Influence of birth cohort, age and period on suicide mortality rate in Turkey, 1983-2013

Objective: This study is designed to evaluate the potential effects of age, period and cohort (APC) on trends in suicide between 1983 and 2013 in Turkey. Methods: Mortality data were obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute. The data were grouped into seven age groups, four periods and ten birth cohorts. A nonlinear regression model was estimated for both sexes. The effects of age, period and cohort were parameterized using natural spline smoothing functions. Results: There were 61,795 deaths recorded as suicides during the investigated time period, where 64.5% occurred in males (n = 39,862) and 35.5% in females (n = 21,933). There is an upward trend in mortality by age until the end of the study period for males and females. Age effect is decreased until the forties, kept decreasing during the middle ages, and sharply increased after the sixties. The death rates for females declined from 1999 until the end of the study period. For males, the death rates increased until the end of the study period. Conclusion: If the current trends continue, it can be expected that these effects will continue to reduce female mortality and increase male mortality. Future studies on suicide, strongly focused on specific factors attributed to period effects, are needed in Turkey. © National Institute of Public Health, Prague 2019

Evaluation of Hypertension-Related Mortality in Turkey (2000-2014)

Objective: Hypertension continues to be the leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality worldwide. The purpose of the present study was to analyze the long-term trends of hypertension mortality in Turkey between 2000 and 2014 (for males and females). Methods: Analyses were based on hypertension mortality data obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute death database. Age-standardized mortality rates were calculated using direct standardization for each calendar year. We estimated the age-adjusted linear trend for annual percent change and average annual percent change (AAPC) with the corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) using the joinpoint regression analysis. Furthermore, we conducted an age-period-cohort analysis to quantify recent time trends and to evaluate the significance of cohort and period effects. Results: During the study period, a significant upward trend in the mortality of hypertension in Turkey is observed (AAPC=2.7%, 95% CI 1.9%-3.4%). The trend of hypertension mortality has increased in both males (AAPC=7.4%, 95% CI 3.0%-11.9%) and females (AAPC=8.7%, 95% CI 4.1%-13.5%). We found that the net drift rateswere 2.1% (95% CI 0.6%-3.6%) per year for males and 2.0% (95% CI 0.4%-3.7%) per year for females. According to longitudinal age curves, the mortality of hypertension increased with age in both males and females. The period and cohort effects are highly significant in both males and females. Conclusion: Hypertension is one of the leading causes of mortality causing CVD. Knowing the risk factors and preventive methods could help to reduce hypertension-related mortalities

Lise Öğrencilerinde Fiziksel Şikâyetler İnternet Bağımlılığı Belirtisi Olabilir mi?

Background: The aim of this study is to measure the level of internet addiction among high school adolescents and to determine the relationshipbetween their time spent on the internet and the back and neck pain and eye health problems they experience.Methods: The study is a simplecross-sectional descriptive study. 8926 high school students participated in the study. Students were selected by cluster sampling method pursuantto their gender, school type, and grade distributions. Young's short internet addiction test (IAT) that was adapted to Turkish was utilized. Results:The average internet addiction score of the students was 26.88 ± 8.80. While the ratio of students with a high risk of addiction was 44.3%(n=3950), the ratio of those, who were addicted, was 15.7% (n=1400). A significant positive correlation was found between the addiction leveland the lower back, neck pain and eye disorders. (p<0.001; p<0.001; p<0.001) The smartphone possession rate of students was 96.4% (n=8606).There was a significant positive correlation between having a smartphone and the level of addiction, neck pain, and eye complaints. (p=0.005;p=0.002; p=0.003, respectively)The ratio of students, who have a computer at home, was 79.8% (n=7122). Eye complaints were found to besignificantly higher in those, who had a computer at home (p<0.001).Conclusion: Internet addiction is an important and common problem amongadolescents. Internet addiction increases, as the age of adolescents increases. Smartphones are the most important risk factor for the spread ofinternet addiction. Internet addiction leads to muscle-joint pain, and eye-related symptoms.Giriş: Bu çalışmanın amacı lise çağındaki adelosanlarda internet bağımlılık düzeyini ölçmek, internette bulunma süresi ile bel, boyun ağrıları ve göz sağlığı problemleri arasındaki ilişkiyi belirlemektir. Yöntem: Çalışma basit kesitsel tanımlayıcı bir çalışmadır. Çalışmaya 8926 lise öğrencisi katıldı. Öğrenciler cinsiyetlerine, okudukları okul tipi ve sınıf dağılımlarına göre küme örnekleme yöntemiyle seçildi. Türkçeye uyarlanmış Young’un kısa internet bağımlılık ölçeği (IAT) kullanıldı. Bulgular: Çalışmaya katılan öğrencilerin yaş ortalaması 15,71±1,14 idi (min=14, maks=18). Öğrencilerin ortalama internet bağımlılık puanı 26,88±8,80’di (min=12, maks=60). Bağımlılık riski yüksek olan öğrencilerin oranı %44,3 (n=3950) iken bağımlı olanların oranı %15,7’di (n=1400). Bağımlılık düzeyi ile bel, boyun ağrısı ve göz rahatsızlıkları arasında anlamlı pozitif ilişki tespit edildi (p<0,001; p<0,001; p<0,001). Öğrencilerin akıllı telefon sahibi olma oranı ise %96,4’tü (n=8606). Akıllı telefon sahibi olmakla bağımlılık düzeyi, boyun ağrısı ve gözlerdeki şikâyetler arasında anlamlı bir pozitif ilişki saptandı (sırasıyla p=0,005; p=0,002; p=0,003). Çalışmada evinde bilgisayar bulunan öğrencilerin oranı %79,8’di (n=7122). Evinde bilgisayar olanlarda gözlerdeki şikâyetlerin anlamlı olarak daha yüksek olduğu tespit edildi (p<0,001). Sonuç: Adelosanlarda internet bağımlılığı önemli ve yaygın bir sorundur. Adelosan yaşı arttıkça internet bağımlılığı da artmaktadır. Adolesanlar arasında çok yaygın kullanım oranı olan akıllı telefonlar internet bağımlılığının yaygınlaşması için en önemli risk faktörüdür. İnternet bağımlılığı kas-eklem ağrıları ve göz ile ilgili semptomlara sebep olmaktadır. Muayene sırasında bu ilişki de dikkate alınmalıdı

