Differentiation of claustrum resting-state functional connectivity in healthy aging, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease

The claustrum is a sheet-like of telencephalic gray matter structure whose function is poorly understood. The claustrum is considered a multimodal computing network due to its reciprocal connections with almost all cortical areas as well as subcortical structures. Although the claustrum has been involved in several neurodegenerative diseases, specific changes in connections of the claustrum remain unclear in Alzheimer's disease (AD), and Parkinson's disease (PD). Resting-state fMRI and T1-weighted structural 3D images from healthy elderly (n = 15), AD (n = 16), and PD (n = 12) subjects were analyzed. Seed-based FC analysis was performed using CONN FC toolbox and T1-weighted images were analyzed with the Computational Anatomy Toolbox for voxel-based morphometry analysis. While we observed a decreased FC between the left claustrum and sensorimotor cortex, auditory association cortex, and cortical regions associated with social cognition in PD compared with the healthy control group (HC), no significant difference was found in alterations in the FC of both claustrum comparing the HC and AD groups. In the AD group, high FC of claustrum with regions of sensorimotor cortex and cortical regions related to cognitive control, including cingulate gyrus, supramarginal gyrus, and insular cortex were demonstrated. In addition, the structural results show significantly decreased volume in bilateral claustrum in AD and PD compared with HC. There were no significant differences in the claustrum volumes between PD and AD groups so the FC may offer more precise findings in distinguishing changes for claustrum in AD and PD

Measuring Medical Students’ Awareness of Rational Drug Use and Assessing Associated Factors

Aim: This study aimed to measure Selcuk University Medical Faculty (SUMF) students’ levels of awareness of rational drug use (RDU) in adults and to assess related factors. Material and Methods: The data for this descriptive, cross-sectional study derived from an online questionnaire completed by SUMF students; the questionnaire employed a sociodemographic survey form and the Rational Drug Use Scale. Statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS software, and a p-value of <.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Four hundred and forty-six students (51.1% women, 48.9% men) participated in this study. The results show that awareness of correct usage was higher in women than in men (p=.10) and that awareness of the correct drug (p=.03), correct usage (p=.02), and RDU (p=.07) was higher in post-clinical students than in preclinical students. Awareness of correct information (p=.08), the correct drug (p=.30), correct usage (p=.09), and RDU (p=.02) was higher in students who took RDU education than in those who did not. Awareness of correct information (p=.18), correct use (p=.20), and RDU (p=.15) was also higher in students who considered RDU education necessary than in those who did not. Conclusion: Irrational drug use has negative effects on the health sector and the economy. The results of this research indicate that students’ RDU awareness levels should be improved. To broaden awareness of RDU, practices such as lectures and seminars should be implemented in schools, and advertisements and programs that encourage unnecessary drug use should be limited in the media, such as the internet and TV

Real-world efficacy and safety of Ledipasvir plus Sofosbuvir and Ombitasvir/Paritaprevir/Ritonavir +/- Dasabuvir combination therapies for chronic hepatitis C: A Turkish experience

Background/Aims: This study aimed to evaluate the real-life efficacy and tolerability of direct-acting antiviral treatments for patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) with/without cirrhosis in the Turkish population.Material and Methods: A total of 4,352 patients with CHC from 36 different institutions in Turkey were enrolled. They received ledipasvir (LDV) and sofosbuvir (SOF)+/- ribavirin (RBV) ombitasvir/paritaprevir/ritonavir +/- dasabuvir (PrOD)+/- RBV for 12 or 24 weeks. Sustained virologic response (SVR) rates, factors affecting SVR, safety profile, and hepatocellular cancer (HCC) occurrence were analyzed.Results: SVR12 was achieved in 92.8% of the patients (4,040/4,352) according to intention-to-treat and in 98.3% of the patients (4,040/4,108) according to per-protocol analysis. The SVR12 rates were similar between the treatment regimens (97.2%-100%) and genotypes (95.6%-100%). Patients achieving SVR showed a significant decrease in the mean serum alanine transaminase (ALT) levels (50.90 +/- 54.60 U/L to 17.00 +/- 14.50 U/L) and model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) scores (7.51 +/- 4.54 to 7.32 +/- 3.40) (p<0.05). Of the patients, 2 were diagnosed with HCC during the treatment and 14 were diagnosed with HCC 37.0 +/- 16.0 weeks post-treatment. Higher initial MELD score (odds ratio [OR]: 1.92, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.22-2.38; p=0.023]), higher hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA levels (OR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.31-2.28; p=0.038), and higher serum ALT levels (OR: 1.38, 95% CI: 1.21-1.83; p=0.042) were associated with poor SVR12. The most common adverse events were fatigue (12.6%), pruritis (7.3%), increased serum ALT (4.7%) and bilirubin (3.8%) levels, and anemia (3.1%).Conclusion: LDV/SOF or PrOD +/- RBV were effective and tolerable treatments for patients with CHC and with or without advanced liver disease before and after liver transplantation. Although HCV eradication improves the liver function, there is a risk of developing HCC.Turkish Association for the Study of The Liver (TASL

A structural and resting-state functional connectivity investigation of the pulvinar in elderly individuals and Alzheimer's disease patients

