Nosocomial hepatitis C virus infection in a renal transplantation center

AbstractNosocomial hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections were recorded in the renal transplantation unit of the university hospital. There were cases of acute HCV infection with aggressive clinical courses diagnosed from a positive HCV RNA test in the early post-transplantation period and which remained anti-HCV negative. Their anti-HCV seronegativity was attributed to them having acquired HCV under intense immunosuppressive therapy and suggested that the aggressive clinical course could be due to the deficient immune response resulting in an inability to limit viral replication. There were also donors diagnosed as having acute HCV infection in the early post-operative period. Genotyping and sequence analysis for HCV were performed on the isolates of eight of these patients who were consecutively transplanted and of three donors whose recipients were infected with HCV prior to transplantation, and who acquired acute HCV infection after transplantation. Of the eight recipients in the first group three were genotype 1a, three were genotype 1b, one wasgenotype 3a, and the last one was genotype 4 according to Simmond's classification. Of the three donor-recipient couples both the HCV isolates from one couple were genotyped as 1b and the phylogenetic analysis indicated that the patients were infected with a common variant of HCV, but the genotypesof HCV isolates from the other couples were different. Recipients were genotype 1b and the donors were genotype 1a in these couples. Genotype results of the first group and donor-recipient couples, and sequence analysis of genotype 1b and 1a isolates, showed that the source of infection was not a unique strain and there were multiple breaks in universal precautions while managing these patients

Patients that are having Covid-19 Disease After the First Dose of Covid-Vaccine

There is no effective treatment for the Covid-19 disease that is still impacting the whole world. It considered that vaccines, one of the effective means to prevent infectious diseases, will play a significant role in protecting from the Covid-19 Disease. Vaccinations generals performed before exposure. We aimed to follow the clinical and laboratory progress of patients who got Covid-19 after the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine and to evaluate the changes that may occur in antibody formation. 13 patients, who received the first dose of COVID 19 vaccine Coronovac as of 14.01.2021 when vaccination started in Adıyaman University Training and Research Hospital/Turkey, who had symptoms after the vaccine and whose real-time PCR found to be positive, were included in the study. After the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, 13 patients exam. Three of our patients were female, and 10 of them were male. The average age was 38.8. British variant detected in 4 of our patients; 1 of them was female. Contact times differed between 3 and 5 days. The most common symptoms were muscle-joint pain (53.8), weakness-fatigue (46.2), fever (38.5), and headache (30.8). Three of our patients, being one female, received inpatient treatment. Furthermore, our five patients who checked regarding Sars cov-2 IgG became positive in the first month. No adverse changes in the course of the illness observed in the patients were RT-PCR positive after the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. Antibody response detected at the end of the first month.  Vaccination is an effective method for taking infectious diseases under control but adhering to personal protective measures still maintains their importance

A Study Related to Effects of the Brucellosis on Osteoporosis

Brucellosis is one of the infectious diseases that may increase osteoporosis risk. Bone formation and destruction markers analyzed in the examination of osteoporosis risk. There been many studies on the effect of a variety of diseases on the bone, but no studies have conducted for brucellosis. This study is one of the rare studies showing the effect of brucellosis on a bone. The purpose of this study is that whether age, agglutination level, having brucellosis at the time or before, and gender knowledge of patients have effects on osteoporosis by using bone formation and destruction markers. Between 01/04/2015 and 31/12/2017, blood samples were taken from 40 patients with brucellosis and seven patients whose treatment completed at least six months before. Then biochemical markers were studied on these blood samples. ELISA washer and reader (Biotek, Novatek, Istanbul, Turkey) was used to obtain the values of bone formation and destruction markers. There was a significant difference, according to H. Osteocalcin (Human Osteocalcin/Bone Gla Protein), in terms of bone formation markers and was higher in women. Having brucellosis at the time was significant according to Human deoxypyridinoline (DPD) and Human C-telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX-I) in terms of bone destruction markers and was higher in brucellosis. The bone formation and destruction markers strongly correlated with each other in the same direction. It is thought that brucellosis can increase bone destruction markers, especially DPD (Human deoxypyridinoline) and CTX-I; therefore, osteoporosis risk in brucella patients can reduce by implementing a treatment plan that closely monitors bone destruction markers

Identifying Clinical Characteristics of Hypoparathyroidism in Turkey: HIPOPARATURK-NET Study

