Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in subjects with different stages of periodontitis according to the new classification

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a multifunctional cytokine that regulates inflammatory responses in various autoimmune and inflammatory disorders. Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) for GM-CSF, interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), and macrophage inflammatory protein-1 alpha (MIP-1α) levels in patients with stage I, stage II, stage III, and stage IV periodontitis (SI-P, SII-P, SIII-P, and SIV-P). Methodology: A total of 126 individuals were recruited for this study, including 21 periodontal healthy (PH), 21 gingivitis (G), 21 SI-P, 21 SII-P, 21 SIII-P, and 21 SIV-P patients. Plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), presence of bleeding on probing (BOP), probing depth (PD), and attachment loss (AL) were used during the clinical periodontal assessment. GCF samples were obtained and analyzed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: GCF GM-CSF, MIP-1α, and IL-1β were significantly higher in SII-P and SIII-P groups than in PH, G, and SI-P groups (p<0.05). There was no significant difference among the PH, G, and SI-P groups in IL-1β, GM-CSF, and MIP-1α levels (p>0.05). Conclusions: These results show that GM-CSF expression was increased in SII-P, SIII-P, and SIV-P. Furthermore, GM-CSF levels may have some potential to discriminate between early and advanced stages of periodontitis

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Comparison of COVID-19 Relevant Knowledge and Attitudes of Clinical and Preclinical Dental Students in Turkey

Background/Aim: Dental care settings invariably carry the risk of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection because dental practice involves face-to-face communication with patients and the generation of large amounts of aerosol and droplets mixed with patients’ saliva. Since droplet and aerosol transmission are the most important concerns in dental clinics, informing future dentists about pandemic diseases at the undergraduate stage is important. In this context, the aim of this study was to compare the knowledge and attitudes of clinical and preclinical dental students regarding the COVID-19 pandemic

Can microsomal RNA be a biomarker in pulmonary hypertension secondary to bronchopulmonary dysplasia?

Aims: In long-term follow-up, pulmonary hypertension (PHT) may develop in these patients with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). Microsomal RNAs (miRNAs) are a class of noncoding single-strand RNAs. It was shown that miRNA dysregulation contributes to PHT. Up until now, miRNA levels have not been studied in BPD to detect PHT. The main aim of this study is: miRNAs play role in PHT etiopathogenesis in BPD. They can be used as a feasible biomarker for early detection and follow-up of PHT in children with BPD. Methods: The study included infants who were admitted to the Neonatology Clinic. In all subjects, transthoracic echocardiography was performed by the same pediatric cardiologist. Expression of 25 miRNAs was studied from peripheral blood samples at the time of diagnosis. Results: Patients were categorized according to whether they have PHT and BPD. Group 1 included 21 infants who had both BPD and PHT. Group 2 had 17 infants who were diagnosed as BPD but had no PHT. Group 3 was a control group and had 21 infants who did not have BPD and PHT. Significant differences in the expression of 19 of 25 miRNAs were detected. Fifteen of these were in group 1. Conclusions: Pulmonary hypertension is a disorder developing due to environmental and genetic reasons, in which the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. The genes controlled by miRNAs found to be related to PH in our study may have a role in PHT. In the future, it could be possible to establish novel approaches that may contribute to early diagnosis and treatment of PHT by focusing target genes of miRNA found to be related in this study