Radiological staging in neuroblastoma : computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging?

Purpose: To compare the effectiveness of computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the staging of neuroblastomas according to the International Neuroblastoma Risk Group Staging System (INRGSS). Material and methods: In this single-centre retrospective study we identified a total of 20 patients under the age of 18 years, who were admitted to our hospital with neuroblastoma between January 2005 and May 2018, and who had both CT and MRI examination. The INRGSS stages of tumours were evaluated by CT scan and MRI. Then, stages of tumours were described according to the INRGSS for CT and MRI, separately. The Spearman rank correlation test was used for statistical analysis. The p-value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: The median age was 11 months, and the age range was one month to nine years. In our results; both MRI and CT were significant in the determination of radiological staging of NBL, p < 0.001 and p = 0.002, respectively. MRI was superior to CT in radiological staging. MRI was also superior for the detection of intraspinal extension, involvement of multiple body compartments, metastatic disease, and bone marrow infiltration. CT was more useful to consider the relationship between tumours and vascular structures. Conclusions: MRI and CT have high diagnostic accuracy rates in the staging of pre-treatment neuroblastomas. MRI is important in pre-treatment evaluation of neuroblastomas because of the higher detection of metastases as well as the lack of ionising radiation

Učinki mlete granulirane plavžne žlindre na indeksne in zbijalne parametre glinenih tal

The use of industrial wastes in soil stabilization not only provides for the re-use of waste materials, which may cause environmental pollution, but also leads to cost benefits. In this context, the use of industrial wastes in the stabilization of fine-grained soils has become a research topic in recent years. The aim of this study is to evaluate the potential use of granulated blast-furnace slag (GBFS) in clayey soil stabilization. In this study, the GBFS obtained from the Iskenderun iron-steel plant as an industrial waste was ground into two different fineness levels, and the effects of their incorporation into low-plasticity Kolsuz clay and high-plasticity bentonite clay in various rates (5%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 50%) on the particle weight of unit volume, the consistency limits, and the compaction parameters are investigated. Based on the experimental results, it is clear that the GBFS has a positive effect on the stabilization of both clayey soils. It was also concluded that the improvement in bentonite clay is greater than that in Kolsuz clay. Thus, GBFS seems to be a promising material for the stabilization of clayey soils.Uporaba industrijskih odpadkov pri stabilizaciji tal ne zagotavlja samo ponovne uporabe odpadkov, ki lahko povzročajo onesnaževanje okolja, ampak tudi finančne koristi. Zaradi tega je postala uporaba industrijskih odpadkov pri stabilizaciji drobnozrnatih tal predmet raziskav zadnjih let. Namen te študije je oceniti potencialno uporabo mlete granulirane plavžne žlindre (MGPŽ) za stabilizacijo glinenih tal. V študiji je bil MGPŽ, pridobljen kot industrijski odpadek železarne in jeklarne Iskendurun, zmlet v dve različni velikosti. Raziskovali smo učinke mešanja te žlindre v slabo gnetljivo Kolsuz glino in dobro gnetljivo bentonitno glino v različnih razmerjih (5%, 10%, 20%, 30%, in 50%) na prostorninsko težo, konsistenčne meje in zbijalne parametre. Eksperimentalni rezultati so pokazali, da ima MGPŽ pozitiven učinek na stabilizacijo obeh vrst glinenih tal. Prav tako lahko zaključimo, da je izboljšanje v bentonitni glini večje kot v Kolsuz glini. Zaradi tega je MGPŽ obetaven material za stabilizacijo glinenih tal

