Evaluation of serum zonulin level in prediabetic patients

Background. - This study aimed to investigate the relationship between lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and zonulin levels and also to show the effect of acute hyperglycemic stress induced by oral glucose tolerance testing (OGTT) on zonulin levels in pre-diabetic patients

Problematic Internet Use in Turkish High School Students: Prevalence and Related Factors

Objectives: In this study, we sought to determine the prevalence of problematic Internet use (PIU) among high school students and identify demographic and socioeconomic factors related to PIU. Methods: Using a cross-sectional design, we conducted this study between November 2017 and January 2018 of 1412 students attending high schools in the Silivri District of Istanbul in Turkey. We administered a questionnaire inquiring about sociodemographic information, Internet use, and Young's Internet Addiction Test to participating students. Results: Among participants, 18.5% (male = 17.2%; females = 19.8%) were found to show PIU. PIU rates were higher among those with a high household income and lower among those who studied in science high schools, performed physical activities at least 2 days a week, and read at least one book a month. PIU rates were also higher among those who had their own bedrooms, phones, smartphones, Internet connections at home, and social networking accounts. Conclusion: The prevalence of PIU among the participants was 18.5%. Female sex, high household income, low physical activity, grade level, school type, reading fewer than one book per month, and Internet use experience were risk factors for PIU. PIU is considered a significant public health concern across the world, including in Turkey

New Generation of Systemic Inflammatory Markers for Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection in Children

Aim: This study evaluated the relationship between the systemic immune–inflammatory index (SII), neutrophil–to–lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and platelet–to–lymphocyte ratio (PLR) with clinical findings of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection among children with a diagnosis of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). Methods: The study was conducted between 1 January 2020 and 1 January 2022 in a pediatric clinic. This retrospective study included 286 consecutive patients between 0 and 12 years of age, 138 of whom were RSV (+) (48.25%) and 148 of whom were RSV (−) (51.75%). The detection of the RSV antigen was carried out using the chromatographic immunoassay method on nasopharyngeal swabbing samples. Results: CRP content was significantly higher in patients with RSV (+) than in children with RSV (−), while NLR, PLR, and SII, as inflammatory parameters, were significantly lower. Fever, coughs, and wheezing were the most common symptoms in the RSV (+) groups (100%). RSV infections were the highest in November, October, and December, in that order. The AUC was statistically significant for parameters in all groups. AUC values were 0.841 (95%: 0.765–0.917) for leukocytes, 0.703 (95%: 0.618–0.788) for lymphocytes, 0.869 (95%: 0.800–0.937) for CRP, 0.706 (95%: 0.636–0.776) for NLR, 0.779 (95%: 0.722–0.836) for PLR, and 0.705 (95%: 0.633–0.776) for SII. CRP was found to have both high sensitivity (80.4%) and high specificity (82.4%) among all parameters. While the ROC analysis results showed similar results for children under two years old, only CRP and NLR were statistically significant in this group. Conclusion: CRP performed better than other blood parameters as a marker. The NLR, PLR, and SII index were significantly lower in LRTI patients with RSV (+) than in those with RSV (−), which implies a higher grade of inflammation. If the cause of the disease can be determined by this method, disease management will be easier, and unnecessary antibiotics could be avoided

Optimal anthropometric measures to predict incidence of coronary heart disease in adults in Turkey

Background. We aimed to identify the most suited anthropometric measure for the prediction of risk for incident coronary heart disease (CHD) among the Turkish population

The heat wave knowledge, awareness, practice and behavior scale: Scale development, validation and reliability.

Heat waves are extreme weather and climate events that threaten public health by increasing morbidity and mortality. To reduce the health effects of heat waves, it is necessary to increase the knowledge level of the public, conduct awareness and protection activities and monitor these activity outcomes. The present study aimed to develop and validate a Turkish language scale of heat wave knowledge, awareness, practice and behavior for Turkish nationality. After item generation and creating dimensions, content validity analysis was performed. To evaluate the validity and reliability of the knowledge construct, the difficulty index, discriminant index and Kuder Richardson 20 (KR20) were used. The validity and reliability of the awareness, practice and behavior constructs were evaluated with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, and Cronbach's alpha was used. The 15 items had a good difficulty, discrimination index and KR20 in the knowledge construct. The 14 items were yielded in EFA; 13 items were retained in CFA, and Cronbach's alpha values of 0.878, 0.768, 0.855, and 0.858 were obtained for total items, practice, awareness and behavior, respectively. Eventually, a Turkish language scale was developed that is reliable and valid for assessing heat wave knowledge, awareness, practice and behavior

Health-Related Quality of Life in Adults Over 45 Years: A Cross Sectional Study from Istanbul

