: The 2019 coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) continues to expand worldwide. Although the number of cases and the death rate among children and adolescents are reported to be low compared to adults, limited data have been reported. We urgently need to find treatment and vaccine to stop the epidemic. Vaccine development is in progress, but any approved and effective vaccine for COVID-19 is at least 12 to 18 months. The World Health Organization (WHO), the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have issued instructions and strategies for containing COVID-19 outbreak to the general public, physicians, travelers and injured patients to follow so that the transmission to a healthy population can be prevented. In this review, we summarize demographic data, clinical characteristics, complications and outcomes and finally prevention and control of this serious pandemic.

prevalent cancers worldwide. In Egypt, its incidence has been doubling due to hepatitis C viral (HCV) infection. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) plays an important role in hepatocyte regeneration and had a role in malignant transformation. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) G/G genotype was associated with higher risk for HCC development. This study was done to evaluate the correlation between EGF polymorphism and HCC in patients with HCV. METHODS: Routine investigations for liver cirrhosis and HCC, also EGF genotyping were done on 2 groups; patients with HCV related cirrhosis and patients with newly diagnosed HCC on top of cirrhosis, while the control group performed EGF genotyping only. RESULTS: EGF gene polymorphism 61*G was dominant in HCC patients. The G/G owns the highest concentration when compared with A/A and A/G genotypes, with high statistical significance between studied groups as regard number and percentage (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: EGF gene polymorphism 61*G was associated with HCC risk. Moreover, the increased concentration of EGF was associated with G/G genotype.

Background: Sickle cell anaemia (SCA) is an inherited hemoglobinopathy resulting in sickling of erythrocytes that cause micro-vascular obstruction leading to acute complications and chronic organ damage. Adults with SCA have endocrine complications and metabolic alterations. The aim of this study was to assess the association between gonadal and thyroid hormones with iron indices and to explore the potential association between serum ferritin levels and sex hormones in adult males with sickle cell disease in New Prince Saud Bin Jalawy Hospital (NPSBJH) in Hofuf city (Eastern region of Saudi Arabia) where there are many patients with SCA. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was carried out in the Haematology Clinic at NPSBJH in 2018. A total of eighty (80) male patients with sickle cell anaemia were included in this study and were divided into two groups according to serum ferritin level. Group I (G-I): Included 40 male patients with high serum ferritin level and group II (G-II): included 40 male patients with normal serum ferritin level. Results: There was a significant difference in height/cm between GI and Gil, P value= 0.006. Serum ferritin was significantly higher in GI (P value= 0.000), and serum TIBC was significantly higher in G-II. (P value= 0.022). Testosterone level was significantly higher in G-II (P value= 0.018). Luteinizing hormone (LH) was significantly higher in group I (P-value 0.019). There was a significant relation between serum ferritin level in G-I and the following: serum iron, TIBC, serum testosterone, LH, prolactin, free T3 and free T4. Conclusion: Adult males with SCD with high serum ferritin level were shorter than adult males with SCD who had normal serum ferritin level and had a significant lower level of serum testosterone and significant high level of LH and this was most likely due to endocrine dysfunction secondary to high ferritin level and iron overload.

Background: In Egypt, it seems that adolescent girls are a candidate for Vitamin D Deficiency (VDD), mostly due to inadequate sun exposure as a result of the culture and social dress codes and dietary factors. Currently, there is growing evidence that VDD is associated with Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA). Aim: To investigate the frequency of VDD in adolescent females with IDA in comparison to healthy control and demonstrate whether VD level was correlated with serum iron indices. Subjects and Methods: Forty adolescent females with known cases of IDA (group 1) and 30 healthy females matched for age as a control (group 2) were selected. We compared the differences between the two groups to determine the degree of VD level; where VDD was defined as 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] ≤20 ng/mL, vitamin D insufficiency (VDI) as 25(OH) D of 20-30 ng/mL, and vitamin D sufficiency (VDS) as 25(OH)D >30 ng/mL. Body mass index (BMI), complete blood count (CBC), serum iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), serum ferritin, serum creatinine, ionized calcium and 25(OH)D were measured for all participants. Results: We found that subnormal vitamin D (VDD and VDI) was more frequent in the IDA group (75%) than control (40%), (p = 0.025); where 19 adolescent female patients (47.5%) were VDD, 11 (27.5%) were VDI and 10 (25%) were VDS, while in the control group, VDD was present in 4 (20%), VDI in 4 (20%) and VDS in 12 (60%) respectively. There was not any significant correlation between serum VD and serum iron indices (r =0.168, p < 0.05) and Hb (r = 0.360, p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in serum hemoglobin level between IDA patients with subnormal VD and those with VDS. The mean level of serum 25(OH) D was significantly lower in winter months than summer in both groups; (16.87 vs. 31.57 mg/dL, p < 0.001) and (31.9 vs. 35.04 mg/dL, p < 0.001) respectively. BMI, Iron, TIBC and seasonal variation were not predictors of 25(OH) D levels in adolescent girls with IDA. Conclusion: VDD has a higher frequency in Egyptian adolescent females with IDA than healthy control. However, vitamin D levels were not significantly correlated with iron indices. Our result might direct the attention for measuring vitamin D level in patients with IDA with the possibility of VD supplementation with iron.

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