In Alzheimer's disease (AD), structural and functional changes in the brain may give rise to disruption of specific cognitive functions. The aim of this study is to investigate the functional connectivity alterations in the pulvinar's subdivisions and total pulvinar voxel-based morphometry (VBM) changes in individuals with AD and healthy controls. A seed-based functional connectivity analysis was applied to the anterior, inferior, lateral, and medial pulvinar in each hemisphere. Furthermore, VBM analysis was carried out to compare gray matter (GM) volume differences in the pulvinar and thalamus between the two groups. Connectivity analysis revealed that the pulvinar subdivisions had decreased connectivity in individuals with AD. In addition, the pulvinar and thalamus in each hemisphere were significantly smaller in the AD group. The pulvinar may have a role in AD-related cognitive impairments and the intrinsic connectivity network changes and GM loss in pulvinar subdivisions suggest the cognitive deterioration occurring in those with AD. HighlightsThe pulvinar may play a role in pathophysiology of cognitive impairments in those with Alzheimer's disease (AD).Decreased structural volume and functional connectivity were found in patients with AD.The inferior pulvinar is functionally the most affected subdivision by AD compared to the others.Istanbul Medipol Universit

Torku Konyaspor’un tarihi

Ankara : İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent Üniversitesi İktisadi, İdari ve Sosyal Bilimler Fakültesi, Tarih Bölümü, 2016.This work is a student project of the The Department of History, Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences, İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent University.by Emiroğlu, Kudret

ÇALIŞANLARIN SESSİZLİK DAVRANIŞLARINDA KÜLTÜRÜN ETKİSİ: ATASÖZLERİ ÜZERİNDEN NİTEL BİR ANALİZ

Although ;quot;human being;quot; is a ;quot;value;quot; for organizations, mostly it has been seen as a production factor, an asset or with a common use as a resource. However, there has been a change in the perception of human being due to the changes in organizational and managerial aspects. The employees in work life are not mentioned as ;quot;resources;quot; who occupy a physical place but perceived as a ;quot;value;quot; who have emotions, opinions and thoughts. Organizations also have become aware of the value of human beings and begin to give importance to the employees' knowledge, thoughts, opinions and recommendations. Although, sharing of the knowledge, opinion, thought and recommendations of employees for organizations is important, sometimes employees fall into silence behavior. There are many different reasons for such a behavior of employees. The aim of this work is to examine the effects of culture on silence behavior and by taking the advantage of the proverbs the relationship of silence behavior with different aspects is going to be examined. In this study, the content analysis was conducted as a qualitative research method and document examination method was used as data collection method. The proverbs related with voice and silence behaviors, used as primary data were analyzed by four researchers in the basis of three different resources. As a result of this study, 24 different dimensions and 44 proverbs, which are related to silence behavior were found.Klasik yönetim anlayışı ile birlikte "İnsan", örgütlerin vazgeçilmez bir "kıymet"i olmasına rağmen çoğu zaman bir üretim faktörü, maddi bir varlık ya da yaygın kullanımıyla bir kaynak olarak görülmekteydi. Ancak örgütsel ve yönetsel açıdan yaşanan paradigmal dönüşümler insana atfedilen anlamlarda da bir dönüşümü tetiklemiştir. İş yaşamında çalışanlar, fiziki alan işgal eden bir "kaynak" olmaktan çıkarak, duygu, düşünce ve fikirleri olan bir "değer" olarak algılanmaya başlamıştır. Örgütler de insanın bu değerinin farkına varmış ve çalışanlarının bilgi, fikir, düşünce ve tavsiyelerine büyük önem vermeye başlamışlardır. Çalışanların kurumlarına ilişkin bilgi, fikir, düşünce ve tavsiyelerini paylaşmaları çok önemliyken bazen çalışanlar sessizlik davranışına bürünebilmektedirler. Çalışanların bu davranışlarının altında yatan farklı nedenler vardır. Nitekim bu çalışmanın amacı, kültürün sessizlik davranışı üzerindeki etkilerini incelemek ve bu çerçevede temel veri kaynağı olarak kültürün yayılımında bir araç olan atasözlerinden yararlanarak sessizlik davranışının ne ile ilişkilendirildiğini ortaya koymaktır. kaynak temelinde, dört farklı araştırmacı tarafından analiz edilmiştir. Çalışmanın sonucunda sessizlik davranışına ilişkin 44 atasözüne ve 24 farklı boyuta ulaşılmıştır

The Comparison of Open and Laparoscopic Appendectomy: Is There any Outcome Difference Between Non-Complicated and Complicated Appendicitis?

Objective: The assessment of laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) and open appendectomy (OA) in patients with noncomplicated (NCA) and complicated appendicitis (CA) was aimed for. Material and Methods: Of 279 patients with appendectomy, 135 had NCA (48.3%) (49 underwent LA) (86M, 49F, median 9 years and144 had CA (51.7%) (23 underwent LA) (98M, 46F, median 11 years). Outcome measures: Wound infection (WI), intraabdominal abscess (IA), postoperative ileus (PI), requirement of reoperation (RO), time of surgery (TOS), length of stay (LOS), duration of postoperative pain (PP), nasogastric tube (NT), intraperitoneal drainage (ID) were recorded.Results: Between OA and LA groups, there was no statistical significance in WI(3/86 vs 0/49), IA(2/86 vs 0/49), RO(2/86 vs 2/49), and PI rate (1/86 vs 2/49) in NCA group (p>0.05). The LOS(3±1.4 vs 4±1.3), NT (1.2±0.9 vs 1.8±0.6 days) and PP(0.9±0.9 vs 2.3±1.1 days) were lower in LA than OA (p0.05). In CA, patients with LA had less WI(0/23 vs 18/121) (p<0.05). NT (2±0.8 vs 2.7±1.5), PP (2.1±1.2 vs 3.2±1.5) and ID (3.1±2.3 vs 4.4±1.4) were lower in LA than OA (p<0.05).Conclusion: Laparoscopic appendectomy decreases wound infection, nasogastric tube duration, intraperitoneal drainage and pain in complicated appendicitis. The Laporoscopic approach is superior in complicated and noncomplicated appendicitis