The purpose of this study was to detect the correlation between age and gender with flat foot deformity in obese children. One hundred fifty children ranged in age from 8-14 years participated in this study. They were selected according to body mass index to be obese children, then they were divided according to gender into two groups, group I and group II (75 boys and 75 girls), then each group divided according to age into equal three sub groups (from 8-10 years, from 10-12 years and from 12-14 years) each sub group included 25 children. Evaluation for each child was done using the Foot Posture Index-6 and foot print. The Foot Posture Index-6 was used to asses foot posture, while foot print was used to measure Stahili planter arch index. The results of the study showed that there were significant statistical differences in Foot Posture Index-6 score and arch index between group I (boys) and group II (girls), while there were no significant statistical differences in Foot Posture Index-6 score and arch index in the subgroups according to age. It was concluded that there was significant positive correlation between gender and incidence of flat foot, while there was no significant correlation between age and incidence of flat foot.Key words: Flat foot, obese children, stahili planter arch index, foot posture index-6 INTRODUCTIONThe foot has three arches; the medial longitudinal arch, the lateral longitudinal arch and the transverse arch. The medial longitudinal arch is the highest and most important of the three arches. It is composed of the calcaneus, talus, navicular, cuneiforms and the first three metatarsals. The lateral longitudinal arch is lower and flatter than the medial longitudinal arch. It is composed of the calcaneus, cuboid, the fourth and fifth metatarsals. The transverse arch is composed of the cuneiforms, the cuboid and the five metatarsal bases. The arches of the foot are maintained not only by the shapes of the bones as well as by ligaments. In addition, muscles and tendons play an important role in supporting the arches (George et al., 2009).Deformities of the lower extremities are very frequent in children and most of the time these conditions are physiological and do not need any treatment. Ninety percent of clinic visits for foot problems are due to flatfoot (FF) (Fabry, 2010).The definition of flat foot is not standardized, nevertheless but the height of the medial longitudinal arch is the principal parameter to be observed and measured (Villarroya et al., 2009).

Giardiasis is a major diarrheal disease affecting approximately 2.5 million children annually in developing countries. Several studies have reported the resistance of Giardia lamblia (G. lamblia) to multiple drugs. Therefore, identifying an effective drug for giardiasis is a necessity. This study examined the antiparasitic effect of Punica granatum (pomegranate) and evaluated its therapeutic efficacy in rats infected with G. lamblia. In vitro study showed high efficacy of pomegranate peel ethanolic extract in killing G. lamblia cysts as demonstrated by eosin vital staining. We showed that treating infected rats with pomegranate extract resulted in a marked reduction in the mean number of G. lamblia cysts and trophozoites in feces and intestine respectively. Interestingly, the number of G. lamblia trophozoites and cysts were significantly lower in the pomegranate extract-treated group compared to the metronidazole-positive control group. Moreover, pomegranate extract treatment significantly induced nitric oxide (NO) and reduced serum IL-6 and TNF-α, compared to infected untreated rats. Histological and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) examination of the jejunum and duodenum of pomegranate extract-treated animals confirmed the antiparasitic effect of the extract, and demonstrated the restoration of villi structure with reduction of villi atrophy, decreased infiltration of lymphocytes, and protection of intestinal cells from apoptotic cell death. In conclusion, our data show that the pomegranate peel extract is effective in controlling G. lamblia infections, which suggests that it could be a viable treatment option for giardiasis.

Sex steroids have been suggested to influence colorectal cancer (CRC) carcinogenesis. Also, exposure to exogenous hormones might contribute to its incidence. This study conducted to evaluate ER and PR expression as a prognostic factor in patients with CRC attending Sohag University Hospital (SUH) and Sohag Cancer Center (SCC). Materials and Methods: Tumor samples tested for Estrogen receptor (ER) / progesterone receptor (PR) expression using immunohistochemical staining (IHC). Association of this expression with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were evaluated. Results: Thirty out of 50 CRC tissues were evaluable for hormone receptor expression. Expression of both ER and PR was cytoplasmic. ER and PR expressions were 60% and 76.66%, respectively. There was a significant difference between loss of ER expression and depth of invasion (p= 0.01). Also, ER and PR negative expression cases were significantly at higher risk for progression (p= 0.03; 0.009 respectively). High levels of ER and PR expression were associated with higher cumulative PFS at one year and at the end of follow up time (p=0.01; 0..02 respectively); however this did not reach statistical significance on Cox proportional hazards regression analysis for progression or OS (p= 0.05; HR= 0.22; p=0.5; HR=0.67 respectively) for ER level and (p=0.07; HR=0.22; p=0.6; HR=0.72 respectively) for PR level. Conclusions: This study suggests that lower ER/PR expression levels were associated with more extensive CRC primary tumors and poorer prognosis. These data suggest that ER/PR expression might possess a prognostic value for CRC cases.

Purpose Psoriasis vulgaris, one of the most prevalent chronic inflammatory skin diseases, is associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS). Autophagy, an intracellular degradation system is essential for cell survival and differentiation, and its dysfunction may contribute to metabolic diseases. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 38 psoriasis vulgaris patients and 16 healthy control subjects to 1) Assess immunohistochemical (IHC) expression of microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3); 2) Evaluate the relationship between Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) score, and LC3 expression. Patients and Methods PASI score was evaluated for all psoriasis patients. Lipid profile, blood sugar, and CRP were done for all patients and controls. A punch biopsy was taken from lesional and perilesional skin of psoriasis patients and normal skin of the controls. Tissue sections were prepared. IHC LC3 staining was done and evaluated. Results LC3 was nearly absent, in the epidermis of the lesional skin of psoriasis while it was strong among control (p=0.001). LC3 expression in the lesional skin of psoriasis vulgaris was lower than its expression in perilesional (p=0.001). However, LC3 expression was not significantly changed with PASI or the presence/absence of MetS. Conclusion A potential link between psoriasis vulgaris and autophagy as assessed by LC3 could be present. LC3 was down-regulated in psoriasis lesions than in normal skin. However, its expression did not change with PASI or MetS. An autophagy enhancer might be used as a possible therapeutic target in psoriasis vulgaris patients.

Background: Pemphigus is a series of autoimmune skin disorders caused by IgG. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are a subset of CD4+ T cells that mostly block pathogenic immune responses mediated by self-reactive cells; therefore, a lack of Tregs or a malfunction in their activity could lead to a loss of tolerance and the development of autoimmunity. Aims: To evaluate the expression of lesional and perilesional Treg markers (CD 4 + CD 25 + bright FOXP 3 + ) in pemphigus patients. Patients and methods: Twenty-three pemphigus patients and 20 healthy controls were included in this study. The expression of CD 4 , CD 25, and Foxp 3 was evaluated by immunohistochemistry.Results: There was statistically significant increase in CD4+ T lymphocytes in lesional skin of pemphigus compared to perilesional skin and control group (p-value: 0.001).There was statistically significant decrease in CD25 + and Foxp3 + cells in lesional skin compared to perilesional and control group (p-value: <0.001, 0.025, respectively). Conclusion:The reduction of lesional skin Tregs may play an important role in the pemphigus pathogenesis.