title: Bio-element status in children with acute rheumatic fever: before treatment and after clinical improvement.
abstract: Acute rheumatic fever (ARF) is an autoimmune multisystem disease. Bio-elements are required in different quantities by an organism to maintain its physiologic function. Monitoring the status of bio-elements is critical in human health. This study aimed to determine possible changes in levels of bio-elements in children with ARF before and after treatment. Levels of trace and major elements in children with ARF were investigated. The study included 33 children with ARF (17 boys and 16 girls) and 20 healthy control children (11 boys and 9 girls). The ages ranged from 5 to 16 years (mean 11.4 ± 3.82 years) in the study group and from 6 to 15 years (mean, 10.7 ± 3.22 years) in the control group. Trace and major element concentrations (total of 14 elements) in the serum were measured by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy. Before treatment, the levels of the major elements potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg) in children with ARF were higher than in the control group, whereas the calcium (Ca) level was lower. Before treatment, the levels of trace elements iron (Fe), selenium (Se), zinc (Zn), aluminum (Al), and barium (Ba) were lower, whereas the copper (Cu), beryllium (Be), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), gallium (Ga), and strontium (Sr) levels were higher in the serum of the patients with ARF than in the control patients. The major findings show that the homeostasis of some trace and major elements were altered in the children with ARF and that these alterations may be a contributing factor in the pathogenesis of this disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry Division, Faculty of Sciences and Arts, Afyon Kocatepe University, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey. mcemek@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Mustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cemek
authors.forename: Mehmet Emin
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Büyükokuroğlu
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Büyükben
authors.forename: Fatih
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Aymelek
authors.forename: Fatma
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yilmaz
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Doğan
authors.forename: Fatih
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sanli
authors.forename: Abdurrahman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Uner
authors.forename: Derya
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yildirim
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004573:Electrolytes / Q000097:blood*; D004602:Elements; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012213:Rheumatic Fever / Q000097:blood*; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D004573:Electrolytes; D004602:Elements; D014131:Trace Elements