Evaluation of symptomatic patients with resistant discharge

The aim of this study was to detect the presence of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria (N.) gonorrhoeae, Mycoplasma (M.) hominis, M. genitalium, Ureaplasma (U.) urealyticum, and Trichomonas (T.) vaginalis in patients with resistant discharge. The study also evaluated the concordance of the diagnostic tests. Samples from 156 patients were tested by direct microscopy and culture for T. vaginalis and Mycoplasma IES for M. hominis and U. urealyticum. Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was used to determine the presence of six agents. Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS program. Out of 156 patients, 38 had positive result for the agents tested. Of these 38 patients, 28 (73.7%) had single agent positivity and 10 (26.3%) had multiple agent positivity. The detection rate of U. urealyticum, M. hominis, N. gonorrhoeae, C. trachomatis, T. vaginalis, M. genitalium specifically was 10.3%, 9.6%, 6.4%, 3.2%, 2.6%, 0.6% respectively. N. gonorrhoeae and U. urealyticum were the most common in male patients, while M. hominis and U. urealyticum were mostly found in female patients. Different methods used for detecting T. vaginalis were compared to find that interrater reliability was perfect for culture-direct microscopy (κ:0.85; P&lt;0.001) and also for culture-PCR (κ:0.89; P&lt;0.001). The interrater reliability was moderate (κ:0.53; P&lt;0.001) for PCR-Mycoplasma IES test for M. hominis and fair (κ:0.21; P&lt;0.007) for U. urealyticum. U. urealyticum and M. hominis were among the most commonly found sexually transmitted infections (STI) agents in patients with resistant discharge. Multiple agent positivity was high and should be kept in mind in every STI case. </p

Complicated brucellar spondylodiscitis: experience from an endemic area

The demographical, clinical, and therapeutical features of patients with brucellar spondylodiscitis (BS) were evaluated in this study. Of the 96 patients with brucellosis, 20 (20.8 %) were diagnosed with spondylodiscitis. Patients who had BS were more likely to be older (p = 0.001), have higher erythrocyte sedimentation rates (p = 0.01), and more likely to be anemic (p = 0.017). Lumbar segment (18/20) was frequently involved region. BS was complicated with paravertebral or epidural abscess in seven, radiculitis in six, and psoas abscess in five of cases. Antibiotic regimens including two or three antibiotics with combination of doxycycline, rifampin, and streptomycin were used. In this series, the mean duration of antimicrobial therapy was 18 weeks (range 12-56 weeks). Attention is drawn to this disease given the need for prolonged duration of treatment especially in complicated cases in order to avoid possible sequelae

Investigation of Anti-Toxoplasma gondii Antibodies in Cats Using Sabin- Feldman Dye Test in Ankara in 2016