A Long View of Shareholder Power: From the Antebellum Corporation to the Twenty-First Century

For most of the twentieth century, the conventional wisdom held—probably correctly—that shareholders in America’s large, public corporations were passive and powerless and that managers wielded the real power. Beginning in the 1980s, however, shareholders in the form of institutional investors started to push for a greater say in corporate decision-making. In the twenty-first century, hedge funds have upped the ante, fighting for major changes in corporations whose shares they own. Once-imperial CEOs have now become embattled as they fight, but often lose, against activist shareholders demanding policy changes, new dividends, board representation, and even the sale or break-up of corporations. In short, things have changed. This Article situates the present-day rise of shareholder power by taking a long view of the previous two centuries, moving beyond traditional accounts to reach all the way back to the beginnings of the American business corporation in the early nineteenth century, then following the story of shareholder power up to the present day. Its long view reveals the complicated and shifting nature of shareholder power, documenting how periods of greater shareholder power were interspersed with periods where shareholders had little power, how the focus of shareholder power has moved from controlling shareholders to autonomous managers, and how shareholder power has ebbed and flowed across the last two centuries. This Article not only provides the backstory to present-day developments, but also suggests that what has appeared as a hallmark of American corporate capitalism—the relative powerlessness of shareholders—may only have been typical of a few decades in the middle of the twentieth century.\u3c.p\u3

Antibiotic resistance profiles of enteric cacteria isolated from Kucukcekmece Lagoon (Istanbul-Turkey)

Sivri, Nuket/0000-0002-4269-5950; SANDALLI, Cemal/0000-0002-1298-3687WOS: 000314625500019The aim of this study is to find out the density of the fecal bacteria and to analyze resistance to antimicrobials of Gram negative bacilli isolated from the Kucukcekmece Lagoon, Istanbul. Samples were taken monthly from June 2006 to June 2008 and a total of 232 Gram negative bacilli were isolated. Chloramphenicol, tetracycline, nalidixic acid, ampicillin, imipenem, ceftazidime, amikacin, streptomycin and amoxicillin + clavulanic acid were used in antimicrobial susceptibility tests. Susceptibility to trimethoprim + sulfamethoxazole was also examined in only integron-bearing organisms. the antibiotic resistance tests resulted in bacteria being the most resistant against ampicillin (76.29%) and the most sensitive against amikacin (93.56%). of 232 isolates, 20 (8.6%) coliforms harbored class 1 and/or class 2 integrons. DNA sequencing showed that variable regions of the integrons harbored various gene cassettes; dfrA12, dfrA15, dfrA17, aadA1, aadA2, aadA5, b/a(OXA-30) and sat2. Integrons were found in bacteria from all sampling areas except 12 and D3. in this study, the determination of bacterial identification of the species of Gram negative bacilli and their Antibiotic Resistance Profiles in the Kucukcekmece Lagoon for the first time was investigated. A finding indicates that there is a heavy fecal pollution in this lagoon environment, which might probably be resulted from the intensive anthropogenic facilities. the risk to public health could be the transfer of antibiotic resistance determinants from the bacterial isolates to normal microbiota bacteria of humans unless the effective precautions such as water treatment plants are taken.Research Fund of the University of IstanbulIstanbul University [BAP-543/05052006]; TUBITAKTurkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [105Y116]This work was supported by the Research Fund of the University of Istanbul (Project Number : BAP-543/05052006) and the TUBITAK (Project Number : 105Y116)

Hsa-miR-584-5p as a novel candidate biomarker in Turkish men with severe coronary artery disease