In vitro Fertilization and Childhood Cancers: Review

Assisted fertilization techniques (AFT) are commonly used in the treatment of infertility. Although there are many reports on the short term outcomes of these techniques such as perinatal mortality, multiple pregnancy, low bin weight and congenital maformations, data on long term effects are limited. Cancers of the childhood are relatively rare with unknown etiology. Because of their onset early in life, exposure to environmental factors either in utero or after birth may be less determining than the cancers developing in adults. Theoretically, assisted fertilization techniques might lead to carcinogenetic alterations. In vitro fertilization has the potential to alter oocyte and embryonic cell physiology and change gene expression in the embriyo. Repeated exposure to hormonal effects, alterations in gene expression and epigenetic modifications are reported to play a potential role in the association between cancers of the childhood and assisted fertilization techniques. Childhood cancers developing in children born after assisted fertilization techniques have been reported in the literature. Although a high risk has been reported for the development of childhood cancers in children born after assisted fertilization techniques has been reported in some case control studies, there are contradictory results reporting no increase in this risk. Cohort studies demonstrate no difference in the incidence of childhood cancers in children born after assisted fertilization techniques and after natural pregnancy. Although the results of the cohort studies are more reliable and stronger than the results of case reports and case control studies, it should be kept in mind that follow-up periods and number of control cases might not be sufficient to draw reliable conclusions. Thus, cohort studies with longer follow-up periods and greater number of participants are mandatory. Assisted reproductive techniques are commonly used in our country, and multicenter cohort studies need to he planned in order to evaluate the risk of cancer development in children born with the assistance of these techniques

Secondary Cancers

Secondary cancer refers to a new primary cancer that is caused by previous cancer treatment, or a new primary cancer in a person with a history of cancer. Because of the improvement of diagnosis and treatment for childhood and adult cancers have improved over several decades, the proportion of cancer survivors within the general population increases every years. The prolongation of survival in increasing numbers of patients, identification and quantification of the late effects of cancer and its therapy have become critical. One of the most serious events experienced by cancer survivors is the diagnosis of a new cancer. Childhood and adult cancer survivors have an increased risk of developing second and subsequent cancers that varies by host factors (genetics, immune function, hormonal status); primary cancer therapy; environmental exposures; and lifestyle factors. An improved understanding of therapy-related second malignancies can guide alterations in regimens to minimize cytotoxic treatment exposure. Besides effective screening methods and preventive strategies should be developed to risk for second primary cancers

Angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma: case report and review of the literature

Angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma is a rare soft tissue tumor of uncertain differentiation and low metastatic potential, which occurs predominantly in children and young adults. It occurs mostly within the extremities, trunk, head and neck. It can be associated with systemic manifestations such as anemia, pyrexia and malaise. Its morphology is distinct, with an outer shell of lymphoid tissue, sheets of dendritic-like tumor cells with bland nuclei and blood-filled cystic cavities. Herein, we present a case of angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma with systemic symptoms before any mass was clinically detectable, arising in the scalp of a 10-year-old girl

Isolated Hemihyperplasia in an Infant: An Overlooked Sign for Wilms Tumor Development

Background: Children with overgrowth syndromes including isolated hemihyperplasia have an increased risk for developing embryonal tumors, particularly Wilms’ tumor and hepatoblastoma. Screening with sonography has been suggested as a method of identifying these tumors while they are still at an early stage. Case Presentation: We describe an infant diagnosed with Wilms tumor in whom isolated hemihyperplasia had been overlooked by several physicians prior to the tumor diagnosis. Conclusion: We recommend tumor surveillance for all patients with Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome and isolated hemihyperplasia at least for the first six years of life since full molecular characterization of every patient is not readily available

PREDICTION OF THE COMPACTION PARAMETERS FOR COARSE-GRAINED SOILS WITH FINES CONTENT BY MLR AND GEP

WOS: 000332263000004The determination of the compaction parameters of soils, the maximum dry unit weight (gamma(dmax)) and the optimum water content (w(opt)), at various compaction energy (E) levels is an important process. The aim of this study is to develop correlations in order to estimate the compaction parameters dependent on the compaction energy for coarse-grained soils with various fines contents on which limited studies exist in the literature. Genetic Expression Programming (GEP) and Multi Linear Regression (MLR) analyses are used in the derivation of the correlations for the prediction of gamma(dmax) and w(opt) obtained from Standard Proctor (SP) and Modified Proctor (MP) tests with the index properties of coarse-grained soils with various fines contents. To develop the models, a total of 86 data sets collected from university laboratories in Turkey and six parameters, such as gravel content (G %), sand content (S %), fines content (FC %), liquid limit (w(L) %) and plasticity index (I-P %) of fines content and compaction energy (E Joule), are used. The performance of the models is comprehensively examined using several statistical verification tools. The results revealed that the GEP and MLR models are fairly promising approaches for the prediction of the maximum dry unit weight and the optimum water content of cohesionless soils with various fines contents at SP and MP compaction energy levels. The proposed correlations are reasonable ways to estimate the compaction parameters for the preliminary design of a project where there are financial and time limitations

