor in 23(69.7%) patients while no patients achieved good response.
Conclusions: MTX 0.5% gel is effective treatment option for plaque psoriasis and also appears to be safe treatment since side effects were transient, limited and reduced with continuation of therapy.
Abstract
Itraconazole is a triazole antifungal given orally for the treatment of oropharyngeal and vulvovaginal candidiasis, for systemic infections including aspergillosis, candidiasis, and for the prophylaxis of fungal infections in immunocompromised patients.
The study aimed to formulate a practical water-insoluble Itraconazole, with insufficient bioavailability as nanosuspension to increase aqueous solubility and improve its dissolution and oral bioavailability.
Itraconazole nanosuspension was produced by a
... Show MorePsoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that is closely related to the oxidative stress state of the body. The current study focused on some immunological indicators directly related to inflammation (Procalcitonin, and lysozyme) with the aim of investigating their potential as a prognostic factor for psoriasis. This study included 150 samples, including 90 patients with psoriasis and 40 people who appeared to be healthy, and was conducted from November 2021 to April 2022. The results showed a significant increase in the level of procalcitonin in patients with psoriasis compared to its level in the control group, while it was noted that the increase in the level of the other indicators was not significant, according to the statis
... Show MoreThe present study is to formulate and evaluate Acyclovir (ACV) microspheres using natural polymers like chitosan and sodium alginate. ACV is a DNA polymerase inhibitor used in treating herpes simplex virus infection and zoster varicella infections. Acyclovir is a suitable candidate for sustained-release (SR) administration as a result of its dosage regimen twice or thrice a day and relatively short plasma half-life (approximately 2 to 4 hours). Microspheres of ACV were prepared by an ionic dilution method using chitosan and sodium alginate as polymers. The prepared ACV microspheres were then subjected to FTIR, SEM, particle size, % yield, entrapment efficiency, in vitro dissolution studies and release kinetics mechanism. The FTI
... Show MoreThe aim of this study is to formulate and evaluate ezetimibe nanoparticles using solvent antisolvent technology. Ezetimibe is a practically water-insoluble drug which acts as a lipid lowering drug that selectively inhibits the intestinal absorption of cholesterol and related phytosterols. Ezetimibe prepared as nano particles in order to improve its solubility and dissolution rate.
Thirty formulas were prepared and different stabilizing agents were used with different concentrations such as poly vinyl pyrrolidone (PVPK-30), poly vinyl alcohol (PVA), hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose E5 (HPMC), and poloxamer. The ratios of drug to stabilizers used to prepare the nanoparticles were 1: 2, 1:3 and 1:4.
The prepared nanoparticles
... Show MoreBackground: Diabetes mellitus is a well known risk factor for acute coronary syndrome but the hypothesis that patients with acute phase hyperglycemia, regardless the previous diagnosis of diabetes, have worse prognosis than those with normal glucose values is controversial. This paper aims to estimate the prevalence of admission hyperglycemia, its effect on in-hospital prognosis of diabetic and non-diabetic patients with acute coronary syndrome, and to compare it with 2nd day fasting plasma glucose as a prognostic marker.
Methods: One hundred patients, (59) diabetic and (41) non-diabetic, with documented acute coronary syndrome enrolled in this study over the period of June/ 2009-Jan./2010 from coronary c
The rivers are the main source of fresh water for many countries and the great development which is considered as one of the sustainable development elements in its various agricultural, industrial, domestic and environmental fields .The countries of the world seek food security and water security in order to ensure the basic needs of citizens .Because their distribution is uneven in many regions of the world with different human needs, which leads to conflicts over water sources, especially those located in one international river basin .This has led to the emergence of internationallegal rules governing the management of The problem revolves around the dialectic between limited water resources and increased need for water use b
... Show MoreInternational trade in services is becoming increasingly important as it is an economic activity that deals with invisible trade, which has become increasingly important in the balance of international trade. The establishment of the WTO is a starting point in international trade relations. It is responsible for all aspects of international trade, , And in view of the continued increase in international trade in services, the need for more internationally recognized rules has become more urgent, especially as it has been increasingly proven that the traditional framework of public services is inadequate to operate some of the most dynamic and innovative sectors of the economy. (GATS) to be the regulatory framework for this sector
... Show MorePsoriasis is a common chronic skin condition characterized by infiltration of inflammatory cells into the epidermis and altered keratinocyte differentiation.
In this work, psoriasis was induced by an imiquimod 5% cream, an immune response modifier that can induce psoriasis-like skin inflammation when applied topically in mice. Guggulsterone prepared as a suspension and has been orally given to mice before imiquimod application. The results of the current study showed that guggulsterone suspension can significantly reduce psoriasis area and severity index in (guggul suspension+imiquimod group as compared with both control group and (vehicle suspension+imiquimod ) group.