The Diagnostic Value of Cerebro-spinal Fluid IgG Antibodies to Antigen 60 in Tuberculous Meningitis

The diagnostic value of cerebro-spinal fluid (CSF) IgG antibodies to antigen 60 (A60) was investigated in patients with tuberculous meningitis (TbM). Patients and controls were as follows: 18 tuberculous meningitis, 18 purulent meningitis, 15 viral meningitis or meningoencephalitis, 8 different neurological disorders and 18 subjects in whom lumbar puncture was performed for different reasons and who have normal CSF values. Anti-A60 IgG antibody was positive in 8 of 18 TbM patients. False-positive tests in controls were 3. It was calculated that anti-A60 IgG test has a sensitivity of 44.4%, specificity of 95%, positive predictive value of 72.7% and negative predictive value of 84.8% in the diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis

Antrax: Evaluation of 68 Cases

Sixty-eight anthrax cases admitted to our clinic, from June 1986 to June 1996, were evaluated in respect to clinical findings, therapy methods and prognosis. Patients were 15-63 years old, 31 of them were female and 37 were male. It was understood that from August to October, in three months, there was an increase in anthrax cases. A history of direct contact with animals was obtained in 46 (68%) cases. Incubation period of our cases was 1-9 (average : 3.8) days. The whole cases were cutaneous anthrax; 41 of them were malignant pustule, and 27 were malignant edema. Bacillus anthracis was seen on Gram stain smears in 20 cases (29%). Vesicular fluid culture was positive in 12 cases. Both the culture and Gram stain smear was positive in 9 of these cases. Procain penicillin was used for 7 days in the treatment of patients with malignant pustula. For the therapy of malignant edema patients penicillin G was started and then continued with procain penicillin with the addition of prednisolon for 10 days. The average time of hospitalization was 9.5 days and the mortality rate was 1.5%

The Distribution of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Genotypes in 59 HCV Infected Patients: A Multicenter Study

Eighty anti-HCV positive serum samples were collected at university centers in Malatya, Erzurum, Samsun and Konya. HCV-RNA sequences were detected in 59 (73.3%) of these samples by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using primers from the 5’ non-coding region. HCV-RNA positive samples were subsequently genotyped using type-specific primers from the core region of the virus. Type II (I b) infection was detected in 41 samples (69.5%), while a mix type I (I a) and II (I b) infection were found in another 3 samples (5.1%). The remaining 15 samples (25.4%) could have not been typed. These results together with the results of previous studies suggest the predominance of genotype II infection in Turkish patients which is known to have poorer prognosis and lower responce to interferon treatment

Neonatal Resuscitation Practices in Turkey: A Survey of the Turkish Neonatal Society and the Union of European Neonatal and Perinatal Societies

Objective: Optimal care in the delivery room is important to decrease neonatal morbidity and mortality. We aimed to evaluate neonatal resuscitation practices in Turkish centers. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey consisted of a 91-item questionnaire focused on delivery room practices in neonatal resuscitation and was sent to 50 Turkish centers. Hospitals with <2500 and those with ≥2500 births/year were compared. Results: In 2018, approximately 240 000 births occurred at participating hospitals with a median of 2630 births/year. Participating hospitals were able to provide nasal continuous-positive- airway-pressure/high-flow nasal cannula, mechanical ventilation, high-frequency oscillatory ventilation, inhaled nitric oxide, and therapeutic hypothermia similarly. Antenatal counseling was routinely performed on parents at 56% of all centers. A resuscitation team was present at 72% of deliveries. Umbilical cord management for both term and preterm infants was similar between centers. The rate of delayed cord clamping was approximately 60% in term and late preterm infants. Thermal management for preterm infants (<32 weeks) was similar. Hospitals had appropriate equipment with similar rates of interventions and management, except conti nuous-positive-airway-pressure and positive-end-expiratory-pressure levels (cmH2O) used in preterm infants (P = .021, and P = .032). Ethical and educational aspects were also similar. Conclusions: This survey provided information on neonatal resuscitation practices in a sam- ple of hospitals from all regions of Turkey and allowed us to see weaknesses in some fields. Although adherence to the guidelines was high among centers, further implementations are required in the areas of antenatal counseling, cord management, and circulation assessment in the delivery room