What happens if you single out? An experiment

We present an experiment investigating the effects of singling out an individual on trust and trustworthiness. We find that (a) trustworthiness falls if there is a singled out subject; (b) non-singled out subjects discriminate against the singled out subject when they are not responsible of the distinct status of this person; (c) under a negative frame, the singled out subject returns significantly less; (d) under a positive frame, the singled out subject behaves bimodally, either selecting very low or very high return rates. Overall, singling out induces a negligible effect on trust but is potentially disruptive for trustworthiness

Which patients are able to adhere to tuberculosis treatment? A study in a rural area in the northwest part of Turkey

The purpose of this study was to investigate various factors, including demographical, socioeconomical, clinical and radiological features, of adherent and nonadherent patients with tuberculosis (TB) who were admitted to a university hospital between 1998 and 2003. One hundred and one patients (65.5%) and 53 patients (34.5%) met the criteria of adherence and nonadherence, respectively. A higher rate of adherence was observed among females than males (79.2 versus 58.4%, respectively, P = 0.012). Older patients were more nonadherent (P = 0.008). The adherence rate in non-smokers was significantly higher than that of smokers (81.4 and 52.4%, respectively, P = 0.000). Patients who underwent "family screening" were more adherent (75.7%) than those (39.5%) who did not (P = 0.000). Patients with pleurisy had higher adherence rates (81.3%), followed by patients with pulmonary TB (65.0%), while patients with extrarespiratory TB had the lowest adherence rates (45.5%) (P = 0.024). The presence of cough was significantly associated with adherence (P = 0.049). A significantly higher adherence rate was observed in patients without hemoptysis (P = 0.001). A univariate logistic regression confirmed that age, smoking, family screening, type of TB, cough and hemoptysis had significant independent effects on the adherence to treatment of TB. High-risk patients may be identified and interventions tailored to promote adherence before concluding that the patient is willfully refusing treatment

The effect of oxytocin treatment on the adult liver of streptozotocin (STZ) - Induced diabetic rats

Diabetes is a factor that causes hepatic damage. This experimental study has been designed to investigate possible therapeutical and protective effects of oxytocin in streptozotocin-(STZ) induced diabetes. Wistar albino rats used in this study were randomly divided into four groups: I) Control Group, II) STZ induced Diabetic Group (STZ Group), III) Diabetic Group with Pre-Oxytocin treatment (Pre-Oxytocin Group) and IV) Diabetic Group with Post-Oxytocin treatment (Post-Oxytocin Group). Rats with blood glucose levels of 200 mg/dL or higher were considered to be diabetic and included in the study. At the end of the 4th week, hepatic tissue samples were taken to be processed for light microscopy. Blood samples were determined for Malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH) and Advanced Oxidation Protein Products (AOPP) measurements. The histopathological damage score of hepatic tissue, which was significantly increased in the STZ group, was decreased by oxytocin treatment. According to biochemical data, MDA and AOPP levels were reduced, whereas GSH level was increased in oxytocin-treated groups when compared to STZ group. The present study demonstrates that oxytociri pretreatment reduced the degree of hepatic injury by providing a cellular protection against oxidative stress produced by STZ-induced diabetes mellitus

Cases

Aim. This study aimed to assess the long-term respiratory effects of tear gases among the subjects with history of frequent exposure. Materials and Methods. A questionnaire by NIOSH and pulmonary function tests was performed in 93 males exposed to the tear gases frequently and 55 nonexposed subjects. Results. The mean numbers of total exposure and last 2 years exposure were 8.4 +/- 6.4 times, 5.6 +/- 5.8 times, respectively. Tear gas exposed subjects were presented with a higher rate for cough and phlegm more than 3 months (24.7% versus 11.3%,P > 0.05). Mean FEV1/FVC and % predicted MMFR in smoker exposed subjects are significantly lower than those in smoker controls (81.7% versus 84.1%,P = 0.046 and 89.9% versus 109.6%,P = 0.0004, resp.). % predicted MMFR in nonsmoker exposed subjects is significantly lower than that in nonsmoker controls (99.4% versus 113.1%,P = 0.05). Odds ratios for chest tightness, exercise dyspnea, dyspnea on level ground, winter morning cough, phlegm, and daily phlegm were increased almost 2 to 2.5 folds among tear gas exposed subjects. Conclusion. The rates for respiratory complaints were high in the case of the exposure to the tear gases previously. Tears gas exposed subjects were found to be under the risk for chronic bronchitis