Amaç: Toksoplasmozis, zorunlu hücre içi protozoon olan Toxoplasma gondii’nin (T.gondii) etken olduğu, tüm dünyada yaygın görülebilen ve tüm vertebralıları tutabilen multisistemik bir hastalıktır. T. gondii için bilinen tek kesin konak Felidae ailesinin üyeleridir. Çalışmamızda Ankara’da kedilerde Sabin-Feldman Dye Testi (SFDT) ile anti-Toxoplasma gondii antikorlarının tespiti amaçlanmıştır. Aynı bölgede daha önceden yapılan çalışmalar ile karşılaştırmalar yapılarak Toxoplasmozun yayılımı açısından günümüzdeki durumun değerlendirilmesi hedeflenmiştir. Yöntemler: Çalışmamızda kullanılan Toxoplasma Rh suşunun idamesi laboratuvarımızda sağlanmaktadır. T.gondii tanımlanmasında kullanılan SFDT serolojik bir testtir ve altın standart olarak kabul edilmektedir. Çalışmanın materyali Mart 2016 - Ekim 2016 tarihleri arasında Ankara’da kliniklere müracaat eden kedilerden kan örnekleri alınarak sağlanmıştır. Kedilerden alınan kan örnekleri inaktive edilerek SFDT 1/4, 1/16, 1/64, 1/256, 1/1024 titrelerde çalışılmıştır. Bulgular: Toxoplasma gondii araştırması yapılan kedilerin 56’sında (%43,4) SFDT 1/16 titrede, 7’sinde (%5,4) 1/64 titrede, 23’ünde (%17,8) 1/256 titrede pozitif saptanırken, 43’ünde (%33,3) negatif çıkmıştır. Demografik bilgiler ile SFDT sonuçlarının karşılaştırılmasında; pozitif test sonuçlarının cinsiyet ve yaş ile ilişki göstermediği bulunmuştur (Sırasıyla P=0,803 ve P=0,991). Sokak kedilerinde ev kedilerine göre seropozitiflik fazladır (P<0,001). Sadece ticari kuru mama ile beslenen kedilerde test sonuçları negatiftir (P<0,001). Avlanan kedilerde pozitiflik avlanmayanlara göre fazladır (P<0,001). Sonuç: Bu çalışma ile kedilerin %66,6’sında seropozitiflik tespit edilmiştir ki halen oldukça yüksek bir orandır. Sonuçta, avlanan ve doğal beslenen sokak kedilerinde Toxoplasma açısından önlemlerin alınması halk sağlığı için bir zorunluluktur.Objective: Toxoplasmosis, in which obligate intracellular protozoa Toxoplasma gondii (T.gondii) is the causative organism, is a multisystemic disease that can be seen all over the world and can impair all vertebrates. the only hosts known for T.gondii are members of Felidae family. Our study aimed to determine anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies with Sabin-Feldman Dye Test (SFDT) in cats in Ankara. It’s aimed to evaluate the current situation in terms of Toxoplasmosis spread by comparing our findings with previous studies in the same region. Methods: Rh strain of Toxoplasma used in our study is maintained in our laboratory. SFDT is still accepted as the gold standard. Material of the study was obtained by taking blood samples from cats who were admitted to the clinics between March 2016 and October 2016 in Ankara. Blood samples were inactivated and measurements were done with SFDT 1/4, 1/16, 1/64, 1/256, 1/1024 titers. Results: SFDT resulted positive in 56 (43.4%) cats at a dilution of 1/16, in 7 (5.4%) cats at a dilution of 1/64, in 23 (17.8%) cats at a dilution of 1/256 and negative in 43 (33.3%) cats. Comparison of demographic data with SFDT results showed that positive test results did not differ according to gender and age (P=0.803 and P=0.991, respectively). Seropositivity was higher in stray cats than house cats (P<0.001). Test results were negative in the cats that fed only by commercial dry food (P<0.001). Positivity in hunter cats was more than in non-hunters (P<0.001). Conclusion: Seropositivity was detected in 66.6% of the cats, which was quite a high rate. As a result, taking precautions in terms of Toxoplasma for stray cats that are hunting and feeding naturally is a necessity for public health

Effect of Day and Night Desflurane Anaesthesia on Melatonin Levels in Rats

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of day and night administration of desflurane anaesthesia on melatonin levels in rats. METHODS: Twenty-four 15-day-old rats were included in the study and were divided into four groups. The rats were anaesthetised between 19:00–01:00 (night group) and 07:00–13:00 (day group) with 5.7% desflurane concentration in 6 L min(−1) 100% oxygen. 6 L min(−1) oxygen was administered to the control groups. At the end of 6 h of anaesthesia, blood samples were taken, and rats were sacrificed. Blood samples were centrifuged and melatonin levels from plasma samples were measured with radioimmunoassay. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant difference between the groups (p=0.007). Between group day control and group night control there was a statistically significant difference (p=0.042). Further, there was a significant difference between group day control and night desfluran as well (p=0.024). We could not find any difference between other groups. CONCLUSION: This study showed that 6 hours of 5.7% desflurane anaesthesia during day and night hours did not significantly change melatonin levels

Effect of Day and Night Desflurane Anaesthesia on Melatonin Levels in Rats

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of day and night administration of desflurane anaesthesia on melatonin levels in rats