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Background & objectives: Azathioprine is widely used for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. It has negative effects on the function of kidney. Therefore, considering the protective effects of ginger on nephrotoxins, the present study was conducted to investigate the effect of ginger on renal changes induced by azathioprine in rats.
Methods: In this experimental study, 56 female rats were divided into 7 groups including control, sham and 5 experimental groups receiving azathioprine (50mg/kg), ginger (200mg/kg), azathioprine plus ginger (200,100 and 50 mg/kg). In this study, ginger was administered by gavage and azathioprine intraperitoneally in 21 consecutive days. At the end, serum levels of urea, uric acid and creatinine were measured and the histological structure of the kidneys was examined. The results were analyzed by ANOVA and Duncan tests at significance level of p≤0.05.
Results: The results showed that azathioprine caused the destruction of structure along with cell necrosis, tubular degeneration, glomerular atrophy, urinary space enlargement, hyperemia and inflammatory cell infiltration in the renal tissue, as well as an increase in the serum level of urea, uric acid and creatinine at p≤0.05. However, simultaneous use of ginger and azathioprine reduced the serum levels of urea, uric acid, creatinine and improved the kidney structure compared to the azathioprine group.
Conclusion: The results showed that ginger had a protective effect on kidney tissue, due to its antioxidant properties, by inhibiting free radicals produced by azathioprine and decreasing the severity degradation effects of azathioprine on kidney tissue and function.
 

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Background & objectives: Evaluation of liver and renal function before and after administration of methotrexate (MTX) is recommended in the treatment of molar pregnancy, but the necessity of performing these tests during treatment of ectopic pregnancy (EP) is not clear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the changes of creatinine and AST levels before and after treatment with double (DD) and multiple (MD) doses of MTX in patients with Ep.
Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study performed on 152 patients with an EP during 2007-2013 in Al-Zahra hospital (Rasht). Seventy six patients received DD and 76 cases were treated with MD of MTX. The success rate, side effects of MTX and changes in creatinine and AST levels were compared between the two groups.
Results: The mean changes in creatinine level was 0.06±0.08 and 0.16±0.13 in DD and MD groups, respectively and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (p=0.002). The mean changes in AST level was 5.06±2.47 and 9.63±5.5 in DD and MD groups, respectively which was statistically significant (p=0.002). The success rates were 65.8% and 86.8% in DD and MD groups, respectively with statistically significant difference (p=0.002). The side effects rates were 13.2% and 32.9% in DD and MD groups, respectively with statistically significant difference (p=0.004).
Conclusion: It seems that administration of MD of MTX in EP patients leads to an increase in success rate of treatment but also it causes considerable increase in creatinine and AST levels.