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Introduction: Phenomena such as a pandemic can cause many medical, psychological, and sociological problems, including increased alcohol use, which was noticed among healthy people and patients with long-term diseases. The aim of the study was to evaluate alcohol consumption in adult patients with rheumatic diseases, who completed participation in a phase 3 clinical trial for biologic drugs or treatment under a drug program, and consented to participate in the study. Material and methods: 128 patients between the ages of 18 and 77 years (M = 46.88, SD = 13.80) with disease duration of 1-46 years (M = 12.30, SD = 8.53) participated in the study. In the research group, more than half (57.8%) were women, most of the subjects (60.2%) were economically active, 74.2% of the subjects are not addicted to tobacco, 61.7% of the subjects were in a relationship, 52.3% of the patients were participating in a drug program at the time of the study, and 23.4% of the subjects had completed participation in clinical trials. The Baltimore questionnaire and AUDIT-4 were used in the study. Results: Regarding the norms set by the authors of the Baltimore test, it was recognised that 24 people (18.8%) had an alcohol problem, medium risk of disease applied to 6 people (4.7%), low risk of disease applied to 12 people (9.4%), and no alcohol problem applied to 86 people (67.2%). Conclusions: Alcohol drinking is a serious problem among patients treated in drug programs and clinical trials. Smoking is significantly associated with alcohol abuse and drinking patterns. It is necessary to control with alcohol drinking questionnaires during treatment with expensive drugs, to identify alcohol abuse or risky drinking patterns as a factor that may reduce compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper addresses the definition, benefits, and limitations of probiotics. As living organisms, probiotics provide various health benefits primarily through the regulation of gut microbiota and immune response. Furthermore, a variety of probiotic strains, such as Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Saccharomyces, are discussed in view of their specific properties and clinical applications. The authors also highlight the significance of adverse effects, including systemic infections and metabolic issues, as well as potential risks, such as antibiotic resistance gene transfer. Additionally, the paper emphasizes the need for further research regarding the safety and efficacy of probiotics, and for the development of appropriate clinical guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Alzheimer's disease (AD) described as a chronic and irreversible neurodegenerative disease remains the most common cause of dementia. Due to the aging of the population, the incurability of AD has become a growing problem of medicine in the 21st century. Current treatment is only symptomatic, providing minimal, temporary improvement in the patient's cognitive function. This paper presents the latest trends in the search for effective pharmacotherapy capable of preventing or inhibiting AD progression. Since the exact pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease is not known, the main therapeutic strategies are based only on the following hypotheses: amyloid cascade, tau protein, oxidative stress, neuroinflammation and those associated with dysfunction of the cholinergic system as well as glutamatergic. Most of the compounds currently tested in clinical trials are targeted at pathological amyloid β (A β), which is considered the cause of neurodegeneration, according to the most widely described cascade theory. Most of the compounds currently tested in clinical trials are targeted at pathological amyloid β (Aβ), which is the main cause of neurodegeneration according to the widely described theory of the amyloid cascade. Attempts to fight the toxic Aβ are based on the following: immunotherapy (vaccines, monoclonal antibodies), compounds that inhibit its formation: γ-secretase inhibitors/modulators and β-secretase. Immunotherapy can also be used to increase the clearance of hyperphosphorylated tau protein, the occurrence of which is another feature of Alzheimer's disease. In addition to immunotherapy, anti-inflammatory, metabolic and neuroprotective compounds have been the subject of a number of studies. A range of symptomatic compounds that improve cognitive functions by compensating cholinergic, noradrenergic and glutamatergic signaling deficits have also been investigated in clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many observations indicate the existence of a relationship between reduced selenium status in the body and various thyroid diseases, including autoimmune thyroiditis. In most studies devoted to this issue, change in concentration of anti-TPO antibodies was the main measure of the effectiveness of selenium supplementation in patients with autoimmune thyroiditis. The concentration of anti-TPO has an impact on the intensity of lymphocytic infiltration in the thyroid gland and the degree of damage to this gland; therefore, reducing their concentration as a result of increased selenium consumption may contribute to more effective treatment of autoimmune thyroiditis. In some works, the evaluation of immunoregulatory effect of selenium in the course of autoimmune thyroiditis was considered in relation to a wider range of biochemical and immunological parameters (mainly changes in the production of cytokines and chemokines). Many authors have confirmed the effect of selenium on reducing the concentration of anti-TPO, but pooled results of all the studies are ambiguous. The discrepancy may have been caused by a different degree of saturation of the thyroid with selenium and iodine in patients, a different severity of the disease, different doses of selenium administered to patients, the use or non-use of simultaneous therapy with L-thyroxine, and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) occurring in genes encoding particular selenoproteins. Based on literature, it can be concluded that the issue concerning the role of selenium in autoimmune thyroiditis is still poorly understood. There is a need to continue research evaluating the effect of selenium on the course of this disease, which should include also other parameters apart from anti-TPO. The results of such extensive research may be helpful in formulating new guidelines for supporting