Ferritin, which includes twenty-four light and heavy chains in varying proportions in different tissues, is primarily responsible for maintaining the body's iron metabolism. Its normal value is between 10 and 200 ngmL−1 in men and between 30 and 300 ngmL−1 in women. Iron is delivered to the tissue via them, and they act as immunomodulators, signaling molecules, and inflammatory markers. When ferritin level exceeds 1000 µgL-1, the patient is categorized as having hyperferritinemia. Iron chelators such as deferiprone, deferirox, and deferoxamine are currently FDA approved to treat iron overload. The inflammation cascade and poor prognosis of COVID-19 may be attributed to high ferritin levels. Critically ill patients can benefit from deferasirox, an iron chelator administered orally at 20–40 mgkg−1 once daily, as well as intravenous deferoxamine at 1000 mg initially followed by 500 mg every 4 to 12 h. It can be combined with monoclonal antibodies, antioxidants, corticosteroids, and lactoferrin to make iron chelation therapy effective for COVID-19 victims. In this article, we analyze the antiviral and antifibrotic activity of iron chelators, thereby promoting iron depletion therapy as a potentially innovative treatment strategy for COVID-19.
17 October 2017 in Global Journal of Addiction & Rehabilitation Medicine
The administration of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors had gain popularity owing to their efficacy and safety in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. However, it is certainly necessary to look into the impact of the ramipril in kidney impaired individuals. We had enrolled 190 CKD with hypertensive patients based on the exclusion and inclusion criteria. The elder patients constituted to have a major share in the CKD population on ramipril therapy. From the study, it was found that the high costly brand was chosen the most and least cost was preferred only for 2 patients. The glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and serum creatinine, the major determinants of kidney function, had a small relationship with the dose of ramipril. However, the antihypertensive drug showed to have a favorable impact on patients overall treatment outcome. It is vital to evaluate the amount of protein in urine in case of a CKD patient. The easiest and cost effective technique, the dipstick urine protein test was done. The test value was found to be 1+ (30mg/dl) for majority of the patients and only 2 patients were observed with more than 1000 mg/dl. The ability of ramipril to reduce the progression of CKD can be attributed to the pooling of the data in +1 (30mg/dl) range.
7 October 2020 in International Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical Sciences
The chronic kidney disease (CKD) co-exist with hypertension in approximately 80 to 85 per cent of patients. The CKD stages can be defined by glomerular filtration rate (GFR), and the deterioration of kidney function or reduction in GFR has observed in those with uncontrolled blood pressure (BP). We had conducted a prospective study to analyse the impact of the angiotensin system-related agents on the quality of life of CKD patients with hypertension. The SF-36 questionnaire, direct patients interview and medical records were the sources for retrieval of information. We observed that male patients were more prone to CKD than female. Hypertension was the primary (77.8%) aetiology behind the incidence of CKD. The angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) was responsible for very low (58%) and low (44%) health disabilities to the patients. In contrast, the angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB) even though it has a limited adverse effect, the patients complained of medium (9%) and high disabilities than the ACEIs. The discontinuation of the antihypertensive drugs by the CKD patients was almost negligible (3.4%). The study concludes that a balanced diet and reasonable blood pressure control is essential to prevent the progression of CKD and to improve the quality of life.