Clinical presentations and diagnostic work-up in sarcoidosis: A series of Turkish cases (clinics and diagnosis of sarcoidosis)

Sarcoidosis is an idiopathic granulomatous disease. It usually affects the lung. The diagnosis may be problematic since the known causes of granulomatous inflammation must be excluded. This multicenter study aimed to evaluate the clinical presentations and diagnostic approaches of sarcoidosis. The study protocol was sent via internet, and the participants were asked to send the information (clinical, radiological and diagnostic) on newly diagnosed sarcoidosis cases. 293 patients were enrolled within two years. Pulmonary symptoms were found in 73.3% of the patients, and cough was the most common one (53.2%), followed by dyspnea (40.3%). Constitutional symptoms were occured in half of the patients. The most common one was fatigue (38.6%). The most common physical sign was eritema nodosum (17.1%). The most common chest radiograhical sign was bilateral hilar lymphadenomegaly (78.8%). Staging according to chest X-ray has revealed that most of the patients were in Stage I and Stage II (51.9% and 31.7%, respectively). Sarcoidosis was confirmed histopathologically in 265 (90.4%) patients. Although one-third of the bronchoscopy was revealed normal, mucosal hyperemi (19.8%) and external compression of the bronchial wall (16.8%) were common abnormal findings. The 100% success rate was obtained in mediastinoscopy among the frequently used sampling methods. Transbronchial biopsy was the most frequently used method with 48.8% success rate. Considering sarcoidosis with its most common and also rare findings in the differential diagnosis, organizing the related procedures according to the possibly effected areas, and the expertise of the team would favor multimodality diagnosis

Biomarkers of hepatic injury and function in neonatal hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and with therapeutic hypothermia

Therapeutic hypothermia (TH) is now provided as standard care to infants with moderate-severe hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). The role of TH in limiting neuronal injury is well recognized, but its effect on hepatic injury which occurs frequently in neonatal HIE is not known. Our objective was to characterize biomarkers of liver injury and function in the setting of neonatal HIE and to describe whether HIE severity and provision of TH influence these hepatic biomarkers. We performed a multicenter retrospective study and compared hepatic biomarkers obtained during the first postnatal week, according to the severity of HIE and whether treated with TH. Of a total of 361 infants with HIE, 223 (62%) received TH and 138 (38%) were managed at normal temperature. Most hepatic biomarkers and C-reactive protein (CRP) were significantly associated with the severity of HIE (p<0.001). Infants treated with TH had lower peak Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) concentrations (p=0.025) and delay in reaching peak CRP concentration (p<0.001).  Conclusion: We observed a significant association between the clinical grade of HIE and biomarkers of liver metabolism and function. Therapeutic hypothermia was associated with delayed CRP responses and with lower ALT concentrations and so may have the potential to modulate hepatic injury

Impact of Religiosity on Ethical Judgement: A Study on Preference of Retail Stores Among Consumers

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify the impact of ethical judgements, depending on religiosity level of consumers, on decisions of buying or not buying products from supermarkets selling alcoholic beverages. Design/methodology/approach: The scope of this study covers consumers from province of Mus in Turkey who indicate they go shopping at supermarkets. Accordingly, data are collected from 362 consumers via face-to-face survey and the results are evaluated through regression analysis. Findings: According to analysis, it was found that the internal and external religiosity of the consumers positively affected their ethical judgement towards the markets selling alcoholic beverages. Besides, it is concluded that the ethical judgements of consumers have a positive impact on boycott decisions against supermarkets selling alcoholic beverages. Originality/value: The survey contributes to relevant literature by putting forth the impact of ethical judgements of consumers, associated with their level of religiosity, on their decisions as to preference of supermarkets. Moreover, this study is consistent with the previous studies and supports the conclusion that the ethical decisions are affected by the extrinsic and intrinsic levels of religiosity; however, they are more affected by the intrinsic levels of religiosity. © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited

Investigating the validity of the EKC hypothesis in eurasian countries: The role of financial development

[No abstract available

The effect of consumer-based brand authenticity on customer satisfaction and brand loyalty