treatment by appropriate modification of diet, including selenium supplementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some women after childbirth are struggling with the problem of producing too little milk and cannot feed the child only on breast milk. Therefore, they need to introduce synthetic milk into newborn's diet or to look for a way to increase their lactation. Breast milk provides the newborn with optimal supply of nutrients, increases its immunology and has a positive effect on its further development. The lack of a synthetic drug which can increase the lactation in nursing women prompts them to turn to the phytotherapy. A large part of medicinal plants aimed at increasing lactation in breastfeeding women is used as traditional medicinal products. There is, however, very few studies involving breast-feeding mothers confirming the lactagogic action of the plant or carried out with newborns confirming that there is no trace of the drug in breast milk or, if there is, it shows an appropriate safety profile for such a small child. The purpose of this review was to check which medicinal plants, commonly considered galactogogues, have clinically proven activities and whether their safety profile has already been tested for both the nursing mother and her child. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although clinical trials are rarely of interest to medical sociologists, in the last decades there has been increased focus on the processes of medicalization as well on the social critical approach to these multidimensional phenomena by health sociologists. From the perspective of the sociology of illness, clinical trials could be perceived as a bridge between the 'society of remission' and 'risk society'. Public opinion polls did not give a clear answer regarding the social attitudes and the level of social trust presented by Poles towards clinical trials although patients or healthy volunteers are the main subject of this research. Creating an atmosphere of social trust (using the role of mass-media) towards clinical trials (through social awareness, methods of investigation and using the results in everyday medical practice) gives a chance to create a new 'quality of relations' between scientific teams responsible for clinical trials and society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetes is a metabolic disease characterised by hyperglicemia (increased glucose levels in blood) which occurs as a result of production or activity defect of beta cells in pancreas. Longlasting diabetes leads to serious complications which affect many organs, mainly organs of vision (microvasculature of the retina, cataract, blindness), kidneys (nephropathy), autonomic nervous system (polyneuropathy, neuropathy). Among organs less often affected by diabetic complications is inner ear (hearing loss, vestibular disorders). The author analysed the available literature on research on the impact of diabetes on the balance system carried out based on the animal model, human temporal bone and human studies. Results of clinical research devoted to this issue presented in 11 publications dated between 1990 and 2017 were part of the conducted analysis. Analyzed results of experimental and clinical research of the vestibular system indicate that both among animals and humans with diabetes there occurs a defect of peripheral and central part of the vestibular system. Within maculae of the saccule a degeneration of type I hair cells, lower density of type I hair cells, overproduction of extracellular matrix, dislodgement of otoconia fragments from maculae of the utricle and saccule surface to the posterior and lateral semicircular canals has been noted. Within the vestibular nerve a significant damage or thinning of the myelin sheath and smaller axonal fiber diameters have been noted. Clinical research confirmed presence of vestibular disorders in patients with diabetes. Their extensity and frequency was dependent on the duration of the illness, accompanying diseases and type of diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Actinic keratosis (AK) is a disease characterized by hyperkeratotic lesions on skin damaged by ultraviolet. radiation. These lesions may progress to squamous cell or basal cell carcinoma. Currently pharmacotherapy and different surgical procedures are used in AK therapy. The most common treatment options are 5-fluorouracil, imiquimod, diclofenac, ingenol mebutate, and first and third generation retinoids (retinol, adapalene, tazarotene). Furthermore, research is being carried out in order to test new medications including nicotinamide, resiquimod, piroxicam, potassium dobesilate and oleogel based on a triterpene extract (betulin, betulinic acid). Recently, the preventive effect of acetylsalicylic acid and celecoxib has also been investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New therapeutic alternatives, such as innovative medical devices, are frequently the only treatment options left for patients when other efficient medical modalities are lacking or insufficient. Development of novel devices, which are safe and effective, requires understanding of complex premarket and postmarket provisions, including characteristics of clinical trials. Speeding up patient access to new technologies may imply the need to make choices in terms of extent and robustness of clinical evaluation without losing the patient safety perspective. In such situations, some challenges can readily arise due to existing methodological solutions and aspects of current legislation in the field. In this context, some challenges, occurring at various stages of the device lifecycle, will be presented in order to observe the changes and hopefully to contribute to better knowledge and improvements in the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agents introduced into therapy of type 2 diabetes in the last few years are still the subject of numerous clinical and experimental studies. Although many studies have been completed, we still do not know all aspects of these drugs' action, especially the long-term effects of their use. Most questionable is their impact on the processes of cell proliferation, on the cardiovascular and immune systems, on lipids and uric acid metabolism. A summary of the most important observations on the use of three groups of new drugs - analogs of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), inhibitors of dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPPIV) and