Introduction: Minor aphthous stomatitis, with an unknown etiology, is a recurrent inflammatory oral condition, which affects almost 20% of the population. Hereditary, hematologic and immunologic factors have been reported to be the main etiologic factors for aphthous stomatitis. Another factor has been reported to be an imbalance between oxidative and anti-oxidative agents in the body. The aim of this study was to evaluate the amount of lipid peroxidase and anti-oxidative vitamins in the sera of patients with recurrent aphthous stomatitis Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis (RAS).Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study, 25 patients suffering from RAS were compared with 24 healthy individuals. ELISA was used to determine serum lipid peroxidase of which MALONDIALDEHYDE (MDA) is an indicator, as well as vitamins A, E and C levels in a fasting state in both groups. The results were analyzed by SPSS 11.5 using t-test and chi-squared test (a=0.05).Results: No significant differences were detected in serum levels of vitamins A, E and C and MDA between the patient and control groups (p value=0.53, 0.53, 0.78, and 0.32, respectively).Conclusion: Under the limitations of the present study there was no relationship between RAS ulcers and serum levels of vitamins A, E and C and MDA. Further studies are necessary in this regard.

Objective: In this study, we aim to demonstrate that measurement of the MALONDIALDEHYDE (MDA) level in the umbilical cord blood of newborn infants born via cesarean section (C/S) and normal vaginal delivery (NVD) is indicative of oxidative stress during the perinatal period.Methods: The study was conducted at Bakirkoy Training and Research Hospital between January 2006 and April 2006 on 15 newborns born via elective C/S, 15 newborns born via emergency C/S, and 15 newborns born via normal vaginal delivery. Complete blood count, total bilirubin, glucose, creatinine phosphokinase (CPK), uric acid, iron, blood gas, and MALONDIALDEHYDE levels were measured in the umbilical cord blood Findings: MALONDIALDEHYDE levels in the umbilical cord blood in the emergency C/S and NVD groups were found to be statistically and significantly higher than those in the elective C/S group. In the emergency C/S group, it was determined that the MALONDIALDEHYDE level increased as the oxygen saturation of the umbilical cord blood increased. In the NVD group, a positive correlation was detected between the total bilirubin and MALONDIALDEHYDE levels in the umbilical cord blood. In the emergency C/S group, the MALONDIALDEHYDE level was recorded to be high in the infants with high level of uric acid in the umbilical cord blood.Conclusion: We concluded that the MALONDIALDEHYDE level in umbilical cord blood could serve as an indication of perinatal oxidative stress and that it could thus help in preventing permanent damage.

The recent report on “MALONDIALDEHYDE Level in the Cord Blood” bring some interesting point to be discussed[1]. Gülbayzar et al. concluded that “MALONDIALDEHYDE level in umbilical cord blood could serve as an indication of perinatal oxidative stress [1]” This summary might be correct, however, there are some points to be considered. First, there are many factors that can induce the oxidative stress and this should be completely investigated before suggesting that the measurement of MALONDIALDEHYDE level can be useful for prevention. Second, there is no information on quality control of all analyses in this report. Finally, it should also be noted that gestation age and mode of delivery can affect the test level. This should be kept in mind when one considers to use the test in actual clinical practice [2].

Introduction: Preeclampsia is a complication of pregnancy that is associated with high blood pressure with an unknown etiology. There is much evidence that altered endothelial cell functions may play an important role in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia. The aims of this study were to determine serum levels of nitrite, nitrate and MALONDIALDEHYDE (MDA) in pregnant women with and without preeclampsia. Materials and Methods: This observational-analytical study was performed in the third trimester of pregnancy on 35 pregnant primiparas with preeclampsia and 35 women with normal blood pressure. The women were recruited for the study among the mothers attending Andimeshk Urban Health Centers during March 2008 to March 2009. Aside from the demographic data, the gestational age and blood pres-sure were recorded too at the time of blood sampling. Serum levels of nitrite and nitrate were measured by Griess and MDA by thiobarbituric acid reactions. The data were statistically analyzed and compared between the two groups. Results: Serum levels of nitrite, nitrate and MDA, respectively were 12.6±3.8, 23.8±8.6 and 9.7±2.8mol/l in women with preeclampsia and 8.7±2.5 (p<0.001), 16.4±5.4 (p<0.01) and 6.34±1.6mol/l (p<0.001) in the controls. The results depicted significantly higher serum concentrations of the three analyses in pregnant women with preeclampsia relative to the controls.   Conclusion: Significantly higher serum concentrations of nitrite, nitrate and MDA in pregnant women with preeclampsia are suggestive of the role of these substances in the pathogenesis of the disease. Use of the three parameters may be useful in the early screening of preeclampsia.