Placental prostate-specific antigen content in preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a multisystem disorder that can manifest clinically with hypertension and proteinuria. Previous studies reported the presence of placental PSA in normal pregnancy but no study has been done in preeclampsia. The aim of this study was to investigate PSA content in preeclampsia. Preeclampsia was diagnosed according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists criteria. Placentas were obtained from 33 preeclamptic and 34 normotensive women. Placenta samples were homogenized and the supernatants were immediately analyzed. The tissue PSA content was measured by Immulite 2000 PSA assay. The data were analyzed with Student's t-test and Pearson correlation test. There was a significant difference in placental PSA content between preeclamptic and normotensive women. Placental content of PSA was higher in the preeclamptic group with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) than in the preeclamptic and normotensive pregnant without IUGR groups. No significant difference was found in this respect between preeclamptic and normotensive women without IUGR. In conclusion, we found that placental PSA content is elevated in preeclampsia and negatively correlated with infant birth weight. Further studies will be necessary to define the roles of PSA more precisely and to examine its effects on the pathophysiology of preeclampsia

More than an Uterotonic Agent: Oxytocin Prevents Peritoneal Adhesion

WOS: 000374312100011Prevention of postoperative adhesions (PPA) has become an important issue. The aim is to investigate the effect of Oxytocin (OT) on PPAs. A total of thirty female Wistar-albino rats were randomly divided into three groups (10 rats/group). The cecal peritone of Group I rats (controls) were scraped, to trigger adhesion formation, and no treatment were given. After cecal scrubbing, 1 mL saline solution was applied to each rat in Group II (i.p. saline treated group) and 80 IU/kg of OT (Pituisan (R), Ege Vet, Turkey) to Group III (i.p. OT treated group) intraperitoneally. All animals were sacrificed 10 days after surgery and adhesions graded in terms of severity and histopathologic characteristics. The median scores for the extent, severity, and degree of adhesions in Group I and Group II were statistically significant and considerably higher than those scores for Group III (P<0.001). The inflammation, neovascularization, and fibrosis scores for Group III were statistically significant and considerably lower than those scores for Groups I and II (P<0.001, P<0.001 and P=0.002 respectively). OT, significantly prevented adhesion formation improving wound healing possibly by suppressing adhesion formation with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. OT may be useful in the prevention of PPA in humans

Prevalence of Childhood Affective disorders in Turkey: An epidemiological study

Aim: To determine the prevalence of affective disorders in Turkey among a representative sample of Turkish population. Methods: This study was conducted as a part of the "The Epidemiology of Childhood Psychopathology in Turkey" (EPICPAT-T) Study, which was designed by the Turkish Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health. The inclusion criterion was being a student between the second and fourth grades in the schools assigned as study centers. The assessment tools used were the K-SADS-PL, and a sociodemographic form that was designed by the authors. Impairment was assessed via a 3 point-Likert type scale independently rated by a parent and a teacher. Results: A total of 5842 participants were included in the analyses. The prevalence of affective disorders was 2.5 % without considering impairment and 1.6 % when impairment was taken into account. In our sample, the diagnosis of bipolar disorder was lacking, thus depressive disorders constituted all the cases. Among depressive disorders with impairment, major depressive disorder (MDD) (prevalence of 1.06%) was the most common, followed by dysthymia (prevalence of 0.2%), adjustment disorder with depressive features (prevalence of 0.17%), and depressive disorder-NOS (prevalence of 0.14%). There were no statistically significant gender differences for depression. Maternal psychopathology and paternal physical illness were predictors of affective disorders with pervasive impairment. Conclusion: MDD was the most common depressive disorder among Turkish children in this nationwide epidemiological study. This highlights the severe nature of depression and the importance of early interventions. Populations with maternal psychopathology and paternal physical illness may be the most appropriate targets for interventions to prevent and treat depression in children and adolescents