WOS: 000448479200002Aim: In this study, we aimed to measure the quality of life of adults over 45 years old living in Silivri district of Istanbul and to show the relation with sociodemographic factors. Method: In this cross-sectional study, we collected the data from people over 45 years who live in Silivri district. In our study questions on demographic status were asked beside the 36 questions existing in the SF 36 forms. Results: A total of 705 individuals were interviewed: 597 males and 108 females, the mean age of 60.36 +/- 11.77 years. The physical function found to be statistically different was according to age we determined that there are statistically significant differences between males and females according to the scores of the health quality of life parameters (p<0.05). There was a significant difference present on bodily pain and physical function among the variables of quality of life according to the BMI classification (p<0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of our study, females living in Silivri district have significantly lower scores of the variables of SF 36

CirculatingmiR-155, let-7c,miR-21, andPTENlevels in differential diagnosis and prognosis of idiopathic granulomatous mastitis and breast cancer

This study investigates whether the circulating miR-155, let-7c, miR-21, and PTEN levels to be used in the differential diagnosis of patients with idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) and breast cancer (BC). Forty-five patients with BC, 50 patients with IGM, and 48 healthy volunteers were included in the study. Serum miR-21 expression was significantly higher in BC (fold change = 2.42) and IGM group (fold change = 1.33) compared to control (p < .001). Serum miR-155 and let-7c expression levels were significantly lower in both groups compared to the control group (p < .001). miR-21 expression in BC was significantly higher than IGM (fold change = 1.976;p < .001). PTEN levels in BC were significantly higher than IGM (p < .001) and significantly lower than the control group (p < .001); the IGM group was significantly lower than the control group (p < .001). In addition to radiological data, serum miR-21 and PTEN levels may be noninvasive biomarkers that can help differentiate IGM from BC. The results of the study will lead to future studies in the differential diagnosis of IGM and BC

Mapping of carbon monoxide related death risk in Turkey: a ten-year analysis based on news agency records

BackgroundCarbon-monoxide (CO) poisoning is a substantial cause of preventable mortality. In Turkey, no nationwide data are being collected nowadays. In our study, we aimed to assess the trend in deaths related to CO exposure in all provinces of Turkey in a 10-year period by using the records of a news agency which collects the news from the majority of the national newspapers, local newspapers and television channels.MethodsIn this study, 27,881 news items that were released between January 2008 to December 2017 which included keywords of poisoning and death or carbon monoxide and death were evaluated. 2667 non-fire related deaths were used in the final analyses.ResultsIn a 10-year period, the risk of CO-related death in Turkey was 0.35/100000. 1371 (51.4%) of the victims were male and the median age of the patients was 45years (range, 15days-108years). Most of the deaths occurred 50years of age. Stoves were the predominant source [n=2096 (78.6%)]. There was a stagnating trend of CO-related deaths. Most of the incidents occurred in winter. The Middle Anatolian region was of the highest risk in CO-related mortality.ConclusionsIn conclusion, CO poisoning is still a considerable public health concern in Turkey. Results of our study showed that stoves are still frequently being used and are the cause of death especially in rural areas with lower socioeconomic status. A better organized, nationwide surveillance and management approaches are needed to demonstrate the true burden CO related morbidity and mortality as well as its prevention in Turkey

Is malignancy associated with pericardial effusion fluid volume or fluid character?

© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLCIntroduction: Pericardial effusion develops due to different etiologies. The main goals of our study are to understand the etiology and determine whether the amount of pericardial effusion is significant in terms of malignancy. Material and Methods: 142 patients with pericardial effusion, who met the criteria between 1 January 2014 and 1 January 2019, were retrospectively analyzed. All of these patients underwent operation with the subxiphoidal approach. The fluid samples were sent to the microbiology and pathology laboratories for evaluation. Patients underwent follow-up after 1 month. Results: Of the patients included in this study, 72 (61%) of 118 patients were operated on under general anesthesia with a laryngeal mask, and 46 (39%) underwent sedation and local anesthesia. The etiologies found in patients were as follows: effusions resulting from malignancy in 27 (22.9%), idiopathic in 24 (20.3%), cardiac causes (depending on the use of anticoagulants or postoperation) in 22 (18.6%), uremia in 20 (16.9%), infection in 18 (15.3%), and heart failure in 7 patients. The amount of fluid drained from the patients was 661.61 ± 458.34 mL. Out of 27 patients with malignancy, 21 (77.8%) had drainage over 500 mL of effusion fluid, and 6 (22.2%) had drainage under 500 mL. Patients who had positive results tended to have drainage over 500 mL compared with patients who had negative results in terms of malignancy (P =.033). Conclusion: The subxiphoidal approach to pericardial effusion is an easily applicable operation, whether therapeutic or diagnostic. The advantages of the subxiphoidal approach include drainage of all of the fluid and ease of sampling the pericardial fluid. We believe that the amount of fluid drained can lead us to consider malignancy as an etiology