inhibitors of sodium glucose cotransporters (SGLT1 and SGLT2) - has been made, based on a review of the literature over the past five years (2010-2014). The information included in the present review concerns the structure and activity relationship, therapeutic efficacy, side effects and the observed additional therapeutic effects, which can determine new standards in therapy of diabetes and also facilitate the development of better antidiabetic drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ovarian cancer is the most frequent cause of deaths from among gynecologic malignancies. Due to its asymptomatic development the disease is frequently diagnosed at an advanced, incurable stages. Although ovarian cancers usually respond well to the first line chemotherapy based on platinum compounds and taxanes, majority of patients develop recurrence and chemo-resistance. Despite many years of studies there is still lack of reliable diagnostic markers as well as other diagnostic methods enabling early detection and suitable for screening. Thus, current studies are aimed on finding new biomarkers with diagnostic, prognostic and predictive potential as well as on the search for the new therapeutic targets. Interestingly, an understanding of ovarian cancer etiology has changed fundamentally within recent years. The classical theory, claiming that ovarian cancers originate from ovarian surface epithelial cells, was undermined. Currently, there is a lot of evidence that majority of serous ovarian cancers have its origin in malignant tubal epithelium, while endometrioid and clear cell ovarian cancers develop most likely from endometriosis. These new findings will have an impact on diagnostic approaches as well as on the prevention options for women with genetic predisposition to ovarian cancer. The new knowledge about an origin of different histological types of ovarian cancer may open new pathways in basic research and clinical studies. In this paper we report current knowledge about ovarian cancer risk factors, we also present the arguments for extraovarian origin of the majority of ovarian cancers and stress the mechanisms of action of new drugs for targeted therapies that show most promising results in the current clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retigabine belongs to a new generation of antiepileptic drugs. Its mechanism of action is different from that previously known. Retigabine opens potassium channels of subfamily Kv 7, especially Kv 7.2 and Kv 7.3. The drug enhances GABA-ergic transmission. It is well absorbed from the digestive system and undergoes metabolism via glucuronidation and acetylation. There is no interaction between retigabine and other antiepileptic drugs except lamotrigine. The drug has been registered as treatment of partial onset seizures with or without secondary generalization in adults. The efficacy of retigabine is being tested in other types of seizures and disorders characterized by neuronal hyperexcitability. Neuroprotective activity of retigabine is also being researched. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) play an important role in the epigenetic regulation of gene expression implicated in cancer pathogenesis. Inhibitors of HDACs (HDI) are under investigation as novel anti-cancer drugs, which induce histone hyperacetylation. These agents modulate chromatin structure leading to transcriptional changes of a very large number of genes, which affect signaling pathways, inhibit cell cycle progression and angiogenesis, and induce apoptosis in cancer cells. Currently, several HDI are in clinical trials used in monotherapy or in combination with other cytostatics, showing promising anticancer effects. To date, more than 15 HDIs have been found as potential drugs. This paper reviews the molecular mechanisms of HDI action on cancer cells and summarizes clinical trials of the most promising HDIs in the treatment of patients with hematologic malignancies and solid tumors [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deregulation of cellular signal transduction, caused by gene mutations, has been recognized as a basic factor of cancer initiation, promotion and progression. Thus, the ability to control the activity of overstimulated signal molecules by the use of appropriate inhibitors became the idea of targeted cancer therapy, which has provided an effective tool to normalize the molecular disorders in malignant cells and to treat certain types of cancer. The molecularly targeted drugs are divided into two major pharmaceutical classes: monoclonal antibodies and small-molecule kinase inhibitors. This review presents a summary of their characteristics, analyzing their chemical structures, specified molecular targets, mechanisms of action and indications for use. Also the molecules subjected to preclinical trials or phase I, II and III clinical trials evaluating their efficiency and safety are presented. Moreover, the article discusses further perspectives for development of targeted therapies focusing on three major directions: systematic searching and discovery of new targets that are oncogenic drivers, improving the pharmacological properties of currently known drugs, and developing strategies to overcome drug resistance. Finally, the role of proper pharmacodiagnostics as a key to rational anticancer therapy has been emphasized since the verification of reliable predictive biomarkers is a basis of individualized medicine in oncology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The placebo literature has substantially increased in the last decade, and more and more medical and psychological subspecialties have added empirical data to our knowledge. The theoretical framework of our understanding of the placebo response needs extension to account for findings that cannot be attributed to (Pavlovian) conditioning or expectancies alone. Gender aspects have been demonstrated for the placebo and nocebo response. It has been shown that nocebo research needs a methodological and ethical framework that allows its exploration. Finally, analyses of clinical trial data, either as meta-analyses or as reanalyses of trial raw data may allow identifying factors that subsequently can be used in experimental work. This has fostered the development of novel and alternative ways to test drugs against placebo that better control for placebo mechanisms without ignoring them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]