Comparison of Clinical, Laboratory and Demographic Characteristics of Patients Diagnosed with COVID-19 as Symptomatic and Atypical Symptoms

Background: Clinical findings of COVID-19 have been observed with a wide spectrum ranging from asymptomatic disease and mild upper respiratory tract infection to severe viral pneumonia resulting in mortality. While clinical symptoms present in some COVID-19 patients, others have been incidentally identified. The objective of this study was to examine the clinical and laboratory features of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 who were symptomatic or had atypical symptoms and to make a contribution to the literature. Methods: Patients with the likelihood of having COVID-19 pneumonia were evaluated with RT-PCR samples, other laboratory tests, and chest computed tomography. Results: There were significant differences between these groups in terms of age, dyspnea, saturation, and comor-bidities including hypertension [HT] in 19 patients, cerebrovascular events [CVE] that were classified as other diseases in two patients (intracranial mass in one patient and Alzheimer's disease in one patient), and CRP and platelet counts (PLT) among the laboratory parameters (for all p < 0.05). Conclusions: Atypical symptoms have increased due to the progression of the outbreak. Infected people with atypical symptoms can act as sources of the infection. Therefore, the epidemiological history of these patients should be sought in detail, and individuals with atypical symptoms in society should be identified as soon as possible in order to control the spreading of the disease.WOS:0006521615000222-s2.0-85105768781PubMed: 3397836

Dynamics and control of HIV/AIDS in cyprus using real data

This article presents a mathematical model that studies the dynamics of HIV in North and South Cyprus. The global stability of the two equilibrium points involved are disease-free and endemic, and are performed using Lyapunov function. We have showed that the stability is dependent on the magnitude of the basic reproduction number R 0 . If R 0 &lt; 1, the disease free equilibrium point is globally asymptotically stable and the disease vanishes, whereas if R 0 ≥ 1, the endemic equilibrium point is globally asymptotically stable and epidemics will occur. Real data obtained from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ministry of Health is used to examine and predict the progress of HIV in North Cyprus, as well as comparing our results with South Cyprus using their published data. Reported HIV positive cases of only Turkish and Greek Cypriots were included from the data obtained from Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ministry of Health and South Cyprus data, respectively. The results showed that, the basic reproduction number of North and South Cyprus are 0.00012 and 0.00034 respectively; which are less than one; hence, this indicates that there is currently no epidemic in the country. Furthermore, the number of HIV positive individuals in North Cyprus is likely to increase by almost 50%, whereas for South Cyprus an increase of 100% of the initial value (of 2017) is estimated in the next 20 years. Thus, the authorities should take the necessary actions and strategic measures for controlling the spread of the disease. © 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland AG

A pilot study on the preventative potential of alpha-cyclodextrin and hydroxytyrosol against SARS-CoV-2 transmission

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE WORK: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is responsible for the current pandemics. This virus attacks the cells by binding to the transmembrane angiotensin I converting enzyme 2. In this study, we experimented a food supplement containing alpha-cyclodextrin and hydroxytyrosol for the improvement of the defenses against the SARS-CoV-2. Hydroxytyrosol has anti-viral properties and is able to reduce the serum lipids in mice. \u3b1-cyclodextrin has the ability to deplete sphingolipids and phospholipids from the cellular membranes. The aim of the present preliminary open non-controlled interventional study was to evaluate the efficacy of alpha-cyclodextrin and hydroxytyrosol in improving defenses against SARS-CoV-2. METHODS: Fifty healthy volunteers at a higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection from Northern Cyprus and six positive individuals for SARS-CoV-2 were enrolled in this study. The in silico prediction was performed using D3DOCKING to evaluate the interactions of hydroxytyrosol and alpha-cyclodextrin with proteins involved in the SARS-CoV-2 endocytosis. RESULTS: The 50 volunteers did not become positive in 15 days for SARS-CoV-2 after the administration of the compound for two weeks, despite they were at higher risk of infection than the general population. Interestingly, in the cohort of six positive patients, two patients were administered the spray and became negative after five days, despite the viral load was higher in the treated subjects than the untreated patients who became negative after ten days. In addition, we identified possible interactions among hydroxytyrosol and alpha-cyclodextrin with the protein Spike and the human proteins ACE2 and TMPRSS2. CONCLUSIONS: We reported on the results of the possible role of alpha-cyclodextrin and hydroxytyrosol in improving defenses against SARS-CoV-2. The next step will be the administration of the compound to a larger cohort in a controlled study to confirm the reduction of the infection rate of SARS-CoV-2 in the treated subjects

The factor structure of the Turkish version of the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R) in patients with diabetes and cardiovascular disease

Brzoska P, Yilmaz-Aslan Y, Sultanaglu E, Sultanaglu B, Razum O. The factor structure of the Turkish version of the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R) in patients with diabetes and cardiovascular disease. BMC Public Health. 2012;12(1): 852.Background The Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R) has been used extensively in the study of illness perceptions across different populations. Only few confirmatory factor analytic (CFA) studies of the questionnaire are available. This study examines the construct and discriminant validity of the Turkish IPQ-R in patients with diabetes and cardiovascular disease focusing on the hypothesized seven dimensions of personal controllability, treatment controllability, timeline acute/chronic, timeline cyclical, coherence, consequences and emotional representations. Methods 302 patients (60.6% women) with a medically confirmed diagnosis of diabetes or cardiovascular disease and a mean age of 53.9âÂÂyears were recruited from out-patient clinics in Turkey and surveyed by means of standardized interviews. Direct maximum likelihood confirmatory factor analysis was conducted. Results Several areas of ill-fit were identified in the original measurement model of the IPQ-R. Four items (items 17, 19, 20, and 31) were deleted because of poor factor loadings. Also, two error covariances (between items 33 and 34 and between items 7 and 8) were added and item 6 respecified to obtain a good model fit. The modified 34-item model showed good reliability and discriminant validity. Conclusion In accordance with studies on other language adaptations of the questionnaire, we identified certain items of the IPQ-R as potential sources of poor model fit. Their inclusion should be reconsidered in future applications of the questionnaire and researchers should examine whether our reduced set of items is stable across different populations. Our modified 34-item model showed a good reliability and discriminant validity and hence could be a valuable instrument in the assessment of illness perceptions in the Turkish health care setting, provided that the model is confirmed in subsequent research

In vitro and clinical studies on the efficacy of alpha-cyclodextrin and hydroxytyrosol against SARS-CoV-2 infection

OBJECTIVE: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a new coronavirus responsible for the current pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This virus attacks cells of the airway epithelium by binding transmembrane angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). Hydroxytyrosol has anti-viral properties. Alpha-cyclodextrin can deplete sphingolipids and phospholipids from cell membranes. The aim of the present experimental study was to evaluate the efficacy of alpha-cyclodextrin and hydroxytyrosol in improving defenses against SARS-CoV-2 infection in in vitro cell models and humans