Hypoparathyroidism is an orphan disease with ill-defined epidemiology that is subject to geographic variability. We conducted this study to assess the demographics, etiologic distribution, treatment patterns and complication frequency of patients with chronic hypoparathyroidism in Turkey. This is a retrospective, cross-sectional database study, with collaboration of 30 endocrinology centers located in 20 cities across seven geographical regions of Turkey. A total of 830 adults (mean age 49.6 ± 13.5 years; female 81.2%) with hypoparathyroidism (mean duration 9.7 ± 9.0 years) were included in the final analysis. Hypoparathyroidism was predominantly surgery-induced (n = 686, 82.6%). The insulting surgeries was carried out mostly due to benign causes in postsurgical group (SG) (n = 504, 73.5%) while patients in nonsurgical group (NSG) was most frequently classified as idiopathic (n = 103, 71.5%). The treatment was highly dependent on calcium salts (n = 771, 92.9%), calcitriol (n = 786, 94.7%) and to a lower extent cholecalciferol use (n = 635, 76.5%) while the rate of parathyroid hormone (n = 2, 0.2%) use was low. Serum calcium levels were most frequently kept in the normal range (sCa 8.5–10.5 mg/dL, n = 383, 46.1%) which might be higher than desired for this patient group. NSG had a lower mean plasma PTH concentration (6.42 ± 5.53 vs. 9.09 ± 7.08 ng/l, p < 0.0001), higher daily intake of elementary calcium (2038 ± 1214 vs. 1846 ± 1355 mg/day, p = 0.0193) and calcitriol (0.78 ± 0.39 vs. 0.69 ± 0.38 mcg/day, p = 0.0057), a higher rate of chronic renal disease (9.7% vs. 3.6%, p = 0.0017), epilepsy (6.3% vs. 1.6%, p = 0.0009), intracranial calcifications (11.8% vs. 7.3%, p < 0.0001) and cataracts (22.2% vs. 13.7%, p = 0.0096) compared to SG. In conclusion, postsurgical hypoparathyroidism is the dominant etiology of hypoparathyroidism in Turkey while the nonsurgical patients have a higher disease burden with greater need for medications and increased risk of complications than the postsurgical patients. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature

Serology-based approach in the clinical evaluation of neonatal viral eye diseases in kittens: calicivirus, herpesvirus and panleukopenia virus

This study aimed to examine the distribution of feline calicivirus (FCV), feline herpesvirus (FHV), and feline panleukopenia virus (FPLV), which cause neonatal feline viral diseases in kittens aged one to three months, using a Dot-ELISA bases antibody test kit. The studied parameters included the animals" sex, clinical signs and the Dot-ELISA test kit values. Twenty kittens had eye lesions and 20 were without eye lesions. Basic ophthalmologic examinations were performed, including pupil, corneal, palpebral and menace response reflexes, direct ophthalmoscopy, and fluorescein staining. The study population consisted of 40 kittens (25 female and 15 male); 3 of them are British shorthaired and the rest is 37 tabby kittens. In half of the 20 kittens with eye lesions, the lesions were bilateral and the most common clinical lesions were conjunctivitis, mucopurulent discharge, and blepharospasm. Other notable clinical findings were iris staphyloma, corneal opacity, symblepharon, and panophthalmitis. A higher rate of seropositive results was determined against Calicivirus in kittens. The severity and appearance of the cases could vary depending on the virus accompanying the lesions. In conclusion, the Feline Calicivirus was the most frequently detected virus in 1 to 3-month-old kittens in this study and the clinical presentation may change according to the accompanying virus titers

Diagnosis of invasive aspergillus tracheobronchitis facilitated by endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis is the most common form of infection by <it>Aspergillus species </it>among immunocompromised patients. Although this infection frequently involves the lung parenchyma, it is unusual to find it limited to the tracheobronchial tree, a condition known as invasive aspergillus tracheobronchitis.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 65 year-old Hispanic man from Bolivia with a history of chronic lymphocytic leukemia developed cough and malaise eight months after having an allogenic stem cell transplant. A computed tomography of the chest revealed an area of diffuse soft tissue thickening around the left main stem bronchus, which was intensely fluorodeoxyglucose-avid on positron emission tomography scanning. An initial bronchoscopic exam revealed circumferential narrowing of the entire left main stem bronchus with necrotic and friable material on the medial wall. Neither aspirates from this necrotic area nor bronchial washing were diagnostic. A second bronchoscopy with endobronchial ultrasound evidenced a soft tissue thickening on the medial aspect of the left main stem bronchus underlying the area of necrosis visible endoluminally. Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration performed in this area revealed multiple fungal elements suggestive of <it>Aspergillus species</it>.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We describe the first case of invasive aspergillus tracheobronchitis in which the diagnosis was facilitated by the use of endobronchial ultrasound guided trans-bronchial needle aspiration. To the best of our knowledge, we are also presenting the first positron emission tomography scan images of this condition in the literature. We cautiously suggest that endobronchial ultrasound imaging may be a useful tool to evaluate the degree of invasion and the involvement of vascular structures in these patients prior to bronchoscopic manipulation of the affected areas in an effort to avoid potentially fatal hemorrhage.</p