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of consumer-based brand authenticity (CBBA) on customer satisfaction (CS) and brand loyalty (BL). The moderating effect of the variable “alternative attractiveness” in the relationship between CS and BL was further investigated. The study compared and analyzed the difference between global sportswear brands and domestic ones and the difference between global chocolate brands and domestic ones in terms of CBBA, CS, BL and attractiveness of alternatives (AA). Design/methodology/approach: Structural equation modeling and multigroup analysis were conducted in order to analyze the data collected from 600 consumers via face-to-face survey. Findings: The results showed that quality commitment and heritage-sincerity, which are subdimensions of CBBA, had a significant positive effect on CS. Additionally, both of them affected CS differently in the comparison of the global brands with the domestic ones. Furthermore, CS had a significant positive effect on BL, and AA had a negative effect on BL. Originality/value: This study deepens the insights into the effects of antecedents of CBBA on CS and BL, enhancing the research with quantitative analysis through two different product groups. The study provides important cues on which antecedents of CBBA help to strengthen the authenticity of brands of Turkish and global origin, and also differs in that it examines to what extent the effect of CBBA on CS and BL varies across global and domestic brands. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited

Tarımsal katma değer üzerinde hollanda hastalığı etkileri: Azerbaycan, kazakistan, kırgızistan ve özbekistan için bulgular

This study investigates the existence of Dutch disease with the role of oil rents on agricultural value added in selected Turkish Republics (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan) for the period from 1991 to 2013. For this purpose, we use ARDL bound test approach and the results show that there is a long-run relation-ship between oil rents and agricultural value added in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. In the short-run, it is concluded that agricultural value added is negatively affected by oilrents in Azerbaijan. On the other-hand, we concluded that agricultural value added is positively affected by oil rents in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Similarly, the negative effect of oil rents on agricultural value added exists only for Azerbaijan in the long-run. Therefore, the results concluded that Dutch disease is valid in Azerbaijan. Furthermore, the results show that the prosperities obtained from the natural resources are efficiency used in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, but the neutrality relationship exists between oil-rents and agricultural value added in Uzbekistan

Identification of some sweet cherry cultivars grown in Amasya by RAPD markers

Uludag University;Ataturk Central Horticultural Research Institute of Turkey;International Society for Horticultural Science;Turkish Society for Horticultural Science;Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey5th International Cherry Symposium --6 June 2005 through 10 June 2005 -- Bursa --In this study, 14 sweet cherry cultivars grown in Amasya were identified by RAPD (Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA) markers and the genetic relationships among the cultivars were determined. Twenty-one RAPD primers were screened and eleven primers produced useful amplification for PCR. A total of 68 bands (43 polymorphic) were obtained, with varied band size from 350 to 2800 bp. Using the 43 markers, a similarity index and dendogram were constructed, with the latter divided into two major groups. Thirteen of the sweet cherry cultivars were placed in the first group, while 'Honey Heart' was placed on the second group. Although '0900 Ziraat' was placed in the first group, genetically it was not very similar to others in that group; however, '0900 Ziraat' and 'Honey Heart' displayed a similarity of 50%. The highest similarity in the first group was for 'Haci Ali' and 'Camgöz'

Effect of prophylactic antibiotic use in the development of antibiotic resistance in children with recurrent urinary tract infections [Tekrarlayan idrar yolu enfeksiyonunda profilaktik amaçlı antibiyotik kullanımının çocuklarda antibiyotik direnç gelişimine etkisi]

Aim: Although prophylactic antibiotic treatment is still debatable, it is currently in use in recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs). In the present study, we aimed to observe if prophylactic antibiotic use had any effect on the development of antibiotic resistance in patients with recurrent UTIs who we followed up in our clinic. Methods: The present study was performed on patients aged between one month and 16 years, who had recurrent UTIs, and were followed up by the Department of Pediatrics at Bülent Ecevit University Medical School. Patient files were retrospectively reviewed, and 50 patients who received antibiotic prophylaxis and 100 patients without prophylaxis were enrolled in the study. Urinary tests, subsequent urinary culture results, and antibiotic resistances were compared between the groups. Results: The mean age was 42.7±44.2 months. The most frequently cultured isolated bacterium was Escherichia coli (E. coli) (58.4%). No difference was determined in bacteria in cultures between prophylaxis receivers and non-receivers. Isolation rate of E. coli was higher in urinary cultures in females than in males (p<0.001). When antibiotic resistance of all urinary culture-isolated bacteria was compared between the two groups, there was no statistically significant difference. However, an increased resistance against amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, ceftriaxone, and piperacillin was determined in prophylaxis group in whom E. coli was grown. In this study, general antibiotic resistance was most frequently observed against ampicillin (71.9%). Conclusion: In the present study, we observed that prophylaxis did not contribute so much to resistance other than E. coli. We recommend not preferring antibiotics which have increased resistance in our institution especially in children receiving prophylaxis for empirical treatment. © 2017 by The Medical Bulletin of University of Health Sciences Haseki Training and Research Hospital The Medical Bulletin of Haseki published by Galenos Yayınevi