Napoved parametrov komprimiranja grobo zrnatih zemljin z vsebnostjo drobnih delcev z uporabo MLR in GEP

The determination of the compaction parameters of soils, the maximum dry unit weight (γdmax) and the optimum water content (wopt), at various compaction energy (E) levels is an important process. The aim of this study is to develop correlations in order to estimate the compaction parameters dependent on the compaction energy for coarse-grained soils with various fines contents on which limited studies exist in the literature. Genetic Expression Programming (GEP) and Multi Linear Regression (MLR) analyses are used in the derivation of the correlations for the prediction of γdmax and wopt obtained from Standard Proctor (SP) and Modified Proctor (MP) tests with the index properties of coarse-grained soils with various fines contents. To develop the models, a total of 86 data sets collected from university laboratories in Turkey and six parameters, such as gravel content (G %), sand content (S %), fines content (FC %), liquid limit (wL %) and plasticity index (IP %) of fines content and compaction energy (E Joule), are used. The performance of the models is comprehensively examined using several statistical verification tools. The results revealed that the GEP and MLR models are fairly promising approaches for the prediction of the maximum dry unit weight and the optimum water content of cohesionless soils with various fines contents at SP and MP compaction energy levels. The proposed correlations are reasonable ways to estimate the compaction parameters for the preliminary design of a project where there are financial and time limitations.Določitev parametrov komprimiranja zemljin, največje suhe prostorninske mase (γdmax) in optimalne vlažnosti (wopt) pri različni energiji stiskanja (E) je pomemben proces. Cilj te študije je razviti korelacije za ocenitev parametrov komprimacije v odvisnosti od energije stiskanja grobo zrnatih zemljin z različno vsebino drobnih delcev, o čemer obstaja v literaturi le malo študij. Za izpeljavo korelacij za napovedovanje γdmax in wopt, ki so pridobljeni s standardnimi (SP) in modificiranimi (MP) Proctorjevimi preizkusi z indeksnimi lastnostmi grobo zrnatih zemljin z različno vsebnostjo drobnih delcev, sta uporabljeni genetsko programiranje (GEP) in multi-linearna regresivna analiza (MLR). Za razvoj modelov je uporabljenih 86 nizov podatkov, ki so dobiljeni v univerzitetnih laboratorijih v Turčiji, in šest parametrov, kot so vsebnost gramoza (G %), vsebnosti peska (S %), vsebnost drobnih delcev (FC %), mejo židkosti (wL %) in indeks plastičnosti (IP %) finih delcev ter energijo stiskanja (E Joule). Uspešnost modelov je temeljito preučena z različnimi statističnimi orodji za preverjanje. Rezultati so pokazali, da so modeli GEP in MLR precej uporabni za napovedovanje največje suhe prostorninske mase in optimalne vlažnosti nekoherentnih zemljin z različno vsebnostjo drobnih delcev pri energiji stiskanja s SP in MP. Predlagane korelacije so dober način za ocenitev parametrov stiskanja, ko načrtujemo projekte, ki so finančno in časovno omejeni

Severe central nervous and respiratory system depression after sedation with chloral hydrate: a case report

Chloral hydrate is generally considered a safe sedative-hypnotic drug, and is commonly used for sedation of infants and young children before diagnostic procedures. Even chloral hydrate administered within the recommended maximal dose limits can cause serious morbidity and mortality. Here the authors describe a four-month-old girl with a life-threatening central nervous system and respiratory depression after administration of a therapeutic dose of chloral hydrate. The patient gradually recovered with supportive treatment including ventilation therapy