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is still the preliminary cause of mortality and morbidity in the developed world. Identification of novel predictive and therapeutic biomarkers is crucial for accurate diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of the CAD. The aim of this study was to detect novel candidate miRNA biomarker that may be used in the management of CAD. We performed miRNA profiling in whole blood samples of angiographically confirmed Turkish men with CAD and non-CAD controls with insignificant coronary stenosis. Validation of microarray results was performed by qRT-PCR in a larger cohort of 62 samples. We subsequently assessed the diagnostic value of the miRNA and correlations of miRNA with clinical parameters. miRNA-target identification and network analyses were conducted by Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) software. Hsa-miR-584-5p was one of the top significantly dysregulated miRNA observed in miRNA microarray. Men-specific down-regulation (p = 0.040) of hsa-miR-584-5p was confirmed by qRT-PCR. ROC curve analysis highlighted the potential diagnostic value of hsa-miR-584-5p with a power area under the curve (AUC) of 0.714 and 0.643 in men and in total sample, respectively. The expression levels of hsa-miR-584-5p showed inverse correlation with stenosis and Gensini scores. IPA revealed CDH13 as the only CAD related predicted target for the miRNA with biological evidence of its involvement in CAD. This study suggests that hsa-miR-584-5p, known to be tumor suppressor miRNA, as a candidate biomarker for CAD and highlighted its putative role in the CAD pathogenesis. The validation of results in larger samples incorporating functional studies warrant further research

The Notion of Uniqueness within the Context of Creation in Ahmed Avni Konuk’s Commentary of Fuṣûṣü’l-ḥikem

The concept of individuality is a concept that contains the entire logic of the truth of creation/existence. The last chapter of Muhyiddîn Ibn al-'Arabî's Fusūs al-hikam, one of the most fundamental works of Sufi history and thought, devoted to the Prophet Muhammad, explains that Muhammadan wisdom is the wisdom of "individuality". While the Creator-creature relationship that emerges with creation is seen as a dual communication process, as Ibn al-'Arabī expresses it with the word pairs Hak-halk, Rab-sul, or kadîm-hâdis, the Prophet Muhammad, who is the perfection of being, the "true" human being, and to whom the wisdom of individuality has been made unique, unites the duality of the Creator and the created as the third element and makes the Truth fully manifest. When the Being that is revealed through creation is considered within the framework of the concept of individuality, it is seen that the source and target of this "becoming" is the human being, who is the human being who is the embodiment of the Truthfulness of Muhammadiyya. Thus, the goal of creation is realized through individuality through the human being, in whom existence finds its perfection

Sosyal Bilgiler Dersine İlişkin Özyeterlik Düzeyinin Başarıya Etkisinin Sınıf ve Cinsiyete Göre İncelenmesi: Erzurum İli Örneği

This study aims to examine the effect of self efficacy level beliefs about Social Studies lesson of 6th and 7th grades primary education on the success according to class level and gender variables. In order to determine the effect of self-efficacy beliefs of 6th and 7th grade primary education students on school success according to class level and gender. To collect the data, 25 item- 5 point Likert scale developed by the researchers was used and its reliability and validity studies were completed. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the scale items was found to be 0,95. The data obtained was analyzed by using the statistical analysis software SPSS 11.0. The subjects of the study consisted of 740 students in 14 primary school in Erzurum, central district. In the result of the research in the Social Studies lesson, according to class level variable, on the go from 6th grade to 7th grade a decline in the self-efficacy level of the students was found. In terms of gender as a variable, no significant change between the self efficacy mean points of the boys and girls. On the other side, the regression analysis showed that the self efficacy points are influential predictor variable for the success in the Social Studies lesson.Bu çalışmanın amacı, ilköğretim 6. ve 7. sınıf Sosyal Bilgiler dersi özyeterlik inancının okul başarısı üzerine etkisini, sınıf düzeyi ve cinsiyet değişkenine göre incelemektir. İlköğretim 6. ve 7. sınıf Sosyal Bilgiler özyeterlik inancının okul başarısı üzerine etkisini sınıf düzeyi ve cinsiyet değişkenine göre belirlemek amacıyla araştırmacılar tarafından geliştirilen güvenirlik ve geçerlilik çalışmaları yapılmış, 25 maddeden oluşan 5’li Likert tipi ölçek kullanılmıştır. Ölçekte yer alan maddelerin iç tutarlık katsayısı (Cronbach Alfa) 0,95 olarak hesaplanmıştır. Veriler istatistik paket programı ve MS Excel kullanılarak analiz edilmiştir. Araştırma, Erzurum İli merkez ilçedeki 14 ilköğretim okulunda bulunan 740 öğrenci üzerinde gerçekleştirilmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda Sosyal Bilgiler dersinde sınıf düzeyi değişkenine göre 6. sınıftan 7. sınıfa gidildikçe öğrencilerin özyeterlik düzeylerinde azalma olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Cinsiyet değişkeni ele alındığında ise kız ve erkek öğrencilerin özyeterlik ortalama puanları arasında manidar bir farkın olmadığı tespit edilmiştir. Diğer yandan regresyon analizi sonuçları, özyeterlik puanlarının Sosyal Bilgiler dersindeki başarı için güçlü bir yordayıcı olduğunu göstermektedir