Is thyroid autoimmunity itself associated with psychological well-being in euthyroid Hashimoto’s thyroiditis?

Recent studies imply that euthyroid Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) might be related with impaired HRQoL, depression and anxiety. Ninety three patients with euthyroid HT and 31 age- and gender-matched euthyroid control subjects were enrolled into this study. SF-36 questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory tests were used for evaluating HRQoL, depression and anxiety. Beck Depression Inventory scores were higher in patients with HT compared to control subjects (7.5 (4.0-14.75) vs. 5.0 (2.25-9.0), p=0.008). Beck Anxiety Questionnaire scores were also higher in patients with HT than controls (9.50 (5.0-17.0) vs. 5.0 (2.0-11.75), p=0.021). In SF-36 questionnaire; physical functioning (26.0 (20.0-28.0) vs. 29.0 (26.0-30.0), p=0.038), general health (16.4 (13.4-20.4) vs. 19.4 (16.3-21.2), p=0.026) and mental health (20.5 (16.0-23.0) vs. 23.0 (21.0-25.0), p=0.001) scores were lower in patients with HT than control subjects. There were no significant differences between patients with HT under levothyroxine replacement therapy compared to those without therapy in terms of depression and anxiety scores and components of SF-36 questionnaire. Beck Depression Inventory scores were positively correlated with TSH (r=0.250, p=0.01). In SF-36, role physical (r=0.192, p<0.05) and vitality (r=0.181, p<0.05) were positively correlated with fT4. Role emotional was negatively correlated with TSH (r=-0.185, p<0.05) and anti-TPO (r=-0.234, p<0.05). Mental health was negatively correlated with anti-TPO (r=-0.287, p<0.01). HRQoL is impaired and depression and anxiety scores are high in patients with euthyroid HT independent of levothyroxine replacement. Therefore, our results indicate that thyroid autoimmunity itself may have an impact on psychological well-being in euthyroid patients with HT

Effect of Hypophosphatemia on Weaning Success From Mechanical Ventilation

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Evaluation of Laser Treatment on Reline-Base Composites

The effects of different laser treatments on some mechanical properties of acrylic resin and soft liner were investigated. A total of 60 test specimens were fabricated according to test requirements. The specimens were roughened with Potassium-ticanyl-Phosphate (KTP), Er:YAG, and Nd:YAG lasers before application of soft liner. The flexural, peel, and tensile bond strengths were measured using a universal testing machine. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) spectra of surfaces were also obtained to evaluate changes on the lased surfaces. No significant difference was apparent between the tensile bond strength values of the groups. Although peel strength values obtained for each of the laser types were lower than those of the control group, flexural strength values were higher than those of the control specimens. The spectra of specimens showed that lasing led to some chemical changes on the resin surfaces. Physical changes on the treated surfaces were visualized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. Results of this study suggest that such treatments may be warranted because of the increase in flexural strength